Tuesday Morning Links

MUST READS
Europe signs up to German-led fiscal pact – Reuters
EU Nears Greek Confrontation Amid Fiscal Pact – Bloomberg
European Politicians in Denial as Greece Unravels – Spiegel
Ferguson: Okay, I Admit It – Krugman Was Right – Business Insider
Regulators’ warnings about financial crisis were ignored – McClatchy
Freddie Mac Bets Against American Homeowners – ProPublica
Off Base Charges About Freddie Mac’s Mortgage “Bets” – Naked Capitalism
Freddie Mac gets paid to obstruct refinancings – Salmon, Reuters
Obama to help find job for unemployed engineer – MarketWatch
A few policies I expect soon – Calculated Risk
The Price of Growth – Chris Martenson
Book Review: Currency Wars – Mises

MARKETS/INVESTING
Oil above $100 on Europe’s austerity move, Iran – AP
Gold back in vogue, posts biggest gain since Aug – Reuters
WARNING: Stocks May Be About To Collapse – Business Insider
Short China: Its commodities bubble is set to pop – MarketWatch
Refineries close – no relief in rising gas prices – LA Times
2011 Investment Mea Culpas – The Big Picture
Investing for the cheap-money era – MSN Money
Gold Is The Hottest Currency In The World – Forbes
Spring Festival sparks a ‘gold rush’ in China – China Daily
World’s first Yuan gold ETF launched – Commodity Online

ECONOMY/WORLD/HOUSING/BANKING
Economics from the Ground Up – Mises
Why Is Unemployment Duration So Long? – FRBSF
The Bernanke Fed Is Killing the Economic Patient – RCM
Euro zone jobless hits highest level since birth of euro – Reuters
Wen: Property Curbs to Stay, Reiterates Fine-Tuning – Bloomberg
More quantitative easing likely after fall in money supply – Guardian
Japan Doubling Sales Tax Not Enough to Conquer Debt Woes – Bloomberg
Why a New Refinance Program Faces Long Odds – WSJ
US Treasury Forcing Mortgage Principal Forgiveness – CNBC
The Fed’s Rain Dance at the Bottom of the Stair – Testosterone Pit
A list: Experts who want to break up the big banks – RepoWatch
Bank or no bank? – inet