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Features of the week

We've got some great news and interview features for you this Friday. Lot of interesting market-related tidbits here, so let's dive right in.

1. Jim Rogers speaks with CNBC and Maria Bartiromo about the economy, commodities, and the recent worldwide market drop.

2. Noted international investor, Rudolph-Riad Younes chats with Maria about his outlook for investments and opportunities across the globe, and offers some observations on the importance of the upcoming French elections.

3. Marc Faber sits down with Bloomberg for an interesting interview segment. Lots of ground covered here, and I was pleased to hear Marc go into some detail on the issue of Thailand and his investment outlook for that country, so be sure to check this out.

4. The Economist recently took on the topic of tax havens, or "offshore financial centers", and their importance in the world economy. See their online article, "Places in the sun", for an introduction to their coverage of this issue, and the author's view of why tax havens are good for the global financial system.

Note: You may also be interested to hear the brief audio interview with the author, Joanne Ramos.

5. Harry Schultz, editor of the HSL report and one of the deans of the investment-newsletter business, is highly distressed about the future we seem to have carved out for ourselves.

Courtesy of M.A. Nystrom and HSL, "A Warning from Harry Schultz".

6. Jan Morris, writing for The Guardian, wonders what it will take for the US to right itself and return to its former greatness. I was especially interested in some of the comments to this editorial.

7. An article relevant to the week now ending. From The Economist, "Rethinking Risk".

8. "Goldman, Merrill Almost `Junk,' Their Own Traders Say". From Bloomberg.com.

9. In a world of apparent oil scarcity, some investors are bullish on shares of oil drillers.

10. Stratfor's George Friedman on, "China's Engineered Drop". Courtesy of Stratfor and John Mauldin's "Outside The Box" e-letter.

11. Warren Buffett seeks an investment protege. Also, Berkshire Hathaway's 2006 Chairman's Letter to Shareholders is now posted.

Read, think, and enjoy.

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