Saturday -- 12th Day Of The Government Shutdown; GOP Ready To Cave; EU Facing Continent-Wide Blackouts

Active rigs: 184 (steady)

The Wall Street Journal

Despite drawing another line in the sand ("I will not negotiate"), The WSJ is reporting: "President Barack Obama began working aggressively with House and Senate Republicans to shape a deal to raise the debt ceiling and fully reopen the federal government."

The other day, the MDW opined that no one in government knows exactly what day the government will run out of cash. Today, The WSJ reports: "There are legitimate reasons to quibble over the date of any U.S. fiscal calamity. Treasury has cited the time when the government is no longer able to borrow. But that is very different from running out of cash entirely. And that date remains elusive."

Yup, here it is, as predicted. Europe is on the verge of a historic energy meltdown due to misplaced priorities. The WSJ is reporting: "The chief executives of 10 energy companies called for an end to European subsidies to wind and solar power, saying the mechanisms have led to whopping bills and could cause continent-wide blackouts."

For investors only, "A new generation of popular master-limited-partnership funds hopes to skirt unfavorable tax treatment—but investors should be careful."

Also, for investor's only, there is a nice story about risks of betting on price of crude via the US Oil Fund. "But now, not only are oil prices cooling, the curve is shifting again. In early September, the front-month contract traded almost $3 a barrel higher than the third-month. Today, that premium is down to about 20 cents, and the curve could start sloping upward again soon. USO investors should be aware of how hard a climb that presents."

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