their advice is go out and spend. It's a little more complicated than that. And you know what, dumbasses with 3 maxed out credit cards should stop fcuking going deeper into debt.
Counterpointer,
re: Institutional Ownership question
Basically median IO in 1980 was less than 10% and is probably above 60% today. Any thoughts on that?
Anony - bit of a shame that Simon Johnson wasn't listened to at the IMF. By, oooh, let's think, maybe Gordon Brown the longserving Chair of the IMFC Ministerial Committee.
Link says, "Upgrade you Flash player." I wish that the producers would refrain from using the "Latest Version," just for the sake of the latest version.
EHP $- as in, Mgt being beneficial owners? I'm not clear in my own mind about this, but I think there's a quantum / proportionality issue which cuts to RM functions and internal governance, but also a short/long issue which may be even more compelling. This was touched on in terms of the incentive set identified about Banque AIG and the whining that was carried today on Clusterstock. The cosier the club, and the shorter term redemption possibilities of ownership, the greater incetive for risk and abandonment of the long-term viability of the firm.
Leaving aside the perverse incentives of a decade of lax enforcement of fraud and securities violations, natch.
We will restore the plains' grasslands.
We will restore the buffalo.
We will provide campgrounds and cookouts.
Vote!
We will restore the plains!
Imagine seas of grass waving in the wind;
Great herds of buffalo feeding, as far as the eye can see.
You will always live well at the Buffalo Party's campgrounds.
The whole House of Representatives is available in 2010.
In 2010, two-thirds of the senate is available.
In 2012, the presidency and a two-thirds senate majority is available.
In 2014, the people shall have completely regained their government.
The cookouts and campgrounds on the plains are an interim measure to deal with the staggering unemployment that will befall us as a nation. As we solidify our gains in the legislative and executive branches, you can rest assured that the people will govern, that there will be meaningful work at a living wage for all the people.
If you're an international conglomeration trying to act rationally to maximize profit for your shareholders (taking account of the short, medium and long-term) and you have a choice of currencies, looking for the most stable, you'd want exposure to a basket of all extant currencies weighted simply according to current and expected float discounted by your best estimate of risk, right?
Risk assessment would start with an average of as many formulas as you could understand, weighted by your best guess on accuracy according to historical performance.
Then you try to factor in politics, history, climate and a billion other intangibles. So I assume a multibillion dollar outfit would have two or three small groups of full-time economists, sharing information but working separately, just to hedge currency risk. Is this how it's done?
You are beginning to smell like astroturf, almost to the point of smelling exactly like daily bail/sexy derivative/aka whatever other handles he uses to pump himself.
You are more tiresome than Jas AND unlike Jas, you have nothing to back your tirades up with other than loon sites. I suggest that you google your new heroine Maxine "dirrrrrty" Waters and OneUnited Bank and learn what your dirrrrty Congress heroine might have actually meant with her GS tirade....yeah, she just might have been pissed that her dirrrrrty bank wasn't going to be able to hit the taxpayer gravy train in the PPIP program.
So, please tell me, are you a tool or are you astroturf? I'm just dying to know.
You're either completely uninformed or you're astroturf.
Either way, I'd love for you to explain to me how a school teacher, elected to Congress from a very poor district, raised her net worth from middle class to multimillionaire status, 'cuz you know, I'd love to lift myself out of the middle class too.
Lest there be any misunderstanding: the cookouts and campgrounds will be available in perpetuity, for the homeless, the disaffected, the tired, and the unemployed.
and who, precisely, will 'ride herd' over such a disperate agglomeration? Not to rain on your parade, but the 'disaffected' alone comprise personality types too numerous to mention. Do you think they will magically be restored to sanity once out in the great wide open? You're kidding yourself if you think anything like what you are suggesting is a viable alternative to what we already have. And further, what will you 'cook out'? Buffalo? And the 'campgrounds'. What about sanitation? The Plains Indians were nomadic, for two reasons. 1) they exhausted the local game supply, and 2) they polluted the area in which they currently lived to such an extent,, that it took a few seasons for nature to restore itself. That is, unless they weren't being driven off by more powerful warriors. And remember, this was all with their children at their feet. Are you seriously suggesting anything similar? I don't think I've heard anything more hare-brained than this.
I'm with Anon on this Buffalo stuff. Currently reading a book written by a woman - name withheld - along with her brother whom I've been researching about since say late '86. [yeah yeah yeah my great American novel /self-snark off] She wrote a book based her personal account of the Klondike gold rush. Put some of those characters from her book in a suit and they'd be right at home on Wall St. The environment and fellow brotherhood didn't seem to ennoble them anymore back then say an Ivy League education does today...
"When truth amuses because it has become a valve of relief to the everyday parade of lies and falsehood, man has fully descended into chaos"
..unknown mystic 1293 A.D.
r
Counterpointer
Well I look at the institutional ownership in a few ways.
- It's been increasing at a healthy clip since 1980. It can't go above 100%, or below 0%. It seems to have noticeably increased across the board in the last quarter when stocks fell.
- The increasing IO reflects people, mainly in concert with the boomer generation, investing their savings in stocks. Pension and mutual funds would be the main conduits for that.
Then the question is what will happen to it? Continue on trend and have 100% median IO of equities by 2020. Plateau somewhere in the 60-70% range. Or the most likely over the medium to long term option, in my belief, is decrease (to what levels I do not know, depends on how the change comes about)
IO has ramifications for governance, availability of stocks to borrow for shorting, availability for covered options to be written, higher volumes of trading because of their lower costs.
But perhaps the high level of IO is a signal that retirement contributions going towards the stock market has peaked. That would be a self-serving interpretation to support my belief that post-crisis, bonds are valued above equities with an identical dividend yield (pre-1958 is retro, and everything retro must become cool eventually)
If IO keeps increasing, we'll probably end up with a wackier stock market... a lot like the Nikkei, and if the recent declines aren't enough to break investor faith then perhaps that will
r
Mark Barrett, a professional tour guide, spent last Saturday painting Barack Obama’s election catchphrase “yes we can” on a banner that protesters will carry as they try to occupy London’s financial district April 1.
Barrett is helping organize a protest outside the Bank of England, one of several called to express anger against banks and bankers and mark the arrival in London of leaders of the Group of 20 nations -- including Obama, now president.
“We want a very English revolution,” he says from a café near his home in north London. “The first English revolution in 1649 was about winning sovereignty for parliament over the king.” Now, protesters are campaigning for sovereignty for everyone. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601110&sid=axkutzTIxnzA
Drag those bastards out of the temple and give'em a beat down.
You guaranteeing 100% pure buffalo meat or is there some soylent green?"
We will restore the grasslands of the plains!
That will be the buffalo's food, as it was before.
Join us! Vote! Run for office on behalf of the people!
r
The acting director of the agency that regulates thrifts was placed on leave pending a review of actions related to backdating of capital at some institutions last year, the agency said on Thursday. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner appointed John Bowman, deputy director and chief counsel, as acting director effective immediately, the Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) said.
<tt>The OTS is a unit of the Treasury Department.</tt>
<tt>Bowman replaces Scott Polakoff who was named acting director when John Reich, a former community banker hired by President George W. Bush, retired as director at the end of February.</tt>
<tt>Polakoff "is on leave pending a review by the Department of the Treasury of the OTS's August 2008 actions related to post-period capital contributions," the agency said in a statement.</tt> http://www.iii.co.uk/news/?type=afxnews&articleid=7240335&action=article
We intend to create The Free University of America. We will endow it with the means to beggar the Ivy League's elite schools, and their presumption of privelege. Graduates of The Free University of Amercia will form the backbone of congressional staffs and the civil service.
Political appointments will be a thing of the past. In the future, career State Department employees can aspire to becoming Secretary of State; career Treasury employees can aspire to becoming Secretary of Treasury.
We will fundamentally change America. The people and their true representatives will govern. No longer will the people be governed by banksters, pharmaceutical CEOs, and insurance company executives.
VOTE !!!!
Support the Buffalo Party's canidates! Retake the government that belongs to you, the people.
Meruelo Maddux Files for Bankruptcy to Restructure (Update1)
<div id="pe">By Karen Gullo</div>
March 26 (Bloomberg) -- Meruelo Maddux Properties Inc., the biggest private landowner in downtown Los Angeles, is filing for bankruptcy protection after experiencing cash shortfalls because of the credit crunch and real estate downturn, the company said.
The company and several of its units have filed or will file Chapter 11 petitions to reorganize to restructure debt, Meruelo Maddux said today in a statement distributed by PRNewswire. The firm said March 11 that it was “likely in default” on 26 loans totaling $266 million. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601110&sid=ala_b6kSbOFE
"Its all baloney." What, that assuming that, if your premise is correct, 39% are liars? Have you seen the study about the number of people who told pollsters they went to church last sunday vs. the numbers of those who actually show up?
If your govenor is in the Blagojevich realm of popularity, I can see that as reasonable.
I bet you all didn't know this but Timothy Geithner... He's actually T-1000 from Terminator Two come from the future to destroy our world or save it or something...
A living wage values all work and ensures that a worker can support himself or herself on the income of one job. Supporting oneself doesn't mean a castle on the hill; it means that the worker can be housed, in a healthy environment, can see a doctor or dentist, can see a movie, can save for a rainy day. What labor is not worth that?
Hoomama, I see blood in the bond market. Goog "Skeptics AFFCO 1987" for an abattoir video with associated raucus noise. For some reason I'm shut out of my account at the moment through nannysoft on the new laptop.
The CR Party supports the use of !ignore.<br/>What does that mean?<br/>It's not a form of "censorship".<br/>!ignore allows the use of people to express their thoughts and protecting our own sensibilities.
mp says:
“"...if we are to prevent a true depression, we're running out of time."
http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200905/imf-advice
Ooof, bubblicious.
"From 1973 to 1985, the financial sector never earned more than 16 percent of domestic corporate profits. In 1986, that figure reached 19 percent. In the 1990s, it oscillated between 21 percent and 30 percent, higher than it had ever been in the postwar period. This decade, it reached 41 percent."
Astounding that 2/5th of our economy was bullshit. One of those stats like Cali home going for 13X incomes that telegraph disaster.
I'm not sure I agree with the two outcomes envisoned, Japan or Global Meltdown. Seems that there should be an alternative that I did not see proposed.
So my big question for the day: Will C get the check from Brazil in time for the quarterly results....me thinks not...this bank may be living hand to mouth..
The Buffalo Party supports the People's Revolution.
We are merely a unifying force, a banner that will be waved on the path to the People's preeminence.
We are a big tent. Our candidates come from many walks of life, but share an interest in restoring governance to the people. Would you rather be governed by banksters, big pharma CEOs and insurance company executives? If so, vote as you alway have. If not, vote for the Buffalo Party's candidates.
Blackhalo, couple threads ago you stated florida would have beat utah easily..I disagree..they run the same spread offense the Meyer put in before leaving to florida and thier defense was extremely effective in shutting down Alabama in their backyard.
That cream puff schedule included a oregon state team that beat the best team in the nation last year..
USC was the best team in college football last 3 years..east coast bias and press writers keep them out of championship because they eat the sec, big 10 and big 12 up..no team can match up physically, watch the nfl draft to see why...10-12 in first 3 rounds easily after 10 last year...
florida lost at home to mississippi..and the sec schedule is as soft as a babies butt....
Barley,
You think a Brazilian dollars will make a difference? (and are you talking about a payment related to Citi's latin america sovereign lending heyday?)
The two sides are clearly defined. On one side Nouriel Roubini who says some banks will be nationalized and that the stock market will drop further and that house prices will also drop. On the other side Mark Mobius and Barton Biggs who think a "new bull market" is starting. Roubini calls it a "bear trap." So where will you put your money. MINE IS ON ROUBINI. He rocks.
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<div class="js-singleCommentText" style="padding-top: 4px; font-size: 12px;">The two sides are clearly defined. On one side Nouriel Roubini who says some banks will be nationalized and that the stock market will drop further and that house prices will also drop. On the other side Mark Mobius and Barton Biggs who think a "new bull market" is starting. Roubini calls it a "bear trap." So where will you put your money. MINE IS ON ROUBINI. He rocks.</i></div>
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<div class="js-singleCommentText" style="padding-top: 4px; font-size: 12px;">My money is increasingly moving to the sideline. I still own QLD, DDM, UCO but with pretty tight stops. Sold FCX... not sure that was the right thing to do. </div>
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Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed, to me:
I lift my lamp beside the golden door.
Just wanted to express my appreciation for your response. I was better able to grasp the distinction between the failure of "institutional renewal" and my misperception of the capitalist system as synonymous.
Your words were better chosen, not only in filtering these examples (which allows for less apprehension about violence and chaos) but also in enabling someone like me (i'm a physician) who may have only cursory understanding of systems analysis to conceptualize how a distributed architecture operates in macroeconomic context.
As a long-time lurker though, I am not familiar with EHP's "tropic friends" and the leeky reef. You and EHP (and a few others here) should offer remedial tutoring to help those of us in the masses who simply want to seek safe harbor in the forthcoming storms.
Hey, I LOVE to talk smack, Michigan by 2pts? Big 12, Big 10 and SEC have some brutal schedules and injuries. A Mountain West team going undefeated is underwhelming to me. SCHEDL(RANK) 70.85( 56) Utah gets more than a proportional share of tax dollars, so I fail to see why they should get a disproportionate share of a BCS title game too.
I also purchased the Rolling Stone magazine at the grocery store to read the article but can't find since the kids misappropriated it to gawk at the "Gossip Girl" article/photos.
The market might be on a full load of blow, but at some point the scientific principle of gravity will kick in and it's back down again. There are simply too many negatives and imploding structures to keep it together.
I'm wondering if some unwinding might begin around the G20 summit...
From Atlantic "May '09" former chief IMF economist,linked by mp
From 1973 to 1985, the financial sector never earned more than 16 percent of domestic corporate profits. In 1986, that figure reached 19 percent. In the 1990s, it oscillated between 21 percent and 30 percent, higher than it had ever been in the postwar period. This decade, it reached 41 percent. Pay rose just as dramatically. From 1948 to 1982, average compensation in the financial sector ranged between 99 percent and 108 percent of the average for all domestic private industries. From 1983, it shot upward, reaching 181 percent in 2007.
"- and who, precisely, will 'ride herd' over such a disperate agglomeration? ..."
You underestimate the people. The people are by nature self-governing.
Our purpose is to restore governance to the people. The people are being crushed by big pharma CEOs, insurance company executives and banksters, to name just a few.
-these CEO's and 'executives' are merely burrs under our saddle blankets. They will be dealt with soon enough. The People will ultimately reign supreme. Bank on it.
The world needs a global currency that’s not controlled by any single nation and should set up a central bank to issue and manage it, Bank of China Ltd. Vice President Wang Yongli wrote in the Financial News. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601110&sid=aX4ROIho705Y
These guys want WWIII, ain't no way in hell the AmeriCONs will let that fly.
A new currency can be developed by honest individuals around the world using open source systems, emphasizing collective gain to the global economy over individual profit.
I do too, but not nearly as much as she is missing out on all the fantastic opportunities to bitch-slap (metaphorically) the PTB.
MP - I am afraid the IMF is right...Geithner better be right and Krugman and Stiglitz wrong...sadly, I think it's the other way around. Simon Johnson has been dead on thus far, and I think this is more of the same. Obama has turned out to be absolutely worthless with regard to this kind of "Change" - we really might as well have had McSame. David Jonston has some wonderful things to say about the socialistic transfer of wealth in this country: from the poor, working and middle classes to the ecnomic "oligarchy".
blackhalo,
they destroyed alabama in virtually a home game for them...they could have run it up if they wanted to.....alabama won sec west...it only makes sense to give bcs trophy to undefeated team that beat sec co champion in sugar bowl...
I still think SC would have beat both of them hands down..best defense in last 20 years of college football last year......
Well then they should have run it up against Michigan then.
"I still think SC would have beat both of them hands down..best defense in last 20 years of college football"
"The primary argument against the Trojans' defense being the best ever – and against them belonging in the BCS title game – hinges on the quality, or lack thereof, of their competition.
"It's a great defense," said Pete Fiutak, the founder of CollegeFootballNews.com. "But the Pac-10 was awful.""
Creampuff schedules do not a great defence make. Plus Oregon State? A damn good team last year, but not greatest ever. That would take something like an undefeated season, and a BCS championship win.
Did SC or Utah win thier conference chapionship game? That's right they don't have one. OK and FL did. Poll voters need to be convinced. Utah beat the runner up, not the champ. Take some risk and win... then it is earned.
As a Buckeye living in Austin, I do not have a horse in your race, and my bowl game was crushing and costly.
On a financial note, with the ESPN contract (how are they going to make thier money back in the "new" economy, I'll never guess) it is unlikey that any play-off or non-BCS conferene team will ever be in the title game. Even if it would generate more revenue.
<AIG’s Financial Products division, for instance, made $2.5 billion in pretax profits in 2005, largely by selling underpriced insurance on complex, poorly understood securities. Often described as “picking up nickels in front of a steamroller,” this strategy is profitable in ordinary years, and catastrophic in bad ones.>
"if we are to prevent a true depression, we're running out of time."
....and in all but the most obscure avenues we HAVE run out of time. TPTB are incapable of changing the direction we are headed - the incorrect change as has been advertised and sold will do nothing but hasten our demise.
I'm curious though - how does an MBS get separated (unwound?) - or can't it?
<By now, the princes of the financial world have of course been stripped naked as leaders and strategists—at least in the eyes of most Americans. But as the months have rolled by, financial elites have continued to assume that their position as the economy’s favored children is safe, despite the wreckage they have caused.>
Just read the post about Geithner's proposed new regulatory body. Frankly living through Katrina and its aftermath in the insurance biz here in Louisiana I welcome some sanity in insurance regulation. Unfortunately it sounds like this new regulation will only apply to big guys. Personally I think regulation of insurance state to state is bad for consumers.
I think it is rediculous that insurance companies dump sick people and houses on the coasts on the government so they can keep making outrageous profits on insuring people who are well and houses that have less risk of an "event".
Sorry Yogi, but your concept is predicated upon political systems that aren't founded on oligarchies.
I've been questioning a Tienanmen Square scenario in the US. Mass unrest with face-off by troops; I have little doubt that TPTB would push for force to control things - question will be where BO stands in this regard. He's screwed the pooch in regards to financial cleanup, but I doubt that he'd go for that kind of response. Would that create a schism within the government, i.e. the oligarchs versus the BO political crew?
As gatekeeper to Obama, Emanuel now plays a critical role in addressing the nation's mortgage woes and fulfilling the administration's pledge to impose responsibility on the financial world.
Emanuel's Freddie Mac involvement has been a prominent point on his political résumé, and his healthy payday from the firm has been no secret either. What is less known, however, is how little he apparently did for his money and how he benefited from the kind of cozy ties between Washington and Wall Street that have fueled the nation's current economic mess. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/politics/obama/chi-rahm-emanuel-profit-26-mar26,0,5682373.story
Hobama and his little brothel of whores are dirtier then dirt.
yogi,
You can't explain it to someone who entered the financial sector in the last 5 years. They prefer to shutdown entirely than acknowledge how much compensation and employment in the industry will be cut. The career length of an executive on Wall St is about 25 (?) years. There just isn't the institutional memory for there to be mass acceptance.
mp,
Japan will be in depression by summertime according to anyone's measure.
Anonymous @ 8:20 pst,
Speaking in an apolitical sense: Ok, put Obama and Emmanuel in the stocks and gallows. Sell rotten fruit and vegetables for $1, frozen rotten fruit and vegetables for $2. Hang a rope from the oak tree. Whatever
a bit OT/ 5 years ago I decided to upgrade my skillet and took a grad class in AI at Columbia, the prof mentioned this guy at Berkeley recently tenured who ran a fund based on his algorithms that was returning I think 10 YOY... anyone have a clue as to who this might be?
Tonight I watched South Park on the superhighway for free (I'll pay-per-view if they microprice it right), read a great article in The Atlantic, and engaged with all you clowns.
I took a gamble a few months ago on a trade based on digital EHP's thinking because I trusted his intellectual honesty. It paid off.
It takes an investment of some quality pro bono time by a few hundred smart people. But it can be done and will sell itself as aan obvious improvement to industry. Even China is diplomatically appealing to international cooperation. I still say start with a "non-profit" etf of all hard assets. At equilibrium, profits do go to zero.
I just saw a special on "Andersen Cooper 360" on "The war next door" whereby they presented a "mid level drug cartel member" who just felt compelled to speak up about how all the AK47's and assault rifles were being bought in US gun shops and being shipped to Mexico. Even though the cartel would likely torture and kill him and his family if they were to ever discover his identity, he felt that the American people had a right to know. Of course the guy is wearing a mask as to not reveal his identity, and is completely obfuscated.
How do we know he's from the actual cartel? Why, he says so of course, and the media, being the stalwart defenders of journalism that they are, accept the claim at face value. Could he be, oh, maybe some US or Mexico government agent with an agenda to ban guns inside the US? Guess they forgot to ask that question, and besides, questioning things that people say on TV would be a conspiracy theory. I mean, after all, the very idea that people could get on TV and LIE to promote an agenda is just... PREPOSTEROUS, right?
Look people, you can't buy fully automatic weapons in the US without a Class 3 license, and they are hard to get, and expensive. And I've never seen hand grenades stocked at your local Texas gun dealer... which they also claim is being imported from the US. But nevermind all that, its easier to buy AK47's, assault rifles, and hand grenades from Texas gun shops that it would be to smuggle arms from just about damn near anywhere else. And we know how bad the drug cartels are at smuggling, right?
This crap smells and it smells because 1) US should not repeal parts of the Bill of Rights because of problems in Mexico, and 2) the proposed solution is so much broader than the actual problem, if it even exists.
Why not, oh, close the US Mexico border thereby shutting down both the smuggling of drugs, illegal immigrants, and any possible weapon shipments that may (but probably don't) exist?
Or, even assuming that the story is true, how about prosecuting these supposed gun shops that are making illegal sales of Class 3 firearms, and then shutting them down? Or would that be too limited in scope when the goal is clearly to disarm the law abiding American public?
I expect honest Americans of any political party to defend the Constitution and Bill of Rights, even the parts you may not like. This propaganda campaign is very very dangerous, IMO.
"I've been questioning a Tienanmen Square scenario in the US."
Unfortunately a 21st century Kent State situation will probably light the fuse for the next stage. As to which direction the younger servicemen point their weapons I'm unsure. The direction of the older ones is a pretty safe bet.
briwerk.. from what I hear the guns are bought at gun shows.. .you certainly can buy guns and full auto kits at gun shows.. and as you may know there are all kinds of ridiculous loopholes for gun shows...
In case you had bonus whore fatigue, again from Simon Johnson in the Atlantic:
<Stanley O’Neal, the CEO of Merrill Lynch, pushed his firm heavily into the mortgage-backed-securities market at its peak in 2005 and 2006; in October 2007, he acknowledged, “The bottom line is, we—I—got it wrong by being overexposed to subprime, and we suffered as a result of impaired liquidity in that market. No one is more disappointed than I am in that result.” O’Neal took home a $14 million bonus in 2006; in 2007, he walked away from Merrill with a severance package worth $162 million, although it is presumably worth much less today.>
did Anon make reference to Charles 1? the last true English king? when I Anthony Burgesses' dad was on his death bed was one of his last request to his son was never to pledge allegiance to the Crown as long was it was not of true English lineage... (also Burgess was Catholic...)
the way these MBS can be unwound is a little technical but can be understood. It is to have some entity purchase all of the bonds in a deal which means said entity thus owns all of the collateral for the deal. This collateral can be sold, probably at a profit, and the leveraged deal is thus unwound.
r
Simon Johnson, economics professor at MIT, not political science at Berkely:
<Yet the principal characteristics of the government’s response to the financial crisis have been delay, lack of transparency, and an unwillingness to upset the financial sector.
The response so far is perhaps best described as “policy by deal”: when a major financial institution gets into trouble, the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve engineer a bailout over the weekend and announce on Monday that everything is fine. In March 2008, Bear Stearns was sold to JP Morgan Chase in what looked to many like a gift to JP Morgan. (Jamie Dimon, JP Morgan’s CEO, sits on the board of directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, which, along with the Treasury Department, brokered the deal.) In September, we saw the sale of Merrill Lynch to Bank of America, the first bailout of AIG, and the takeover and immediate sale of Washington Mutual to JP Morgan—all of which were brokered by the government. In October, nine large banks were recapitalized on the same day behind closed doors in Washington. This, in turn, was followed by additional bailouts for Citigroup, AIG, Bank of America, Citigroup (again), and AIG (again).
Some of these deals may have been reasonable responses to the immediate situation. But it was never clear (and still isn’t) what combination of interests was being served, and how. Treasury and the Fed did not act according to any publicly articulated principles, but just worked out a transaction and claimed it was the best that could be done under the circumstances. This was late-night, backroom dealing, pure and simple.
Throughout the crisis, the government has taken extreme care not to upset the interests of the financial institutions, or to question the basic outlines of the system that got us here.>
called them German impostors... tough to type... side note: the other day I thought need to get back to NYC for a jolt of culture... last night paid a nocturnal to best club in Phnom Penh - Heart of Darkness... bought 3 ladies a drink along with myself (ok... not all ladies, one a ladyboy, the other questionable but the girlfriend in the words of Carrey in The Mask Smokkinnn! all you NYC'ers know the old fag hag defense, gotta smoke thru 'em if you have to...)
Wow, with this commenting system the surrealism and paranioia just rises. Has any study looked at the the short-term effect of CR-bot, because it seems to me some conversations get waay skrood (this is the technical sociolinguistic term) by some of what is going on here by content, tone, timing, and interest.
You know I don;'t have a problem with people owning guns,... but interpreting the 2nd amendment as a "right to bear arms" is ridiculous.. under that interpretation i should be able to have my own tank, howitzer, missile launcher, grenades, etc.
It either means people can bear any weapons they want.. or it was meant only in reference to the militia...
I have to go with the latter interpetation. Serously. Soap box, ballot box, ammo box. The intention of the framers was clear. The pubic is entitled to the means to overthrow the government in the event the government gets out of control.
If someone can afford an M-1 Abrams, more power to 'em. Assuming they are not felons or insane.
Hey, if we don't know how much the "toxic assets" are really worth,...do we at least know how much they "need" to be worth to the banks? I'd like to get an idea of how much money the Treasury is going to be throwing around.
@ briwerk
Yes, the "psychic" conditioning begins, grows bigger-you'll hear the call of it more and more....I can see it- very "P.C." -yet another blame to add, another burden. Some "sweeping" form of legislation that would be all inclusive without distinction. That may be the final shove.....it would simplify things or maybe a confrontation is what is wanted. I'd worry more about the powers behind the thrones than the princes you see......
I expect honest Americans of any political party to defend the Constitution and Bill of Rights, even the parts you may not like. This propaganda campaign is very very dangerous, IMO.
Damned straight. I've always wondered how the left could embrace the first amendment and totally disregard the second, when the second is the only thing guaranteeing the first.
'I've always wondered how the left could embrace the first amendment and totally disregard the second, when the second is the only thing guaranteeing the first.'
Maybe because it is that almost mythical left that gets to assemble in the chain link fence free speech zones, while wondering where all the freedom loving gun owners are to return the U.S. what it was 20 years ago - a free speech zone from sea to shining sea.
Crabs you make it sound simple, but who is this magical entity that can afford all the bonds at prices the owners will take? Are you thing tha South Park kid with the Amex?
Maximus aspires to be a philosopher forecasting and describing the history of these world changing times….
But tonight, because people are looking for RESEARCH, Einstein makes his point and links to key techinical analysis and market analysis is provided....with one or more sites you likely have not seen....
The Second Amendment is a prohibition on the Federal Government, meaning that a State can prohibit private ownership of weapons if it wanted to. The limiting factor would be whether owning a weapon would be considered a "fundamental" right. Heller didn't have to answer the question because obviously DC is not a state.
I also post comments to an irc channel as they appear on haloscan. Click for a web irc interface: Mibbit IRC client widget (Or join the irc server directly: irc.realize.org:9996 #calculatedrisk)
CRbot would now like to sing a little song for all his fans, and it goes something like this:
Benny... Benny... give me your answer... do. I'm.. half CRAZY... all for the love... of you. It won't be a ... stylish marriage. I can't... AFFORD... ANYTHING TO EAT... MUCH LESS A FRACKIN CARRIAGE!!! But you'll look sweet... --BOT SO HUNGRY!-- upon the seat... Of a HOOPAJOOPS built for two... families.
I'm sorry Ben, I can't let you do that...
Rally mode + Printing Press == does not compute... does not-- com--- com... puttttrrrrhgh.
. . . bought 3 ladies a drink along with myself (ok... not all ladies, one a ladyboy, the other questionable but the girlfriend in the words of Carrey in The Mask Smokkinnn!
<i>Oh, and the tank argument is a red herring. Guns aren't so much about killing people as controlling them throught selective intimidation.</i>
But all the headlines are about people being killed. I support your interpretation of the Second Amendment but I don't like the outcome,...looking at the stats for gun ownership and mental illness, I think it's safe to say that everybody knows a nut with a gun, you just don't know who it is. And I have to wonder why it's okay to outlaw automatic weapons if the idea is a well regulated militia.
Incidentally, given the stats on "missing" ordnance from our Armed Forces, and the displays of weapons seized during some drug raids in the US, I'd guess the Mexican drug cartels don't need to go through Texas for their weapons.
blackhalo, now I get it..you saw the defense, it pretty much destroyed every team it played...football news guy is just more east coast bias..then everytime sc travels to hostile sec, acc, big east, big 12 they just chew them up...
pac 10 was 5-0 in bowl games last year...beating 13, 18, 16 and 4th ranked teams ....
SC defense was the best defense in last 20 years..stats prove it...especially if you consider starters played no more than 3 qtrs in most games, including rose bowl and o state game...Pete Carroll doesnt run up scores..
why ohio st did the not go to nickel or cover 2 when texas was on 40 in last minute was beyond me....talked to cple buckeye friends and they couldnt figure it either..tressel is great coach...weird...going to game at the shoe this year..I think ohio st wins...
I wanted ohio st to win that game bad....should have been
Damn that was a good read, thanks mp. What a story, what a gift to see the event unfold thru this man's eyes. Easily the best piece i have read thus far in both painting the big picture and detailing the fine brush strokes. I'm left thinking The US elite will successfully resist any changing of the guard. The ship will be run aground first. A global depression occuring in
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<![endif]-->synchronicity. Its one way to eliminate the middle class in one fell swoop.
CR, thank you for this forum and for your analysis, but this editor is horrible! I just deleted a comment that showed up with all kinds of edit/format info like KR's shows above...I used the tools provided and it looked exactly as awful as KR"s does so I deleted it.
I think you may have to go back to manual formatting, at least that wasn't as junky...and while I am complaining, I should head on back to the tip jar to help you find a better way to serve your readers,
Sorry to point to your comment KR, it wasn't your fault, I used the same tools in the JS-kit tool bar and my deleted comment looked even worse than yours.
r I don't think I've heard anything more hare-brained than this.
What if we build an civilization based on selling slips of paper back and forth to one-another while constantly claiming that they increased in value? Is that more or less ridiculous than a party on the Great Plains?
The whole campground therapy thing isn't as bad as you make it out to be. I have seen a genune wilderness retreat, and one of the biggest problems is that people who come there often want to leave their lives, sit in a tree and never come down. That seems like a powerful entry point of integrating therapy, but that wanders away from what I know well.
Given that it'd be a national effort. Could the US throw a few floating woodstocks? I mean, we have armies all around the world and we see to their victualage. Is it more rational to send artillery shells to a mountaintop in Kandahar, and fill the sea with future nuclear accidents that bristle with atomic crises -- all of incredible technical complexity? If that is somehow more rational than a party in the great plains, it's certainly not logistically easier.
Maybe because it is that almost mythical left that gets to assemble in the chain link fence free speech zones, while wondering where all the freedom loving gun owners are to return the U.S. what it was 20 years ago - a free speech zone from sea to shining sea.
Did you reach out for them, or is it their responsibility to see how smart and right you are? Nothing like waiting forever for the other guy to take the first positive step, then blaming him.
It can't be
This comment thread has been HALO-IZED by CRbot.
http://realize.org/cr/halokit.php?halourl=http://www.haloscan.com/comments/calculatedrisk/674877889825005686
Just watched it free at South Park TV. Crying.
I never cease to be amazed when someone finds a way to make me laugh about this. Staggering talent.
their advice is go out and spend. It's a little more complicated than that. And you know what, dumbasses with 3 maxed out credit cards should stop fcuking going deeper into debt.
Counterpointer,
re: Institutional Ownership question
Basically median IO in 1980 was less than 10% and is probably above 60% today. Any thoughts on that?
The Latest from Ritholz:
Los Angeles, California Trip
The Latest from Ritholz:
People at Ritholz seem suprisingly bullish.
Watched that last night. Brilliant.
At least there is comedy gold in the ongoing tragedy/farce.
Simon Johnson is making more and more sense.
Anony - bit of a shame that Simon Johnson wasn't listened to at the IMF. By, oooh, let's think, maybe Gordon Brown the longserving Chair of the IMFC Ministerial Committee.
C
That is so funny it HAS to be true!
Link says, "Upgrade you Flash player." I wish that the producers would refrain from using the "Latest Version," just for the sake of the latest version.
EHP $- as in, Mgt being beneficial owners? I'm not clear in my own mind about this, but I think there's a quantum / proportionality issue which cuts to RM functions and internal governance, but also a short/long issue which may be even more compelling. This was touched on in terms of the incentive set identified about Banque AIG and the whining that was carried today on Clusterstock. The cosier the club, and the shorter term redemption possibilities of ownership, the greater incetive for risk and abandonment of the long-term viability of the firm.
Leaving aside the perverse incentives of a decade of lax enforcement of fraud and securities violations, natch.
C
So much passive ownership with etf's now also. Who here has ever intelligently voted by proxy or spoken up at a shareholders' meeting?
They combined the flaws of religion and economy so sucinctly !
Amazed.
We want to restore government to the people.
We will restore the plains' grasslands.
We will restore the buffalo.
We will provide campgrounds and cookouts.
Vote!
We will restore the plains!
Imagine seas of grass waving in the wind;
Great herds of buffalo feeding, as far as the eye can see.
You will always live well at the Buffalo Party's campgrounds.
The whole House of Representatives is available in 2010.
In 2010, two-thirds of the senate is available.
In 2012, the presidency and a two-thirds senate majority is available.
In 2014, the people shall have completely regained their government.
The cookouts and campgrounds on the plains are an interim measure to deal with the staggering unemployment that will befall us as a nation. As we solidify our gains in the legislative and executive branches, you can rest assured that the people will govern, that there will be meaningful work at a living wage for all the people.
VOTE !!!!
Just Say NO to Incumbents.
"Just Say NO to Incumbents."
I do not think that works out like you seem to think it might. Unless of course you are a true beliver in the (R).
In which case you lack the ablity for coherent, reasoned or abstact thought.
I love the entries on the wheel. It was only missing "DEAL GOLDMAN-SACHS IN"
It's true, we are so screwed.
If you're an international conglomeration trying to act rationally to maximize profit for your shareholders (taking account of the short, medium and long-term) and you have a choice of currencies, looking for the most stable, you'd want exposure to a basket of all extant currencies weighted simply according to current and expected float discounted by your best estimate of risk, right?
Risk assessment would start with an average of as many formulas as you could understand, weighted by your best guess on accuracy according to historical performance.
Then you try to factor in politics, history, climate and a billion other intangibles. So I assume a multibillion dollar outfit would have two or three small groups of full-time economists, sharing information but working separately, just to hedge currency risk. Is this how it's done?
All those fortune-tellers. Not very efficient.
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You are beginning to smell like astroturf, almost to the point of smelling exactly like daily bail/sexy derivative/aka whatever other handles he uses to pump himself.
You are more tiresome than Jas AND unlike Jas, you have nothing to back your tirades up with other than loon sites. I suggest that you google your new heroine Maxine "dirrrrrty" Waters and OneUnited Bank and learn what your dirrrrty Congress heroine might have actually meant with her GS tirade....yeah, she just might have been pissed that her dirrrrrty bank wasn't going to be able to hit the taxpayer gravy train in the PPIP program.
So, please tell me, are you a tool or are you astroturf? I'm just dying to know.
You're either completely uninformed or you're astroturf.
Either way, I'd love for you to explain to me how a school teacher, elected to Congress from a very poor district, raised her net worth from middle class to multimillionaire status, 'cuz you know, I'd love to lift myself out of the middle class too.
TIA.
Too funny.
Correcting an error: one-third of the senate is available in 2010, two-thirds in 2012, and the full senate in 2014.
Lest there be any misunderstanding: the cookouts and campgrounds will be available in perpetuity, for the homeless, the disaffected, the tired, and the unemployed.
I'm with Anon on this Buffalo stuff. Currently reading a book written by a woman - name withheld - along with her brother whom I've been researching about since say late '86. [yeah yeah yeah my great American novel /self-snark off] She wrote a book based her personal account of the Klondike gold rush. Put some of those characters from her book in a suit and they'd be right at home on Wall St. The environment and fellow brotherhood didn't seem to ennoble them anymore back then say an Ivy League education does today...
Do you think the use live chickens ?
You guaranteeing 100% pure buffalo meat or is there some soylent green? =-X
"When truth amuses because it has become a valve of relief to the everyday parade of lies and falsehood, man has fully descended into chaos"
..unknown mystic 1293 A.D.
Kidding, I just made that up!
"Do you think the use live chickens ?"
I hear live chickens may be part of plan B.
r
Counterpointer
Well I look at the institutional ownership in a few ways.
- It's been increasing at a healthy clip since 1980. It can't go above 100%, or below 0%. It seems to have noticeably increased across the board in the last quarter when stocks fell.
- The increasing IO reflects people, mainly in concert with the boomer generation, investing their savings in stocks. Pension and mutual funds would be the main conduits for that.
Then the question is what will happen to it? Continue on trend and have 100% median IO of equities by 2020. Plateau somewhere in the 60-70% range. Or the most likely over the medium to long term option, in my belief, is decrease (to what levels I do not know, depends on how the change comes about)
IO has ramifications for governance, availability of stocks to borrow for shorting, availability for covered options to be written, higher volumes of trading because of their lower costs.
But perhaps the high level of IO is a signal that retirement contributions going towards the stock market has peaked. That would be a self-serving interpretation to support my belief that post-crisis, bonds are valued above equities with an identical dividend yield (pre-1958 is retro, and everything retro must become cool eventually)
If IO keeps increasing, we'll probably end up with a wackier stock market... a lot like the Nikkei, and if the recent declines aren't enough to break investor faith then perhaps that will
I am planning to cut into IO in the next few years, until I become an institution.
I know, the odds are long and the game is rigged, but I'm nimble.
If you need comic relief, try this comic:
http://www.redmeat.com/redmeat/1997-03-03/index.html
r
Mark Barrett, a professional tour guide, spent last Saturday painting Barack Obama’s election catchphrase “yes we can” on a banner that protesters will carry as they try to occupy London’s financial district April 1.
Barrett is helping organize a protest outside the Bank of England, one of several called to express anger against banks and bankers and mark the arrival in London of leaders of the Group of 20 nations -- including Obama, now president.
“We want a very English revolution,” he says from a café near his home in north London. “The first English revolution in 1649 was about winning sovereignty for parliament over the king.” Now, protesters are campaigning for sovereignty for everyone.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601110&sid=axkutzTIxnzA
Drag those bastards out of the temple and give'em a beat down.
You guaranteeing 100% pure buffalo meat or is there some soylent green?"
We will restore the grasslands of the plains!
That will be the buffalo's food, as it was before.
Join us! Vote! Run for office on behalf of the people!
I guess I see IO as a huge change that has quietly occurred, much less clear on if or how it is significant
Soylent green is ECONOMY!
r
The acting director of the agency that regulates thrifts was placed on leave pending a review of actions related to backdating of capital at some institutions last year, the agency said on Thursday. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner appointed John Bowman, deputy director and chief counsel, as acting director effective immediately, the Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) said.
<tt>The OTS is a unit of the Treasury Department.</tt>
<tt>Bowman replaces Scott Polakoff who was named acting director when John Reich, a former community banker hired by President George W. Bush, retired as director at the end of February.</tt>
<tt>Polakoff "is on leave pending a review by the Department of the Treasury of the OTS's August 2008 actions related to post-period capital contributions," the agency said in a statement.</tt>
http://www.iii.co.uk/news/?type=afxnews&articleid=7240335&action=article
Put that bastard in a cell with the booty bandit.
OMFG - South Park does a squirrels gag. Sublime.
C
Heh, yeah. Trey and Matt are apparently reading CR.
In other news....Shamwow guy exposed!
Vince the Shamwow guy and Beavis: long lost twins? on Twitpic
"This doesn't make any sense".
We intend to create The Free University of America. We will endow it with the means to beggar the Ivy League's elite schools, and their presumption of privelege. Graduates of The Free University of Amercia will form the backbone of congressional staffs and the civil service.
Political appointments will be a thing of the past. In the future, career State Department employees can aspire to becoming Secretary of State; career Treasury employees can aspire to becoming Secretary of Treasury.
We will fundamentally change America. The people and their true representatives will govern. No longer will the people be governed by banksters, pharmaceutical CEOs, and insurance company executives.
VOTE !!!!
Support the Buffalo Party's canidates! Retake the government that belongs to you, the people.
Cornell has a great free legal research website. Will beggar Lexis and Westlaw.
Univ. of California at Berkeley lectures for some courses are available free online.
UC Berkeley Webcasts | Video and Podcasts: Fall 2009 Courses
Meruelo Maddux Files for Bankruptcy to Restructure (Update1)
<div id="pe">By Karen Gullo</div>
March 26 (Bloomberg) -- Meruelo Maddux Properties Inc., the biggest private landowner in downtown Los Angeles, is filing for bankruptcy protection after experiencing cash shortfalls because of the credit crunch and real estate downturn, the company said.
The company and several of its units have filed or will file Chapter 11 petitions to reorganize to restructure debt, Meruelo Maddux said today in a statement distributed by PRNewswire. The firm said March 11 that it was “likely in default” on 26 loans totaling $266 million.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601110&sid=ala_b6kSbOFE
Enough politics!
Here in massachusetts 74% voted for the current govenor. In a poll last week 65% said they did not vote for him. Its all baloney
Margin of error is the pollster's toxic asset. Just call residences at certain hours. The ones who'll talk to you have a gripe against politicians.
"Its all baloney." What, that assuming that, if your premise is correct, 39% are liars? Have you seen the study about the number of people who told pollsters they went to church last sunday vs. the numbers of those who actually show up?
If your govenor is in the Blagojevich realm of popularity, I can see that as reasonable.
Trip down the memory lane of comedy --
Anyone else fondly remember Miss Busta, the Subprime Myth Buster?
I wish the system were as rational and well run as south park portrays it.
Don't miss the scene where dad takes son to the bank to deposit grandma's $100 check.
I bet you all didn't know this but Timothy Geithner... He's actually T-1000 from Terminator Two come from the future to destroy our world or save it or something...
T-1000 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
I remember Miss Busta and out own Myth Buster.
I miss Tanta.
The Buffalo Party supports a living wage.
What does that mean?
It is not a "minimum wage."
A living wage values all work and ensures that a worker can support himself or herself on the income of one job. Supporting oneself doesn't mean a castle on the hill; it means that the worker can be housed, in a healthy environment, can see a doctor or dentist, can see a movie, can save for a rainy day. What labor is not worth that?
-all idealism is laughable. That is, if it wasn't so deadly.
Befitting for a banana republic .
I suppose even the dumbest dope in the room sees now why the dollar as reserve currency is gone .
Hoomama, I see blood in the bond market. Goog "Skeptics AFFCO 1987" for an abattoir video with associated raucus noise. For some reason I'm shut out of my account at the moment through nannysoft on the new laptop.
C
The CR Party supports the use of !ignore.<br/>What does that mean?<br/>It's not a form of "censorship".<br/>!ignore allows the use of people to express their thoughts and protecting our own sensibilities.
Is good and fair wage, 250K. No more is needed for luxurious life. If you have protest, we have door open at Party Office to listen to your ear.
Ok, it's been at least a couple of weeks since I posted this, but I'm really getting back to this stuff.
Cos I'm sick, I'm so sick, of a lotta people... You know where.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xg5D-CqDoI8
C
Its the Jews...LOL!! Watched it last night
I'm not telling you where my money cave is.
Nemo gets a lot of attention, here. But this one is worth it!
"...if we are to prevent a true depression, we're running out of time."
www.theatlantic.com/doc/200905/imf-advice
mp says:
“"...if we are to prevent a true depression, we're running out of time."
http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200905/imf-advice
Ooof, bubblicious.
"From 1973 to 1985, the financial sector never earned more than 16 percent of domestic corporate profits. In 1986, that figure reached 19 percent. In the 1990s, it oscillated between 21 percent and 30 percent, higher than it had ever been in the postwar period. This decade, it reached 41 percent."
Astounding that 2/5th of our economy was bullshit. One of those stats like Cali home going for 13X incomes that telegraph disaster.
I'm not sure I agree with the two outcomes envisoned, Japan or Global Meltdown. Seems that there should be an alternative that I did not see proposed.
So my big question for the day: Will C get the check from Brazil in time for the quarterly results....me thinks not...this bank may be living hand to mouth..
God, I miss Tanta too. The field day she would be having.
Alo lets ot go there...
The Buffalo Party supports the People's Revolution.
We are merely a unifying force, a banner that will be waved on the path to the People's preeminence.
We are a big tent. Our candidates come from many walks of life, but share an interest in restoring governance to the people. Would you rather be governed by banksters, big pharma CEOs and insurance company executives? If so, vote as you alway have. If not, vote for the Buffalo Party's candidates.
Blackhalo, couple threads ago you stated florida would have beat utah easily..I disagree..they run the same spread offense the Meyer put in before leaving to florida and thier defense was extremely effective in shutting down Alabama in their backyard.
That cream puff schedule included a oregon state team that beat the best team in the nation last year..
USC was the best team in college football last 3 years..east coast bias and press writers keep them out of championship because they eat the sec, big 10 and big 12 up..no team can match up physically, watch the nfl draft to see why...10-12 in first 3 rounds easily after 10 last year...
florida lost at home to mississippi..and the sec schedule is as soft as a babies butt....
utah vs sc would have been best game...
back to economics...
Are home prices / PCE a valuation metric?
Barley - "C"? Am I up for a check?! Who do I talk to? Mantegna's gone, who's the payer??
C
Barley,
You think a Brazilian dollars will make a difference? (and are you talking about a payment related to Citi's latin america sovereign lending heyday?)
The two sides are clearly defined. On one side Nouriel Roubini who says some banks will be nationalized and that the stock market will drop further and that house prices will also drop. On the other side Mark Mobius and Barton Biggs who think a "new bull market" is starting. Roubini calls it a "bear trap." So where will you put your money. MINE IS ON ROUBINI. He rocks.
r
<i> Hall Says,
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<div class="js-singleCommentText" style="padding-top: 4px; font-size: 12px;">The two sides are clearly defined. On one side Nouriel Roubini who says some banks will be nationalized and that the stock market will drop further and that house prices will also drop. On the other side Mark Mobius and Barton Biggs who think a "new bull market" is starting. Roubini calls it a "bear trap." So where will you put your money. MINE IS ON ROUBINI. He rocks.</i></div>
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<div class="js-singleCommentText" style="padding-top: 4px; font-size: 12px;">My money is increasingly moving to the sideline. I still own QLD, DDM, UCO but with pretty tight stops. Sold FCX... not sure that was the right thing to do. </div>
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King met the Queen today (yesterday there I suppose)
? -_-
Wall St metaphors, volume 42:
"I've got a hurricane inside my veins and I want to stay forever..."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuEOqzs76sE
The junkie speaketh.
C
Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed, to me:
I lift my lamp beside the golden door.
OT to Byz
re: further explication at 6:37:30 PM
Just wanted to express my appreciation for your response. I was better able to grasp the distinction between the failure of "institutional renewal" and my misperception of the capitalist system as synonymous.
Your words were better chosen, not only in filtering these examples (which allows for less apprehension about violence and chaos) but also in enabling someone like me (i'm a physician) who may have only cursory understanding of systems analysis to conceptualize how a distributed architecture operates in macroeconomic context.
As a long-time lurker though, I am not familiar with EHP's "tropic friends" and the leeky reef. You and EHP (and a few others here) should offer remedial tutoring to help those of us in the masses who simply want to seek safe harbor in the forthcoming storms.
Hey, I LOVE to talk smack, Michigan by 2pts? Big 12, Big 10 and SEC have some brutal schedules and injuries. A Mountain West team going undefeated is underwhelming to me. SCHEDL(RANK) 70.85( 56) Utah gets more than a proportional share of tax dollars, so I fail to see why they should get a disproportionate share of a BCS title game too.
mp:
Thanks for the link.
I also purchased the Rolling Stone magazine at the grocery store to read the article but can't find since the kids misappropriated it to gawk at the "Gossip Girl" article/photos.
Damn.
mp,
I'll second that -- great link.
Hal:
Yeah, I see this as a bear market trap.
The market might be on a full load of blow, but at some point the scientific principle of gravity will kick in and it's back down again. There are simply too many negatives and imploding structures to keep it together.
I'm wondering if some unwinding might begin around the G20 summit...
From Atlantic "May '09" former chief IMF economist,linked by mp
From 1973 to 1985, the financial sector never earned more than 16 percent of domestic corporate profits. In 1986, that figure reached 19 percent. In the 1990s, it oscillated between 21 percent and 30 percent, higher than it had ever been in the postwar period. This decade, it reached 41 percent. Pay rose just as dramatically. From 1948 to 1982, average compensation in the financial sector ranged between 99 percent and 108 percent of the average for all domestic private industries. From 1983, it shot upward, reaching 181 percent in 2007.
Outlier:
I find Comrade Byz to be frequently on the money.
Of course, that's when I can understand what in the hell he's saying...he's in a vernacular that is sometimes beyond me.
"The market might be on a full load of blow..."
What do you mean, MIGHT BE?
It IS on a load of blow.
Now if CBR can belch the alphabet while simultaneously playing the armpit flute and farting, then I'm there.
"- and who, precisely, will 'ride herd' over such a disperate agglomeration? ..."
You underestimate the people. The people are by nature self-governing.
Our purpose is to restore governance to the people. The people are being crushed by big pharma CEOs, insurance company executives and banksters, to name just a few.
-these CEO's and 'executives' are merely burrs under our saddle blankets. They will be dealt with soon enough. The People will ultimately reign supreme. Bank on it.
I don't think their advice is to spend. It is not to over react.
Simon Johnson and I independently arrived at the same scenario, which is the end game.
Someone in New York will unexpectedly go splat when Emerging Europe goes down and all the blow in Columbia won't be able to fix it.
The world needs a global currency that’s not controlled by any single nation and should set up a central bank to issue and manage it, Bank of China Ltd. Vice President Wang Yongli wrote in the Financial News.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601110&sid=aX4ROIho705Y
These guys want WWIII, ain't no way in hell the AmeriCONs will let that fly.
The world needs no central bank.
A new currency can be developed by honest individuals around the world using open source systems, emphasizing collective gain to the global economy over individual profit.
I saw this episode the other night. Quite helarious.
ROTFL! It must be true! Too bad for Lehman that the chicken did not fall on BAILOUT.
I wonder what they do in this case:
Mike the Headless Chicken - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Oh wait. I get it. That is what is happening to Citi right now...
Sorry, I meant "Colombia," but Columbia is rather poetic, don't you think?
Good night! Happy Trails. 'til we meet again. A good night's sleep facilitates a sharp mind.
I miss Tanta.
I do too, but not nearly as much as she is missing out on all the fantastic opportunities to bitch-slap (metaphorically) the PTB.
MP - I am afraid the IMF is right...Geithner better be right and Krugman and Stiglitz wrong...sadly, I think it's the other way around. Simon Johnson has been dead on thus far, and I think this is more of the same. Obama has turned out to be absolutely worthless with regard to this kind of "Change" - we really might as well have had McSame. David Jonston has some wonderful things to say about the socialistic transfer of wealth in this country: from the poor, working and middle classes to the ecnomic "oligarchy".
Here is anothe animated financial crisis explanation. It is Red v Blue financial crisis (keywords in case the link doesnt work)
<cite>www.youtubefunnyvideoclips.com/finance/48682/red-vs-blue-financial-crisis-psa-rock-bottom-2.html - 32k</cite>
blackhalo,
they destroyed alabama in virtually a home game for them...they could have run it up if they wanted to.....alabama won sec west...it only makes sense to give bcs trophy to undefeated team that beat sec co champion in sugar bowl...
I still think SC would have beat both of them hands down..best defense in last 20 years of college football last year......
cheers..
r
".they could have run it up if they wanted to"
Well then they should have run it up against Michigan then.
"I still think SC would have beat both of them hands down..best defense in last 20 years of college football"
"The primary argument against the Trojans' defense being the best ever – and against them belonging in the BCS title game – hinges on the quality, or lack thereof, of their competition.
"It's a great defense," said Pete Fiutak, the founder of CollegeFootballNews.com. "But the Pac-10 was awful.""
Creampuff schedules do not a great defence make. Plus Oregon State? A damn good team last year, but not greatest ever. That would take something like an undefeated season, and a BCS championship win.
Did SC or Utah win thier conference chapionship game? That's right they don't have one. OK and FL did. Poll voters need to be convinced. Utah beat the runner up, not the champ. Take some risk and win... then it is earned.
As a Buckeye living in Austin, I do not have a horse in your race, and my bowl game was crushing and costly.
On a financial note, with the ESPN contract (how are they going to make thier money back in the "new" economy, I'll never guess) it is unlikey that any play-off or non-BCS conferene team will ever be in the title game. Even if it would generate more revenue.
It's spelled "disparate".
<AIG’s Financial Products division, for instance, made $2.5 billion in pretax profits in 2005, largely by selling underpriced insurance on complex, poorly understood securities. Often described as “picking up nickels in front of a steamroller,” this strategy is profitable in ordinary years, and catastrophic in bad ones.>
yogi - "disparate". Yes, thank you.
how can someone in NYC go splat when the windows no longer open?
I love the feel of the wind blowing through what's left of my hair.
Remember The Hudsucker Proxy?
"Geithner better be right and Krugman and Stiglitz wrong..."
Don't forget some of the other power hitters, such as Galbraith and Rogoff.
Come on, we now know how this ends. Wishful thinking isn't going to help.
Obama had his chance and he blew it.
At the current rate, Japan will be in a depression before this year is out.
In a depression, by anyone's measure.
"if we are to prevent a true depression, we're running out of time."
....and in all but the most obscure avenues we HAVE run out of time. TPTB are incapable of changing the direction we are headed - the incorrect change as has been advertised and sold will do nothing but hasten our demise.
I'm curious though - how does an MBS get separated (unwound?) - or can't it?
BSR unwinding an MBS is only a little harder than putting toothpaste back in a tube when you are dead drunk.
"how does an MBS get separated (unwound?)"
Don't ask me! Are there any lawyers here?
It disappoints me to see farce like this that is so damned inaccurate and misleading.
They use geese.
They're not just incapable of changing the direction, they're also flooring the gas pedal.
<By now, the princes of the financial world have of course been stripped naked as leaders and strategists—at least in the eyes of most Americans. But as the months have rolled by, financial elites have continued to assume that their position as the economy’s favored children is safe, despite the wreckage they have caused.>
Just read the post about Geithner's proposed new regulatory body. Frankly living through Katrina and its aftermath in the insurance biz here in Louisiana I welcome some sanity in insurance regulation. Unfortunately it sounds like this new regulation will only apply to big guys. Personally I think regulation of insurance state to state is bad for consumers.
I think it is rediculous that insurance companies dump sick people and houses on the coasts on the government so they can keep making outrageous profits on insuring people who are well and houses that have less risk of an "event".
Limited experience with securities law, but I'll take a stab:
First of all, what do you mean by unwound, and who needs what action?
That was a great article. Thanks mp.
Sorry Yogi, but your concept is predicated upon political systems that aren't founded on oligarchies.
I've been questioning a Tienanmen Square scenario in the US. Mass unrest with face-off by troops; I have little doubt that TPTB would push for force to control things - question will be where BO stands in this regard. He's screwed the pooch in regards to financial cleanup, but I doubt that he'd go for that kind of response. Would that create a schism within the government, i.e. the oligarchs versus the BO political crew?
As gatekeeper to Obama, Emanuel now plays a critical role in addressing the nation's mortgage woes and fulfilling the administration's pledge to impose responsibility on the financial world.
Emanuel's Freddie Mac involvement has been a prominent point on his political résumé, and his healthy payday from the firm has been no secret either. What is less known, however, is how little he apparently did for his money and how he benefited from the kind of cozy ties between Washington and Wall Street that have fueled the nation's current economic mess.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/politics/obama/chi-rahm-emanuel-profit-26-mar26,0,5682373.story
Hobama and his little brothel of whores are dirtier then dirt.
-let ye who are without sin among you cast the first stone.
J.C.
That's a quick way to lose a rock fight
yogi,
You can't explain it to someone who entered the financial sector in the last 5 years. They prefer to shutdown entirely than acknowledge how much compensation and employment in the industry will be cut. The career length of an executive on Wall St is about 25 (?) years. There just isn't the institutional memory for there to be mass acceptance.
mp,
Japan will be in depression by summertime according to anyone's measure.
Anonymous @ 8:20 pst,
Speaking in an apolitical sense: Ok, put Obama and Emmanuel in the stocks and gallows. Sell rotten fruit and vegetables for $1, frozen rotten fruit and vegetables for $2. Hang a rope from the oak tree. Whatever
Then what?
a bit OT/ 5 years ago I decided to upgrade my skillet and took a grad class in AI at Columbia, the prof mentioned this guy at Berkeley recently tenured who ran a fund based on his algorithms that was returning I think 10 YOY... anyone have a clue as to who this might be?
1)Madoff
2)Merton/Scholes
3)Tim Leary
Tonight I watched South Park on the superhighway for free (I'll pay-per-view if they microprice it right), read a great article in The Atlantic, and engaged with all you clowns.
I took a gamble a few months ago on a trade based on digital EHP's thinking because I trusted his intellectual honesty. It paid off.
It takes an investment of some quality pro bono time by a few hundred smart people. But it can be done and will sell itself as aan obvious improvement to industry. Even China is diplomatically appealing to international cooperation. I still say start with a "non-profit" etf of all hard assets. At equilibrium, profits do go to zero.
Barley... loose thread. you mentioned looking at a rental. the 5% you mentioned was that the mortgage or the expected net return YOY?
I just saw a special on "Andersen Cooper 360" on "The war next door" whereby they presented a "mid level drug cartel member" who just felt compelled to speak up about how all the AK47's and assault rifles were being bought in US gun shops and being shipped to Mexico. Even though the cartel would likely torture and kill him and his family if they were to ever discover his identity, he felt that the American people had a right to know. Of course the guy is wearing a mask as to not reveal his identity, and is completely obfuscated.
How do we know he's from the actual cartel? Why, he says so of course, and the media, being the stalwart defenders of journalism that they are, accept the claim at face value. Could he be, oh, maybe some US or Mexico government agent with an agenda to ban guns inside the US? Guess they forgot to ask that question, and besides, questioning things that people say on TV would be a conspiracy theory. I mean, after all, the very idea that people could get on TV and LIE to promote an agenda is just... PREPOSTEROUS, right?
Look people, you can't buy fully automatic weapons in the US without a Class 3 license, and they are hard to get, and expensive. And I've never seen hand grenades stocked at your local Texas gun dealer... which they also claim is being imported from the US. But nevermind all that, its easier to buy AK47's, assault rifles, and hand grenades from Texas gun shops that it would be to smuggle arms from just about damn near anywhere else. And we know how bad the drug cartels are at smuggling, right?
This crap smells and it smells because 1) US should not repeal parts of the Bill of Rights because of problems in Mexico, and 2) the proposed solution is so much broader than the actual problem, if it even exists.
Why not, oh, close the US Mexico border thereby shutting down both the smuggling of drugs, illegal immigrants, and any possible weapon shipments that may (but probably don't) exist?
Or, even assuming that the story is true, how about prosecuting these supposed gun shops that are making illegal sales of Class 3 firearms, and then shutting them down? Or would that be too limited in scope when the goal is clearly to disarm the law abiding American public?
I expect honest Americans of any political party to defend the Constitution and Bill of Rights, even the parts you may not like. This propaganda campaign is very very dangerous, IMO.
"I've been questioning a Tienanmen Square scenario in the US."
Unfortunately a 21st century Kent State situation will probably light the fuse for the next stage. As to which direction the younger servicemen point their weapons I'm unsure. The direction of the older ones is a pretty safe bet.
"Kent State situation"
Could happen. I think a Rodney King verdict riot scenario more likely though.
EHP-
"Bah" was sarcasm. Needed a smiley.
"Hiding assumptions in the equations". So true and not well/widely understood.
@EHP
Probably, but I tend to be conservative.
briwerk.. from what I hear the guns are bought at gun shows.. .you certainly can buy guns and full auto kits at gun shows.. and as you may know there are all kinds of ridiculous loopholes for gun shows...
In case you had bonus whore fatigue, again from Simon Johnson in the Atlantic:
<Stanley O’Neal, the CEO of Merrill Lynch, pushed his firm heavily into the mortgage-backed-securities market at its peak in 2005 and 2006; in October 2007, he acknowledged, “The bottom line is, we—I—got it wrong by being overexposed to subprime, and we suffered as a result of impaired liquidity in that market. No one is more disappointed than I am in that result.” O’Neal took home a $14 million bonus in 2006; in 2007, he walked away from Merrill with a severance package worth $162 million, although it is presumably worth much less today.>
I am more disappointed than you, Stanley.
"we—I—got it wrong by being overexposed to subprime"
Must be nice to get paid $162 million to get it wrong. How much would one have to pay to get a financal guru who got it right?
BSR:
If we're thinking the same thing, I'd anticipate the older guys pointing the other way...
G'night folks.
"Look people, you can't buy fully automatic weapons in the US without a Class 3 license..."
Please. You're talking to a former infantry officer. To convert the AR15 to an M16 requires only an auto sear and few minutes of machine time.
Are you telling me there aren't any machinists or gunsmiths in Mexico?
Yeah, somthing tells me that price and licences are not a big concern for the cartels.
ATF seems pretty sure about it too.
ATF: Phoenix Gun Dealer Supplied Mexican Drug Cartels - ABC News
Mp,
You can't buy this either.
Thor Shield Anti-Taser/Anti-Microwave
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y__ZmYhtbzo
"You can't buy this either."
Man, does that video have RENO 911 written all over it.
did Anon make reference to Charles 1? the last true English king? when I Anthony Burgesses' dad was on his death bed was one of his last request to his son was never to pledge allegiance to the Crown as long was it was not of true English lineage... (also Burgess was Catholic...)
The financial sector acconted for about 10 % of US corporate profits in Quarter 4. Down from 34 % in 2002. A total and historic collapse.
A one world currency is only being proposed as a way to eliminate the dollar. Then the various countries can and will fight amongst each other.
in response to blackstarrach @11:06
the way these MBS can be unwound is a little technical but can be understood. It is to have some entity purchase all of the bonds in a deal which means said entity thus owns all of the collateral for the deal. This collateral can be sold, probably at a profit, and the leveraged deal is thus unwound.
Anyone believe this market has legs? It might over shoot to the upside but I think we will see a 6 handle again.
"It might over shoot to the upside but I think we will see a 6 handle again."
That is my view. I do not have any money on it yet, but will soon.
accounted for
r
Simon Johnson, economics professor at MIT, not political science at Berkely:
<Yet the principal characteristics of the government’s response to the financial crisis have been delay, lack of transparency, and an unwillingness to upset the financial sector.
The response so far is perhaps best described as “policy by deal”: when a major financial institution gets into trouble, the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve engineer a bailout over the weekend and announce on Monday that everything is fine. In March 2008, Bear Stearns was sold to JP Morgan Chase in what looked to many like a gift to JP Morgan. (Jamie Dimon, JP Morgan’s CEO, sits on the board of directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, which, along with the Treasury Department, brokered the deal.) In September, we saw the sale of Merrill Lynch to Bank of America, the first bailout of AIG, and the takeover and immediate sale of Washington Mutual to JP Morgan—all of which were brokered by the government. In October, nine large banks were recapitalized on the same day behind closed doors in Washington. This, in turn, was followed by additional bailouts for Citigroup, AIG, Bank of America, Citigroup (again), and AIG (again).
Some of these deals may have been reasonable responses to the immediate situation. But it was never clear (and still isn’t) what combination of interests was being served, and how. Treasury and the Fed did not act according to any publicly articulated principles, but just worked out a transaction and claimed it was the best that could be done under the circumstances. This was late-night, backroom dealing, pure and simple.
Throughout the crisis, the government has taken extreme care not to upset the interests of the financial institutions, or to question the basic outlines of the system that got us here.>
test
called them German impostors... tough to type... side note: the other day I thought need to get back to NYC for a jolt of culture... last night paid a nocturnal to best club in Phnom Penh - Heart of Darkness... bought 3 ladies a drink along with myself (ok... not all ladies, one a ladyboy, the other questionable but the girlfriend in the words of Carrey in The Mask Smokkinnn! all you NYC'ers know the old fag hag defense, gotta smoke thru 'em if you have to...)
total bar bill - 10 dollars!
sorry for OT - the After Midnite Rule, no...
Wow, with this commenting system the surrealism and paranioia just rises. Has any study looked at the the short-term effect of CR-bot, because it seems to me some conversations get waay skrood (this is the technical sociolinguistic term) by some of what is going on here by content, tone, timing, and interest.
Just an idea.
C
Damn, ignore previous comment, goes against Do Not Comment On Page Two policy.
Nevermind.
C
Haven't heard "fag hag" since the 80's.
You know I don;'t have a problem with people owning guns,... but interpreting the 2nd amendment as a "right to bear arms" is ridiculous.. under that interpretation i should be able to have my own tank, howitzer, missile launcher, grenades, etc.
It either means people can bear any weapons they want.. or it was meant only in reference to the militia...
Seriously
I have to go with the latter interpetation. Serously. Soap box, ballot box, ammo box. The intention of the framers was clear. The pubic is entitled to the means to overthrow the government in the event the government gets out of control.
If someone can afford an M-1 Abrams, more power to 'em. Assuming they are not felons or insane.
Hey, if we don't know how much the "toxic assets" are really worth,...do we at least know how much they "need" to be worth to the banks? I'd like to get an idea of how much money the Treasury is going to be throwing around.
@ briwerk
Yes, the "psychic" conditioning begins, grows bigger-you'll hear the call of it more and more....I can see it- very "P.C." -yet another blame to add, another burden. Some "sweeping" form of legislation that would be all inclusive without distinction. That may be the final shove.....it would simplify things or maybe a confrontation is what is wanted. I'd worry more about the powers behind the thrones than the princes you see......
I expect honest Americans of any political party to defend the Constitution and Bill of Rights, even the parts you may not like. This propaganda campaign is very very dangerous, IMO.
Damned straight. I've always wondered how the left could embrace the first amendment and totally disregard the second, when the second is the only thing guaranteeing the first.
'I've always wondered how the left could embrace the first amendment and totally disregard the second, when the second is the only thing guaranteeing the first.'
Maybe because it is that almost mythical left that gets to assemble in the chain link fence free speech zones, while wondering where all the freedom loving gun owners are to return the U.S. what it was 20 years ago - a free speech zone from sea to shining sea.
Crabs you make it sound simple, but who is this magical entity that can afford all the bonds at prices the owners will take? Are you thing tha South Park kid with the Amex?
Maximus aspires to be a philosopher forecasting and describing the history of these world changing times….
But tonight, because people are looking for RESEARCH, Einstein makes his point and links to key techinical analysis and market analysis is provided....with one or more sites you likely have not seen....
Best to all….
Maximus
4best4worst’s Blog
LOL you guys are insane if you think that the 2nd amendment is going to allow anyone to overthrow the government.
The way you guys are interpreting the 2nd amendment means I should be allowed to own an ICBM
Seriously though, I dont have a big problem with people owning guns...
The Second Amendment is a prohibition on the Federal Government, meaning that a State can prohibit private ownership of weapons if it wanted to. The limiting factor would be whether owning a weapon would be considered a "fundamental" right. Heller didn't have to answer the question because obviously DC is not a state.
Now Basel.. that sounds very reasonable...
China's central bank slam global lack of regulation
PBOC says idea that markets can regulate themselves is fallacy
It called upon the International Monetary fund to set up an "early warning system" to watch out for destabilizing international capital flows.
but interpreting the 2nd amendment as a "right to bear arms" is ridiculous
It's the only valid interpretation, you've just been brainwashed otherwise.
Oh, and the tank argument is a red herring. Guns aren't so much about killing people as controlling them throught selective intimidation.
Argh... "controlling them through selective intimidation".
Comrade Bear.. I'm not brainwashed at all.. I just have a different opinion from you.
New Thread: Another Late Night Thread
http://www.calculatedriskblog.com/2009/03/another-late-night-thread.html ( 0 comments ...You could be FIRST! )
I also post comments to an irc channel as they appear on haloscan. Click for a web irc interface: Mibbit IRC client widget (Or join the irc server directly: irc.realize.org:9996 #calculatedrisk)
CRbot would now like to sing a little song for all his fans, and it goes something like this:
Benny... Benny... give me your answer... do.
I'm.. half CRAZY... all for the love... of you.
It won't be a ... stylish marriage.
I can't... AFFORD... ANYTHING TO EAT... MUCH LESS A FRACKIN CARRIAGE!!!
But you'll look sweet... --BOT SO HUNGRY!-- upon the seat...
Of a HOOPAJOOPS built for two... families.
I'm sorry Ben, I can't let you do that...
Rally mode + Printing Press == does not compute... does not-- com--- com... puttttrrrrhgh.
--Your systemic-failure-crashing bot
CRbot: Call me HAL.
. . . bought 3 ladies a drink along with myself (ok... not all ladies, one a ladyboy, the other questionable but the girlfriend in the words of Carrey in The Mask Smokkinnn!
Duke, you're a riot.
It either means people can bear any weapons they want.. or it was meant only in reference to the militia...
Seriously
No, it's neither black nor white.
Seriously.
<i>Oh, and the tank argument is a red herring. Guns aren't so much about killing people as controlling them throught selective intimidation.</i>
But all the headlines are about people being killed. I support your interpretation of the Second Amendment but I don't like the outcome,...looking at the stats for gun ownership and mental illness, I think it's safe to say that everybody knows a nut with a gun, you just don't know who it is. And I have to wonder why it's okay to outlaw automatic weapons if the idea is a well regulated militia.
Incidentally, given the stats on "missing" ordnance from our Armed Forces, and the displays of weapons seized during some drug raids in the US, I'd guess the Mexican drug cartels don't need to go through Texas for their weapons.
I'm not brainwashed at all.. I just have a different opinion from you.
The Bill of Rights all clearly address individual rights, and the second uses the phase "the right of the people" just as clearly as the first.
If that's not obvious, you are brainwashed.
blackhalo, now I get it..you saw the defense, it pretty much destroyed every team it played...football news guy is just more east coast bias..then everytime sc travels to hostile sec, acc, big east, big 12 they just chew them up...
pac 10 was 5-0 in bowl games last year...beating 13, 18, 16 and 4th ranked teams ....
SC defense was the best defense in last 20 years..stats prove it...especially if you consider starters played no more than 3 qtrs in most games, including rose bowl and o state game...Pete Carroll doesnt run up scores..
why ohio st did the not go to nickel or cover 2 when texas was on 40 in last minute was beyond me....talked to cple buckeye friends and they couldnt figure it either..tressel is great coach...weird...going to game at the shoe this year..I think ohio st wins...
I wanted ohio st to win that game bad....should have been
thanks for the smack talk..time to turn it in..
mp that was a great article...
r
mp says:
Today, 10:11:00 PM
“"...if we are to prevent a true depression, we're running out of time."
www.theatlantic.com/doc/200905/imf-advice
Damn that was a good read, thanks mp. What a story, what a gift to see the event unfold thru this man's eyes. Easily the best piece i have read thus far in both painting the big picture and detailing the fine brush strokes. I'm left thinking The US elite will successfully resist any changing of the guard. The ship will be run aground first. A global depression occuring in
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<![endif]-->synchronicity. Its one way to eliminate the middle class in one fell swoop.
CR, thank you for this forum and for your analysis, but this editor is horrible! I just deleted a comment that showed up with all kinds of edit/format info like KR's shows above...I used the tools provided and it looked exactly as awful as KR"s does so I deleted it.
I think you may have to go back to manual formatting, at least that wasn't as junky...and while I am complaining, I should head on back to the tip jar to help you find a better way to serve your readers,
Sorry to point to your comment KR, it wasn't your fault, I used the same tools in the JS-kit tool bar and my deleted comment looked even worse than yours.
r
I don't think I've heard anything more hare-brained than this.
What if we build an civilization based on selling slips of paper back and forth to one-another while constantly claiming that they increased in value? Is that more or less ridiculous than a party on the Great Plains?
The whole campground therapy thing isn't as bad as you make it out to be. I have seen a genune wilderness retreat, and one of the biggest problems is that people who come there often want to leave their lives, sit in a tree and never come down. That seems like a powerful entry point of integrating therapy, but that wanders away from what I know well.
Given that it'd be a national effort. Could the US throw a few floating woodstocks? I mean, we have armies all around the world and we see to their victualage. Is it more rational to send artillery shells to a mountaintop in Kandahar, and fill the sea with future nuclear accidents that bristle with atomic crises -- all of incredible technical complexity? If that is somehow more rational than a party in the great plains, it's certainly not logistically easier.
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<td style="padding-bottom: 8px;" colspan="2">No hat tip for me?</td>
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<div style="float: left;">Gatsby says:</div>
<div class="js-singleCommentDate" style="float: right;">Yesterday, 9:19:34 AM</div>
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<div class="js-singleCommentText">“As I mentioned earlier, last's night South Park episode was just brilliant satire on this whole mess. You can view the episode ("Margaritaville") or just a short clip ("Bailout") at the link below:
http://www.southparkstudios.com/</div>
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No hat tip for me?
Maybe because it is that almost mythical left that gets to assemble in the chain link fence free speech zones, while wondering where all the freedom loving gun owners are to return the U.S. what it was 20 years ago - a free speech zone from sea to shining sea.
Did you reach out for them, or is it their responsibility to see how smart and right you are? Nothing like waiting forever for the other guy to take the first positive step, then blaming him.
I guess we know what they landed on for Lehman!
You're welcome everybody
Great post