OT but reposted from last CR because it made me feel good today.
I met Andy Mackie today outside of Port Angeles today. I'd never heard of him, but he had a Guinness Book of World Records sticker on his station wagon so we ended up talking. He seemed almost embarrassed to hand me a business card. The Ying to Kashkari's Yang, I suppose.
Y'know, there are moments when I honestly believe that we deserve to fail.
It's like there are two Americas here. I spent the weekend at a wedding in the Shenandoah Valley and did a Mennonite (reformed) church service this AM. Much of the singing was done in the traditional Mennonite a capella w/harmony; mixed race congregation and much socializing afterwards. But this is never seen.
This is like the house from "My Big Fat Greek Wedding".
Guests can eat Gyros and Souvlaki at the bar in the pool while they badmouth the turks.
Homedad - I thought the exact same thing - columns and 'grill' in the front... all they needed was the goat roasting and some Ouzo.
As for the inside - my kids would HAVE loved growing up there... remote controlled cars on all that marble... oh man. Plus they played ice hockey as youngsters & roller bladed all summer... can you image how they would have flow through that place? And the columns would have made great goals [at least until somebody got checked into one - don't suppose they have a lot of give to them].
I'm skeptical a 31 year old with no experience is going to come in and fix this. Furthermore, even if he is a genius program manager... if you were a genius program manager wouldn't you do something prior to 31? Seems like a lot of years wasted... someone else mentioned the Google founders... didn't they found Google in their early-mid 20s?
It takes genuine talent and a lot of money to build something that ugly and impractical.Somehow it reminds me of the eggs my mom would cook for dad when she was pissed,burned and raw at the same time...
We don't have too many homes like this in NH. But the inventor of the segway did open his house up to a fundraiser tour, and that place was pretty spectacular.
Probably the bbq in front was used, the backyard was not finished... This place definitely has the 'personalized' decor, as opposed to the 'salable' decor.... I have never understood why anyone would put in so much tile - I've actually seen houses with 100% tile... it doesnt look right, the sound echoes all over the place, and it's hard to keep clean, if you are a clean person... Weird...
We don't have too many homes like this in NH. But the inventor of the segway did open his house up to a fundraiser tour, and that place was pretty spectacular.
There are some mansions in Minnesota - out on Lake Minnetonka, Manitou Island in White Bear Lake, Stillwater... and some money too... some old money from 3M, General Mills, Cargill and 'newer' money from the biomeds like Medtronic.
But I can't recall seeing anything quite like that. 'Spectacular' isn't the perfect word... 'Craptacular' is better.
I have to watch the clip with no sound because my insomnia isn't shared by the sleeping person next to me -- but from the silent video, it looks like something straight out of the middle east or maybe mediterranean.
I have to watch the clip with no sound because my insomnia isn't shared by the sleeping person next to me -- but from the silent video, it looks like something straight out of the middle east or maybe mediterranean.
Have you ever seen "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" - if not rent it. BTW - I KNOW neighborhoods exactly like that in Chicago - I laughed so hard I about cried.
Love My Big Fat Greek Wedding. My mother actually has a cousin Tulah (or however you spell it ) (she's Greek). Altho I have to say, my grandparents, straight from the old country, were actually very conservative and non-showy.
That 'house' is the ultimate (that I've seen) in gaudy mixed with low utility overlaid on the 'greed to shock and awe' the Jones. Las Vegas plus (parts of) LA, with highlights of (parts of) Miami and and Riyadh.
That video should be confiscated before the world discovers that the US is completely bonkers. That house is enough to fully earn the title of Exemplar of the Fall of Rome (err, the USA).
Federal Reserve puzzled by yield curve steepening
Sun May 31, 2009
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve is studying significant moves in the U.S. government bond market last week that could have big implications for the central bank's strategy to combat the country's recession.
But the Fed is not really sure what is driving the sharp rise in long-dated bond yields, and especially a widening gap between short and long term yields.
Do rising U.S. Treasury yields and a steepening yield curve suggest an economic recovery is more certain, meaning less need for safe haven government bonds and a healthy demand for credit? If so, there might be less need for the Fed to expand the money supply by buying more U.S. Treasuries.
Or does the steepening yield curve mean investors are worried about the deterioration in the U.S. fiscal outlook, or the potential for a collapse in the U.S. dollar as the Fed floods the world with newly minted currency as part of its quantitative easing program. This might be an argument to augment to step up asset purchases.
Another possibility is that China, the largest foreign holder of U.S. Treasury debt, has decided to refocus its portfolio by leaning more heavily on shorter-term maturities.
With officials still grappling to divine the factors steepening the yield curve, a speedy decision on whether to ramp up the Treasury debt purchase program or the related plan to snap up mortgage-related debt seems unlikely.
I think Jim has it right - this was probably a do-it-yourself guy that didn't know what he was doing. I bet this house will have many more problems (like the leak in the bathroom that Jim notes).
I think that's a swim-up bar so guests can swim up and sit down and have a drink, fixed by a person who is standing in a hot tub while serving the drinks.
It could also be used by kids to serve each other lemonade or peed-in pool water, LOL.
I do believe that's a mini long jump. It could have also been used as a sandbox by little tikes. Not a good idea to have a sandbox without a cover due to neighborhood cats.
Love My Big Fat Greek Wedding. My mother actually has a cousin Tulah (or however you spell it ) (she's Greek). Altho I have to say, my grandparents, straight from the old country, were actually very conservative and non-showy.
Most are... it's always just a few who make the stereotype - same with all cultures.
BTW - How would you like to be their neighbors [in Jim's video]?
There is an odd house for sale near me that gives me the same WTF feeling. Almost finished like the one in Jim's video, and also a REO. The one near me was designed by an architect/owner.
Large indoor dog run. Small kitchen. Lots of hallways. Spiral staircase in the middle of the living room, fragmenting it into useless spaces.
A neighbor calls the house "bulldozer bait". If it stays on the market long enough, the architect who designed it will qualify to buy it again. The qualifications keep moving, but I think it is either 2 or 3 years from a foreclosure until you qualify for fannie mae loans. Some homes will sit on the market that long as REOs. "Hi, remember that house I paid $X for in 2006 and the bank took back in late 2007? Well, since it's still for sale, I'd like to buy it for less than half what I paid the first time".
I bet you there was a statue there and it was stolen. The statue was probably copper and it was stolen. Probably pulled off with a truck after sawing the base.
Tim waiting for 2012 (homepage, profile) wrote on Sun, 5/31/2009 - 9:38 pm
I bet you there was a statue there and it was stolen. The statue was probably copper and it was stolen. Probably pulled off with a truck after sawing the base.
I was torn between guessing an anatomically correct statue of Apollo or an ornate astrolabe sundial.
"Glad to see that, Tim. China needs to deal with the problem in its 'hood."
Meh. I am half torn between worrying that they are pulling the strings or that an activist China, may not work out so well. UN/USA should probably call it our problem and step up and fix it post haste. I am kinda annoyed that we bungled Iraq so badly that we burned so much good will and butter/guns, that we may not even be able to do what we should.
Another abortion doctor killed and for what?! Jas was not hard enough against BABD. Medieval ages meet America. There is no way USA is going to compete economically with Asian or European countries with this kind of ignorant and arrogant populace. Who the fuck would wanna insource back those factories when all you got is a bunch of bubbas with weird believes, dangerous attitudes, plenty of guns and with little education.
Biggest nightmare is those "army of god"-types get a few nukes, plenty of them in missile silos around where they live and plenty of their own people in the army too. Plus the fact nuclear forces are nowadays dumping ground for 2nd grade soldiers. "The action" is not there like it was in the 50's and 60's...
Who is going to watch those silos and storage caves after the collapse? Nobody because high-tech US army is going to disintegrate. Mercenary army works until no pay. American made helicopters, tanks and jet fighters are also not going to fly/go another mile without constant maintenance, after every hundred hours or so. Maintenance and spare parts are the cash cow for the military-industrial complex: "On average, an F-14 requires nearly 50 maintenance hours for every flight hour, while the Super Hornet requires five to 10 maintenance hours for every flight hour."
USSR collapse was bad enough but at least they did not have many "god speaks to me" loonies in the army. And Americans worry about few Taleban BABDs in Pakistan?!
Blackhalo, I'm way beyond annoyed. I'm seriously pissed off, but that, as they say, is water under the bridge . . . or over the levy . . . or whatever it is that they say.
It seems to me that China will become more active in world affairs whether we or anyone else like it or not, so let's let them deal with the crazy dude next door.
America will remain a player in the world. It's just a team sport.
Oh by the way, I don't think it's goat roasting in My Big Fat Greek Wedding - usually it's lamb on the spit.
Could be either. I hung around a lot of Eastern Mediterranean students when in college... Greeks, Turks, Lebanese, Armenians. Goat was very common in the old country & actually 'preferred' but extremely hard to get here.
My only experience with Turks was with one who, when he wasn't telling me how much he enjoyed killing communists, was offering me $10,000 "American" to marry his daughter.
His other daughter was married to a US Air Force non-com.
To this day, I have pity for him. He married into the equivalent of the mafia. I'm certain he's never left her because, if he had, I would have read about in the newspaper.
To this day, I have pity for him. He married into the equivalent of the mafia. I'm certain he's never left her because, if he had, I would have read about in the newspaper.
My roommate in college was Turkish - lived w/ him for three years - he was a PhD candidate in Mech Engineering having already got a Masters in Nuclear Physics... I was an undergrad Chemical Engineering.
One year I went out west on a wild spring break trip [hitchhiked out to Colorado to go skiing]... I was pretty full of myself but he was unimpressed. Finally he said that when he was an undergrad and went on 'break'... they would spend a whole week in the 'Red Light District' in Istanbul... said "I don't think your American Spring Break would compare..." I thought awhile and so "Nope - I don't think it would."
Folks, we can point and laugh, but this house is just another spin on the good ol' American McMansion. Let's call it "The McManthenon."
Is it ostentatious? Nope. Just trashy.
Keep submitting the vids, Jim. Always appreciate your droll commentary. Also enjoy the tours of North County as I've rarely been back since graduating from San Marcos High in '73 - long live the Fighting Knights! About 800 kids at the school in those days...
Jim's dramatics are amusing, but even he is lipsticking the pig, obscuring the slowly emerging reality of credit-collapse home pricing, not showing you any of the many arm's length, legitimate SoCal home fire-sales, like this 2703 sq ft San Clemente 3/2.5 at $3.70 sq ft, only off 98%, hiding in plain sight.
Real estate is all about land values, nothing more. This is usually lost on people, even most builders until they become very seasoned, some never catch on.
A good example, is the builder who 'over-improves' the lot. For every penny he spends above the average price of the neigbourhood, his risk increases almost exponentially.
of course, the federal gubmint only incentivizes improvements in terms of depreciation, while the local gubmint loves to tax the land itself. the man just don't want you to have anything resembling real wealth... thank jeebus for gold
Many people are wondering if it could be fools-gold right about now. I am not one of those. Gold is going to rocket, the shit is going to hit the fan...its coming. (yawn, another prediction, I know)
The thing I like about gold, physical that is, is that you buy it never to sell. It traps your wealth. It prevents you from losing wealth. Gold is less an investment, and more wealth protection. You are protecting yourself against you. (or the wife, as the case may be.)
I've seen some silly arguments here over the last few days on gold (again as usual), that the evil Gov can outlaw possession of gold, and the problem of safely storing it, etc etc. Its so laughable. The simple minded can't think how to hide a pound or two of some metal substance? The simple minded do not know how to buy gold for cash? Then there's the argument that maple syrup is a more stable market. (my friend EHP).
Fortunately the Chinese control the global price of gold these days, and guess what they are selling in order to buy...
Platinum does not monetize in times of currency crisis. Silver is a poor sister. There is only one precious metal that culturally, genetically, causes eyes to glaze over, and that people kill for.
To my colleagues on CR, I have a treat for you.
99.999% of the people viewing this documentary will not get it because they do not have the back ground information to understand it, I do not care about those people so much. I care about the .001% of the people who do get it. I am now placing a call to the people who do get it to join me.
"Platinum does not monetize in times of currency crisis. Silver is a poor sister. "
Agree much more on the latter than former. I've owned significant quantities (to a middle-class yokel at least) of all 4 PMs. And had dirty, dirty thoughts about the concept of rhodium bullion.
Platinum went super nuts in the late 1910s - up to a grand in dollars of the time. Platinum is dope-fresh, and only comes in significant quantities from RSA and the russkies. It is a super-duper pain in the ass to mine.
While that may be true, i don't buy gold to gain leverage, if i wanted leverage, i'd buy ETF's. Gold is universally accepted, and I buy it because I don't intend to sell. Its a mind set. Its safe, and I cannot spend it. I buy only J&M .9999, the real true value of the goods.
Cheers!
Nobody wanted to comment on that cheap carpet? I guess it was just a temporary measure until he could get more marble. And it's definitely a "he" doing that job. Love the columns, got enough to fill an Excel spreadsheet. The backyard BBQ set might not be a dual set,...maybe a wet bar on one side?
As to nationality, it's hard to say; bad taste is cosmopolitan.
I just can't understand why any of the great minds are so commonly interested in up-legging each other over their
brilliant knowledge of junk bricks and mortar. It seems such a waste of mind-time.
Right about now, y'all should know that that the American economy is completely unwinding. The price of the roof over everybody's head is the least important fact in the mix..all you need to know is that it will be worth less tomorrow. Stick with that.
The lot that this piece of junk sits on will be worth 75% less in 2011 than it is today. The 2X4's will cost about the same, maybe less. And the shitty mexican carpenter that built the new crap next door, who can't hammer a 2 1/2" or a 3" nail straight, but some idiot put a nail gun in his hand in spite of it, will build walls not plum or level for 1/4 the price next year.
KR, i consider g'bug to be an honorific - and i dearly wish you were wrong on any number of points you raise...
still, the current omnipresent abuse of housing-as-leveraged-asset/ATM obscures the fact that gold and RE are gasp in the same asset class (along with art, first editions, sweet old strats, etc etc)...
forests, trees, horses, barns... another pale ale...
Whatever else you are buying, stop it and buy gold, is my point. Its not because gold is particulary a good investment in the best of times, rather its essential in the worst of times. And these times have arrived. Most people do not think. To be different, start thinking.
A weak example. Gold is trading at $500/oz. Someone hands you an item which is 18K, and weighs 12 grams. How much value, less the street buy commission of 5% do you hold in your hand. You have 20 min.
i really wish we were wrong - very few are prepared for the new paradigm. but unless you work for the canadian mint or dig the stuff up in peru, central asia, africa or the south pacific and spend all day staring at a big nasty cyanide pool, i may need to hold back on the 'master' sobriquet
But no one on the street will charge you 5%, it was a loaded question. They would fee you 20% at least. And because you would not know, they'd ding you 40%
but you bring up an interesting point - even the highest volume bullion pimps still try to ding you 3% on the bid with gold, and are far, far worse with the other PMs - a travesty
I smelted gold, I manufactured gold, I traded gold, I built furnaces that smelted gold, and I sold to J&M. So don't be so presumptious please. You never do know who you are talking to here.
Cheers!
an easy trap for the conspiracy-minded to fall into, but not true. in my college years, one of my best friends was the son of the current ambassador to israel from the US... just another knucklehead, like me. i also consider a high-ranking gent in the the dirty-two-dozen of the xlf a real friend...
timmay is no mastermind. banksters are people too.
An Air France passenger plane has disappeared off radar over the Atlantic off the Brazilian coast, news agencies are reporting. Contact was lost shortly after takeoff from Rio de Janeiro. 215 aboard. Just breaking now, getting this off Twitter.
"The Federal Reserve is in wait-and-see mode following the surge in bond yields and mortgage rates that partly reversed on Friday, with officials unwilling to be bounced into any knee-jerk policy reaction."
The currency markets do not seem to be in wait-and-see mode. USD is under 79 and approaching levels not seen since last September.
"Paris Charles de Gaulle airport said contact was lost with the flight from Rio de Janeiro at 0600 GMT. Brazil's air force confirmed the disappearance. An airport official told AFP the Airbus 330 had been expected to arrive in Paris at 1110 local time (0910 GMT). "
Three hours...that would make the crash site "near" Canary islands (Gran Canaria), 210 km/130 miles from the northwest coast of Africa.
Blackhalo (homepage, profile) wrote on Mon, 6/1/2009 - 12:49 am
"Glad to see that, Tim. China needs to deal with the problem in its 'hood."
Meh. I am half torn between worrying that they are pulling the strings or that an activist China, may not work out so well.
Well you're broke so stop worrying. i mean really, if the Chinese need you to launch a military adventure on their frontier, they will call you, and tell you what they expect of you. If they don't, you won't get three days into it before you present them with your humblest apologies and go home or go broke.
Did you ever consider they might be letting it happen because Americans are naive interventionists, and they know they can provoke you to aggression along their frontier, so they can end the vendor-financing regime in the name of national security and Asian self-determinism? Not saying they are, but, there is a fine Chinese art to taking offense and the days when they were a bumpkin nation that would have had to struggle to secure its own borders are over.
What will you do if they gainsay you, beat them decisively in an initial engagement, so as to "waken a sleeping giant and fill it with terrible resolve"? They could convince themselves they needed to occupy us at tremendous expense for their own safety. It wouldn't work the other way, given that they pay for your state's continued operation to subsidize their own economy.
UN/USA should probably call it our problem and step up and fix it post haste.
I think you need to check yourself before you wreck yourself.
I am kinda annoyed that we bungled Iraq so badly that we burned so much good will and butter/guns, that we may not even be able to do what we should.
You had no money before Iraq. Iraq was a political show designed to distract naive little boys, to make them wave flags and make them bully political opponents of the administration from behind their badges, and to make looters in the privatized logistics chain of the US armed forces (who now seem like the uttermost piker tyros, now that we have recognized the real looters) some money. It was a strategically self-destructive war fought for internal political reasons.
Iraq got you where you are today. Iraq was a terrible idea even if it had been "won" because you started bankrupt, and the war was never really anything but political cover for the bankruptcy. "If only we could have invaded some other place!" is so not the answer. Your country is economically crippled, war is a logistical contest and adventurist imperial wars are money pits. Will you just keep invading new places until you topple over, demonstrating the Casey Serin model of the interventionist hegemon? Military power is about potential, not reality. Stop searching for ways to expend your strength.
cr writes: "dryfly, I don't get the front courtyard. A BBQ and fireplace? That would be OK if that was the only yard - but then they have that backyard!"
Here's how I vision the set up: while the party goers are having their good time in the back, the security detail checks clearances and allows entry at the front. They also screen away the fuzz when and if the neighbors complain. It was getting a bit tiresome (or so said the HBOTHICJBTHBIC) having large armed persons traipsing through the house over and over again, bringing food back to their buds at the front. And that time when they slopped some salsa and guacamole on the brand new rug was the last straw.
So, she told her man to keep 'those people' up front and get them their own damn BBQ pit and fireplace so 'we the people' won't have to see them, elsewise you won't never get to the promised land again.
note HBOTHICJBTHBIC--Head Bitch Of The House In Charge Just Behind The Head Bastard In Charge
Citigroup, the third-biggest U.S. bank by assets, could face stricter pay rules, limiting its ability to keep talented executives, said Jason Goldberg, a New York-based analyst at Barclays Capital, who has an “overweight” investment rating on Citigroup’s stock.
Keep?
Any government investment in financial institutions raises the prospect of banks being ordered to focus on “state-approved social objectives” instead of increasing earnings, according to a report last week from the Committee on Capital Markets Regulation, a 25-member group of financial-industry executives, lawyers, consultants and academics.
Such as responsible lending and reasonable customer service?
“If the choice is going out of business and forming a financial black hole, this is a less bad alternative,” Federated’s Orlando said.
No idea what this means, but it sounds great.
FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair pressed the bank in January to participate in her agency’s “mod-in-a-box” foreclosure-prevention program. Many banks are leery of the effort because foreclosures sometimes can minimize write-offs and flexibility helps when negotiating with delinquent borrowers.
Citigroup also consented to lawmakers’ demands that it support a bill giving judges the authority to write down mortgage principal for homeowners in bankruptcy.
債券之旅 (Zhai juen zhi lu) is simply "Government Bond Journey".
Talking this weekend w/ a Hongkonger resident in Shanghai, involved in a media company. Ad rev is down only a bit, but the magazine distribution system in China (post office monopolizes both subscription delivery and retail distribution) takes a huge up front cash commitment. Given the high operating leverage of running a magazine anyway, this has made practically all titles money losers for some time.
Still, he admits, he sees a better future trying to sell Chinese eyeballs to advertisers than any export oriented business, so he's hanging in there.
BR, if you're still out there, thanks for the reality check, above, +1.
I cannot believe there are still so many out there who only will stop chin stroking to finger lead soldiers. But to be fair to BH, I think he was expecting China to pick up more yellow man's burden.
Maybe the Chinese got innoculated (small dose can beat a big fatal dose) against going to war for "internal political reasons" in their VN fiasco in '79.
This morning, I read an inspiring story about GLL Centres, a London-based non-profit
operating gyms for the benefit of the community. (check their site at gll.org). This is
truly brilliant thinking, as it uses the current environment to subtly undermine the status quo. The non-profit model would be a brilliant
Total credit market debt as a percentage of GDP has risen from 130% of GDP in 1952 to 350%
of GDP today. The various bailout and stimulus schemes enacted in the last year will drive
this percentage above 400% in the near future. When a country allows this much debt to
accumulate versus its GDP, they have done something seriously wrong. The country’s
politicians, business leaders, and citizens have all contributed to this disaster.
I think I see some green shoots in that backyard.
FOMC meeting this week. No rate cut but maybe we'll get the treasury purchase program juiced to $1Trillion ! More ponies!!
OT but reposted from last CR because it made me feel good today.
I met Andy Mackie today outside of Port Angeles today. I'd never heard of him, but he had a Guinness Book of World Records sticker on his station wagon so we ended up talking. He seemed almost embarrassed to hand me a business card. The Ying to Kashkari's Yang, I suppose.
Home
This is like the house from "My Big Fat Greek Wedding".
Guests can eat Gyros and Souvlaki at the bar in the pool while they badmouth the turks.
I was screaming; "Run Jim! Vesuvius is gonna erupt any second!"
Y'know, there are moments when I honestly believe that we deserve to fail.
It's like there are two Americas here. I spent the weekend at a wedding in the Shenandoah Valley and did a Mennonite (reformed) church service this AM. Much of the singing was done in the traditional Mennonite a capella w/harmony; mixed race congregation and much socializing afterwards. But this is never seen.
Tonight, I get this.
G'night.
This is like the house from "My Big Fat Greek Wedding".
Guests can eat Gyros and Souvlaki at the bar in the pool while they badmouth the turks.
Homedad - I thought the exact same thing - columns and 'grill' in the front... all they needed was the goat roasting and some Ouzo.
As for the inside - my kids would HAVE loved growing up there... remote controlled cars on all that marble... oh man. Plus they played ice hockey as youngsters & roller bladed all summer... can you image how they would have flow through that place? And the columns would have made great goals [at least until somebody got checked into one - don't suppose they have a lot of give to them].
As they get older - paintball in the backyard.
Place has promise - for the right family.
There should be a bocce ball playing area to go w/the now departed Scarface statue.
broward, sounds like a really interesting guy to meet
Mackie says, "I tell them music is a gift, you give it away - you give it away and you get to keep it forever."
He sure has the right attitude.
bearly, FOMC meeting? I think the next one is scheduled for June 23rd and 24th
dryfly, I don't get the front courtyard. A BBQ and fireplace? That would be OK if that was the only yard - but then they have that backyard!
best to all
From the last thread regarding that 31 year old.
I'm skeptical a 31 year old with no experience is going to come in and fix this. Furthermore, even if he is a genius program manager... if you were a genius program manager wouldn't you do something prior to 31? Seems like a lot of years wasted... someone else mentioned the Google founders... didn't they found Google in their early-mid 20s?
The backyard, including the barbequeless food area, looks like a series of addons they never got right..
Is compulsion one of the seven deadly sins?
It takes genuine talent and a lot of money to build something that ugly and impractical.Somehow it reminds me of the eggs my mom would cook for dad when she was pissed,burned and raw at the same time...
The unfinished columns remind me of the fake ruins at Sans Souci.
Well, not really.
But I think this will find a buyer. Looks like it was built to be a frat party house.
Burned and raw at the same time - now that's talent!
Reminds me of when my sister was first married. "Oh dear. Is that toast too burned for you?" "No, it's burned just right."
Jim the Realtor makes it sound as though whoever buys this property next will also be a sucker. And he'd be right.
dryfly, I don't get the front courtyard. A BBQ and fireplace? That would be OK if that was the only yard - but then they have that backyard!
CR - I can't even imagine a place like that - I've never seen anything quite like it.
We don't have too many homes like this in NH. But the inventor of the segway did open his house up to a fundraiser tour, and that place was pretty spectacular.
China Suspends North Korea Exchanges, Yonhap Reports
China Suspends North Korea Exchanges, Yonhap Reports (Update1) - Bloomberg.com
Is this checkmate for N Korea? Hope they don't get more desperate.
Probably the bbq in front was used, the backyard was not finished... This place definitely has the 'personalized' decor, as opposed to the 'salable' decor.... I have never understood why anyone would put in so much tile - I've actually seen houses with 100% tile... it doesnt look right, the sound echoes all over the place, and it's hard to keep clean, if you are a clean person... Weird...
CR
That was for the ritual sacrifice,,,
BTW who will replace GM on the Dow? Like it matters...
Glad to see that, Tim. China needs to deal with the problem in its 'hood.
Also glad to see no headlines about the U.S. being "rattled" by any of this.
We don't have too many homes like this in NH. But the inventor of the segway did open his house up to a fundraiser tour, and that place was pretty spectacular.
There are some mansions in Minnesota - out on Lake Minnetonka, Manitou Island in White Bear Lake, Stillwater... and some money too... some old money from 3M, General Mills, Cargill and 'newer' money from the biomeds like Medtronic.
But I can't recall seeing anything quite like that. 'Spectacular' isn't the perfect word... 'Craptacular' is better.
CONJURE'S WORD OF THE DAY
Gauche
'Spectacular' isn't the perfect word... 'Craptacular' is better.
I just went with 'garish' and let it be.
I have to watch the clip with no sound because my insomnia isn't shared by the sleeping person next to me -- but from the silent video, it looks like something straight out of the middle east or maybe mediterranean.
CalculatedRisk (profile) wrote on Sun, 5/31/2009 - 8:59 pm
I don't get the front courtyard. A BBQ and fireplace?
Maybe a goat draining in the front 'fountain' and a neon "Gyros Open Late" sign would make it clearer.
I have to watch the clip with no sound because my insomnia isn't shared by the sleeping person next to me -- but from the silent video, it looks like something straight out of the middle east or maybe mediterranean.
Have you ever seen "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" - if not rent it. BTW - I KNOW neighborhoods exactly like that in Chicago - I laughed so hard I about cried.
The problem with this house is:
It isn't even Art Deco.
-K
I was looking at this sale on Craigslist where they were liquidating an entire company's remaining tile, granite, and marble.
Maybe this guy got in on some big liquidation sale and thought he could put it to good use.
Victoria Ranch. 3900+ sf. $643k. Add in some demo costs for half the back yard and you've got a deal.
Love My Big Fat Greek Wedding. My mother actually has a cousin Tulah (or however you spell it ) (she's Greek). Altho I have to say, my grandparents, straight from the old country, were actually very conservative and non-showy.
That 'house' is the ultimate (that I've seen) in gaudy mixed with low utility overlaid on the 'greed to shock and awe' the Jones. Las Vegas plus (parts of) LA, with highlights of (parts of) Miami and and Riyadh.
That video should be confiscated before the world discovers that the US is completely bonkers. That house is enough to fully earn the title of Exemplar of the Fall of Rome (err, the USA).
Federal Reserve puzzled by yield curve steepening
Sun May 31, 2009
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve is studying significant moves in the U.S. government bond market last week that could have big implications for the central bank's strategy to combat the country's recession.
But the Fed is not really sure what is driving the sharp rise in long-dated bond yields, and especially a widening gap between short and long term yields.
Do rising U.S. Treasury yields and a steepening yield curve suggest an economic recovery is more certain, meaning less need for safe haven government bonds and a healthy demand for credit? If so, there might be less need for the Fed to expand the money supply by buying more U.S. Treasuries.
Or does the steepening yield curve mean investors are worried about the deterioration in the U.S. fiscal outlook, or the potential for a collapse in the U.S. dollar as the Fed floods the world with newly minted currency as part of its quantitative easing program. This might be an argument to augment to step up asset purchases.
Another possibility is that China, the largest foreign holder of U.S. Treasury debt, has decided to refocus its portfolio by leaning more heavily on shorter-term maturities.
With officials still grappling to divine the factors steepening the yield curve, a speedy decision on whether to ramp up the Treasury debt purchase program or the related plan to snap up mortgage-related debt seems unlikely.
homer says Doh!
BTW who will replace GM on the Dow? Like it matters...
Nobody knows, I suppose, but my money would be on CSCO.
I think Jim has it right - this was probably a do-it-yourself guy that didn't know what he was doing. I bet this house will have many more problems (like the leak in the bathroom that Jim notes).
I just kept laughing at each new area ...
best to all.
I think that's a swim-up bar so guests can swim up and sit down and have a drink, fixed by a person who is standing in a hot tub while serving the drinks.
It could also be used by kids to serve each other lemonade or peed-in pool water, LOL.
I do believe that's a mini long jump. It could have also been used as a sandbox by little tikes. Not a good idea to have a sandbox without a cover due to neighborhood cats.
Jimin Portland..
My God man, there is hope for us yet. I just agreed with every word you typed above!
Jim I'm afraid that the "Shire" in your neck of the woods takes the cake, the ice cream and the whole damn party....
For developers of Bend’s Shire, ‘dream’ is over
The Shire
Doesn't tile help keep a place cool? Also cleaner than carpet. The underwater stools are pretty cool - wouldn't the kids love that.
Love My Big Fat Greek Wedding. My mother actually has a cousin Tulah (or however you spell it ) (she's Greek). Altho I have to say, my grandparents, straight from the old country, were actually very conservative and non-showy.
Most are... it's always just a few who make the stereotype - same with all cultures.
BTW - How would you like to be their neighbors [in Jim's video]?
There is an odd house for sale near me that gives me the same WTF feeling. Almost finished like the one in Jim's video, and also a REO. The one near me was designed by an architect/owner.
Large indoor dog run. Small kitchen. Lots of hallways. Spiral staircase in the middle of the living room, fragmenting it into useless spaces.
A neighbor calls the house "bulldozer bait". If it stays on the market long enough, the architect who designed it will qualify to buy it again. The qualifications keep moving, but I think it is either 2 or 3 years from a foreclosure until you qualify for fannie mae loans. Some homes will sit on the market that long as REOs. "Hi, remember that house I paid $X for in 2006 and the bank took back in late 2007? Well, since it's still for sale, I'd like to buy it for less than half what I paid the first time".
Jilayne,
My thoughts exactly, litter box....not sure what it was intended , but know what it is....
it occured to me this guy had all that fixer up money...but couldnt pay his mortgage.... too much italian marble?
Well, I bet they had some fun pool parties. What kind of music do you figure they played? Lutes?
FWIW, all the houses like this i have seen are on MTV cribs, or most are owned by palm reading gypsies....
My thoughts exactly, litter box....not sure what it was intended , but know what it is....
The thing that makes it look like a 'long jump' is the 'stone step' at the front - looks like the launch site.
Maybe for when they hold their mini-olympics.
I bet you there was a statue there and it was stolen. The statue was probably copper and it was stolen. Probably pulled off with a truck after sawing the base.
Oh by the way, I don't think it's goat roasting in My Big Fat Greek Wedding - usually it's lamb on the spit.
Outsider, I've always associated goat roasting with Muslims, not with Greeks.
But a front courtyard fireplace and water fountain could make for a great conversation pit . . . without any roasting.
Goats gnawed Greece bare.
Tim waiting for 2012 (homepage, profile) wrote on Sun, 5/31/2009 - 9:38 pm
I bet you there was a statue there and it was stolen. The statue was probably copper and it was stolen. Probably pulled off with a truck after sawing the base.
I was torn between guessing an anatomically correct statue of Apollo or an ornate astrolabe sundial.
mp - are you talking about the turks?
"Glad to see that, Tim. China needs to deal with the problem in its 'hood."
Meh. I am half torn between worrying that they are pulling the strings or that an activist China, may not work out so well. UN/USA should probably call it our problem and step up and fix it post haste. I am kinda annoyed that we bungled Iraq so badly that we burned so much good will and butter/guns, that we may not even be able to do what we should.
"I've always associated goat roasting with Muslims..."
So have I, ever since being a resident at Fort Benning's BOQ many, many years ago.
There was a lot of commotion one Sunday afternoon when the post fire department showed up, sirens screaming.
Smoke was pouring from one of the rooms.
It seems that some junior Saudi Arabian officers, attending the Infantry School, decided to roast a goat for one of their religious observances.
They did it on the floor.
I believe the owner gave seminars in custom marble installation. The profit-maximizing bubble contractor never finishes a project 100%.
Another abortion doctor killed and for what?! Jas was not hard enough against BABD. Medieval ages meet America. There is no way USA is going to compete economically with Asian or European countries with this kind of ignorant and arrogant populace. Who the fuck would wanna insource back those factories when all you got is a bunch of bubbas with weird believes, dangerous attitudes, plenty of guns and with little education.
Biggest nightmare is those "army of god"-types get a few nukes, plenty of them in missile silos around where they live and plenty of their own people in the army too. Plus the fact nuclear forces are nowadays dumping ground for 2nd grade soldiers. "The action" is not there like it was in the 50's and 60's...
Who is going to watch those silos and storage caves after the collapse? Nobody because high-tech US army is going to disintegrate. Mercenary army works until no pay. American made helicopters, tanks and jet fighters are also not going to fly/go another mile without constant maintenance, after every hundred hours or so. Maintenance and spare parts are the cash cow for the military-industrial complex: "On average, an F-14 requires nearly 50 maintenance hours for every flight hour, while the Super Hornet requires five to 10 maintenance hours for every flight hour."
USSR collapse was bad enough but at least they did not have many "god speaks to me" loonies in the army. And Americans worry about few Taleban BABDs in Pakistan?!
mp (profile) wrote on Sun, 5/31/2009 - 9:44 pm
Goats gnawed Greece bare.
The Irvine Company gnawed Orange County bare.
Edited. Too late for lucid comments. Goodnight all.
"Outsider, I've always associated goat roasting with Muslims, not with Greeks."
In my travels to Turkey and Amsterdam, my only association with roast goat is, delicious.
Blackhalo, I'm way beyond annoyed. I'm seriously pissed off, but that, as they say, is water under the bridge . . . or over the levy . . . or whatever it is that they say.
It seems to me that China will become more active in world affairs whether we or anyone else like it or not, so let's let them deal with the crazy dude next door.
America will remain a player in the world. It's just a team sport.
RD
Definitely Apollo in fully glory fits the rest of the house.
Oh by the way, I don't think it's goat roasting in My Big Fat Greek Wedding - usually it's lamb on the spit.
Could be either. I hung around a lot of Eastern Mediterranean students when in college... Greeks, Turks, Lebanese, Armenians. Goat was very common in the old country & actually 'preferred' but extremely hard to get here.
I ate a lot of Middle Eastern food back then...
My only experience with Turks was with one who, when he wasn't telling me how much he enjoyed killing communists, was offering me $10,000 "American" to marry his daughter.
His other daughter was married to a US Air Force non-com.
To this day, I have pity for him. He married into the equivalent of the mafia. I'm certain he's never left her because, if he had, I would have read about in the newspaper.
Poor bastard.
"it's always just a few"
You've obviously never spent time in the belt from Brentwood to Beverly Hills, dry.
Yikes. that's a horror story.
You've obviously never spent time in the belt from Brentwood to Beverly Hills, dry.
Nope. Maybe everything gets exaggerated in Cali...
"Nope. Maybe everything gets exaggerated in Cali... "
Besides home prices and state debt/budget problems?
You know, if you were to describe the basic amenities of the place it would sound awesome, especially at the price. Sad.
Maybe everything gets exaggerated in Cali...
There's no "maybe" about it.
These houses sold for mid-$500,000s when new in 1999-2000. When this house was foreclosed the loan balance was around $1,200,000....
To this day, I have pity for him. He married into the equivalent of the mafia. I'm certain he's never left her because, if he had, I would have read about in the newspaper.
My roommate in college was Turkish - lived w/ him for three years - he was a PhD candidate in Mech Engineering having already got a Masters in Nuclear Physics... I was an undergrad Chemical Engineering.
One year I went out west on a wild spring break trip [hitchhiked out to Colorado to go skiing]... I was pretty full of myself but he was unimpressed. Finally he said that when he was an undergrad and went on 'break'... they would spend a whole week in the 'Red Light District' in Istanbul... said "I don't think your American Spring Break would compare..." I thought awhile and so "Nope - I don't think it would."
"There's no "maybe" about it."
I'd bash Cali, but being from Texas, I do not think we would come out ahead on best governor. At least we found a "greater fool" for our last one.
As I watched the video, I kept expecting some half-naked babes to appear around a corner.
The place looks like a run-down pron set.
Here's a photo of the the "lady" of the house:
http://www.planbproductions.com/images/off/angelyne.jpg
Yes, dryfly, everything gets exaggerated in Cali.
Overindulgence.....wanted an over the top feel but actually pulled off a what if "Jed Clampett" was actually Italian feel. Loved the cement pond....
Yes, dryfly, everything gets exaggerated in Cali.
Except the budget deficit which by my estimate is $8b larger than the $23.1b they acknowledge.
Folks, we can point and laugh, but this house is just another spin on the good ol' American McMansion. Let's call it "The McManthenon."
Is it ostentatious? Nope. Just trashy.
"Except the budget deficit which by my estimate is $8b larger than the $23.1b they acknowledge."
But revenue estimates only go up.
Don't they?
I have a feeling the owner thought he could pay off the mortgage & his improvements with revenue generated from porn movie filming location royalties.
"Is it ostentatious? Nope. Just trashy. "
They would have had to grout the tile in the bathroom to make it ostentatious.
Keep submitting the vids, Jim. Always appreciate your droll commentary. Also enjoy the tours of North County as I've rarely been back since graduating from San Marcos High in '73 - long live the Fighting Knights! About 800 kids at the school in those days...
And yes, by God, we DO need three BBQ's/refrigerators. What are you, some kind of pinko?
Nice, futures celebrating the demise of GM. It's a ponzi extravaganza!! The worse the data, the higher it goes. We have glorious markets!
Jim's dramatics are amusing, but even he is lipsticking the pig, obscuring the slowly emerging reality of credit-collapse home pricing, not showing you any of the many arm's length, legitimate SoCal home fire-sales, like this 2703 sq ft San Clemente 3/2.5 at $3.70 sq ft, only off 98%, hiding in plain sight.
2932 Calle Frontera, San Clemente, CA 92673
I would recommend this backyard. to anyone. Unless they want to know when their significant others
Buy Gold Coins
PeAk (11:26pm): like this 2703 sq ft San Clemente 3/2.5 at $3.70 sq ft, only off 98%, hiding in plain sight.
Seems $10,000 would just about cover the concrete pad and the small lot, or some fraction of demolition.
I get the vibe that this was a pro football player's place.
Real estate is all about land values, nothing more. This is usually lost on people, even most builders until they become very seasoned, some never catch on.
"Real estate is all about land values"
school districts are a significant corollary to such, at least here on the left coast
And that is reduced to the land value. Like I said, most people do not catch on.
A good example, is the builder who 'over-improves' the lot. For every penny he spends above the average price of the neigbourhood, his risk increases almost exponentially.
of course, the federal gubmint only incentivizes improvements in terms of depreciation, while the local gubmint loves to tax the land itself. the man just don't want you to have anything resembling real wealth... thank jeebus for gold
Many people are wondering if it could be fools-gold right about now. I am not one of those. Gold is going to rocket, the shit is going to hit the fan...its coming. (yawn, another prediction, I know)
The thing I like about gold, physical that is, is that you buy it never to sell. It traps your wealth. It prevents you from losing wealth. Gold is less an investment, and more wealth protection. You are protecting yourself against you. (or the wife, as the case may be.)
"Gold is less an investment, and more wealth protection."
eh, don't know if i'd go that far - though i'd rather be caught with than without if NK decides to have an early new year's party...
sold some a year or two ago at these prices... no regrets. i actually wish i'd bought euros at 1.25 and platinum at 900 more than gold at 780 recently
I've seen some silly arguments here over the last few days on gold (again as usual), that the evil Gov can outlaw possession of gold, and the problem of safely storing it, etc etc. Its so laughable. The simple minded can't think how to hide a pound or two of some metal substance? The simple minded do not know how to buy gold for cash? Then there's the argument that maple syrup is a more stable market. (my friend EHP).
Fortunately the Chinese control the global price of gold these days, and guess what they are selling in order to buy...
Platinum does not monetize in times of currency crisis. Silver is a poor sister. There is only one precious metal that culturally, genetically, causes eyes to glaze over, and that people kill for.
To my colleagues on CR, I have a treat for you.
99.999% of the people viewing this documentary will not get it because they do not have the back ground information to understand it, I do not care about those people so much. I care about the .001% of the people who do get it. I am now placing a call to the people who do get it to join me.
The Calling - Full HD Version
Google Videos Error
"Platinum does not monetize in times of currency crisis. Silver is a poor sister. "
Agree much more on the latter than former. I've owned significant quantities (to a middle-class yokel at least) of all 4 PMs. And had dirty, dirty thoughts about the concept of rhodium bullion.
Platinum went super nuts in the late 1910s - up to a grand in dollars of the time. Platinum is dope-fresh, and only comes in significant quantities from RSA and the russkies. It is a super-duper pain in the ass to mine.
Michael, I've seen this film, its great. But this is the wrong audience for sure. BTW, which continent are you on?
Back at you, try this one, guaranteed to make you feel helpless and lost.
http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?docid=-3776750618788792499&hl=en&fs=true
While that may be true, i don't buy gold to gain leverage, if i wanted leverage, i'd buy ETF's. Gold is universally accepted, and I buy it because I don't intend to sell. Its a mind set. Its safe, and I cannot spend it. I buy only J&M .9999, the real true value of the goods.
Cheers!
Too bad Jas wasn't around, we could have a real party.
Nobody wanted to comment on that cheap carpet? I guess it was just a temporary measure until he could get more marble. And it's definitely a "he" doing that job. Love the columns, got enough to fill an Excel spreadsheet. The backyard BBQ set might not be a dual set,...maybe a wet bar on one side?
As to nationality, it's hard to say; bad taste is cosmopolitan.
I just can't understand why any of the great minds are so commonly interested in up-legging each other over their
brilliant knowledge of junk bricks and mortar. It seems such a waste of mind-time.
"it's hard to say"
no, it isn't. eastern mediterranean or caspian - dollars to donuts.
Right about now, y'all should know that that the American economy is completely unwinding. The price of the roof over everybody's head is the least important fact in the mix..all you need to know is that it will be worth less tomorrow. Stick with that.
"worth less tomorrow"
now, now... from one righteous goldbug to another... worth less in what? FRN double-plys? perhaps.
The lot that this piece of junk sits on will be worth 75% less in 2011 than it is today. The 2X4's will cost about the same, maybe less. And the shitty mexican carpenter that built the new crap next door, who can't hammer a 2 1/2" or a 3" nail straight, but some idiot put a nail gun in his hand in spite of it, will build walls not plum or level for 1/4 the price next year.
Actually, I'm not a gold bug. I'm an ex-gold trader with 25 years of house building under my tool belt.
KR, i consider g'bug to be an honorific - and i dearly wish you were wrong on any number of points you raise...
still, the current omnipresent abuse of housing-as-leveraged-asset/ATM obscures the fact that gold and RE are gasp in the same asset class (along with art, first editions, sweet old strats, etc etc)...
forests, trees, horses, barns... another pale ale...
Whatever else you are buying, stop it and buy gold, is my point. Its not because gold is particulary a good investment in the best of times, rather its essential in the worst of times. And these times have arrived. Most people do not think. To be different, start thinking.
I know more about gold than .99999 people on this planet. I'm knowledable. Not a bug. I earned the title. Call me a master.
A weak example. Gold is trading at $500/oz. Someone hands you an item which is 18K, and weighs 12 grams. How much value, less the street buy commission of 5% do you hold in your hand. You have 20 min.
preaching to the choirmaster, my friend.
i really wish we were wrong - very few are prepared for the new paradigm. but unless you work for the canadian mint or dig the stuff up in peru, central asia, africa or the south pacific and spend all day staring at a big nasty cyanide pool, i may need to hold back on the 'master' sobriquet
So you don't know. Don't be embarrassed. I had goldsmiths working for me that could not make the calculation.
The answer is $137.45
But no one on the street will charge you 5%, it was a loaded question. They would fee you 20% at least. And because you would not know, they'd ding you 40%
Not embarrassed - I just find this whole "grams" metric a bit alien - it smacks of French culture and compels me to the nearest shower...
what's wrong with good old troy ounces?
but you bring up an interesting point - even the highest volume bullion pimps still try to ding you 3% on the bid with gold, and are far, far worse with the other PMs - a travesty
I smelted gold, I manufactured gold, I traded gold, I built furnaces that smelted gold, and I sold to J&M. So don't be so presumptious please. You never do know who you are talking to here.
Cheers!
but do you own one of those ginormous million-dollar coins from the royal canadian mint?
if not, good sir, back the fuck up.
Nothing is wrong with troy ounces. I was just testing your knowledge of physical. Now, should we talk nuggets? or not?
Different value. Purity, quartz, market value, etc
the sad thing is that the nyfed holds a shitload of the real stuff - such undeserving clowns... pearls before swine is far too kind
Temper. Relax. You just learned something about yourself and gold. Like most people you are an amateur.
Now, lets be friends and speculate
I can taste $1500/troz and beyond...
but it is a bitter taste. really, really bitter. i hate seeing friends and family crushed under the wheels.
Where do you think gold can go in this crazy fiat collapse that is upon us? You show me yours, i'll show you mine.
I'm at $6,000 as the low, $10,000 as the high
You're right about the wheels... but be cold blooded...they are.
"but be cold blooded...they are. "
an easy trap for the conspiracy-minded to fall into, but not true. in my college years, one of my best friends was the son of the current ambassador to israel from the US... just another knucklehead, like me. i also consider a high-ranking gent in the the dirty-two-dozen of the xlf a real friend...
timmay is no mastermind. banksters are people too.
The NY fed is broke. The Rockefellers are broke. Believe it. the system is broken.
Timmay does not understand economics, he is in over his head. He is doing what he is told
btw, i am not a conspiracy minded. I am a realist. Its a fact the WTC was a CD. Its just physics. I got over it. You can too.
those 2,800+ dead were sacrificed for the greater good. The PNAC greater good that is. A cold blooded lamb kill. Planned for some years.
I foresaw all of this in 2002. But the experience is bittersweet, to say the least.
" banksters are people too."
Cantor Fitzgerald were people too...
Ok bud..i think i best sleep.
Nice to meet you.
Lets talk gold again.
nite
"Cantor Fitzgerald were people too... "
yes, largely people from the outer burroughs (sp), irish, italian, etc...
i'm increasingly of the mind that without them the treasury market (and, thus, the global economy) lost THE key ballast...
but what can we do but cross out the dates 'til '32... when the median boomer is through... koo koo ka chu
Invasion of the KRs. poof
its coo coo a choo
Nytall
.......Hangsheng up 4% , HK H-index up 5% , Shanghai up 3%.......Asian markets welcome GM BK.......I smell green shoots again.....
.......interesting report from FT .... FT.com / US / Economy & Fed - Fed takes considered role on Treasury buys .....
perhaps lennon's finest lyric...
$22 TZA is a bit painful but downright tasty
jesus the futures really are nuts
An Air France passenger plane has disappeared off radar over the Atlantic off the Brazilian coast, news agencies are reporting. Contact was lost shortly after takeoff from Rio de Janeiro. 215 aboard. Just breaking now, getting this off Twitter.
"I'm at $6,000 as the low, $10,000 as the high "
Make it even 10000000000000000000000000000000000 "weimar" dollars by 2012.
Air France says the missing plane was flight 447 from Brazil carrying 216 passengers and 12 crew. It is said to be an Airbus A330-200.
FT from Jay D above:
"The Federal Reserve is in wait-and-see mode following the surge in bond yields and mortgage rates that partly reversed on Friday, with officials unwilling to be bounced into any knee-jerk policy reaction."
The currency markets do not seem to be in wait-and-see mode. USD is under 79 and approaching levels not seen since last September.
Reuters pickup on Air France plane in NYT: The New York Times > Member Center > Site Help > Page Not Found
last post on this ... Rio Weather as of now.
Light Drizzle
Feels Like:
73°
Barometer:
29.83 in and rising
Humidity:
83%
Visibility:
3.04 mi
Dewpoint:
66°
Wind:
SSW 15 mph
"Paris Charles de Gaulle airport said contact was lost with the flight from Rio de Janeiro at 0600 GMT. Brazil's air force confirmed the disappearance. An airport official told AFP the Airbus 330 had been expected to arrive in Paris at 1110 local time (0910 GMT). "
Three hours...that would make the crash site "near" Canary islands (Gran Canaria), 210 km/130 miles from the northwest coast of Africa.
.........U.K. house prices stopped falling in May for the first time in 20 months.........
......... U.K. Hometrack House Prices Stopped Falling in May (Update2) - Bloomberg.com ........
..........BTW , this is what Chinese are saying about Geithner's visit.......債券之旅.......anybody can translate?......
Blackhalo (homepage, profile) wrote on Mon, 6/1/2009 - 12:49 am
"Glad to see that, Tim. China needs to deal with the problem in its 'hood."
Meh. I am half torn between worrying that they are pulling the strings or that an activist China, may not work out so well.
Well you're broke so stop worrying. i mean really, if the Chinese need you to launch a military adventure on their frontier, they will call you, and tell you what they expect of you. If they don't, you won't get three days into it before you present them with your humblest apologies and go home or go broke.
Did you ever consider they might be letting it happen because Americans are naive interventionists, and they know they can provoke you to aggression along their frontier, so they can end the vendor-financing regime in the name of national security and Asian self-determinism? Not saying they are, but, there is a fine Chinese art to taking offense and the days when they were a bumpkin nation that would have had to struggle to secure its own borders are over.
What will you do if they gainsay you, beat them decisively in an initial engagement, so as to "waken a sleeping giant and fill it with terrible resolve"? They could convince themselves they needed to occupy us at tremendous expense for their own safety. It wouldn't work the other way, given that they pay for your state's continued operation to subsidize their own economy.
UN/USA should probably call it our problem and step up and fix it post haste.
I think you need to check yourself before you wreck yourself.
I am kinda annoyed that we bungled Iraq so badly that we burned so much good will and butter/guns, that we may not even be able to do what we should.
You had no money before Iraq. Iraq was a political show designed to distract naive little boys, to make them wave flags and make them bully political opponents of the administration from behind their badges, and to make looters in the privatized logistics chain of the US armed forces (who now seem like the uttermost piker tyros, now that we have recognized the real looters) some money. It was a strategically self-destructive war fought for internal political reasons.
Iraq got you where you are today. Iraq was a terrible idea even if it had been "won" because you started bankrupt, and the war was never really anything but political cover for the bankruptcy. "If only we could have invaded some other place!" is so not the answer. Your country is economically crippled, war is a logistical contest and adventurist imperial wars are money pits. Will you just keep invading new places until you topple over, demonstrating the Casey Serin model of the interventionist hegemon? Military power is about potential, not reality. Stop searching for ways to expend your strength.
Looks like Air France plane went down due to electrical malfunction following severe turbulence.
Aww man, miserable way to go. Heart goes out to the peeps who bought it.
cr writes: "dryfly, I don't get the front courtyard. A BBQ and fireplace? That would be OK if that was the only yard - but then they have that backyard!"
Here's how I vision the set up: while the party goers are having their good time in the back, the security detail checks clearances and allows entry at the front. They also screen away the fuzz when and if the neighbors complain. It was getting a bit tiresome (or so said the HBOTHICJBTHBIC) having large armed persons traipsing through the house over and over again, bringing food back to their buds at the front. And that time when they slopped some salsa and guacamole on the brand new rug was the last straw.
So, she told her man to keep 'those people' up front and get them their own damn BBQ pit and fireplace so 'we the people' won't have to see them, elsewise you won't never get to the promised land again.
note HBOTHICJBTHBIC--Head Bitch Of The House In Charge Just Behind The Head Bastard In Charge
Wow, KR has a cv. I have "ignore". Works for me.
C
Per the Grey Lady, GM has filed.
IOW: It isn't news until WE say it's news!
Citigroup Stuck With Bernanke Offer Rival Banks Plan to Refuse
There are some great lines in this story.
Citigroup, the third-biggest U.S. bank by assets, could face stricter pay rules, limiting its ability to keep talented executives, said Jason Goldberg, a New York-based analyst at Barclays Capital, who has an “overweight” investment rating on Citigroup’s stock.
Keep?
Any government investment in financial institutions raises the prospect of banks being ordered to focus on “state-approved social objectives” instead of increasing earnings, according to a report last week from the Committee on Capital Markets Regulation, a 25-member group of financial-industry executives, lawyers, consultants and academics.
Such as responsible lending and reasonable customer service?
“If the choice is going out of business and forming a financial black hole, this is a less bad alternative,” Federated’s Orlando said.
No idea what this means, but it sounds great.
FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair pressed the bank in January to participate in her agency’s “mod-in-a-box” foreclosure-prevention program. Many banks are leery of the effort because foreclosures sometimes can minimize write-offs and flexibility helps when negotiating with delinquent borrowers.
Citigroup also consented to lawmakers’ demands that it support a bill giving judges the authority to write down mortgage principal for homeowners in bankruptcy.
Tim waiting for 2012 writes: "For developers of Bend’s Shire, ‘dream’ is over..."
Oh! We are definitely off to see the wizard!
Interactive maps: GM's sphere of influence wraps the globe
Interactive maps: GM's sphere of influence wraps the globe | detnews.com | The Detroit News
You tell me how this is going to end?
債券之旅 (Zhai juen zhi lu) is simply "Government Bond Journey".
Talking this weekend w/ a Hongkonger resident in Shanghai, involved in a media company. Ad rev is down only a bit, but the magazine distribution system in China (post office monopolizes both subscription delivery and retail distribution) takes a huge up front cash commitment. Given the high operating leverage of running a magazine anyway, this has made practically all titles money losers for some time.
Still, he admits, he sees a better future trying to sell Chinese eyeballs to advertisers than any export oriented business, so he's hanging in there.
You tell me how this is going to end?
Apparently, with Mr. Market up a couple of hundred points.
BR, if you're still out there, thanks for the reality check, above, +1.
I cannot believe there are still so many out there who only will stop chin stroking to finger lead soldiers. But to be fair to BH, I think he was expecting China to pick up more yellow man's burden.
Maybe the Chinese got innoculated (small dose can beat a big fatal dose) against going to war for "internal political reasons" in their VN fiasco in '79.
Just recently found this blog and was pleased to discover that "Jim the Realtor" is an absolute hoot - thanks
This morning, I read an inspiring story about GLL Centres, a London-based non-profit
operating gyms for the benefit of the community. (check their site at gll.org). This is
truly brilliant thinking, as it uses the current environment to subtly undermine the status quo. The non-profit model would be a brilliant
Total credit market debt as a percentage of GDP has risen from 130% of GDP in 1952 to 350%
of GDP today. The various bailout and stimulus schemes enacted in the last year will drive
this percentage above 400% in the near future. When a country allows this much debt to
accumulate versus its GDP, they have done something seriously wrong. The country’s
politicians, business leaders, and citizens have all contributed to this disaster.
I came across this interesting site.. Econ & Finance Articles Updated Daily