Tuesday Reads (9.14.10)
By Barry Ritholtz - September 14th, 2010, 3:58PM
There have been quite a few interesting reads lately — these are what I find to be most important and compelling:
• SEC Says Prince, Rubin Knew of Losses at Suit’s Focus (Bloomberg)
• The Significance of Consumer Deleveraging (Comstock)
• More banks missing TARP dividend payments (WaPo)
• EU markets chief Barnier warns London casino days are over (Telegraph)
• ‘Peak Oil’ German Military Study Warns of a Potentially Drastic Oil Crisis (Spiegel.de)
• The Slump Goes On: Why? (NY Review of Books)
• How to tell when your boss is lying (Economist)
• SEC Is Looking at ‘Quote Stuffing’ (WSJ)
• Meet Josh Simpson, the Man Behind Twitter’s @BPGlobalPR — (The Awl)
• BMW Chief Plans ‘Big Push’ to Fend Off Audi, Mercedes (Bloomberg)
Whats on your iPad ?
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September 14th, 2010 at 4:25 pm
Impulse Response
Except for a burst of census hiring that briefly pushed payroll growth above trend during the second quarter of this year, job growth has been perpetually below trend over the past two years. During the post-war period, the civilian labor force has historically grown at about 0.15% each month, which currently implies that normal “trend” job growth should be about 225,000 jobs per month.
While last month’s labor report was favorably received by Wall Street, that reception was based strictly on the fact that job losses were not as bad as anticipated, given concerns about a “double dip” in the economy. The problem with this celebration, however, is that analysts continue to overlook the typical lags between deterioration in leading indicators and deterioration in coincident measures, much less lagging ones. As I’ve noted frequently in recent commentaries, the typical lag between deterioration in say, the ECRI Weekly Leading Index and the ISM Purchasing Managers Index is about 13 weeks, and sometimes longer. The typical lag with respect to new claims for unemployment is about 23-26 weeks (which puts the likely window of deterioration at about the October – November time frame), and the typical lag with respect to the payroll unemployment report is, not surprisingly, about 4 weeks beyond that. The critical risk area here extends for several months, not a few weeks.
The labor reports of the past three months cannot possibly be considered to be favorable from a macroeconomic perspective. The reason for this is that these reports were each more than 500,000 jobs short of what should have been expected.
September 14th, 2010 at 4:35 pm
I was going to study some ‘navel gazing’ and some ‘parochialism’, but I thought maybe I should read this:
http://www.chinamining.org/News/2010-09-13/1284369110d39027.html
Because of this:
http://incakolanews.blogspot.com/2010/09/copper-how-they-laughed-when.html
“….The IKN Weekly started its 2010 feature section, ‘The Copper Basket’, back in the first issue of the year and has tracked the fate of 15 copper junior exploration companies as a group for the 35 week’s since then.
Then they stopped laughing and began to do the same. Please take time to download and read this very good report from CIBC World Markets that introduces the house’s own copper basket, where it chooses 25 names in The Americas currently exploring copper projects (some are the same as The IKN Weekly copper basket names, some are different). A very good read and some good screening has gone on by CIBC to whittle the list down to 25 and those names all get a page worth of close-up explaining the bones of each.”
If you invest in mining and don’t know who Otto Rock is, you are just sending all you money to the Flaming Pit of Dollar Death.
September 14th, 2010 at 4:51 pm
Evidence from 14 U.S. recessions shows that the economy doesn’t recover until housing recovers.
Our study of all the postwar recessions and the Great Depression leads to the following empirical proposition: If there is no recovery in housing expenditures, confirmed by a recovery in consumer durable goods expenditures, then there is no economic recovery.
In the Great Depression and in every recession since, recovery of residential construction has preceded recovery in every other sector, and its recovery has been far larger in percentage terms than the recovery in any other major sector.
Applied to the Great Recession, it appears that those who see signs of a recovery may be grasping at straws. What one should hope is that this time it is different from every one of the past 14 U.S. downturns, but those who believe this have the weight of past experience against them.
We looked at all the major expenditure components of Gross Domestic Product in percentage deviations from their levels in the fourth quarter of 2007, officially declared as the start of the Great Recession by the National Bureau of Economic Research.
The onset of and decline during this recession were like previous recessions, though its course has been deeper and longer. By quarter four of 2007, sales of new homes had fallen without interruption for nine straight quarters and expenditures on new residential construction had fallen for seven quarters—strong lead time signals of the looming distress. New home sales recovered briefly in 2009 but have now declined for three quarters. Residential construction expenditures have essentially been flat for five quarters. Consumer durables spending at best has stabilized, up slightly from its low in the fourth quarter of 2008.
September 14th, 2010 at 5:22 pm
So much for the lousy retailers
Economists React: Retail Sales Jumped in August ’
September 14th, 2010 at 5:23 pm
Obama May Name Warren as Interim Consumer Agency Head
President Barack Obama may appoint Elizabeth Warren, the Harvard law professor who scolded U.S. banks while overseeing their bailout, as the interim head of the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau as early as this week, according to a person familiar with the matter.
An interim appointment could allow Obama to bypass a confirmation battle over Warren in the Senate, where Republicans have raised objections to her possible nomination.
Today, Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd said he was “not enthusiastic” about an interim appointment because it could jeopardize the future of the bureau by inviting retaliation by Congress that could cut off funding for the office.
“You could gut this before it even gets off ground,” Dodd, a Connecticut Democrat, told reporters. “None of us know what the outcome is going to be politically” in the congressional elections, said Dodd, whose committee would take the lead on confirmation of a permanent appointee.
An interim appointment “will be met with a lot of opposition,” Dodd said. “It’s a big job, an important job. You’ve got to build the support for that institutionally” with Congress. He has questioned whether Warren could win the votes for confirmation.
‘In the Mix’
The White House hasn’t publicly acknowledged the choice. White House spokesman Bill Burton said Warren is “obviously in the mix.” An interim appointment is “an option,” Burton said.
Obama’s choice could be made tomorrow or the following day, said the person, who requested anonymity. The final decision on temporarily installing Warren hasn’t been made, said another person familiar with the matter.
“I am concerned about all Senate nominations these days,” Obama said at a White House news conference on Sept. 10 when asked about a possible Warren nomination. “It’s very hard when you’ve got a determined minority in the Senate that insists on a 60-vote filibuster on every single person that we’re trying to confirm.”
The consumer bureau is one of the biggest regulatory consequences of a Wall Street overhaul Obama signed into law in July. It will have a $400 million budget and the power to impose federal rules on mortgages, credit cards, layaway plans and other consumer credit products.
Warren’s possible interim appointment was reported yesterday by the American Banker.
September 14th, 2010 at 5:33 pm
Gartner thinks Android will be the market leader by 2014.
http://www.rcrwireless.com/article/20100913/ENABLERAPPS/100919989/gartner-reads-the-os-tea-leaves
Is it me or does 3-4 years from now seem like a long time for Android to take over? Considering Nokia’s executive changes and the fact that Apple’s innovation may be peaking or already peaked? Oh yeah, there’s Windows Mobile too.
September 14th, 2010 at 5:41 pm
a new new deal?
http://economistsview.typepad.com/economistsview/2010/09/the-us-needs-a-new-and-improved-new-deal.html
Lawrence said in reply to rayllove…
“The World Bank’s poverty standard levels must be raised significantly. Then, any and all stimulus must be directed to the poor nations with the intent of putting purchasing power where it is needed most. There is no reason, so far as I know, that this could not be paid for with ‘out-of-thin-air’ dollars, or even with a newly created global currency.—-”
Interesting you bring this up. 31 years ago, I sat in an USC auditorium and listened to an international banker speak on the future of the global economy. When pried about what a future international wage would be, he thought around $7 an hour, maybe $6. The first thought I had was, “There will be blood in streets before that happens in America.” Keep in mind that China was still just a speckle in the MNC’s eyes at the time. (He was using Mexico as his example nation.) I believe there was never any intention of raising the world’s income level to that of the US, when the banksters were always plotting of substantially bringing down the standard of living in America to that of Mexico, or maybe even China at this point in time.
September 14th, 2010 at 5:42 pm
the 70s? era of change?
http://baselinescenario.com/2010/09/13/the-importance-of-the-1970s/
September 14th, 2010 at 5:53 pm
“SEC Is Looking at ‘Quote Stuffing’”
Did somebody have to walk them through it like Markopolous?
September 14th, 2010 at 6:21 pm
Follow the Dirty Money
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/13/opinion/13mazur.html?th&emc=th
“LAST month, a federal district judge approved a deal to allow Barclays, the British bank, to pay a $298 million fine for conducting transactions with Cuba, Iran, Libya, Myanmar and Sudan in violation of United States trade sanctions. Barclays was discovered to have systematically disguised the movement of hundreds of millions of dollars through wire transfers that were stripped of the critical information required by law that would have enabled the world to know that for more than 10 years the bank was moving huge sums of money for enemy governments. Yet all federal prosecutors wanted to settle the problem was a small piece of the action.
When Judge Emmet Sullivan of federal district court in Washington, who ultimately approved the deal with Barclays, asked the obvious question, “Why isn’t the government getting rough with these banks?” the remarkable response was that the government had investigated but couldn’t find anyone responsible. ” ….
Great read.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/09/13/AR2010091306493.html?wpisrc=nl_headline
“The number of former workers seeking Social Security disability benefits has spiked with the nation’s economic problems, heightening concern that the jobless are expanding the program beyond its intended purpose of aiding the disabled.
This Story
*
Jobless are straining Social Security’s disability benefits program
*
User Poll: Are criteria for disability benefits too lax?
*
The fallout of a troubled economy
Applications to the program soared by 21 percent, to 2.8 million, from 2008 to 2009, as the economy was seriously faltering.
The growth is the sharpest in the 54-year history of the program. It threatens the program’s fiscal stability and adds to an administrative backlog that is slowing the flow of benefits to those who need them most. ”
This is the crappy part of what politicos are doing with SS dollars.
Very disturbing.
September 14th, 2010 at 6:30 pm
The BMW piece is interesting. I own a BMW and love the product, that said this new push smacks of hubris and reminds me of Toyota’s attempt to over-take G.M. In the case of Toyota the company made too many sacrifices in quality and profits. In the case of BMW , going from niche to mass-market risks hurting their image. You can’t be everything to everybody, and I believe BMW will find that out.
September 14th, 2010 at 6:51 pm
By quarter four of 2007, sales of new homes had fallen without interruption for nine straight quarters and expenditures on new residential construction had fallen for seven quarters—strong lead time signals of the looming distress. New home sales recovered briefly in 2009 but have now declined for three quarters. Residential construction expenditures have essentially been flat for five quarters. Consumer durables spending at best has stabilized, up slightly from its low in the fourth quarter of 2008.
Without the temporary distortion created by the $8K new home stimulus it has been all down for housing with a new leg down starting last month, doesn’t look promising
September 14th, 2010 at 7:10 pm
Peak Oil’ German Military Study Warns of a Potentially Drastic Oil Crisis …
Two thoughts:
1. I’d wonder if it’s ever a good idea for the “German Military” to study anything (uh-oh)…and,
2. I guess that Iraq invasion may actually pay some real dividends some day — hhmmm.
.
September 14th, 2010 at 7:14 pm
Beware of Greeks Bearing Bonds by Michael Lewis
How on earth do monks wind up as Greece’s best shot at a Harvard Business School case study? I work up the nerve to ask….
http://www.vanityfair.com/business/features/2010/10/greeks-bearing-bonds-201010
September 14th, 2010 at 7:21 pm
BR: LOL’s …”from your I-Pad.” Did you buy one, waiting for APPLE AD..(just gave a hit to Google for you)…
Aside from that your latest post about “Are people who make a lot of money happier” has the “Comments Disabled.” So, hopefully you will check that out.
I was going to post in your latest…that my Grandma always told me ..”Money is the Devil’s Worshop!”
I’m sure most of your viewers Grannies died too early to tell them that….but mine was 99 years old when she died so we had to listen to her for many years.
We thought she was just “old school and funny” when she used to say that ……but tell me that the past 10 years hasn’t proved her correct.
Above $75,000….might be not quite the tipping point ….given that to live in Greenwich, CT or NYC these days you would be pretty much “hand to mouth” ….but in the “Hoot & Holler” hills of NC you would be RICH these days with that income.
But, given that “above a certain point” the money isn’t providing the basics with some frills …..it would make sense that there’s at least SOME cut off point where “more money” has “less rewards.”
What amazes me is that an over 10,000 sq.ft Mansion in “high end cities” in the US brings fulfillment. And, it doesn’t stop there. There’s the place in Florida, Bali, Carribean Islands or the “Pad” in Paris or London that shows that these people are constantly looking for MORE AND MORE to make themselves seem worthwhile.
I have no idea how they manage the time spent to deal with these extra properties…but realize they have Accountants, Property Managers and the rest who they spend a great deal of money paying for to MANAGE their many holdings.
At some point it would seem to be such a huge hassel that if you really were spending the amount of time you needed to manage your income producing business that it would become a drag.
Who can REALLY ENJOY a property over 4,500 sq. ft. these days? Do you take turns in every room on different days of the week? Do you entertain lavishly every night where you need the square footage to accomodate all the visitors?
Are there folks trying to creat Michael Jackson’s “NEVERLAND’ with their enormous square footage and multiple properties to suit every whim they have about THEMSELVES?
People under $75,000 have to depend on family, church or community. That makes them be forced to be more sociable just to survive. The “Lucky Ones” that is, who have a social network. But, to be happy one needs to have a social network.
I assume that the Greenwich HedgeFund Crowd has a tremendous Social Network….but it only lasts “until it doesn’t” and that’s when their homes become “House Tours” for a future generation of voyeurs …like the Gatsby Palaces in Rhode Island and a few other places became a “Shock & Awe” for generations later who knew those folks lost it all in the Great Depression…and who could afford to live like that anymore? But it was fun for the “masses” to view the Gold Fixtures and Special Toilets and some Murals on the Walls and Imported Tile and etc. from Castles of the “other fallen” from Europe in another time …before the WARS.
It’s interesting the amount of homes that will be available in the coming decades from the Greed of those who need to live in 36,000 sq. ft. mansions and even THAT wasn’t enough for them… It will be Jackson’s Neverland… Too Big and Fanciful to Fail…but Fail it DID…and in a Spectacular Way…that teaches a lesson to a new generation to not be fooled. But, there are others who will see this is wanting to have the ability to leave a foolish thing….because THEY COULD DO IT….AND THEY DID IT!
September 14th, 2010 at 7:34 pm
Whats on your iPad ?
BR,
hopefully, that’s a paid endorsement, right?
September 14th, 2010 at 7:34 pm
tax fraud as the US chamber of Commerce?
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/11/us/politics/11chamber.html
September 14th, 2010 at 7:35 pm
RE: BASEL – Third time’s the charm?
“…But the instant enthusiasm for the agreement does seem a bit overdone. Most obviously, talking about a new regulatory scheme reducing bank profitability reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of how a competitive economy works. Profit goes to zero in situations of perfect competition. Regulation, by erecting barriers to entry, reduces competition. Those banks who are able to meet the regulatory requirements should be even more profitable than before because of lower competition…”
http://www.economist.com/blogs/freeexchange/2010/09/basel_iii
September 14th, 2010 at 7:41 pm
MEH…We got Barry on that one… and Cramer was hawking Apple tonight on his “Tent Crowd Revival.”
BTW….That I-Pad really is cool. We fought over it on family vacation at beach this year. One of our family members got it as a “Thank You” from client….and it’s really cool. I’ve not bought one…but hope she brings it back the next time we get together! Instant connection in a Villa off a SC Island (where connection is often spotty) and even without the “FLASH” most of us could at least keep up, in some fashion, with our Internet Addictiveness. That’s why we fought over it. No one really wanted to deal with firing up their lap tops and it would have all taken up too much space and time connecting to the Villa’s Wireless to deal with running to beach and trying to relax.
The I-Pad was instant gratification at a small size enough that you could do what you had to do and then leave it. It allowed MINIMILIZATION….and we found that refreshing…is why we fought over the thing.
I’m sure Google has Cached my glowing report and expect to see “BP” have MANY APPLE ADS. But, I’m not lying to you…I don’t even own that stock. I used to at $32.00….but sold it… My Loss …but it’s ok.
September 14th, 2010 at 8:08 pm
TakBak,
yes, I see..pretty soon, We’ll be seeing BR adv.’ing for the NYT .. (too late)
~~
Forbes is pimpin’ this angle of the BWM-story..
“…Automakers would love to have more customers like Dr. Kevin Dean. When the 45-year-old oral and maxillofacial surgeon in Pensacola, Fla., went to a BMW showroom in April to buy a new X5 sport-utility for his wife, Carrie Ann, he wanted it all: titanium silver with a 5-liter turbocharged V8 engine; multicontoured, ventilated seats; navigation system; rear dvd entertainment system; and 20-inch alloy Y-spoke wheels.
Except the dealership, Sandy Sansing BMW, didn’t have one with those exact specifications. Most dealers would then try to push another car on the customer. But with a few keystrokes the salesman, Terry Mills, alerted BMW’s factory in Spartanburg, S.C. (and the 170 or so companies that supply it with auto parts) to make Dean’s special order a priority. In four weeks the $78,000 car of his dreams was parked in Dean’s driveway.
Vehicle customization on a mass scale has been the Holy Grail of the auto industry for more than a decade, with little success. Americans are an impatient lot. They’ve been trained to sacrifice a few features or accept a different color if they can get a great deal on a car they can drive home immediately…”
http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2010/0927/companies-bmw-general-motors-cars-bespoke-auto.html?partner=autos_newsletter
~~
‘There’s a joke among executives whose livelihoods depend on Foxconn: In 20 years, there will be only two companies. Everything will be made by Foxconn and sold by Wal-Mart.’
And don’t miss the gallery image of the nets placed outside company buildings to catch workers who try to leap to their deaths.
Via: Bloomberg:
http://cryptogon.com/?p=17613
September 14th, 2010 at 8:13 pm
Speaking about Apple…
How Apple plays the pricing game
-Price decoys,
-Establish a high reference price,
-Obscure the reference price,
-Bundle price components
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38980367/ns/business-bloomberg_businessweek/
September 14th, 2010 at 8:27 pm
Jeff Matthews Blog seems to take up a Barry Ritholtz theme..about when the Magazines (I think BR gave credit to “Business Week Mag/Rag” about viewing “Business Week” articles as something that got his “Contrarian Juices flowing) to “Look out below or above in the Markets. I think BR posted something earlier this year about it.
Whatever….I think Jeff is “channeling BR” in his latest on his blog after purchasing “Time” Mag/Rag and the Death of Homeownership.
What I WONDER is that in the neighborhood I live in there aren’t kids out there riding bikes, climbing trees, builidng tree houses or other creative “outdoor pursuits” that kids in past decades used to known for.
Most kids today from what I see and hear have their own phones from “time of birth” and are able to navigate the numbers and dials in a much quicker fashion than their own parents. The olders have “game stuff” on hand helds and when you go out to a restaurant to eat you see the kids sitting and “clicking away” and not engaged with much else but their “innner world connection” to whatever they are doing…porn, games, music, You Tube, Face Book or My Space friends” or maybe even checking out WIKI for some homework project from their school.
So…WHY SHOULD PARENTS BUY A HOUSE…OVER RENTING…these days?
Houses have perhaps become irrelevant. Kids don’t want to be outside. They don’t know what that is. They have BIG SCREEN TV’s which gives them access to Disney/Nature Documentaries/History Channel/Porn Channel/Weather Channel for Nature Disasters/Nature Channel and too much if your on Highest Level of Cable or Satellite TV than I can even fathom. They get nature through SPORTS/ESPN and the Other Venues and so ….WHY should they Need to Go Outside their Homes?
So…the incredible thing about Housing and Home Ownership …is that if you have a nation of Kids all Connected to some form of Internet Activity then WHY should they need more than their House? And, if their parents are rich enough to provide all the joys and challenges that USED TO BE OUTSIDE…by being INSIDE and watching TV…why would kids bother to go outside…and therefore PARENTS TODAY are FINE RENTING…where they can save money and just UPGRADE THEIR MEDIA to ENTERTAIN the Kids.
Now….Problem is…that on the Lower End of the American Populace are RURAL KIDS….Those who have “space and land” but live in a crappy house that maybe is 2,100 sq. ft. below or even they live in a Mobil Home in what some of us snobs might even say a “Trailor Park!” What do these kids do for entertainment if their parents can’t sacrifice enough to give them Cable and a Paid for Cell Phone?
Maybe the “Low End” kids are out there….roaming around. Maybe they still climb trees or “make things from scratch” and maybe they are thinking inside themselves how they get out of their box of freedom so they can become like their “richer classmates” who talk about things they can’t see on TV or do on “Face Book/My Space” because their parents just can’t afford it all.
This is simplistic….but there really is something going on out there that we as a society need to address these days.
Gotta say…I will give EDGE to Creativity to those who have Spaces to ROAM and develop Creativity…for the LONG HAUL of Civilization to Survive over the Kiddies who have all the technology they need NOW from their Parents…to allow their imaginations to roam in “confined spaces of privilege.”
But, to SURVIVE as a Country we need ALL THESE KIDS… The Roamers and the Confined… Because EACH IN THEIR OWN WAY…are CREATIVE…but each without each other in this coming Techno Age because we NEED…UNIFICATION…through CO-OPERATION.
But having a HOME with a plot of land to grow some food in hard times…and to throw a football, basebal or have a Basketball Hoop where it’s easily accessable …still is a dream for many folks. BUT…not as many as Post WWII and beyond to the late 90′s.
There IS a change in our culture about Home Ownership….and it might take awhile to work through…for the Pluses and Minuses…but some families will STILL OPT for LAND..and their PIECE OF IT…for PRIVACY, FREEDOM.
September 14th, 2010 at 9:07 pm
@MEH
Mark E Hoffer Says:
September 14th, 2010 at 8:08 pm
TakBak,
yes, I see..pretty soon, We’ll be seeing BR adv.’ing for the NYT .. (too late)
~~
Don’t you remember that one of BR’s holdings was NYT. I assume he sold it with a PROFIT when he went to CASH back before the FLASHCRASH.
That certainly was a CONTRARIAN PICK…that must have worked out for him…because the new over NYT has been so bad for years with “death of newspapers…and when they charged for views but couldn’t get revenue…they dropped it…and now they are going to institute “paid subscriptions” once again after that failure.
But, BR is a contrarian…so I’m glad it worked out for him on that one! I couldn’t have touched it..but, I’m okay with other stuff. So…it’s good for all.
September 14th, 2010 at 9:14 pm
Thanks for the personal, social, galactical, release BR! Out here in the Hinterland it means alot… I listened to Charlie Rose and Ross Sorkin and you would think that his book had answers. Wow! To think, and I undestand that reporting has a certain “distance,” that they must, (and in the all power “OZ” wall street it gets tricky), but in all truth he seems to be just dialing it up as they say for “God,” I mean that is what they would call it on the 700 Hundred Club. Why isn’t Wall Steet being held to the same princliples as Jimmy Swaggart?
September 14th, 2010 at 9:19 pm
In the end Swaggart did injustice to perhaps 1,000,000 people. Wall Street did injustice to US ALL!
September 14th, 2010 at 9:30 pm
Slate has a series of articles on the Great Divergence – the rising income inequality in America
http://www.slate.com/id/2266025/entry/2266026/
September 14th, 2010 at 9:39 pm
rip Says:
September 14th, 2010 at 6:21 pm
Follow the Dirty Money
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/13/opinion/13mazur.html?th&emc=th
“LAST month, a federal district judge approved a deal to allow Barclays, the British bank, to pay a $298 million fine for conducting transactions with Cuba, Iran, Libya, Myanmar and Sudan in violation of United States trade sanctions. Barclays was discovered to have systematically disguised the movement of hundreds of millions of dollars through wire transfers that were stripped of the critical information required by law that would have enabled the world to know that for more than 10 years the bank was moving huge sums of money for enemy governments. Yet all federal prosecutors wanted to settle the problem was a small piece of the action.
When Judge Emmet Sullivan of federal district court in Washington, who ultimately approved the deal with Barclays, asked the obvious question, “Why isn’t the government getting rough with these banks?” the remarkable response was that the government had investigated but couldn’t find anyone responsible. ” ….
Great read.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/09/13/AR2010091306493.html?wpisrc=nl_headline
————-
Coincidence…I was home today so I did my CNBC and Trash Cable Views…nursing a cold.
There was Ad after Ad…doing the “Homesy/Folksy” kind of minipulation for the viewer by BARCLAY’s BANK! You know the “soft music…you can trust us not to steal from you” kind of Advertising.
I read later on the Internets an article about how BP’s Image had rising some Huge Percent after the Oil Gusher based on their “Homsey/Folksy Ads” showing workers cleaning up the Gulf saying How “BP” is working hard for clean up and you can “believe the person in ad” because they’ve lived in the Gulf all their lives and TRUST BP to be the good Neighbor “doing what’s right to restore their wetlands.” (I’m paraphrasing….but surely those of you who still sneak a peek at CNBC have seen the ads.
It’s quite disgusting what “Corporate Messege Masters for Hire” can do to rehab criminals, isn’t it. But, hey…as the Mafia Don’s used to say: “It’s just Business”…that’s why we blew off Johnny’s head.”
September 14th, 2010 at 10:01 pm
JustinTheSkeptic Says:
September 14th, 2010 at 9:14 pm
Thanks for the personal, social, galactical, release BR! Out here in the Hinterland it means alot… I listened to Charlie Rose and Ross Sorkin and you would think that his book had answers. Wow! To think, and I undestand that reporting has a certain “distance,” that they must, (and in the all power “OZ” wall street it gets tricky), but in all truth he seems to be just dialing it up as they say for “God,” I mean that is what they would call it on the 700 Hundred Club. Why isn’t Wall Steet being held to the same princliples as Jimmy Swaggart?
———
Wall Street vs. Jimmy Swaggart…… Didn’t Swaggart get caught with a Prostitute? I’d say that Wall St. seems to be Pimping, Whoring and Prostituting itself out there while asking forgiveness…..but they never will admit like Swaggart did …that THEY HAVE SINNED! CRIMES AGAINST THEIR FELLOW AMERICANS!
So…Swaggart at least tried to ask for forgiveness with tears running down his face. Even if it was disingenuous….But, compare it to “Who Could Have Known? Who Could have Forseen that we’d bring World Banking System to it’s knees and have to ask for MONEY….and not “forgiveness?” They WILL NEVER ASK FOR FORGIVENESS!
Nice Analogy, BTW. Gives food for thought!
September 14th, 2010 at 10:04 pm
Edi/Correction: “I’d say that Wall St. seems to be Pimping, Whoring and Prostituting itself out there while [Never] asking forgiveness…”
September 14th, 2010 at 10:27 pm
no ipad… no way… and i own apple stock
but anyhow
i’m looking on my spacious 22″ monitor at the insane bag lady from delaware
who could possibly actually become a us senator
and cant help but being reminded of the movie i watched the other night…
http://www.netflix.com/Movie/Downfall/70023508?trkid=226870
September 14th, 2010 at 10:56 pm
If one went long S&P on aug 25 or 26, would tomorrow be a good day to reap the modest gain (or today)? I wonder what the BoJ thinks. I think I’ll call them. What? No answer! Gone Intervening? Well, well, do wonders never end?
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-09-15/japan-intervenes-for-first-time-since-2004-as-yen-surge-threatens-recovery.html
September 14th, 2010 at 10:56 pm
“Peak oil” …if true, today one could lock up massive amounts of cheap nat gas in north america. SD…down to $4 from $60..not trading on the notion of immenent “peak oil”!
If the price moved FAST ENOUGH and HIGH ENOUGH…the article makes some great points on how many mkt, social, and political systems just BREAK! Given time and a gradual move in price though…high prices are the best cure for high prices…effeciency, substitution, innovation and conservation.
September 15th, 2010 at 12:07 am
Here is the copy of the email I received. Go to Snopes at the link to verify
And whatever you do EDUCATE YOUR KIDS PRONTO!!
THIS IS NOT A JOKE – VERY SERIOUS
Pass this on to everybody you know. Anybody that sees a plastic bottle in their yard would think nothing of picking it up to throw it away. Looks like these things are starting to pop up around the U.S. Check the Snopes web site below, it’s pretty scary.
Important warning! NOT A JOKE! Pay attention to this.
1. A plastic bottle with a cap (Like a normal water bottle).
2. A little Drano.
3. A little water.
4. A small piece of foil.
5. Disturb it by moving it; and BOOM (Less than 30 seconds)!!
6. No fingers left and other serious effects to your face, eyes, etc.
People are finding these bombs in mailboxes and in their yards, just waiting for someone to pick it up intending to put it in the trash. It takes about 30 seconds to blow after you move the thing.
See “SNOPES” below….it’s true.
http://www.snopes.com/crime/warnings/bottlebomb.asp
Send it to everyone on your mailing list, I did and it won’t hurt to get it several times.
September 15th, 2010 at 12:29 am
Been outta circulation. My mother’s been in the hospital for a couple of weeks near NOLA and I’ve had to stay with friends nearby. Should be over soon. Sad but not a tragedy; she is 89 and lived a charmed life.
As to readings, Michael Pettis confirmed what Thor and I were discussing a month or so ago: China is trying to do to Japan what it did to us by using its dollar cache to buy Yen and drive up the value so it can undercut Japanese exporters. However, they are doing it to the people who wrote the book on that subject, so things may be interesting.
http://mpettis.com/2010/09/what-do-the-good-trade-numbers-tell-us/
September 15th, 2010 at 12:33 am
Just a follow-up on the Yen. ZH says that Japan is intervening in the currency market by printing yen to buy dollars in order to drive the yen down against the dollar.
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/2RGHxNO2ptY/currency-intervention-bitches
If they wise up, they will realize that the rise in the yen is from Chinese actions and Japan will print yen to buy Yuan and drive the Yuan up.
September 15th, 2010 at 1:01 am
Peace to your family Mike
September 15th, 2010 at 1:13 am
vine2wine: Not a big fan of Gartner. They are like a lot of analysts on Wall St.: extrapolating the present into the future.
I do think Android is a big force in the mobile phone market, as the numbers show. Rimm is hurting with it’s lackluster Torch and the greater willingness of IT departments to support other phones.
This fall should be interesting with the intro of Windows Phone 7 which looks to have a very slick interface, which isn’t just a cut rate iPhone like Android is. Also, the MS’s requirements of fast processors and plenty of memory make it very snappy. MS already is very strong in the business market, with many people still using outdated windows mobile. Obviously, it’s going to use its presence in that market to move corporate customers to the new platform. It should soon have some attractive incentives for big business, supposedly by integrating Office Communications Server into the new phones. OCS allows private voip audio, video and text communications throughout an organization even using laptops outside the corporate network. Word has it that many of the new phones will have front facing cameras, so I can see that corporations will soon have the capability of video conferencing with mobile employees using only their phone. Facetime is a nice toy, but I haven’t seen large scale adoption, except for sex chat.
More importantly, MS has billions to throw at all this. It may not win, but it’s going to hurt some people. Only question is who.
September 15th, 2010 at 1:19 am
Best of Wimp:
Hilarious tilted room sketch.
Haven’t laughed this hard in a while. I love British humor
http://www.wimp.com/tiltedroom/
Did you know there were this many satellites in orbit?
13,000? Thirteen thousand? THIR……TEEN…..THOUSAND?!
http://www.wimp.com/satellitesorbit/
Nuit Blanche: Most beautiful four minutes ever.
That’s the title. I don’t know if I agree but it is quite a moving piece of cinema
http://www.wimp.com/nuitblanche/
Ant hurricane.
http://www.wimp.com/anthurricane/
Rebuild a jeep in under four minutes.
wow.
http://www.wimp.com/rebuildjeep/
Iron Man on electric guitar with Tesla coils.
I’ll bet Ozzy would have wanted to use this in his concerts
http://www.wimp.com/irontesla/
September 15th, 2010 at 1:26 am
Common Man: Thanks.
September 15th, 2010 at 1:36 am
How do we know it’s really him?
http://obits.nola.com/obituaries/nola/obituary.aspx?n=kevin-mccarthy&pid=145304178
September 15th, 2010 at 1:40 am
Cute Kindle ad
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGmRKSds9OY
September 15th, 2010 at 6:33 am
Mike in Nola:
i guess a lot of us are going through this (aging parents heading “home”). My mom started acting weird in early August and now she’s in a nursing home with a brain tumor the size of a lemon behind her right eye. Being 86, she opted out of surgery, but now is struggling with reality, balance issues and so forth.
All we can hope for is a quick and painless passing. It’s stressful in the meantime. Sorry to hear you’re in a similar situation.
September 15th, 2010 at 7:44 am
Whats on your iPad ?
Thanks! It’s a great question to remember when I wish to instantly separate my audience into haves and havenots
and as a metric of Job’s success in providing Fisher-Price toys for the one% sandbox.
September 15th, 2010 at 10:30 am
mathman: well, at least my mom hasn’t had much pain, although this has dragged out for 3 weeks. Everyone noticed her mind going earlier this year. She started living on bread and coffee and losing weight and eventually had to be hospitalized for dehydration. I thought it was good opportunity to get her into a home, but then her organs started shutting down a couple of weeks ago.
Big problem is what to do with my dad who’s 96. Of course he will resist a home but will be happier with people to converse with and he can’t afford 24 hours sitters much longer.