STOCK MARKET WATCH, Wednesday December 15

[ozymandius]

Source: du

STOCK MARKET WATCH, Wednesday December 15, 2010

AT THE CLOSING BELL ON December 14, 2010

Dow 11,476.54 +47.98 (+0.42%)
Nasdaq 2,627.72 +2.81 (+0.11%)
S&P 500 1,241.59 +1.13 (+0.09%)
10-Yr Bond... 3.42 -0.05 (-1.41%)
30-Year Bond 4.48 -0.04 (-0.84%)

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Market Conditions During Trading Hours

Euro, Yen, Loonie, Silver and Gold

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Handy Links - Government Issues:
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    William Black: This Economic Disaster    Bill Moyers with Kevin Drum and David Corn

Bush Administration Officials Convicted = 2
Names: David Safavian, James Fondren
Dishonorable Mention: former House majority leader, Tom DeLay

Bush Administration Officials Charged = 1
Name(s): Richard Lopez Razo

Financial Sector Officials Convicted since 1/20/09 = 11

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This thread contains opinions and observations. Individuals may post their experiences, inferences and opinions on this thread. However, it should not be construed as advice. It is unethical (and probably illegal) for financial recommendations to be given here.

Read more: du

[ozymandius]

1. Today's Reports

[Demeter]

2. Goldman seeks new top Asia manager

Goldman Sachs is seeking an executive to run its day-to-day operations in Asia even as the bank struggles to find a new role in its New York headquarters for the region’s chairman, Michael Evans.

The months-long uncertainty over Mr Evans’ next position underscores the sense of flux within Goldman as it seeks to chart its path in the aftermath of the financial crisis and its $550m (£349m) settlement earlier this year of civil fraud charges filed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/M2ZOXX/72PB0K/YGZ3O/BMTGWJ/8ARAEZ/KI/t?a1=2010&a2=12&a3=14

[Demeter]

3. Fed maintains asset purchase plan

The Federal Reserve kept interest rates on hold and its programme of new asset purchases at $600bn but made minor upgrades to its assessment of the US economy.

The Fed’s rate-setting open market committee said that household spending is increasing “at a moderate pace”. In November, it said spending was increasing “gradually”. The FOMC said that the US recovery “is continuing, though at a rate that has been insufficient to bring down unemployment”.

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/QM42II/5CNTSV/FDFZE/TPXD7D/WL4L8T/GX/t?a1=2010&a2=12&a3=14

[Ghost Dog]

11. US will lose AAA credit rating, says M&G's Jim Leaviss

46 Comments

Jim Leaviss, head of retail fixed interest at M&G, the fund management arm of the Prudential, said France remains "the AAA economy closest to a downgrade" and that the US "will lose its AAA rating – but not in 2011" as the two countries grapple with debt.

...

His concern is that "economic growth will not make the inroads ... that the central banks want to see". However, he does not believe there will be a double-dip recession in any of the three countries. "These economies will continue a period of expansion that is sub-trend," he said.

...

"We believe that central bank thinking in the UK and Europe has moved away from pure inflation-targeting to more of a 'dual-mandate', like the Federal Reserve, of full-employment and price stability," he explained.

"Central banks and governments are throwing everything they have in their monetary and fiscal policy weaponry to generate a self-sustaining economic recovery."

/... http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/economics/8202225/US-will-lose-AAA-credit-rating-says-MandGs-Jim-Leaviss.html

[Demeter]

4. US widens Stanford probe to brokers

US securities regulators have broadened their investigation into the alleged $8bn Ponzi scheme run by Allen Stanford, the Texan billionaire, to include brokerage executives who invested their clients’ money in Stanford International Bank products.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has notified Danny Bogar, former president of Stanford International Bank’s brokerage operations, and several brokers in recent months that it intends to file civil fraud charges against them in connection with the probe, according to lawyers involved in the case and a regulatory filing. The SEC declined to comment.

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/FG6LAA/YHE9Q0/OFBYP/HDOOD7/EWUZEM/D5/t?a1=2010&a2=12&a3=13

[Po_d Mainiac]

66. My bad..I thought this was another colon health ad n/t

[Demeter]

5. JPMorgan cuts back on US silver futures

JPMorgan has quietly reduced a large position in the US silver futures market which had been at the centre of a controversy about its impact on global prices for the precious metal.

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/TWK799/QF5WTK/4VXHZ/5CNF6N/ZBXU6G/1G/t?a1=2010&a2=12&a3=13

[Po_d Mainiac]

58. Since Chilton is the only cop on the street

We can expect him to be implicated in some sort of sex scandal in the very near future.

Will Blythe Masters take it on herself to lure him into the "Spitzer Pit?" Will she demand to be on top? Does she really wear a thong of solid copper?

[ozymandius]

6. Oil slips below $88 on US crude supplies, dollar

A confluence of factors pushed prices of oil and other fossil fuel commodities lower.

SINGAPORE – Oil prices fell below $88 a barrel Wednesday in Asia after U.S. crude supplies fell less than expected and gasoline inventories jumped, suggesting demand remains sluggish.

The American Petroleum Institute said late Tuesday that crude inventories fell 1.4 million barrels last week while analysts surveyed by Platts, the energy information arm of McGraw-Hill Cos., had forecast a drop of 3 million barrels. Inventories of gasoline soared 2.4 million barrels and distillates added 2 million barrels, the API said.

The Energy Department's Energy Information Administration reports its weekly supply data later Wednesday.

more

Heating oil, gasoline futures and natural gas all fell. The EIA report, should it confirm the Platts report, will keep prices lower, if only for a day or two.

[Demeter]

7. Wells Fargo backs tighter mortgage rules

Wells Fargo has broken with other big banks by urging US regulators to require mortgage lenders to retain more of the loans they originate, rather than selling them to investors, a practice that helped to fuel the housing bubble

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/VKY5JJ/5CNB4F/EKRAI/9Z1HNY/UUMUYI/JY/t?a1=2010&a2=12&a3=15

[ozymandius]

8. Good morning, Demeter.

:donut: :donut: :donut: You're up early and clearly bettering my sluggish pace. :hi:

[Demeter]

12. Good Morning, Ozy

I pick the low-hanging fruit...

Going to the dentist today in full Eskimo mode for a checkup. It might get up to 20F, if you don't count wind chill. I'm reminded of my time served around the Arctic Circle, 35 years ago...gee, it's 16F already, and the sun isn't even up! Heatwave!

[ozymandius]

14. Getting a heat wave here ourselves. Nearly 40º

I will need to unpack my gauze clothing. Yesterday reached a high of 34º.

[Loge23]

75. 'Morning from Frigid FL

If this keeps up, I'm moving to FL.
Oh, I'm already here. Thought I was back in NY!
Yesterday the temps in Melbourne never made it to 50.
In Port St. Lucie, it must be a warm snap coming - 47 at 10am!

On a serious note, crops are taking a severe hit with temps in many farms/fields below freezing for the dreaded 4 hour period last night. Time will tell, but expect to pay higher prices for FL produce this winter.

Off to Miami, maybe I'll pick up a few more degrees down there!

[Ghost Dog]

19. Morning all.

Being a heavy smoker, a heavy cold keeps me low and sleepless these days (along with other news items of course), but I've almost coughed up what's got to come up now by the seventh day, so I'll be heading out for a walk soon under overcast skies threatening some warm drizzle, a balmy 23ºC outside and inside this house.

I see the Mid West's cold moving east and south, there, while Europe's cold moves further south and into Iberia and the Mediterranean.

Down here just off the coast of Western Sahara the jet stream is still not far away, having lost some cohesion and moved south over the North Atlantic and away from the usual European routes in recent weeks, threatening (or promising) for the Canary Islands interesting South-West windy weather and potentially torrential (but always welcome) rain. There was a 48-hour 120mph south-west gale two weeks ago, for example, that damaged already-growing crops, but has also pumped up hydrological resources for new planting this winter growing season.

:hi: My best local weather reference is http://www.cazatormentas.net/ btw. :smoke:

[ozymandius]

28. Take it easy, Ghost Dog.

Smoking takes a toll on recovery from a cold, drawing it out. My wife just quit smoking (again) because she had similar issues. She was merely a casual smoker - maybe two or three cigarettes when in the company of others who smoke. That was enough to make her cough in her sleep and made colds worse. I hope you have plenty of opportunity to rest and pace yourself.

The weather where you are is so many kinds of wild. I heard of a tornado being reported recently. May that was in Italy?

[Tansy_Gold]

68. 80 here yesterday in the shadow of Superstition Mountain

My night-blooming Cereus Peruvianus (10-foot cactus) is still blooming.

[AnneD]

81. When I was growing up....

Mom would tall me how beautiful the desert was. My only experience was west Texas, which I am certain God created 30 minutes before he took off of work for day.

Imagine my shock going through the deserts of Az. after a rain. It was so beautiful. So full of colour. All the flowers fighting for the attention of bees, butterflies and moths.

I envy you Tansy.

[Demeter]

85. I Don't Hardly Tolerate 80F, even in summer

so enjoy it for me.

[Hardrada]

87. You'd hate our Iowa summers with 90 degree heat and 90 percent humidity.

[Demeter]

9. BP agrees $775m sale of assets in Pakistan

UK group edges closer to the $30bn target to help pay for Gulf of Mexico spill with its latest asset disposal in Pakistan

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/VKY5JJ/5CNB4F/EKRAI/9Z1HNY/NS0SMX/JY/t?a1=2010&a2=12&a3=15


Under the terms of the deal announced on Tuesday, UEG, a Hong Kong-based investment group, will pay BP $775m in cash for the assets – nine producing and exploration blocks in the Sindh province and four offshore exploration blocks in the Arabian Sea. Four offshore exploration blocks in Pakistan BP shares with Pakistan Exploration Ltd and with Oil & Gas Development Company are not included in the asset sale...

The bulk of the money has come from selling its 60 per cent stake in Argentina-based Pan American Energy, as well as some gasfields in North America and Egypt.

BP is also still believed to be considering selling about $1bn worth of gasfields in the North Sea in the UK.

Its stake in Pan American Energy is being sold to its joint venture partner Bridas Corporation, which is co-owned by Bridas Energy Holdings of Argentina and China National Offshore Oil Corporation. The Chinese oil and gas group spent $3.1bn on the stake in March this year, marking its entry into Latin America.

WHAT BP IS SELLING, AND TO WHOM, COULD WELL DETERMINE WHERE PEACE WILL BREAK OUT, OR WAR...

[Demeter]

10. GE plans further share buy-backs

General Electric plans further share buy-backs as it seeks to reassure investors that it will not fritter away its growing cash pile on large, complex acquisitions

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/VKY5JJ/5CNB4F/EKRAI/9Z1HNY/9ZFZTO/JY/t?a1=2010&a2=12&a3=15

[ozymandius]

13. A dozen nations added to child, forced labor list

This dovetails with yesterday's Danziger cartoon:

From coffee grown in El Salvador to sapphires mined in Madagascar, the agency's latest reports, to be released Wednesday, identify 128 goods from 70 countries where child labor, forced labor or both are used in violation of international standards.

New to the list are Angola, Central African Republic, Chad, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Lesotho, Madagascar, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

India remains home to the greatest number of child laborers, followed by China. But smaller nations in sub-Saharan Africa have a much higher proportion of children — up to one-third of children under 14 — who go to work instead of school each day.

more

We just love cheap stuff.

[Tansy_Gold]

78. I'm sorely tempted

to make copies of that and surreptitiously distribute it amongst some of my acquaintances whose hobby is shopping and can spend hours just talking about the bargains they've purchased. . . .but have no use for.




TG, TT

[Demeter]

15. TODAY'S HUMOR POST: Larry Summers bids good riddance \ DANA MILLBANK

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/12/13/AR2010121304439.html?nav=rss_opinion/columns

...Americans don't know how good they've got it - because they aren't as smart as Larry Summers.

[ozymandius]

20. Summers is such an asshole.

I got a hollow Summers-esque chuckle from this part:

On his last tour in government, he was the wunderkind who, at age 28, had become one of the youngest tenured professors in Harvard's history. Before he turned 40, he joined the Clinton administration, where as economics adviser and Treasury secretary he presided over boom times - earning a stature that propelled him to the Harvard presidency.

But Summers peaked too soon. First came his conflicts with women on the Harvard faculty, leading to his unceremonious departure and his quip Monday that he "came to Washington to get out of politics." Then, returning to government, he was passed over for his old job at Treasury and for the chairmanship of the Federal Reserve. This time, the 56-year-old Summers will leave office with an unemployment rate near 10 percent, and Democrats and Republicans talking about the administration's "failed" economics team.

The rest of this account describes Summers as an impolite guest: crass, dirty, disheveled and rude.

[Demeter]

22. Millbanks is no better

It's a double dip.(if you will pardon the unpleasant connotations)_

[ozymandius]

30. He is one writer I love to hate to read.

This is one odd occasion when we are witnesses to one asshole dissecting another.

[Demeter]

34. A Visual I Could Have Lived Without

[Demeter]

16. Give Up on the Estate Tax By RAY D. MADOFF

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/15/opinion/15madoff.html

...instead of getting into any further arguments over rates and exemptions, Democrats would be better off conceding defeat. They should allow Republicans to get rid of the estate tax altogether — but at the same time arrange for inherited wealth to be subject to income tax.

After all, the Democrats have already lost the battle. The president’s proposal is fresh evidence that even Democrats have given up championing the fundamental value that the estate tax was originally intended to promote. This tax, first enacted in 1916, was never intended to be simply a device for raising revenue. Rather, it was meant to address the phenomenon of a small number of Americans controlling large amounts of the country’s wealth — which was considered a national problem.

As Justice Louis Brandeis said, “We can have concentrated wealth in the hands of a few or we can have democracy, but we can’t have both.” Even Andrew Carnegie testified in Congress in favor of an estate tax as the best way to address wealth concentration.

In its first 60 years, the estate tax, along with other progressive policies, went a long way toward accomplishing this goal. By 1976, the amount of the nation’s wealth controlled by the richest 1 percent of Americans had fallen from more than 50 percent to only 20 percent. And this greater dispersal of wealth fostered a strong middle class.

The tax policies of the past 35 years, however, have reversed the trend. Today the wealthiest 1 percent own more than a third of the country’s wealth, leaving 80 percent of Americans with just 16 percent of it. President Obama’s proposal would only accelerate this trend...

[ozymandius]

17. Even if Moody's talk is bunk & protected by the First Amendment - it can still move markets.

Euro and equities slide after Moody's warns on Spain

LONDON (AFP) – The European single currency and stock markets fell sharply on Wednesday after Moody's rating agency placed Spain on review for a possible downgrade, sparking fresh fears over the eurozone debt crisis.

The euro plunged as low as 1.3290 dollars in early morning deals, compared with 1.3375 dollars late in New York on Tuesday.

Moody's announced it could cut Spain's credit rating again because of the country's heavy refinancing schedule and problems in meeting its borrowing needs next year.

more

For a rundown on Moody's and other agencies' crappy investment ratings, go here.

[Demeter]

21. One Questions the Purpose of Such Trash Talking

What does Moody's hope to accomplish? Policy change in DC, payoff, move the market? Self-promotion, weight throwing?

[ozymandius]

33. I can't figure it out.

They are not the only game in town. But as it stands - the three gamers have become known for issuing worthless advice. Some aspects of this sound like Moody's et al. are doing the only thing they know how to do: pass judgment. There is momentum in behavior aligned with the business model.

[Demeter]

39. With Friends Like Moody’s…

http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2010/12/with-friends-like-moodys%E2%80%A6.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+NakedCapitalism+%28naked+capitalism%29

Good to see Moody’s rebuilding its franchise. Their aura of mystery is still reassuringly intact, two years after the subprime CDO ratings fiasco; as a bemused Firedoglake notes, in connection with two diametrically opposed, and politically charged, opinions about the tax cuts and their projected effect on the US credit rating:

Can someone tell me why the same guy, at the same ratings agency, does a 180 in less than one week, when the deal hasn’t changed an iota?

A cynic might think that the Dec 7th report was Moody’s putting all its credibility behind the deal to extend the tax cuts, while the Dec 12th report was Moody’s putting all its credibility behind a move to ensure Obama got no political credit for it, once the deal, that they had implicitly supported a week earlier, was looking much more certain. That type of maneuver will have a familiar feel to the bedraggled Obama, one suspects.

Anyhow, if you are shocked, shocked at the idea of credit rating agencies working a political angle, you can comfort yourself with the thought that no stratagem underpinned by all Moody’s credibility is going to be very threatening...

[Demeter]

18. We’ve Only Got America A By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/15/opinion/15friedman.html

Former President José María Figueres of Costa Rica has a saying I like: “There is no Planet B” — so we’d better make Plan A work to preserve a stable environment. I feel the same way about America these days. There is no America B, so we’d better make this one work a lot better than we’ve been doing, and not only for our sake. When Britain went into decline as the globe’s stabilizing power, America was right there, ready to pick up the role. Even with all our imperfections and mistakes, the world has been a better place for it. If America goes weak, though, and cannot project power the way it has, your kids won’t just grow up in a different America. They will grow up in a different world. You will not like who picks up the pieces. Just glance at a few recent headlines.

The world system is currently being challenged by two new forces: a rising superpower, called China, and a rising collection of superempowered individuals, as represented by the WikiLeakers, among others. What globalization, technological integration and the general flattening of the world have done is to superempower individuals to such a degree that they can actually challenge any hierarchy — from a global bank to a nation state — as individuals.

GEEKS RULE!

[Demeter]

23. AIB in U-turn over bonuses as Lenihan warns bank over funds

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/frontpage/2010/1214/1224285491001.html

ALLIED IRISH Banks has backed down from paying €40 million in bonuses to executives following a Government warning that it would not provide billions of euro in funding to the bank if it did so...

[Demeter]

24. Analysis: Euro zone bonds idea won't go away

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6BC0MW20101213

Angela Merkel was so determined to kill off the idea of issuing common European bonds that, having tried to squelch it, the German chancellor reversed over it several times last week to make sure it was dead.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy, anxious to stay in Germany's slipstream and avoid any threat to France's top notch credit rating, joined her in swatting the suggestion, for now.

But the "E-bond" proposal championed by Jean-Claude Juncker, the chairman of euro zone finance ministers, and Italian Economy Minister Giulio Tremonti won't go away because it makes sense....

[Demeter]

25. Leaders Differ on E.U. Bailout Fund

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/14/business/global/14euecon.html?_r=1&src=busln

Still struggling to calm financial markets, European governments are debating whether to increase the lending power of a backstop fund intended to rescue countries threatened by the debt crisis.

As European Union leaders prepared for a meeting Thursday and Friday, intensive discussions were under way on whether the fund’s full headline figure of 440 billion euros ($589 billion) could be made available for loans. Because of the way it is structured, analysts estimate that the fund can lend substantially less at present, possibly around 250 billion euros.

The latest round of private diplomacy follows days of confused debate on whether to increase the value of the fund, allow it to buy bonds from distressed nations, or create a system under which the euro nations would issue common bonds....

[Demeter]

26. Chinese IPOs raise three times as much as US listings

Figures highlight shift in global economic and financial activity from the US and Europe to emerging markets, particularly China – a long-term trend that accelerated in the wake of the global financial crisis.

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/G8OTZZ/0G9976/B49CK/XTIKZH/WL5S7J/MQ/t?a1=2010&a2=12&a3=13

[Demeter]

27. Hybrid car sales set to total less than 1m

Many car buyers – notably in America, where petrol prices have settled recently – are reluctant to pay the price premium that hybrids command

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/G8OTZZ/0G9976/B49CK/XTIKZH/6V9TE8/MQ/t?a1=2010&a2=12&a3=13

[Demeter]

29. Polaroid revivalists plan for growth

A band of former employees who revived the discontinued instant film has defied sceptics to sell more than 500,000 packs in the first year of production

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/G8OTZZ/0G9976/B49CK/XTIKZH/ZBXF43/MQ/t?a1=2010&a2=12&a3=13

BRINGING BACK MANUFACTURING, ONE INDUSTRY AT A TIME, THROUGH WORKERS TAKEOVER

[Demeter]

31. PwC accused of negligence in Iceland

Leaked investigation alleges the international accountancy group missed numerous warning signs about the state of Iceland’s banks long before they collapsed in 2008

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/G8OTZZ/0G9976/B49CK/XTIKZH/BMN6RZ/MQ/t?a1=2010&a2=12&a3=13

THIS ISN'T NEWS--THIS IS BUSINESS AS USUAL

[Demeter]

32. Wikileaks is currently mirrored on 2130 web sites

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article27007.htm

UP FROM 100+ MERE WEEKS AGO...

[Demeter]

38. Remembering Why WikiLeaks Matters

http://blogs.alternet.org/speakeasy/2010/12/14/remembering-why-wikileaks-matters/

[Demeter]

43. WikiLeaks cables: Mervyn King plotted banks bailout by four cash-rich nations

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/dec/13/wikileaks-mervyn-king-bank-bailout

...The Bank of England governor, Mervyn King, was so concerned about the health of the world's banks in March 2008 that he plotted a secret bailout of the system using funds from cash-rich nations, according to a US embassy cable released by WikiLeaks.

Six months before the world financial crisis reached its peak, forcing taxpayers to rescue collapsing financial institutions, King told US officials in London that the UK, US, Switzerland and Japan could jointly enable a multibillion-pound cash injection into global banks, overriding the "dysfunctional" G7 nations.

The leak may allow King to claim that he – rather than Gordon Brown – was one of the brains behind the bailout of the banks, which took place in October 2008....

IT SURE DIDN'T MAKE SENSE THAT THE US DEVISED THIS PLOT...NOR THAT IT SUPPORTED IT...

[Demeter]

35. The Blue Pill People by Hari Heath

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article1543.htm

A PARABLE FOR OUR TIMES

[Demeter]

36. Regulators Propose Setting Capital Floor for Biggest Banks

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-12-14/u-s-regulators-propose-setting-capital-floor-for-biggest-banks.html

The proposal released today by the Federal Reserve, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. would bar big banks from reducing their capital levels below baselines set for smaller banks. It would also hold large financial holding companies to the same capital requirements as their subsidiaries that take insured deposits.

Dodd-Frank, enacted in July, prevents U.S. lenders from lowering capital holdings using formulas in the Basel II international banking accords. Without such a floor, banks and their holding companies would have been allowed to reduce capital levels over time in accordance with Basel II.

This measure “will do more to strengthen the capital of the U.S. financial system than any other sector of the act,” FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair said in a statement. It “ensures that large institutions operate with at least as much capital in proportionate terms as is required of thousands of Main Street banks nationwide,” she said.

[Demeter]

37. US 10-yr bond yield hits 7-month high above 3.5 pct

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTKW00720020101215

[Dr.Phool]

40. I can't believe this stayed up all night. Obama Supporter vs Progressive

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x535450

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqsd0WNl8u0

[Demeter]

42. Funny! And Too True

[AnneD]

49. Morning Marketeers...

:donut: and lurkers. I laughed my butt off watching that this AM. Zealots are a humourless lot. When they can't criticize the fact they criticize the style.

I have finally figured that in order to make effective change we have to do it close to home. Despite the outside big money education reform bucks that flowed into our school board election-our humble little coalition of hispanics, labor unions, and teachers managed to win the election for our candidate. Boy were there some pissed special interests. Our candidate graduated from a top local HS as a valadictorian, magna cum laude from local Rice U on an academic scholarship and got a law degree from UT. Even with those stellar points, she only won by 44 votes against their housewife candidate who's only selling point is that her ovaries work and she married well. (guess I won't be reading this thread at work today). It was a big win. Sure things will be tough, but we are not rolling over in Houston. I heard that the Sup was shouting and throwing things around they day after they lost saying this set him back 4 years. Hope he won't be there sooner than that. God how they are gutting this district.

Well, must dash.

Happy hunting and watch out for the bears.

[Tansy_Gold]

59. I think the script was a cut and paste

from assorted DU posts. :P


TG, TT

[Dr.Phool]

64. I could probably name the characters, but I hate to speculate.

[Tansy_Gold]

79. Well, let's see.

That would be the collective (pun intended) SMW/WEE crew on the left. . . .



TG, TT

[Demeter]

65. Now, Be Nice!

at least they deleted the obscenities and the worst ad hominems

[DemReadingDU]

67. That's a good one!

:)

[Demeter]

41. Obama haters praise his tax policies because they believe those policies will make him fail

OBAMA IS THE PERFECT GOP PATSY==WILLIAM K BLACK

http://neweconomicperspectives.blogspot.com/2010/12/obama-haters-praise-his-tax-policies.html

...First, and the chutzpah of this aspect is wondrous, those that hate Obama’s policies are telling Obama he is demonstrating his strength by surrendering on the Bush tax cuts to the wealthy. Second, they claim that Obama “moved to the center” by agreeing to support tax cuts for the wealthy. Third, they claim that Obama’s attacks on his strongest supporters are brilliant politics essential to saving his Presidency...

[Demeter]

44. Illinois named worst state for retirement

http://chicagobreakingbusiness.com/2010/12/illinois-named-worst-state-to-retire-in.html

I GOTTA THINK NJ ISN'T ANY BETTER...BINGO!

People of Illinois, California, New York, Rhode Island, New Jersey, Ohio, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Nevada — you probably already know the answer. The list, with Illinois leading the pack, comes from website TopRetirements.com.

HEY, C'MON, MASSACHUSETTS ISN'T THAT BAD! I WOULD NEVER VOLUNTARILY RETURN THERE, BUT EVEN SO...

[Festivito]

45. Debt: 12/13/2010 13,848,017,156,749.09 (UP 1,331,405,671.91) (Mon)

(Down little. Good day.)
Smelling cats. What? I come in late and they don't think it's me.
(Debt under Obama seems to jump up big then drop slowly maybe up a little and down a little for days--repeat.)
= Held by the Public + Intragovernmental(FICA)
= 9,289,287,583,176.89 + 4,558,729,573,572.20
DOWN 140,409,571.73 + UP 1,471,815,243.64

Source: Debt to the penny:
http://www.treasurydirect.gov/NP/BPDLogin?application=np

THINKING IN BILLIONS: Think 3 or 4 dollars per billion in a 311-Million person America.
If every American, man, woman and child puts in $3.22 THAT'S 1B$, and $3,216.35 makes 1T$.
A family of three: Mom, Dad, Child: $9.65, ABOUT TEN BUCKS for a 1B$ federal program.
I hope that is clear. However, I'd suggest using $3 per 1B$ to underestimate it.
Use $4 per 1B$ to overestimate the cost when thinking: Is the federal program worth it?
Aid to Dependant Children: 2B$/yr =$8/yr(a movie a year) Family of 3: $24/yr(an hour of bowling)

PERSONALIZED DEBT:
Every 12 seconds we net gain another American, so at the end of the workday of the report, there should be 310,911,392 people in America.
http://www.census.gov/population/www/popclockus.html ON 10/04/2010 04:37 -> 310,403,677
Currently, each of these Americans owe $44,540.08.
A family of three owes $133,620.23. (And that is IN ADDITION to their mortgage.)

ANALYSIS:
There were 21 reports in the last 30 to 31 days.
The average for the last 21 reports is 6,001,794,812.56.
The average for the last 30 days would be 4,201,256,368.79.
The average for the last 31 days would be 4,065,731,969.80.
There were 252 reports in 365 days of FY2007 averaging 1.99B$ per report, 1.37B$/day.
There were 253 reports in 366 days of FY2008 averaging 4.02B$ per report, 2.78B$/day.
There were 75 reports in 112 days of GWB's part of FY2009 averaging 8.03B$ per report, 5.38B$/day.
There were 174 reports in 253 days of Obama's part of FY2009 averaging 7.33B$ per report, 5.07B$/day so far.
There were 249 reports in 365 days of FY2009 averaging 7.57B$ per report, 5.16B$/day.
There were 251 reports in 365 days of FY2010 averaging 6.58B$ per report, 4.53B$/day.
There were 50 reports in 74 days of FY2011 averaging 5.73B$ per report, 3.87B$/day.
Above line should be okay

PROJECTION:
There are 769 days remaining in this Obama 1st term.
By that time the debt could be between 14.9 and 17.8T$.
It could be higher. It could be lower.

HISTORICAL:
President's term begins and ends on Jan 20.
(Guess who might want to hide the Reagan Bush years. Jan 20 data is missing before 1993.)
01/20/1993 _4,188,092,107,183.60 WJC Inaugural
01/22/2001 _5,728,195,796,181.57 WJC (UP 1,540,103,688,997.97)
01/20/2009 10,626,877,048,913.08 GWB (UP 4,898,681,252,731.43)
12/13/2010 13,848,017,156,749.09 BHO (UP 3,221,140,107,836.01 so far since Obama took office.)

FISCAL YEAR DEBT CHANGE, Sep 30 prior year to Sep 30 named year:
(One "* " for each 40B$ reached)
FY1994 +0,281,261,026,873.94 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1995 +0,281,232,990,696.07 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1996 +0,250,828,038,426.34 ------------* * * * * * WJC
FY1997 +0,188,335,072,261.61 ------------* * * * WJC
FY1998 +0,113,046,997,500.28 ------------* * WJC
FY1999 +0,130,077,892,735.81 ------------* * * WJC
FY2000 +0,017,907,308,253.43 ------------WJC
FY2001 +0,133,285,202,313.20 ------------* * * C&B
01-WJC +0,053,598,528,417.78 ------------* WJC 31% of FY, 40% of FY-Debt
01-GWB +0,079,686,673,895.42 ------------* GWB 69% of FY, 60% of FY-Debt
FY2002 +0,420,772,553,397.10 ------------* * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2003 +0,554,995,097,146.46 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2004 +0,595,821,633,586.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2005 +0,553,656,965,393.18 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2006 +0,574,264,237,491.73 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2007 +0,500,679,473,047.25 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2008 +1,017,071,524,649.92 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2009 +1,885,104,106,599.30 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * B&O
09GWB +0,602,152,152,000.60 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB 31% of FY, 32% of FY-Debt
09-BHO +1,282,951,954,598.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO 69% of FY, 68% of FY-Debt
FY2010 +1,651,794,027,380.00 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO
FY2011 +0,286,394,125,857.30 ------------* * * * * * * BHO
Endof11 +1,412,619,674,836.69 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO

LAST FIFTEEN REPORTS OF ADDITIONS TO PUBLIC DEBT(NOT FICA):
11/22/2010 +000,068,056,529.55 ------------******* Mon
11/23/2010 -000,022,584,331.05 ----
11/24/2010 +000,282,063,227.86 ------------********
11/26/2010 +003,743,380,701.15 ------------*********
11/29/2010 +000,134,381,143.81 ------------******** Mon
11/30/2010 +065,487,463,946.10 ------------**********
12/01/2010 -005,680,380,232.98 --
12/02/2010 +000,827,003,518.64 ------------********
12/03/2010 -000,051,568,825.48 ----
12/06/2010 +000,077,038,802.53 ------------******* Mon
12/07/2010 +000,178,077,201.68 ------------********
12/08/2010 +018,541,141,818.10 ------------**********
12/09/2010 +000,426,018,289.04 ------------********
12/10/2010 +000,085,971,333.21 ------------*******
12/13/2010 -000,140,409,571.73 --- Mon

83,955,653,550.43 Total of 15 above reports.

Heavy borrowing seems to start after 09/18/2008 while Bush was in power JUST BEFORE fiscal year end.
Bush admin borrowed $962,245,245,654.01 in those last 124 days in office crossing two fiscal years.
$360,093,093,653.42 in last 12 days of FY2008, and $602,152,152,000.59 in subsequent 112 days before leaving office.

For a prettier and more explanatory view of our nation's debt:
http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock
http://www.usdebtclock.org/
DUer primer on National debt

(Debt to the penny keeps changing. Stuff is missing. Best to keep our own history.) LAST REPORT:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=4658075&mesg_id=4658085

[Festivito]

86. Debt: 12/14/2010 13,852,589,330,911.83 (UP 4,572,174,162.74) (Tue)

(Up little. Good day.)
Cat in bed.
(Debt under Obama seems to jump up big then drop slowly maybe up a little and down a little for days--repeat.)
= Held by the Public + Intragovernmental(FICA)
= 9,289,558,090,308.30 + 4,563,031,240,603.53
UP 270,507,131.41 + UP 4,301,667,031.33

Source: Debt to the penny:
http://www.treasurydirect.gov/NP/BPDLogin?application=np

THINKING IN BILLIONS: Think 3 or 4 dollars per billion in a 311-Million person America.
If every American, man, woman and child puts in $3.22 THAT'S 1B$, and $3,216.28 makes 1T$.
A family of three: Mom, Dad, Child: $9.65, ABOUT TEN BUCKS for a 1B$ federal program.
I hope that is clear. However, I'd suggest using $3 per 1B$ to underestimate it.
Use $4 per 1B$ to overestimate the cost when thinking: Is the federal program worth it?
Aid to Dependant Children: 2B$/yr =$8/yr(a movie a year) Family of 3: $24/yr(an hour of bowling)

PERSONALIZED DEBT:
Every 12 seconds we net gain another American, so at the end of the workday of the report, there should be 310,918,592 people in America.
http://www.census.gov/population/www/popclockus.html ON 10/04/2010 04:37 -> 310,403,677
Currently, each of these Americans owe $44,553.75.
A family of three owes $133,661.25. (And that is IN ADDITION to their mortgage.)

ANALYSIS:
There were 22 reports in the last 30 to 32 days.
The average for the last 22 reports is 5,936,812,055.75.
The average for the last 30 days would be 4,353,662,174.22.
The average for the last 32 days would be 4,081,558,288.33.
There were 252 reports in 365 days of FY2007 averaging 1.99B$ per report, 1.37B$/day.
There were 253 reports in 366 days of FY2008 averaging 4.02B$ per report, 2.78B$/day.
There were 75 reports in 112 days of GWB's part of FY2009 averaging 8.03B$ per report, 5.38B$/day.
There were 174 reports in 253 days of Obama's part of FY2009 averaging 7.33B$ per report, 5.07B$/day so far.
There were 249 reports in 365 days of FY2009 averaging 7.57B$ per report, 5.16B$/day.
There were 251 reports in 365 days of FY2010 averaging 6.58B$ per report, 4.53B$/day.
There were 51 reports in 75 days of FY2011 averaging 5.71B$ per report, 3.88B$/day.
Above line should be okay

PROJECTION:
There are 768 days remaining in this Obama 1st term.
By that time the debt could be between 14.9 and 17.8T$.
It could be higher. It could be lower.

HISTORICAL:
President's term begins and ends on Jan 20.
(Guess who might want to hide the Reagan Bush years. Jan 20 data is missing before 1993.)
01/20/1993 _4,188,092,107,183.60 WJC Inaugural
01/22/2001 _5,728,195,796,181.57 WJC (UP 1,540,103,688,997.97)
01/20/2009 10,626,877,048,913.08 GWB (UP 4,898,681,252,731.43)
12/14/2010 13,852,589,330,911.83 BHO (UP 3,225,712,281,998.75 so far since Obama took office.)

FISCAL YEAR DEBT CHANGE, Sep 30 prior year to Sep 30 named year:
(One "* " for each 40B$ reached)
FY1994 +0,281,261,026,873.94 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1995 +0,281,232,990,696.07 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1996 +0,250,828,038,426.34 ------------* * * * * * WJC
FY1997 +0,188,335,072,261.61 ------------* * * * WJC
FY1998 +0,113,046,997,500.28 ------------* * WJC
FY1999 +0,130,077,892,735.81 ------------* * * WJC
FY2000 +0,017,907,308,253.43 ------------WJC
FY2001 +0,133,285,202,313.20 ------------* * * C&B
01-WJC +0,053,598,528,417.78 ------------* WJC 31% of FY, 40% of FY-Debt
01-GWB +0,079,686,673,895.42 ------------* GWB 69% of FY, 60% of FY-Debt
FY2002 +0,420,772,553,397.10 ------------* * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2003 +0,554,995,097,146.46 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2004 +0,595,821,633,586.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2005 +0,553,656,965,393.18 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2006 +0,574,264,237,491.73 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2007 +0,500,679,473,047.25 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2008 +1,017,071,524,649.92 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2009 +1,885,104,106,599.30 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * B&O
09GWB +0,602,152,152,000.60 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB 31% of FY, 32% of FY-Debt
09-BHO +1,282,951,954,598.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO 69% of FY, 68% of FY-Debt
FY2010 +1,651,794,027,380.00 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO
FY2011 +0,290,966,300,020.10 ------------* * * * * * * BHO
Endof11 +1,416,035,993,431.16 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO

LAST FIFTEEN REPORTS OF ADDITIONS TO PUBLIC DEBT(NOT FICA):
11/23/2010 -000,022,584,331.05 ----
11/24/2010 +000,282,063,227.86 ------------********
11/26/2010 +003,743,380,701.15 ------------*********
11/29/2010 +000,134,381,143.81 ------------******** Mon
11/30/2010 +065,487,463,946.10 ------------**********
12/01/2010 -005,680,380,232.98 --
12/02/2010 +000,827,003,518.64 ------------********
12/03/2010 -000,051,568,825.48 ----
12/06/2010 +000,077,038,802.53 ------------******* Mon
12/07/2010 +000,178,077,201.68 ------------********
12/08/2010 +018,541,141,818.10 ------------**********
12/09/2010 +000,426,018,289.04 ------------********
12/10/2010 +000,085,971,333.21 ------------*******
12/13/2010 -000,140,409,571.73 --- Mon
12/14/2010 +000,270,507,131.41 ------------********

84,158,104,152.29 Total of 15 above reports.

Heavy borrowing seems to start after 09/18/2008 while Bush was in power JUST BEFORE fiscal year end.
Bush admin borrowed $962,245,245,654.01 in those last 124 days in office crossing two fiscal years.
$360,093,093,653.42 in last 12 days of FY2008, and $602,152,152,000.59 in subsequent 112 days before leaving office.

For a prettier and more explanatory view of our nation's debt:
http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock
http://www.usdebtclock.org/
DUer primer on National debt

(Debt to the penny keeps changing. Stuff is missing. Best to keep our own history.) LAST REPORT:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=4659781&mesg_id=4659868

[Demeter]

46. “Crime Shouldn’t Pay”: Tell the State AGs You Want Mortgage Fraud Prosecuted

http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2010/12/crime-shouldnt-pay-tell-the-state-ags-you-want-mortgage-fraud-prosecuted.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+NakedCapitalism+%28naked+capitalism%29

Tomorrow, a group of homeowners is meeting with Iowa’s attorney general Tom Miller, who is leading the 50-state effort which is investigating foreclosure and mortgage lending abuses.

This group is presenting a letter to Miller asking them to prosecute bank executives for mortgage fraud and wants to show broad-based support for this idea via having concerned citizens sign it.

Here is the text of their letter:

Dear Attorneys General,

We, the undersigned thank you for investigating fraudulent and illegal foreclosure practices by the nation’s biggest banks.

Your investigation is the best hope for homeowners and communities since this crisis began. Americans are watching. Our expectations are high that we will see justice for the millions of families who have lost their homes, the millions more who are at risk of foreclosure, and the neighborhoods across the country devastated by falling housing values and vacant properties as a result of widespread mortgage fraud.

The bank executives who committed fraud should be prosecuted. Any settlement needs to go beyond fixing paperwork, fully addressing ongoing abuse and ending the flood of unnecessary foreclosures.

We demand that any overarching settlement agreement contain mandatory loan modification programs, including principal reduction for owner-occupant families facing foreclosure and remedies for those families who have already lost their homes.

Now is the time for bold leadership from the nation’s Attorney Generals to hold big banks accountable for the damage they have done to families, communities and the nation’s economy.

I have signed this letter and strongly encourage you to do so. Please visit the site, www.crimeshouldntpay.com to support this effort. Thanks! YVES

[Po_d Mainiac]

60. I recieved this e-mail yesterday

The lead Attorney General for the 50-state foreclosure investigation, Iowa’s Tom Miller, said “We will put people in jail,” in response to questions during a meeting Tuesday with more than 100 people from 15 states representing community, faith, and labor organizations, foreclosure victims and struggling homeowners from across the country.

Miller also agreed that principal reductions, loan modifications, and compensation for defrauded homeowners are necessary to clean up the mortgage mess created by the big banks.

"One of the main tools needs to be principal reductions, just like in the farm crisis in the 1980s. There should be some kind of compensation system for people who have been harmed. And the foreclosure process should stop while loan modifications begin. To have a race between foreclosures and modifications to see which happens first is insane," MIller said.

"We are very pleased with how this meeting turned out and now our expectations are higher than ever," said Deacon Mike McCarthy, an Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement (Iowa CCI) member from Des Moines, IA.

"Attorney General Miller made it clear that he sees this investigation as a chance to clean up the foreclosure crisis that has ransacked our communities for over three years now and continues to push down housing values for everyone," said Gina Gates, with PACT-PICO in San Jose, California.

The group is staging protests this afternoon at the Wells Fargo Home Mortgage headquarters in West Des Moines and at branch of Bank of America in Des Moines to highlight the massive bonuses that bank executives will receive this month while millions of homeowners face foreclosure.

Thank you to everyone who signed the Open Letter to the Attorneys General! We delivered the letter and signatures to AG Miller today and will do so again with more than a dozen state Attorneys General on the investigation's executive committee over the coming months. Please continue to pass the letter on to your friends!

Photos from the meeting >> http://showdowninamerica.org/sites/all/modules/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=855&qid=195068

PRESS
Mother Jones - Foreclosure Investigator Meets With Distressed Homeowners
Housing Wire - Homeowners To Meet With Iowa AG for Robo-Signing Redress
FireDogLake - Homeowners Community Groups Meeting With Iowa AG Tomorrow On Foreclosure Fraud
Huffington Post - Homeowners to Iowa AG Miller - Revive the American Dream
FavStock - Homeowners to Meet with Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller, Treasury Blocks Legal Aid
Radio Iowa - Attorney General To Meet With Homeowners About Foreclosures
Des Moines Register - Miller Says Foreclosure Investigation is Broad-Based
IowaPolitics - Press Release

[Demeter]

47. Wild food crop relatives to be 'rescued'

http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_9273000/9273567.stm

Scientists have announced a plan to collect and store the wild plant relatives of essential food crops, including wheat, rice, and potatoes.

The project, co-ordinated by the Global Crop Diversity Trust, will collect and catalogue seeds from across the globe.

The aim is to safeguard valuable genetic traits that the wild plants contain, which could be bred into crops to make them more hardy and versatile.

This could help secure food supplies in the face of a changing climate.

[hamerfan]

52. Hooray!

Some good news once in a while never hurt. Now I hope their budget isn't slashed.

[Demeter]

48. The 1677 Statute of Frauds: History We Neglect at Our Peril

http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2010/12/the-1677-statute-of-frauds-history-we-neglect-at-our-collective-peril.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+NakedCapitalism+%28naked+capitalism%29

...consider the impact of MERS (might as well be word of mouth), robosigners (corrupt process), dubious affidavits (perjury), neglect of the paper trail (sheer anarchy), and Florida courts that systematically favour some testimony (that of banks) over that of other participants in the foreclosure process.

We have been here before: that is the UK, pre-1677. Your servicers, robo-signers and the rest of the merry crew of crooks are set fair to unwind a third of a millennium’s worth of contract legislation that is key to the functioning of your economic system.

[Demeter]

50. Employment-Population Ratio, Young People: A Potential Lost Generation Of Young Americans.

http://rortybomb.wordpress.com/2010/12/10/employment-population-ratio-young-people-a-potential-lost-generation-of-young-americans/

Anyone who works with young people is aware of the lack of jobs and opportunities, from the most disadvantaged through those who leave college with fresh skills. The lucky end up in non-paying internships, a nice little inequality generating machine for the 21st century...A 10% drop in the amount of young people working as a result of this recession. That’s 10% more people detached from the labor market and with decades of lost wages. That’s 10% more people with fewer opportunities to develop their capabilities and build the American economy over the 21st century. And that is a generational crisis unless we get a serious attempt to fix this economy and put people to work.

GRAPHIC PORN AT LINK

[AnneD]

73. My daughter was.....

offered a plum internship at Capitol Records. She really wanted it and went down for 2 interviews.

When they got down to salary, she said that all she was expecting was the minimum wage. The guy seemed embarrassed to tell her that it was a non paying position.

She said that she was 30 minutes away from LA and needed at least gas money to consider a 'non paying internship'. Needless to say-she did not work at Capitol this summer, but worked through Cal Arts work study program. She couldn't believe that they would trust millions of dollars worth of equipment to someone they wouldn't pay. :eyes:

I didn't raise no dummy. Fortunately she is in an industry that she can work in after she graduates (mercifully). She will graduate next year but is lining up letters, endorsements, etc. Most of her professors are leaders in the industry, so a letter from them gets doors opened. Her heart is set on Pixar and she will have an edge, but you never know. I told her that if worse came to worst-set up her own company. She wants some credits before she does that, but she is not afraid to set up her own company. We have many small business owners in our family-it is the 'self sufficient farmer' mentality. I am ready to retire but I am gearing up to do my own business. I would rather be my own boss than be someone else's employee.

[Demeter]

51. GMAC Can Sell Foreclosed Homes in Maine After Court Ruling

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-12-10/gmac-can-sell-foreclosed-homes-in-maine-u-s-judge-says.html

GMAC Mortgage LLC, after defeating a bid by homeowners in Maine who sought a federal court order blocking sales and evictions, can sell foreclosed homes in the state.

U.S. District Judge D. Brock Hornby, at a hearing yesterday in Portland, Maine, declined to grant a temporary restraining order that a plaintiff’s lawyer said would have kept GMAC from selling foreclosed homes and evicting residents.

The judge said his decision hinged on the power of federal courts to stop proceedings in state courts, where foreclosures take place. He said individual homeowners who face losing their homes in a foreclosure sale can go to state court to stop the sales, he said...

[Demeter]

53. The roof falls in on Ireland's Millionaires Row

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/dec/05/dublin-housing-market-crisis-bailout

In 2007 Shrewsbury Road in Dublin was the sixth most expensive street in the world. Now, post-crash, homes have been abandoned and the tycoon residents have run for the hills



..In a well-publicised deal at the height of Ireland's economic boom, this red-brick mansion, which sits on a one-and-a-half-acre plot, was sold for an eye-watering €56m (£48m) to a mysterious trust called Matsack Nominees, widely reported in the Irish media to be controlled by the wife of a millionaire property developer, Sean Dunne. The neighbours include telecoms tycoon Denis O'Brien, the biggest shareholder in Independent News & Media, who bought Belmont, a house a few doors down, for €35m.

...to calculate the price of a property on Shrewsbury Road you have to "start by cutting 50% off the peak price and then calculate how much more that particular property has depreciated"...


Many of the Irish millionaires on Shrewsbury Road have seen their wealth decimated. But they aren't the real victims of Ireland's crisis. The country's unemployment rate is 13.5%. It fell by a tenth of a percentage point last month, but only because people are leaving the country to find work. Britain's rate, in contrast, is 7.7% and Europe's average rate is 9.6%...

[xchrom]

54. recommend

[Demeter]

57. Morning, X!

[xchrom]

72. ...

Miss X says --:hi:

[Demeter]

55. Running Backwards in the US Economy

http://gregor.us/oil/running-backwards-in-the-us-economy/

Oil is at 90 dollars a barrel. The governments of Europe, Japan, and the United States are saturated with debt. House prices in the US are falling again, and there’s no job growth in America. Put it all together, and for some reason, many are still imagining that we’re in an economic recovery.

Today’s horrid jobs report contained some shock value in the sense that it missed expectations. But the novelty of a 39K print misses the larger point that, for a large population like the US, even a print of 100K or 125K would still be very bad news. The US needs to create at least 150K jobs per month just to soak up population growth. Meanwhile, we now have a tranche of 15 million out of work people...

[Demeter]

56. Today’s (DEC 3) Jobs Numbers: Proof Against Structural Unemployment

http://www.newdeal20.org/2010/12/03/todays-jobs-numbers-proof-against-structural-unemployment-28871/

Unemployment numbers for women and the college educated speak to a different kind of problem...



Bad unemployment news today.

In addition, an editorial recently dropped that said the administration is mulling whether or not this unemployment crisis is “structural.” Talking with some random people recently, I got the sense that many think the unemployment crisis is primarily a structural problem, not suitable for further monetary or fiscal policy. So I’m going to spend some time in the future readdressing these concerns every chance I get; sorry if it becomes repetitive...



RIPS DOWN AND TEARS UP A WHOLE LOT OF WHAT PASSES FOR WISHFUL THINKING AMONG TALKING HEADS...LOTS OF GRAPHIC PORN, TOO!

[Po_d Mainiac]

61. The Ben Bernank has an app for this called QE 4 n/t

[hamerfan]

70. Great link!

Thanks, Demeter. Short, with a lot of info, and a mind-boggling employment chart.

[Demeter]

71. Kinda blows up that "bikini" graph the Obamaniacs Keep Waving Like the Flag

[Demeter]

62. Nouriel Roubini: 'The economic policy is still lend, pray and hope'

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financetopics/financialcrisis/8202238/Nouriel-Roubini-The-economic-policy-is-still-lend-pray-and-hope.html

"The risk of something disorderly happening is still significant," he explained...

The risks that policy makers blunder is not confined to Europe, however. With the latest inflation figures for November running at more than 5pc, Mr Roubini said China knows it has to tighten monetary policy but remains fearful that it will choke growth. The research house expects Chinese gross domestic product to grow 8.7pc in 2011, weaker than the 10pc it has pencilled in for this year.

Meanwhile, in the US, Mr Roubini expects the political pressures on the Federal Reserve will only intensify as QE fails to bring down unemployment. Add to that Washington's failure to agree on a deficit-cutting strategy, then "the pressure on the Fed to keep monetising the debt will be unstoppable".

[Demeter]

63. Do highly skilled migrants return permanently to their home countries?

http://www.voxeu.org/index.php?q=node/5925

WHEN THEIR HOST ECONOMY IS WORSE THAN HOME, THEY DO


That's it for today...I can't take any more good news. Besides, the inbox is down to 193!

[bread_and_roses]

69. Stolen from LBN: "Financial Crisis Panel In Turmoil As Republicans Defect...

Poster "KeepItReal" in LBN

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/14/financial-crisis-panel-wall-street_n_796839.html

Financial Crisis Panel In Turmoil As Republicans Defect; Plan To Blame Government For Crisis

The four Republicans appointed to the commission investigating the root causes of the financial crisis plan to bypass the bipartisan panel and release their own report Wednesday, according to people familiar with the commission's work...

... During a private commission meeting last week, all four Republicans voted in favor of banning the phrases "Wall Street" and "shadow banking" and the words "interconnection" and "deregulation" from the panel's final report, according to a person familiar with the matter and confirmed by Brooksley E. Born, one of the six commissioners who voted against the proposal.

They intend, of course, to attack the Community Reinvestment Act. It's all the fault of poor dead-beats and Big Gubm't, don't you know?

[xchrom]

74. can we be surprised? this is what republicans do.

continuously blame government spending for the whole economies woes -- regardless that government spending has been flat for a long time -- and that we will see a wave of lay offs in state governments -- because their balance sheets are awful.

where will those people go to work?

[AnneD]

76. Geithner to have surgery for kidney stones

WASHINGTON (AP) — Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner was admitted to a local hospital Friday where he will undergo minor surgery to deal with a kidney stone.

Treasury spokesman Steve Adamske said Geithner began experiencing pain from a kidney stone and was admitted to George Washington University hospital Friday morning.

Adamske said that Geithner will have what he called a "minor surgical procedure" performed Friday afternoon and expects to be back at work on Monday.

The illness did force Geithner to cancel his Sunday appearances on three network news programs where he had been scheduled to promote the tax–cut deal that the administration reached with congressional Republicans this week.

<more>

http://topnews360.tmcnet.com/topics/associated-press/articles/2010/12/13/126194-geithner-have-surgery-kidney-stones.htm

The stone, like Timmy, too shall pass:evilgrin:

[Dr.Phool]

77. He should get his hemheroid head fixed while he's in there.

[AnneD]

80. That would be a towfer.....

but how can the President interrupt his busy schedual....oops will that get me tomb stoned?

[hamerfan]

83. Must be nice

to have some of that government-provided health care!

[florida08]

82. Hard To Take Inflation Data With A Straight Face

http://blogs.forbes.com/greatspeculations/2010/12/14/hard-to-take-inflation-data-with-a-straight-face/

[TalkingDog]

84. WalMart Raises Prices Before Christmas

And that Gentlemen ....is how it is done.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-12-15/wal-mart-raised-prices-on-toys-this-month-squeezing-more-out-of-holidays.html

XPost from GD