InvestingSense

Playing Music without a Laptop - 9/27/2012

Thu, 27 Sep 2012 12:51:00 GMT

Here's what we're following this morning:

(via Twitter)

The Swiss National Bank is in a pickle - Bruce Krasting | The single largest economic threat the globe faces today is the funding market in the European Union...and the SNB is only adding to that problem.

Angry homeowners cannot be expected to act rationally when confronted by burglars - The Telegraph | Boy, when a judge in the UK comes out and says this, you know we're turning a corner. "If you burgle a house in the country where the householder owns a legally-held shotgun, that is the chance you take." Splendid, no?

Fiscal cliff dims business mood - Financial Times | WHAT? New tax rates and the lack of a national budget make it difficult for businesses to plan and make investment decisions? Who could have EVER guessed?

Replace this greed - Truthdig | "You've never paid for an NFL ticket to watch somebody officiate a game." Thanks, Mr. NFL executive VP of football operations! Let's put this in perspective: some players earn almost $30 million a season. 16 games in a season = $1,875,000 per game. 65 average total plays per side, per game = $28,845 per play. Here's a nice little article about the comparison of average fan salaries versus player salaries. Let's think twice before we knock anyone for officiating.

More time or more money: the recession changes the answer - Washington Post | Most American parents are deeply worried about their financial precariousness. Politicians take note: parents feel abandoned by BOTH SIDES of government.

Why hair turns gray - New York Times | Melanin, shmelanin. Whatever happened to stress as the determining factor?

The value of the revolving door: political appointees and the stock market - VoxEU | On the very same day that Obama tightened anti-lobbyist rules, he nominated Raytheon executive William J. Lynn III as Deputy SecDef. Super awesome job!

The bottom one percent - Hoover Institution | That, and potentially ending the War on Drugs would be a start. Turn the "War" into a taxed entity. Nothing quells a desire for growth quite like governmental taxes.

Puncturing bankers' myths - Ian Fraser | Global regulators would have less to argue about if there were fewer rules to coordinate and fewer regulations to enforce.

In Europe, it's Debt versus Jobs - MacroBusiness | We are reaching the limits of the social and political systems within the European nations to deal with these stresses.

UC Davis realizes that "dangerous" may have different definitions than first assumed - Boing Boing | What is it about "...repeatedly doused seated, non-violent student demonstrators with military-grade pepper spray at close range" that people do NOT find disagreeable?

Fear of the Unknown - 9/26/2012

Wed, 26 Sep 2012 12:59:00 GMT

Here's what we're following this morning:

(via Her Majesty's Thunder)

Next steps for Spain - RanSquawk via Zero Hedge | Remember: Spanish yields are north of 6.00% again. Time was, that was a line in the sand. Now? Meh.

West miscalculated the potential of Arab World anger - Russia Today | Remember this famous question: "How could this happen in a country we helped liberate?" Sounds like someone at State needs a thesaurus.

Corporate hemlock will be shoved down our throats, one way or another - Chris Hedges on Truthdig | Neither candidate will stop what's coming in January, 2013.

On the effects of war versus the effects of fiat money - Plata | You pick: bullets, or paper. Both are extremely destructive.

The US Senate: a dysfunctional day in the life - Washington Post | My kids fight. But they're 4 and 3. What are these bozos' excuses?

Is there really a global bacon shortage? - The Atlantic | What a great word, "aporkalypse." What a horrible world, though, without bacon.

Krugman refuses to debate Austrian economist for charity - Breitbart | So...public circus when you're held accountable in real-time, bad; public circus when you write your clap-trap in the NYT, good?

Merkel admits mistakes were made with Spanish banks - El Pais | It's always a bummer when someone uses you as the "Don't Do This" example.

US businesses wary of red tape and fiscal cliff - Financial Times | Businesses think it is more difficult to succeed in the US than it was three years ago, and they believe it is the uncertainty created in DC that is holding them back. Using that as a logic springboard, why would people want the Titanic to run into a second iceberg? Do people think it will create an even prettier, fancier oceanliner?

The Eurozone con game just keeps cracking - Testosterone Pit | What are the responsibilities of European leaders? Helping the banks.

How should healthcare providers respond when their patients say they're waiting for a miracle? - io9 | A lot, too, depends on if you're in a US hospital or waiting for months in the NHS in the UK.

Gonzo the Great - 9/25/2012

Tue, 25 Sep 2012 12:58:00 GMT

Here's what we're following this morning:

(via Dangerous Minds)

We don't owe $16 trillion, and you don't owe $50,000 - Corrente | While I understand the author's point, it remains a pie-in-the-sky dream for any entity to issue those platinum coins.

Shhh: here's what the European Stability Mechanism just *might* be doing - Bloomberg | Do Italy and Spain know that they've just been shut out of funding? Nevermind: we just have to wait for the next draft.

Bernanke is King of the Data Hill - NJB Deflator | If Bernanke took action, there's a reason. Let's all hope the markets continue to have faith.

Raising the retirement age to 69 will lower monthly beneft by... - Naked Capitalism | Live longer? Work longer! Success!

4 years later, and what have we learned? - The Atlantic | If he still believes that you can't change Washington from the inside, does that mean that all those Prius bumper stickers can be torn off, now?

Why QE3 is bound to backfire - Counterpunch | If the banks are choosing not to reduce mortgage rates further, then why is Bernanke purchasing $40 billion of mortgage-backed securities each month?

The problem with Americans: too much sleep - Truthdig | I'm not sure what I'd do if I had the chance to sleep that much.

The global carbon trading system has "essentially collapsed" - The Guardian | So much for that one. Governments not taking this seriously? I can't imagine what they'd have on their plates right now.

New wave of workers tries novel approach: save more - Wall Street Journal | No one will save them except themselves.

What if Israel bombed Iran? - The Washington Post | A country united in wrath can act for good and for evil.

What on earth ISN'T the Swiss National Bank manipulating? - Financial Times | CHF, then euros. Then German bonds. Then French bonds. We're well past a hat trick at this point.

A Slow-Motion Train Wreck - 9/24/2012

Mon, 24 Sep 2012 13:32:00 GMT

Here's what we're following this morning:

(via Boing Boing)

The Congressional Budget Office thinks that you shouldn't buy an electric car - Bruce Krasting | So...the government provided billions of dollars to companies to jump-start the electric car industry, but the CBO has determined that the cost to consumers is much too great than compared to conventional vehicles? Well done, DC.

Fed pushing large-money investors into becoming landlords - Dr Housing Bubble | This is what happens in a chase for yield.

Washington versus America - New York Times | Why are we running deficits? Because too many interest groups have a stake in making sure the party never stops.

Bank of America says it will modify your mortgage...but you have to stop ragging on them in public - Naked Capitalism | It appears as though BofA has such serious customer service problems that it prefers to bribe angry borrowers rather than fix their messes.

QE3 is just another Fed give-away to the banks - Michael Hudson on Real News Network | Hudson talks about why the Fed's claim that QE3 will help unemployment needs to be taken with a grain of salt. Chris Whalen chimes in, too: "The core problem is fraud." This is not so much a monetary problem as much as a political issue.

Don't let them tweak Social Security - Center for Economic and Policy Research | What DC considers a "change," millions on fixed-income living would call "disaster."

A hidden banking license - Testosterone Pit | The Outright Monetary Transactions program is much, much more than what the party line states. It may work, but the unintended consequences may be more than the ECB is able to manage.

The rule of money - TomDispatch | I love that line: "The ritual performance of the legend of democracy...." And it only gets better from there.

Will Wall Street run out the clock on the LIBOR issue? - Sense on Cents | A perfectly-legal move? Sure. A morally-proper move? Meh.

The Fed has another $3.9 trillion to go...at least - Zero Hedge | The more the Fed actively relevers using conventional conduits that spur the threat of inflation, and the more that shadow conduits delever, the greater the risk that inflation will finally come home to roost.

"He wanted to be one with the tiger, and he nearly was." - Never Yet Melted | What is the definition of a person who becomes obsessed with some large political party and gets so carried away with admiration and affection that s/he comes to believe that one of the most dangerous entities in the wild is going to love him/her back?

The Miles Davis Story - Dangerous Minds | Interesting to wonder if he could have made it, today.

Behold the Monkey - 9/20/2012

Thu, 20 Sep 2012 13:27:00 GMT

Here's what we're following this morning:

(via Boing Boing)

Incomes fell or stagnated in most states last year - Wall Street Journal | Good thing, too, considering the fate of the rally now rests in the hands of the US consumer.

Seven of the nation's 10 most affluent counties are in Washington DC area - Washington Post | This is where you act surprised, America.

Gut instincts will decide the election - Breitbart | Well, now...doesn't that make everyone feel better? People put more work into looking for a car or thinking about where they want to have dinner on the weekend than they do researching their "elected" leaders.

The Great American Tax Debate misses the point - Counterpunch, cross-posted from Economic Intelligence | Can I file for Andrew Smith, Inc.? Really? Then can I deduct the interest paid on debt from my earnings?

NYSE pays a paltry $5 million fine for giving private customers a trading head-start - IEEE Spectrum | Just what "message" does this send? That callous indifference is okay?

Half of Morgan Stanley didn't do as well on Facebook as the other half - Dealbreaker | Better to upset your in-house clients than any prospect who has yet to business with you, right MS?

Hollande seeks "massive vote" for treaty - Financial Times | Let me get this straight: you fail to deliver on campaign promises, then you want support for your treaty?

Does the President want to cut Social Security by 3 percent? - Truthout | Journalists have a chance to step up and do their jobs. Sadly, they won't ask the right questions and people will head to the polls this November without knowing the answer to this question.

Deficit reduction, Wall Street, and whales - The Charleston Gazette | Know why deficit reduction occupies center stge in the national political debate? Because it's easier to frame that discussion than the one about the jobs deficit.

The US and Europe need each other now more than ever - The Atlantic | If Europe's economy suddenly goes south, the prospects for US growth, investment, and employment are equally dire. Both sides need to do better in making their inter-connectedness bear on global processes and developments.

Internet-famous octogenerian Ecce Homo "restorer" seeks royalties - Ars Technica | She was having anxiety attacks from all the press coverage? How about anxiety attacks from the work of art you ruined?

Billy Zane's Barber - 9/19/2012

Wed, 19 Sep 2012 13:16:00 GMT

Here's what we're following this morning:

(via Geeks of Doom)

Leaders want Germany (i.e. Weidmann) to tone-down its (i.e. his) criticism of the ECB - The Telegraph | You had me at "If a central bank can potentially create unlimited money from nothing...."

The American consumer is putting the screws to healthcare expenses - Testosterone Pit | GE's healthcare division generates $18 billion in revenues. GE's health insurance program for its employees costs $2.5 billion. Do the math.

The trouble with printing money - Chris Martenson | Put it this way: if you earn $50k/year, you would have to work for 800,000 years to earn the same amount of money that the Fed will print each month. By the way? The Fed has provided no end date to their easing.

The "secret" revolution that could set the Middle East aflame - TomDispatch | Bahrain. Bahrain. Bahrain.

Follow the dark money - Mother Jones | A story about the 4-decade fight over the only political capital that matters.

Bank of Japan follows QE3 with fresh stimulus - Financial Times | You can just hear the BOJ's mother now: "Listen! If every other central bank does it, do you think YOU have to do it TOO?"

Tougher swap rules delayed - Wall Street Journal | This is where you feign surprised that any piece of Dodd-Frank is not yet implemented.

Why the jobs problem is not going away - VoxEU | Economic growth, alone, will not counteract the forces that are creating the mismatches in the labor market.

$50 billion of commodity investment at risk? - Bruce Krasting | Those "evil speculators"? Guess what -- you are one if you happen to invest in a 401k.

If you want to help the poor and middle class, encourage deflation - Charles Hugh Smith | The entire mechanism falls apart if incomes don't rise along with prices for goods and services.

14 memorable meals and menus - Neatorama | I guess my greek yogurt Grape-Nuts doesn't cut the mustard. #seewhatididthere

Dee Do - 9/18/2012

Tue, 18 Sep 2012 13:44:00 GMT

Here's what we're following this morning:

(via Dangerous Minds)

The American election's global reach - The Washington Post | So...an unfettered economy is not a good thing? Rejoice, ye downtrodden victims of controlled markets! You are the Chosen People!

Making sense of mortgage rates and regulations - Sense on Cents | Remember: more regulations do not necessarily mean better regulations.

How central banking has evolved markets through monetary policy - NJB Deflator | If the latest round of easing "works," prepare for higher costs.

Let's help Treasury get out of GM - Dealbreaker | What Treasury wants is the political benefit of being able to say that it "made money," or at least it didn't "lose too much money," on the bailout...which is not at all the same thing as wanting to maximize its economics NOW.

Two American companies lay off hundreds of workers; military uniform contracts awarded to prison inmates - The Inquisitr | Charge more, get the business. What's not to like...other than the "convict worker" thing?

"Britons must work harder if the country is to compete with China and India." - The Guardian | No comment. You'll see why.

States seek middle ground on Medicaid - Wall Street Journal | What sort of a program is considered a success when entities want to opt out?

The spacious sound of nothing - Mark J. Grant | Liquidity must be paid back and if the banks/nations that receive it do not provide structural changes, reduce their deficits, and decrease their borrowings, the gods of chaos will be unleashed.

How finance capital leads to debt servitude - Athens News via Naked Capitalism | When you accept the fact that debts cannot be repaid, any attempt at collecting said debts will be a threat to tear apart the economy.

Could earnings growth go negative this quarter? - Market Montage | Q3 2001 was the last time that earnings guidance leaned so heavily to the downside. Will history repeat itself or merely rhyme?

A speculative list of Jay-Z's 99 problems - Thought Catalog | #54 eliminates him from Everyman status, for sure.

The Cheese Crayon will Revolutionize your Art Class - 9/17/2012

Mon, 17 Sep 2012 12:56:00 GMT

Here's what we're following this morning:

(via Naked Capitalism)

An Athenian perspective on the US presidential election - Yanis Varoufakis via CNN | "From this and other sad incidents, Greeks have surmised that the US no longer holds sway over our European destiny; at least not the way it used to."

EU ministers at odds over banking union - Financial Times | Imagine that: France, Germany, and non-eurozone countries NOT agreeing upon a blueprint for a single eurozone bank supervisor in 3 months' time?

Is QE3 yet another stealth bank bailout - Naked Capitalism | Banks don't have the staffing to originate loans any faster? How about lenders don't WANT to originate loans any faster.

Thousands demand referendum be held to determine austerity drive - El Pais | A country can monetize, or a country can impose austerity. Guess what won't be welcomed by the public.

In prosecutors, debt collectors find a partner - New York Times | DAs seem to be renting out their letterhead and receiving a cut of whatever is collected. Wonder if they're chomping at the bit for the student loan messes.

The changing dollar and the purchasing power of various currencies - Now and Futures, Jesse's Cafe Americain | Be careful quoting your investment successes and your income in the wrong form of currency.

Did the Fed's "Expectations Channel" announcement work? Maybe not. - Mother Jones | This will only work if investors are absolutely convinced that the Fed CAN and WILL do what it says.

Rebuilding the middle class - Center for Economic and Policy Research | When will any candidate pick these up as the real, viable solutions?

Understanding derivatives and their risks - Peak Prosperity | A hammer, when used properly, is a wonderful tool. When used improperly, the same hammer can become a murder weapon. Sound familiar?

Thoughts on what happens to Fed policy in early 2013 - Market Montage | Hint: $40 billion will be child's play.

Penny coasters - Instructables | Keep the drink rings off your coffee table AND keep the Treasury happy by removing money from circulation! A win-win for sure!

Don't Let your Father Write the Title - 9/13/2012

Thu, 13 Sep 2012 12:59:00 GMT

Here's what we're following this morning:

(via Dangerous Minds)

California workers to shoulder more pension costs - Wall Street Journal | Come to California! Work for the State! Find higher retirement ages and smaller pensions! Rejoice!

Britons are increasingly skeptical of EU benefits - The Telegraph | 40% believe that EU membership is good for them. Wonder how that percentage rate is doing for other countries hearing the din of IMF liaisons in their local cafes.

A Truthdig two-fer: the high cost of high blood pressure and the lowdown on nursing home deficiencies - Truthdig | 67 million Americans have high blood pressure, and about half don't control it. How many people haven't identified what they're going to do when that deficiency catches up with them?

Psychoanalyzing the Fed - Charles Hugh Smith | The more the Fed appears to meekly comply to the demands of the market, the greater the pressure will be on them to continue giving the market what it now needs to continue rising: QE.

Breaking the public monopoly on K-12 - Hoover Institution | Given our long history of successful capitalism, for-profit competition among schools seems likely to work just as well in capitalistic America as social-democratic Sweden.

Number of uninsured Americans drops by 1.3 million - The Washington Post | Wait: so...is there or isn't there a problem with the uninsured? Will campaign stump speeches need to be rewritten?

The noose tightens on national sovereignty in Europe - Testosterone Pit | Germany's resistance to the power-grab will be whittled-down over time; in the end, it won't change the principle that bankers regulate bankers for the benefit of bankers.

Bears at the heart of the dragon - Financial Times | China seems to be taking a cue from Hollywood and/or a number of suburban families: all's well on the outside, all's ill on the inside.

Sprott raises $392 million for gold for PHYS - Jesse's Cafe Americain | Let's just hope any failure-to-deliver actions occur once they've secured title.

Inside the real costs of saving AIG and Wall Street - The Atlantic | It was as good for taxpayers as could be hoped. There's that darn "hope" word, again.

The best quotes from "Heathers" that perfectly describe Bravo's planned reboot of "Heathers" - Boing Boing | Next up from Bravo: a complete remake of the movies "Bio-Dome," "Battlefield Earth," and "Howard the Duck."

That's not an MP, That's a YP - 9/12/2012

Wed, 12 Sep 2012 13:25:00 GMT

Here's what we're following this morning:

(via io9)

German court rules in favor of bailout fund...with conditions - Washington Post | The "unlimited" ECB action now seems to be capped at EUR190bn from Germany.

UK banks could be shut down or forced into bail-outs by Brussels - The Telegraph | Ah..."full decision-making powers." From an external country, no less.

In which countries is Coca-Cola not sold? - BBC | I love the line about how Coke is "capitalism in a bottle."

How much did the government make on AIG, anyway? - Dealbreaker | It doesn't appear as though the feds got such a sweet deal on the plan.

Why early sovereign default could save the euro - VoxEU | It's like ripping off a Band-Aid: do it quickly.

Confessions of a former Republican - TomDispatch | I'm not sure that either party in a two-party system is the solution to the other party's foibles. Until there is a viable third-party option, here, we seem to be forced into butting our heads against the same dented walls.

UK Treasury prepares to abandon chief fiscal target - The Guardian | If you can't win the game, just change the rules. My kids do that all the time with Hungry Hungry Hippos. (And a rather appropriate metaphorical nod to the story, don't you think?)

Footnote to the financial crisis: more people shun the banks - Wall Street Journal | 8.2% of the nation's households are managing their finances without a bank. Imagine if that number doubled...which it could do, quite easily.

Hedge funds redeem $7.4 billion in July 2012 - TrimTabs Money Blog | There's a surprising disconnect between the best-performing funds and the amount of those funds' withdrawals.

May the odds be ever in your favor - Jesse's Cafe Americain | There are certain books that capture the thinking minds of the young and give us a cultural indication of what they are thinking and where they may be heading.

McG rant aside, Christian Bale is an alright guy - Geeks of Doom