economy in crisis..

[aspekt 0]

I want to punch that motherfucker in the cunt.

 

 

-m

 

 

LMAO!!!

[ZeBrownie 0]

Obama Received a $101,332 Bonus from AIG

 

Senator Barack Obama received a $101,332 bonus from American International Group in the form of political contributions according to Opensecrets.org. The two biggest Congressional recipients of bonuses from the A.I.G. are - Senators Chris Dodd and Senator Barack Obama.

 

http://www.examiner.com/x-268-Right-Side-P...-Bonus-from-AIG

 

Edited March 19, 2009 by ZeBrownie

[robot0 0]

Here's a quick run down of top financial contributors is the 2008 cycle.

 

4. Goldman Sachs - $30,878,682

15. Citigroup -$25,757,226

25. JP Morgan Chase -$20,036,458

30. Morgan Stanley -$17,874,597

40. Bank Of America -$15,869,997

48. Pricewaterhouse Coopers -$14,536,181

52. Merrill Lynch -$14,219,986

62. Credit Suisse -$11,954,126

66. AFG -$11,128,025

72. MBNA -$10,106,006

73. General Motors -$10,078,750

75. Freddie Mac -$9,853,940

79. AIG -$9,342,839

 

 

Top AIG Recipients 2008 cycle:

Obama, Barack (D-IL) -$104,330

Dodd, Chris (D-CT) -$103,900

McCain, John (R-AZ) -$59,499

Clinton, Hillary (D-NY) -$37,965

 

 

Top AIG Recipient 2004 cycle:

Bush, George W ( R ) -$160,160

Kerry, John (D-MA) -$55,900

Dodd, Chris (D-CT) -$40,578

[robot0 0]

Who said China won't buy any more treasuries. Listen up and learn how the big boys depreciate their currency to bankroll stymulus.

Fallenagel003 the link is dead.

 

[mete_shop 0]

Krugman fans, he's on Monday's DemocracyNow:

 

http://cdn3.libsyn.com/democracynow/dn2009...67eabff75b9a6fa

 

it's about 1/3 of the way in.

Edited March 24, 2009 by mete_shop

[robot0 0]

Here's a good piece on the Obama Economic Brain Trust. There's a bit in there about how Krugman is viewed inside the circle.

 

Obama’s economic advisers wave off such talk. They dismiss Krugman and other pro-nationalizers as engaging in mere punditry, of failing to grasp the mind-boggling practical complexity of nationalizing a bank such as Citi, with its 350,000 employees in more than a hundred countries around the world. Geithner is said to be averse to the idea—though some think Summers may be somewhat more open to it. Last July, in his former Financial Times column, Summers argued that the government should put Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into receivership, “conserving cash for the benefit of taxpayers.” “All I can tell you,” says one administration official, “is that Larry seems quite happy with this part of the policy portfolio being known as the Geithner Plan.”

[ZeBrownie 0]

Last night's Southpark episode hit the mark http://www.southparkstudios.com/news/3631

[mete_shop 0]

yikes

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8012527.stm

[Guest Sao_Bento]

yikes

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8012527.stm

First Bernie Mac, now Freddie Mac.

[jan 0]

http://www.fxguide.com/article537.html

"Another Dark Day for the Industry" (VFX)

[govinda 0]

We all have friends who'll tell us, 'Dude, now's a GREAT time to buy a house!' Since you're smarter than they are, you've looked back at them and asked them for data to back up that claim. I'm sure you have. And I'm sure you're not one of those who've actually said, 'Dude, now's a GREAT time to buy a house!' to anyone else.

 

Because it's not.

 

http://www.calculatedriskblog.com/2009/06/...es-to-fall.html

 

But of course the reply you'll get is 'So what? I'm not trying to make a quick killing! And who cares? I just feel like it's time to buy a house!' At which point you quietly shoot yourself in the head.

[zander 0]

Please tell your friends (specifically those in Nor cal) to buy houses, the loan market my mother is in is hardly doing well. Mind you she is one of the few honest loanbrokers left on this planet, but it's sad to see some one of her age and here commitment to her work struggling so much.

 

After talking to her it's all a catch22.

 

All the lenders say they want to help and open new loans, but none of them have a coherent system any more.

 

the government wants to help the housing market, but they are making regulations based what the banks want to make the most money, which in turn makes getting new loans nearly impossible.

 

Or take for example the scandal in NY with housing appraisal. The banks (who were instrumental in allowing the false appraisals to happen) pushed through legislation to have privatized apraisers, as apposed to independent ones. So instead of paying 300~ bucks for an apraisal from The normal 3 decades of experience appraiser which is added into your processing fees, you pay 1300, of which 60% goes to the bank because they own the appraising firms.

[monovich 0]

Does anyone get the sense that people is saying "things are getting better now" in the way that people say "I'm serious if you are serious"? Are we all just collectively willing things to get better right now because we are fatigued on bad economic news? My perception is that things are generally better than they were a few months ago, but is this really the case or just collective emotion?

[C.Smith 0]

Does anyone get the sense that people is saying "things are getting better now" in the way that people say "I'm serious if you are serious"? Are we all just collectively willing things to get better right now because we are fatigued on bad economic news? My perception is that things are generally better than they were a few months ago, but is this really the case or just collective emotion?

 

I think that's half of it for sure. But then again, mass psychology can be a heavy factor in driving the economic trends, so be it

[RVA8 0]

Does anyone get the sense that people is saying "things are getting better now" in the way that people say "I'm serious if you are serious"? Are we all just collectively willing things to get better right now because we are fatigued on bad economic news? My perception is that things are generally better than they were a few months ago, but is this really the case or just collective emotion?

 

 

I've heard that a lot lately and to a degree I think it's true that things are better. At least people feel like they are more willing to spend money now than earlier this year even. There are rough areas to be sure, but I feel like things are actually improving on the whole (although the DOW is taking a shit as I write this).

 

R

[govinda 0]

It's mixed.

 

In terms of financial stability, things are ABSOLUTELY better than in late September to December. But that's not saying anything. In those days we were truly teetering on the brink of a depression. That TED Spread thing wasn't just some obscure, economists-only novelty, it was the sign of the abyss. It had never been that high, and if it didn't come down it raised the bizarre prospect of complete freeze-up. That acute phase passed when the government took quick action as lender of last resort. Remember, that was the Bush Admin doing that activist government thing, albeit for bigwigs. That was a heavy sigh of relief.

 

In terms of everyday life, it's a bit worse across the board. Unemployment lags in recessions. People don't lose their jobs right away when things get bad, and companies don't re-hire right away when things turn better. This recession officially began in January 08, can you believe it? So we're already 17 months in. Unemployment...if it's not me losing my job, what does that matter? Well, it means lost productivity and lost consumption nationwide, as those people don't create and don't buy shit, so it's a dropping tide that lowers all boats.

 

Anyway, I'm going long-winded again, but today's Krugman column says things are a bit better (no more acute Depression risk), but once again stupid people can still derail this thing from the top. Every depression / deep recession has started to get better, then someone starts to worry about inflation and the national debt for no good reason other than some misplaced sense of neatness uninformed by any data. So fretting leaders lose their nerve and cut the budget or raise taxes or both, and the economy careens back into recession. It happened in the Great Depression and in Japan. Yep, they quelled inflation fears all right. Kind of like cutting off your arm to fix a hangnail.

 

The funny thing is that people feeling better alone can make things better. People get out of the 'Paradox of Thrift' problem by purchasing when they're feeling better.

[SaintEfan 0]

Things may SEEM more stable, since every other day we're not hearing about a bank going under or Washington bailing out Wall Street, but a real turnaround is a ways off. Govinda's right about the effects being prolonged in everyday life, though I disagree about a proper turnaround in the financial sector. Things are still a mess and there's a lot of denial all around. A good deal of the "things are getting better now" sentiment is wishful thinking and self-delusion. America's still terribly in debt, both publicly and privately, the real-estate market is still in shambles and many banks are just zombies. I'm a bit mystified by the concept that paying attention to inflation and national debt at this point is a BAD thing. Printing our way out of a recession will inevitably lead to inflation. What good is a stable home price when cost of living skyrockets thanks to inflation? Maybe we should ask Zimbabwe, I hear it's working out pretty well for them.

Edited June 16, 2009 by SaintEfan

[nickin 0]

Things may SEEM more stable, since every other day we're not hearing about a bank going under or Washington bailing out Wall Street, but a real turnaround is a ways off. Govinda's right about the effects being prolonged in everyday life, though I disagree about a proper turnaround in the financial sector. Things are still a mess and there's a lot of denial all around. A good deal of the "things are getting better now" sentiment is wishful thinking and self-delusion. America's still terribly in debt, both publicly and privately, the real-estate market is still in shambles and many banks are just zombies. I'm a bit mystified by the concept that paying attention to inflation and national debt at this point is a BAD thing. Printing our way out of a recession will inevitably lead to inflation. What good is a stable home price when cost of living skyrockets thanks to inflation? Maybe we should ask Zimbabwe, I hear it's working out pretty well for them.

 

look at it another way what's a 100k mortgage when a loaf of bread is 50k

[Beaver 1]

I have to say, so far, I have been pretty let down by this recession. I thought I would really have a chance to use my survival skills I learned as a cub scout, but I'm still in this friggin apartment with air conditioning and going out to eat way too much. I haven't even killed a single animal with my bare hands and roasted it on a spit like Bear Grylls. Nope. Instead, I continue my mundane existence where WAL*MART provides everything I need and manly survival skills are unimportant. I'd much rather be hucking spears at buffalo that setting my one millionth keyframe. Unfortunately without a REALLY bad recession, everyone would think I was a lunatic running down the street with a spear and loincloth. This totally sucks.

[parallax 0]

Just wait until oil hits $170/barrel.

[SaintEfan 0]

I can't wait to see the buffalo herds migrating through the streets of Chicago amongst the abandoned, fuel-less, cars. It'll be just like I Am Legend, right?

[aspekt 0]

Just wait until oil hits $170/barrel.

 

I just got an apartment right across the street from my office. bring it big oil!

[Guest Sao_Bento]

I have to say, so far, I have been pretty let down by this recession. I thought I would really have a chance to use my survival skills I learned as a cub scout, but I'm still in this friggin apartment with air conditioning and going out to eat way too much. I haven't even killed a single animal with my bare hands and roasted it on a spit like Bear Grylls. Nope. Instead, I continue my mundane existence where WAL*MART provides everything I need and manly survival skills are unimportant. I'd much rather be hucking spears at buffalo that setting my one millionth keyframe. Unfortunately without a REALLY bad recession, everyone would think I was a lunatic running down the street with a spear and loincloth. This totally sucks.

Well, someone did steal my garden hose from my driveway today - I can only assume they were so desperate that they ate it. Almost no zombie sightings though.

[graymachine 0]

We had an iPod and GPS stolen out of the minivan. Coincidentally, our 1 year old has learned how to use the key fob to unlock the van.

 

Oddly, I never had anything stolen in Detroit.

[DeepOmega 0]

We had an iPod and GPS stolen out of the minivan. Coincidentally, our 1 year old has learned how to use the key fob to unlock the van.

 

Oddly, I never had anything stolen in Detroit.

 

That's cause there's nobody left there. Will Smith never had anything stolen in post apocalyptic NYC, either. But you do have to worry about the roving packs of feral dog-men, obliterating all in their path. And the radioactive tornadoes, 20 miles across.