STOCK MARKET WATCH, Monday March 16

[ozymandius]

Source: du

STOCK MARKET WATCH, Monday March 16, 2009

Bush Administration Officials Under Indictment = 2
Financial Sector Officials Under Indictment = 0
Financial Sector Officials In Prison = 2

AT THE CLOSING BELL ON March 13, 2009

Dow... 7,223.98 +53.92 (+0.75%)
Nasdaq... 1,431.50 +5.40 (+0.38%)
S&P 500... 756.55 +5.81 (+0.77%)
Gold future... 930.10 +6.10 (+0.66%)
30-Year Bond 3.67% +0.04 (+1.02%)
10-Yr Bond... 2.89% -0.01 (-0.24%)

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U.S. FUTURES & MARKETS INDICATORS
NASDAQ FUTURES..............................................S&P FUTURES

Market Conditions During Trading Hours

GOLD, EURO, YEN, Loonie and Silver

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Read more: du

[ozymandius]

1. Market WrapUp

Survey Says
BY BRIAN PRETTI

The wonderful folks at the Fed just released their once every three year Survey of Consumer Finances a few weeks back. Just a few highlights if you don’t mind. The period covered in the current survey was 2004-2007. Although well in arrears in terms of information we hope is meaningful to our current circumstances, it’s the change in character evident in these numbers over the last decade that we believe is most important. Right to the bottom line, as we survey the numbers we believe consumers are going to have a much tougher time “bouncing back” in the current cycle than has been the case in prior cycles. Wild revelation, right? And it’s not just because household liabilities and debt service payments are much higher today than was the case in prior Fed surveys. Income, and specifically the wealth demographic differentiated distribution of income, is a major issue for the here and now, as well as looking forward.

Let’s start right here. As a forewarning, a lot of charts follow. The Fed tells us, “the median value of real (inflation adjusted) family income before taxes was little changed” in the 2004-2007 period relative to the prior three-year time frame. They go on to say that, “in contrast to median income, mean income climbed 8.5%. The increases were most striking for families in the top 10% of the distribution of net worth.” The results are clear in the chart below.

.....

But stepping back, it’s really no wonder US households in general took on a lot of debt in the current decade. Why? Their real wages for all intents and purposes have been stagnating decade to date, and modestly deteriorating over the ’04-’07 period. We need to remember that payroll employment growth in the current decade stands in vividly stark contrast to the four decades that preceded the present. With lack of growth in payrolls and paychecks, to be specific, the only stopgap in terms of lifestyle maintenance was increased leverage. The aftermath of which we are contending with now. The following chart could not be clearer on this issue of wildly subpar job growth relative to historical experience. This far into the preceding four decades, payroll employment decade to date had grown at least 15%. In the current? Less than 5%.

http://www.financialsense.com/Market/wrapup.htm

[vaberella]

2. Are you seeing the Nikkei? IT's up 134.87...

And Barclays (almost near bankruptcy bank) is now having a strong start to the year. WTF?! Were these banks fucking us?!

[Demeter]

4. I Think It's Another Bubble

Perhaps the bailout money is leveling out the banks, like ballast on a ship. But it seems unlikely that bankers who let themselves get sunk by fraud could turn things around so fast with so little money.

Of course, giving them public funds at zero interest would make profits that much grander so much faster....not that we're going to find out in real time, but with the Internets, much faster than the historical way.

[vaberella]

6. True...true true. I wonder how long it will last. n/t

[Demeter]

3. You've only been up 2 minutes, and I'm the 2nd Rec!

Somebody must have been watching like a hawk. Besides me.

We had a Cabaret Weekend, it was quite decadent and degrading.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=103x432784

We're all here for you, Ozy. It's going to be a stressful week.

[ozymandius]

8. Thank you Demeter.

I dropped by the WEE thread to offer my recommendation in the scarce bit of free time I had over the weekend. Cabaret? Sounds like a blast.

I knew a minister a few years ago (this is not a joke) who left the pulpit to embark on a new career in cabaret. This occurred after a radical lifestyle change through which he unveiled his true self. Last word about him/her: made a career in a new city with the stage name Fagatha Christie.

He remained in contact for a few years with some former church members in the little town where I grew up. Back when I did the "church thing" - it never occurred to me that some members of the congregation would be so accepting of anyone's somewhat jarring transformation. I'm quite proud of them for that.

[Demeter]

10. The Nun Who Taught Music in 9th Grade Up and Married a Divorced Man

people change, when the force moves them!

[hamerfan]

21. Sorry, Demeter....

I got the first rec in this morning. No work today, so I was watching, but more luck I get the first than anything else, :D
Let's see what happens today, shall we?
hamerfan

[Demeter]

34. I Admire Your Dedication!

[ozymandius]

5. About The Cartoon

Clay Bennett has asked that fans of his work support his livelihood by visiting his newspaper, the Chattanooga Free Times Press, by clicking through the thumbnail link on the SMW OP. Mr. Bennett produces quality work that connects nicely with the economic themes often trumpeted in our discussions on items pertaining to macro-economics.

So please be a good sport and click through the image link. I have committed to sharing Mr. Bennett's work once a week on the SMW. This is something I would love to do with other progressive cartoonists who feel the downward pressure that print media is experiencing these days. I'm happy that we can establish this theme with such an accomplished artist.

Thank you.

ozymandius

[vaberella]

7. No problem. I was checking it out.

I went straight to the obituaries...Why do I always do that?! ~sigh~

[radfringe]

19. registration required - but it's free

click through, register and leave a comment....

[ozymandius]

9. Today's Reports

08:30 Empire Manufacturing Mar
Briefing.com -33.0
Consensus -32.0
Prior -34.65

09:00 Net Long-Term TIC Flows Jan
Briefing.com NA
Consensus NA
Prior $34.8B

09:15 Capacity Utilization Feb
Briefing.com 71.1%
Consensus 71.1%
Prior 72.0%

09:15 Industrial Production Feb
Briefing.com -1.2%
Consensus -1.2%
Prior -1.8%

http://www.briefing.com/Investor/Public/Calendars/EconomicCalendar.htm

[UpInArms]

37. Empire State index falls to fresh record low @ -38.2

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/Empire-State-index-falls-fresh/story.aspx?guid=%7BF4F58AFF%2DD1DA%2D4650%2D929A%2D8D1FC513EA39%7D&dist=hplatest

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- The Empire State manufacturing survey fell 4 points in March to -38.2, a fresh record low, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported on Monday. Just 10% of respondents reported that conditions had improved over the month, while 48% reported that conditions had worsened. The new orders index plunged 14 points to -44.8, eclipsing the record low set last month, it added.

[UpInArms]

43. U.S. Feb. capacity in use lowest since Dec. 1982 - @ 70.9%

08. U.S. Feb. capacity in use lowest since Dec. 1982
9:15 AM ET, Mar 16, 2009

09. U.S. Feb. capacity utilization 70.9% vs 71.9% in Jan.
9:15 AM ET, Mar 16, 2009

10. U.S. Jan. industrial output down rev 1.9% vs 1.8% prev est.
9:15 AM ET, Mar 16, 2009

16. U.S. Feb. industrial production down 1.4% vs 0.9% est.
9:15 AM ET, Mar 16, 2009

[UpInArms]

44. Ah-OO-Gah!!!! Long-Term TIC Flows @ -$43.0 Billion

Net Long-Term TIC Flows Jan/09:00 AM
report -$43.0B
last month $34.7B

[UpInArms]

56. U.S. March home builders' index steady at 9

03. U.S. March home builders' index steady at 9
1:00 PM ET, Mar 16, 2009

04. U.S. home builders' index in single-digits 5 straight months
1:00 PM ET, Mar 16, 2009

[ozymandius]

11. Oil falls to near $44 as OPEC doesn't cut supply

SINGAPORE – Oil prices fell to near $44 a barrel in Asia on Monday after OPEC decided not to cut production levels at its meeting over the weekend in Vienna.

Benchmark crude for April delivery fell $2.14 to $44.11 a barrel by late afternoon in Singapore on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil prices dropped 78 cents on Friday to settle at $46.25 a barrel.

Members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries said Sunday they would strive to adhere more closely to the group's current output quotas. OPEC is overshooting its daily target level of just under 25 million barrels a day by about 800,000 barrels.

....

In other Nymex trading, gasoline for April delivery fell 2.27 cents to $1.33 a gallon, while heating oil dropped 2.48 cents to $1.17 a gallon. Natural gas for April delivery was down 3.0 cents to $3.90 per 1,000 cubic feet.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/oil_prices

---

There's also some perfumed crap from Ben Bernanke's gob should you care to read the whole thing.

[ozymandius]

12. World markets extend rally amid cautious optimism

HONG KONG – Asian stock markets advanced for a second day Monday, with Tokyo's index up nearly 2 percent, on cautious optimism that government efforts to heal the financial system will reinvigorate the flagging world economy. European markets opened higher.

Still, lackluster trade through most of Asia's session outside its two biggest markets — Japan and Hong Kong — reflected lingering uncertainty after a rally last week triggered by upbeat news about Citigroup and other top U.S. banks.

Confidence continued to show signs of improving Monday as Japanese financial stocks surged on reports the country's central bank may buy their subordinated loans and bonds to bolster their capital. In Europe, British lender Barclays PLC became the latest major bank to say it had a good start to 2009.

Helping easing fears about banks were promises over the weekend from finance ministers of Group 20 nations to do "whatever is necessary" to fix the global economy and restore a shaky financial sector still reeling from losses on bad assets. In the U.S., Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said America had avoided a depression and its recession will probably end this year if the government succeeds in rehabilitating the banking system.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090316/ap_on_bi_ge/world_markets

---

Chopper Ben - always the optimist. It would amaze me to hear him speak about resolving the derivatives crisis that absolutely dwarfs the issue of bad mortgage debt. How are we going to avoid that depression, Ben?

[safeinOhio]

40. Proof the market hit bottom 3 weeks ago

My MBA brother sold all of his stocks then. He hates me now, I told him he picked the bottom to sell.

[ozymandius]

13. Fortis bank forecasts 22.5 bln euro loss for 2008

BRUSSELS (AFP) – Belgian bank Fortis said Sunday it expected to report a record loss of 22.5 billion euros for 2008, when the world financial crisis drove it to be nationalised and sold off.

Fortis Holding "expects, based on Belgian accounting standards, a statutory loss carried forward of 22.5 billion euros (29 billion dollars) as at year-end 2008," the bank said in a statement.

-very short-

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20090315/bs_afp/belgiumfinanceeconomybankingcompanyfortis_20090315220154

[ozymandius]

14. UBS cutting 5,000 management jobs:report

GENEVA (Reuters) – Switzerland's biggest bank UBS (UBSN.VX) plans to cut up to 5,000 senior and management jobs in the next few weeks, Swiss weekly SonntagsZeitung said on Sunday.

It said up to 2,500 management positions could go in UBS's dominant and profitable wealth management division, which accounts for 50,000 of the bank's total 77,000 staff.

....

Last week UBS said it was restructuring its Swiss business structure into four regions from eight, and trimming its top management. But it said the changes did not mean any more job cuts than the 600-800 positions it already plans to cut in Switzerland as part of thousands of job losses globally.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090315/bs_nm/us_ubs

---

No word yet on whether Phil Gramm still has a job at UBS.

[ozymandius]

15. Millions in AIG bonuses draw chorus of outrage

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Leaders of the White House economic team and the Senate's top Republican bellowed about bonuses at a bailed-out insurance giant and pledged to prevent such payments in the future.

From one Sunday talk show to the next, they tore into the contracts that American International Group asserted had to be honored, to the tune of about $165 million and payable to executives by Sunday -- part of a larger total payout reportedly valued at $450 million. The company has benefited from more than $170 billion in a federal rescue.

AIG has agreed to Obama administration requests to restrain future payments. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner pressed the president's case with AIG's chairman, Edward Liddy, last week.

....

In a letter to Geithner dated Saturday, Liddy said outside lawyers had informed the company that AIG had contractual obligations to make the bonus payments and could face lawsuits if it did not do so.

....

The bulk of the payments at issue cover AIG Financial Products, the unit of the company that sold credit default swaps, the risky contracts that caused massive losses for the insurer.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Millions-in-AIG-bonuses-draw-apf-14644457.html

[ozymandius]

16. AIG says emergency aid used to pay other banks

NEW YORK (AP) -- American International Group Inc. used more than $90 billion in federal aid to pay out foreign and domestic banks, some of whom had received their own multibillion-dollar U.S. government bailouts.

....

Some of the biggest recipients of the AIG money were Goldman Sachs at $12.9 billion, and three European banks -- France's Societe Generale at $11.9 billion, Germany's Deutsche Bank at $11.8 billion, and Britain's Barclays PLC at $8.5 billion. Merrill Lynch, which also is undergoing federal scrutiny of its bonus plans, received $6.8 billion as of Dec. 31.

The money went to banks to cover their losses on complex mortgage investments, as well as for collateral needed for other transactions.

Other banks receiving between $1 billion and $3 billion from AIG's securities lending unit include Citigroup Inc., Switzerland's UBS AG and Morgan Stanley.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/AIG-says-emergency-aid-used-apf-14644920.html

[UpInArms]

42. Barney Frank: 'Time to fire some people' at AIG

http://www.reuters.com/article/governmentFilingsNews/idUSN1650573920090316

WASHINGTON, March 16 (Reuters) - Amid simmering outrage over $165 million in bonuses paid to executives at ailing AIG, Representative Barney Frank said on Monday it may be time to fire some people at the insurance giant.

"These people may have a right to their bonuses but they don't have a right to their jobs forever," Frank, a Massachusetts Democrat who heads the House Financial Services Committee, said on NBC's "Today" program.

AIG has received $173 billion in federal bailout money and is at the heart of a global financial crisis that President Barack Obama is trying to address with plans for trillions of dollars in spending.

"The federal government now is the 80 percent owner (of AIG)," Frank said. "These bonuses are going to people who screwed this thing up enormously ... Since the federal government ... now essentially owns that company, maybe it's time to fire some people."

[wordpix]

71. "maybe it's time to fire some people"---MAYBE????

Geesh, it IS time to fire these asshat bandits.

[54anickel]

47. Pffffft. Funny how union contract obligations are so easily disregarded. n/t

[Tansy_Gold]

49. AIG had contractual obligations to their counterparties

Did they meet those obligations? No, they couldn't.



Fuck 'em.

[wordpix]

70. heh, heh, a contract can be renegotiated, even broken

You can break a contract, esp. with a negotiated settlement. What a bunch of BS. I wonder how many of our fed dollars Chairman Liddy is making off with. :shrug:

[ozymandius]

17. Have a nice day, Marketeers.

:donut: :donut: :donut:

I gotta run.

:hi:

[Kolesar]

18. A Simple Guide to the Banking Crisis - Michael Mandel at Business Week

I went to the Business Week website this weekend because one of their reporters said that they had been reporting on "this story" for years.
-----
http://www.businessweek.com/the_thread/economicsunbound/archives/2009/03/a_simple_guide.html?chan=top+news_top+news+index+-+temp_news+%2B+analysis

A Simple Guide to the Banking Crisis

Posted by: Michael Mandel on March 12

I don’t know why I called this a “simple guide to the banking crisis.” Really, it’s the longest post I’ve written here. But here it is:

Why is the banking crisis so hard to solve? We stood and watched while Hank Paulson and Ben Bernanke fumbled with their response in the fall. Now we are being treated to the distressing spectacle of Tim Geithner struggling as well to articulate a clear policy for dealing with zombie banks. How come these smart and powerful men can’t get a handle on the problem?

I want to lay out 5 simple propositions which will help you understand why the banking crisis is so intractable. Then I will explain what happens next.

Proposition 1: The boom in the U.S. was funded almost totally by foreign money.

This is absolutely the key point for understanding the current banking crisis. Historically, households have been the major source of capital for the U.S. economy. That’s certainly what I was taught in economics graduate school.

But that quietly changed in 1999, when American households flipped from being net lenders to being net borrowers. Foreign money became basically the only source of capital for the U.S.
...more...
http://www.businessweek.com/the_thread/economicsunbound/archives/2009/03/a_simple_guide.html?chan=top+news_top+news+index+-+temp_news+%2B+analysis

[Demeter]

20. Excellent Article! More Exerpts....

Proposition 2: Foreign investors preferred to put their money into investments that were perceived as having low risk... foreign investors in the U.S. flocked to investments which offered decent returns and high (perceived) safety. This demand for safety showed up in the Fed statistics. Between 1998 and 2007, foreign investors poured roughly $10 trillion into acquiring financial assets in this country. Out of that total, only about $3 trillion went into supposedly-risky equities, mutual funds, and direct investment in U.S. businesses. The rest went into perceived less-risky investments, such as Treasuries and mortgage-backed securities (after all, housing never goes down!).

But there’s more. Wall Street catered to this foreign demand for safety. Many hedge funds, for example, promised “positive absolute returns”, meaning that they would do well even in down markets (see here). That’s one important reason why hedge funds boomed in this decade—they promised safety to foreign money, which were willing to pay big fees to get it. Many hedge funds were pitched directly to foreign investors. When John Paulson testified before Congress in November, he said that 80% of his $36 billion in assets came from foreign investors.

And when there wasn’t enough “safe assets” to sell to willing foreigners, the intrepid investment bankers created more. Consider, for example, credit default swaps, which pay off if a bond defaults—in effect, insurance on debt. Wall Street saw this as a ‘two-fer.’ They would sell corporate bonds to foreign investors, and at the same time collect fees on credit default swaps on the bonds in order to reassure those apparently too-nervous investors from another part of the world.

But the joke in the end was on Wall Street. The foreign investors bought the bonds, but they also bought the protection—which much to everyone’s surprise was needed. And the U.S. banks and investment banks were left with piles of ‘toxic assets’—the obligation to pay off all sorts of bonds and derivatives.

Proposition 3: Today, after everything has gone bad, many of the counterparties on the other side of the toxic assets are foreign investors, directly or indirectly....



Proposition 4: It’s a lot harder for the Federal Reserve and Treasury to resolve a banking crisis where the main counterparties are not American.

The international angle is very important. Geithner and Bernanke keep saying that the problem is that no one knows how much the toxic assets are worth. But that’s not the full story. If the counterparties and beneficiaries of the toxic assets held by American banks are also American, it would be relatively easy for Geithner and Bernanke to gather them in a room and make them come to a ‘reasonable’ agreement about how much these securities were worth. After all, even the most powerful hedge funds must ultimately bow to the power of the Fed and Treasury, especially in a crisis.

But with most of the counterparties in other countries, the job becomes much more difficult. There’s no way for Bernanke and Geithner to force European banks, for example, to accept any particular valuation of derivatives or bank bonds—not without the cooperation of the foreign regulators.

In fact, right now we have the worst of both worlds. U.S. banks own securities which may or may not obligate them to pay a large amount of money to foreign investors. And foreign banks have assets on their books which no one trusts are worth what they say. The uncertainty is killing both the borrowers and lenders.

Proposition 5: The fact that the counterparties are overseas means that out of the three options: bailout, bankruptcy, or nationalization—none are satisfactory.

A bailout means that the government makes good on the value of the securities, including the derivatives which are tied to the collapse of the U.S. economy. That means the worse things get, the more money flows out of the country. Not politically acceptable.

Letting insolvent banks go bankrupt is the option being pushed by some politicians, including John McCain. In some ways it would be the cleanest solution, allowing the bankruptcy courts and the FDIC to do the tough job of allocating the losses from the toxic securities.

The problem, though, is that they tried the bankruptcy option with Lehman, and they nearly broke the global financial system in the process. The Lehman bankruptcy backfired, creating new panic around the world. This reflects how much money many foreign investors had put into the U.S., and how many worried about losing it when Lehman went under.

Nationalization creates a political problem. Once the government buys a company, it is financially and morally responsible for its debts. It puts the U.S. government in the position of either using taxpayer money to bailout foreign investors, or telling foreign investors, no, the richest country in the world is not going to pay its debts.

What’s the solution?
Conclusion: Sometime later this year we will have a massive global conference aimed at simultaneously resolving the banking crises in the major developed countries. The goal will be a political negotiation of the value of the toxic assets, and a clearing of the books....

[Pale Blue Dot]

22. Bernanke: The End is Near

From CBS 60 Minutes: Ben Bernanke's Greatest Challenge

"Mr. Chairman, I'm gonna start with a question that everyone wants me to ask: when does this end?" 60 Minutes correspondent Scott Pelley asked Bernanke.

"It depends a lot on the financial system," he replied. "The lesson of history is that you do not get a sustained economic recovery as long as the financial system is in crisis. We've seen some progress in the financial markets, absolutely. But until we get that stabilized and working normally, we're not gonna see recovery. But we do have a plan. We're working on it. And I do think that we will get it stabilized, and we'll see the recession coming to an end probably this year. We'll see recovery beginning next year. And it will pick up steam over time."

http://www.calculatedriskblog.com/2009/03/bernanke-end-is-near.html

My (PBD) comments: I now believe that there is a concerted effort on the part of the Obama administration to lie to the American people as a way of restoring confidence in the markets. They still believe, apparently, that what's really causing this crisis is the "doom and gloomers". After talking to friends and family this weekend, I think this plan is working. I sure hope to hell they're right and I'm wrong, or this will blow up in all of our faces.

[DemReadingDU]

25. It seems like Obama's team really believes what they are selling us

Bernanke did say the banks have to be stabilized before the economy can recover. But from all my reading, there is no way the economy can recover. Too much toxic stuff in the banks in the U.S. and globally. Eastern Europe is in a lot of turmoil. We don't have much control what occurs in other countries. So how can Bernanke say the economy will recover by end of this year?

[Pale Blue Dot]

27. They're still not even addressing ANY of the issues raised

in that "Crash Course" video.

It's so frustrating.

[DemReadingDU]

33. The Crash Course video, for those who haven't seen it

It's the basic fundamentals, how we got to where we are now...money, debt, bubbles, exponential growth.

Here is the link to the Boston PBS WGBY replay of the Chris Martenson Mini-Crash Course which originally aired on 2/10/09. Watch Martenson in action as a professor teaching a class in the live-studio of WGBY. He describes his background, some things going on around him that didn't make sense, why he constructed the Crash Course series of videos, and teaches a great mini-course on the economy.

If you haven't yet had the time to watch the series of Chris Martenson Crash Course videos, perhaps this 38 minute mini-course will be the thing that moves everyone to watch the complete course.
http://www.chrismartenson.com/blog/pbs-streaming-video/13217



P.S. Here is the link for the complete series for the Chris Martenson Crash Course videos which provide a baseline understanding of the economy, creation of money, debt, bubbles, energy, environment. This is a series of 20 video chapters, each video is between 3 and 20 minutes in length, meaning that all 20 chapters should take about 3.5 hours, but they need not be watched all at the same time. Try appx an hour a day for 3 days.
http://www.chrismartenson.com/crashcourse


Edit: Martenson has now posted a transcript with each video chapter.

[Karenina]

55. Thanx!

:hi:

[Ghost Dog]

51. Buyer beware

By Chan Akya

Extracts from a long two-part article; worth reading it all...

... Investment, finance and economics are a complex mix of at times downright illogical human psychology with the pure logic of mathematical science, introducing possibilities for potent wild-card factors that must be taken into consideration in any calculation.

History provides many unfortunate examples of how the psychological components of uncertainty, fear and panic can, at crucial times, trump the components of logic, reason, knowledge and discipline to give impetus to shortsighted and risky policies and actions that create a full-blown crisis. Humans simply don't always act in a rational and logical way that is in their best strategic interests. And institutions, regulatory agencies and governments, being composed of humans, don't always act rationally either.

All are subject to the potent influence of human psychology, which can at times be quite defensive, knee-jerk, irrational and somewhat unpredictable. In a crisis situation such as we presently find ourselves, the darker side of psychology's influence is often and unfortunately magnified.

Added to this is the fact that global investment, financial and economic systems have become increasingly complex and interrelated much faster than the ability of experts and leaders to adequately comprehend them. This makes it much easier to make mistakes of real consequence. This complexity also at times prevents governments and other institutions from taking requisite bold, comprehensive actions in the midst of crisis for fear that these may backfire by producing some unforeseen and intolerable effects and repercussions.

Further complicating matters, investment, finance and economics are nearly always deeply intertwined with politics, adding to potential uncertainty - especially so in a time of deepening global crisis, when individual governments invariably lean toward self-interest, nationalism, protectionism and self-preservation.

To illustrate the disturbing truthfulness of the foregoing, remember when experts and leaders confidently concluded that the free markets could mostly regulate themselves with success; when they concluded that no housing bubble existed in the US, but only some "regional froth"; when they insisted that complex new mortgage-backed securities, including high-risk mortgage
paper, dispersed throughout the financial and investment system, would decrease default risk.

Empty reassurances

Remember when the present crisis broke in 2007, the reassurances that it would not spread beyond the confines of subprime; when it did spread, the forecasts that Wall Street banks' losses would amount only to a total of about US$200 billion. Remember when "experts" insisted no widespread credit crunch would result. Remember when they insisted that the crisis was unlikely to spread from Wall Street to the real economy on Main Street?

Remember when they said the hundreds of billions of dollars of liquidity thrown into the system would free up the credit seizure. Remember when they said the October 3, 2008, $700 billion stimulus package and the many more hundreds of billions of dollars in bank and corporate bailouts would move the system out of crisis. Where are all these pseudo-intellectual ideas, beliefs, ideologies, assessments and assurances now? On the trash heap, precisely where they belonged in the first place.

The record inspires little confidence in the ongoing efforts of governments to resolve the crisis, or even that they know how to resolve it. The damage and outright destruction inflicted on vital components of the present global investment, finance and economic orders just keeps piling up while governments keep trying their various "solutions"

/... http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Global_Economy/KC14Dj04.html
____

... The global credit markets and financial systems are deeply interconnected, meaning that contagion spreading from an Eastern Europe default to the rest of Europe and the US is virtually assured. So those pressures will be felt by the entire global financial order, and such new and profound stresses upon an already extremely shaky order won't likely be endured without a genuine meltdown of the entire system.

These huge and dangerous distortions in the global financial order are due largely to US government policies regarding Treasuries and the shortsighted willingness of global investors to participate in pumping up that profoundly harmful bubble. If the US succeeds in selling its greatly increased supply of Treasuries, then such distortions in the global order will only become more profound, their negative repercussions (credit strangulation) will only become much more potent, and the feared second wave will be virtually assured. And so far, demand for Treasuries has remained high, thereby ensuring the dangerous persistence of the credit strangulation referred to here.

That second wave, if it comes, will also carry profoundly negative repercussions for the Treasuries bubble itself, because the US and Europe will be plunged into undeniable, full-blown depression via a financial meltdown by the heavy burden of the cascading effects of default in Eastern Europe. That eventuality will force global investors to finally begin to evaluate the safety and appeal of Treasuries and the dollar based much more on the swiftly disintegrating fundamentals of the US economy and much less on a psychological reflex, driven by extreme risk aversion, that at present corrals investors into Treasuries for their supposed safe-haven benefits.

The stampede in the making

Investors will begin to stampede out of financial assets such as Treasuries and into hard assets like precious metals and certain commodities whose price has been severely beaten down. These will offer comparatively much safer stores of wealth, ones with a real profit potential. China, via its resource buys, is already blazing the trail, going energetically into hard assets, rather than sustaining its 2008 rate of purchases of Treasuries and other financial assets

/... http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Global_Economy/KC14Dj05.html

[Demeter]

36. It Will Blow Up, Bank on It

Nothing has changed except they got a loan to squander.

IF we see real regulation, reform, and retribution, THEN I will believe that Recovery is Possible.

Otherwise, it's just http://sneakmove.com/audio/Tiny%20Bubbles.mp3

[DemReadingDU]

23. ABC: Economic Forecaster Predicts "Greatest Depression"

3/12/09 Economic Forecaster Predicts "Greatest Depression"

Economic trends forecaster Gerald Celente bears news nobody wants to hear: the economic crisis is going to get worse. ABC6 Anchor John Deluca travelled to New York to talk with Mr. Celente, who has been featured by major newspapers and television networks, and asked the question on everyone's mind: how much worse?

Is it all crazy talk? Watch 4 minute video
http://www.abc6.com/news/41131932.html

[TheWatcher]

24. Morning Commentary: Welcome To The Pleasure Dome: The Hope Bubble

So if anyone has looked at the financial headlines this morning, you no doubt have seen the latest salvo of Propaganda in the form of a new "Plan" to save us poor little Proles from the Collapsing Economy.

More on that in a second.

As we enter Day Five of what we now can probably move closer to confirming is the "Hope Bubble", we've had a weekend to digest the lunacy we have witnessed in the past four days. The Futures have ONCE AGAIN been rescued from plummeting into the abyss overnight (+71 at the time of this writing, and as high as +100 earlier, a 132 Point reversal off the lows.)

And unfortunately, save for some lone voices, screaming into the wilderness once more, it is with great sadness that I report that specimenfred's cynicism is WELL Warranted.

The American People still love the con.

And they can't WAIT to get taken by it again.

Now let's get to the Latest from the Tele-Screens, shall we?

We have a large 1-2 Punch from the Mafioso from last night.

First of all, we have Helo Ben, spending some time on 60 Minutes, taking advantage of the opportunity to cajole and Propagandize MILLIONS of scared, jittery Sheep in the Meadow, with more "Hopes" and "Assurances" of how we're all going to be saved. He NOW says that the Recession will "most probably" end by the end of 2009.

And just this morning, we now have our newly minted leader getting into the fray with the "Hope" Bandwagon. And why not? He practically re-invented the damn word.

Obama plans small-business lending boost

Small-business loans, optimism mark Obama economic team amid worries from GOP, Wall Street

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Seeking to counter a chorus of unhappy Republicans and nervous Wall Street investors, President Barack Obama and his economic team are taking a cheerier tone while making billions in federal loans available to the nation's struggling small businesses.


Obama and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on Monday planned to announce a broad package that includes reduced small-business lending fees and an increase on the guarantee to some Small Business Administration loans. A day earlier, the president's advisers said in television interviews that they remained confident in the nation's economic fundamentals, at times adopting upbeat rhetoric the president once mocked.

"The fundamentals are sound in the sense that the American workers are sound, we have a good capital stock, we have good technology," said Christina Romer, who heads the White House Council of Economic Advisers.

Obama, for his part, has embraced the role of "confidence-builder in chief," as one business leader asked him to become. One week after his budget director declared "fundamentally, the economy is weak," Obama's economic advisers offered up a buoyant assessment.

More Walking On Water and Turning Water Into Wine at the link:

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/090316/obama_economy.html

Now, I want to be VERY CLEAR about something. I am NOT attacking ANY plan or proposal that would do what this latest "plan" says it's supposed to do. This is actually something that is very good, and seems like a positive step in the right direction. Nobody in their RIGHT MIND (Well, I should say LEFT MIND, because anyone from the Right simply can't stand the idea of the Proles getting any more than crumbs from the big table) would do so.

But let's keep things in perspective here. This is yet another announcement of another "Plan". We have no details on how this would work, and we will need to EXAMINE THEM CLOSELY.

Also we need to keep in mind about the TIMING of this announcement.

I ask you to review the past four trading days at the Market, and remember everything we talked about last week and that we covered here. The Market movements were coincided with well-timed, coordinated Propaganda to help accelerate the Circus Of Hope that they were trying to create and get the Public to glom onto.

Let us also remember who Obama's Appointees and Economic Advisers are, and who is pulling the Economic Strings for the Anointed One.

Timothy Geithner Treasure Secretary and one of the Foxes guarding the Hen House. A man who when appointed, wasted no time filling every space he could with lobbyists, something Obama had promised during the campaign that he was NOT GOING TO ALLOW to happen, and that he wanted to make sure lobbyists would no longer have the influence they did in our Government and it's workings.

No doubt the awake have been following the latest developments with AIG over the past few days, which Geithner has his dirty little paws ALL OVER. I've seen some surprising posts from some rather surprising posters who I have often vehemently disagreed with over the years for being apologists call for Goofy's head, and I'm glad to see signs that at least SOMEWHERE people are beginning to smell something rotten.

Larry Summers You remember him. One of the architects of the LAST Fake, Bubble Economy. here's a quote from MidSummers Night's Madness himself from the above article this morning:

the director of the National Economic Council and an Obama adviser, quoted the president: "It's never as good as people say it is when they say it's good and it's never as bad as people say it is when they say it's bad."

Alan Greenspan Dear GOD, if I really need to elaborate here, then NO ONE is paying attention.

Now, as I said, when you read through the initial details, it all sounds pretty good. but as of right now, it is just another "Plan."

We've seen this movie before. I know the words I write this morning are not going to sit well with some, because I know it is practically verbotten on DU to criticize, question, or rant about anything when said diatribe contains a name with the first letter of "O" in it.

But if I am to be accused of that, my message to those who would accuse me of being a troll, a plant, a freeper, a disruptor, etc, etc, etc is two simple words:

GET BENT.

And they don't even deserve that much of an acknowledgment.

I AM a Small Business Owner. I'd be INSANE to attack a plan like this.

This is not about criticizing the President, nor this latest "plan". It is about an obvious and continuing pattern of coordinated Propaganda and it's relation to the continual Artificial Environment in the Markets.

It is about whether the 180 degree turnaround we are seeing, and all of a sudden Blitzkrieg of Media and Administration Proclamations that "the Recovery Is here" and that everything is Puppies and Rainbows again, or yet another cruel manipulation and perception management of the Public in relation to actual realities that we are facing.

I want to bring to attention one more thing that has gotten missed in this Euphoria Of Nothing:

Every day after the last four advances in the Dow, the PM Futures have fallen of a Cliff and have been negative most of the night. They have miraculously recovered every single time by the Market Open the next day, or just after the Market Open.

Again, everything that we have seen in the past few days of this "Hope Blitzkrieg" is "Hopes" "Assurances" Well Crafted, Well Timed Propaganda that has no substantiation or basis in fact or reality, and more announcements of "Plans and Programs."

You couple this with the knowledge that despite the fact that we have the Dream Candidate in the White House, the people in charge of pulling the economic strings are the same collection of Foxes that have been guarding the hen house of our fates for quite some time now, and are responsible for policies that helped create the very Bubble Economies that have contributed to the Collapses we have seen in the past 10 years.

Ladies And Gentlemen, Boys And Girls:

"Welcome To The Hope Bubble"

I realize that I am sticking my neck out to get chopped off by a lot of people for writing something like this. The news that has come out this morning is going to be well received by a lot of people, and no one can argue the merits of such plans. They'd be crazy to attack the intent.

What I am begging for is perspective and for people to examine what has come before, who the players pulling the strings are, what we have seen in the past, and the patterns that point to the fact that all may not be what it seems.

This is NOT about left or right.

This is NOT about Liberal and Conservative.

This is NOT about whether you are with Obama or against him.

This is about WE THE PEOPLE, and whether our interests and representation is being honored.

THAT'S IT. It's THAT SIMPLE.

I will leave everyone this morning with some final Perspective:

On March 9th, Six Years ago, in the midst of what seemed to be the certain slide into the Abyss that we are seeing NOW, without warning, without reason, and without explanation, the Markets did a 180 of the lows, and began a steady March upward that continued for Six years, and through Illegal War, a Sham Real Estate bubble, Unchecked and Out Of Control Derivatives Markets, CDO Swap Shenanigans, Artificial Manipulation, and the most Reckless Monetary Expansion that mankind has ever seen, another Fake, unsustainable Bubble Economy was Born, and now we have seen the results of what that hath wrought.

And now, last week, March 9th, Six years Later to THE DAY, I'll be damned if they aren't trying to do it AGAIN.

And this time, so far, it's all based on one word:

"Hope"

You know, for the past 8 Years, we lived under what we now know through the release of secret memos (Not Citi Memos, these actually had tangible proof of something), that we were living in a Dictatorship with a Unitary Executive that wielded almost unlimited, unchecked power.

In that administration, "Fear" was used as a weapon, against perceived enemies, mostly created by the administration itself, and against the American People itself.

This time, it appears that a new weapon is being used:

"Hope."

And it appears that is the New Bubble that will be used to once again, give us the Illusion Of Prosperity, without the actual benefit of actually HAVING it.

And if they actually SUCCEED the way they did in 2003.

GOD. Help. Us. ALL.

This is not the time to start all of a sudden trusting those who were responsible for all the lies and deception that helped create this Crisis to begin with, simply because our man won.

This is not the time to "Cheer On The Football team" Unquestioningly and take everything on Blind Faith, just because our man won.

This is not the time to believe that all of a sudden the Worst Economic Crisis in the past 80 years, and perhaps EVER has suddenly magically turned around, just because the voices in Washington and the Bought And Paid For Fascist Corporate Media "Say So."

This is not the time to blindly follow party lines, and follow lock-step unquestioningly.

NOW is the time to realize that in order to TRULY take our country back, we must restore checks and balances, and TRUE ACCOUNTABILITY of our Leaders, Corporate America, the Banks, and EVERYONE who is supposed to be representing the interests of WE THE PEOPLE.

We fail To Do So At Our Peril.

We cannot fall for the lure of the Quick Fix, no matter how badly we wish to believe in it.

I believe a young Comedian said it best at a very late hour Thursday night last week:

"When Are We Going To Realize That Our Wealth Is WORK?"

Wise Words, Mr Stewart.

Your Countrymen would do well to heed them.

Good Day And Good Luck, Marketeers.

[DemReadingDU]

28. coordinated Propaganda

Yep, that's all it is. It's like they are telling the herd it's all going to be better. But they know what's coming, and they are delaying the inevitable so they can rally the markets one last time. And that gives the banksters their last chance to fleece the herd of their money before they the bottom falls out.


Thanks for your commentary!


Edit: As I said above, there is a lot of turmoil in Eastern Europe. We don't have much control what occurs in other countries. And they think they can keep this 'Hope Bubble' from bursting by coordinated propaganda?

[TheWatcher]

30. It is the Final Tranferrence Of Wealth from the hands of the Many to the hands of the Few.

Thank You for those words DRDU.

My partner read this before I posted it this morning, and she said the following:

"I agree with all of it love, but I hope I don't come home to a headless partner. You've got guts for posting that."

I told her that sometimes you have to be willing to put yourself out there in the name of what you know is right, and the principles you know are right.

People can attack the messenger, but they do so without understanding that the message itself is what matters, and choosing to ignore the obvious signs that are before you will not change the consequences that play out when said circumstances come home to roost.

If I am ultimately wrong, I will have no problem saying so.

And I will do so with great relief, and tie on a bib for the All You Can Eat Crow Buffet.

That isn't a bad meal to hope for, when you consider the alternative of being right.

[DemReadingDU]

32. Spouse says...look at the facts

Companies are going out of business, unemployment is rising higher, people are losing their homes. The economy can't recover any time soon.

Do you ever read The Automatic Earth? Ilargi and Stoneleigh are the co-editors, and have similar views as to your own. They are who convinced me to look beyond the words that are said in the media.

The format is a picture, followed by an intro, usually by Ilargi, sometimes by Stoneleigh or a guest, then there are related articles from around the world, followed by a comments section. Be sure to check out the primers located on the right side of the blog. The primer 'How to Build a Lifeboat, is excellent.
http://theautomaticearth.blogspot.com/

[TheWatcher]

35. I have not and I Thank You greatly for pointing me in that Direction DRDU

MUCH appreciated.

I am going to do some reading later on after all the work is done today.

Cheers To You!

:toast:

[sendero]

31. I agree completely..

... the level of mass delusion here is astounding.

It all started with a "leaked" internal memo where Citi claims to make a profit. This is pure and utter horseshit, when pro forma reporting is done there will be no profit.

People are so desparate to believe that things are not as bad as they are, they will seize upon any tiny thread to pull.

The only good thing about this nonsense is that it gives the smart money one more chance to get out with something.

[Demeter]

38. Another Excellent Rant

I doubt that we'll get 6 years out of Hope. Hell, I doubt we'll get 6 months!

[TheWatcher]

39. We might not get Six Weeks.

But I have to say, Six Years ago taught me a hard lesson.

NEVER underestimate these people.

NEVER.

On a more positive note, I Hope things are getting better Demeter.

As Always, my Best Wishes to you. :)

[Demeter]

60. Dad is Home, and Now comes the Fun Part

Trying to arrange care that he will accept and work with.

Regarding the Fear factor: Fear is a self-reinforcing emotion--it will grow in the absence of any driving force. Hope needs constant reinforcement. People need encouragement to hope--which is the essence of the verb "to encourage"!

That's why the GOP goes for the Fear Factor, every time. Paranoia--just because you are paranoid DOESN'T mean nobody's out to get you! It does mean you may find enemies where potential friends exist, though, and alienating its audience is what keeps the GOP in check.

Obama has his work cut out for him. He's got to show the world of finance that he's his own man, not some hired servant of Goldman Sachs. He's got to beat the financiers into submission and take down the Skull and Bones flying over Wall Street. He's got to herd the Congressional cats and he's getting little help from Congress, and he desperately needs good advisers, which he seems incapable of recognizing. I blame Rahm Emanuel for that. The man is provincial and a bully, not the type to be open and analytical and discerning.

[Karenina]

63. Wishing you the best with your Dad.

What a joke it all is, Demeter. It's not like the citizen's of America have his back the way that Venezuelan's covered Chavez. He's 'spose to take on these centuries entrenched forces while the country still thinks it's watching a football game...

[Demeter]

64. Well, He's Turning Off Those WhoWere At His Back

by trying to imagine "bipartisanship" and letting the Blue Dogs throw their weight around.

Not an LBJ, not an FDR, and I hope to god not a JFK. I couldn't live through the 60's again.

[burf]

41. Good morning!

Most excellent post. When the markets did their turnaround last week, I asked different people what fundamentals had changed to cause it. Most answers were blank looks while others were I dunnos.

One reason the propaganda of hope may work is because people are "tired" of all the bad news. Friday I went into the local co-op too get some feed. I started to talk to the guys working and when I brought up the market, everyone got quite and the conversation ended. Usually, the markets are a topic of discussion, particularly the commodity markets. Maybe it had something to do with the general managers comments in the quarterly newsletter in which he said it will turn around. I dunno!

I am watching Bloomberg at the market open and their talking heads are more akin to cheerleaders than reporters. Just about all the data of the day is lousy and still the chatter is Capitol One and their default rate. The smiles of the talkers does not reflect the looks in their eyes that tell they know its a lie.

[Tansy_Gold]

45. I, too, noted Stewart's line, and it seems to have been overlooked

in all the mad scramble to focus on what Cramer did/said.

The market can go up and down all it pleases, but it is NOT the economy. As Stewart (and Marx) said, our wealth is work, and if many of us are not working and/or are working at jobs that produce nothing, then we are not creating any wealth. If we create wealth for ourselves but blithely hand it over to the Chinese, the Indian, the Taiwanese, the Haitian "company" who make the goods we buy, then we have accomplished nothing.

Hope means nothing without jobs. Hope will not put food on the table or gas in the tank. It will not keep the lights on in the darkness or water flowing from the tap. It will not keep the foreclosure thief from the door, or open the door to the doctor's office that requires payment before treatment.

Banks are given bailouts in exchange for ownership of their stock. If they go bankrupt, the executives keep their bonuses and the taxpayers/owners are fucked. This so-called 'plan' to help small business owners is undoubtedly not nearly so generous. It's not a 'plan' at all. It's propaganda and pap.

Wankers, wankers all.



Tansy Gold

[Dr.Phool]

46. Where can I start trashing you?

I can't. I agree with just about everything you've said.

I put up a post about a year ago, when it was pretty clear that our choices in November were going to be between Hilliary, Obama, and McCain, and I concluded that they all three sucked. A newbie accused me of being a troll.

Welcome to Jobless Recovery 2.0. We had a lot of fun when back in September, McCain said the fundamentals of the economy were sound. Now I guess when a Democrat says the same stupid shit, and the circumstances are even worse, we're supposed to believe it.

I had a chuckle at a post above where Obama said they're going to make it easier for small businesses to borrow money. They need customers, not loans. I went to get a haircut last week. The guy who cuts my hair said that his business was off over 30% from last year. And this is the busy tourist season. My restaurant went under last year because all of my customers lost their jobs, and the oil companies took what was left of their incomes last summer.

We need accountability for this fiasco. And it needs to start right in Obama's cabinet, and his economic advisers. Summers and Geitner would be a good start. Then start on the banks, the hedge funds, and Wall Street, and Congress. One can only dream.

Antigop has been taking a beating from the true believers for posting that a Democrat is sponsoring a bill to tax employer health care benefits. When Bush said that same stupid shit 4 years ago, there was outrage. Now people close their eyes, put their fingers in their ears, and scream "la-la-la-la-la-la.

Hope ain't gonna restore your 401k. It ain't gonna stop your foreclosure. It ain't gonna get you a good-paying job in places like Michigan or Ohio. It ain't gonna put your kids through college or pay the medical bills your insurance company (if you have one)decides aren't covered. You're gonna need a revolution for that.

All brought to you by the greatest country in history.

Now, I'll step out for the day. I've got an appointment at my own little version of Gitmo. It's called a golf course. I think I'd prefer waterboarding.

[TheWatcher]

50. And I agree with you.

I know the trashing wouldn't come from you Dr., or just about anyone who posts in this thread.

The trashing would most likely come from posters in threads OUTSIDE of SMW, where the delusion is thicker than frozen molasses this morning.

Some people are really drunk on the Kool-Aid.

I can understand the fatigue from all the bad news. I get that.

But blindly swallowing whatever Propaganda you are fed just so you can feel good and have false optimism is not going to change the fundamentals of the economy, and it's not going to spark a real recovery.

It seems the administration, The Banks, Wall Street, and the Corporate Masters are LITERALLY trying to TALK the Economy into recovery.

That's just Insane.

What's even more Insane is the amount of people who are buying it.

But the awake and the cynical know that's not what they are REALLY doing.

The real game going on behind the Propaganda Facade is Criminal.

[Demeter]

61. Well, It Worked for Reagan

(Actually, Volcker worked for Reagan, and we paid a terrible price, but)

[DemWynner]

57. The economy can not recover without jobs

I could not believe when I heard Ben say that we would start to have a recovery but still have joblessness. Then that is not a recovery. when this country had a lot of manufacturing and the people working could then buy things because they would afford it, that was a good economy. when we have service jobs that are not as stable and easily cut, then there is a huge problem. we can not survive with out people working in this country at a decent wage. My son can not find a part time job now and friends of my are being laid-off after 19 years at a manufacturing facility. this is not good for our economy or the business leaders that think that getting the manufacturing done in a part of the world is good for their bottom line. it may be good for a year or 2, but when people here are not buying or making money, then they will not be able to sell as much and the profits will go away.

rant off

[wordpix]

68. manufacturing is key, no doubt about it - wind turbines, solar panels, infrastructure

Of course, the repukes had to get their billions in tax cuts so there may not be enough to get these items jump started.

[Tansy_Gold]

69. No, leave the rant on. This has to be said over and over and over

JOBS, sustainable employment. Making things and services people need and use. not shuffling paper around. not putting fourteen layers of profit-sucking middlemen between the producer and the consumer. not looking for "fast money" to be made doing nothing.

get rid of health insurance -- replace it with health care.

get rid of credit -- replace it with solvency and cash flow.

get rid of the market -- replace it with investment.

get rid of propaganda -- replace it with truth.

get rid of hope -- replace it with honesty.

get rid of greed -- replace it with action.

get rid of Geithner, Summers, Rubin and all the rest of the Wall Street sycophants/parasites -- replace them with




Tansy Gold :rofl:

[wordpix]

72. "get rid of Geithner, Summers, Rubin " - you'd think someone else who isn't tainted could

do the jobs, right? :shrug:

[Tansy_Gold]

77. Hey, I'm not not tainted (double negative = positive) but I could

STILL do the job better than any of those morans.

So could virtually any SMWer.






Tansy Gold, horse of a different taint

[Demeter]

81. All On Your Lonesome, Tansy?

You know we'll all be down there, following you and looking for employment!

Tansy Gold for Secretary of the Treasury!

[Tansy_Gold]

82. Oh, hell, yes.

I don't think I could fuck it up any worse than it already is, do you?

And of course I'd call on all my friends from SMW and WEE to help. Unlike Michael Steele, I *would* have a fully staffed department! (And we'd all get the same pay!)


Tansy Gold, thinkin' to use "Dave" as her operator's manual

[gmpierce]

59. Watcher...

"I realize that I am sticking my neck out to get chopped off by a lot of people for writing something like this. The news that has come out this morning is going to be well received by a lot of people, and no one can argue the merits of such plans. They'd be crazy to attack the intent."

You are probably right, but what you have said needs to be said - only louder and more often. Obama worshipers need to wake up and pay attention to what is being done, not what is being said.

I believe that Obama is basically a good man. I also believe that he had to sell out to the existing Democratic establishment (which is just the junior partner of the Republican establishment.)

When LBJ said "jump", the whole government said "how high". LBJ had spent 20 or thirty years building his power base. Obama's power base, such as it is, is the Clinton/DLC/AIPAC power base.

We, the little people, can't change it. Hell, we can't even find out who is actually making the decisions. When we are told what is going on, we can't believe what they tell us.

We are not going to protect our own interests by whining "give Obama a chance". He had his chance. He followed the advice of his handlers and appointed Summers and Geithner.

I'll give Obama a chance when he dumps the retreads and appoints Dennis Kucinich and Russ Feingold to positions where they can make a difference.

I'll give him a chance when he stops talking about closing Gitmo and actually closes it.

I'll give him a chance when he gives an inspiring speech that announces that the constitution is back.

I'll give him a chance when the phoney "Housing Stability" program is replaced with a program that actually gives homeowners a chance.

In the meantime, I'll give him a copy of a very small dictionary with the word "Change" highlighted.

[Demeter]

62. And Howard Dean!

The man would shoulda,coulda, woulda been a real President.

[nc4bo]

66. I thoroughly enjoy reading your posts....

and look forward to new ones.

IMHO you speak the truth and all of us - ALL OF US should be outraged in regards to how our President plans to fix our broken down economy.

After all, we'll all be paying for it for years and years to come as will our children while those responsible are allowed to go along their merry ways with their only punishment being a tsk-tsk and a fingerwag.

And before anybody tries to say otherwise, I am by no means an anti-Obama person.

[Festivito]

26. Debt: 03/12/2009 10,983,549,928,728.74 (UP 32,450,291,393.11) (Up goodly amount.)

(A day with a large move after days of low moves.)

= Held by the Public + Intragovernmental(FICA)
= 6,694,196,414,273.22 + 4,289,353,514,455.52
UP 31,351,798,430.48 + UP 1,098,492,962.63

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 306-Million person America.
If every American, man, woman and child puts in $3.27 each THAT'S 1B$.
A family of three: Mom, Dad, Child: $9.81, ABOUT TEN BUCKS for a 1B$ 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 14 seconds we net gain a another American, so at the end of the workday of this report, there should be 305,961,686 people in America.
http://www.census.gov/population/www/popclockus.html
Currently, each of these American's owe $35,898.45.
A family of three owes $107,695.35. (And that is IN ADDITION to their mortgage.)

ANALYSIS:
There were 20 reports in the last 30 to 28 days.
The average for the last 20 reports is 11,217,667,058.26.
The average for the last 30 days would be 7,478,444,705.51.
The average for the last 28 days would be 8,012,619,327.33.
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$/day.
There were 36 reports in 51 days of Obama's part of FY2009 averaging 0.61B$ per report, 0.50B$/day so far.
There were 111 reports in 163 days of FY2009 averaging 8.64B$ per report, 5.88B$/day.

PROJECTION:
There are 1,410 days remaining in this Obama 1st term.
By that time the debt could be between 12.9 and 22.3T$.
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)
03/12/2009 10,983,549,928,728.74 BHO (UP 356,672,879,815.66 so far since Obama took office.)

Fiscal Year ends: Sep 30
Borrowed in FY1993: (Maybe later.)
Borrowed in FY1994: 281,261,026,873.94
Borrowed in FY1995: 281,232,990,696.07
Borrowed in FY1996: 250,828,038,426.34
Borrowed in FY1997: 188,335,072,261.61
Borrowed in FY1998: 113,046,997,500.28
Borrowed in FY1999: 130,077,892,735.81
Borrowed in FY2000: _17,907,308,253.43 Bill alone
Borrowed in FY2001: 133,285,202,313.20 Bill and George
Borrowed in FY2002: 420,772,553,397.10 All George
Borrowed in FY2003: 554,995,097,146.46
Borrowed in FY2004: 595,821,633,586.70
Borrowed in FY2005: 553,656,965,393.18
Borrowed in FY2006: 574,264,237,491.73
Borrowed in FY2007: 500,679,473,047.25
Borrowed in FY2008: 1,017,071,524,650.01
Borrowed in FY2009: 958,825,031,816.30 so far this fiscal year.

LAST FIFTEEN REPORTS OF ADDITIONS TO PUBLIC DEBT(NOT FICA):
02/20/2009 +035,338,367,983.16 ------------**********
02/23/2009 -000,426,861,213.78 --- Mon
02/24/2009 +000,473,801,933.93 ------------********
02/25/2009 +000,413,635,509.27 ------------********
02/26/2009 +048,048,940,708.92 ------------**********
02/27/2009 +000,306,718,307.89 ------------********
03/02/2009 +074,163,317,993.12 ------------********** Mon
03/03/2009 +000,498,419,440.82 ------------********
03/04/2009 +000,625,214,862.41 ------------********
03/05/2009 +006,943,273,604.61 ------------*********
03/06/2009 +000,851,040,035.06 ------------********
03/09/2009 -000,039,321,146.54 ---- Mon
03/10/2009 +000,452,187,222.11 ------------********
03/11/2009 +000,187,775,216.55 ------------********
03/12/2009 +031,351,798,430.48 ------------**********

199,188,308,888.01 Total of 15 above reports.

Heavy borrowing seems to start after 09/18/2008.
US borrowed $1,318,918,125,469.67 in last 175 days.
That's 1,319B$ in 175 days.
More than any year ever, including last year, and it's 130% of that highest year ever only in 175 days.
And it is over 100% of ANY dismal Bush, for any dismal Bush-year, ONLY IN 175 DAYS NOT 365.

For a prettier and more explanatory view of our nation's debt:
http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock

(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=3780657&mesg_id=3780828

[Festivito]

74. Debt: 03/13/2009 10,983,750,182,347.25 (UP 200,253,618.51) (Nearly nothing.)

(Many small days, one big day, another small day.)

= Held by the Public + Intragovernmental(FICA)
= 6,694,182,755,194.09 + 4,289,567,427,153.16
DOWN 13,659,079.13 + UP 213,912,697.64

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 306-Million person America.
If every American, man, woman and child puts in $3.27 each THAT'S 1B$.
A family of three: Mom, Dad, Child: $9.8, ABOUT TEN BUCKS for a 1B$ 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 14 seconds we net gain a another American, so at the end of the workday of this report, there should be 305,967,858 people in America.
http://www.census.gov/population/www/popclockus.html
Currently, each of these American's owe $35,898.38.
A family of three owes $107,695.14. (And that is IN ADDITION to their mortgage.)

ANALYSIS:
There were 20 reports in the last 30 to 28 days.
The average for the last 20 reports is 11,236,705,034.71.
The average for the last 30 days would be 7,491,136,689.81.
The average for the last 28 days would be 8,026,217,881.94.
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$/day.
There were 37 reports in 52 days of Obama's part of FY2009 averaging 0.53B$ per report, 0.47B$/day so far.
There were 112 reports in 164 days of FY2009 averaging 8.56B$ per report, 5.85B$/day.

PROJECTION:
There are 1,409 days remaining in this Obama 1st term.
By that time the debt could be between 12.9 and 22.3T$.
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)
03/13/2009 10,983,750,182,347.25 BHO (UP 356,873,133,434.17 so far since Obama took office.)

Fiscal Year ends: Sep 30
Borrowed in FY1993: (Maybe later.)
Borrowed in FY1994: 281,261,026,873.94
Borrowed in FY1995: 281,232,990,696.07
Borrowed in FY1996: 250,828,038,426.34
Borrowed in FY1997: 188,335,072,261.61
Borrowed in FY1998: 113,046,997,500.28
Borrowed in FY1999: 130,077,892,735.81
Borrowed in FY2000: _17,907,308,253.43 Bill alone
Borrowed in FY2001: 133,285,202,313.20 Bill and George
Borrowed in FY2002: 420,772,553,397.10 All George
Borrowed in FY2003: 554,995,097,146.46
Borrowed in FY2004: 595,821,633,586.70
Borrowed in FY2005: 553,656,965,393.18
Borrowed in FY2006: 574,264,237,491.73
Borrowed in FY2007: 500,679,473,047.25
Borrowed in FY2008: 1,017,071,524,650.01
Borrowed in FY2009: 959,025,285,434.80 so far this fiscal year.

LAST FIFTEEN REPORTS OF ADDITIONS TO PUBLIC DEBT(NOT FICA):
02/23/2009 -000,426,861,213.78 --- Mon
02/24/2009 +000,473,801,933.93 ------------********
02/25/2009 +000,413,635,509.27 ------------********
02/26/2009 +048,048,940,708.92 ------------**********
02/27/2009 +000,306,718,307.89 ------------********
03/02/2009 +074,163,317,993.12 ------------********** Mon
03/03/2009 +000,498,419,440.82 ------------********
03/04/2009 +000,625,214,862.41 ------------********
03/05/2009 +006,943,273,604.61 ------------*********
03/06/2009 +000,851,040,035.06 ------------********
03/09/2009 -000,039,321,146.54 ---- Mon
03/10/2009 +000,452,187,222.11 ------------********
03/11/2009 +000,187,775,216.55 ------------********
03/12/2009 +031,351,798,430.48 ------------**********
03/13/2009 -000,013,659,079.13 ----

163,836,281,825.72 Total of 15 above reports.

Heavy borrowing seems to start after 09/18/2008.
US borrowed $1,319,118,379,088.18 in last 176 days.
That's 1,319B$ in 176 days.
More than any year ever, including last year, and it's 130% of that highest year ever only in 176 days.
And it is over 100% of ANY dismal Bush, for any dismal Bush-year, ONLY IN 176 DAYS NOT 365.

For a prettier and more explanatory view of our nation's debt:
http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock

(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=3784764&mesg_id=3784832

[UpInArms]

29. dollar watch

http://quotes.ino.com/chart/?s=NYBOT_DX&v=i

Last trade 86.705 Change -0.546 (-0.70%)

Stewart Versus Cramer The Value of Work

http://www.bktraderfx.com/site/fx-weekly-reports/fx-weekly-0314-0320-stewart-versus-cramer-the-value-of-work

The biggest news story of the week came from a comedy show. In fact according to polls these days in America most people 35 and under get their news from this comedy show. I am referring of course to the Daily Show with Jon Stewart who much like the jesters of medieval courts provides us all with a measure of truth not found anywhere else in conventional media. It is no doubt truly a sad commentary on the state of ignorance and idiocy of American culture that we have moved from Walter Cronkite to Jon Stewart as our Oracle of Delphi. Those amongst you who are students of history will no doubt see more than a few morbid similarities between our own society and the corrupt decrepitude of later day Rome, but be that as it may the Daily Show IS the only true source of news on television and I much like most of my demographic watch it .. daily.


This week Jon Stewart tackled CNBC and its mindless cheer leading of the criminal crony capitalism of the past decade that has taken the world to the brink of a global Depression. I cannot say that I fully agree with Stewart’s premise that CNBC should have been more diligent in ferreting out the financial problems before they came to the surface. The channel after all is like ESPN for business. Its function is to simply cover the game each day rather than question the underlying rules. Furthermore, much to its credit CNBC carried many voices of caution, including Nouriel Roubini who each and every time methodically presented his analysis of exactly how the game was going to blow up well before it did.

The problem wasn’t that CNBC did not have a chorus of Cassandras before the credit bubble burst, the problem is that most of the audience chose not to listen them. Having been on the channel more than 100 times I am hardly an objective voice, so you can take my opinion with a barrel of salt, but I have to say that although I was often challenged for my doom and gloom views by Becky and Joe, I was never censored. CNBC is what it is - a source of breaking news and generally bullish commentary, but it provided plenty of bears with a platform and offered enough of an opposite point of view to from a balanced opinion for the few who chose to do so.

The Stewart/Cramer interview is riveting television ( some of the clips are embedded below) and as Stewart half jokingly says at the end “I hope it was as uncomfortable to watch it, as it was to do.” Kudos to Cramer for eating humble pie (although he remains an inveterate liar and Stewart caught him several times on tape contradicting himself) Still how many self aggrandizing pundits like Rush Limbaugh, Bill O’Reilly or Keith Olberaman would ever admit that they were wrong about anything?

In an age of relentless hypocrisy in American media, it was refreshing to see Cramer admit his foibles and promise to reform, although I have no doubt that he will go back to banging on skillets and screaming by Monday - its after all CNBC not PBS.

...more...

US Dollar to Extend Losses as Risky Assets Correct Higher

http://www.dailyfx.com/story/currency/eur_fundamentals/US_Dollar_to_Extend_Losses_1236977989160.html

US Dollar weakness is set to continue in the coming week as an upward correction in risky assets sends capital out of safe haven assets in search of yield. Last week, the US Dollar Index conclusively broke below a rising trend line that had guided prices higher since mid-December, opening the door for an extended pullback against the spectrum of major currencies. Indeed, the greenback’s average value against its major counterparts is now -93.7% inversely correlated with the MSCI World Stock Index. The Australian and New Zealand Dollars are likely to be the key beneficiaries once again as lucrative yields at 3.25% and 3.00% attract investors.

Although the economic calendar packs plenty of high-profile releases, traders are unlikely to see anything that has not already been priced into the exchange rate. Manufacturing sentiment is expected to sour once again, core inflation metrics are set to continue inching lower, and the rate decision from the Federal Reserve has no room to surprise with rates effectively at nil already. None of these developments add anything new to the established landscape and are unlikely to stir significant volatility across the forex markets. The statement accompanying the rate announcement seems to pack less punch than usual as well considering Ben Bernanke and company are already throwing the monetary policy equivalent of everything but the kitchen sink at borrowing costs.

The weekend’s G20 summit presents a wildcard. Yesterday, Chinese premier Wen Jiabao bluntly questioned the security of US assets, saying American lawmakers need to “ensure” their safety and musing that “We have lent a huge amount of money to the United States… of course we are concerned about the safety of our assets. To be honest, I am a little bit worried.” The Chinese government has little reason to want to talk down the US Dollar because the comparatively cheaper Yuan helps support an already suffering export sector, so Wen’s comments should not be taken lightly. If this kind of rhetoric sees any significant traction at the G20 meeting, the greenback’s correction may prove significantly deeper than otherwise expected.



...more...

[DemReadingDU]

48. Mike Whitney: Obedience to Authority in America

3/16/09 Obedience to Authority in America
A Different Kind of Revolution
My email exchange with Dr. Bede Vincent Curley

I have been beating the same dead horse for three or four years now and many people are getting tired of the endless iterations of collapsing markets, rising unemployment and growing pessimism. What's needed is a vision of the future and a concrete plan of action, but I don't have one. So, tell me, what is to be done?

Bede Vincent Curley: I do not know what is to be done in the US.... Thinking people can see that most Americans veer between manic-depression and paranoid-schizophrenia. While they know they are getting kicked around by the rich, there's such a strong tradition of obedience to authority in America that most people just take it in stride and just get on with their lives. This is a population with an severe "abuse" problem. I compare it to the compulsive behavior among women and children who've lived in abusive relationships. The sickness passes from one generation to the next without interruption. It is a condition that has to be treated, which means creating a process where the person can see that the violence being done to them is violence and not love. America is a nation badly in need of therapy.

The US is full of such abusive notions as "tough love" which only reinforces dependence on the violent parent or partner. There is absolutely no way to confront the situation constructively except by raising awareness to what is happening and pointing out as clearly as possible that this crisis was created by the rich and imposed on the rest of us. And, as soon as you say that, you risk being marginalized-- especially among the I-Generation.

There's almost no discussion about class in the US, even among the Left, and yet, the chasm between rich and poor has grown wider in America than anyplace in the industrial world. The rich get richer and the poor own nothing. The middle class--the class of illusion--is committed to defending the so called American dream and believing whatever the rich tell them in order to sustain their own very tenuous existence. Remember, George Carlin said that "They call it the American dream, because you have to be asleep to believe it." Just try to convince someone in the middle class, some working man or woman, that the US kills and exploits the rest of the planet to serve the narrow interests of 10% of the population, they just point to their college educations, their cars, and other trinkets and shrug it off as unimportant or plug their heads back into the sand. What do they care? They have their Starbucks and their I-Pods and their flat-screens.

That's the bad news. The good news is that the US is a very big country. If reactionaries (militias?) can seize territory (as they routinely do in the South and parts of the West) why not revolutionaries?

Americans should take the constant erosion of civil and economic liberties in their country over the past 30 years seriously. They need to ask themselves who has benefited from the enormous investment in more police, prisons and military, than in schools and hospitals or affordable housing? These developments were not inevitable or automatic. That means that other choices were and still are possible but they must be made consciously and they require action to implement them.

The banks aren't going to feed and house people or provide them with anything except shinier chains. The poor and black will get rusty chains, tent prisons, and brutality, like they always do (especially given the host of government incentives for the private prison-industrial complex). The next time someone brings up our "post racial" society, just remind them of Katrina and the thousands of poor black people who were herded into the Superdome at gunpoint. The evacuation and "reconstruction" of New Orleans bear an uncanny resemblance to forced removals imposed by apartheid South Africa under the infamous Group Areas Act. Apartheid's founders drew explicitly on US segregation practice. Don't think it can't happen here again.

What is needed is a different kind of civil disobedience aimed at regaining local control of ECONOMIC resources...a whole new model of social and human responsibility focused on localism and community.

The way the financial crisis is unfolding, we'll all have to focus on saving our own environment "close to home" without help from the government. We should remember what Malcolm X and others who were murdered in the struggle for justice in the US had to say about human dignity and self reliance; we'll need it.

People should organize to solve real material problems. Forget about overthrowing "the government". That's nonsense. They should focus on defending their homes, strengthening their role in the community, and staying alive. By any means necessary. There will be plenty to do just assuring that basic needs are met. For example, a person facing eviction has no chance to resist by himself, but if the community comes to his defense, then the sheriff's department will have to back off. This rule can be applied elsewhere, too. Small victories can inspire tenacity, too. The "strike" was never a privilege granted by Congress. It is a weapon of self-defense against abuse that involved the whole working community and not just union members. A factory closing is an opening for resistance. Crowds prepared to storm a WalMart for Christmas shopping sales should be able to storm the doors and occupy the buildings to protect jobs like they did in Chicago earlier this year. The same thing happened in Argentina after their meltdown.

more...
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22221.htm

[Ghost Dog]

54. Yes, workers can take control of the means of production

and both manage and operate them themselves alone.

[vaberella]

58. Yup, it's currently being done in Argentina as we speak. n/t

[MattSh]

52. The Rise of the Underground

Economists have long thought the underground economy -- the vast, unregulated market encompassing everything from street vendors to unlicensed cab drivers -- was bad news for the world economy. Now it's taking on a new role as one of the last safe havens in a darkening financial climate, forcing analysts to rethink their views.

At the Manek Chowk market, in this Indian city's congested center, vendors peddle everything from beans to brass pots from a row of derelict stalls as monkeys scramble overhead. One man sharpens nails using a spinning blade attached to a moving bicycle wheel.

Their wages are pitiful by Western standards. But there are no layoffs at the Manek market. All anyone has to do to work there is show up and start hawking -- something more and more people are doing these days.

Without this job, "we'd have nothing," says Surajben Babubhai Patni, a 58-year-old vendor selling tomatoes, corn and nuts from under a makeshift cloth tarp. She makes as much as 250 rupees a day, or about $5, but it's enough to feed her household of nine, including her son, who recently lost his job as a diamond polisher.

Ms. Patni and millions like her are part of the "informal," or underground, economy, an enormous, vital and poorly understood segment of world commerce. It is becoming a lot more important now, as the global financial meltdown casts millions of people out of steady-paying jobs. Especially in developing economies, many of those people are landing in the informal sector, which has become a critical safety net as the economic crisis spreads.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123698646833925567.html

[radfringe]

53. Smith to Seek Clawback of Executive Compensation for Corporation's Coffers

Smith to Seek Clawback of Executive Compensation for Corporation's Coffers
http://idea.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/93751/000126947609000002/stoplookandlisten.htm

scroll down
=====================

DFAN14A 1 stoplookandlisten.htm STOP, LOOK, AND LISTEN FILING: MARCH 16, 2009
SCHEDULE 14A
(RULE 14a-101)
INFORMATION REQUIRED IN PROXY STATEMENT
SCHEDULE 14A INFORMATION
PROXY STATEMENT PURSUANT TO SECTION 14(a) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
(AMENDMENT NO. )


State Street Shareholder to File Proxy Materials for 2009 Annual Meeting

Jailed for Airing Corporate Governance Concerns at 2006 Annual Meeting,
Smith to Seek Executive Compensation Clawbacks, Other Reforms

Urges Other Owners to Stop, Look, and Listen before Voting


ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA, March 16, 2009 --- Smith, a State Street shareholder, today announced that he intends to file a proxy statement and form of proxy for the 2009 Annual Meeting of Shareholders for State Street Corporation.

On Friday, March 13, 2009, the State Street Board of Directors filed a preliminary proxy statement, setting the Meeting date for Wednesday, May 20, 2009.

"By a curious coincidence, State Street's Directors have moved the annual meeting (traditionally held the third Wednesday in April) to the date set for the Halliburton annual meeting," Smith notes.

"I hesitate to suggest that the State Street Directors did this in order to ensure that I could not appear at the State Street meeting that same day, by creating an intentional scheduling conflict. But - then again - I have been quite public about my intent to attend the 2009 Halliburton meeting, in order to confront Halliburton CEO David Lesar and Halliburton Tax VP David R. Smith."

"I continue to have questions about their respective roles in the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act matters for which Halliburton and KBR have been fined thus far. The mis-directed e-mails I received while working at Halliburton/KBR suggest that Halliburton executives not only knew about the foreign bribes, but also knew the various investigations would likely turn up massive tax evasion issues as well, stemming from Halliburton/KBR's use of offshore banking activities to effect the foreign bribes."

Smith adds: "I have also been quite public about questioning which Bush Bank(s) were used to funnel the FCPA bribes for Halliburton/KBR, while calling attention to the long-standing Halliburton banking relationship with State Street, as well as Andy Card's long-standing personal relationship with the State Street CEO, Ronald E. Logue."

"Moreover, I have pointedly called the prior Administration's regulators' attention to Mr. Logue's tenure as head of State Street's Cayman operations before becoming CEO. I continue to urge incoming regulators to look into which Bush Bank(s) were used to funnel Halliburton/KBR's foreign bribes. Public corruption is one export America should not be making."

"Between now and the State Street Meeting, I intend to address the six Items of Business set forth in the Directors' preliminary materials," Smith says. "I urge all State Street owners to read all parties' soliciting materials carefully, and to vote on the basis of all information put forward."

[specimenfred1984]

65. AIG literally makes me sick

I feel nauseous thinking about the ripoff and AIG being up 60% today. What a corrupt culture we live in. My compliments to the watcher, they've got a clear understanding of what's going on.

[CatholicEdHead]

67. Layoffs announced at TRW Automotive in SE Minn.

WINONA, Minn. - TRW Automotive plants in southeastern Minnesota and southwestern Wisconsin are announcing more layoffs.

TRW spokesman John Wilkerson says a total of 42 salaried employees at plants in Winona, Minn. and Ettrick, Wis., and Galesville, Wis., were let go last Thursday.

Wilkerson says the layoffs were part of an ongoing reduction in the TRW work force over the past six to eight months due to a dwindling demand for TRW products and research.

Wilkerson said the latest round of cuts involves salaried employees, unlike most of the over 150 hourly workers who lost jobs since last summer as work shifted to a plant in Mexico.

http://www.startribune.com/local/41327082.html

[ozymandius]

73. Today's Close

Dow 7,216.97 Down 7.01 (0.10%)
Nasdaq 1,404.02 Down 27.48 (1.92%)
S&P 500 753.89 Down 2.66 (0.35%)
10-Yr Bond 2.951% Up 0.066
NYSE Volume 8,975,507,000
Nasdaq Volume 2,175,227,750

4:35 pm : Leading up to the opening bell, financial stocks had surged almost 40% from last week's multiyear low. The sector showed continued strength in the early going and even drove the broader market higher, but with conditions looking overbought, participants decided to take some money out of the game.

British banking giant Barclays (BCS 5.31, +0.89) spurred financial stocks higher across foreign indices when it stated it has had a strong start to the year, and it is shopping its iShares business, which could pad its balance sheet with new capital.

Meanwhile, global financial giant HSBC (HBC 26.91, +0.93) indicated it does not need more capital. That proclamation followed a recent rights offering.

With confidence building, diversified banks and financial services outfits Citigroup (C 2.33, +0.55), Bank of America (BAC 6.18, +0.42), and JPMorgan Chase (JPM 23.09, -0.66) were able to provide further support to the financial sector.

Financial stocks were up 6.0% at their session high, carrying the broader market up as much as 2.4%. Despite what was shaping up to be another strong session of broad-based gains, sellers emerged in afternoon trading push financial stocks into the red. With financials back under pressure, the broader market was unable to hold its gains. Financials finished the session with a 1.9% loss, while the stock market closed with a modest loss at its session lows.

The downturn snapped the stock market's four-session run of gains. Despite the move to take profits, participants continue to anticipate positive headlines.

Reuters reports the Financial Accounting Standards Board proposed allowing companies more judgment in determining distressed markets for accounting purposes by the first-quarter reporting period. That could help boost mark-to-market values.

Fed Chairman Bernanke stated in a weekend interview with 60 Minutes that the economy could recover by next year with support from lawmakers and the public. That wasn't anything different than Bernanke has said before, but this time traders reacted more positively, suggesting the emergence of a more positive bias in the overall market.

An improved tone has led participants to pick up beaten down stocks, but that has meant many are rotating out of the sectors that had held up against selling pressure during recent weeks. Particularly, tech stocks were sent markedly lower this session. Technology shares showed relative weakness throughout the entire session, and closed with a 1.7% loss. The weakness in large-cap tech stocks caused the Nasdaq to lag its counterparts since the opening bell.

Energy stocks showed weakness early on, but managed to close with a 0.8% gain. That came as crude oil prices rebounded from early weakness to close pit trading modestly higher at $46.30 per barrel. Oil's gyrations came after OPEC decided during its weekend meeting to leave production levels unchanged.

Economic data was light this session. February industrial production declined 1.4%, which is essentially in-line with the consensus 1.3% decline. Capacity utilization dipped to 70.9% from 71.9%, as generally expected. The February report continues to reflect a weak demand environment that will ultimately drag on GDP.

The Fed's policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee begins its two-day meeting tomorrow. Since the FOMC is expected to leave the target lending rate at a range of 0.00% to 0.25%, most attention will be paid to the wording of Wednesday's statement.DJ30 -7.01 NASDAQ -27.48 NQ100 -2.0% R2K -1.7% SP400 -1.4% SP500 -2.66 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1165/2.15 bln/1506 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1768/1.90 bln/1303

[question everything]

75. So what happened?

About an hour before the close it was up 150...

Is this whole thing nothing but smoke and mirrors? The Asian markets were up yesterday..

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

76. Leaning on their shovels.

[Tansy_Gold]

78. Mostly smoke, few mirrors

The vampires can't see themselves and therefore have no need for mirrors.




Tansy Gold, intending no insult to Saint-Germain

[bread_and_roses]

79. LOL, Tansy, long time since I came across a reference to

Saint-Germain - whom I first encountered in a short story long, long ago - long before the Rice phenon - and can't right now think of the author...I'll look it up on the wonderful internets. Methinks S-G would have remembered the Tulip Mania, and been long gone with his loot.

[Tansy_Gold]

80. No need to look it up

Chelsea Quinn Yarbro.

There are many many new S-G novels since the last one I read 20 years or so ago. Someday soon I may hunt up the ones I'm missing.

He would not approve of the current crop, I'm quite sure.


One hot summer night in 1985 I read aloud "The Spider-Glass" to a group of friends. They all got creeped out.

[Demeter]

83. somebody Burped the Baby and the Bubble Came Up and Out

and I hope Geithner is covered in rancid cereal now.