Lip Service to Democracy

Afghanistan, almost seven years after we invaded, has made some progress. They have a quasi-democratic government, an economy that is sort of stable, and very few suicide bombs. Granted their economy is almost entirely based on opium, which is controlled by feudal warlords who are at war with each other on a constant basis. What I do not understand, and will never understand, is their attempt at justice and administering the rule of law. Apparently, under their version of Islamic law, it is a capital offense for someone to disrespect the Koran, by questioning someone's warped interpretation of it. This student was trying to understand an issue, and bring it up for discussion and what will he get? Read the article, and maybe you will have another reason to question why we are pouring billions of dollars into this country to promote democracy. This is not the kind of democracy that I stand for.

Hairball in our Collective Throats

Many Americans are swimming in debt. Whether it is mounting credit card debit from buying all of those big screen TVs, or upgrading to that McMansion they have always wanted. To avoid the current economic crisis, the government has decided it will print some money for us to go out and jump start this economy. I agree with this article from Time, this ideas is far too short sighted, and will not change the structural problems of American debt and how it effects our economy.

Erase this

I feel sorry for this company, at the same time if they were stupid enough to not have backup tapes, they deserve it. Ms. Cooley believed that she had been fired, in turn goes to her office, and deletes a boatload of her employer's information. Moral of the story, check to see if the picture in the help wanted poster is actually you.

You had a Bad Day

We all have had situations at work that we are not proud of. You make promises you can't keep, you sabotage your officemates, so on and so forth. Well this Frenchman is probably going to take the cake for the next century. Daneil Bouton, some sort of investment banker lost his employer $7 billion dollars. That's right, this dude just lost the GDP of some small countries. What does he say? "The result was a considerable loss." What do you do with this guy? He didn't kill anybody, but I am sure that all sorts of people would like to introduce him to a wonderful French device called a guillotine.

And the Hits Just Keep on Coming

Not to put a damper on this lovely Wednesday, but once again our electricity rates will be increasing. The hit isn't as bad this time, but a 5.5% increase still sucks. From the looks of things, we haven't seen the last rate hike.

It will keep getting worse," said Skip Trimble, a senior energy consultant with South River Consulting in Baltimore. "Demand is outstripping supply ... but nobody is building anything new.

From O'Connell to Cruise

You have to wonder if Tom sees this parody and realizes that he is bat shit crazy. Because this video with Jerry O'Connell is less disturbing than the original one.

Market Woes

I love this editor's disgust at American dogs getting mortgages. You know how those dogs are always lying about how much they take home!

A New Product at the Market

It was probably only a matter of time before the Al-Qaeda surrogates in Iraq started cultivating poppies in Iraq. It is easy to grow, and it can survive in very harsh environments (see Afghanistan). The Independent has insightful article on this new front of the war in Iraq. Al-Qaeda has been able to use opium to its advantage in Afghanistan as a source of funding, and will undoubtedly use this business model in Iraq. Given the higher cost of living, post-invasion, I can see why farmers are turning to the most lucrative product. At the same time the social costs of heroin are enormous. What the U.S. military needs to do is wipe these operations out post haste, and reclaim the land from the terrorist/farmers.

Everyone Can be a Millionaire

While America may be going through a bit of a slump, we can't even hold a candle to Zimbabwe. This country has been in the economic gutter for the past couple of years, and it is in large part due to their fearless and aging leader Robert Mugabe. This guy has been the leader since the country's independence, and he has done a bang up job. He instituted a redistribution of farm land which has been a disaster, does not allow political dissent, and what is his most recent economic reform? The ten million dollar banknote! That's right, hyper-inflation be damned they need money and they need it now!

Mortgage Market Mania

In recent weeks investment banks such as Citigroup, JP Morgan, and Merrill Lynch have announced massive write-offs with respect to their exposure to their sub-prime loan investments. Citigroup is going to write down $18.1 billion and has cut their dividend by 41%. If I was an investor in Citi, I would be furious and calling for the CEO’s head on a stick. It is bad enough they are paid exorbitant salaries, but the fact that heads haven’t started to role is a shame. Well I guess if the CEOs are not losing their jobs, it is made up for by the fact that Citigroup is going to fire 4,200 of their employees.

What have these banks done in order to cover these losses? They have now put their hands out to foreign investors to buoy them. At least these foreign firms still see value in investing in the American economy, even when the President and the Federal Reserve are considering a massive stimulus package to avoid a Recession. There are other international side effects, the Australian market has taken a heavy hit, and that probably will not be the last.

Pay your Bill or National Security Suffers

So the government is determined to siphon all phone calls and internet traffic, in order to better protect/monitor us, now you have to wonder about this story. The telecoms are willing to comply with what could be illegal wiretaps but the government has got to pay up or they turn the spigot off. I mean, these companies have some scruples, making money is what they do. It reminds me of that famous line from Good Fellas.

Mortgage Meltdown and Fire Sale

As a result of extraordinary loses from their sub-prime mortgage lending, Countrywide mortgage is going to be acquire by Bank of America. In the NY Times story, BofA justifies this acquisition as "a rare opportunity for Bank of America to add what we believe is the best domestic mortgage platform at an attractive price". In other words, Countrywide has lost so much money and the stock price is so low, you can't afford to pass up on this. This Bloomberg article has more on the financial impact of this deal. This deal will have national implications, and this consolidation could have an upside of cleaning up some of the sloppy lending practices.

Freakonomics on The Wire

I loved this article about what the "real" thugs think about the Wire, and its characters. But, do New York thugs even compare to Baltimore thugs? Now that is a round table that should be in the works. The author of this article is author of two books on urban crime, and specifically gangs. Check his two books out.

A Warm Welcome in the Holy Land

With President Bush in Isreal, it is interesting to read the papers from that region. The Jerusalem Post had this story about some interesting signs that had been posted prior to Bush's visit. Apparently they were hung by a nationalist group that doesn't want to see the halt to Israel's settlements in the disputed Palestinian territories. I think what the President is doing over there is a smart, pragmatic, and strategically beneficial move. I just wish he would have focused his efforts on this problem versus Iraq. I believe the settlements issue is the key to this problem. If the Palestinians feel like Israel continues to expand into their territory, they will continue to use violence as a means to make themselves heard.

Prime Time Show down

The city of Baltimore is the first city in the nation that is going to sue one of the huge sub-prime lenders. The city claims that Wells Fargo has used deceptive/predatory practices when it comes to the African American consumers of their loan products. With record numbers of foreclosures in this city, I think you will find many Baltimore residents sympathetic.

Politics with a Purpose

I am getting back into the swing of things after a long holiday break. After spending the past two weeks on a primary crack binge, I need to take a break. If you caught the Simpson's this weekend you will have to appreciate Ralph Wiggum's campaign commercial. Let's all hope we can pick a winner like this kid can.