Category: News and Views
How Do You Pull Off a Ponzi Scheme? : Stupid Regulators | Securities and Exchange Commission Files
Don’t worry about government regulating health care, get them to regulate the financial markets:
Madoff said it was “amazing to me” that he didn’t get caught … because they specifically asked him, “Are these securities at DTC? (Depository Trust and Clearing Corp.)” They further pressed, “What is your account number.” He replied, “646.” Madoff stated that it was “obvious they thought that something was amiss.” He went on to say that when they asked for the DTC account number, “I thought it was the end game, over. Monday morning they’ll call DTC and this will be over… and it never happened.”
Madoff stated that when … Enforcement did not follow up with DTC, “I was astonished.”
But the real question is, can the industry be regulated at all:
Madoff noted that the industry is growing incredibly complicated. He gave the example of when his firm put up a credit default swap and didn’t know how to do the books. Madoff said he didn’t know … He said he called Merrill Lynch, Lehman Bros, five firms total, all of which didn’t know. He said the NASD had no clue. Madoff stated that today, lots of trades are done off the books because people don’t know what to do with them.
Small business rivals band together to boost business | CNNMoney.com
When Christine Saun
ders saw her Southern California floral design company’s revenue dip last fall as the economy sputtered, she realized that creating products for do-it-yourself brides might spur sales. But the owner of The Spiraled Stem Floral Design didn’t want to carry the expense and burden of treading into this unfamiliar market alone.
Think You’re Pissed at Facebook and Twitter? | TechWatch | Fast Company
If you think the combined stuttering of Twitter, Facebook, and LiveJournal this morning–which has been attributed to several DDOS attacks–were rough for you, well, try dipping into the shoes of the developers who make software based on Facebook and Twitter APIs.
The Value of the “Too Big to Fail” Big Bank Subsidy | Dean Baker and Travis McArthur
‘Too Big to Fail’ banks have nearly a one percent advantage over small banks, a $34 billion dollar subsidy.
This piece deals with one of the many consequences of the bail out.
Consumer Spending Falls In September, Biggest Drop In Nine Months
By Martin Crutsinger – Huffington Post
WASHINGTON — Consumer spending plunged in September by the largest amount in nine months, reflecting the end of the government’s Cash for Clunkers auto sales program. Incomes, the fuel for future spending, were flat.
While the government reported that the overall economy grew in the July-September period, signaling the end of the worst recession in seven decades, the weakness in spending and incomes as the quarter ended underscores the fragility of the recovery.
Continue reading “Consumer Spending Falls In September, Biggest Drop In Nine Months”
Recovery Task Force Announces $156 Million in Recovery Act Funds Now Available for Energy Efficiency and Solar Projects
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s California Recovery Task Force today announced that more than $156 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Recovery Act) funds are now available for application for energy efficiency and solar projects in California. A package of options under the State Energy Program (SEP) and the Energy Efficient and Conservation Block Grants (EECBG) Program offer local jurisdictions, non-profits and private organizations the opportunity to invest in energy efficiency and photovoltaic energy projects – while helping to stimulate their local economies. Governor Schwarzenegger announced that California was the first state in the nation to apply federally for SEP funding available under the Recovery Act.
10 Things Corporations Can Learn from Pro Wrestling | Fast Company
I’ve found wrestling often acts as a carnival mirror to our culture, stretching and magnifying the underlying fears, prejudices and tension points amongst us. However, I think wrestling provides all sorts of learning that corporate America should pay attention to as well.
Fallingwater Opens Its Doors to Guests (GALLERY) | trendhunter.com
Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater home is iconic and it is now opening its doors to overnight guests (sort of).
How to Milk an Almond (fresh homemade almond milk, easy) | Instructables.com
Fresh r
aw almond milk is delicious, healthy, unprocessed, and economical. There is no waste, no unrecyclable plastic-lined tetra-pak boxes or cartons to put in landfills and drink BPA out of, and this tastes much, much better than storebought.
Dispatches From The Front 