The Biggest Hunnish News Invasion Yet!
January 08, 2010
– Comments (10)
Some days, I find little of interest in the media. Other days, I find a lot. Normally Friday is a slow day, but I actually have the MOTHER LOAD for today. Lots of interesting stuff going on:
--- FINANCE AND ECONOMICS ---
FDIC Nibbling Nicely at Bank Risk
Link - Seeking Alpha
Article about new measures by the FDIC. We hear a lot of negative criticism directed towards Geithner and Bernanke; some of it fair and some of it not. But I think the ignored story is Sheila Bair, who has done an outstanding job at FDIC.
Bill Gross on Treasuries, Interest Rates, Public Debt, and the Macro Picture
Link - Seeking Alpha
Questioning Bill Gross's Go-to-Germany Strategy
Link - Seeking Alpha
I don't always agree with Bill Gross, but I enjoy reading his take on things. I do believe that US treasuries are a terrible bet right now. Even ignoring the debt issue, rising interest rates do not bode well for bonds. The time to buy treasuries is when we have double-digit inflation and the Feds raise rates to 10%+.
The second article questions Gross's Germany strategy on the basis of a weakening Euro. It's not a long article, but it does pose an interesting question and the commentary is pretty good.
Steel: China vs. the US
Link - Seeking Alpha
Article on the battle between China and US over steel. China has been subsidizing the steel industry, which has become a major source of friction. This is yet another reason why I think the US needs to re-examine its relationship with China and take actions that will force China to stop using mercantilistic policies that destroy jobs here in the US.
Eurozone Unemployment Figures
Link - ABC News
Spain has a whopping 19% unemployment rate! That is a Great Depression-like number! Not sure precisely if that figure low-balls things (as it does in the US) or if that's about accurate. Amazingly, the Netherlands' unemployment rate is under 4%. Overall Eurozone has tipped the 10% unemployment mark. This might suggest that things are better in the Eurozone employment wise than the states; but again, I'm not precisely sure how their definitions differ from the US's.
George Soros and Super Bubbles
Link - Seeking Alpha
Article by Wade Slome summarizing George Soros' views on "Super Bubbles" and potential solutions. Soros is vastly more insightful than most on policy issues, but I do the statement that a tech bubble could've been prevented by limited the number of tech IPOs perplexing. I don't think that would have been an appropriate solution and I'm not sure how it would have stopped the problem. Soros is more insightful when it comes to banking.
Argentina Sacks Central Bank Chief
Link - Al Jazeera
Apparently, the Central Bank Chief took a principled stand against taking orders from the Argentine executive to pay down debt with Argentina's foreign currency reserves. Critics believe the move was meant to signal an irresponsible increase in spending.
Britain Calls for Iceland Repayment
Link - Al Jazeera
No thoughts on this one. Just keeping an eye on it.
--- MIDDLE EAST ---
Gun Attack on Iranian Opposition Politician
Link - Al Jazeera
No secret that things are getting bad in Iran.
Defiant Yemen Tells US Soldiers to Keep Out
Link - The Independent (UK)
Tricky situation in Yemen. I don't know if we're taking the right approach to any of this. Bush II obviously forced us down a certain path, but it's a difficult path to navigate and we would've been better off going on a different one. I still wonder if it's better for us just to "pull out" of the Middle East entirely or are we basically forced to fight now or endanger ourselves as a result of Bush's actions?
--- BUSINESS ---
Go Ahead Given for Offshore Wind Farms in UK
Link - BBC
No comment on this one.
Is 3D an Industry Savior
Link - BBC
Personally, I don't understand the appeal of 3D television. Then again, I generally despise TV, so my opinion doesn't matter much. Still, it's an interesting story.
Wal-Mart and H&M Trash Unsold Clothing
Link - Yahoo
This is a pretty despicable and wasteful practice. I hope more light is shinned on this issue and more public pressure mounts to end this practice. If they have unsold clothing and they don't want people to take them for free in their dumpsters, they should donate them to the appropriate charities. No excuse for destroying these goods.
GM Winding Down Saab Operations
Link - BBC
No comment here.
--- POLICY ---
UK Parliamentary Report Says Food Industry Too Secretive on Nanotechnology
Link - BBC
I completely agree with this Parliamentary report. The food industry is taking the wrong approach here. Instead of being secretive, they need to be very open from the start and try to educate the public on how nanotechnology will improve food quality. They took the wrong approach with GMOs and now there's a huge backlash (largely based on ignorance in my personal opinion).
France's Proposed 'Google' Tax
Link - BBC
I generally like Nikolas Sarkozy, but his policies towards tech seem a bit counterproductive. It's almost as if he fears that tech could play an increasing role in commerce. I believe this is for the good. While the so-called 'Google tax' isn't really meant to hinder tech, it does seem to be part of a broader misguided push by Sarkozy. I don't find the idea very practical or useful; there are better ways to raise revenue if you really need it.
--- POLITICAL ---
Geithner Must Go
Link - Huffington Post
I've been very critical of Geithner from the start. I did give him a chance in his first months, but all I saw were actions that exposed his corporate allegiances. Geithner is corrupt and incompetent and I want him out, too, but unfortunately, it's not going to do any good, because any potential replacement will probably be just as bad.
Lieberman's Approval Ratings Tank
Link - Huffington Post
Huffington Post is vastly better than much of the media, but I think the media constantly tries to oversimplify politics and use silly labels to explain everything. Forget about all the "liberal", "conservative", and "centrist" garbage --- Joe Lieberman is a corrupt scoundrel. He always has and always will be. He serves the interests of his corporate clients and manipulates the media to win favor. He's a master at it, but it does not serve the interests of Connecticut or the US.
--- OTHER ---
Life in the Extreme Cold
Link - BBC
I found this article very fascinating. It examines life in some of the coldest inhabited places on Earth, including Siberia, northern Scandanavian, and some parts of the US. (Strange that Northern Canada got neglected.) Overall, a great read --- but I don't understand how people can stand living in places with temperaturs below -40 C!
That's all for today. Have a good weekend you crazy Fools!
RSS Headlines
Fool UK