To predict quakes, listen to the animals, China survivors say PhysOrg Carter: 10 minutes to change the world Guardian. The most interesting bit was the response to a question at the end. The Wars We Choose to Ignore David Carr, New York Times US Official: Cluster Bomb Ban Could Hurt ‘Cooperation’ and ‘Humanitarian Work’ Common […]
Read more...I somehow missed this piece by Robert Nadeau in Scientific American when it came out earlier this year, and I thought it made for good Sunday/holiday reading. Nadeau’s criticisms are admittedly pretty broad and similar observations have been made elsewhere (although Nadeau does add some useful historical detail), and a short piece by a non-expert […]
Read more...Web users ‘getting more selfish’ BBC. The use of the word “selfish” is a bit weird, “demanding” seems more accurate. Fingerprint Registry in Housing Bill!!! OpenMarkets. In case you somehow missed it (and I was so gobsmacked I had to check the language in the bill myself). Section 605 (a): BACKGROUND CHECKS.—In connection with an […]
Read more...Here I wanted a light weekend and what does Jim Hamilton do but go and put up a link to a very interesting new paper of his. This is from the introduction: How would one go about explaining what oil prices have been doing and predicting where they might be headed next? This paper explores […]
Read more...I’m intrigued when a commentator gives high praise to a work by someone who comes from a political vantage different from his own. I get even more interested when another take on the same piece seems straight out of Rashomon, a radically different account with only a few facts in common. The opus in question […]
Read more...When the consensus was that JP Morgan got a screaming deal in its acquisition of Bear Stearns, I thought it was way too early to make that call. Yes, it certainly looked like the New York bank pulled a master stroke in getting the Fed to eat $29 billion of exposures, guaranteed to be the […]
Read more...Vast cracks appear in Arctic ice BBC Wolf whistle works, woman strips Reuters Earth would be very happy without humans Telegraph How the US dream foundered in Iraq MIchael Schwartz, Asia Times. If you have time for only one item, read this. A revealing, and not too long article, that gives a very different account […]
Read more...For those who remember the “monolines on the ropes” days, one of the big bones of contention between critics like Bill Ackman of Pershing Square and industry executives was how to account for the fact that the risks of default on the guarantees the companies had made had increased. Ackman used a conservative mark to […]
Read more...I am overdue on a write-up of a great panel discussion hosted by the folks at RGE Monitor (Nouriel Roubini’s blog/news service). It was all fundamentally oriented, so with the coming holiday weekend and lack of new news, you will not be any worse off for my delay (although I am annoyed that I haven’t […]
Read more...Steve Waldman, in a colorful post, “A run on central banks?” contends that the rapid rise of commodities prices isn’t the result of mundane factors like negative real interest rates, but a more fundamental cause: loss of faith in the monetary authorities: Just as the fear of a bank’s insolvency can precipitate a run that […]
Read more...Kevin Funnell at Bank Laywer’s Blog fulminates about an idea to deal with the burgeoning homeowner debt crisis, namely a proposal by House Representative Raúl M. Grijalva based on (but different in some key respects) from a Dean Baker proposal called “own to rent”. While there are problems with the idea, there is more than […]
Read more...Sharks swim closer to extinction BBC iPhone line forms at Apple’s flagship for absolutely no reason engadget U.S. corporations massively read employee e-mail Help Net Security Credit monopolies harm lenders and borrowers International Financial Law Review. Bobo7874 put a link to this article in comments yesterday, with this query: I would like to hear what […]
Read more...You gotta love how the reporting follows the tape. While oil prices were shooting up, the Goldman forecast and supporting views were getting the prime real estate in news coverage. Now with a reversion, the contrary and cautionary views are getting airtime. From Bloomberg: Crude oil fell more than $2 a barrel on signs that […]
Read more...Not only do recent trading patterns suggest short covering played a role in the recent oil price spike, but declining open interest also says new money is holding off entering after such a fast runup. From Bloomberg: Oil’s rally to a record above $135 a barrel came as traders bought crude to cover wrong-way bets […]
Read more...Japan to probe whale meat ‘theft’ BBC. The fraud of Japanese whaling as research is being exposed. Willem Buiter wants to save the Icelandic whales. A Modest Glass of Wine Each Day Could Improve Liver Health PhysOrg How to Devalue Your Brand, Greg Mankiw Version Ken Houghton, Angry Bear The next (but not new) frontier […]
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