Look, I’m rich.
Archive for the ‘bidness’ Category
I’m rich.
Monday, January 18th, 2010SA pigeon ‘faster than broadband’
Saturday, September 12th, 2009South African pigeon ‘faster than broadband’
Very clever.
Hooray, the bailout didn’t pass!
Tuesday, September 30th, 2008Hooray, the bailout didn’t pass!
The market dropped yesterday, and today is recovering.
No big deal.
For the record, I’m not just a single crazy conspiracy theroist. There a lot of people thought it was a stupid idea to bail out the rich, including 200 economists who sent a letter to Congress saying it was a bad idea.
It was “rewarding greed and stupidity” or “The Great Bank Robbery of 2008“
Steinbeck
Monday, March 10th, 2008John Steinbeck is “da man”. I am reading “The Grapes of Wrath” and am very impressed. He is incredibly skilled.
This book was written during the Great Depression in America. Specifically, he talks about the rise of big business as well as a the merchant banking class, mass production and the consolidation of small farms and small business. This book is about the end of the American Dream. At least, so far… I’m not finished with it. But I have a feeling that this book is going to be one of my favorites. Which is really nice. It is a treat to be reading a book that is so good, that you know it will be a book you will tell others to read.
Here is a quote:
In their lapels the insignia of lodges and service clubs, places where they can go and, by a weight of numbers of little worried men, reassure themselves that business is noble and not the curious ritualized thievery they know it is; that business men are intelligent in spite of the records of their stupidity; that they are kind and charitable in spite of the principles of sound business; that their lives are rich instead of the thin tiresome routines they know; and that a time is coming when they will not be afraid anymore.
(Ch 15)
There is also a great deal of well executed symbolism and metaphor. But it isn’t forced and it isn’t high-fallutin’. It just seems to be an extension of the story.
Rescues for Homeowners in Debt Weighed
Friday, February 22nd, 2008From today’s New York Times…
Rescues for Homeowners in Debt Weighed
Prodded in part by some of the nation’s biggest banks, the Bush administration and Congress are considering costly new proposals for the government to rescue hundreds of thousands of homeowners whose mortgages are higher than the value of their houses.
Not since the Depression has a larger share of Americans owed more on their homes than they are worth. With the collapse of the housing boom, nearly 8.8 million homeowners, or 10.3 percent of the total, are underwater.
…
I’ve got a few things to say about this:
Ok, I’ve been saying for YEARS that this is going to be bad. (Not that I’m such a megalomaniac as to think that it really matters, but I’m not an economist, and even I could see this coming.) Basically, there were a lot of greedy people making really ridiculous fiduciary decisions based upon what their neighbors earned from selling their condos. This, however, is an even worse turn of events. This is basically turning into the New New Deal.
Granted the administration have a little bit of wiggle room left to play with because of the stupid tax cuts for the filthy rich, but pouring more cash onto the real estate fire is not going to help.
The fact remains, there needs to be an evolution in the way the banks are monitored to keep regulate them to prevent them from having to be bailed out. (I especially love the mortgages that increase as you pay them off. WTF?!?) Perhaps, rewarding prudent money managers instead of egregious risk-taking. Minsky has some interesting points on this.
One brilliant professor at University of Florida once said, “If I lend you a thousand dollars and you can’t pay me back you’ve got a problem. If I lend you a billion dollars and you can’t pay me back, I’ve got a problem.”
Who is going to be rescued? Banks or homeowners? If people start defaulting on their mortgages… well housing prices will fall and then the MARKET and that good old invisible hand will readjust.
Where is Jeffrey Sachs? Where is the Shock Therapy?
It amaze me how we can talk out of both sides of our mouths about this. Including supporting structural readjustment overseas, but if there is a sneeze in the markets in the US the government bends over backwards to say ‘Gesundheit’.
This bailout will not work. It is, to misuse a cliche, like shutting the barn door after all the bad loans have been made.
Or maybe I should just stop flapping my lips, and watch the Dollar Lose value against the Brazilian Real and then go back and buy California.
U.S. Dollar to Brazilian Real Exchange Rate
Facebook and Microsoft
Thursday, October 25th, 2007Microsoft just bought a 1.6% stake in Facebook for 240 million lira dollars. This is insane. It places the valuation of Facebook at $15 billion.
I have basically stopped using Facebook. Lots of people I know are using it less and less. I understand that this isn’t exactly reliable market research. But I can certainly count a number of people that have closed their accounts.
The investment was also based upon advertising revenues. I can’t, off the top of my head, think of a single ad that I have been served on Facebook. And I know for certain that I have never clicked on one. Has anyone?
What this all really means is that the valuations of companies are bubbling over again. It is time to short Google, Baidu and Microsoft. Just for giggles, the current prices of the three are GOOG:675.82 BIDU:335.95 and MSFT:31.25 Let’s see how low they can go.
Funny, but I don’t think that these guys ever ask their customers what they think. If you would have explained to Joe User the deal with MySpace and News Corp. Any user would say, “well, MySpace kinda sucks. I wouldn’t pay $580 million for it.” Or “240 million for a 1.6% stake in Facebook? Are you nuts?” Not with my money, no matter what kind of Web 2.0 snake oil you are selling.
Will the last realtor in California please turn off the light?
Saturday, September 22nd, 2007I just read this great blog post by Paul Saffo. For the longest time I’ve been harping about the insane valuations of the real estate market to anyone who would listen. This is a great article about the bursting of the bubble. It give me hope that if we ever move back to California, we can buy it.