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Our Middle-class Morality

Andy Spero | January 14, 2009 | 0 Comment(s) |

We chuckled when we saw this headline in The Wall Street Journal today, January 15: Fed Officials Say Ailing Banks Require More U.S. Funds.

That’s not really news, and–by the way–it’s tautological or true by definition.  (Uh, otherwise, they wouldn’t be ailing now would they, precious.)

Anyway, our point is always the sa: just because they need the money, doesn’t mean that they deserve the money nor does it mean that they’ll spend it wisely.

In that way, they’re not much different the the homeless alcoholics who beg… Read the rest

Left Wing Bias: Let's Hope So!

Andy Spero | November 28, 2008 | 0 Comment(s) |

That’s a title we never thought that we would write, but before we chase away our regular readers who share our political and economic world-view, please let us explain: it’s not as bad as it looks.

In Kimberly Strassel’s WSJ column, Hillary of State, Ms. Strassel describes how the mainstream media have now returned to providing a favorable opinion of Hillary Clinton’s foreign affairs qualifications (to be Secretary of State). 

We must admit that that this is the first time in our life that we viewed overly-favorable coverage of any… Read the rest

More Evidence of the Lack of Forethought that is TARP

Andy Spero | November 28, 2008 | 0 Comment(s) |

The Wall Street Journal today, November 28, reports Rescue Plan Strained by Lack of Staff.

We’ve criticized the government’s response to both the domestic mortgage crisis and the larger global confidence crisis since it–that which became TARP–was first proposed.  (We use the singular “it” because we’ve not heard any government official decouple the problems either in their initial panic or in the intervening months.)

Since mid-September, other than times when we were too busy to write, our criticism as been consistent, harsh, and steady: (1) initially the government officials, led… Read the rest

Citibank? Bad Bank? Good Bank? How About Our Bank?

Andy Spero | November 23, 2008 | 0 Comment(s) |

Update: Well this post is already obsolete, but we stand by our criticism.  We tax payers should not subsidize Citigroup shareholders.

Tonight (November 23), The Wall Street Journal reports in Bailout Talks Accelerate for Ailing Citigroup that the government is negotiating to be the residual claimant of a separate entity that would house Citigroup’s worst assets and derivative bets.

Citigroup could lose up to $50,000,000,000, and then the government would absorb the losses.  It is kind of like buying flood or hurricane insurance after the flood or hurricane.  (Seems kind of… Read the rest

OMG, Mr. Paulson Agreed with Us Twice in One Week!

Andy Spero | November 19, 2008 | 0 Comment(s) |

Update (01-20-09): now that Mr. Paulson’s term as Treasury Secretary has ended, we must admit that the small bit of optimism we exhibited in this post was sadly and unfortunately misplaced.  It was out-of-character for us, but we’re a hopeful pesimist.  He quickly reverted to his behavior of September and October, and for that, the markets, the nation, and the world have and will continue to suffer.

We hope that his earlier actions haven’t caused irreparable damage, but we’re doubtful.

This is a longish post that covers several aspects of the… Read the rest

Taking the TA out of TARP

Andy Spero | November 12, 2008 | 0 Comment(s) |

Jeez, our post from two weeks ago, which noted the similarities between TARP and GARP, makes us seem almost prescient.

Like T.S. Garp, it seems that Mr. Paulson is jettisoning letters as he continues lonely and aimless pursuit.  In fact, we’d prefer that he take up Mr. Garp’s hobby as it is less damaging to the economy and our well-being than many of Mr. Paulson’s extant actions.

We base our statements on today’s announcement that the Treasury Department will not purchase any Troubled Assets: Treasury Not Planning to Buy Bad… Read the rest

Out of Their Elements

Andy Spero | September 30, 2008 | 0 Comment(s) |

Has President Bush, Secretary Paulson, Chairman Bernanke, or Speaker Pelosi taken a single action or spoken a single phrase during the past month to inspire confidence in their ability–not to solve the problem–but to simply comprehend it and characterize it?

By “it,” of course, we mean the current liquidity crisis facing certain institutions that seem to have lax boards and managements that encouraged excessive risking-taking behavior that led to over-concentrations of holdings in certain (nearly worthless) asset classes.

Perhaps, that question is too harsh; so, we shall ask a different… Read the rest