matt...

Cash For Clunkers Datapoint of the Day

I thought there mileage requirements for the trade-ins? The MSM made it sound like you had to gain a certain % increase in MPG to qualify for the rebate? Am I just misinformed, or was there some kind of gaping loophole?

Reverse Convertibles vs. Consumer Protection

The problem isn't the underlying instrument but how it's packaged. It's not a bond, so you shouldn't be allowed to call it a bond.

12 Notes on the Economic Scene

thiazole,

I would disagree. The purpose of a union is to represent their constituents, which is the labor force. Why wouldn't they ask for the moon, knowing full well that it's a negotiation; management is expected to counter-offer. The fact that management didn't have a backbone and wouldn't risk a strike isn't their problem.

How AIG Bamboozled the Government

This is the real scandal and where we as citizens have failed miserably, that our Govt is bought and paid-for by corporate America. They have no interest in seeing these companies go away, who's going to fund their next campaign if that happens?

Time Warner Cable Chokes Its Customers

I don't like the cap idea, but I'm all for tiered pricing. I don't game on-line and rarely download anything larger than a PDF. I want a faster and more reliable connection than 56k, but shouldn't have to buy a huge pipe to subsidize all the heavier users.

And the platform idea is stupid. AOL is dead, Yahoo is dying; platforms are short-lived... And people aren't going to watch movies on their computer, that's why NetFlix spent the money to design a set-top box. Everything is going back to the TV once they get ethernet plugs and hard-drives, which should be very soon.

Why Watching Bankruptcies Can Help Stock Performance

PCs were a replacement for the typewriter. What exactly is going to replace trucks?

Ultra and Inverse ETFs: The Downside of Doubling Up

I've read this same thesis many times, and it fails to account for the major benefit of these; the ability for the average Joe to "short" stocks easily and quickly. You mentioned this, and in my opinion it trumps the issue of daily vs. yearly tracking. I've been using SKF and SDS since last December, and have a made a good chunk (relative to my portfolio size) of change doing that. These provide an opportunity to go defensive more aggresivley than plain cash, and that's been the whole point for me at least.

Gold: The Last Cheap Asset Class

I've wondered that too, but I think we're in the minority in that we actively follow and care about this stuff... It's when you start hearing people talk about it at cocktail parties that you know things are getting crazy...

It's been interesting to note the media start to pickup on food inflation, that might start to accelerate things!

They Call This a Bear Market?

I have a hard time believing this is the end of yet. The media hasn't even acknowledged that we're in a recession! We haven't seen any capitulation by the bulls, they keep trying by can't get the party started again.

Rate Freezes Won't Solve Foreclosure Problem

well, you Republicans haven't actually applied that motto for quite a while. Since Reagan, Republicans have been no different than Democrats in expanding the federal govt. You guys just convince the public that your plans are "free" and let the next guy raise taxes to pay for them. Most every pol is the same; they love capitalism and "free markets" until it might cost them a vote...

Vote for Ron Paul, he's the only one that makes any sense!

Why Lenders Love the Mortgage-Freeze Plan

Good for lenders maybe, but the freeze means that essentially these borrowers are stuck with negative amortization loans..These are by the requirements, not people with large amounts of disposable income so how are they supposed to reach positive equity in any reasonable time frame (less than 10 yrs)? That's essentially a credit card then, where their balance keeps growing...

Challenging the Current Console Business Model

Just as the business world is moving toward SaaS, it makes sense that the consumer world will as well. The problem short-term though, is as one commentor notes, bandwidth. There simply isn't enough bandwidth to make this feasible right now. I'm not even sure a majority of Americans have DSL-quality lines and those won't work for real gaming.

Broadband pricing would have to come down as well, since I'm not paying $50/mnth for a T1 line just so I can game. That becomes absurd when I can spend $400 on a console and then buy $40 games every 6 months (only suckers buy a game when it first comes out, at full price!).