Philly Jim

Global Markets in Review: More Thoughts on This Rally

Superb reporting and commentary! This is what an article should look like!

This rally reminds of of a man handing his kid more candy to keep from crying, and the, when the man runs out of candy, and out of ideas, he grabs a gun and demands candy from someone else to keep his kid happy. I'd love to ride this feel good wave, but consumers are being crucified for their Asian buying binge of the past. And how, is Asia holding up so well, without buyers of their products?

This is truly a speculator's market and the big money should stay on the side lines until stability returns.

Is Bank of America Poised for a Major Move Up?

Bank of America is going to come into serious debt defaults in the coming months, its already happening. Moody's recently downgraded their debt rating into junk territory. Lewis is dreaming if he thinks they won't be needing more taxpayer funds! Bank of America's management is also alienating its existing customer base of paying consumers by raising interest rates and fees before July of 2010 when new rules come into effect, blocking credit card companies from raising rates on paying customers among other rules.

Bank of America: A Risky Bet That May Be Worth It - Barron's

All the corporations that are getting government bailouts and giving the government shares for pennies are going to take care of entitlement costs in another 10-15 years. All those preferred shares the government is getting will eventually be converted into common when the share price goes up, which it eventually will. Consider it a superb long-term investment where taxpayers are going to make a killing! Other companies may go bankrupt in this economy, but those with the government's backing will survive, which bet is safer?

The Economy, And Why It's Taking So Long to Fix It

I have a theory why: it's not getting well because there is ZERO accountability. Of course there were poor choices made, but there was also a lot of criminal activity and blatant economic debauchery on part of irresponsible and delusional corporate executives who lavished themselves with other people's money. They, are not capitalists according to the American Dream, they are well-dressed criminals with silver tongues and white wings, only there to serve themselves. We also have politicians and political hacks who were more concerned with their own image than the duties they were charged with. Now, we have a socialist regime in power with no idea how to run a free-market economy and its bleeding through the bandages they are throwing over it.

1. Let the poorly managed banks fail
2. Prop up the best managed banks by giving the assets of the failures to them for pennies.
3. Let the market price things
4. Manage the tax payer dollars, don't dole them out to non tax payers like candy
5. Don't repave the roads a million times and call it infrastructure improvements

Wall Street Breakfast: Must-Know News

A friend of mine works for General Motors and says they throw away/waste tens of millions of dollars a day in throwing away perfectly good parts, lavish executive meetings, ridiculous accommodations for incorrigible employees and highly unproductive employees that are protected by the Union.

U.S. Rejects Nationalization of Citi and BAC

How about we just put responsible adults in supervisory positions, rather than political cohorts! The Bush administration was the greatest destructive force to our government in our nation's history. They systematically placed "know nothing" cronies in critical positions to govern and regulate the marketplace, not to mention almost every other aspect of our government. It was basically eight years of get-rich-quick scams on a massive scale, both in the public and private sectors!


On Feb 21 04:34 PM apppro wrote:

> What your headline should have read is:
> "US Rejects Short Sellers of Citi & BoA"
>
> This is what we need. Just stop the Shorting of America and things
> will work themselves out in a normal - rational - timely basis. Nothing
> will recover, nor will as they put it allow investors BACK into this
> market, as long as the rules are so bent by short sellers and no
> one is seeing the reality of it. All they can do is blame the CEO's
> and all those good people who are just trying to get things back
> to normal, so to speak.
>
> The 4 Golden Rules
>
> 1. Reinstate the Up-tick rule
>
> 2. Crack down on naked short selling
>
> 3. Institute some rules on what should be said on National TV to
> prevent rumor-mongering
>
> 4. Pass a Wind-Fall Capital Gains Tax of 65% on ALL short sales retroactive
> to 01/01/08.

Turning Japanese: The Audacity of Reality (Part 3 of 3)

Getting rid of the bad banks by letting them fail will cost taxpayers more than letting them survive and repaying their debts.

Is Nationalization Contagious?

Even under the super liberal Obama admin, nationalizing Citi or Bofa is out of the question. They understand the psychological calamity in investor's psyches which would ensue. Not to mention the long-term, political implications in a society which thrives on capitalism. Obama's team is smarter than that; they will find ways to maneuver around the mega losses, break the banks into segments and consolidate losses into specific segments while allowing the others to generate profits which shareholders demand. I only hope the democrats have learned their lesson, you don't pressure GSE'S and other banks to lend to unqualified borrowers simply because certain political pressure groups demand it.

Banks Under Attack Again, But the Blame Is Not Theirs Alone

Bush Bash I : Savings & Loan Scam
Bush Bash II: Mega Global Finance Scam

Party favors are suitcases with $10 million inside. It's gonna be a long eight years fellas, steal it while ya can! Yeehaww, Texas style.

JPMorgan and the Concentration of Risk

The risk was already consumed by the banks being taken over, now they are being eaten up by the bigger banks for a bargain, the whole idea of consolidation into just a few mega banks is manifesting from this credit crisis. When loans were being given to people for hundreds of thousands of dollars after they had just recently filed bankruptcy (2003-2005), you have to wonder, who gave the green light on these subprime loans? It didn't come from the bottom, it came from the top. Interest rates slashed to their lowest, and at the same time free money without a down payment for people with horrible credit and you try to tell me this financial crisis wasn't anticipated? Perhaps a grand opportunity to operate in a new highly competitive global environment without worrying about paying taxes on profits for years, and being able to acquire good assets for pennies was the ultimate plan?!? Maybe it is something that needs to be done to prevent communist owned banks from taking over the world with all their concentrated wealth, how can the West compete with thousands of little banks spread out over an ideal capitalist society?

Global Equity Market Caps: U.S. Loses Ground to China

Let's all roll-over for the communists! High rises, cell phones, condos, cars, money - who needs patriotism in the new world!?!

Money owes allegiance only to that which makes it grow.

If money continues to shift out of the West at this rate, in ten years Europe, U.K. and North America will start seeing brothels pop-up on every street corner like you see now in Asia. Bird-flu is the only card the West can play to win this game.