Rumpole's Comments RSS Syndication from SeekingAlpha.com http://seekingalpha.comuser/147040/comments http://seekingalpha.com/article/145631-goldman-sachs-replies-to-taibbi?source=feed#comment-565012 565012 and frankly I find it odd that GS would respond to such an article if it thinks it's so hysterical. What does GS care what a Rolling Stone editorial says!?]]> Sat, 27 Jun 2009 14:26:23 -0400 and frankly I find it odd that GS would respond to such an article if it thinks it's so hysterical. What does GS care what a Rolling Stone editorial says!?]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/145197-matt-taibbi-vs-goldman-sachs?source=feed#comment-562941 562941
It's not that Obama hasn't got a clue nor that he doesn't have the guts. He like many other politicians owes his very position and power to GS an the cabal of private bankers; bought and paid for.

There's really only one answer, Americans have to turn the tax money tap off. ]]> Thu, 25 Jun 2009 20:26:04 -0400
It's not that Obama hasn't got a clue nor that he doesn't have the guts. He like many other politicians owes his very position and power to GS an the cabal of private bankers; bought and paid for.

There's really only one answer, Americans have to turn the tax money tap off. ]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/143033-the-debt-conundrum-part-2?source=feed#comment-546203 546203
Unfortunately, I'd contend that the government bureaucrats are not at all clueless, they know exactly what's happening but because they are so political they simply follow the directives of the politicians, who are so obviously bought off.

There's only one real answer: REFUSE TO PAY YOUR TAXES!]]> Sun, 14 Jun 2009 14:25:39 -0400
Unfortunately, I'd contend that the government bureaucrats are not at all clueless, they know exactly what's happening but because they are so political they simply follow the directives of the politicians, who are so obviously bought off.

There's only one real answer: REFUSE TO PAY YOUR TAXES!]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/134210-bankruptcy-chrysler-treasury-s-strategic-nuclear-weapon?source=feed#comment-484828 484828 Thu, 30 Apr 2009 20:44:43 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/133084-government-s-new-credit-approach-does-the-end-justify-the-means?source=feed#comment-478112 478112 Sun, 26 Apr 2009 15:03:53 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/133134-a-closer-look-at-banking-stress-test-methodology?source=feed#comment-478091 478091 Sun, 26 Apr 2009 14:47:15 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/133157-what-would-a-more-stressful-test-tell-us?source=feed#comment-478079 478079 Sun, 26 Apr 2009 14:35:12 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/133153-most-banks-will-pass-but-does-the-stress-test-fail?source=feed#comment-478022 478022 Never a truer word written!
Tell me something, if instead of pumping trillions into the banks directly, if the government would have put it into the hands of home owners who were in trouble, wouldn't it have largely solved the problem from the outset? After all, the home owners would have used it to keep paying their mortgages and staying in their homes, the smaller banks and mortgage companies would still have money coming in and the mortgages they securitized would have kept their value better and the larger banks wouldn't have faced the crunch brought on by plummeting mortgage securities values?
Would have this approach been so bad in light of the current situation?]]> Sun, 26 Apr 2009 13:53:56 -0400 Never a truer word written!
Tell me something, if instead of pumping trillions into the banks directly, if the government would have put it into the hands of home owners who were in trouble, wouldn't it have largely solved the problem from the outset? After all, the home owners would have used it to keep paying their mortgages and staying in their homes, the smaller banks and mortgage companies would still have money coming in and the mortgages they securitized would have kept their value better and the larger banks wouldn't have faced the crunch brought on by plummeting mortgage securities values?
Would have this approach been so bad in light of the current situation?]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/133068-goldman-sachs-datapoint-of-the-day?source=feed#comment-477266 477266 Sat, 25 Apr 2009 17:03:17 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/133025-stress-tests-methodology-begs-essential-questions?source=feed#comment-477254 477254 Sat, 25 Apr 2009 16:46:49 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/133042-demystifying-the-stress-tests?source=feed#comment-477247 477247 It would be no disaster for the banks to fail. it would be a disaster for some, but for others it would be a tremendous opportunity. And it would allow a new system to be formed from the ashes that has a stronger basis. You know, like the proberbial phoenix rising.]]> Sat, 25 Apr 2009 16:35:52 -0400 It would be no disaster for the banks to fail. it would be a disaster for some, but for others it would be a tremendous opportunity. And it would allow a new system to be formed from the ashes that has a stronger basis. You know, like the proberbial phoenix rising.]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/133069-can-the-stress-tests-breathe-new-life-into-ppip?source=feed#comment-477235 477235 And frankly, I'm not sure why PPIP and the stress tests should be rehabilitated. The fact that they have to change should tell us that the banks are rather unhealthy and getting unhealthier, hence the need to keep changing like a chameleon.]]> Sat, 25 Apr 2009 16:18:22 -0400 And frankly, I'm not sure why PPIP and the stress tests should be rehabilitated. The fact that they have to change should tell us that the banks are rather unhealthy and getting unhealthier, hence the need to keep changing like a chameleon.]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/131558-a-third-way-in-the-current-inflation-deflation-debate-but-it-s-even-scarier?source=feed#comment-468672 468672 Sun, 19 Apr 2009 13:59:22 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/131517-blackrock-hires-vice-chair-of-u-s-treasury-committee-public-private-incest-continues?source=feed#comment-467951 467951 I like the analogy to incest. And what does incest breed? Idiots and mental defectives. And we're now seeing the results of such in-breeding, leadership whether governmental or corporate has been on a steady decline.
But how do we stop playing the game as another comment suggests?? My own view is that we've got to stop paying our taxes ... yes a good old tax revolt is in order.]]> Sat, 18 Apr 2009 22:22:28 -0400 I like the analogy to incest. And what does incest breed? Idiots and mental defectives. And we're now seeing the results of such in-breeding, leadership whether governmental or corporate has been on a steady decline.
But how do we stop playing the game as another comment suggests?? My own view is that we've got to stop paying our taxes ... yes a good old tax revolt is in order.]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/130369-wells-fargo-inspires-hope-with-surprise-earnings?source=feed#comment-459255 459255 Fri, 10 Apr 2009 15:50:56 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/129421-bill-black-on-top-elites-all-are-presently-committing-fraud?source=feed#comment-452614 452614 Sun, 05 Apr 2009 16:21:13 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/129410-ppip-will-banks-just-end-up-selling-to-each-other?source=feed#comment-452609 452609 Sun, 05 Apr 2009 16:11:03 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/127112-capitalism-and-freedom-rethinking-the-political-and-economic-system?source=feed#comment-435682 435682 Sun, 22 Mar 2009 15:50:10 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/116923-are-markets-starting-to-recover?source=feed#comment-368644 368644 Wed, 28 Jan 2009 11:20:26 -0500 http://seekingalpha.com/article/116312-the-u-s-treasury-s-golden-shell-game?source=feed#comment-365811 365811 Sun, 25 Jan 2009 15:24:37 -0500 http://seekingalpha.com/article/108395-the-critical-slipping-cog-in-the-global-financial-machine?source=feed#comment-317421 317421 When you said: "...What happens is the ratings agencies have just unilaterally relaxed monetary policy by reducing the effective system-wide rrr. Monetary policy has been relaxed quite unbeknownst to the central bank, which thinks monetary policy is unchanged as its interest rates and monetary base targets remain unchanged."

"Unbenownst" is not the word I'd use to describe central banks in this situation. I find it very difficult to believe central bankers were unaware of the effect that private rating agencies were having.

And with the more recent actions of the central banks especially the Fed, are you so sure central banks would do a better job on ratings than the private agencies? Ballooning its balance sheet with so much toxic assets doesn't inspire confidence!
]]> Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:07:45 -0500 When you said: "...What happens is the ratings agencies have just unilaterally relaxed monetary policy by reducing the effective system-wide rrr. Monetary policy has been relaxed quite unbeknownst to the central bank, which thinks monetary policy is unchanged as its interest rates and monetary base targets remain unchanged."

"Unbenownst" is not the word I'd use to describe central banks in this situation. I find it very difficult to believe central bankers were unaware of the effect that private rating agencies were having.

And with the more recent actions of the central banks especially the Fed, are you so sure central banks would do a better job on ratings than the private agencies? Ballooning its balance sheet with so much toxic assets doesn't inspire confidence!
]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/103055-using-futures-to-buy-metals-wholesale?source=feed#comment-296015 296015 Sun, 02 Nov 2008 00:08:59 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/103055-using-futures-to-buy-metals-wholesale?source=feed#comment-296011 296011 Sun, 02 Nov 2008 00:05:13 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/103055-using-futures-to-buy-metals-wholesale?source=feed#comment-295558 295558 Fri, 31 Oct 2008 23:11:18 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/102952-nine-quality-stocks-for-a-market-bottom?source=feed#comment-295525 295525 Fri, 31 Oct 2008 21:52:14 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/103239-volatility-watch-waning-over-the-next-few-months?source=feed#comment-295515 295515 Fri, 31 Oct 2008 21:18:54 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/100533-fundamental-valuation-how-low-could-we-go?source=feed#comment-285784 285784 Sun, 19 Oct 2008 16:14:52 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/100555-eu-eases-mark-to-market-rules-what-s-the-u-s-waiting-for?source=feed#comment-285766 285766 P&L. For assets that trade on liquid markets, that makes sense. But if the asset is illiquid, or trades in a market that occasionally (like now) freezes up, “market” prices can often be totally unrelated to the asset’s actual intrinsic value. In cases like that, all MTM accounting does is blow up a company’s balance sheet for no reason."
For no reason?? Perhaps the part of the cycle we're now in is saying something about how you're calculating intrinsic value? You're assuming that your version of "intrinsic value" is somehow stable and enduring. But I think that assumption has got to be questioned now that the credit/debt bubble has been popped and the excess cash being pumped into the system is being sucked down the drain of debt and "intrinsic value" is being sucked down that same drain.

In effect, what you're saying is that when times get tough, let's re-write the rules so that we can fudge the books. Who exactly does that help??!!
]]> Sun, 19 Oct 2008 15:18:57 -0400 P&L. For assets that trade on liquid markets, that makes sense. But if the asset is illiquid, or trades in a market that occasionally (like now) freezes up, “market” prices can often be totally unrelated to the asset’s actual intrinsic value. In cases like that, all MTM accounting does is blow up a company’s balance sheet for no reason."
For no reason?? Perhaps the part of the cycle we're now in is saying something about how you're calculating intrinsic value? You're assuming that your version of "intrinsic value" is somehow stable and enduring. But I think that assumption has got to be questioned now that the credit/debt bubble has been popped and the excess cash being pumped into the system is being sucked down the drain of debt and "intrinsic value" is being sucked down that same drain.

In effect, what you're saying is that when times get tough, let's re-write the rules so that we can fudge the books. Who exactly does that help??!!
]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/100538-is-gold-ready-to-fly?source=feed#comment-285753 285753 Sun, 19 Oct 2008 14:53:29 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/100498-aig-how-it-spent-your-tax-money?source=feed#comment-285251 285251 Sat, 18 Oct 2008 14:22:59 -0400