Climateer

'Index Speculators' Hoarding Commodities

Mr. Jones didn't address what I thought was the more interesting part of Mr. Masters' testimony, that pension funds and other mega-speculators were circumventing position limits by entering into swap agreements with the 'commercials'.

I think any hint that congress wanted to look into Goldman Sachs proprietary trading would lead to the big banks quitting the swaps shennanigans pretty quick.

Regarding 'classical' economics: How classical do you want to get?
Why just go back 2-300 years to Smith and Ricardo?

Go back 500 years and what's yours, that I can take by force of arms, is mine. Now that's classical economics, baby.

So it's really about what rules society decides are in the public interest.

Commodities aren't an "asset class", they're what people eat.
And use to get to work.

The Coming Crash of 2008: A Result of Overleveraging

How many facts can you get wrong in 600 words?
Wirehouse margins were 10% not 5.
Glass-Steagall was enacted in 1933.
The Florida land boom peaked in 1925, by the time the Great Miami Hurricane hit in 1926 it was all over.
You underestimate financial leverage. It runs 25-35 x for investment banks, up to 100 x for LTCM.
Other than that...