Tricky's Comments Tricky's Comments RSS Syndication from SeekingAlpha.com http://seekingalpha.comuser/265323/comments Geithner Wants to Bring Stress Tests to Europe http://seekingalpha.com/article/142240-geithner-wants-to-bring-stress-tests-to-europe?source=feed#comment-539389 539389 Tue, 09 Jun 2009 16:39:52 -0400 The Obama administration wants Europe to puts its banks through more rigorous public stress tests, an issue Geithner will likely raise later this week at a meeting of G-8 finance ministers. http://seekingalpha.com/news/market_currents/post/25640?source=feed#comment-539355 539355

On Jun 09 07:46 AM Archman Investor wrote:

> Just thinking out loud.]]> Tue, 09 Jun 2009 16:15:28 -0400

On Jun 09 07:46 AM Archman Investor wrote:

> Just thinking out loud.]]> The White House will propose a financial regulatory overhaul next week that "calls for bolstering consumer and investor protection," says Geithner. "It will streamline our out-of-date regulatory structure so that our regulatory system matches the size, shape and speed of our modern financial system." http://seekingalpha.com/news/market_currents/post/25691?source=feed#comment-539341 539341 Tue, 09 Jun 2009 16:08:07 -0400 Palm vs. Apple vs. RIM: The Mobile OS Wars Heat Up http://seekingalpha.com/article/141477-palm-vs-apple-vs-rim-the-mobile-os-wars-heat-up?source=feed#comment-533243 533243 Fri, 05 Jun 2009 09:01:34 -0400 Government bailouts of 'too big to fail' financials are the single biggest threat to the U.S.'s economic future, Alan Greenspan says, because a bailout "impairs creative destruction" by misdirecting funds to economically wasteful companies. Greenspan's also "puzzled" entrepreneurs aren't rushing to create new banks free of toxic assets. http://seekingalpha.com/news/market_currents/post/25463?source=feed#comment-531839 531839 Thu, 04 Jun 2009 11:32:12 -0400 Might UAW's newfound stake in GM (GM) accomplish what GM itself never could: defanging the union? http://seekingalpha.com/news/market_currents/post/25394?source=feed#comment-530582 530582 Wed, 03 Jun 2009 15:50:07 -0400 Bernanke urges Congress to begin work on curbing soaring budget deficits. "With the ratio of debt to GDP already elevated, we will not be able to continue borrowing indefinitely to meet these demands." (full text) http://seekingalpha.com/news/market_currents/post/25357?source=feed#comment-529766 529766 Wed, 03 Jun 2009 10:22:55 -0400 After testing Bing for two weeks, Walt Mossberg & Co. say Microsoft's (MSFT) new search engine "looks and feels more inviting than Google." Thomas Hawk, though, says Bing's not for him. http://seekingalpha.com/news/market_currents/post/25345?source=feed#comment-529663 529663
That said, I gave Bing a fair try on some real search needs I had over the last few days and it did not measure up to the relevance of the results I got from Google. We'll see what happens as it indexes more pages and refines the algorithms. ]]> Wed, 03 Jun 2009 09:28:20 -0400
That said, I gave Bing a fair try on some real search needs I had over the last few days and it did not measure up to the relevance of the results I got from Google. We'll see what happens as it indexes more pages and refines the algorithms. ]]> Huge Drop in Fed Liquidity Swaps http://seekingalpha.com/article/140325-huge-drop-in-fed-liquidity-swaps?source=feed#comment-523378 523378 Fri, 29 May 2009 16:39:45 -0400 Is Bing a good name for Microsoft's new search engine? Erick Schonfeld wants you to take this poll. (So far Bing is winning - which says something about the alternatives.) http://seekingalpha.com/news/market_currents/post/25121?source=feed#comment-523279 523279 Fri, 29 May 2009 15:13:12 -0400 NBC CEO Jeff Zucker says Hulu will start breaking even soon. http://seekingalpha.com/news/market_currents/post/25086?source=feed#comment-522104 522104 Thu, 28 May 2009 19:10:50 -0400 Richard Posner opposes the soda tax, as does his blogging partner Gary Becker. But Derek Thompson thinks the idea has a redeeming quality: "We might as well tax the things we're only going to have to pay for later." (via) http://seekingalpha.com/news/market_currents/post/25005?source=feed#comment-520105 520105 Wed, 27 May 2009 16:02:30 -0400 Yields on Fannie Mae (FNM) and Freddie Mac (FRE) mortgage bonds rise above where they stood before the Fed announced its ambitious program to drive down rates by sopping up excess debt. The rise presents a serious challenge to the Fed's goal of sustaining low mortgage rates, and ultimately healing the housing market and the economy. http://seekingalpha.com/news/market_currents/post/25003?source=feed#comment-520102 520102 Wed, 27 May 2009 16:01:06 -0400 Steven Pearlstein wants to see the Fed stripped of its role in supervising banks: "It saw how so much risk was being transferred from the banks to the shadow banking system... and it did nothing to stop it or the regulatory arbitrage that lay behind it. It has never acknowledged that failure, never apologized for it and continues to rationalize its behavior with all the 'perfect storm' nonsense." http://seekingalpha.com/news/market_currents/post/24991?source=feed#comment-520001 520001 Wed, 27 May 2009 14:54:18 -0400 The problem with the infamous stress tests, TNP's Noam Scheiber says, is not that the government won't acknowledge the size of banks' losses. It's that it squandered a rare opportunity: to snap banks out of a state of perpetual denial and unfettered optimism. http://seekingalpha.com/news/market_currents/post/24995?source=feed#comment-519989 519989 Wed, 27 May 2009 14:50:03 -0400 Sears' Q1 Surprise Profits May Be Fleeting http://seekingalpha.com/article/139808-sears-q1-surprise-profits-may-be-fleeting?source=feed#comment-519272 519272 Wed, 27 May 2009 08:45:07 -0400 Home Price Declines: How Much Further Do We Have to Go? http://seekingalpha.com/article/139861-home-price-declines-how-much-further-do-we-have-to-go?source=feed#comment-519231 519231
Now that, on the surface, we seem to be getting there, it is certainly appropriate to revisit what is happening to income and rents. With the economy still not steady, there is probably a bit of room on the downside. Also, mortgages are harder to get? But rates are low. So on a net basis, I'm guessing we still have a little bit more down to go, so I wouldn't be a buyer just yet.]]> Wed, 27 May 2009 08:28:46 -0400
Now that, on the surface, we seem to be getting there, it is certainly appropriate to revisit what is happening to income and rents. With the economy still not steady, there is probably a bit of room on the downside. Also, mortgages are harder to get? But rates are low. So on a net basis, I'm guessing we still have a little bit more down to go, so I wouldn't be a buyer just yet.]]> Options Now Available on Almost All Direxion Triple Leveraged ETFs http://seekingalpha.com/article/139702-options-now-available-on-almost-all-direxion-triple-leveraged-etfs?source=feed#comment-518810 518810 Tue, 26 May 2009 19:34:07 -0400 How much is a little extra leg room worth? $62-124, according to Qantas Airways, which will start charging passengers for the leg room that comes with exit row seats. The airliner is seeking revenue anywhere it can as it forecasts a record H2 loss. http://seekingalpha.com/news/market_currents/post/24859?source=feed#comment-517823 517823 Tue, 26 May 2009 10:14:58 -0400 Are Business Schools to Blame for the Crisis? http://seekingalpha.com/article/139562-are-business-schools-to-blame-for-the-crisis?source=feed#comment-517690 517690 Tue, 26 May 2009 08:42:48 -0400 Porsche at Risk of Bankruptcy, Unlikely to Find Much Sympathy http://seekingalpha.com/article/139571-porsche-at-risk-of-bankruptcy-unlikely-to-find-much-sympathy?source=feed#comment-517667 517667 Tue, 26 May 2009 08:29:12 -0400 California Not the Only State in Economic Crisis http://seekingalpha.com/article/139277-california-not-the-only-state-in-economic-crisis?source=feed#comment-516084 516084 Sun, 24 May 2009 11:19:32 -0400 eBay: Where Did All the Fun Go? http://seekingalpha.com/article/139360-ebay-where-did-all-the-fun-go?source=feed#comment-516078 516078
I say this as an Ivy League MBA + former partner at one of the largest strategy consulting firms -- one of eBay's biggest problems was being overrun by consultants in its management team. They're okay in small doses, but often do a lot of damage when gather in larger forces, particularly at firms in the creative industries. I've directly or indirectly watch them ruin AOL, Dell and Disney, as well as eBay. They're thinking is too incremental and too linear, missing out on disruptive market developments. They have no respect for someone with a different background, get very arrogant with customers, want WAY too many reports, and quickly kill any sense of fun or joy in the workplace.]]> Sun, 24 May 2009 11:10:54 -0400
I say this as an Ivy League MBA + former partner at one of the largest strategy consulting firms -- one of eBay's biggest problems was being overrun by consultants in its management team. They're okay in small doses, but often do a lot of damage when gather in larger forces, particularly at firms in the creative industries. I've directly or indirectly watch them ruin AOL, Dell and Disney, as well as eBay. They're thinking is too incremental and too linear, missing out on disruptive market developments. They have no respect for someone with a different background, get very arrogant with customers, want WAY too many reports, and quickly kill any sense of fun or joy in the workplace.]]> Google Will Find a Way to Monetize YouTube http://seekingalpha.com/article/138851-google-will-find-a-way-to-monetize-youtube?source=feed#comment-515774 515774 Sat, 23 May 2009 22:00:53 -0400 Ray Ozzie Asserts Microsoft’s Position in the Cloud http://seekingalpha.com/article/138956-ray-ozzie-asserts-microsofts-position-in-the-cloud?source=feed#comment-515772 515772 Sat, 23 May 2009 21:56:00 -0400 Playing Nuclear: The Next Big Thing in Energy http://seekingalpha.com/article/138957-playing-nuclear-the-next-big-thing-in-energy?source=feed#comment-515769 515769 Sat, 23 May 2009 21:54:24 -0400 GM's (GM) largest bondholders plan to reject GM's offer for a 10% equity stake, making a bankruptcy all but inevitable. Shares -29.7% to $1.35. http://seekingalpha.com/news/market_currents/post/24817?source=feed#comment-514753 514753 Fri, 22 May 2009 14:23:28 -0400 CNBC puts together a slideshow of the world's biggest debtor nations. http://seekingalpha.com/news/market_currents/post/24801?source=feed#comment-514679 514679 Fri, 22 May 2009 13:38:58 -0400 Analysts say companies that pitch credit cards to riskier customers and those that issue cards for retailers will be hardest hit by new legislation being signed into law today. Major players include BAC, C, COF, HBC, GE and TGT. The new laws - which restrict fees, limit rate increases, and require more transparency - could lop $10B in revenue off the industry's top line. http://seekingalpha.com/news/market_currents/post/24762?source=feed#comment-514144 514144 Fri, 22 May 2009 09:02:38 -0400 UAW's tentative deal with GM (GM) and the Treasury includes enabling GM to contribute shares instead of cash to a new, union-managed healthcare plan. On Tuesday, GM said it didn't expect to reach a deal with the UAW before May 26, when an offer to bondholders to exchange $27B in debt for a 10% stake expires. The deal, which must still be ratified, will not necessarily allow GM to avoid bankruptcy. http://seekingalpha.com/news/market_currents/post/24764?source=feed#comment-514136 514136 Fri, 22 May 2009 08:58:51 -0400