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The Fed is reportedly scrutinizing the biggest banks to ensure they have enough capital to withstand a sudden reversal in asset prices. Supervisors want to know what banks know about the strength of their counterparties, and whether risk managers have any say in bank policies.

Fed should just dump these banks and start making money available directly to individuals at 0%. After all it is going to be the tax payers that will have to foot the bill for all the largesse (take at 0% and charge usurious 10% plus on oans) granted to the banks. Why should anyone care if banks survive. They are just parasitic middlemen that suck money from all the parties. Why mess with these useless intermediaries? If the free market thinks a bank adds value they will be engaged at a fee.

Citigroup: Market Gains to Continue Until Individuals Jump Back In

>>Lol, that is funny. Yes, get the retail guy in and clock him with a >>massive decline. What a sordid game.

Yup, that is the way wall street works. Atleast the guy is being honest and not mincing his words. If individual investors do step in to this market after pronouncements like these, then it is their fault. Can't say they have not been warned. But it does look like the so called dumb money has wised up some, and staying out of this Casino where house/street is rigged to win.

The debate continues over whether Goldman Sachs (GS) benefited from the [[AIG]] bailout: Goldman's claim that it was hedged against losses if AIG collapsed is rebutted by the TARP inspector general's report, which says it was "far from certain" that underlying CDOs could be liquidated, and that it would be difficult for Goldman to collect on credit protection in the event of AIG's failure.

There is a mistaken assumption here that Hank Paulson & the treasury/fed were/are working for the benefit of American tax payers. That is not their charter. It is everybody for himself - loot the store when the storm is raging. No different from all those rioters/thugs in New Orleans that stole TVs and such when the hurricane hit. Bush sent the army to go after them. Obama is big on idealistic talk but has no backbone to take on the millionaire/billionaire looters. But they will be ready to put the petty thieves in prison for life.

Why Does the Fed Feel Powerless to Identify Bubbles in Real Time?

Blowing bubbles is way for the manipulators to bring suckers to the table. How else can they rake in millions & billions? Fed & treasury have powerful friends in this business and they call the shots.

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke: In Q-and-A after his earlier remarks, says it's "not obvious" that asset prices are out of line (inside the U.S., at any rate). He added "we can never say never" on using interest rates to deflate bubbles, and said we won't have a "real market-based financial system until it's safe to let a financial firm fail."

Well, he is admitting that we do not have a 'market-based' financial system. As a prudent regulator, he should then suspend all stock market activity until the market is well, 'market-based'.

GM Looks to Use U.S. and Canadian Tax Money to Bail Out Opel

Why don't we all just send tax checks directly to the automakers & banks? Why mess with IRS in the middle to funnel the money? Can save a few dollars for Obamaniac to push his communist agenda

Now that the first-time homebuyer tax credit is sticking around (and isn't even just for first-time buyers anymore), NAR economist Lawrence Yun expects home prices to rise 15% next year with "the fear factor" no longer at play. Unemployment won't deter people with jobs from making purchase decisions, he says.

Why should I pay for all these "supposed-to-be-for-my... programs? Nobody paid me a dime when I bought my car or home. I saved and paid cash for the car a hefty 30% down for my home.

And, why the heck are we trying to create artificial demand? is this a capitalist society? U.S. lawmakers & IMF keep giving lectures to the so called 3rd world how they should manage their economies. Listen to these idiots now. As somebody else posted, Capitalism is for the Other Guy. Bunch of free-loaders all!

Adam Smith would be turning in his grave.

Senators reportedly reach a compromise to extend the first-time homebuyer tax credit through the end of April - and beyond those buying their first house.

Why the surprise? Like any other parasitic oraganism Government exists to perpetuate and expand its existence. Buy voters wth distributing money at will. They do not have to be around when there are any consequences. Just kick the can down the road. But TBT as somebody else wrote, to benefit from the devaluation.

In his weekly radio address, President Obama said too many small businesses are still finding it difficult to get loans: "These are the very taxpayers who stood by America's banks in a crisis - and now it's time for our banks to stand by creditworthy small businesses, and make the loans they need to open their doors, grow their operations, and create new jobs."

Perhaps Obama can send the bankers, with GS in the lead to Afghanistan. They can win the war for us and repay their debt to Obama by getting him reelected

September Existing Home Sales: up 9.4% to 5.6M/year, vs. 5.1M in August. Sales are 9.2% higher than the year-ago pace and are at the highest level in more than two years. NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun says the first-time buyer tax credit is fueling momentum that "needs to continue for a few additional quarters until we reach a point of self-sustaining recovery."

Why mess with tax credits at all. Ben can print money & buy off all houses. House prices will sky rocket, bank losses will turn into profits, - and we go back to 2004! Abolish all taxes while we are at it. We can print paper money and the silly chinese will keep lending their 'real' goods we all need to consume

Senate Democrats introduce legislation that would extend unemployment insurance benefits for up to two million Americans, some of whom could collect for up to 99 weeks.

Sweet! I can take a two year vacation thanks to all you slackers, working hard!

Falling Dollar: Finally Front-Page News

Well, if the fed can print massive amount of notes to bailout the banks, why not print some more to cover healthcare, education, shelter, & food for all. Why are the middleclass & poor less deserving of this largesse? Why tax anyone in fact - just print money and distribute evenly.

TALF 3.0: Will Government Step in to Rescue Consumer Credit?

Most people, unless they have a strong background in finance and have the time are clueless to the complex dealings that Fed & Treasury have put together. Making an informed decision at the polls is impossible. It is the spin & image that controls everything in the end. Successive governments have mastered this art.

Chart of the Day: The Billion Dollar Gram

If we can print money to bailout the bankers, why not print some more to grant free healthcare for all, to grant free college education, to eliminate hunger, to eliminate homelessness, etc... These are after all loftier goals than bailing out bankers, right? Why raise taxes to cover healthcare! Money grows on trees fellows, don;t you know that - what morons!

Another grim view on employment: Hours worked per person continues its nosedive, to the lowest average recorded (see chart) - another hint that the headline jobless numbers are hiding an awful lot more frustrated workers.

>>All the while the President is overseas in a failed trip for the Olympics scam for Chicago.

better there than here announcing (with a straight, grim face) his new handout program (with money we do not have) of the day will create millions of jobs. it costs us less money have all these govt jokers out of our pay roll. teach them what unemployment is.