Recent comments

  • over at Naked Capitalism.

    Now it appears NC is zeroing in on the real value of these CDOs, which I just generally refer to as toxic sludge but what is most interesting is they quote Moody's saying that 94% of these CDOs are worthless.

    Recall all of this justification for all of this because the Fed, through Maiden Lane, is going to wait for the "upside" in the valuations of these CDOs they bought...

    well, NC is zeroing in on them all being worthless, which as far as I know is the truth of the situation....

    NC appears to be calculating out the above, attached schedule A from first principles, trying to verify what exactly is in that maiden lane III portfolio and just how badly did the U.S. taxpayer get screwed here.

    Reply to: Oversight Committee AIG Hearing Highlights   14 years 9 months ago
    EPer:
  • Folks, please consider sharing and submitting posts to reddit etc.

    I get statistics on this and while we do get so many more reads than anyone using the discussion (comments), few use the share buttons to other sites.

    I personally like reddit because it's just links, they do not steal sites contents but it's a nice aggregator. I check it sometimes to see if I can dig out some economic story that the MSM is ignoring and quite often there are a few. The share this button has every type of share you could possibly want, including emailing a post forward.

    Reply to: Help EP, links cross posting, ratings   14 years 9 months ago
    EPer:
  • Honestly I don't know but after ferreting out econ. stats, facts, theory on a range of topics....I firmly believe we have a lot of corporation representation generally and one could see it, I mean one of the major campaign funders for Obama was hedge funds.

    So, what we need are real representatives who are sticking to the facts and responding accordingly instead of sweeping general rhetoric that doesn't match the economic stats.

    There are a host of Dems who claim to be "for the middle class" who are in fact selling them down the river. Chuck Schumer is one of the worst...

    He wrote a book that was complete fiction and Biden? ha ha he's "for the middle class". Now Bernie Sanders, Byron Dorgan are really "for the middle class" and their bills which of course are sent to committee to die...prove it.

    I mean we have literally policy, legislation being presented as for the U.S. middle class that statistically is showing, along with the theory it will hurt the middle class.

    Honestly one of the worst offenders on this are those special interest "no human is illegal" or whatever unlimited migration/open border groups. It's well documented illegal labor represses wages, as does any large sudden increase in labor supply...it will, it's just the way supply/demand labor laws work...

    We also have the U.S. chamber of commerce others spinning all sorts of labor arbitrage agenda as "for the middle class"...

    and I'm sorry this is not in reality, and we need policy that takes reality into account.

    I mean this Stimulus, so much of it went offshore, quite a bit as well as no-bid contracts. There were some in Congress who tried to get these "sieve holes" plugged up and of course met with great resistance. Remember the screams on "buy American" was "protectionism"...well, these idiots, this is taxpayer money to temporarily stimulate a domestic economy....what the hell do they think that's about? Of course you need "protectionism" for the very economy you're trying to jump start...

    I mean just absolutely insane.

    Reply to: Senate Has One Standard for Wall Street and One Standard for Main Street   14 years 9 months ago
    EPer:
  • At least with Bush, you knew he would protect Wall Street and corporations - it's in repuglican DNA.

    A lot of people voted for Dems, especially for Obama, expecting that they would fight for families - NOPE.

    RebelCapitalist.com - Financial Information for the Rest of Us.

    Reply to: Senate Has One Standard for Wall Street and One Standard for Main Street   14 years 9 months ago
  • It's unclear if they did just the 50 votes or bought off Senators to invoke cloture (which is probably what has happened)....

    Sigh, why do I feel like I'm in Bush part 3?

    Reply to: Senate Has One Standard for Wall Street and One Standard for Main Street   14 years 9 months ago
    EPer:
  • and it seems to me I have not seen any proof by this continual drum of averted the Great Depression/Economic Armageddon" mantra.

    I mean there was no doubt that the money markets were in deep shit trouble, they went to negative returns but the Fed guaranteed all of those funds, absolute in response...

    It's also clear, like a deadly virus, these derivatives, CDOs, CDSes needed to be isolated and destroyed, to not infect the real commercial banking activities...

    but it's so nuts, they still have not tackled derivatives legislation and if anyone would look at the dominoes of AIG CDSes and CDOs....it is such fictional money, gambling, bets, hedges.

    How could that entire ponzi scheme get complete wipe out and really effect the real economy, it's all between a few companies?

    I mean separate out commercial banking from investment (where have we heard this one), isolate this derivatives scam and kill it dead.

    Anyway, they still are not tackling the real causes of this crisis even, i.e. derivatives and that is where the inter-dependencies, contagion, systemic risk is coming from.

    Reply to: Jobs Program Redux   14 years 9 months ago
    EPer:
  • I've never heard of them but looked it up in Google and the site appears to be one of those predators claiming to help people in financial trouble.

    This group, NACA is supposed to be legitimate but always, always get out your magnifying glass and read all fine print and understand the fine print when dealing with a large loan such as a mortgage.

    Reply to: HAMP is a scam   14 years 9 months ago
    EPer:
  • I don't think we will ever get to the bottom of this fiasco because the truth would be too damaging to the financial oligarchy and both political parties.

    It would have been more effective if we gave so much money per household to pay off debt instead of giving it to financial conglomerates. But policy makers including Obama still like "trickle down economics."

    RebelCapitalist.com - Financial Information for the Rest of Us.

    Reply to: Jobs Program Redux   14 years 9 months ago
  • but FICA is 50% employer paid and 50% employee paid. So, the last I heard it was just the employer portion and it was not only for new hires but also for those who increased wages on existing employees.

    My thing is they must, absolutely must, tie all of this to U.S. citizens, LPR (legal permanent resident). There are already reports of Stimulus funds going offshore, offshore outsourced and even the use of H-1B, L-1 guest workers.

    i.e. it's not being used to hire from the U.S. workforce....

    Now this is one of those economic realities that the left drives me nuts on. It's just economic reality, you cannot use U.S. taxpayer money to create jobs for the entire globe...
    esp. when those taxpayers don't have a job or are significantly underemployed, which is the current situation.

    This is an element to make it true Keynes and I'll bet dollars to donuts the left will ignore this and then we'll have yet more spending with less results because the funds are leaking out like a pasta strainer around the globe and not going to the U.S. labor force pockets.

    Reply to: Jobs Program Redux   14 years 9 months ago
    EPer:
  • Well, not that I have ever been an Obama fan, although Jesus is that a good lookin' family and I agree, the oratory skills are bar none....

    I have to take issue with our lovely Congress in a large part for this.

    Firstly Harry Reid, I've not tracked through his campaign contributions but he seems to always make sure somehow that anything in the national or public interest is blocked.

    We just have too many "bought and paid fors" in Congress.

    Add to that the insanity of some of the GOP, i.e. "tax cuts" mantra is inane, as is "free trade"...

    and you've got incompetence and corruption being the dominant party.

    But on the lobbyist/corruption speech it was truly hypocritical because there is Obama, claiming the bank bail outs were like root canal or whatever...

    well, I am a data/stat/math person and frankly I have yet to be convinced, esp. on the AIG counterparty pay out, that the TARP/bail out was even necessary.

    To me, those events toasted and wasted the U.S. middle class and the real economy and I don't buy that a financial meltdown would have destroyed the real economy.

    I certainly think there was a host of other actions they could have done at the time that would have wound down the big banks, such as Sweden's model, but the point is I need true forensic analysis.

    I mean even our Congress in hearings, they are simply not getting to the bottom in any way what really happened either.

    Yesterday's hearing to me was yet another joke and I think what we really need is some serious forensic accounting and analysis with a public report when it's done.

    I don't even so much care who did what on that score, more I want to see this proof that the Great Depression would have happened if we didn't make GS super rich and pay out foreign banks.

    Reply to: Jobs Program Redux   14 years 9 months ago
    EPer:
  • a FULL payroll tax holiday. Forget this business for 'new hires' - it won't happen because NO demand for product/services.

    RebelCapitalist.com - Financial Information for the Rest of Us.

    Reply to: Jobs Program Redux   14 years 9 months ago
  • is in there, the hiring credit, aka a social security tax credit for a hire is what I thought it was.

    Reply to: Jobs Program Redux   14 years 9 months ago
    EPer:
  • If the demand is not there how does this help? A small business is NOT going to hire just to get a tax credit.

    To me this speech is neo-liberal - lite.

    If we are going the tax cut route - how about a payroll tax holiday.

    RebelCapitalist.com - Financial Information for the Rest of Us.

    Reply to: Jobs Program Redux   14 years 9 months ago
  • I agree with closing military bases around the world. I am tired of being the worlds policeman.

    On the figure about deaths due to no health insurance. I like stats but I like stats that are provable. I don't buy into the saved jobs statistic either.

    In the past two years I've had four people die from cancer. Two people had pancreatic cancer, one had liver cancer and one had small cell lung cancer. They all had insurance. If you know anything about pancreatic or small cell lung you will know that in the real world, all the insurance in the world isn't going to help. So even if they had no insurance they would, in all probability have died.

    So of the un-insured how many were like my friends. People that would have died with or without insurance? It is an unknown number just as the real stat for the "died from no insurance" is unknown.

    Now back to the military. The empire (USA) is out of money but Washington is in denial. What must we the people do to wake them up? I keep hearing this health insurance mantra as the magic elixir. Well it doesn't matter how low you get the insurance premium, if you have no JOB, that premium is going to be perceived as a big expense.

    The intentional lying to us by politicians is the reason that the Independent political side is growing. These politicians look you in the eye and lie, they treat us as ignorant little children. We aren't buying that method anymore.

    We see who was placed in the administration jobs. We know what they previously did, we know their associations, it is apparent. It is arrogant for a sitting President to try and pretend that people like Geithner are clean, we know Barnake previous attachment to the FRB. To me it is a slap in the face for the sitting President of the USA to think we can't see what is going on!

    If they close those international military bases, they could either put money toward getting the USA out of debt or give it to the citizens. Citizens that could start a business or use it to end their own breath taking debt.

    Reply to: What should be in Obama's State of the Union address, but isn't   14 years 9 months ago
    EPer:
  • What is in question is his ability to lead and fight for working class families.

    WHY HAS IT TAKEN HIS ECONOMIC TEAM THIS LONG TO FIGURE OUT THAT MAYBE THEY SHOULD SHIFT MONEY TO COMMUNITY BANKS?

    This was a "No Brainer" months ago. WTF took them so long to figure that out.

    Action, Mr. President. Action. Oh, and get rid of your economic team.

    RebelCapitalist.com - Financial Information for the Rest of Us.

    Reply to: Jobs Program Redux   14 years 9 months ago
  • Does anyone know anything about the NFC Group?Are they legit,or another scam?

    Reply to: HAMP is a scam   14 years 9 months ago
    EPer:
  • is a subsidy to Wal Mart. That's why you see so many smilin' old folks at the door. How else can they get people to work for the minimum wage and pretend that they are making a living?
    Frank T.

    Reply to: BASIC DUAL NATURE OF SOCIAL SECURITY   14 years 9 months ago
    EPer:
  • he's behind it! He's a criminal! He's doing Watergate II, OMG he's such a little shit, filming people without telling them.

    That Pimp-mobile jackass! He's behind the CDS payouts!

    Reply to: Oversight Committee AIG Hearing Highlights   14 years 9 months ago
    EPer:
  • I am smiling ear to ear.

    Yes it must have been Acorn behind this whole thing!

    Reply to: Oversight Committee AIG Hearing Highlights   14 years 9 months ago
    EPer:
  • The voting public and viewing public are just not willing to look at the country's most serious issue - Financial Reforms (real ones).

    I guess it bores them. I was screaming at the top of my lungs when Geithner and Paulson were lying through their teeth and people like Kanjorski weren't asking any questions.

    Why can't terrorists break into that type of meeting and wipe their useless carcasses off the face of the planet? Where are all the psycho mailmen when you need them?

    Where is our Danton? Where is our Robespierre?

    Reply to: Oversight Committee AIG Hearing Highlights   14 years 9 months ago
    EPer:

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