Due to time commitments, like starting a tech business while working part-time on an MS in software engineering and volunteering with FIRST Robotics, I no longer have time to put much in to this blog.
Over the past couple of months I found myself being less and less motivated to post items here. In the past couple of weeks, I realize I needed to make a decision about the future of this blog. And at this point, I doubt I will be posting much more.
There is a joke about bloggers quitting blogging – as soon as they make just one more last blog post! Well, I don’t plan to make just one more blog post any time soon!
I recommend the following blogs for interesting insights on the worlds of real estate, finance, economics and business:
I follow more than those, but the above are blogs I read frequently. I checked CalculatedRisk at least a couple of times per day and it is the first blog I read each morning.
Posted in Other.
The Deposit Insurance Fund (DIF) decreased by $12.6 billion during the fourth quarter to a negative $20.9 billion (unaudited) primarily because of $17.8 billion in additional provisions for bank failures
via FDIC: Quarterly Banking Profile.
And:
The DIF’s reserve ratio was negative 0.39 percent on December 31, 2009, down from negative 0.16 percent on September 30, 2009, and 0.36 percent a year ago. The December 31, 2009, reserve ratio is the lowest reserve ratio for a combined bank and thrift insurance fund on record.
Posted in Econ, Finance.
And he says that government like the US will be forced to cut spending.
The U.S. government will delay any efforts to contain the deficit until Treasury yields reach around 6 percent to 7 percent, Rogoff said.“The U.S. is in a state of paralysis in its fiscal policy,” he said. “Monetary policy will tighten first, and I don’t think it’s the right mix.”
via Bloomberg.
Posted in Econ.
See here (PDF file).
I wrote last year that the only steps that truly lead to controlling or reducing health care spending are:
- Reduce demand for services or reduce the provision/offering of services
- Deliver care more efficiently and effectively
- Reduce pay to providers, staff and doctors
- Introduce a competitive health care market in which providers compete with each other to deliver care more efficiently and effectively.
Unfortunately, I can not find any such measures. Instead, the proposal will lead to increased costs for health care – paid for by everyone. Search this web site for past information on that subject.
Remember that doctors want to earn more money. Hospitals want to earn more money. Drug companies want to earn more money. Nurses want to earn more money. All other providers and staff want to earn more money. Patients want to have more services paid for by someone else. The proposal enlarges the last group – and it is not too hard to see that this remains a train wreck of out of control pricing.
Posted in Other.
California’s economic woes can do more damage to America’s recovery than Greece's can do to Europe’s. Yet which of the two may be getting a bailout?
via Greece or California: Who’d you rather be? – latimes.com.
The columnist literally advocates the elimination of most state government functions – of all states – and turning them over to the Federal government. He advocates this because the Federal government can deficit spend as much as it wants, while the states cannot do that …. OMG …
Amusingly, the same paper has another story about states that have underfunded pension liabilities of oh, around a trillion dollars …
Posted in Econ.
Another report from the department showed prices paid at the farm and factory gate rose a faster-than-expected 1.4 percent from December as higher gasoline prices and unusually cold temperatures helped boost energy costs.
via Jobless, price data fan concerns on economy – Yahoo! Finance.
1.4 x 12 = 16.8%
But this one says everything is fine, nothing to see here.
Posted in Econ.
Pharmaceutical companies pay RealAge to compile test results of RealAge members and send them marketing messages by e-mail. ….
While few people would fill out a detailed questionnaire about their health and hand it over to a drug company looking for suggestions for new medications, that is essentially what RealAge is doing.
via Online Age Quiz Is a Window for Drug Makers – NYTimes.com.
Their goal is to email you information that makes you “anxiety” ridden about possibly having a disease – and by the way, “there’s a drug for that”.
Posted in Bizz, Consumer.
The Case For Higher Inflation – Paul Krugman Blog – NYTimes.com.
Higher inflation – by deflating the value of the dollar, we pay off yesterday’s debt with lower valued dollars of tomorrow. In effect, we steal from everyone equally to pay the costs of the looting and plundering by the bankers.
Inflation strongly benefits those who have large debts and punishes those who have cash. Correspondingly, inflation creates an incentive to borrow money and a disincentive to save money. Putting us right back where we started – too much debt.
Posted in Econ, Finance.
in order to meet daily story quotas imposed by new contract:
the only way to meet this was to not do journalism but basically rewrite press releases — adding barely any texture or insight to it. Stories written without calling to even verify information. Very sloppy journalism. They'd also use filler stories, like three sentence pieces based off SEC filings. They’d even turn weather stories into business stories
via AP Business Desk’s Pact with the Devil – journalismism – Gawker.
My local newspaper has given up on business journalism too. They now regurgitate fluffy press releases and pithy quotes from the smiling CEOs of failing companies. When I read the SEC filings I find the paper’s reports are flat out wrong. (On the other hand, a reporter across the state did report on a recent local business item very accurately and thoroughly and I sent her a thank you note for her excellent work.)
Posted in Bizz, Other.
TransUnion’s quarterly analysis of trends in the mortgage industry found that mortgage loan delinquency (the ratio of borrowers 60 or more days past due) increased for the 12th straight quarter, hitting an all-time national average high of 6.89 percent for the fourth quarter of 2009. This quarter marks the first time the mortgage delinquency rate increase did not decelerate after doing so for three consecutive periods.
via About TransUnion: Newsroom -.
Posted in Econ.
Prof. Simon Johnson, former chief economist of the IMF, goes on to suggest a criminal investigation of Goldman Sachs:
A single rogue trader can bring down a bank – remember the case of Barings. But a single rogue bank can bring down the world’s financial system.
Goldman will dismiss this as “business as usual” and, to be sure, a few phone calls around Washington will help ensure that Goldman’s primary supervisor – now the Fed – looks the other way.
via Baseline Scenario.
Posted in Finance, Humor.
States are looking to the federal government for more help balancing their budgets, but the Senate is not heeding their call.
via Senate moves on jobs – but not state rescue – Feb. 13, 2010.
Obvious solution: California, Arizona, New Jersey and so on, should declare themselves as the Bank of California, Bank of Arizona, Bank of New Jersey and proclaim they are going broke, and then receive massive Federal bail outs. Congress would quickly pass a Troubled States Rescue Program, and the Treasury and Federal Reserve, Inc, would shower them with taxpayer bail outs.
Simple, huh?
Posted in Econ, Humor, Policy, Subsidy.
