From the Dept of “Oh, The Irony of it all!” – Bailout Managers may be buying own troubled securities

Now this is real cute here!

This via the AP:

The government’s plan to make sure private managers of a $700 billion bailout plan are free of conflicts of interest is weak, according to some critics, and allows too much room for abuse.

The Treasury Department is in the process of hiring financial experts to run the giant, taxpayer-financed fund, created by the legislation that President Bush signed on Oct. 3.

The law allows the department to offer contracts that are not governed by federal procurement regulations, but requires it to draw up conflict-of-interest guidelines.

Interim guidelines released last week require applicants to disclose “any actual or potential conflicts of interest” that may come into play. Applicants must submit a plan to show how they will “avoid, mitigate or neutralize” such conflicts.

While Treasury employees will oversee the plan, there does not appear to be anything in the rules that requires the government to make sure the applicants are being truthful.

“It basically says that these companies are responsible for disclosing their own conflicts of interest,” said Laura Peterson, a senior policy analyst for Taxpayers for Common Sense, a private watchdog group. “And they are then responsible for coming up with a plan to fix them. Nowhere in there does it say Treasury will also be doing due diligence.”

Treasury can waive the conflict-of-interest provision.

I highly suggest that you read the rest of that article. Because if this reads like I think it does. The Government is going to allow the very people that caused this whole Wall Street mess to buy these troubled mortgages back and basically make a profit off of them.

Irony, thy name is Washington D.C.

Technorati Tags: Corruption, Government, Housing Crisis, News, Wall Street, Wall Street Crisis, Washington DC

Today’s Stock Market Roller Coaster Today

Full Disclosure: I am not a stock expert or even a real trader. I have a Practice account or as it called, a “Paper Trader” account at think or Swim. I simply post this for information purposes only. So, please, don’t sue me, if you read this, do something stupid and loose your butt.

(Click to make it bigger)

The Dow Jones Industrial Average

The Dow started out at 9:30a.m at –8.69% with a volume of 9437.23. By 10:04a.m. it was at –3.97% with a volume of 9627.11. from there it dropped to –7.49% 10:48 a.m. Then at 11:26 a.m. the Dow returned to –5.84% from there the Dow tumbled to –8.01% at 12:35P.M. with a volume of 9196.22 It gave one more shot at rebounding to –4.12% @ 14:27. It then shuffled around to –4.25 @ 15:31. and then did a sharp drop to –7.84% with a volume of 9237.63 at close.

Here is a screen shot of the numbers after the ticker machine finally stopped:

(Click to make it bigger)

Hopefully tomorrow the market will stabilize.

Gold Price activity today:

(Click to make bigger)

Gold and Silver Sector Index

Platinum Precious Metals Index

Technorati Tags: Dow Jones Index, Gold Prices, Money, Platinum Prices, Silver Prices, Stocks, Wall Street, Wealth

Dow Plunges, Global Markets suffer as well…

I haven’t posted today, because I have been watching the market and doing a little paper trading (fake money…not real)

Here’s the official story via the AP:

Wall Street tumbled Monday, joining a selloff around the world, as fears grew that the financial crisis will cascade through economies globally despite bailout efforts by the U.S. and other governments. The credit market remained under strain, and investors piled into government bonds. The Dow Jones industrials skidded more than 300 points and fell below 10,000 for the first time in four years.

The markets have come to the sobering realization that the Bush administration’s $700 billion rescue plan won’t work quickly to unfreeze the credit markets, and that many banks are still having difficulty gaining access to cash.

Here is the Dow Chart:

The line to the left of the vertical slash, is the market today. Oh yeah, it’s that ugly…

On the other hand, Gold is looking very promising:

(charts from thinkorswim.com)

My advice to everyone, if you nervous, sell what you’ve got and invest in Gold.

More gold Charts:

So much for that “Bailout” eh?

Technorati Tags: Gold Prices, Government, Housing Crisis, Opinion, Politics, Silver Prices, Stock Market, Sub-Prime Loans, Wall Street, Wall Street Crisis, Wealth

Mid-Day Stock Graphs and Quotes

As of 11:39 EST

Click the pictures to make ‘em bigger.

DOW:

NASDAQ Composite:

S&P 100 Index:

S & P 500 Index:

Numbers:

Dow

10,674.40
+191.55
(1.83%)

Nasdaq

2,032.35
+55.63
(2.81%)

S&P 500

1,142.00
+27.72
(2.49%)

10y bond

3.72%
+0.09
(2.48%)

USD-Euro

0.7242
+0.0003
(0.04%)

USD-Yen

105.8200
+0.7200
(0.69%)

USD-GBP

0.5634
-0.0035
(-0.62%)

Gold:

Silver:

Platinum

News:

Citigroup Demands Wachovia, Wells Fargo Terminate Merger Deal (Via Bloomberg)

Apple Rebounds After Saying Reports of Jobs Heart Attack False (via Bloomberg)

Europe Scents New Hint Of A Rate Cut (Forbes)

Schwarzenegger Tells Paulson States May Need Loans (Update1) (Bloomberg)

Technorati Tags: Stock Market, Stocks, Wall Street, Trading, Day Trading,

More thoughts on the Bailout and it's effect on our Economy

I hate to admit it, but I agree with this…. Sort of…

Via RealClearMarkets – “In Times of Crisis, Trust Capitalism”:

The biggest bank failure in the history of the United States happened last Thursday night and by Friday morning, it was business as usual. The only difference was the name on the door and the losses suffered by those unfortunate enough to invest in Washington Mutual bonds or stock. The taxpayers didn’t lose anything and depositors didn’t lose anything, only investors. That is how capitalism works in case everyone has forgotten.

The “crisis” we face today is not a creation of the market. Government intervention over many years (but especially the last year) is what brought us to the point where we’ve placed our hopes for economic recovery on the good intentions of a Congress facing re-election in a few weeks. There has been much commentary recently about the role of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the creation and expansion of the sub-prime mortgage market which many believe to be the cause of this mess.

That criticism is certainly warranted, but little attention has been paid to the real culprit – the Federal Reserve. Furthermore, what attention there has been is concentrated on the role of Alan Greenspan rather than Ben Bernanke. While Alan Greenspan deserves his share of the blame, Bernanke’s contribution to this mess should not be minimized or excused.

I have something to add to this as well. The biggest problem with this all is, most of this money, that’s being lost, is not even our money, it’s China’s money! Also half of the money being printed, does not have any gold to back it up! This is why our inflation is so high. As Joseph notes above, our biggest problem with our nation’s Economy is the Federal Reserve. If we got rid of the Federal Reserve, and went back to the 100% Gold Standard, much of our Nation’s Economic problems would be solved. Not to mention, if we stopped getting money from China.

The only thing that I really disagree with here, in a way, is the assessment that this all will not affect the American Taxpayers. In a sense, it will affect the taxpayers. Because it will cause a overall stall in the economy. This will translate into a crunch in the business world, small and mid-size businesses that do not have a great deal of capital will not be able to barrow money for needed expenses. This will cause a overall tightening of the financial belt amongst the Small to mid-sized business and will force them to dump employees.

Locally here in Michigan, our unemployment is at 7%, last I checked, I expect that to soar and get even worse, if this continues. Personally, I have family members who are paranoid about their jobs being lost. I assume that those jobs will get even more unstable, if this wears on.

Not to mention the fact that Taxpayers are watching their 401K’s and retirement nest eggs go down the tubes as well. That affects Conservatives who do not believe in using Social Security as a form of income. So, in a matter of speaking, this is going to effect everyone. In the form of Jobs, Retirements, 401k’s and more much.

Technorati Tags: Detroit ,Economy ,Housing Crisis ,Local ,Michigan ,Opinion ,Politics ,Wall Street ,Wall Street Crisis

A reason why this bail out failed…

I can understand this…

Via Andy McCarthy @ The Corner on National Review Online

This was a terrible bill. To take just a few particulars, why is there no reform of the government interventions that got us to this point in the first place? Why aren’t Fannie and Freddie being wound down — even after we’ve now had to make explicit the implicit, disastrous government guarantee? Why is Pelosi saying (as I noted in an earlier post) that the authority in the bill will allow the Treasury Department (perhaps soon an Obama Treasury Department) to take bad debt off the hands of mismanaged state and local governments?

Some would say that a bad bill would be better than no bill at all. I disagree. I believe that it is better to have a bill that works for the American people and does not bailout Wall Street and screw the American people and the small businesses over.

So, for once, I agree with something written over at the NRO. Mark this on your calendar, because it does not happen often. 😉

Others: Power Line

Technorati Tags: Economy, Housing Crisis, Opinion, Politics, Republican, Republicans, Wall Street

Bailout failure, politics and stupidity

Yes, I am aware of the failure of the bailout. I also see where John McCain took credit for it, before it flopped. Loser

The stock losses were unbelievable. Surprise Here’s the final numbers:

Dow

10,365.45
-777.68
(-6.98%)

Nasdaq

1,983.73
-199.61
(-9.14%)

S&P 500

1,106.42
-106.59
(-8.79%)

The really stupid part about this whole thing is Democrats and Republicans are blaming one another. Which is absolutely idiotic. They should be working to find solutions, instead of pointing fingers. I mean while the people in Washington D.C. were squabbling over $700 billion, the markets lost $1.2 trillion. Folks, that’s more money than most of us will ever see in a lifetime. Money Eyes Hypnotized

Of course, the far left Anti-Capitalists are happy that this is happening. Which about par for the course with the Liberals. They hate anything related to Conservative values in America. Like making a profit. Waiting

Personally, I believe we need to get rid of the Federal Reserve Bank and go back to the 100% Gold Standard, that would get rid of all this excess money in our system and bring value back to the dollar. I posted a video to that effect here. Because 90% of this money, that we are losing, is China’s money. Plus, 90% cannot be backed up with gold, thereby making it valueless anyhow. I would not be surprised if China stops all money imports here. That would really put us in a bad spot. I have books on this subject are available at my blog Bookstore.

Hopefully, Congress will pass something here this week. Because sooner or later, this will begin to affect the American people. Which will not be good at all. Striaght Face

Technorati Tags: Banking Crisis, Banks, Conservative, Democrat, Democrats, Election ’08, Election 2008, Housing Crisis, John McCain, New York Times, News, Photos, Politics, Republican, Republicans, Stocks, Stupidity, Wall Street

The Wall Street Bailout drama continues….

Just a word of warning, I’m still nursing my first cup of coffee. Coffee-cup Sleepy Yawn So, hopefully, this article will make some sense. Hee hee

But the good news is, I got my emoticons back here. Dancing So, I can at least show a little emotion in my writings. Big Grin

Some people say that if you use the Emoticons, people tend to not take you as serious. Well, to that I say, well, Phbbbttt Because I feel you would not take me serious either way, if had the emoticons or not.

The “Mother of all bailouts” is creating it’s share of drama in the Blogosphere and on Capital Hill. For instance, Minority Leader John A. Boehner called the deal a “crap sandwich”. Sick and Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wisc., ranking Republican on the House Budget Committee said of the Bill, “It sucks”. Michelle Malkin is just flat out encouraging her people to “Kill the Bill”. However, Jack Fowler at the Corner is saying:

Conservatives should support them in backing the bailout plan. And then, when that is completed, roll up our sleeves and join Cantor & Co. as they work to craft and enact a broader strategy to improve America’s fiscal health.

So, obviously, this thing is dividing Conservatives.

Another interesting tidbit of information, according to “The Hill”, Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio). says: “I will tell you right now I don’t know if they have votes,” “If the votes were there, this would be on the floor. The votes aren’t there.” An interesting development indeed.

Obviously, there’s a ton of opinions and angles on this story. Most of which can be found at Memeorandum.

Technorati Tags: Banking Crisis, Banks, Bush, Business, Congress, Conservative, Democrat, Democrats, Economy, Federal Reserve Bank, Housing Crisis, Liberal, Liberals, Libertarian, Neo-Conservatives, News, Opinion, Politics, Republican, Republicans, Sub-Prime Loans, Wall Street, Washington DC, White House

A very interesting video on our Nation’s banking system

This video, made by the Ludwig Von Mises Institute, makes the case of why the United States of America should go to a 100% gold standard.

I highly recommend that everyone watch this video.

Also, I recommend everyone go to my bookstore and check out the section on the gold standard.

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Now here’s a smart idea….

Now the Democrats are using their brains.

U.S. Democrats seek Wall Street tax in bailout plan (Via Reuters):

Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives are pushing for a new Wall Street tax that would cover the potential costs of a $700 billion bailout being negotiated by Congress and the Bush administration.

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, speaking to reporters after a meeting with fellow Democrats, said the fee could be assessed after five years if the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office determined taxpayers had lost money in the bailout.

“If after five years … the CBO decides that the American taxpayer has lost money in this, then there would be a fee on financial institutions,” Pelosi said, adding that she hoped the provision could be part of a final bailout deal.

Pelosi said that the Secretary of the Treasury could determine how to assess the fee.

It is a about damn time the Democrats wised up. This would ensure that the taxpayer, (i.e. you and me) would not get stuck paying the bill on this “bail out”.

I know some traders will scream about this. But, you know what I say? screw ‘em! I say, let the assholes making the big money get the tax, instead of the working class, like me, who do not even play the markets.

I am all for free markets, but I’m also for responsibility. If greed caused all this, let the damn greedy ones pay for it in taxes, instead of the average American, like me!

Technorati Tags: Banking Crisis, Banks, Commodities, Congress, Conservative, Democrat, Democrats, Economy, Fannie Mae, Federal Reserve Bank, Government, Housing Crisis, Libertarian, Money, Nationalism, News, Opinion, Politics, Republican, Republicans, Stock Market, Stocks, Taxes, Wall Street, Washington DC, White House, justice