Blog Review 807

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blog-review-807

Quite the most astonishing story today is of a hedge fund in New York. Or rather, a Ponzi scheme masquerading as a hedge fund. $50 billion has gone missing. Yes, $50 billion.

A bit of background on that fund. No one could work out how they were making money....and of course now we learn that they weren't making any.

The fund had $17 billion under management....from fewer than 25 investors!

So the new boss is the same as the old boss or, neo-feudalism meets the old sort.

The essential argument for spending over tax cuts as a fiscal boost is the size of the multiplier. It turns out that this might favour tax cuts over spending rises.

More on how the Government rigs those public consultations.

And finally, the things you have to say to sell bonds these days.

Blog Review 806

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blog-review-806

No, political corruption isn't that rare in the US: and as public choice theory tells us, we shouldn't expect it to be either.

So what, exactly, do the unemployed do with their time? Certainly, not a lot of it is spent looking for a job.

Explaining that Nobel acceptance speech.

An update on the Campaign to Abolish the TV Licence. 200,000 pledges so far....

Netsmith enjoys how much this news will enrage a certain type of Green. Walmart is becoming the greenest retailer in the US.

One explanation (and a very useful one) for what is happening in the markets these days:

There has been a massive crash in the risk tolerance of the globe’s investors.

And finally, the thinking behind that alcohol crackdown.

Blog Review 805

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blog-review-805

You know, there might be a reason why the top people at Exxon are paid so much money. They at least didn't get taken in by the bubble.

Getting it the wrong way around. There are some areas of life and the economy too important for us not to use markets.

Explaining the green and scaly option.

Even in these hard times there are still some people making their fortunes. You might not want to help them do so though.

One banker explains why he shorted Merrill. Essentially, whatever the boo boo, they always seemed to end up getting the short end of the stick. So it's not quite shorting Merrill, rather betting that there would be a future boo boo.

(Serious bad language warning). How those Government consultation exercises work. They're more a consultation of government than a consultation by government.

And finally, explaining the auto bailout.

Sound familiar?

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sound-familiar

The German government yesterday denied any prior knowledge of the SS and Gestapo raids which killed 85 people on the "night of the long knives." In a statement Herr Hitler said, "This is a purely operational SS matter, and government policy remains one of non-intervention."  Fieldmarshall Goering said it would be wrong to intervene in an ongoing SS investigation. Reichsminister Goebbels accused those raising the issue of "a blatant attempt to intimidate the Gestapo and prevent it from carrying out its duties," while Herr Himmler announced that there would be an internal SS enquiry into the incident, chaired by himself.

Blog Review 804

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blog-review-804

This No2id video is a reminder of how people will be put in danger by the introduction of ID cards and the national database. We have in fact already had cases of people bribing their way into police and other databases to find those they mean harm to.

If you'd like to know how the modern art market works (at a level of sophistication a little higher than selling rotten sharks to financial sharks) a book recommendation for you.

Even the soft left are amazed at the economic ignorance of the hard left.

Professional defending his turf or a solution to what ails the NHS? Your choice.

Have councils stored up trouble for themselves by taking out interest rate swaps and or insurance?

Pompous writer at NY Times (now there's a surprise!) gets depomped.

And finally, the Charlie Mingus method of toilet training your cat.

Blog Review 803

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blog-review-803

One of the more startling rhetorical collisions of recent times. John Redwood channels Neil Kinnock.

So just why do people take out startlingly expensive short term loans? Because they benefit those who take them out perhaps?

Would you, in the current market, take out a 4 year, 123% loan to value, mortgage for $3,074, 239. Would anyone give you one?

Schadenfreude is the most glorious of human emotions.

It's very difficult indeed to see that any of the proposed climate change suggestions are economically efficient. Or even have their incentives correctly aligned.

Why world government is such an appalling idea.

And finally, yes, why not?

Blog Review 802

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blog-review-802

Something a little strange is happening in the unemployment figures. More men than women are losing their jobs.

Of course, the absolute number of jobs lost in the US was very high: but then so was the absolute number of people in work.

Another case of when tax rate rises don't actually mean tax income rises.

More information on the nature v nuture debate: nature seems to count for quite a lot.

Are we absolutely certain that now is the time to reduce the transparency of the banking system?

Looking for someone to blame? How about this list of all rulers everywhere since 1700? Should do as a start, no?

And finally, perhaps psychics might forsee that trying to scam those who expose psychics might not be a good idea?

Might we have gone a little too far?

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might-we-have-gone-a-little-too-far

As has been endlessly pointed out before WWI the average Englishman could live out his life having no more interaction with the State than that afforded by the postman and the local policeman. Some of the additions since then have indeed been worthwhile but I'm not sure that we can say that of all of them. Yes, I know this is from the Daily Mail but still:

The Solankis were found guilty of failing to comply with the bylaw and now have a criminal record. They were given a six-month conditional discharge.

What dark crime could they have committed for a conditional discharge to hacve made the national newspaper?

A Cambridgeshire bylaw states that all paperboys must have a work permit issued by the council and signed by the child's employer, headteacher and parents. Working children must also be over 13 and cannot start work until after 7am.

Had they been employing those underage? Or perhaps forcing them to work long before dawn?

All the boys concerned were between 13 and 16. Other than not having the correct paperwork, they were working legally.

So no, nothing terrible going on.

Prosecutor Simon Reeve told the court that the couple ignored letters and visits from a child employment officer. He said that although eight applications for work permits had been sent to the children's school, only three were signed.

They had even tried to comply with the paperwork.

Cambridgeshire County Council used the controversial Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) to spy on eight paperboys thought to be working without permits. It sent undercover council officers to lurk outside a Spar in the village of Melbourn and take notes on the movements of the boys.

To uncover this terrible breach of all that makes a society holy and worth preserving council officers used anti-terrorism laws and (one assumes that if they were undercover they had to wear disguises, which is amusing and at 7 am they were on overtime which is less so) staked out the local newsagent. All to discover that voluntary exchange was going on without their permission.

Yes, I know that pre-WWI world isn't coming back and I'm entirely happy with many of the innovations since then, unemployment pay, State old age pensions and the rest. But might I just float the suggestion, that while the law is the law the law can also be an ass, that we've gone too far and ought to be retreating, not advancing, the State's control over our lives?

Quote of the week

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quote-of-the-week

Little bit of history trivia. It was this week, actually yesterday, in 1961, Fidel Castro announced that he was a Marxist and would turn Cuba into a Communist country, where the government would take over all the major industries. Or as we call that today, a bailout.

Jay Leno

Blog Review 801

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blog-review-801

If the manipulation of your model leads to conclusions that are near insane, shouldn't you be questioning the value of your model?

Very odd behaviour leading to a rather excellent project outcome.

We can tell that the recession really is happening, yes.

The problems with unions don't come only from pay rates: the inflexibility, the job demarcations can be just as damaging.

It would appear that bubbles are inevitable, just something that're innate in the human mind.

There's been good news and bad news over the past week.

And finally, the economist with the gripping hand, a new currency idea and why did the chicken cross the road?