SHEILA BAIR, PROSE STYLIST
If the excerpt in Fortune is anything to go by, the ghost writer behind Sheila Bair’s new book spends the bulk of his working hours banging…
RECESSION? WHAT RECESSION?
The WashingtonPost : “Seven of nation’s 10 most affluent counties are in Washington region.” One would think that shouldn’t happen in a healthy, market-oriented democracy. Forward!
HOW THE MONEY FUNDS SAVED THEMSELVES
James Stewart explains how the S.E.C.’s plan to tighten regulation of money market funds came unglued: The S.E.C.’s proposed changes had the backing of the White…
IT’S JUST LIKE THE OLD DAYS ALL OF A SUDDEN
Don’t look now, but subprime auto lending is back with a vengeance: U.S. lenders are giving as large a portion of new car loans to subprime…
WHAT’S THE POINT OF THE MORTGAGE INTEREST DEDUCTION, AGAIN?
In the event the federal tax code really does get Simpson-Bowleserized by the next Congress, elimination of the ever-beloved mortgage-interest deduction may not be unthinkable, says…
REMINDER: BAD PAPER IS BAD PAPER, REGARDLESS OF WHO OWNS IT
Here’s a fun thought experiment: suppose the let’s-break-up-the-big-banks crew had had its wish granted prior to the credit crunch, so that the doomed subprime mortgage paper…
THE GOVERNMENT FINALLY FIGURES OUT A WAY TO LOSE MONEY ON TARP
ProPublica reports on the second, under-the-radar bank bailout: The federal government still holds investments in hundreds of small banks around the country in the Troubled Asset…
SUDDENLY IT’S THE 1990’S ALL OVER AGAIN
One Alkah Singh, minerals analyst at Rodman & Renshaw, blazes new trails in sell-side chutzpah: The complaint said Ms. Singh was upset that a Canadian mineral…
BANKS’ SIZE STILL ISN’T THE PROBLEM
Douglas Elliott kind of likes the idea of bigness in banks: [T]here are real economic advantages to having banks that can provide our businesses with a…
JON CORZINE JUST WON’T GO AWAY, FOR SOME REASON
Jon Corzine won’t likely be indicted for his role in the collapse of MF Global, says the New York Times, which also reports that Corzine bas…