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2008 September 28 — Why Now?
On-line Opinion Magazine…OK, it's a blog
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What They’re Writing

Nouriel Roubini thinks it’s a rip-off. Brad DeLong is in favor of Nationalization. Paul Krugman says it may be the least worse alternative with the Shrubbery in the White House, so maybe they should hold their noses and vote for it.

Robert Peston explains the British plan that culminated in the B&B bank take-over. He thinks the problem is over for the UK financial markets. Nationalization was an important part of the plan.

I would wait until I saw an actual majority of Republicans voting for it in both Houses of Congress before I supported this toxic mess. If the Republicans can’t get a majority to agree, let them own the problems.

September 28, 2008   5 Comments

Bailout Update

CNN-Money has a PDF of a Draft House version of the bill, but Paul Krugman notes that House staffers are saying that a number of changes were made to the draft.

They have posted the real bill at a House web site, but they are apparently using “a Kaypro with a Z80 chip running at 4 Mhz using CP/M for the operating system and a Bell 103 modem”¹ because I haven’t gotten a connection after a couple of hours of trying. I guess it would have been too much to expect them to upload a copy to someone with the server capacity to actually make it available.

They probably didn’t understand how many people throughout the whole financial network around the world would like a look at this turkey before tomorrow’s markets open.

I still don’t understand how what they are talking about doing is going to convince the people with money that the people who are holding this manure are going to be more worthy of trust after they dump it in the Septic Bank.

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September 28, 2008   7 Comments

It’s Not Just House Prices

The “bubble” started in South Florida, burst there first, but the banks have tied themselves in knots because of their greed. The Miami Herald has the grisly details: Homes more affordable; loans are not

To understand how the credit crisis is hitting home in South Florida, consider the plight of Teresa and Hoover Encalada. The couple found a two-bedroom condo they loved at the Plaza on Brickell. At $434,000, the price was right. Their credit was good.

Friday, they got the bad news: The lender wants 45 percent down on a five-year loan with an initial interest rate of 7.8 percent. Now Encalada, a 39-year-old administrative assistant, and her husband, an Ecuadorean banana grower, are waiting on a second bank offer requiring only 40 percent down before they proceed.

Existing home prices in South Florida have fallen 20 to 30 percent over the past year, putting once-unaffordable homes within the grasp of buyers — if only they could qualify for a loan at reasonable rates.

If you have the cash, the prices are in line again. If you need a mortgage, forget it.  That “mortgage” offer isn’t even a good deal for a car loan.

September 28, 2008   2 Comments

Tropical Storm Kyle – 4 Final

Tropical Storm KylePosition: 44.8 N 65.9 W [10 PM CDT 0300 UTC].
Movement: North [010°] near 30 mph.
Maximum sustained winds: 70 mph [110 kph].
Wind Gusts: 85 mph.
Tropical Storm Wind Radius: 240 miles [390 km].
Minimum central pressure: 986 mb ↑.

It is 55 miles [60 km] South of St. John, New Brunswick.

Kyle has transitioned to an extratropical storm and this is the last advisory.

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September 28, 2008   2 Comments