Why I voted for Obama

The absolute turning point for me was Gov. Mitt Romney’s 47 percent address. There was something very demeaning and patronizing about it that grated on my nerves.

I was a productive member of the workforce until July of 2012. I was a veteran of the First Gulf War and now I was unemployed. Had it not been for the social services that my taxes help to support my new address would have been a cardboard box under the I-95 underpass.

Breezy books engage in career and workplace mythbusting

The challenge of any work is that it engages the reader. There is nothing so annoying as a book that takes itself too seriously. In the cases of two recent efforts, the authors have important things to say, but they are not afraid of speaking in an engaging style. “So Good They Can’t Ignore You” by Cal Newport and “Rework” by 37Signals founders Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson take aim at the myths and misconceptions that surround careers and the workplace.

Senate Republicans tell veterans ‘fight for a job on your own’

Jobless veterans suffer some more as Senate Republicans offer a blatantly political election-year snub to President Obama. While five GOP senators sided with the Democrats on the bill, Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama, who was a captain in the 1970s in the U.S. Army reserves, was key to blocking the vote. Sen. Tom ‘Dr. No’ Coburn, of Oklahoma, stayed true to his nickname, preferring to talk about the abstract idea of bringing down the debt rather than address the plight of jobless in the here and now.

Ryan accepts Romney's offer of a bucket of warm piss

In Norfolk, Va., with the decommissioned battleship USS Wisconsin as his backdrop, GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney introduced America to the new president of the United States, Paul Ryan. It would seem that Ryan has some foreign policy positions, ones that may be less embarrassing than those of Romney (a foreign policy lightweight) who has both just finished an awful trip abroad but also succeeded in honking of the Japanese. Blunt force seems to be Ryan’s instrument of choice which is readily apparent in his budget. Ryan's budget also makes him a deeply polarizing figure: adorable to the base, repugnant to the left.

Romney's hope is likely that this will change the election season debate and take the heat off of his unreleased tax returns. It is also probably Romney's hope that he can shore up his campaign by picking a Midwesterner. With rare exception, the vice-presidency has never really amounted to much more than a chance at an election campaign photo op. Unless you were Ford, LBJ or Cheney, the post has rarely risen above John Nance Garner's famous observation that the vice presidency is "not worth a bucket of warm piss."

Greek lightning won’t stay in the bottle

If the economic observers are right, the birthplace of Western civilization is a ticking financial timebomb that will mean the end of the Euro as we know it. This week Standard & Poor's downgraded Greece to "CCC", the lowest credit level possible, on fears of a default. And China’s not very happy about the situation. Two scenarios are likely. The first involves yet another bailout package that would keep Greece afloat. That has stalled. The second is a two-part default with part one by the end of 2013 and part two by the end of the following year. According to currency strategist David Mann, the market has placed the likelihood of a Greek default at 75 percent.

As usual, it’s governments versus bankers. For any second bailout to get the approval of Europe’s largest economy, Germany, public sector support is a must. The European bank is saying it will see any private sector participation in the plan as coercion and call it a selective default. So how the bailout will happen without obliterating the country’s credit score is anyone’s guess. But contagion looks like it’s in the offing. 

Moody’s is examining three top level French banks for their exposure to the probable Greek default.

The Greeks themselves are not taking the austerity measures required for a second bailout lying down. A phalanx worthy of their ancient forebears turned out in force armed with ‘petrol bombs’ turned out near the parliament building to vent their anger at lawmakers. This has led the Prime Minister of Greece to start doing the cabinet shuffle in order to maintain a semiworking government.

The reality is that government defaults are pretty common occurrences. It’s the sovereign equivalent of bankruptcy. The current crisis was also a result of creative practices involving cross-currency swaps by … wait for it … Goldman Sachs, which helped the Greek government paper over its debt so it could appear to be in line with its debt level obligations under its EU membership. Much of Greece’s current woes legitimately may be of its own making, but if default worked for Venezuela nine times during a 175 year period, the world is probably protesting too much over a possible Greek debt conflagration.

A jobless prescription that fails to address the illness

Paul Krugman and Todd G. Buchholz. One of these men is a Nobel Prize-winning economist. The other is not. And the one is not has the temerity to not only cavalierly blow off the Nobel Prize-winner’s explanation of the economy’s present woes but suggests replacing unemployment benefits with vouchers … umm a ‘signing bonus.’

Buchholz’s disconnect comes as no surprise. According to the ID tag line, he was a White House economic adviser to George H.W. Bush and a former managing director of the Tiger hedge fund. It’s not just that elected officials in Congress have put the needs of a few bond-holders over the needs of the many, it’s also the fact that job seekers are experiencing a systemic bias against the unemployed. The problem isn’t that the unemployed want to live on government benefits. The problem is that employers won’t hire them. A point made quite baldly recently by Sony Ericsson when it told job-seekers in a job listing "No unemployed candidates will be considered at all." An ad for Beacon Hill Staffing Group in Boston told prospective paralegals that “to be considered, candidates must be currently employed."

Some lawmakers, such as New York State Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins, have grasped the enormity of the problem and are considering legislative remedies to the problem. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is also taking a look into the issue to see how extensive the problem is and who, exactly, is being hurt (most likely minorities).

But with the Republican Congress playing chicken with the debt ceiling (and risking default) and engaging in “right wing social engineering” the prospects for any meaningful fix to the economy that benefits Main Street remains dim.

Clearly it doesn't take Nobel Prize-winning economist to see that the economy in general, and American workers in particular, are both in trouble. But the causes of the trouble are beyond Buchholz’s grasp. It’s easy to offer a solution for unemployment when you have a job. In the current environment, having a job is the only way to get a job. One can only hope that if Buchholz’s remedy is adopted, he’ll get a first-hand taste of unemployment and have to swallow is prescription whole.

GOP engineering a bureau's stillbirth

The Daily Show - Exclusive - Elizabeth Warren Extended Interview Pt. 1
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Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is set to begin its work on July 21. Despite Democratic support for Elizabeth Warren, Team Obama is considering naming a former banker, Raj Date, to head the bureau. But Congressional Republicans won’t have it. They are preparing to offer amendments designed to trap/spay/neuter the watchdog bureau before it can perform its mission: to protect consumers.

And while it may be a core tenant of conservatism that big government translates into lax morality, the irony seems lost on them that Wall Street bankers (whose morality was questionable at best) who played dice with the economy and got bailed out by the big government they decry will get a reprieve. Security and Exchange Commission rules that were supposed to go into effect June 16 as a result of the economic crisis will not go into effect. The bank lobby continues to fight against the bureau despite the fact that it might even help Wall Street long term interests. Of course this begs two questions: why is the GOP really fighting the bureau’s creation and whose interests are Congressional Republicans really serving?

Madama President

The Daily Show - Christine Lagarde
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Madam Hillary Clinton is reportedly setting her sights on a new post, that of President of the World Bank. After several years of being America's top diplomat (a post that once was for the heir despairing to the U.S. Presidency) she's setting her sights on running the world body. Of course, this all comes with the standard denials. It seems quite likely that at this crucial moment in time, the two top finance chairs may give way to women, with French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde actively campaigning for the lead role at the International Monetary Fund, the one vacated by Dominique Strauss-Kahn (who is currently cooling his heels in a $50,000 a month townhouse in Tribeca, Manhattan while waiting to go to trial).

In a season of alpha males behaving badly, maybe turning over the world's purse-strings to the ladies is for the best. Now if we just get America's alpha male U.S. President Barack Obama to get behind Elizabeth Warren get that small matter of her running of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau settled.

Stay for 'The Other Guys' end credits

If the movie "The Other Guys" turns out to be in any way memorable, it will be for these end titles. If these graphics don't get your stomach turning you either have scandal fatigue or you're not paying attention (or you're a clueless Wall Street investment banker, if so, you're not reading this blog anyway).

Total props to the gentle folk at Bleeding Cool. Thanks for sharing.

Bankers' Notes

The Finance Leaders of the world's largest economies took the weekend to consider the question of 'what do we do now?' The G-20 is, among other things, weighing the possibility of putting a cap in the bonuses of bankers. The proponents are the French and the Germans. The opponents are, as always, the US and the UK. The US did offer up a bank capital boost proposal slated for the Sept. 24 and 25 summit in Pittsburgh. The Europeans didn't care much for that. The third issue was stimulus spending, which everyone seemed to agree needed to remain on the table lest the current fragile, egg-shell world economy collapse once again. Unfortunately, wise guidance is in short supply. Divided and clueless, the Ivory Tower theorists are at both a remove and a loss over how to fix the current mess we're in. That has left Warren Buffett to put out a warning that the economy may still because of the aftershocks of the Great Recession. Creating a roadmap to fix the broken economy should be the number one priority of the upcoming summit. But with so many divides over how to do that, no one should expect miracles.

I was a Marvel, now I'm a Disney

Mickey, Minnie and ... Magneto? Now there's a combo only Goofy could love. Disney World is set to swallow the Marvel Universe for a tidy sum of $4 billion. At least one analyst is calling the deal a win-win situation. The Disney machine will allow Marvel franchises to stretch like Reed Richards and give the mouse access to a boy-dominated audience. Disney will honor Marvel's film distribution current contracts but it is likely that will change. This Team-Up of Hannah Montana and Iron Man may mean it's clobberin' time again for both houses.

Bernanke in the saddle again

President Obama has sentenced Ben Bernanke to a 4-year term as head of the Federal Reserve. While the decision was made to provide continued stability to the ecomony, it was probably because Bernanke knows where all the economic landmines are likely to be buried. Bernanke is alternately reviled and revered for his part in the Economic Meltdown that is now being called The Great Recession. Obama made the announcement during his vacation in Martha's Vineyard and the appointment will have to be approved by the Senate with Christopher Dodd vowing to hold "a thorough and comprehensive confirmation hearing.” The announcement was timed to give the markets the Obama Bump and to get ahead of White House deficit projections which put the deficit at $9 trillion over the next decade. While Bernanke promised "to help provide a solid foundation for growth and prosperity in an environment of price stability" the real test is if he can create the conditions for a healthy economy that lifts as many boats as possible while avoiding the danger of the tsunami of hyperinflation.

Desert Oil Survivor: Iraq

What if an oil-rich country held a development auction and nobody came? That's what happened this week in Iraq. Iraq's televised oil field development auction turned out to be a ratings loser. It was also a revenue loser for the government. By 5 p.m. Baghdad time, Monday, of more than three dozen oil firms, only BP and its fuel hungry partner, the China National Petroleum Corporation, acquired an immunity idol. Big Oil was looking for a price that was just right ... for them. Barriers to entry remain higher than what oil companies are prepared to pay. Experts are acknowledging that there is a Grand Canyon-sized chasm between the Iraqi government and the Big Oil. The Iraqis are not ruling out the possibility of further negotiations because the country needs the money to rebuild its shattered economy. Governmental infighting is partly to blame along with some right-guided paranoia about being taken for a ride by the oil companies. That there will be a television sequel is a given. Whether it will benefit the viewers in the long run remains to be seen.

Eulogy for Madoff

I'll let Burt Ross sum up:

"What Bernard L. Madoff did far transcends the loss of money, it involves his betrayal of the virtues people hold dearest—love, friendship, trust—and all just so he could eat at the finest restaurants, stay at the most luxurious resorts, and travel on yachts and private jets. He has truly earned his reputation for being the most despised person living in America today."

'Nuf said.

Stability.Growth.Jobs.

A joke about France and it's three values all revolved on the use of punctuation between them and went something like this:

"Liberty, Equality, Fraternity. Liberty (none!) Equality (none!) Fraternity (none).

One thinks of this joke looking at the G20 leaders standing together in front of the words "Stability, Growth, Jobs" in big, just off-white letters at the London conference. Everybody was lining up to lay claim to the success of the outing. They hammered out a six-point plan that will introduce more than $1 trillion into the world economy. The issues addressed included a boost for the IMF, an agreement over tax havens, a global trade agreement, fiscal stimulus on an individual nation basis, free trade, financial regulation and a crack down on bankers (although the idea of a global regulatory authority was a nonstarter for the Obama administration). But, as German Chancellor Angela Merkel pointed out, what matters is how the regulations she got passed work out in the real world. So we'll have to wait and see if the result is Stability (none!) Growth (none!) Jobs (none).

Hope they have an airbag

The antilock breaks on the auto industry finally engaged this morning. General Motors CEO Rick Wagoner was the bug on the windshield as Team Obama unveiled it's plan for the industry bailout. GM gets 60 days and Chrysler gets 30 days to show they deserve to be kept on life support rather then being sent to the chop shop. Chrysler is facing the prospect of a shotgun mixed marriage of inconvenience with Italian automaker Fiat. The news struck Wall Street (which had already been driven into the ditch) like a deer in the grill. The Dow dropped 288 points, probably on the theory that drunk drivers are better left behind the wheel than sent to jail. At least one of the auto giants is likely not to survive. And the blind flailing industry shouting out for help has only "no man" to blame but itself.

Go to jail, go directly to jail

There is much chatter about the anitclimax that was Bernard Madoff's day in court. He pleaded guilty to all counts. Victims were allowed to speak only if they objected to Madoff's guilty plea. "I cannot adequately express how sorry I am for my crimes." Umm, no, he can't. To do that, he'd have to come up with the $171 billion in restitution the prosecutors want and turn state's evidence. But that seems unlikely since he is refusing to cooperate with investigators. He's facing a possible 150 years in jail at his sentencing hearing set for June 16. Madoff is looking at a long stay as a guest of the federal government. Let's hope he lives long for prospering on the trust of his victims.

Stimulating the stimulus

Only a few days into the job and President Barack Obama is already facing trouble getting his signature legislation passed. Going on the stump in Hoosier Territory, he remains very popular but the stimulus package -- not so much. Part of it is the elephants in the room who won't play ball. Part of it may be that the public would rather have the $10,000 in their pocket rather than have their money handed over to someone else to boost the economy. But as the deal inches closer to passage some problems are likely to linger rather than get resolved. Don't expect any immediate miracles.

We told you so

What was so blindingly obvious to everyone on Main Street just became news to the Federal government and to Wall Street to day. The National Bureau of Economic Research released findings today saying that the economy has been in a recession since December of last year. It also turns out to be one of the longest downturns since the Great Depression. The DOW tanked in response losing 679.95 points. Federal Reserve Chairman and economic Nostradamus Ben Bernake, speaking from Austin, Texas, stated that the current economic weakness will be with us for a while and that “The likely duration of the financial turmoil is difficult to judge.” And while the Fed may cut interest rates yet again, they may be at the very end of what that could achieve. And while the pain that average Americans have been feeling has been very real, how long they'll have to endure it and what will cure it isn't so obvious.

Citigroup, come on down!

The newest winner in the U.S. Government's Bailout Sweepstakes is Citigroup. The bank and federal regulators hammered out a deal that will back loans and securities to the tune of $306 billion and putting another $20 billion directly into the company. Under the deal, the U.S. Government will buy 254 million shares at $10.61 each, which could generate a profit if Citigroup's stocks ever go up again. Now the $64,000 question is why Citigroup and not the Big 3 auto makers? Good question, and some are mulling that one over. Detroit just didn't have a winning entry in this gameshow.