SAR #9152

If I were you I wouldn’t start from here.

Demetris

Harsh Words: We mentioned previously that US Treasury borrowing would undoubtedly cause interest rates to rise, no mater what Mr. Bernanke might want. Being a somber, staid, reserved blog, we did not use the words: Virulent, embryonic, debilitating, troubling, punishing, fading, slumping, hinder or harbinger. But we could have.

Decisions, Decisions: The US taxpayer owns GM and are going to bring in some guy from K-Mart to run it. But 11 plants have been tagged for closure, etc. etc. Can we put a face on who is making these decisions now? Who is running our company?

Replay/Preview: Over 6 million have been displaced by Cyclone Aila in Bangladesh/India. Millions are still without food and potable water. In case you hadn't heard.

Bleeds, Leads: In the public arena, the unimportant but urgent beats out the important but remote. Thus the US is obligating some $16 trillion to save an economy that will be destroyed by carbon dioxide and global warming, on which the US is spending $6.72.

Fever? More than half the cities in the S&P/Case-Shiller Index are now below their 2000 inflation-adjusted price levels. Bargains? Detroit & Cleveland?

Bigger Mousetrap: Harvard Prof Niall Ferguson points out that countries do go bust. Especially those which have created immense debts trying to stimulate their economies. Ireland, Italy, Belgium and the UK were mentioned - in that order - by name. The US didn't make his list.

Somebody's Law: The number of rigs drilling for natural gas has fallen to the lowest level in over six years. So has the price of natural gas. Actually, neither is natural.

Just the Facts: Only 2% of scientists admit fabricating or falsifying data, but 34% acknowledge "failing to present data that contradict one's own previous research". The author of the report did not vouch for his data.

My Question, Exactly: "If Iraq was a Mistake, Why are We Still There?"

Bottom Line: Arnold says California must live within its means. Which means, "Quite frankly, people are going to die," says Bonnie Castillo of the California Nurses Association. "The vulnerable, the sick, children, the elderly, are all going to have the rug pulled out from under them." Thank the Founding Fathers did not opt for direct democracy.

Paint Your Wagon: Over 3 million have been displaced by the initial battles in the matter of Pakistan vs the Taliban.

Factual Errors: Which of the following is false? (a) You should warm up before exercise. (b) Eggs are bad for you. (c) Shaving makes hair coarser. (d) You need 8 glasses of water a day. Answer: All of them. And no, you won't go blind.

$tabilized: The economy has stopped falling quite so fast, and it only cost us $30 trillion, plus our futures, our children's futures, and their kid's futures.

Implosion: S&P predicts losses on Commercial Mortgage Backed Securities for the best tranches of the 2005 vintage need be downgraded 25%, for 2006 some 60% and the 2007's by 90%. Market values have dropped $75 billion since the announcement. Worse, a downgrade will make these CMBS ineligible for TALF funds. Unless the Fed changes the rules the banks won't get to stick the taxpayer with these losses. Hands, now, all in favor of changing the rules?

Weekend Getaway: Here, just in time for planning your summer vacation, is a review of the attractions and sights available in Mogadishu - a forgotten gem on the African coast, pacified by the 101st Airborne some time back.

Faster, Faster: The FDIC warns that the quality of loans held by American banks is the worst in a quarter century and are deteriorating at the fastest pace ever. The FDIC did not mention that it hasn't got near enough funds to bail out any significant percent of them.

Porn O'Graph: Who's how deep under?