Traveling
13 years ago
Thursday, December 18, 2008
WHO CARES MADOFF?
Even though this guy ripped off nearly 50 billion dollars the DOW has gained 5% as well as the S&P and the NASDAQ have both gained. People really aren't giving this guy his 15 minutes of fame, actullaly he got just about that. People really don't care what other people are doing right now.
COAL REBOUND
Investers feel that Peabody is poised for a recovery. They feel that coal is going to come back and that Peabody will be leading to the charge. This from and aritcle from Yahoo Finanace. http://biz.yahoo.com/indie/081218/1606_id.html?.v=1
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Bush Says Government Won't Help
President Bush is meeting with world leaders to discuss plans to help the global economy. Bush is quoted saying, "Government intervention is not a cure all." Which came as a suprise to some since he had to sign and approve the bailout plan.
Bush: Intervention not "cure-all" for crisis
By BEN FELLER, Associated Press Writer Ben Feller, Associated Press Writer
1 hr 1 min ago
NEW YORK – Asserting the global financial crisis is "not a failure of the free market," President George W. Bush on Thursday called on the world leaders meeting this weekend to agree on a modest set of reforms aimed at preventing future collapses.
Bush's main message to the leaders about to converge on Washington: Reforms won't help if abandon the free market and restrict trade.
"Government intervention is not a cure-all," Bush was to say in a speech here, according to prepared remarks released in advance by the White House.
The president was delivering a vigorous defense of free-market capitalism and easier global trade to frame his approach to the high-level gathering he's hosting in Washington this weekend. Bush invited representatives of some of the world's biggest industrial democracies, emerging nations and international bodies to Washington to start developing a more coordinated world response to the economic woes that have millions of people struggling to keep their jobs, their homes and their hopes.
With the severe economic downturn threatening to end Bush's tenure on a sour note before President-elect Barack Obama takes over, he will host the leaders at a White House dinner Friday and review causes and solutions for the financial mess Saturday.
It was fitting that Bush's argument against regulatory overreach was being delivered not in Washington but from the heart of Wall Street. His speech venue was the venerable Federal Hall that was home to the first Congress and is within shouting distance of New York Stock Exchange.
Bush called for reforming the global economy to strengthen it long-term and said leaders at this weekend's meeting would "discuss specific actions we can take."
Among the possible agreements, Bush listed:
_bolstering accounting rules for stocks, bonds and other investments so investors have a clearer sense of the true value of what they buy.
_requiring "credit default swaps" — a type of corporate debt insurance — to be processed through a central clearinghouse. That would help provide crucial information on the parties involved in these complex, unregulated products. Prices for this insurance soared in the aftermath of the Lehman Brothers' bankruptcy and imperiled American International Group, a major insurer of this kind of corporate debt.
_taking a fresh look at rules aimed at preventing fraud and manipulation in trading of stocks and other securities.
_better coordinating financial regulations among countries.
_Giving a wider variety of countries voting power at the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
Notably absent from his speech was any talk about what the U.S. might do to bail out the troubled auto industry or the debate over a second U.S. stimulus package.
"The crisis was not a failure of the free market system," Bush said. "And the answer is not to try to reinvent that system."
Bush's case against excessive government intervention comes as some critics think his administration already is doing just that. The federal dollars being spent or put on the line to rebuild the nation's financial system could easily run into the trillions. Already the Bush administration has enacted a $700 financial rescue package, backed the purchase of investment bank Bear Stearns, bought stock in leading banks, engineered a government takeover of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, guaranteed money market fund holdings and funneled billions to stabilize troubled insurance giant American International Group.
At the same time, the president aggressively defended the U.S. against charges from around the world that it was insufficient regulation in his country that led to the credit collapse worldwide. This was his way of pushing back against both the criticism and the calls by allies for more intrusive rules. Heading into the meeting, Europeans are seen as looking more urgently for broad changes and tighter universal banking regulations than is the United States.
"Many European countries had much more extensive regulations and still experienced problems almost identical to our own," Bush said.
Some critics have said that lax oversight by regulators in the U.S. and elsewhere failed to detect problems and respond with action that could have prevented the meltdown. The crisis began with the collapse of the U.S. housing market, which froze credit, then the broader financial sector and finally rippled overseas.
"History has shown that the greater threat to economic prosperity is not too little government involvement in the market but too much," Bush said. "It would a terrible mistake to allow a few months of crisis to undermine 60 years of success."
Dan Price, Bush's deputy national security adviser for international economic affairs, rejected suggestions of discord with other nations and said it was "grossly inaccurate" to suggest the U.S. was not taking a firm lead in reform.
"We are no less committed to fixing the problems, and addressing regulatory and other deficiencies, than any other leader," he said.
While in New York, the president addressed a United Nations conference on religious tolerance and met privately with King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia.
The summit is just the first in a series intended to deal with the enormity of the economic meltdown, and the next meeting won't be until after Bush leaves office on Jan. 20.
In the United States alone, the nation's jobless ranks zoomed past 10 million last month, the most in a quarter-century, as 240,000 more people lost jobs. In the latest dire sign, American automakers say they are struggling to survive.
Obama is steering clear of the summit but will have a couple representatives available to meet with leaders on his behalf.
Besides the United States, the countries represented will be Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Britain, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea and Turkey. Those countries and the European Union make up the so-called G-20.
Copyright © 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
Bush: Intervention not "cure-all" for crisis
By BEN FELLER, Associated Press Writer Ben Feller, Associated Press Writer
1 hr 1 min ago
NEW YORK – Asserting the global financial crisis is "not a failure of the free market," President George W. Bush on Thursday called on the world leaders meeting this weekend to agree on a modest set of reforms aimed at preventing future collapses.
Bush's main message to the leaders about to converge on Washington: Reforms won't help if abandon the free market and restrict trade.
"Government intervention is not a cure-all," Bush was to say in a speech here, according to prepared remarks released in advance by the White House.
The president was delivering a vigorous defense of free-market capitalism and easier global trade to frame his approach to the high-level gathering he's hosting in Washington this weekend. Bush invited representatives of some of the world's biggest industrial democracies, emerging nations and international bodies to Washington to start developing a more coordinated world response to the economic woes that have millions of people struggling to keep their jobs, their homes and their hopes.
With the severe economic downturn threatening to end Bush's tenure on a sour note before President-elect Barack Obama takes over, he will host the leaders at a White House dinner Friday and review causes and solutions for the financial mess Saturday.
It was fitting that Bush's argument against regulatory overreach was being delivered not in Washington but from the heart of Wall Street. His speech venue was the venerable Federal Hall that was home to the first Congress and is within shouting distance of New York Stock Exchange.
Bush called for reforming the global economy to strengthen it long-term and said leaders at this weekend's meeting would "discuss specific actions we can take."
Among the possible agreements, Bush listed:
_bolstering accounting rules for stocks, bonds and other investments so investors have a clearer sense of the true value of what they buy.
_requiring "credit default swaps" — a type of corporate debt insurance — to be processed through a central clearinghouse. That would help provide crucial information on the parties involved in these complex, unregulated products. Prices for this insurance soared in the aftermath of the Lehman Brothers' bankruptcy and imperiled American International Group, a major insurer of this kind of corporate debt.
_taking a fresh look at rules aimed at preventing fraud and manipulation in trading of stocks and other securities.
_better coordinating financial regulations among countries.
_Giving a wider variety of countries voting power at the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
Notably absent from his speech was any talk about what the U.S. might do to bail out the troubled auto industry or the debate over a second U.S. stimulus package.
"The crisis was not a failure of the free market system," Bush said. "And the answer is not to try to reinvent that system."
Bush's case against excessive government intervention comes as some critics think his administration already is doing just that. The federal dollars being spent or put on the line to rebuild the nation's financial system could easily run into the trillions. Already the Bush administration has enacted a $700 financial rescue package, backed the purchase of investment bank Bear Stearns, bought stock in leading banks, engineered a government takeover of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, guaranteed money market fund holdings and funneled billions to stabilize troubled insurance giant American International Group.
At the same time, the president aggressively defended the U.S. against charges from around the world that it was insufficient regulation in his country that led to the credit collapse worldwide. This was his way of pushing back against both the criticism and the calls by allies for more intrusive rules. Heading into the meeting, Europeans are seen as looking more urgently for broad changes and tighter universal banking regulations than is the United States.
"Many European countries had much more extensive regulations and still experienced problems almost identical to our own," Bush said.
Some critics have said that lax oversight by regulators in the U.S. and elsewhere failed to detect problems and respond with action that could have prevented the meltdown. The crisis began with the collapse of the U.S. housing market, which froze credit, then the broader financial sector and finally rippled overseas.
"History has shown that the greater threat to economic prosperity is not too little government involvement in the market but too much," Bush said. "It would a terrible mistake to allow a few months of crisis to undermine 60 years of success."
Dan Price, Bush's deputy national security adviser for international economic affairs, rejected suggestions of discord with other nations and said it was "grossly inaccurate" to suggest the U.S. was not taking a firm lead in reform.
"We are no less committed to fixing the problems, and addressing regulatory and other deficiencies, than any other leader," he said.
While in New York, the president addressed a United Nations conference on religious tolerance and met privately with King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia.
The summit is just the first in a series intended to deal with the enormity of the economic meltdown, and the next meeting won't be until after Bush leaves office on Jan. 20.
In the United States alone, the nation's jobless ranks zoomed past 10 million last month, the most in a quarter-century, as 240,000 more people lost jobs. In the latest dire sign, American automakers say they are struggling to survive.
Obama is steering clear of the summit but will have a couple representatives available to meet with leaders on his behalf.
Besides the United States, the countries represented will be Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Britain, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea and Turkey. Those countries and the European Union make up the so-called G-20.
Copyright © 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
Friday, November 7, 2008
What I Think About the Obama Aritcal
Obama has to make an important decision about his upcoming presidency. He wants to make the middle class stronger, but before he can do that he needs to select a Secretary of the Tresury.
OBAMA
Print Back to story
Obama meets with economic experts for advice
By NEDRA PICKLER, Associated Press Writer Nedra Pickler, Associated Press Writer
35 mins ago
CHICAGO – President-elect Obama met with economic experts Friday to discuss ways to stabilize the teetering U.S. economy that is expected to dominate his transition to power and early days in office.
Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden convened a meeting of the transition economic advisory board, a high-powered collection of business, academic and government leaders. They included Lawrence Summers, who some have mentioned as a candidate for Treasury secretary, a post he held in the Clinton administration; Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm, whose state has been hit hard by losses in the auto industry; Google CEO Eric Schmidt; and former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker.
Rahm Emanuel, who will be Obama's White House chief of staff, also participated in the meeting.
"We're not starting from nowhere," Summers told NBC's "Today" show. "Throughout his campaign the president-elect has been talking about what we need to do. We need to put the middle class at the center of the policy approach in a way that it hasn't been these last years."
Other participants in the meeting included executives from Xerox Corp., Time Warner Inc.; and the Hyatt hotel company. Investor Warren Buffett was calling in by telephone.
Obama also was holding his first news conference as president-elect after the meeting.
It was to be Obama's first public appearance since Tuesday's election, where exit polls showed that the economy was far and away the top issue for voters. More evidence of a recession came Friday when the government reported that the unemployment rate had jumped from 6.1 percent in September to 6.5 percent in October.
Obama has been meeting privately with his transition team, receiving congratulatory phone calls from U.S. allies and intelligence briefings, and making decisions about who will help run his government.
His first choice, for White House chief of staff, was Rahm Emanuel, a fiery partisan unafraid of breaking glass and hurting feelings. The choice of Emanuel is a significant departure from the soft-spoken, low-key aides that "No-Drama Obama" surrounded himself with during the campaign. And transition chief John Podesta, like Emanuel, is a former top aide to President Clinton and a tough partisan infighter, though less bombastic than the new chief of staff.
The selections are telling for Obama, who campaigned as a nontraditional, almost "post-partisan" newcomer. People close to him say the selections show he is aware of his strengths and weaknesses, and knows what he needs to be successful as he shifts from campaigning to governing.
Transition spokeswoman Stephanie Cutter said Obama would not announce any personnel appointments Friday.
One person frequently mentioned for a Cabinet post, Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell, will not be available until 2011, say officials close to him. Rendell has two years left of his term, and Lt. Gov. Catherine Baker Knoll, a Democrat, is ailing. Next in line to be governor is the Republican president pro tempore the state Senate.
Rather than take the chance that the GOP would gain control of the governor's office, Rendell has signaled he will stay put for the time being.
On Friday morning, Obama and his wife, Michelle, attended a parent-teacher conference at the University of Chicago Lab School where their daughters, Malia and Sasha, are students. The couple planned to visit the White House on Monday at President Bush's invitation.
Obama planned to stay home through the weekend, with a blackout on news announcements so he and his staff can rest after the grueling campaign and the rush of Tuesday night's victory. He is planning a family getaway to Hawaii in December before they move to the White House, and to honor his grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, who died Sunday at her home there.
Obama, who bested Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination, has made it clear he will rely heavily on veterans of her husband's eight-year administration, the only Democratic presidency in the past 28 years.
Podesta was President Clinton's chief of staff, and several other former Clinton aides are on Obama's short lists for key jobs, Democratic officials say. Some helped write a large briefing book on how to govern, assembled under Podesta's supervision.
Obama also is certain to bring to the White House a cadre of longtime aides like senior adviser David Axelrod and press secretary Robert Gibbs. Both have worked closely with Obama since he ran for the Senate in 2004.
Obama meets with economic experts for advice
By NEDRA PICKLER, Associated Press Writer Nedra Pickler, Associated Press Writer
35 mins ago
CHICAGO – President-elect Obama met with economic experts Friday to discuss ways to stabilize the teetering U.S. economy that is expected to dominate his transition to power and early days in office.
Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden convened a meeting of the transition economic advisory board, a high-powered collection of business, academic and government leaders. They included Lawrence Summers, who some have mentioned as a candidate for Treasury secretary, a post he held in the Clinton administration; Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm, whose state has been hit hard by losses in the auto industry; Google CEO Eric Schmidt; and former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker.
Rahm Emanuel, who will be Obama's White House chief of staff, also participated in the meeting.
"We're not starting from nowhere," Summers told NBC's "Today" show. "Throughout his campaign the president-elect has been talking about what we need to do. We need to put the middle class at the center of the policy approach in a way that it hasn't been these last years."
Other participants in the meeting included executives from Xerox Corp., Time Warner Inc.; and the Hyatt hotel company. Investor Warren Buffett was calling in by telephone.
Obama also was holding his first news conference as president-elect after the meeting.
It was to be Obama's first public appearance since Tuesday's election, where exit polls showed that the economy was far and away the top issue for voters. More evidence of a recession came Friday when the government reported that the unemployment rate had jumped from 6.1 percent in September to 6.5 percent in October.
Obama has been meeting privately with his transition team, receiving congratulatory phone calls from U.S. allies and intelligence briefings, and making decisions about who will help run his government.
His first choice, for White House chief of staff, was Rahm Emanuel, a fiery partisan unafraid of breaking glass and hurting feelings. The choice of Emanuel is a significant departure from the soft-spoken, low-key aides that "No-Drama Obama" surrounded himself with during the campaign. And transition chief John Podesta, like Emanuel, is a former top aide to President Clinton and a tough partisan infighter, though less bombastic than the new chief of staff.
The selections are telling for Obama, who campaigned as a nontraditional, almost "post-partisan" newcomer. People close to him say the selections show he is aware of his strengths and weaknesses, and knows what he needs to be successful as he shifts from campaigning to governing.
Transition spokeswoman Stephanie Cutter said Obama would not announce any personnel appointments Friday.
One person frequently mentioned for a Cabinet post, Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell, will not be available until 2011, say officials close to him. Rendell has two years left of his term, and Lt. Gov. Catherine Baker Knoll, a Democrat, is ailing. Next in line to be governor is the Republican president pro tempore the state Senate.
Rather than take the chance that the GOP would gain control of the governor's office, Rendell has signaled he will stay put for the time being.
On Friday morning, Obama and his wife, Michelle, attended a parent-teacher conference at the University of Chicago Lab School where their daughters, Malia and Sasha, are students. The couple planned to visit the White House on Monday at President Bush's invitation.
Obama planned to stay home through the weekend, with a blackout on news announcements so he and his staff can rest after the grueling campaign and the rush of Tuesday night's victory. He is planning a family getaway to Hawaii in December before they move to the White House, and to honor his grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, who died Sunday at her home there.
Obama, who bested Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination, has made it clear he will rely heavily on veterans of her husband's eight-year administration, the only Democratic presidency in the past 28 years.
Podesta was President Clinton's chief of staff, and several other former Clinton aides are on Obama's short lists for key jobs, Democratic officials say. Some helped write a large briefing book on how to govern, assembled under Podesta's supervision.
Obama also is certain to bring to the White House a cadre of longtime aides like senior adviser David Axelrod and press secretary Robert Gibbs. Both have worked closely with Obama since he ran for the Senate in 2004.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Friday, October 31, 2008
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