Analysis Topic: Politics & Social Trends
The analysis published under this topic are as follows.
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Financial Industry Regulations, There Needs To Be Consequences / Politics / Market Regulation
By: Sy_Harding
Rob a bank and you know you’ll go to prison if you’re caught. Fail to pay your taxes and you’ll personally pay a large penalty and perhaps spend time in prison. Drive your car recklessly and you know you’ll pay if you’re caught. Make bad or careless decisions in your business and the result could be bankruptcy.
Friday, April 23, 2010
Greece Debt Bailout Ulterior Motive? / Politics / Global Debt Crisis
By: Money_Morning
Jon D. Markman writes: Since back in December, when Fitch Ratings Inc. slashed its credit rating on Greece's debt to below investment grade for the first time in 10 years, there's been a mind-numbing flood of media coverage of that European country's debt crisis.
And yet, despite high-volume of high-level media coverage, none of the stories have picked up on a very basic - yet very key - fact...
Friday, April 23, 2010
Heavy-Handed Politics Could Boost Bank Reform, Stock Prices and the Economy / Politics / Credit Crisis 2010
By: Money_Morning
Shah Gilani writes: Defenders of Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) say the civil fraud charges the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has levied against the investment-banking giant are without foundation, and are politically timed to push President Barack Obama's bank-reform agenda.
Friday, April 23, 2010
Obama Eyes VAT Take Hike, IMF Proposes $300 Billion Tax on Financial Institutions / Politics / Taxes
By: Mike_Shedlock
So much for the idea that Obama only wanted to raise taxes on the wealthy. He now is pondering raising taxes on everyone to pay for his bailout schemes and healthcare agenda.
Friday, April 23, 2010
Asking a Better Question About Who to Blame for the Financial Crisis / Politics / Credit Crisis 2010
By: Tim_Iacono
One look at yet one more story about how the world should assess and assign blame for the ongoing financial crisis, this one appearing over at the Wall Street Journal Real Time Economics Blog the other day titled No Resolution in Sight in Fed Blame Game, has belatedly brought me to the conclusion that, for years now, nearly everybody has been asking the wrong question about blame for the financial crisis.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Nazarbayev’s Successful Diplomacy in Kyrgyzstan Signals Deeper Strategic Shifts / Politics / GeoPolitics
By: OilPrice_Com
The recent crisis and instability in Kyrgyzstan, highlighted the fragility of security and the potential weakness of the political systems throughout the region and exposed new dimensions in the conduct of Kazakhstan’s foreign policy that may well prove pivotal for US energy interests in the Caspian Sea region. These complexities, often disguised or downplayed by the national governments in the region, attest to the deep political fault lines running through Eurasia as well as the potential for events in one state to ignite potential cross-border discontent and instability elsewhere. Read full article... Read full article...
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) Conflict of Interest in Market Transactions / Politics / Market Manipulation
By: PhilStockWorld
Ilene writes: FINRA may have potential massive conflicts of interests in its dealing with its internal investment portfolio. A clear example is FINRA’s behavior with its Auction Rate Securities. Evidence suggests FINRA sold its Auction Rate Securities months before the market collapsed. Insider information or really good luck?
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Lehmans Failure a Story of Fraud / Politics / Credit Crisis 2010
By: Mike_Whitney
On Tuesday, Former regulator William Black appeared before the House Committee on Financial Services and beat the living-tar out of Lehman CEO Dick Fuld for 8 full minutes. It was a moment of sheer, unalloyed pleasure that will be savored for a long time to come.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Uprisings Against the New World Order: Thailand, Kyrgyzstan, and Revolution / Politics / New World Order
By: Shamus_Cooke
Are revolutions happening in Thailand and Kyrgyzstan? Are they instead “uprisings”? Does it matter? The distinction is important insofar as it helps to educate others inspired by these recent events, with hopes to radically change their own political and economic systems.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Revolution in Central Asia: Who's Next? / Politics / GeoPolitics
By: OilPrice_Com
On April 7, 2010 the President of Kyrgyzstan Kurmanbek Bakiyev fled the capital city of Bishkek that was under a state of emergency after antigovernment protesters started clashing with security forces following incidents that started in the Northern city of Talas, close to the Kazakhstan border. By the end of April 7, Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty was reporting 40 dead and 400 wounded, numbers that have over doubled since. In this context, one can only wonder which country in Central Asia could be next, if any, and which Central Asian leader could find himself out of a job and possibly on an airplane.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Propaganda from the Mainstream Press on the SEC-Goldman Case / Politics / Mainstream Media
By: Mike_Stathis
I want you to read an article by the Associated Press. As you will see, it was very deficient, hardly critical of the SEC and the banking fraud, and left out key issues.
This is just another example how the media brainwashes the public. I run across this type of deceit all day every day. The article is in italics. My comments follow.
Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Geithner and the NY Fed Accused of Covering Up Lehman's Fraud / Politics / Credit Crisis 2010
By: Mike_Shedlock
Inquiring minds are digging into a 27 page statement made by William Black before the Financial Services committee. Black is an Associate Professor of Economics and Law, at the University of Missouri.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
U.S. In the Midst of the Greater Depression, Fourth Turning Generational Crisis / Politics / US Politics
By: James_Quinn
“Now I want you to remember that no bastard ever won a war by dying for his country. He won it by making the other poor dumb bastard die for his country. Now there's another thing I want you to remember. I don't want to get any messages saying that "we are holding our position." We're not holding anything. Let the Hun do that. We are advancing constantly and we're not interested in holding onto anything except the enemy. We're going to hold onto him by the nose and we're going to kick him in the ass. We're going to kick the hell out of him all the time and we're going to go through him like crap through a goose!”
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
"High Frequency" Financial Trading is Wall Street High-tech Highway Robbery / Politics / Market Regulation
By: Mike_Whitney
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) knows that High-Frequency Trading (HFT) manipulates the market and bilks investors out of tens of billions of dollars every year. But SEC chairman Mary Schapiro refuses to step in and take action. Instead, she's concocted an elaborate "information gathering" scheme, that does nothing to address the main problem. Schapiro's plan--to track large blocks of trades by large institutional investors-- is an attempt to placate congress while the big Wall Street HFT traders continue to rake in obscene profits. It achieves nothing, except provide the cover Schapiro needs to avoid doing her job.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
The Criminalization of Wall Street, Lynching Bankers is not the Solution / Politics / Credit Crisis 2010
By: Global_Research
Six out ten Americans have a hostile view of Wall Street, according to a recent poll. And this survey was taken before the news last week that the US government is charging top Wall Street bank Goldman Sachs and its vice president with fraud over trade in mortgages and derivatives. The charge is serious, given that Goldman Sachs is accused of being aware that there would be an imminent collapse in the US housing market. Nevertheless, the bank went ahead anyway, merrily trading its toxic assets.
Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Goldman Sachs and the Mega Banks: Too Big To Obey The Law / Politics / Credit Crisis 2010
By: Global_Research
Simon Johnson writes: On a short-term tactical basis, Goldman Sachs clearly has little to fear. It has relatively deep pockets and will fight the securities “Fab” allegations tooth and nail; resolving that case, through all the appeals stages, will take many years. Friday’s announcement had a significant negative impact on the market perception of Goldman’s franchise value – partly because what they are accused of doing to unsuspecting customers is so disgusting. But, as a Bank of America analyst (Guy Mozkowski) points out this morning, the dollar amount of this specific allegation is small relative to Goldman’s overall business and – frankly – Goldman’s market position is so strong that most customers feel a lack of plausible alternatives.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Moscow Ascending, How Turkey’s New Axis With Russia Affects U.S. Interests / Politics / GeoPolitics
By: OilPrice_Com
We have, in the past year, entered an entirely new dynamic in Eastern Mediterranean and South-East European strategic affairs. We are in a period and a region in which Russia, not the West, is taking the key initiatives and has much of the advantage. This is particularly significant given that Russian policymaking receives scant attention in US and other Western media, and remains as opaque to Western analysts as it was during the Cold War era when Russia was veiled by an Iron Curtain. At least during the Cold War, the West threw its best intellects into attempting to understand Russia and the Soviet Union.
Monday, April 19, 2010
How the Goldman Sachs Fraud Case Could Accelerate Wall Street Financial Reform / Politics / Market Regulation
By: Money_Morning
Martin Hutchinson writes: When the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced Friday that it had filed a fraud action against Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS), the news hit the financial markets like a carefully targeted bomb.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Audit the Fed and End the Mandate / Politics / US Politics
By: Dr_Ron_Paul
Last week I introduced a very important piece of legislation that I hope will gain as much or more support as my Audit the Fed bill. HR 4995, the End the Mandate Act will repeal provisions of the newly passed health insurance reform bill that give the government the power to force Americans to purchase government-approved health insurance.
Read full article... Read full article...
Monday, April 19, 2010
ProPublica's (and NY Times') "Untold" Magnetar Story Creates Excuses for Wall Street and Washington / Politics / Credit Crisis 2010
By: Janet_Tavakoli
ProPublica, Planet Money, and radio show This American Life recently carried stories about Magnetar, a hedge fund that profited from the housing crisis. Unfortunately, many thought it was a fresh revelation. Magnetar wasn't a previously unknown hedge fund. Magnetar did not create the synthetic CDO structure, and the magnitude of Magnetar's role in the subprime crisis has been overblown.