II.  Under the Spreading Chestnut Tree

—

I. In the land of Pinocchio: Liar Liar, Pope on Fire

An article yesterday in the Financial had an interesting take on the recent evolution of corporate responsibility  (Nike ushers in a new age of corporate responsibility), following Nike’s publication of a detailed report on all of its subcontractors:

See below for more details and some comments.

Cont. reading: Nike, Wal-Mart, Corporate Responsibility and Activism

II. Debt to Society

“Bankruptcy should always be a last resort in our legal system. If someone does not pay his or her debts, the rest of society ends up paying them.”

I. The Lessons of Munich

The Fuehrer thanked Chamberlain for his words and told him that he had similar hopes. As he had already stated several times, the Czech problem was the last territorial demand which he had to make in Europe.

Mercedes 320 CDI, 2002 model, only 400 km, full panoramic roof.

(Isn’t the new guy from Munich, thus a Beemer guy?)

Use as another B 2squaresquare thread.

Link to the forerunner

Graphs speak louder than words:

(From the Financial Times – behind subscription wall)

Cont. reading: Left vs Right and the Economy

III. Scoundrel Time

Ann may think her cover photo was unflattering (a crime against humanity would be my term for it) but the write up was pure journalistic cunnilingus – and John Cloud appears to have a very long tongue.

In the past few days, the Financial Times has run several stories, including a full page article today, on CDOs (collateralised debt obligations) and the potential risks they present to the financial system.

CDOs are a way to repackage a portfolio of existing financial assets (usually bonds or loans) into new tranches, which are built so as to have different riskiness. (see more explanations below)

Last year alone, the cash value of all CDOs issued and sold to investors in Europe and America reached $120bn – nearly equivalent to all European corporate bond issuance in 2004.

The CDO market has been tested on a small scale by market jolts before – and come out relatively well – but it has never suffered a serious upheaval while so many investors hold so many highly leveraged instruments.

"We are in uncharted territory," admits one policymaker. "If a crisis hits, we think the market will absorb shocks smoothly – but the truth is that no one knows for sure."

Cont. reading: Financial Scare of the Week: CDOs

Cardinal Ratzinger of Germany Is New Pope

Thank god for him already being 78.

—

also Billmon’s post: Heil Ratzinger

II. Heil Ratzinger (discussion on Ratzinger in the above thread)

—

I. A Falling Out Among Thieves

The Nelson Report is a Washington D.C. political insider brief written by Chris Nelson. Yesterdays brief includes a strong essay copied on the blogs of Steve Clemons and Laura Rozen.

It is frightening and deserves a serious bar discussion:

    BOLTON BATTLE…the real fight

    If the fight over John Bolton’s UN nomination were just about John Bolton, he’d be history already. But this isn’t about Bolton, it’s about the exercise of power. Same thing with House Majority Leader Tom DeLay.

Cont. reading: “The Real Fight”

III. Eva Braun – Woman of the Year

—

II.  Playing for Keeps

Frist and DeLay and the rest of the Rove gang may not have any kind of grand design for a GOP Thousand Year Reich, but rather may be acting like the Easter Islander I talked about in an earlier post — the one who cut down the last remaining tree on the island.

—

I.  See the thread below on the Billmon piece: Fuel Shortage

by diogenes (lifted from a recent comment)

I will provide you with a very rare glimpse into my personal life and experience. I usually reserve such digressions for more intimate audiences, but but this is a very good bar and the topic demands it. So I will abandon the academic I am now and part time humorist to tell you of Diogenes the preacher of many years ago. After a sherry, of course.

In the early 1970’s, …

Cont. reading: After a Sherry

A big picture economy review: Fuel Shortage

For the financial markets, last week had a ugly feel to it, both on Wall Street and globally. It wasn’t a crash, certainly, but also more than just a garden-variety correction. It felt like the preliminary stages of a sea change in sentiment — the kind that either accompanies the popping of a bubble, or causes it, depending on your economic point of view.

…

Open thread and a link to the elder one

I see a theme in the following diaries read on dKos or elsewhere:

Forced Confessions: Third Time The Charm (by bellatrys on why the Salem Witch Trials hold a key to our present disaster)

Bush Administration tells girls to sit down and shut up (by lorraine, one of the more thoughtful diarists on dKos)

An Ex-Theocrat Speaks: They’re Crazy Like Foxes (by bellatrys, this link was posted in one of the threads but the discussion was then focusing on unions)

all summed up by Bob Johnson‘s post (Bob Johnson is one of dKos’s official clowns, so a fully humorless post from him is really striking…)

It’s the Jews

Do you worry? Are you scared? Or are “they” overreaching? Or is it that “It can’t happen here”?
But go read the links anyway.

The title is an obvious wink and a nod to our barkeep, but the topic is probably not the one you’ll expect (although, coming from me, you won’t really be surprised…)

This is about a story that comes up again every now and then (and of course in the Michael Moore movie) and I try to shoot it down each times in a few lines, usually met with skepticism or mockery: the Trans-Afghanistan Pipeline.

So here is the long version, once in for all, for future reference whenever this topic comes up.

Cont. reading: Mike Moore is Wrong

I am worried that this weeks downleg in the financial markets will go on longer and deeper
than most people expect. The dark clouds have been hanging around for
month, last week saw some rain and higher winds. The financial storm is
rising.

Cont. reading: Tough Love

V: The One True Frist

—

IV: Man of the Hour

But now they’re going after the Progressive Era — first the inheritance tax (1916), then the income tax (1913) to be followed, no doubt in the fullness of time, the Food and Drug Act, the Interstate Commerce Act and the Sherman Act … .

So many laws, so much repealing to do before the Lord returns. And at this point it isn’t too hard to imagine what the Republican Jesus will look like.

Your news, views and visions  –  and a link to the forerunner