From the Daily Record:
NJ tax appeals produce windfalls for residents, shortfalls for municipalities
Property tax assessment appeals are producing windfalls for property owners in New Jersey, returning about $80 million this year to those who won their cases in front of county tax boards and tax courts.
But those appeals are busting municipal budgets.
More than 74,000 property tax appeals were filed in New Jersey this year, the most since 1992, a result of the continued decline in property values since a real estate market peak in early 2007.
…
Generally, towns are required to make property owners whole by issuing credits on fourth quarter tax bills.Municipal officials can set aside money to cover the credits, but they must guess at how much the credits will amount to because results of disputes aren’t known before the budgeting process begins.
…
Atlantic City owes more than $9 million to those who successfully contested tax assessments. Monroe in Middlesex County is on the hook for $5 million.The squeeze for many towns has prompted support in the state Legislature for revamping the state’s property assessment administration.
…
A survey of town officials by the New Jersey State League of Municipalities showed that tax boards have granted average property value reductions of close to $5,000 per appeal, said William Dressel, the league’s executive director.
…
Dressel said his organization is reviewing the proposal. Meanwhile, Dressel said he plans to “encourage the Legislature to recognize the budgetary impact of the large and growing number of successful property tax appeals. There must be methods and programs designed to smooth the problem during this transitional period, as municipalities all around the state see their tax base shrink.”
From the NY Times:
White House Urges Calm on Lenders
Amid a rising uproar over slipshod bank foreclosure practices, members of the Obama administration on Sunday expressed anger about the revelations, but urged caution as multiple investigations into the crisis unfold.
In a piece posted on the Huffington Post Web site, Shaun Donovan, the secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, wrote: “The notion that many of the very same institutions that helped cause this housing crisis may well be making it worse is not only frustrating — it’s shameful.”
But, he added, “a national, blanket moratorium on all foreclosure sales would do far more harm than good, hurting homeowners and home buyers alike at a time when foreclosed homes make up 25 percent of home sales.”
It was the second effort in two weeks by the administration to deflect pressure for a national moratorium on foreclosures. In televised comments last Sunday, David Axelrod, a senior White House adviser, urged moderation, saying there were foreclosures with valid documents “that probably should go forward.”
Given the outrage over the foreclosure revelations in the last two weeks, the administration’s comments Sunday sounded like an appeal for calm and restraint. They may also signal an attempt to defuse the potential for a party rift on the issue. Some Democratic leaders, including Harry Reid, the Senate majority leader from Nevada, have supported a nationwide moratorium.
Nobody was outraged when the banks were making loans to unqualified buyers( and the buyers were taking the loans ) or when prices were going up %20 or even %50 per year. There’s no outrage this many people are going into foreclosure( and its not all due to unemployment ). oh and there is no outrage it takes years to foreclose on a house. WTF?
Everyone was outraged we weren’t making loans to the poor, now everyone is outraged we made loans to the poor.
From the FT:
Republicans Pledge to Probe Home Loans for the Poor
The Republican party will launch aggressive inquiries into alleged abuse of mortgages for low-income buyers if it takes control of the House of Representatives next month.
Darrell Issa, who would head the lower chamber’s main investigative committee, told the Financial Times in an interview: “We should look at financial entities and either reform them or kill them.”
…
The investigations would centre on the roles of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the nationalised government-sponsored lending institutions, which Republicans say contributed strongly to the 2008 meltdown by promoting subprime lending.
Mr Issa said the role of Countrywide, the bankrupt subprime lender, would also be investigated.
We should lay siege to tax collectors’ offices, then set fire to them.
BURN IT DOWN!!!!
grim (3)-
Somebody should tell Issa that Tangelo just cut a deal. And, Countrywide is gone.
100% of any investigation’s time should now be spent on figuring out a way to shut down Phony & Fraudy.
My 2008 Subaru is good for inspection through 8/2012 (4 years). Now thanks to Chris Christie It’s extended one year (5 years) to 8/2013. With History Channels 12/21/2012 as the delimeter, I may never have to get the car inspected again. Thanks Chris. The state finally did something for me.
I think there is a big difference between someone given the opportunity to buy a place that they can afford and someone using falsified documents and claiming nonexistent income to obtain a home they could never afford. Creative financing aside, a lot of people bought way above their pay grade. Couple that with massive job losses and you have what you see today. Pretty simple. No outrage here.
Where you will find outrage is in the way the banks have simply hijacked the American political system and bought and sold the two parties currently in power.
6. You seem pretty easy to please. Maybe next time he can mail you a bag of cheetos and you can be a loyalist for life.
France out of gas. I’m starting to like the French. NJRER right again.
Frist!!!
Anybody believe this foreclosure problem and the possibility of banks having to bring MBS back onto their balance sheets from investors and other legal liabilities will have any impact on this years bonus pool?
‘The Liars and Thieves Are Moving Ahead in This Country’
I’ve lived though more than five decades thinking that people are basically decent but after all that has happened and the many facts that have come to light in recent years, I guess I’m pretty naive.
Indeed, a post by Charles Hugh Smith, author of Survival+: Structuring Prosperity for Yourself and the Nation and publisher of the Of Two Minds blog, entitled “The Rot Within: Our Culture of Financial Fraud and the Anger of the Honest,” features commentary by an accountant with decades of experience in high-level global consulting firms and Fortune 50 U.S. corporations that suggests things have truly reached a low point.
http://www.financialarmageddon.com/2010/10/the-liars-and-thieves-are-moving-ahead-in-this-country.html
Debt beginning to crush Man U. Rooney to Real Madrid over the break?
“Liverpool hasn’t cornered the market on team implosions. Another English institution, Manchester United, appears to be a time bomb that could detonate sooner than later. The club is walking a financial tightrope — last week, it announced an operating profit of £100 million pounds and posted a £83.6m loss — while the Glazers continue to come under fire. Supporters are understandably upset that the ownership is spending millions on debt service instead of investing in new players who aren’t named Bebe.
Really, some people have no appreciation for the American way.
Meanwhile, the players on the field find themselves in more crises than Amy Winehouse. On Saturday, the Red Devils threw away yet another lead, as Edwin van der Sar committed an epic error that landed him a 10 out of 10 on the Robert Green sliding scale of blunders. That makes a total of six points dropped in matches where United had the lead. For a team that created a slew of chances in the first half against West Brom, it struggled to muster any creativity or attack in the second half.
And then there’s Wayne Rooney. According to reports in the English media, the star striker has had a falling out with Sir Alex Ferguson and wants to join a who’s who list of stars — David Beckham, Roy Keane and Ruud van Nistelrooy, among others — who’ve left Old Trafford after their relationship with the manager soured. It’s a sensational blow to the club. Even though Rooney has scored just once in the Prem, off a penalty kick no less, he’s coming off a career season for United. Without him, the Red Devils will have to rely on Dimitar Berbatov and Javier Hernandez. Both have been playing well, especially Berba, but neither of them are as battle tested as Rooney in the crucible of competition that is the Theater of Dreams.
And word is that French international and troublemaker Patrice Evra is also looking for the exit sign.”
http://espn.go.com/sports/soccer/blog/_/name/martin_james/id/5696987/troubled-times-old-guard
8.Essex says:
October 18, 2010 at 7:08 am
6. You seem pretty easy to please. Maybe next time he can mail you a bag of cheetos and you can be a loyalist for life.
I am actually hard to please in that the Car Inspection extension is the first thing of value I’ve gotten from government since Ike was in office.
Although, I will find it interesting when the Mexican Drug Cartels start collecting heads north of the border. Seems like Hilary is concerned about that. Guess we lost the War on Drugs.
clot: Barcelona
http://noir.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601109&sid=a_nnvy67so6o&pos=14
“Creative financing aside, a lot of people bought way above their pay grade”
Indeed. We do pretty well, and manage our money well. We may spend $20+k on a vacation, but it is paid for before we leave. We are in the upper 1% of our upper-level town, yet live in a home that is median priced for our home.
We have watched people erning well below us, including people whose salary data we have full access to, buy more expensive houses and cars than we have, even though they also have large debts, and we have none.
Enough of trying to bail out the imprudent.
earning, even. Blast thumb keyboards.
Brokers are now calling me, asking if I “need help” renting my properties. I don’t, haven’t had a vacancy in 20 years. This is a first, never got one of these calls before. I guess they’re getting hungry.
y-man: I kind of disagree with you. The game yesterday they basically pulled out of their arse. To play as a pile of shite and win is pretty damned impressive. You also are not giving the defense due credit. The only reason that they even stay in yesterday’s game is the defense. That was the #1 passing team that they just played. On top of all those facts, Revis played well below his standard. Most of the biggest plays were at Revis. It really bodes well. That said, Sanchez has to stop playing with a c-ck in his mouth…it really reduces his effectiveness.
Yikes says:
October 17, 2010 at 10:26 pm
jets 5-1 going into the bye week. longtime fan and i like the team a lot this year but don’t think it can win the Super Bowl.
the defense has been a bit of a letdown this year, but the offense looks much better than last.
Real Madrid, Barca, Liverpool, Man U…all sinking under weight of unpayable debts.
Winners will be the teams that didn’t go crazy and/or have billionaire owners: Inter, City, Chelski, Spurs, Arsenal.
Inter will offer 350mm Euros for Messi. Barca won’t be able to say no.
#17 – Amen
The banks are not angels and doing things that pertaining to foreclosure that are wrong, illegal and in many cases, their actions should be stopped but in the end, a lot of people signed their name on a mtg document and lied about their income and don’t want to own up to their actions.
Too many safety nets and not enough accountability = irresponsible behavior.
Sovereign nation, bugger thyself (er, beggar thyself):
“The phrase of the week comes from The Privateer’s Bill Buckler, who has coined the one term that best describes the lunacy that has gripped the world: “Beggar Thyself.” Unlike the 1930s when the theme of the day was “beggar thy neighbor” and which culminated in World War 2, this time the emerging paradigm is one in which the first to defect wins… if only for a few seconds. Because when the “beggar thyself” process is complete, it will mark the end of not only the central banking regime, and the days of excess wealth accrual to the financiers of the world, but also the termination of the 140 year old Bismarckian “welfare state” which is the primary culprit for the creation of trillions of imaginary wealth out of thin paper. When the fiat system ends, so will end the hallucination that developed societies are capable of providing for their hundreds of millions of existing and future retirees. And with that will come the “social instability” that always marks the closure of a failed monetary regime and the admission of global bankruptcy.”
http://www.zerohedge.com/article/last-resort-dying-economic-system-beggar-they-neighbor-beggar-thyself
nomad (22)-
Still, no one has presented a justification for bailing out criminal banksters and leaving Joe6 to rot.
Too bad that when the Pandora’s Box of moral hazard gets opened, the crap that’s inside it taints everyone equally. This will all end in fiscal- then, societal- collapse.
C’s quarter “better than expected”. Quelle surprise!
So fun to catch all the ZH I miss over the weekend.
Art Cashin:
“Money only gets velocity when you lend it or spend it. The difficulty with studying things like the Weimar republic, is that the money supply growing drastically the initial reaction was small. There was very little doing, and it went slowly, until it went suddenly, and when it went suddenly, it went parabolic.”
http://www.zerohedge.com/article/art-cashin-explains-why-stock-market-broken-shares-more-perspectives-hyperinflation
When did Squawk Box become the PimpCo Show?
Shore (17): “Enough of trying to bail out the imprudent.”
Absolutely. I know I’m in a different wealth class than you, but I too am above many of my peers simply through being frugal, saving and investing. Not too many people with my amount of savings are still driving their beater. No smart phones, no DVR, no Viking range and no fancy clothes. Many of my friends are near foreclosure, yet they still drive 30K cars, wear $1,000 watches and buymusic and DVDs like no tomorrow. They are also adverse to using coupons. Now Gator and I like to travel and vacation a lot too, but only when we develop excess cash in 0ur checking account. It’s really sad how little people today know about personal finance. They go to H&R Block and pay $500 to a minimum wage earner to use turbo tax. They find no issue with carrying 20K worth of credit card debt. They see no problem with refinancing every year into another 30-year mortgage, oblivious of how the amortization schedule is r@ping them.
How the heck are these families going to retire let alone their kids who are even more clueless than their parents? The future is bleak.
Poon:
I’ve been watching CNBC for the past 4 weeks during my work day on the couch. The channel is absolutely, undeniably worthless. They are the like the Enquirer of the financial world. The only saving character there is Rick Santelli. The rest are cheerleaders and @ss kissers to the Buffet set. Kramer’s trading advice credibility has been repeatedly destroyed in the press, yet the entire network bows to his insanity. Honestly, it’s like gong show. Will be shifting to Bloomberg after the open. Tom Keene is the greatest interviewer on television and funny as heck too. Plus it’s educational and he’s truly non-partisan. Joe Kernan’s loyalty to Wall Street and Laffer is hard to swallow. The only thing you’ll learn from CNBC is how NOT to invest.
Industrial Production –
Consensus Consensus Range Actual
Production – M/M change 0.2 % 0.0 % to 0.4 % -0.2 %
Capacity Utilization Rate 74.8 % 72.5 % to 75.0 % 74.7 %
J-E-T-S WTF, see guaranteed money sucks, revis is like a nancy boy now.
Went open house hunting yestereday, saw a 2003 house going for 30% over their purchase price, which I thought was outrageous, but it was in really good shape, then I saw a nearby open house, places was disgusting moldy wall to wall in basement stunk so bad people were holding their nose as they went downsteps. Had puke pink 50’s bathrooms rusty and dirty, wall to wall everywhere, house was priced exactly like one redone. Even better women selling stinky house, who had an open house with a big fat old dog you had to step over to get in was a Coach Realtor, and she wanted commission on her own house.
I went running towards door, she chased me to street, ask if I was using a realtor, I told her I had to go as I can’t breath in your house, she then goes I need your name so I can call you with other listings and if you want to see house more I can put dog in yard, I go I am not aleregic to your dog, It is your dirty mold infested house, with that I saw something of true joy, a speechless coach realtor.
Chifi, bet you did not see AMK up almost 30% YTD
Ambac Financial Group Inc (NYSE:ABK)
1.07
+28.92%
Year-to-Date
Jets are looking good. I think I’m going to the Thanksgiving game JJ. The big difference is LT. Anyone still mad we let that greedy bastard TJ go? We got LT for a song and his stats so far this year are better than the pace TJ was at the last two years.
Anyone think Brandon Jacobs needs to learn to grow up? That dude is going to kill the Giants. And he’s as stupid as Jamil.
“C’s quarter “better than expected”. Quelle surprise!”
Clot I am loving the reduction is loan loss reserves. That certainly is a “sustainable” source of revenue.
Ran into an acquaintance over the weekend who has been working Wall St jobs over the last 15 years, and was laid off again recently. Told me he is now is going for a Realtor license. Luckily I was not sipping my drink at the time or it would have been sprayed all over the room. Wished him luck and moved on quickly before I broke out into uncontrollable laughter.
Libtard
I think about the same thing all too often. I see what seem to be successful people and they usually turn out to be deadbeats playing the system. People don’t believe in building wealth over time they want instsant bubble wealth. Many think they’ll just catch up to their debts or maybe the gvt will bail them out
Essex #7: Where exactly do you find this outrage? Among the teabaggers? Surely you jest; these people are out there in the street, fueled by their bank-fed “grassroots” astroturf group, railing against regulation.
There’s little outrage in the US because we are a Christian country …sarcasm off.
Citigroup: Essentially ZERO Actual Profit
“Got that? The net income was $2.17 billion, but the reserves were reduced by $1.99 billion. That is, virtually all of the alleged “profit” was not earned cash, it was reduced provisioning.
If you look at cash profit, it was $180 million – or less than 10% of the total reported.”
http://market-ticker.org/akcs-www?post=169494
And what I get a real chuckle about is that one of their biggest sources of income was trading securities. How about that?
NJ thought for the day:
If the film “Christmas Story” were to take place in NJ, the main character would be arrested and charged with felony possession of an unlicensed firearm.
This is not a joke.
http://www.state.nj.us/njsp/info/pdf/firearms/njac-title13-ch54.pdf
Came across a rental listing. The broker is Weichert REO services. I think this could be an indication of how the wholesale shift of inventory from the banks will happen.
Lamar – 24 –
Banks should not be bailed out but as you know, if they did not get help, you, I and the rest of the folks in our country would take bigger beating than we are getting now. It sucks but it is reality.
I agree with Nomad.Liquidity trap.Why there is an instant buyer in a matter of seconds when you sell stock is the big banks.You dont have to look for a buyer like in real estate.Without this liquidity all of the world equities will be lost.Next is run up with the banks.Nobody keeps 100K in their pillow case,even so will be worthless when economy collapse.What good is having money in the bank or gold in the vault if you cant get to it.
That should be a great game, Holloween and Thanksgiving only two Jets games I just sold without even attempting to ask wife and kids if I could go!!
I will be at Texans, Dolphins 100% and maybe Bills if I don’t find someone will to pay me face to see a game that 90% will be meaningless.
It you got to Ravens game 2.5 hours into the game, early 4th quarter when Smith had the 21 yard run you can see my cameo for a few seconds. I have the row one seats right next to the NFL Commissioner of Instant Replay. My good buddy has my Thanksgiving tickets and he has been spreading the word for people to see him on TV. I would laugh my butt of if he is on TV picking his nose.
God Bless Citigroup and Ford bonds, when I bought my stupid overpriced PSLs back when stadium was pretty empty nine months ago I had so much cash from stupid Citigroup and Ford bonds I said WTF, lets do this now if you can put me in row one. I was laughed at just as hard when I bought the two PSLs as I was when I bought my Ford bonds at 15 cents on a dollar.
I have a strong feeling I have been bottom fishing too long, I am going to get hit soon.
Libtard says:
October 18, 2010 at 9:46 am
Jets are looking good. I think I’m going to the Thanksgiving game JJ. The big difference is LT. Anyone still mad we let that greedy bastard TJ go? We got LT for a song and his stats so far this year are better than the pace TJ was at the last two years.
Anyone think Brandon Jacobs needs to learn to grow up? That dude is going to kill the Giants. And he’s as stupid as Jamil.
“Banks should not be bailed out but as you know, if they did not get help, you, I and the rest of the folks in our country would take bigger beating than we are getting now. It sucks but it is reality.”
They should have nationalized all of the TBTF, removed the management, wiped out the equity and had the bondholders take their haircut ala what Norway did as that would inveitably make them viable and free-standing down the road. Instead what they’re currently doing has set them up as being parasites on the public treasury everytime the economy tanks or the latest scandal comes out of the woodwork; which is exactly where the current mgmt/politicians want; the mgmt gets paid and the pols get their campaign contributions.
BTW I heard from my friend in Rockville Centre long Island people are buying run down homes in good part of town again for 1.1 million on 100×100 lots knocking them down and making mcmansions again, he had three happening in a two block radius. None are spec houses, all three are families who like neighborhood and section and are just making their dream house.
What recession?
45: Moral hazard. You are absolutely right on this one. We haven’t yet felt the repercussions of our imprudent decisions. We rewarded bad behavior and the regulations we’ve added since amount to less than a slap on the wrist. We’ll all be asking ourselves if it was worth it, when our Chinese masters remove our freedoms.
On the topic of TBTF
The FDIC notice of proposed rule making (NPR) on ‘Orderly Liquidation.’ It includes the idea of creating a ‘bridge bank’ that would continue the basic operations of failed financials, but “not be saddled with the shareholders, debt, senior executives or bad assets and operations that contributed to the failure of the covered financial company.” Shareholders and debt holders would cease to receive payments once the bridging entity’s created — and presto you’ve got a bank bail-in, instead of bail-out.
http://ftalphaville.ft.com/blog/2010/10/18/372971/moodys-does-not-like-the-fdics-tbtf-fix/
“. Now Gator and I like to travel and vacation a lot too, but only when we develop excess cash in 0ur checking account”
That sounds like our approach. We prepay what can be prepaid and then send the credit cards what we anticipate spending, before we leave. If we go over-budget a bit while away, who cares? It is a nominal amount at worst.
A story of debt:
A friend of mine bought a house around ’88 or ’89. Ovwr the next number of yeears, he and the wife ran up huge debts and went BK. They also used the house as an ATM. He gets divorced, keeps the house and continues to refinance every so often, sucking out every last bit of equity.
In 2007, he has something like $300,000 mortgage, and zero equity, and is earning something like $80,000/yr. He then loses his job.
It has been a spiral into a pit since then.He has bee swimming hard against the vortex for about 3 years now.
Back when Mrs. Shore and I hd a mortgage and were working like dogs to pay it down, he used to tell me what a mistake I was making. “You should be putting that equity to work for you,” he would say.
Shore…we just booked the Cancun Palace for Winter Break at an unheard of price. Also nailed a $60 promo code from Orbitz/$1500 resort credit/2% back for Upromise and 1.25% cash back on my credit card. I’m not sure why Orbitz was $750 cheaper than everyone else, but we nailed it when the price came up. By making the flight a one-stop through Atlanta each way, we saved another $700 or so over flying direct. By the time it’s all said and done, it should be less than 1K per person for 5 nights. Not too shabby for an all inclusive over Christmas. The average fool taking the same trip will easily be paying closer to 2K per person. I will now have an extra 3K to sink into a deflating asset in the Spring.
The Fast Money evening show is very valuable. The lunch time is garbage. Karen Finerman, Guy Adami, Tim Seymour, Steve Grasso and Zach Karabell say sensible things…..Tom Keene is literally the best thing out there by a long shot……..
29.Libtard says:
October 18, 2010 at 9:26 am
Poon:
I’ve been watching CNBC for the past 4 weeks during my work day on the couch. The channel is absolutely, undeniably worthless. They are the like the Enquirer of the financial world. The only saving character there is Rick Santelli. The rest are cheerleaders and @ss kissers to the Buffet set. Kramer’s trading advice credibility has been repeatedly destroyed in the press, yet the entire network bows to his insanity. Honestly, it’s like gong show. Will be shifting to Bloomberg after the open. Tom Keene is the greatest interviewer on television and funny as heck too. Plus it’s educational and he’s truly non-partisan. Joe Kernan’s loyalty to Wall Street and Laffer is hard to swallow. The only thing you’ll learn from CNBC is how NOT to invest.
Stu: did my comments on your portfolio make any sense?
# 49 – living within your means. smart but fiscally, it puts you in the minority. bet you all sleep better at night without mounds of debt pressing on your skull. i know i do.
Shore,
We will most likely refi into a 15 year over the next few months at a rate of 3.25 or so. Not bad for a home we bought 6 years ago on a 30-year with a rate of 5.5% and we paid about a point in a half (what a huge mistake that ended up being) to get it that low. When all is said and done, including tax increases and property insurance increases, we will be paying less than $200 more per month than we did when we started the loan back at the end of 2004 including escrow.
Chi…completely and I appreciate them. We did own a nice chunk of GS and AFLAC which we sold with a loss during the crisis. My club is weary of the financials, especially considering the lousy performance we have in GPN after it did so well for so many years.
I am afraid if we diversify too much, we will end up with returns that match index funds which is not what we are after. We understand that we win some and we lose some. Fortunately, we’ve been winning a lot more than we have been losing.
As to diversity, we try to maintain it both horizontally and vertically. Keeping in mind that we are small beans without the buying power of a mutual fund, the transactional costs of performing so many trades to rebalance will kill our return. We currently get 8 buys per month for $4.95 total on window trades. We pay $12 on the individual sell. Fortunately, we don’t do a lot of piecemeal selling :P
I’d say of all of our picks, I’m most proud of AAP. We absolutely nailed that one based on fundamentals and macroeconomic issues.
BTW, our principles are as follows:
1) Invest regularly over a long period of time
2) Reinvest All earnings, Dividends and Profits
3) Buy Growth Stocks
4) Diversify your portfolio to reduce risk
And, with the time value of money, and likely increases in salary since then, it is likely a smaller portion of your income.
Are you globally diversified?
Police make their first crack bust outside of Montclair’s new $30M+ elementary school. Sorry if you picked under one month in the over-under.
http://www.baristanet.com/2010/10/crack-dealer-busted-in-school-zone/
Back from a 3 week business trip. In some ways I missed the optimism of the board.
Shore we have become a country of grasshoppers. Laughing at the ants preparing for winter, while we fiddle away. Well the bill is coming due, and the ants are sick of sharing. Alternatives, take it or starve.
found this gem sorry if it was posted already. As Germany goes so goes Europe.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1321277/Angela-Merkel-Multiculturalism-Germany-utterly-failed.html?ITO=1490
Anyone see this NY Times article on Japan’s lost decades?
The Great Deflation
Japan Goes From Dynamic to Disheartened
RE: USA
economists are now warning of “Japanification” — of falling into the same deflationary trap of collapsed demand that occurs when consumers refuse to consume, corporations hold back on investments and banks sit on cash. It becomes a vicious, self-reinforcing cycle: as prices fall further and jobs disappear, consumers tighten their purse strings even more and companies cut back on spending and delay expansion plans.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/17/world/asia/17japan.html?_r=1&src=me&ref=world
Going on 11 years where that approach has not worked. Sad part, what you are saying to do is 100% the correct way to invest.
Got any good funds or stock tips you can share, I like to track tips.
BTW, our principles are as follows:
1) Invest regularly over a long period of time
2) Reinvest All earnings, Dividends and Profits
3) Buy Growth Stocks
4) Diversify your portfolio to reduce risk
The NYT devoted a lengthy piece to telling readers how bad things in Japan have been since its bubbles collapsed in 1990. It gets many things badly wrong.
First and most importantly, Japan is actually considerably wealthier on average today than it was in 1990, contrary to the implication of this article. According to the IMF, per capita income is 16.4 percent higher in Japan today than it was in 1990. This is considerably less than the 21.5 percent growth in the UK over this period or the 36.6 percent increase in the United States, but it is still a substantial gain in living standards. It is also worth noting that Japan’s gain in per capita income was accompanied by a considerable shortening in the ratio of hours worked to population (shorter workweeks and more retirees).
However the biggest flaw in the piece is its obsession with deflation. Japan’s has suffered from deflation in the last two decades, but the rate of price decline has always been very gradual. Only in 2009 did it even exceed 1.0 percent. (It is projected to be larger than 1.0 percent this year.)
It makes very little difference to an economy whether prices are falling by 0.5 percent or rising by 0.5 percent. The argument that people put off purchases because they see prices falling is just silly. If prices are declining at the rate of 0.5 percent a year, then someone considering the purchase of an $800 refrigerator can save $4 by waiting a year. It is unlikely that these sorts of savings would have much impact on even the purchase of a big ticket item; it’s inconceivable that they would have any impact on the purchase of more every day items like food and clothing.
The real issue is simply that Japan’s inflation rate has been too low. In this sense, a 0.5 percent deflation rate is worse than a 0.5 percent inflation rate. But a 0.5 percent inflation rate is also worse than a 1.5 percent inflation rate. A low inflation rate, whether positive or negative, keeps real interest rates higher than would be desirable in a severe downturn. It also prevents the economy from inflating away the debt burden left over from the housing bubble.
This point is important because many people wrongly believe that the United States will only be suffering from a problem of too low inflation if the inflation rate actually turns negative and we have deflation. This is not true. The inflation rate in the United States is already a level that is hampering growth. Any further drop in the inflation rate will make the situation worse but there is no importance to crossing zero.
One final point worth noting: this article implies that Japan’s low birthrate is a bad thing. Actually, Japan is a very densely populated country. This is why house prices are so high. If its population declined then housing prices would fall. (This is a sophisticated economic concept known as “supply and demand.”) A lower population would also mean less greenhouse gas emissions for those who care about the future of the planet. For these reasons, a low birthrate could help Japan in the future.
Dean Baker
nomad (42)-
I am sorry that you have been brainwashed. My sympathies.
jj (44)-
In the grand scheme of things, does the NFL Commissioner of Instant Replay rank above or below the Burger King? Or King Cullen? Or Lord of the Flies? Or the UN High Commissioner on War Crimes?
“I have the row one seats right next to the NFL Commissioner of Instant Replay.”
He (45)-
The gubmint could’ve let the TBTFs either take haircuts and shrink or fail outright. For a fraction of the money that’s been spent on bailouts and quid-pro-quo idiocy, we could’ve capitalized ten brand-new banks or further capitalized 15-20 existing well-run smaller banks to take the TBTF’s place.
The whole TBTF issue is a red herring and a ruse to keep Joe6 asleep with his eyes open. The world would keep spinning and probably be a much better place were BAC, C, WFC, JPM and some of their brethren to be euthanized.
I ran into an old acquaintance of mine also. We went to school together at the University of Maryland and graduated a year apart, both with degrees in Electrical Engineering.
Unfortunately, he was a greeter at Bed, Bath, and Beyond and he needed to check my receipt before I left the store. I would have to say that it was the first time that this recession really hit home for me. I was stunned for a few days as I recovered from thoughts of my own fragility.
Ran into an acquaintance over the weekend who has been working Wall St jobs over the last 15 years, and was laid off again recently. Told me he is now is going for a Realtor license. Luckily I was not sipping my drink at the time or it would have been sprayed all over the room. Wished him luck and moved on quickly before I broke out into uncontrollable laughter.
chi (52)-
Was it Bogle who said watching CNBC will make you stupid and poor?
Actually he is NFL Commissioner of Instant Replay Quality for New Meadowlands Stadium.
His job is to watch the instant replay on the Four jumbo screens, if image is fuzzy or a bad angle he calls to report it. From what I see maybe once a game. He does it for Giants and Jets, he gets paid to attend all football games, plus got a block of row one seats for Jets and Giants he scalps for big bucks. Guy has a big business he owns in NJ so this is on the side. I am angling to get his job. I watch TV and I go to football games, I think that is it for qualifications.
Next time you enjoy the replay of a big play at New Meadowlands Stadium you can thank the NFL Commissioner of Instant Replay Quality for New Meadowlands Stadium.
Lamar says:
October 18, 2010 at 12:32 pm
jj (44)-
In the grand scheme of things, does the NFL Commissioner of Instant Replay rank above or below the Burger King? Or King Cullen? Or Lord of the Flies? Or the UN High Commissioner on War Crimes?
“I have the row one seats right next to the NFL Commissioner of Instant Replay.”
lib (56)-
Whatever your club does, don’t get caught in the trap that earnings have anything to do with equity prices.
The POMO schedule and what everybody thinks Bergabe will do next drive the markets. Better off to sacrifice chickens and burn their entrails than to attempt analysis these days.
How is a loan with interest that is paid back a bail-out? Remember Uncle Sam prints money so so Uncle Sam magically said one trillion existed lent it out at lets say 5%, then magically said one trillion no longer exists but I keep the 5% interest income. Some bail-out.
Now AIG, GM, CIT, Freddie and Fannie were bail-outs. Places like Citi paid back with a big profit and there shareholders got slaughter as stock went for $40 to $4.
Lamar says:
October 18, 2010 at 12:37 pm
He (45)-
The gubmint could’ve let the TBTFs either take haircuts and shrink or fail outright. For a fraction of the money that’s been spent on bailouts and quid-pro-quo idiocy, we could’ve capitalized ten brand-new banks or further capitalized 15-20 existing well-run smaller banks to take the TBTF’s place.
west (58)-
Yes…you can’t underallocate Zimbabwe in yor portfolio.
gator (59)-
When are they going to bust the crackhead who designed the school?
Does anyone know of a good tax appeal processor in Northern NJ? Thinking about buying a home, but the taxes are outrageous. If you buy a home for $200,000 less than the appraised value, is it reasonable to assume, an appeal would lower the property taxes significantly to make a difference? Thanks for any advice.
JJ,
What’s the scoop? Is the JPM claim of only a possible $65B liablity on this foreclosuregate mess true? I know you are one the few who has gone through their financials with a fine tooth comb. What say ye?
lamar,
Zimbabwe’s stock market has been one of the better performers as of recent history.
jj (71)-
Tell 1962 I said hello. Next time you visit 2010, can you bring some Thonet chairs and Saarinen office furniture? That stuff is way cool.
hyde (76)-
Amazing what debasing your currency into asswipe will do for you.
Guaranteed that #77 will prompt a JJ story about schtupping some gal in his office.
Shore (57): “And, with the time value of money, and likely increases in salary since then, it is likely a smaller portion of your income.”
I wish I could say that I’ve seen a lot of increases in salary over this time period, but I work in the private sector.
A. West (58): “Are you globally diversified?”
Yes, we have two ADRs in our portfolio and many of the companies we own (I love the sound of that) have significant international sales. This is something we consider. We recently just doubled our position in Telefonica and started a position in Novo Nordisk. We also own Accenture.
“Whatever your club does, don’t get caught in the trap that earnings have anything to do with equity prices. ”
We believe equity prices will follow earnings. We consider a buy zone based on where the price sits in the historical P/E channel. This is only one small piece of the research that is performed before jumping in. We also evaluate management, return on equity, debt, insider ownership, etc. It’s fundamentals that matter, way more than stock price. There is a reason we just sold off almost all of our NFLX and half of our CMG (our two best performers in the last year). Their stock price has gotten way too ahead of earnings. Any slip up in earnings and/or sales will destroy these stocks overnight. It happened to CMG just a few years ago (got out of that one in time) and there is no way that NFLX is the the next APPL. They distribute DVDs in the mail. No barriers to entry and too dependant on the USPS which is soon going to eliminate Saturday and Tuesday delivery to save some public sector jobs.
I think I read that the Mongolian exchange was the best performer in the world this past decade.
http://www.mse.mn/
Fundamentals are for the little people.
Follow the POMO cash to the dealers. Then, study the ultra-risky stocks those dealers love.
Disclaimer: I have not gone long a stock in over three years. I’d rather lose my money playing skee-ball.
lib (82)-
Has AAPL reached par with prime yak belly there yet?
Yes, remember JP Morgan Chase itself was pretty strict on giving out mortgages, they never had the best rates and were tough on approvals and really did not like Jumbos. Thronberg, American Home, Ocowen and the like had them. Also Chase never really had a big retail banking network in the sunbelt or out west which was hardest hit. Also they did buy Wamu and Bear which held a a lot of stuff but had a lot of guarantees on junk written. Chase had an office out on 100 Duffy street in Hicksville years ago that bought paper off mortgage brokers but they closed that down well before mortgage crisis, he rather put it into the IB, remember, Chase merged with Bank One July 1 2004, although deal was in motion at start of 2004. The merger was far more complicated than expected, and at same time Jamie insourced the 1 billion dollar IT outsource that was just done with IBM. Remember, Mr. Bill Harisson Chase’s old CEO was a “banker’s banker” old school by the numbers guy. He was CEO until almost 2005 when Jaimie pushed him out. Chase had incredible luck, Bill Harrison hated subprime, Jamie liked riskier stuff, by the time Jaimie finished, the Bank One merger and IT insourcing and the multiple rounds of lay-offs and getting his team in place it was near peak in the stock market, MBS market and housing, Jaimie was ready to deal but kept powder dry as everyone in early 2007 was in unwind mode, but not many people to lay off risk too, then Jaimie snatched Wamu and Bear with lots of conditions which took around one to two years of time to “integrate”.
Think of what had to happen for Don Drapper to get engaged last night, assume name, marry betty, divorce betty, become a drunk and then betty fires nanny which forces Don to take secretary on business trip then milk shake spills and he falls in love and gets engaged.
Similarly Chase missed the subprime mess in Don Drapper fashion.
#
#
Unexpected HEHEHE says:
October 18, 2010 at 12:52 pm
JJ,
What’s the scoop? Is the JPM claim of only a possible $65B liablity on this foreclosuregate mess true? I know you are one the few who has gone through their financials with a fine tooth comb. What say ye?
Today’s POMO fun-and-games. Nice to see the special holiday POMOs will dwarf today’s in terms of $$$ injections.
“Ben Batmanke saves the day again. Today’s POMO is a whopper: at $6.3 billion it is the largest since the announcement of QE Lite (not the largest ever mind you – next month, for example we will see $15-20 billion daily POMOs). The submitted to accepted ratio was 3.5x as PDs gladly tried to convert $21.8 billion worth of 7-10 Year Bonds into shares of Apple, Amazon, Google and Netflix. Following last week’s $4.7 billion POMO, today’s action bring the Fed’s balance sheet to $831 billion. Japan – watch out. And now the HFTs are stuck in churn mode as the liquidity infusion is done for the day. Next POMO – Wednesday.”
http://www.zerohedge.com/article/massive-63-billion-pomo-closes
The only time I ever was about to schtrupp in the office was after holiday party went upstairs and litterally was about to do it with this girl who worked like 20 feet from me. Out of the blue she goes she has a wedding to go to in the next week and has no one to go with. As meatloaf said, it was a stop right there moment.
Lamar says:
October 18, 2010 at 12:58 pm
Guaranteed that #77 will prompt a JJ story about schtupping some gal in his office.
Off to do some work. Just impossible to top a post containing a reference to Meat Loaf.
Apple reports today after the market. Their current buy range is 145 to 364. With 20% growth in earnings and sales over the next 5 years, they should return 26.54% annualized total return with a forecast high P/E of 31. Reward/Risk analysis is a lofty 4.1.
Disclosure: I smoke crack with my neighbors.
My critique was a descriptive, not perscriptive. My concern is always cognitive bias, so my take merely represents a chance for you to see a different view of the same thing.
56.Libtard says:
October 18, 2010 at 11:45 am
I am afraid if we diversify too much, we will end up with returns that match index funds which is not what we are after.
As to diversity, we try to maintain it both horizontally and vertically. Keeping in mind that we are small beans without the buying power of a mutual fund, the transactional costs of performing so many trades to rebalance will kill our return.
JJ: I would go after that stuff we discussed about the TRuPs…..after last week, a lot of stuff got whacked so you can pick things up at August levels….not bad considering the move on the Curve…..if you want to give your testes a rumble…#2 DIRECT small-cap emerging markets exposure…..or #3 Frontier Emerging Markets….two plays…one is the next China/Brazil and the other is playing off the fact that China and India fcuking hate each other…..
62.JJ says:
October 18, 2010 at 12:14 pm
Got any good funds or stock tips you can share, I like to track tips.
I always strive to be cognitive of cognitive bias. I learned this mistake back in the early 90s when I first started investing.
We do lose on some trades :P
lib (89)-
Buying AAPL is like writing life insurance on Steve Jobs.
http://news.yahoo.com/video/us-15749625/the-baby-and-the-bagel-22488179#video=22505937
“The Soprano State”
Chifi I tried to get some trups this morning pre-earning. I knew C would hit it, I got some callable MBNA bonds at an 8 yield this morning, but damm Citi numbers F’d me up. I sill can’t stomach citi bonds at 6.5% when I used to get them at 16%. Also saw some GMAC 9% coupons at par, callable now, but noway they have cash to call. No way GMAC is allowed to fail until long after GM IPO.
Damm Stoneridge 11.5% coupons and Denny’s 10% coupons are both getting called on me next month. Guess should not moan as there is default risk galore in anything with a coupon above 10% and I am getting full called out at par.
Afinnion bonds may be good buy as I think they will get bought by another PE shop and when that happens some investors will sell first and ask questions later, good special sit to get in may occur this week or next.
Think emerging markets due for pull back, run-up funded by cheap money and people chasing hot market.
“Buying AAPL is like writing life insurance on Steve Jobs.”
In the short-term…yes. In the long run, I’m not so sure this is the case. Of course, considering that Apple’s P/E is at like 28 and averages closer to 38 as it has in the past 4 years, then I would argue that Jobs death is priced in. Wait till you see their P/E after tonight’s report. I’ve seen restaurants that are using iPads for menus. My friends buy apps like candy. I think the iPhone is a POS, but nobody else does. I jailbroke my Touch and it’s fantastic! Much better than leaving a big honking laptop on the nightstand to check my fantasy stats.
Balls of Steel, and expecting to payoff the Government.
On the J.P. Morgan Chase earnings call, Dimon promised that there was “almost no chance we made a mistake” with foreclosures. “We think we should continue and get done and make sure we do the right things for the consumers, the investors and the country. So it obviously will increase our cost a little bit and maybe we’ll have to pay penalties eventually to some of the attorneys general but we really think we should just continue.”
John Carney says TBTF will kick in again, Congress won’t allow the put backs on the bad moretages to continue so no worries.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/39722757
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/15/AR2010101506232.html
http://www.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi2020082969/
gold bugs favorite movie
An interesting short article about income inequality.
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Income-Inequality-Too-Big-to-nytimes-3638743502.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=7&asset=&ccode=
Burn the mf’er to the ground.
FK filings in Hunterdon and Somerset down to a trickle since fraudclosure scandal broke.
Nice post Nomad.
Too bad that Laffer has the sheep convinced otherwise. I think my first post on this site was a suggestion that barbed wire will probably be the greatest growth industry in the 21st century.
“FK filings in Hunterdon and Somerset down to a trickle since fraudclosure scandal broke.”
I suppose the realtors will make this a selling point?
Well, I did check GPO’s federal register system and, quel surprise, no expat report.
Even I have decided that looking for this is a complete waste of time. And I don’t have a lot of it to wast . . .
Battle of the Titans: JJ vs. Reggie
http://www.zerohedge.com/article/jp-morgan%E2%80%99s-analysts-agree-boombustblog-research-state-jpm-year-too-late-contradict-ceo-jami
To quote the famous Tony Roberts “the poor are poor cause they want to be poor” and for $495 for a few books and videotapes they no longer have to be poor.
Nom…Maybe they canceled it like the old ‘u’ unemployment numbers?
Lot’s of reports that revealed important data have been canceled by the last two administrations.
Shore,
You might find this interesting
http://itheo.org/articles/itheo-presents-ithems
BOA , saying they are starting to foreclose again in 23 states ,,, crises over
Poor people are poor because God hates them.
I would pay good money to watch Reggie Middleton and Jamie Dimon sit together and take questions by a panel for about two hours.
[108] stu
That was the first thing I thought of. Except that here is the text of 26 USC 6039G(d):
“(d) Information to be provided to Secretary
Notwithstanding any other provision of law –
(1) any Federal agency or court which collects (or is required
to collect) the statement under subsection (a) shall provide to
the Secretary –
(A) a copy of any such statement, and
(B) the name (and any other identifying information) of any
individual refusing to comply with the provisions of subsection
(a),
(2) the Secretary of State shall provide to the Secretary a
copy of each certificate as to the loss of American nationality
under section 358 of the Immigration and Nationality Act which is
approved by the Secretary of State, and
(3) the Federal agency primarily responsible for administering
the immigration laws shall provide to the Secretary the name of
each lawful permanent resident of the United States (within the
meaning of section 7701(b)(6)) whose status as such has been
revoked or has been administratively or judicially determined to
have been abandoned.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, not later than 30 days
after the close of each calendar quarter, the Secretary shall
publish in the Federal Register the name of each individual losing
United States citizenship (within the meaning of section 877(a))
with respect to whom the Secretary receives information under the
preceding sentence during such quarter.”
This requires the IRS to publish any names of renunciants it receives within 30 days of the end of a calendar quarter.
But what if the IRS receives no names from the appropriate “Federal agency or court”? The State Dept. receives renunciant statements, not the IRS. The names would all come from the State Department, but this statute doesn’t impose ANY deadline on State. So the obvious implication is that State is holding up the release of the names, and IRS has timely released what it has which is nothing.
And that is how the Administration is gaming the expatriate data release. The downside is that, if Fox News ever figures this out, they can paste the administration for it, no matter what the administration does. If they release the 2nd quarter on Nov. 3, it looks totally like gamesmanship. If they combine the 2nd and 3rd quarter reports, it looks like gamesmanship AND produces another huge number. And if they simply stop producing the reports at all, State is clearly disregarding federal law AND gaming the public.
So I don’t understand the logic behind this move. Apparently, no one thought it out very well.
Amanda Drury looks like she’s been eating foie gras and bacon four times a day since she settled here for good.
All she needs are some bicep tattoos.
Don’t blame God for their incompetence.
BTW, dollar really pressing the lows.
plume (113)-
You really crack me up with this rule of law thing.
he (115)-
It’s probably God who’s incompetent.
Everyone else around this burg sure as hell is.
Cousin worked as Customer Relations rep for Northwest Airlines in Detroit. If there were problems with flights etc he would have to come to the gate and tell people what was up. Anyway big snowstorm on East Coast causes a bunch of flights to be cancelled. He said he gets up in front of one of the gates and says “sorry folks due to the blizzard this flight is cancelled; there’s nothing we can do; an act of God”. Little old lady yells to him, “Don’t blame God for your incompetence!”.
[117] lamar
Yeah. When will I learn?
You own the debt of Denny’s???? LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL
95.JJ says:
October 18, 2010 at 1:44 pm
Damm Stoneridge 11.5% coupons and Denny’s 10% coupons are both getting called on me next month.
…and he’s pissed that Denny’s is cashing him out.
Denny’s is getting slammed.
So bad!
Apple getting spit out…let’s see where it goes…..
You go girl….
New funding source could save rail tunnel: Christie
Posted: 4:15 PM, October 18, 2010
TRENTON, N.J. — New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie says he’ll consider restarting a stalled New Jersey-New York rail tunnel if someone else helps pick up the tab.
Otherwise, the Republican governor says he’s comfortable walking away from the $9 billion project.
Christie’s transit team has until Friday to identify financial options that could keep construction on track.
Christie declined to specify what type of financial arrangement he’s looking for.
He killed the country’s largest public works project because of anticipated cost overruns. But he agreed to reconsider at U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood’s urging.
The federal government is kicking in $3 billion for the project. New Jersey’s share is $2.7 billion plus overruns.
Chifi, I used the top down “superbowl” technique on bond. Dennys advertised in the last two superbowls, no BOD would allow a firm in a severe cash crunch to do a SB ad.
Actually I bought a little bit for fun, I love ten % coupons. Hey I am getting paid out 12-1-2010 at par after clipping a 10% coupon not too shabby,
DENNYS HLDGS INC SR NT 10.00000% 10/01/2012
CUSIP 24869QAB8
Pay Frequency SEMI-ANNUALLY
Coupon 10.000
Maturity Date 10/01/2012
This is another sick coupon bond I own, cash cow.
AFFINION GROUP INC SR SB NT 11.50000% 10/15/2015
CUSIP 00828DAJ0
Pay Frequency SEMI-ANNUALLY
Coupon 11.500
Maturity Date 10/15/2015
Zero defaults in 2009 and 2010 for me. I play with fire
AAPL got spanked after hours, good by 300 a share.
APPLE INC.
Last [Tick] $318.00[+]
Change Up$3.26
% Change Up1.04%
Bid $296.31
Bid Size 2
Ask $296.50
Ask Size 1
Open $318.47
Apple should be at 400 by Christmas. Just watch as everyone piles in.
I do have to say, between GE on Friday, IBM and Apple today, the market wants perfection, not consensus.
As of 9/30/2010 – drop trou chifi, up 100% since the market peak in 2007.
YTD 1-Year 3-Year
+17.60% +22.41% +104.36%
BAC better start foreclosing again, I want a mcmansion. Plus I need my interest income.
btw anyone ever go to atlantis, thinking of going in spring and want to know which property to stay in and where to get deals. Giving up on a trade-up house unless I can go up another 100% trading and that ain’t happening
Chifi 125
Wanna guess what the over runs will be? Think Gov C will sign on for that?
111. You kill me. Seriously.
Is the gov of NJ and Rex Ryan the same person? I have never seen them together and since Rex only works Sundays when gov is off I am curious.
http://www.walletpop.com/blog/2010/10/13/mcdonalds-happy-meal-didnt-decay-after-6-months-photos-show/
65: Two rungs below Grand Pooba of the Loyal Order of Water Buffaloes.
What was that Lamar said about earnings and share price? oh nevermind.
Grand Poobah
Is a title given to someone who holds an exalted position. The name has come to be used as a mocking title for someone important or high-ranking and who exhibits an inflated self-regard.
“Fred Flintstone and his friend Barney Rubble were members of the Loyal Order of Water Buffaloes Lodge No. 26. A high ranking elected position within this organization is Grand Poobah or Grand Imperial Poobah. Poobah is a title of respect and often is linked to might in a role.”
Grim,
You got mail.
134: Dropped the “h”. I stand corrected.
Cancun, Mexico – To most of its four million visitors a year, Cancun is blue sky, turquoise sea, white sand, and huge all-inclusive hotels.
The sort of place where the drinks flow freely, and the troubles of the world seem a long way away.
But venture into downtown Cancun, a few kilometres from the beachfront, and it’s a different story. Here, the troubles of modern Mexico are there for all to see.
Army patrols rumble through the streets. The city’s special police forces disguise themselves with ski masks and dark glasses for fear of retribution. If the mayor steps out of his office, he is flanked by bodyguards.
Geographical accident gave Cancun its perfect weather and spectacular coastline. It also provided the ideal staging post for drugs on their way from South America to the United States.
With the added bonus of a few thousand consumers, in the form of tourists, on site, it is easy to see why the city is the jewel in the crown for Mexican drug traffickers. The battle for its control is brutally fought.
Shake-up
On 1 February, retired Brigadier General Mauro Tello Quinones arrived in the city.
The former commander of the army in the western Mexican state of Michoacan had a powerful reputation as a man of war; someone who could fix any problem. He had been personally invited by the recently elected mayor, Gregorio Sanchez.
Gen Tello’s task was to weed out corruption in the city’s police force; to take back the streets from criminal gangs.
He lasted less than three days at work. On 3 February, together with his bodyguard and driver, he was abducted. The three men were tortured and then driven to a remote jungle location where they were killed with a bullet to the head
Cancun here I come. It should make for a more exciting vacation. Actually, my hotel is located squarely in the hotel zone. We don’t plan to venture downtown. The place I wouldn’t go anymore is Baja anywhere between Rosarita and Ensenada. Tourism is still huge in Mexico and I’m sure their government is employing lots of resources to maintain the safety of it’s mainly American visitors (I hope). I’ve been to plenty of poor towns in Mexico and have never felt unsafe. I’ve heard first hand of the occasional need to pay bribes to scrupulous officials for invisible stop signs and the such, but I’ve been smart enough to keep the majority of my pesos in my sock and very little in my wallet. I can’t wait to go.
Quite honestly, I get excited when I leave the couch these days. Counting the minutes.
Huh? What are you talkin’ ’bout?
127.Libtard says:
October 18, 2010 at 5:03 pm
I do have to say, between GE on Friday, IBM and Apple today, the market wants perfection, not consensus.
Did you see the Apple report Chi? Near perfection. Even with the recent runup in price, I would venture to say that Apple is still undervalued and by a decent amount. I’m actually surprised that is pulled back by this much (in after hours). IBM is a similar story but not quite as undervalued as Apple. GE, just plain sucked and is a much better bellweather of the real economy than IBM and Apple. Of course, once the analysts weigh in tomorrow, the story could be completely different. That’s all I’m saying. Just an opinion…that’s all.
lib (127)-
All that POMO cash has to go somewhere.
jj (128)-
Atlantis is a piece of shit.
I agree with Poon. Atlantis is a POS. The beach there is very pretty though. Their casino is pure robbery. Better off in Bermuda where the locals are civilized and the beaches are just as nice.
All the fun stuff happens while I’m out:
“Why bother with crashing individual stocks when you can crash the most traded entity of all. Today at precisely 4:15 the SPY flash crashed, sending the price of the most popular security in the world down to $106.46 from its opening price of $117.74.”
http://www.zerohedge.com/article/spy-flash-crashes-nyse-cancels-500-million-worth-trades
I see the Gold Buyer Kiosk at the Palmer Mall in PA says they want to purchase all Gold including Dental Fillings. Maybe that’s the reason the Drug Cartels in Mexico have been stealing peoples heads, to get the gold fillings.
Driving down Rt. 9 in the bowels of hell yesterday (aka Freehold), couldn’t help noticing all the brand-new cash for gold joints.
Lamar Every now and than when I’m looking at the ticker I see those big jumps and dumps just wonder if it’s a glitch
Saw the cash for gold in the Short Hills Mall recently. I liked the two minimum wage workers there dressed in what looked like Kmart suits.
Friend in LA has been holding cash for gold parties and is making money at it, I have also noticed allot of cash for gold places spring up all over the place, I gather Fonzie has yet to jump that shark.
lib (148)-
Imagine their disappointment when they get replaced by trained monkeys.
Why monkeys? I just can’t understand why the fun coin machines in the supermarket don’t take gold.
And make that crunching sound like the ticket eater machine at Chuck E Cheese.
Coinstar, what IS the deal?
I want to feed a 22k 40 inch snake chain into a machine.
“Police make their first crack bust outside of Montclair’s new $30M+ elementary school. Sorry if you picked under one month in the over-under.”
Diversity.
And some people pay a premium for this.
Pain, re: the article on Germany
Democracy is very over rated.
Pat (153)-
I want to feed the rapper wearing that chain into the machine.
Ill tell you one thing. That treasonous bastard Bernanke better print up 1.7 trillion or we are screwed.
Gold, Oil, and the US dollar are the only things that matter. Now that the dollar is junk its down to 2 options and NJ doesnt have any dam oil.
left (154)-
They are the same people who have somehow learned to take a beating and like it.
WTF…where is the guy with no legs who sings God Bless America???
Did George fire him as his last living act?
Re: Cash for Gold.
They are literally opening up in every available commercial space. They opened one up on the corner of Rt 520 and Rt 35 in Red Bank. The place used to be an auto repair shop.
Too close for comfort….I walk there sometimes on my way to DD…..love crossing train tracks on foot…..
Al Gore says:
October 18, 2010 at 10:26 pm
Re: Cash for Gold.
They are literally opening up in every available commercial space. They opened one up on the corner of Rt 520 and Rt 35 in Red Bank. The place used to be an auto repair shop.
I disagree. They so reflexively sandbag their outlook that it has trained the street to project higher. They margins missed and they fcuked up their iPad #’s too……..you know there is a problem when Jobs feels the need to speak…..
Libtard says:
October 18, 2010 at 6:33 pm
Did you see the Apple report Chi? Near perfection. Even with the recent runup in price, I would venture to say that Apple is still undervalued and by a decent amount. I’m actually surprised that is pulled back by this much (in after hours).
Who could have thought this was a good idea?
http://www.bing.com/videos/watch/video/boeing-747-buzzes-over-the-golden-gate-bridge/200n7q8s?q=San%20Francisco&rel=msn&from=en-us_msnhp&form=msnhed>1=42007
If I could vote in NYC, I would pull the handle for Jimmie.
http://tv.gawker.com/5667182/crazy-rent-is-too-damn-high-candidate-steals-the-show-at-ny-gov-debate
“New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie says he’ll consider restarting a stalled New Jersey-New York rail tunnel if someone else helps pick up the tab. ”
Maybe the Apple-Cake Lady can cover the tab?
Q government minister that John can support:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/mobile/world-europe-11565448
145. Imagine how bummed out the Mexicans’ are once they end up with a head full of lead. Since I doubt they are using gold for fillings anymore.
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Shore 165 post of the day.
“Maybe the Apple-Cake Lady can cover the tab?”LMAO
Futures are looking a little Grim “unexpectedly” of course.
Fabius 164 mine to. Classic real over the top , I love it.
Goodnight-moon.
gluteus (164)-
Is there a guy running on the Pot Party ticket this year?
164. Jimmy stole that “damn” show last night.
This is important. Our biggest issue in NJ is that our taxes are too high. If you follow foreclosures like I do, you’ll find that many sit untouched “not” because their prices are too high but because their taxes are too high. You can drop the price of a house all you want but if the taxes are too high “no one” with any level of intelligence will buy it. If you look at real estate foreclosure sources such as bank’s openly publicized foreclosure lists, you’ll find that there are a ton of these types of properties.
Our biggest problem is too much government. It’s time to cut costs vertically (by cutting out programs) and horizontally (by cutting compensation and benefits of all government employees, across the board). Any politician that is not focused on doing so, as his/her highest priority, is misrepresenting taxpayers and, therefore, violating their fiduciary responsibility to taxpayers.
We must learn to treasure life, every day.
So treasure every moment that you have!