From Bloomberg:
HUD Said to Fail in Bid to Sell $450 Million of FHA Mortgages
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for the first time failed to sell some of the soured mortgages it’s auctioning off in the wake of the housing crisis, according to four people with knowledge of the results.
HUD deemed bids on about $450 million of home loans too low to accept at an Oct. 30 sale, said the people, who asked not to be named because the details are private. Since 2010, the agency has sold about 50,000 non-performing single-family loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration to investors willing to either help keep the borrowers in their homes or rehab the properties for sale.
The sales are an attempt by HUD to simultaneously stem losses at the financially troubled FHA and pursue its public mission of averting foreclosures on the underlying properties. The refusal to accept bids on some of the pools may reflect that the FHA reached its limit on the losses it was willing to realize to keep some borrowers in homes or stabilize markets.
“If you can get someone who’s willing to take these notes and fix the mortgages, or the properties and rent them out or transfer them to a nonprofit, the idea is that you’re not hurting places that have been hit hard by foreclosures,” said Andrew Jakabovics, senior director of policy development at Enterprise Community Partners and a former HUD policy adviser who helped design the note sale program. “It’s about striking that balance but also making sure that they’re not giving properties away far below what the value is.”
If the want to avert forclosures then just forgive the debt.
It wouldn’t surprise me to see this guy suffer from a tragic accident.
http://blog.nj.com/njv_guest_blog/2013/11/jersey_city_mayor_steve_fulop.html#incart_river_default
The PA is evil…..however, from what was presented here, the PA and NY & NJ’s congressmen really did a great job of preparing our port. In fact, of 14 ports on the Gulf Coast and East Coast, only NJ and Baltimore are prepared for the Panama Canal widening, whose timeline was announced in 2005.
If you want to skip to slide 37, then you pass all the detail about the Canal.
http://www.human.cornell.edu/pam/cpip/upload/Panama-Canal-Expansion-Nov-6-2013.pdf
JC is too far gone for even a guy like Fulop to clean it up. Only thing going there is a fake RE boom, which will collapse at the first signs of a slowdown.
clot: Don’t worry…..JC has found the best legal mind out there….
http://www.cincybar.org/news-resources/legal-directory.php/33765
The End Is Nigh (E-Cig Edition):
http://nypost.com/2013/11/14/pot-vaporizers-let-professionals-get-stoned/
The refusal to accept bids on some of the pools may reflect that the FHA reached its limit on the losses it was willing to realize to keep some borrowers in homes or stabilize markets.
F.uck you, pay me.
Triumph at the Beer Fest…..it starts slow, but it really picks up steam in the last couple of minutes…..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcRHUOTNobE
Is the transformation of America complete yet? I still didn’t get my free Oblama phone.
Gary (7):
Don’t forget to bust the joint out!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ydqjqZ_3oc
[9] Eddie,
Fcuk the phone, I want my free ObamaChoomVape
I want my free f.ucking health care, too. When do I get medical mary jane and some oxy?
8- Chi……love the Post!
I like the Bebo Esq. post. No Youtube at work.
[8] chifi
effing riot!
Have been reading your blog for years and enjoy the commentary on issues other than real estate. How do you feel about the mob violence otherwise known as “Knockout” where a mob of animals walks up to an innocent bystander and in some cases hits them so hard they end up dying from their injuries. I understand this behavior starts in the home but what do you guys think the best way to combat this is? I have suggested an armed citizenry but I get the usual left wing banter about how guns only make matters worse. etc…
[16] John,
Screw the lefties. If they would rather be carried by six than judged by twelve, that’s their business.
re: #16 – Knockout game, wilding, gang initiations there is nothing new to see here, when a bunch of young kids get together there will be trouble. Best is to follow what the Hasidm do and cross the street.
I agree w/ Juice, probably not all that uncommon before it had a nickname and was being reported…..
http://www.wnd.com/2012/10/black-mob-knockout-games-now-spreading/
The guy in this video wouldn’t have even had a chance to use a ccw. He was caught completely off guard. That said, there is a case before the NJ State Supreme court “Pantano vs State” regarding CCW’s which will be argued by Evan Nappen….one of the people most knowledgeable about the second amendmend and gun laws in NJ. I think it has very little chance of succeeding in that court. Hatred for gun owners and irrational fear of guns runs deep in NJ.
This is going to be another catastrophic fail for the Community Organizer in Chief:
http://www.cnbc.com/id/101128765
I can just imagine the reactions in health insurer C suites across the land; a laugh and a “seriously? is this guy for real?”
[18] juice,
All the while, slipping your hand slowly inside your jacket while briefly meeting their gaze.
Safety off, ready for quick pull. Peace of mind until the threat passes.
I agree Juice Box…I lived in Hudson County for my first 25 years and no longer live there. I’m only saying the mindset today is that it is more acceptable for people to be defenseless against this mob violence than if someone defends themself, ala George Zimmerman. This type of behavior is unacceptable and should be stamped out by any legal means necessary. An armed citizenry is one tactic in my opinion. People who have to live there deserve to have the means of legal self defense. All this gang activity occurs because they are emboldened by gun restrictions, knowing people are defenseless.
Nom,
Since when can a law be changed without congressional approval? Magic wand? Remember, the Dems told us, “Oblama care is the law now, get over it.”
22 – Theres maybe a 1% chance that the Pantano v State case ever succeeds and the average citizen will be able to legally carry a CCW. The State Supreme court is very liberal and anti-gun. We also just re-elected a democratic/gun hating majority into our state legislature. As much as I wish it weren’t so, Legal CCW in NJ will never happen.
Pretty much any type of CCW is illegal in NJ to posess. You can’t even own a slingshot.
I could swear this guy posts here: home ownership is for suckers.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/101128765
Not that it stops the thugs in NJ from carrying. Gun control doesn’t mean sh1t on the street.
Shootout in Trenton:
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=13d_1373385221
Down goes ob@macare. Where is the guy who posts sometimes and said that people would love this thing?
There is no stand your ground in Jersey. You are supposed to cross the street, run the other way or take your beating. If you pull a Bernard Goetz you will do time. The law was changed a few times to make sure you do. L.1978, c.95; amended 1987, c.120, s.1; 1999, c.73.
Retreat IS required if actor knows he can avoid necessity of deadly force in complete safety, etc. except not obliged to retreat from dwelling. There are enough laws on the books to lock you up for a long long time.
http://law.onecle.com/new-jersey/2c-the-new-jersey-code-of-criminal-justice/3-4.html
That’s the problem Street Justice. Criminals don’t adhere to laws in any way, shape, or form. That’s why NJ will always have this problem. You could make every excuse known to man, bad parenting, etc.. This type of mob activity isn’t going away and the only answer is a law change but the sheeple are so brainwashed by the propaganda they hear and see in the media. Sad times.
Nom didn’t we have a revolution for this exact reason? We are to fat and molified in this country to care. Besides their rich F*ck Em! Murica F*ck Yeah!
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/more-taxpayers-abandoning-u-181500097.html
It sucks but don’t dwell on it John. Pick a nice area to live to decrease your chances of an encounter.
I write my legislators and the governor from time to time. I don’t know if they’re listening but you’ve got to let them know how how you feel. It’s all you can do.
You can live by the saying “judged by 12 or carried by 6” but 5 years minimum manditory sentence is a lot to think about.
SJ.
I liked the guy hobbling around after he was shot. We don’t need stricter gun laws. We need to ban the hoodie. Trayvon would be alive today if it wasn’t for his hoodie.
[31] street
Not in Pennsy.
I found out where all the ACORN folks went
http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?play=1&video=3000217653
[30] pain
We may be at the point where more americans renounced under one year of Obama than under all of the preObama years that we have records for.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-11-14/jpmorgan-twitter-hashtag-trends-against-bank.html
Ya I know. I think your best bet for jersey residents is to apply for your CCW in FL. It gets the most recognition nationwide. Unless you are a Judge or a Cop or a Celebrity DONT EVER apply for a CCW in Jersey. You WILL NOT get it….and you will forever have to check the “yes” box on other states’ ccw applications that you were rejected in another state (nj).
And don’t ever carry that sh1t in Jersey. Hell, don’t even keep it in your car.
33.Comrade Nom Deplume, a.k.a Captain Justice says:
November 14, 2013 at 12:27 pm
[31] street
Not in Pennsy.
exactly what I told my BIL when he wanted to bring his S&W up from NC to go to the range. I said leave the pistol home, bring ammo, use my gun.
I’m not known for my deep thinking constitutional deliberations but can one of you lawyers on here explain something to me.
Isn’t part of the president’s job to follow and enforce the laws of the land? so if congress passes a law let’s say some sort of affordable care act, if he changes the parts he does not like isn’t he technically breaking the law. Just saying
Isn’t this worse than what Nixon did?
Well I’m talking to myself but just saw this gem,
http://news.yahoo.com/share-young-us-adults-move-hits-50-low-050317604.html
Wouldn’t being unattached from a home make your very mobile. There is a whole lot of circular logic in this crap peice
We need to send legislators to work on repealing laws.
No more passing laws. These guys are killing us.
Pain [40];
Generally people want to stay where they are planted. Some ridiculous percentage of people die within 50 mi. of where they were born. One of the few drivers that overcomes this is economic imperative: they move as necessary for jobs and opportunity. There’s not just lack of opportunity in a few select ‘rustbelt’ regions… things are bad all over. Heckuv’a job, Barry!
Even in the depths of the Great Depression, 75% of the workforce was employed. And they didn’t call it the ‘Great Depression’ in real time, only in retrospect. We will tell our kids and grandkids what it was like to live under Herbert Hoover’s second and third terms.
We have well over 100% employment today vs. Great Depression.
In Great Depression when you quote 75% employed women did not work. So 25% of households had no income. Combine it with fact, food stamps, unemployment, welfare, credit cards, 401K did not exist and many working class lived pay check to pay check with no savings or access to credit is was a nightmare.
Anon E. Moose says:
November 14, 2013 at 2:21 pm
Pain [40];
Generally people want to stay where they are planted. Some ridiculous percentage of people die within 50 mi. of where they were born. One of the few drivers that overcomes this is economic imperative: they move as necessary for jobs and opportunity. There’s not just lack of opportunity in a few select ‘rustbelt’ regions… things are bad all over. Heckuv’a job, Barry!
Even in the depths of the Great Depression, 75% of the workforce was employed. And they didn’t call it the ‘Great Depression’ in real time, only in retrospect. We will tell our kids and grandkids what it was like to live under Herbert Hoover’s second and third terms.
Anon I would love to move. But bottom line some jobs, Cops, Firemen, Teachers, Wall Street pay way way higher in the New York area.
JJ [43];
Unmarried women, widows worked. Light manufacturing, waiting tables, office work (how could you, of all people, forget the steno pool?), schoolteachers — those didn’t become ‘women’s jobs’ overnight.
Married women entered the paid labor force in large numbers
http://www.pbs.org/fmc/book/2work8.htm
cop & teacher…retire w full benes at 60 and move to NC……sell cabbage & smoke filled crapshack to some 30 something hipster moron …..
JJ the Welfare Queen says:
November 14, 2013 at 2:29 pm
Anon I would love to move. But bottom line some jobs, Cops, Firemen, Teachers, Wall Street pay way way higher in the New York area.
@BreakingNews: Police say they don’t have enough evidence to prosecute George Zimmerman for domestic incident – @orlandosentinel http://t.co/3XK5J6YaW6
the blog is looking lonely these days…
can’t tell, is John crazy Eddy or Clot?
WTF? On cue anon shows up?
chicagofinance says:
November 14, 2013 at 6:04 pm
some 30 something hipster moron …..
[37] street
“And don’t ever carry that sh1t in Jersey. Hell, don’t even keep it in your car.”
Absolutely correct. IMHO, NJ law on travel conflicts with federal, but try telling that to a state court judge and good luck getting your iron back after you get the charges dropped.
This explains a few things
“Kennedy spent much of his essay stating how television, in the right hands, could help politicians bring out their best moments. . . .
But in the wrong hands, television could be used for “manipulation, exploitation and gimmicks,” Kennedy said.
“It can be abused by demigods, by appeals to emotions and prejudice and ignorance,” he said.
Thus, we have Fox, MSNBC, and parts of CNN
Why isn’t this guy in NJ….he’s totally underutilized in Toronto?
Toronto’s wacky crack-smoking mayor has another confession: He didn’t try to perform oral sex on a female staffer because he does enough of that with his wife.
At a press conference this morning, Mayor Rob Ford addressed the accusation that he tried to go down on a female staffer, one of several complaints filed against Ford in court documents released on Wednesday.
“Oh, and the last thing was Olivia Gondek, it says it says that I wanted to eat her p—y,” he told a throng of reporters on Thursday.
“I’ve never said that in my life to her. I would never do that. I’m happily married. I’ve got more than enough to eat at home. Thank you very much,” he said.
Former staffers allege Ford acted abusive and erratic in the office, sometimes requesting staffers buy him booze on the job.
The documents also describe one car ride in which Ford allegedly stopped the vehicle to guzzle vodka then began driving again.
He also asked one staffer to perform odd jobs on at his home, started physical fights at work and was sexually inappropriate with women, the staffers claim.
At the press conference Thursday, he added: ” I can’t put up with it anymore…I’ve had enough.”
Earlier this month, Ford admitted to trying crack cocaine.
“Yes I have smoked crack cocaine …[It was] probably in one of my drunken stupors, probably approximately about a year ago,” he said.
“All I can do now is apologize and move on.”
Dedicated to Nom:
Charles Barry went to jail hungry, after Florida police arrested him for allegedly impersonating a cop in an effort to buy discounted doughnuts.
The Trinity, Fla., resident, 48, had previously made multiple visits to Dunkin’ Donuts, flashed his deceased father’s New Jersey police badge and claimed to be a U.S. Marshal in order to receive discounts on doughnuts, police said.
But cops were ready Tuesday afternoon after a suspicious store clerk tipped them off.
“Yesterday, we had an undercover deputy in the store,” Pasco County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Douglas Tobin said. “He usually comes in at the same time. This time, he didn’t show his badge, but we had enough reason to arrest him.”
The previous alleged incidents occurred June 6, 7, and 12.
Police said they found a .38-caliber revolver in his pocket during the arrest, as well as ammunition in the vehicle.
Barry was charged with impersonating a law enforcement officer and improper exhibition of a firearm or dangerous weapon. He was released Tuesday on $5,150 bail.
Dunkin’ Donuts released a statement, saying, the company was “aware of the incident that occurred in New Port Richey, Fla. The safety and well-being of our guests and crew members is important to Dunkin’ Donuts and we are pleased that the suspect has been apprehended.”
http://www.forbes.com/sites/andygreenberg/2013/11/14/3d-printed-gun-stands-up-to-federal-agents-testfiring-except-when-it-explodes-video/
It’s been six months since blueprints for the world’s first fully 3D-printable gun hit the Internet, but the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms has only now released the results of its tests of that downloadable weapon. Its verdict: 3D printed guns are dangerous when they work, and they’re also dangerous when they don’t.
On Wednesday, the ATF posted a series of videos of its tests of the printed gun to YouTube. It tested two versions of the printed gun model known as the Liberator: one printed in the material known as Visijet, and another in the stronger plastic known as ABS. An ATF spokesman tells me that the ABS gun shot eight rounds without problems in its tests. But as its videos show, the ATF’s Visijet gun immediately exploded on firing.
improper exhibition of a firearm or dangerous weapon
What the hell is that?
[57]
Using a gun to demand discounted doughnuts is improper, no?
I’m going to Toronto, where I can smoke crack in a drunken stupor anytime I want.
I will run for public office in a haze of crack smoke.
I will win the election.
Then, I will begin to collect automatic weapons.
It’s a sad day when only Canadians embrace traditional Amerikan values.
The only proper use of a gun is to cap congresscritters.
Food for Graydon and Ellery?
“In today’s foodie culture, in which some fifth graders would rather feast on hand-delivered lunches of locally procured salmon over turkey on rye, the company is playing to moneyed, obsessive parents striving to tutor their children’s palate much the way they would their math skills.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/14/fashion/chef-run-service-teaches-nannies-recipes-that-skip-the-microwave.html?smid=tw-nytstyles&seid=auto&_r=1
Give Ellery some Soylent Green, put her in front of the TV, and tell her to shut the fcuk up.
FRIST :(
Database issues this morning, can’t put up a new post
No flippin’ clue, everything else looks fine, killing me because I’ve got two great posts.
尛霸道c 安之若素 # 爬上墙等红杏 青春゛沾染了太多無奈 哥先脫，妳随意 风吹屁屁凉 电动车 电动车维修 电动车维修资料 电动车维修教程 电动车维
Grim NSA has finally caught onto us!
Clot get your gats!
Spine 62- Does Soylent Green pair better with couscous or quinoa?
That’s what you get for using a Krakow based server……
grim: offering this up again in case you didn’t notice last time….I thought we could figure out how to make some plastic guns…..
Event title: 3D Printing: The Promise and Peril of a Machine That Can Make (Almost) Anything
Event date: December 10, 2013 6:00 PM ET
Event end date: December 10, 2013 9:30 PM
Location: New York, NY
Cornell Club
6 E. 44th Street
New York, NY
Hey, I actually have a legit question for you agents or attorneys practicing RE (yeah, I know, I’m asking for free guidance but its professional courtesy).
I’m drafting complaint vs. a landlord for withholding security dep. money. Both sides to lease were represented by agents working for Big Firm (BF). Dual agency disclosed.
Apparently, after termination of lease, seller’s agent assisted him with making the case for withholding $$$. Tenant feels that since both agents worked for BF, BF breached a duty to him and should be included in the civil action for breach of duty.
I disagree, but as I haven’t worked with the law of RE agency, I am out of my element. I feel that the agency terminated when the lease was signed or when tenancy ended, but either way, its over and any duty BF might have owed is now extinguished.
In the alternative, I could join seller’s agent for their role, but that would be as an agent-participant. It would not involve any breach of duty issue, and would, frankly, be a stretch.
For strategic reasons, I would just as soon not bring in BF since it would complicate settlement, but I don’t want to tell tenant that there is no basis for bringing in BF unless I am sure. And I’m not sure.
I don’t want to burn a lot of online research $$ on this, so if anyone has insights here, it is appreciated.
[68] gator
Couscous. However, go with Quinoa for the Soylent Red
Nom is this what you have been reduced to in Pennsy, small claims court? What’s next chasing ambulances? : )
[55] chifi,
Thanks. It wasn’t my old man, he has an alibi and never held a NJ badge.
[57] Joyce
What that was is a trumped up charge that permits cops to seek a forfeiture of the gun. That way, if they lose on the impersonating charge, they can still try to keep the gun.
[73] pain
It isn’t in pennsy small claims, it is in the main trial court so I can get discovery. Also so I can jack up the landlord’s legal bills and force him to the table.
Actually a pretty nice payday if this goes my way. And its fun to do something a bit out of your element.
[73] pain,
You will never find me chasing ambulances. Never did that and way too old to start.
Wow for a withheld security deposit. some renters won’t be f*cked with!
Agree it is fun to work out of your element, unfortunately for me it usually means going to an animal lab were monkeys throw sh!t at me or is that the office. Hell I can’t remember.
soccer legs finally gave out on ya huh?
I thought he just used the badge to get the discounts. I’m pretty sure the way headlines are written these days that if the person had flashed the gun or brandished it, that would have made it into a prominent position in the article. (Plus I thought gun laws were lax in FL so just carrying a holstered weapon wouldn’t have been a stunning sight).
Easy fix to this story… DD shouldn’t give cops a discount. No need to play to the stereotype anyway.
cobbler says:
November 14, 2013 at 10:40 pm
[57]
Using a gun to demand discounted doughnuts is improper, no?
I assume they always are.
Comrade Nom Deplume, Guardian of the Realm says:
November 15, 2013 at 8:59 am
[57] Joyce
What that was is a trumped up charge that permits cops to seek a forfeiture of the gun. That way, if they lose on the impersonating charge, they can still try to keep the gun.
Apparently, after termination of lease, seller’s agent assisted him with making the case for withholding $$$. Tenant feels that since both agents worked for BF, BF breached a duty to him and should be included in the civil action for breach of duty.
I disagree, but as I haven’t worked with the law of RE agency, I am out of my element. I feel that the agency terminated when the lease was signed or when tenancy ended, but either way, its over and any duty BF might have owed is now extinguished.
The wildcard is confidentiality of information disclosed as part of the agency relationship. It’s fuzzy, and I agree that in most cases the agency relationship ends when the deal is closed, however this aspect bleeds on indefinitely. If by “assist”, you mean disclosed information provided in confidence, it may be breach of duty.
However, I’m not a lawyer, don’t play one on tv, and didn’t sleep in a Holiday Inn Express last night.
grim: offering this up again in case you didn’t notice last time….I thought we could figure out how to make some plastic guns…..
I am interested, but may be on the west coast on the 10th, trying to see if I can get folks to finalize dates.
Did anybody see this?
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2013/11/the_rich_get_richer_data_show_njs_upper_class_growing_rapidly_while_middle_class_languishes.html
More depressing NJ information.
#83
There was a debate for while regarding who beneifits most from ZIRP and the current tax policies. Some claimed it was the debtors, others said it’s the monied interests. That debate is dead and buried, but there is no discussion in DC of changing course. Pretty clear who is represented there(hint: not the middle class).
There are a lot of those ways you will recognize that be able to get into a multi function new hobby,but there ‘re times when it’s hard so as to know during which time all your family members can start. Learning what you like is so how do you you are aware of that whether you’ll stick allowing you to have an all in one hobby. Where in the event that all your family members start? Relax,the following article has many different bits of advice that ‘re great as well as showing you where as a way to
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVO6JyA2Kxw
whew..now they will cancel their diabolical plan…
[81] grim,
Thanks. I did see that but confidentiality isn’t at issue here. I’m instead looking at whether the BF agent is liable directly as a participant, possibly for tortious interference (thin) or as a “conspirator” of sorts.
If I could make out a claim, I would likely bring it separately and make it distinct so as to avoid consolidation. That way, Landlord doesn’t get to free ride on BF’s attorneys.
Exactly, and was evident to those who can add. ZIRP, QE, the past & continuous bailouts are just like the overall inflationary policy of the last 100 years… but on steroids (with a twist or two in the mix).
nwnj says:
November 15, 2013 at 1:14 pm
#83
There was a debate for while regarding who beneifits most from ZIRP and the current tax policies. Some claimed it was the debtors, others said it’s the monied interests. That debate is dead and buried, but there is no discussion in DC of changing course. Pretty clear who is represented there(hint: not the middle class).
re # 84 – We turned Japanese 5 years ago, fortunately the Fed is vacuuming up all the bad paper to prevent massive inflation, so we just continue to sweep all issues under the rug for now.
It could be worse, instead of a slow burn of a low inflation tax as opposed to outright 10% super tax on savings which the IMF has recently been proposing for Austerity hooked Europe.
Either way the sun is setting on the West. Demand for growth will be Asia the Chinese now want a population boom. We should send JJ over there, apparently they prize white boys like him.
I learned from FB that a friend in NJ is one of the 800,000 NJers whose insurance was canceled due to Obamacare. Interestingly, she grew up in Canada and is a Canadian citizen still. Someone suggested to her that she simply sign up for Canadian healthcare (how to do that from NJ, I don’t know) but here was her reply:
“I’ve had both health care [name redacted]. Would still rather pay for US. Until Obama REALLY screws it up! We’ll be just like Canada before you know it (cringe)”
Just one person’s opinion, but one who has firsthand experience here.
Some tenants evacuated today as a precaution….
http://www.wspa.com/story/23979504/anonymous-warns-of-government-false-flag-terrorist-attack-in-la
87.1987 Condo says:
November 15, 2013 at 1:50 pm
whew..now they will cancel their diabolical plan…
Clot, this one’s for you.
http://theweek.com/section/nfcartoon/252563/got-any
Someone just sent me this. I don’t know how many lawyers they had in Newark but I think I knew someone there.
http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/patton_boggs_axes_10_attorneys_and_35_staff_in_second_round_of_layoffs_this/
Citigroup building houses the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, a.k.a Freddie Mac (in Los Angeles)
re #92 – In my humble opinion Anon is some faction of disgruntled government employees or perhaps the gov itself.
Anyway the one that was caught recently just got 10 years in the slammer. Here is the interesting part however, not so sure he can appeal on this since he did plead guilty after all but the Judge made a Mandela reference. Wasn’t Mandela convicted of bombings and attempting to overthrow the South African government?
“In her statement to Hammond, judge Loretta Preska rejected arguments that the political motivations for Hammond’s hacking crimes against the private intelligence firm Stratfor, police organizations and military contractors should lessen his prison time. “These are not the actions of Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela…or even Daniel Ellsberg,” Preska said. “There’s nothing high minded or public-spirited about causing mayhem.”
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2013/11/hammond-sentence/
90 – Juice
http://qz.com/147935/too-late-china-adopts-a-two-child-policy/#
Too late, China adopts a two-child policyBy Gwynn Guilford — November 15, 2013
The Chinese Communist Party just announced that it is loosening its one-child policy, allowing most of the remaining couples in the country who were restricted to one child to have two. That’s great and all. But it comes way too late to fix the huge glitches in China’s economic growth model that its family-planning policies created—namely, its yawning gender imbalance and rapidly aging population.
A big reason it’s too late is that it’s not the one-child policy that’s holding back many couples from having more children. Rather, it’s the spiraling costs of living in cities, where the one-child policy was mainly enforced, says Leta Hong Fincher, a PhD candidate in sociology at Tsinghua University and author of a forthcoming book on gender inequality in China.
“The central government’s announcement to loosen the one-child policy will of course result in some couples choosing to have two children who otherwise wouldn’t have done so,” Hong Fincher tells Quartz. However, “[M]any young Chinese who say they don’t want to have any children at all because the cost of living in the city has become so expensive.”
That’s bad news—at only 1.4 births per woman among young women, China’s fertility rate is already dangerously low. The country needs to bump that to 2.1 to offset the gender imbalance and demographic decline.
And then there’s the timing problem. Sure, China’s population will continue to grow until 2030, when it hits 1.45 billion. But that growth isn’t mainly coming from babies being born. The big driver is more old people living longer.
Hey Chi/Grim,
When you are at the 3D printing seminar, ask them if they can make me some gold bars.
They are lining up to interview for a position in JJ’s office
http://news.yahoo.com/lightbox/competitors-pose-wait-results-during-miss-bumbum-pageant-photo-202557877.html
Open up the flood gates in the US. Reform immigration law and policy so that educated hard working immigrants can easily enter this country, become citizens, and pay taxes.
From a societal standpoint china has a huge problem too many men not enough women and their birth/death rate is expected to go close to negative. So they may reach zero to negative population growth and not become the dominant species on the planet.
Other than that not much to add. Oh they are trying to learn how to play hockey since host country gets an automatic bye into the olympic tournament and they are bidding on 2022 winter games. Please let them face a couple of the big 4 countries the goal differentials should be comical.
Another client whacked……always bittersweet….I hate it, but it means more assets for me in the short-term……
The End Is Nigh (Oops! My Bad Edition):
Syrian rebels sorry for beheading wrong guy
A group of Al Qaeda-linked Syrian rebels beheaded a fighter then triumphantly waved his head in the air as a trophy — only to discover the poor guy was actually one of their own, London’s The Telegraph reports.
Members of the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham are shown in a graphic video (Warning: Graphic images) clutching the head of a bearded victim while claiming he was a hated member of an Iraqi Shia group fighting for President Bashar al-Assad, the paper reports.
But the killers soon learned that the victim, Mohammed Fares, was actually an allied fighter for Ahrar al-Sham, a Sunni Islamist group that fights alongside their own group of Al Qaeda-linked thugs.
The rebel group apologized for the gruesome case of mistaken identity on Thursday , asking for “understanding and forgiveness.”
Fares is believed to have been wounded during a battle outside of Aleppo then taken to a hospital by members of the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham. He may have been captured and mistaken for a Shia fighter because of his wounds.
Assad forces have been fighting to claim the city of Aleppo for the past two weeks.
@BreakingNews: Prosecutors charge homeowner in suburban Detroit porch shooting that killed 19-year-old Renisha McBride – @NBCNews live video
doh!
Obamacare Is Whatever Obama Says It Is
By Megan McArdle Nov 14, 2013 3:34 PM ET
First we got the enrollment numbers, except for the one we’d like to know, which is how many people have actually gone through the process of enrolling in a plan. There has been a sort of Talmudic debate over the meaning of the word “enroll” — should we count folks who had chosen a plan and asked to be invoiced, or should we count only those who paid? Some of the people who enroll will not actually end up paying their premium. However, because premiums for January plans aren’t due until December, counting only those who have already mailed in their check or money order will substantially undercount those who will end up enrolling. Myself, I leaned toward counting those who have enrolled in a plan and requested an invoice for payment. But there were decent arguments on both sides.
The Barack Obama administration resolved this debate by choosing a third metric: They counted everyone who had put a policy in their online shopping cart, even if they hadn’t actually gone ahead and signed up. By this logic, I am the proud owner of 28 items in my Amazon.com cart, including a hot pink laptop case and a fridge mount for an iPad model I don’t even own. And everyone with a Match.com profile is married.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-11-14/obamacare-is-whatever-obama-says-it-is.html
re:# 105 – makes no diff, no heads will roll. Lame Duck O took the punches, Hillary will be next. That’s all Folks!