Unrelated Nonsense

Pretty

2010-11-10T17:50:00.002-05:00

Under 25k, RWD, not bad.

2010-10-10T22:36:00.001-04:00

Ms. New Booty

2010-09-16T23:38:00.001-04:00

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart

Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c

Slogan's Hero

www.thedailyshow.com

Daily Show Full Episodes

Political Humor

Tea Party

Good Plan

2010-08-17T18:28:00.001-04:00

Really Weezy?

2010-08-16T23:16:00.003-04:00

Nacho Cheese over Cool Ranch?

via TMZ

Dance Dance Dance

2010-08-03T18:47:00.002-04:00

Bono Becomes The Worst Investor In America

2010-06-29T00:20:00.001-04:00

Bono, the Irish rock star, has put significant money into Elevation Partners, arguably the worst run institutional fund of any size in the United States. Bono is listed as one of the five members of the firm’s investment team. The fund claims that its “mission is to help media and entertainment businesses develop and market great content.” In the process, it has made an unprecedented string of disastrous investments which even bad luck could not explain. 247wallst.com Posted: March 24, 2010 at 3:04 am

No wonder Europe has problems

2010-05-06T23:09:00.001-04:00

Presented without comment

2010-04-27T23:20:00.000-04:00

via autoblog

I'm not a player, I just Crush a lot.

2010-04-23T18:11:00.003-04:00

Detectives say (bank robber) Zdzierak was initially able to elude the cops because of his disguise, an expensive silicon mask called “The Player” - NYDN

Super Villain

2010-04-15T21:05:00.001-04:00

Copying is FUN!!!

2010-04-07T17:31:00.001-04:00

We Are The World

2010-04-07T00:39:00.001-04:00

The Long Legged Mack Daddy has been put on notice

2010-03-24T22:52:00.001-04:00

The Man at the End of the Street

2010-03-10T18:25:00.002-05:00

Just Say NO!

2010-02-17T18:19:00.002-05:00

Brondald Oil will change the Game

2010-02-10T19:54:00.003-05:00

Bronald Oil & Gas, LLC is an independent oil and gas company focused, on the exploration, production and development of oil and gas reserves from conventional and unconventional formations. The Company is initially focused on exploration and development properties in Osage County, Oklahoma, as well as in Texas, Louisiana and Florida in the United States and in Central America. - Bronald Oil

He is post racial by all appearances, you know I forgot he was black for an hour.*

2010-01-28T23:31:00.002-05:00

*Thanks to Chris Matthews

Advertising...

2010-01-20T22:31:00.001-05:00

Radio ads: I hear the same ones everyday, and I hate them. FUCK YOU ONLINE TRADING ACADEMY.

TV: Often fast forwarded, although I don't mind finding out about new products.

Newspapers: I don't read them.

Magazines: I would like them if they were well targeted, but there are no good magazines save Vice.

Billboards: I like when they are well done.

Movies: I like it when done tastefully. Sensible way to advertise.

Web: There are ads on the web? I don't see them.

I really like advertising, I am always looking for things that I will enjoy. I generally feel advertising is done very poorly. Fuck, I can't even really search for goods I want very easily.

I would subscribe to an AD SERVICE if they would give me info on products I want. Sub $30 brand name sneakers, .223 ammo, cool T shirts. There is a market for this.

Sites like Facebook are squandering their ability to direct market.

Barbaric!!!

2009-12-01T19:27:00.001-05:00

Prioritize

2009-11-02T17:47:00.001-05:00

Prioritize. In a word, that is what too many of us fail to do too often. - Eliot Spitzer

Imam Luqman Ameen Abdullah Arrested

2009-10-29T23:41:00.002-04:00

Alleged Muslim radical arrested in Canada

Black Liquor

2009-10-28T21:02:00.003-04:00

"Paper companies may claim about $6.6 billion from a U.S. tax break meant to discourage use of fossil fuels, and they’ll burn more diesel to get it.

The tax credit is an incentive to mix an alternative energy source with carbon-based fuel. Papermakers already generate electricity by burning a wood byproduct from pulp-making called “black liquor.” To qualify for the windfall they are adding diesel fuel to the black liquor, following the letter of the law while violating its spirit, said Verle Sutton, editor of the Reel Time Report, a unit of Los Angeles-based Forestweb Inc., a provider of data on the paper industry.

'It’s an absolute government boondoggle,' Sutton said. 'These companies were not using fossil fuels. They only started because they needed it for the tax credit to work. So there’s a negative to the environment, not a positive.'" - Bloomberg

Nowhere near as delicious as Old English.

A shameful, evil, and covetous person

2009-10-28T19:17:00.003-04:00

Francisca Villar
Running for New York City Mayor

Party for Socialism and Liberation

Party enrolled in: Party For Socialism And Liberation

Occupation: Student

Occupational background: Student

Educational background: AS Bronx Community College (CUNY); Currently Lehman College (Biology)

Organizational affiliations: PSL

Prior public experience: Founder and president of my buildings tenants association; Bronx Community College Student Government Association

Email: info@votepsl.org

Website: http://VotePSL.org

1. What is the most important issue in the city you would address if elected?

The billionaires must pay for the economic crisis. A 5 percent tax on all wealth over $100 million would alone raise over $8 billion a year from the city's 55 billionaires alone; if they try to leave the city, their property and wealth should be confiscated. The $5 billion that the city pays every year to the banks for "debt servicing" must go to people's needs.

2. What other important issues would you address if elected?

The NYPD top cops must face charges for the epidemic of racist police brutality.

Housing is a right; rents must be rolled back and New York City should be declared an eviction-free zone with no foreclosures or evictions. The Rent Guidelines Board must be elected by New York City residents, not appointed by the mayor.

CUNY should be free as it once was.

Every New Yorker should be guaranteed a union job with decent wages and benefits.

3. What makes you the best candidate for this office?

I am not a billionaire and I have never been a bank executive. I am the only candidate who has grown up poor in New York City. My candidacy is dedicated to building a movement of poor and working people to put our interests first--the movement we need for the society we deserve.

I marched with 1 million of my fellow immigrants on May Day 2006 to demand amnesty for all undocumented workers. I organized to demand an end to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and of the occupation of Palestine.

I was an organizer trying to push back the 2008 tuition increases at CUNY. I am a fighter for the interests of poor and working people.

Praise the Lord!

2009-10-21T19:07:00.004-04:00

Lord Griffiths [vice-chairman of Goldman Sachs International] said the general public should “tolerate the inequality as a way to achieve greater prosperity for all”, saying also that “we should not ... be ashamed of offering compensation in an internationally competitive market which ensures the bank businesses here and employs British people”.

The Telegraph

Does your neighbor smell like hummus?

2009-10-20T20:30:00.001-04:00

Alert the authorities!

Dork?

2009-10-19T18:37:00.002-04:00

Yes, you won by 59 points. Yes, you just scored a touchdown. No, your Randy Moss impersonation is not acceptable.

Bourdain on Sardinia

2009-10-15T18:42:00.001-04:00

"Generally speaking, you don’t trust restaurants around here. It’s a sign of failure or desperation or ignorance to have to go to a restaurant. Laziness would be a marginally acceptable excuse I guess…"

Asset of the Decade?

2009-10-14T21:13:00.004-04:00

Lew Rockwell, noted market timer, has declared gold "The Best-Performing Asset of the Decade." While gold has performed well, it would have taken quite a bit quite a bit of conviction to commit assets to a shiny metal that costs you money to own and had lost nearly half of its nominal value over the prior 20 years during the great bull market.

It would have taken a similar amount of conviction to buy dull, boring, metal pipelines that had managed to lose value in 1999 in the height of the tech bull (and they aren't even shiny). An oil or natural gas pipeline, how decidedly "old economy." Little did the investors purchasing these assets know, when they should have been listening to Prince, they were entering the competition for the best performing asset of the decade. Whether, smart, lucky, wisely conservative, or with a perfect view of the coming bull market for commodities, the buyers of both assets did well.

All I know is, buying into a group of businesses that will pay you nearly 11% to own would have been a lot easier decision for me than buying a shiny thing that I have to pay to store. But what do I know?

Data through 10/13/2009 Source: Alerian Capital Management and Kitco.com

Nichola P(L)EASE!

2009-10-14T18:41:00.003-04:00

"Nichola Pease, deputy chairman and former chief executive of the division of Credit Suisse Group AG, said companies are scared away from hiring women because penalties for successful sex discrimination claims are unlimited and the U.K. offers 52 weeks of maternity leave compared with 12 weeks in the U.S.

'A year maternity leave is too long, and sex discrimination claims that run into 10s of millions of pounds are ridiculous,' Pease told the Treasury Committee, a cross- party panel of lawmakers overseeing economic policy.

'What I worry about is that legislation and protection turns this into a nightmare,' Pease said. 'We’ve got to be realistic and make sure the protection, which has very good motivation, doesn’t end up backfiring both at a female level and at a U.K. competitiveness level.'"

Bloomberg via stealing the whole quote from Dealbreaker

Drugs are Bad

2009-10-08T18:02:00.004-04:00

Rumor has it that:

The DEA has been writing letters to Fox complaining about House's "flagrant use and abuse of narcotics without consequence" for years now, and finally the network, writers, and producers all caved in to the government's demands.

Don't Buy a Car With OnStar

2009-10-07T17:44:00.000-04:00

Terrible Movie Already

2009-10-07T17:26:00.002-04:00

True Love Revolution?

2009-10-01T20:08:00.006-04:00

The head of Harvard University’s abstinence club, reacting to the news that nearby Tufts University is curtailing dorm-room sexcapades, says it’s no laughing matter when things go bump in the night.

Would you hit?

For more information on Rachel's inspirational choice, visit True Love Revolution.

Ron Paul on the Daily Show

2009-09-30T19:34:00.000-04:00

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart

Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c

Ron Paul

www.thedailyshow.com

Daily Show
Full Episodes

Political Humor

Ron Paul Interview

Birds

2009-09-30T19:15:00.001-04:00

Birds on the Wires from Jarbas Agnelli on Vimeo.

Welcome to Wellford

2009-09-23T21:06:00.003-04:00

SC Mayor Outlaws Police Chasing Suspects on Foot (Literally)

Pimping is not Easy

2009-09-15T23:37:00.005-04:00

The kids behind the ACORN "sting"

This Hannah Giles broad is hot, no?*

And yes, Hannah, it is amazing what girls think about when they're jogging.

Near Perfect : VW R20

2009-09-15T21:25:00.004-04:00

270 HP, AWD, 0-60 in 5.5, just needs to lose some weight. via AutoBlog

Chuck Rangel, Tax Cheat

2009-09-04T18:10:00.003-04:00

The clock is ticking on tax cheat Charlie Rangel

By: Byron York
Chief Political Correspondent
September 1, 2009

"Last week, we learned that Rangel filed a grossly misleading financial disclosure report for 2007 -- failing to report at least half a million dollars in assets.

It turns out Rangel had a credit union account worth at least $250,000 and maybe as much as $500,000 -- and didn't report it. He had investment accounts worth about the same, which he also didn't report. Ditto for three pieces of property in New Jersey.

Beyond that, we've learned that Rangel has failed to report assets totaling more than $1 million on legally required financial disclosure forms going back to at least 2001.

The news comes on top of revelations last year that Rangel didn't report -- and didn't pay taxes on -- income from a villa in the Caribbean. In that matter, the Internal Revenue Service gave him sweetheart treatment; Rangel paid about $10,000 in back taxes but was not required to pay any penalty or interest."

Democracy

2009-09-02T21:20:00.004-04:00

The principle that the majority have a right to rule the minority, practically resolves all government into a mere contest between two bodies of men, as to which of them shall be masters, and which of them slaves; a contest, that - however bloody - can, in the nature of things, never be finally closed, so long as man refuses to be a slave. -- Lysander Spooner

Cheaper, Tastier, HFCS free Cereal

2009-09-02T19:34:00.005-04:00

I have been a fan of Mom's Best cereal for a while now. They have a wide variety of tasty, High Fructose Corn Syrup free cereals that are very inexpensive. However, at the grocery store I was interested in a more fruity variety of cereal than those currently in the Mom's Best line up. I very much enjoyed the Annie's Fruity Bunnies that I recently bought, but was looking for something more in my preferred price range with a similar level of fruitiness.

I stumbled on Hospitality Fruit Whirls.* They were only $2 per pound, or $1 for the 8 oz box I purchased. I had very little to lose, and with a lack of HFCS and a claim of being somewhat "natural" I was sold. As to the taste, delicious. Better than Froot Loops from what I remember. The only downside, more sugars than Froot Loops or Froot Loops Reduced Sugar (and added salt). Similarly, it has more sugar than Fruity Bunnies. However, being half the price of Annie's and often less than half the price of the Kellogg's products, Fruity Whirls remain an excellent bargain and delicious.

I plan on checking out their other varieties of "Hospitality" cereal the next time I visit the store. For only a buck, I feel like I have little to lose.

*Really, this is the best I could do for a website.

71 MPG Polo TDI

2009-08-26T23:49:00.004-04:00

Paul Volcker, almost as smart as Alan Greenspan

2009-08-26T21:04:00.006-04:00

In what amounts to the smartest policy suggestion in recent history, Paul Volckler suggests that money market funds are "free riders" that "weaken the financial system." Money market funds are an incredibly important source of short term loans to business, and have a failure rate far below that of the banks. Yet, Volckler would prefer banks to be the only providers of short term liquidity.

Volcker speaks:

“In my vision of the new financial system, you obviously want to protect banks and have strong banks, and I don’t think they should be put at a competitive disadvantage vis-a-vis money-market funds”

So a free market concept providing higher yields to customers with a lower failure rate (around 1 fund ever 10 years) should be dispensed with in order to protect banks? Banks that require government insurance just to exist.

Thanks Paul. I will write that one down.

via bloomberg

Unemployed?

2009-08-26T20:44:00.004-04:00

According to The Money Game, The Unemployed Never Had It So Bad. They are basing this conclusion on the above clever chart. Strangely, I come to the opposite conclusion. It seems to me the unemployed never had it so good. They clearly have the resources (and incentives) to stay unemployed longer as evidenced by the upward trend. Say what you would like, there is always a job out there. It may not be a job you are particularly interested in, but a job exists if you have to get one. The chart shows that people are able to hold out longer to find a job they prefer to the jobs immediately available.

Carl's Jr. launches Big Mac rival

2009-08-19T22:20:00.003-04:00

Why can't I get this? via LA Times

I guess I will have to drive to Delaware and find a Hardee's.

I come from a land down under

2009-08-19T17:53:00.002-04:00

I dismissed these people as idiots, years ago.

2009-08-18T21:56:00.000-04:00

Bud and D-Marks

2009-07-27T18:57:00.001-04:00

Universal Healthcare

2009-07-22T23:03:00.002-04:00

Advice to socialists of all stripes. If universal health care is such a good idea, why not all get together with your socialist buddies and figure out how to pay for it amongst yourselves? Then let your chums in government run it. I am sure all the efficiency you have been looking for will be attained. Just hope really hard.

S&P Upgrades Three Tranches Of Benchmark CMBS Bond To AAA

2009-07-22T20:16:00.001-04:00

NEW YORK -(Dow Jones)- In a stunning reversal in its evaluation of a clutch of mortgage bonds backed by commercial property, Standard & Poor's Tuesday raised the ratings on several securities it had downgraded just a week ago.

Among the bonds that have been moved back to the top-notch triple-A category from the triple-B minus category are securities that make up the benchmark GG-10 deal.

The ratings firm said it raised the ratings following the implementation of its "recently updated criteria." An S&P spokesman wasn't immediately available for comment.

The upgrade means that these bonds are now eligible for a Federal Reserve program which offers investors cheap loans to buy them.

Market participants said they are confused by S&P's actions.

"Every time they do this, they erode their credibility as a ratings agency," said Derrick Wulf, a senior portfolio manager at Dwight Asset Management in Burlington, Vt.

This is particularly unnerving at a time when the market is seeking stability, said one market participant who declined to be named.

The market for commercial mortgage loans has been struggling, as the economic downturn has led to empty malls and offices. Borrowers have been unable to raise fresh funding or refinance existing loans, increasing defaults.

Tuesday, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the central bank is closely monitoring the commercial real estate market, given the difficulty borrowers are having to refinance these loans.

-By Anusha Shrivastava, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2227; anusha.shrivastava@ dowjones.com

Walking on the Moon

2009-07-20T17:43:00.003-04:00

One time the police showed up at a friends house. A friend had the good sense to request "Walking on the Moon." Apparently they forgot their instruments.

No Comment Needed

2009-07-18T00:30:00.002-04:00

Lew Rockwell, Market Timer

2009-07-16T21:31:00.004-04:00

March 5, 2009 1¢ Stock Posted by Lew Rockwell on March 5, 2009 07:33 PM
The Dow is below 6,500, headed to 3,600 (my then-joke prediction when discussing the book Dow 36,000) and maybe 1,400 (if the 1930s is our model). You don’t own any common stocks, do you? (Thanks to Bobby)

It amazes me how anti-stock market so many Austrians (and libertarians) seem to think the stock market is some sort of scam. Somehow owning a business is good, but once you are part owner and there is a liquid market to unload your share things all change. It becomes a scam, everything is overvalued, you should buy gold and nothing else. I am not sure when this happened. Rothbard seemed to cheer stock markets, and identified them as symbols of economic freedom in Making Economic Sense:

One time I asked Professor von Mises, the great expert on the economics of socialism, at what point on this spectrum of statism would he designate a country as "socialist" or not. At that time, I wasn't sure that any definite criterion existed to make that sort of clear-cut judgment.

And so I was pleasantly surprised at the clarity and decisiveness of Mises's answer. "A stock market," he answered promptly. "A stock market is crucial to the existence of capitalism and private property. For it means that there is a functioning market in the exchange of private titles to the means of production. There can be no genuine private ownership of capital without a stock market: there can be no true socialism if such a market is allowed to exist."

And so it is particularly thrilling to see that in the headlong flight from central planning and socialism, several of the Communist countries are actually introducing, or preparing to introduce, a stock market. A prospect that would have been unthinkable only a few years ago! The process is already in its early stages in Communist China. And the Soviet Union is beginning to talk about introducing a stock market.

I could understand a bearish, sell all your stocks, call if Lew or really any Austrian had a ever come out and suggested buying stocks when they were cheap. I haven't seen this.

Where Yellow?

2009-07-07T20:54:00.003-04:00

Lance misses the maillot jaune by 10ths.

Is it time for a "White Swan" fund?

2009-06-16T17:04:00.008-04:00

"Black Swans" and Nassim Taleb are all over the news these days. Tail risk hedging is all the rage after the fund group loosely associated with Taleb, Black Swan Protection Protocol, had fantastical returns in October (65% to 115% if you can't read the article). Black Swan's are so hot that even mutual funds are advertising their tail risk hedging programs as a main selling point. While there might not be anything wrong with Mohamed El-Erian's Fund, retail getting involved is often a sign of a crowded trade. Looking at Mutual Fund and ETF launches, from Tech, to Alternative Energy, to Global Water, timing of such things is rarely correct. While it could easily be argued that tail risk hedging is an essential part of risk management. To a great degree, although less than reported, risk and return are correlated. You may want to be taking on tail risk in your investments.

Providing downside insurance to investors has actually been more profitable than investing directly in the stock market over recent years. An example this is the performance of the CBOE Put Write index. The put write index has outperformed the S&P since 1986 with less volatility. This points to the fact that insuring risk is a large source of returns and one ought be wary of any program hedging such risks costing too much. Taleb's first fund, had significant issues with poor performance after the "black swan" appeared. It was eventually rolled up. Andrew Lo's (2001) hypothetical Captial Decimation Partners returned an impressive 46% annualized with 1/6th the down months from 1992-1999 as a levered tail risk insurance provider (the strategy is easily replicated by any investor and requires no borrowing). They were insuring a larger portion of the tail than many tail risk insurance programs, and obviously that amout of leverage can lead to catastrophic losses (hence Lo's title for his idea).

So what might a "White Swan" fund do? It would bet on expected outcomes, and insure against the most unlikely events that people seem so fearful of. The unlikely events it would sell hedges against? The stock averages falling dramatically and fast over extended periods, US Treasuries rising dramatically in value, deflation. It seems hyper-inflation and deflation are on the mind of Taleb. While both seem unlikely, deflation would be much more "unexpected." I am guessing Taleb may be graying up his swan a bit, and mostly betting on (non-hyper) inflation. And deflation, come on? Or maybe he is just looking to repeat his mistakes.

The question is, when everyone is lining up for insurance, should you get in the insurance business? Seems like an idea worth considering.

Kool and the Gang

2009-06-12T17:40:00.004-04:00

Senate Passes FDA Tobacco Bill

Historic Measure Limits Ads, Packaging; Smokeless Products Affected

"The regulations also require makers to pull from the market products that were introduced after February 2007, which could hurt some dissolvable tobacco pellets and strips. Some snus products will likely be exempt because similar pouches were on sale before that date.

This bill "could significantly chill the introduction or commercialization of new tobacco products that have significantly lower risks than cigarettes," said Tommy Payne, a Reynolds spokesman.

The new ban on candy- and fruit-flavored cigarettes isn't expected to have a big financial impact. Menthol cigarettes are initially exempt from the ban because of demands from the Congressional Black Caucus. About 75% of African-American smokers buy menthol brands.

The FDA is required to set up an advisory panel that will report within a year on whether menthol should be banned."

This bill disappoints on quite a few levels. First and most obvious, regulations are all pernicious. Second, the prospect of banning fun dissolvable tobacco products like Camel Orbs, and Ariva and Stonewall is just unconscionable. From what I understand they are the future of tobacco. I actually traveled around to a few local gas stations looking for these products as they sounded like fun. When is the last time a tobacco product has inspired such excitement? The answer is never. Next they will be banning exciting and fun beverages like Twisted Tea and Sparks (Oh, wait).

However, I must commend the actions of the Black Caucus in standing up for the rights of Menthol smokers. Where is my Black Caucus?

Broken Windshield Fallacy

2009-06-09T23:05:00.004-04:00

House Passes Cash for Clunkers Legislation

"Although politicians and pundits are sure to weigh-in on the merits of the bill, the specifics appear clear: if your car gets 18 mpg or less and you trade in for a new vehicle the achieves at least 22 mpg, you receive a $3,500 voucher, or $4,500 if the mileage of the new vehicle is 10 mpg higher than your previous heap. SUV, pickup truck and minivan buyers are eligible for a $3,500 voucher if their vehicle gets at least two mpg higher than their trade-in and $4,500 if the vehicle gets five mpg more than their older model."

Yes, clearly, destroying usable cars or straight subsidizing car purchases will help the economy. Clearly we can subsidize our way out of any problem.

Clusterfuck

2009-06-09T20:39:00.004-04:00

The morons over at Clusterstock, post "Famous Bear Fund Has Lost All Its Gains From The Crisis." Apparently, the alleged business reporter Joe Weisenthal of apparent "Dealbreaker" fame, doesn't even know how mutual funds work.* Joe forgot the part about mutual funds being required to pay capital gains at the end of the year.

While Tice's predictions about broad market indexes have been far from accurate, he and current manager Doug Noland have amassed an impressive track record for a short bias manager. If Federated was smart enough to pair Noland with a strong long only manger they would have quite a product on their hands.

Trailing Total Returns	through 06-08-09

	Total Return %	+/- ML USD LIBOR 3 Mon CM	+/- S&P 500 TR	% Rank in Cat
1-Day	0.00	0.00	0.08	83
1-Week	-0.32	-0.33	0.01	57
1-Month	-0.94	-1.07	-2.30	18
3-Month	-19.90	-20.32	-58.20	19
Year-to-date	-5.53	-6.21	-10.80	24
1-Year	19.46	16.82	48.56	10
3-Year Annualized	10.04	5.64	17.31	2
5-Year Annualized	7.61	3.77	9.46	1
10-Yr Annualized*	9.38	5.62	11.09	1

*Data through 05-31-09

*I guess the quality of the blogging shouldn't be shocking as the CEO (really?) of the blog is none other than Henry Blodget former ML analyst of securities fraud fame (and now EMH supporter).

Chapter What?

2009-06-03T20:14:00.002-04:00

If only these morons had figured this out 10 years ago when reasonable people would have.

Read the Journal free

2009-06-01T23:50:00.002-04:00

Silicon Alley Insider

Basically, find an article you want to read. If it is subscription only, google the title, click the link. No subscription required. Magic.

Sorry Jack

2009-05-27T22:32:00.004-04:00

Bogle: Vanguard is always near the top in performance and it's always the lowest cost...

The legendary Vanguard 500 Index Investor

Trailing Total Returns as of today's close

	Total Return %	+/- S&P 500 TR	+/- Morningstar Large Core TR USD Index	% Rank in Cat
1-Day	-1.88	0.00	0.27	76
1-Week	-1.09	0.01	0.41	76
1-Month	4.45	0.02	-0.91	63
3-Month	22.27	0.03	-1.56	49
Year-to-date	0.05	0.03	1.68	64
1-Year	-33.74	0.02	-4.76	51
3-Year Annualized	-9.41	-0.06	-2.93	48
5-Year Annualized	-2.57	-0.09	-2.05	53
10-Yr Annualized*	-2.56	-0.08	-1.31	56

The S&P 500 consistently underperforms most large cap blend mutual funds. Clearly, survivor bias is an issue here, but not enough to worry about.

Nice tie

2009-05-26T19:40:00.002-04:00

Thank Jesus for Rosey

2009-05-20T22:44:00.002-04:00

Illiterate Bear fucker rants again.

Dave Rosenberg is one of those guys, the ones that amaze you. How is Rosey amazing? It is certainly not because he is an economist who has no understanding of economics. That really doesn't win you a prize (well, I guess it does). What is so amazing, is that he has a new job, and that people actually think he has a fucking clue. Being right for the wrong reasons is plain lucky.

Welcome to Crazy Town

2009-05-20T22:02:00.003-04:00

A truly amazing video, Jeff Macke doing what everyone else would do if forced to deal with the likes of Dennis Kneale (amongst others). (Undeserved hat tip to Dealbreaker)

Fuck you Jared

2009-05-11T19:09:00.003-04:00

Or, McDonald's is the new health food.

First, a disclaimer, I am not all that concerned with eating healthy. As proof of this, I admit to eating McDonald's nearly every day. Shockingly, I haven't been Super Sized.*

My take on nutrition and eating properly: calories are neutral, we need them to live. Too many will make you fat, but I don't have that issue. Thus, I try to maximize the protein, vitamins, and fiber while minimizing carbohydrates, sugar, and sodium. Fat, I could take it or leave it.

Using info from Subway, and comparing to McDonald's, I decided to do an interesting compare-o. How does my meal of choice, a McDouble and a 4 piece McNuggets compare with a "healthy" sandwich from Subway. For the sandwich I chose Jared's favorite, Turkey.

A 12 inch Turkey and my McDonald's dollar menu pair both have 580 calories. While the McDonald's out does subway in two categories, Fat (31/8 g) and Cholesterol (95/40 mg), Subway outdoes McDonald's in Sodium (2100/920 mg), Carbs (96/49 g) and Sugar (12/7 g). The Protein figure is somewhat shocking as the Subway has more protein (36/32 g).

At the very least, it is pretty hard to claim that Subway is particularly healthier than McDonald's provided you control for quantity.

*Spurlock can fuck off as well.

Fantastic

2009-05-06T18:27:00.000-04:00

Unafraid In Greenwich Connecticut
Clifford S. Asness
Managing and Founding Principal
AQR Capital Management, LLC

The President has just harshly castigated hedge fund managers for being unwilling to take his administration’s bid for their Chrysler bonds. He called them “speculators” who were “refusing to sacrifice like everyone else” and who wanted “to hold out for the prospect of an unjustified taxpayer-funded bailout.”

The responses of hedge fund managers have been, appropriately, outrage, but generally have been anonymous for fear of going on the record against a powerful President (an exception, though still in the form of a “group letter”, was the superb note from “The Committee of Chrysler Non-TARP Lenders” some of the points of which I echo here, and a relatively few firms, like Oppenheimer, that have publicly defended themselves). Furthermore, one by one the managers and banks are said to be caving to the President’s wishes out of justifiable fear.

I run an approximately twenty billion dollar money management firm that offers hedge funds as well as public mutual funds and unhedged traditional investments. My company is not involved in the Chrysler situation, but I am still aghast at the President's comments (of course these are my own views not those of my company). Furthermore, for some reason I was not born with the common sense to keep it to myself, though my title should more accurately be called "Not Afraid Enough" as I am indeed fearful writing this... It’s really a bad idea to speak out. Angering the President is a mistake and, my views will annoy half my clients. I hope my clients will understand that I’m entitled to my voice and to speak it loudly, just as they are in this great country. I hope they will also like that I do not think I have the right to intentionally “sacrifice” their money without their permission.

Here's a shock. When hedge funds, pension funds, mutual funds, and individuals, including very sweet grandmothers, lend their money they expect to get it back. However, they know, or should know, they take the risk of not being paid back. But if such a bad event happens it usually does not result in a complete loss. A firm in bankruptcy still has assets. It’s not always a pretty process. Bankruptcy court is about figuring out how to most fairly divvy up the remaining assets based on who is owed what and whose contracts come first. The process already has built-in partial protections for employees and pensions, and can set lenders' contracts aside in order to help the company survive, all of which are the rules of the game lenders know before they lend. But, without this recovery process nobody would lend to risky borrowers. Essentially, lenders accept less than shareholders (means bonds return less than stocks) in good times only because they get more than shareholders in bad times.

The above is how it works in America, or how it’s supposed to work. The President and his team sought to avoid having Chrysler go through this process, proposing their own plan for re-organizing the company and partially paying off Chrysler’s creditors. Some bond holders thought this plan unfair. Specifically, they thought it unfairly favored the United Auto Workers, and unfairly paid bondholders less than they would get in bankruptcy court. So, they said no to the plan and decided, as is their right, to take their chances in the bankruptcy process. But, as his quotes above show, the President thought they were being unpatriotic or worse.

Let’s be clear, it is the job and obligation of all investment managers, including hedge fund managers, to get their clients the most return they can. They are allowed to be charitable with their own money, and many are spectacularly so, but if they give away their clients’ money to share in the “sacrifice”, they are stealing. Clients of hedge funds include, among others, pension funds of all kinds of workers, unionized and not. The managers have a fiduciary obligation to look after their clients’ money as best they can, not to support the President, nor to oppose him, nor otherwise advance their personal political views. That’s how the system works. If you hired an investment professional and he could preserve more of your money in a financial disaster, but instead he decided to spend it on the UAW so you could “share in the sacrifice”, you would not be happy.

Let’s quickly review a few side issues.

The President's attempted diktat takes money from bondholders and gives it to a labor union that delivers money and votes for him. Why is he not calling on his party to "sacrifice" some campaign contributions, and votes, for the greater good? Shaking down lenders for the benefit of political donors is recycled corruption and abuse of power.

Let’s also mention only in passing the irony of this same President begging hedge funds to borrow more to purchase other troubled securities. That he expects them to do so when he has already shown what happens if they ask for their money to be repaid fairly would be amusing if not so dangerous. That hedge funds might not participate in these programs because of fear of getting sucked into some toxic demagoguery that ends in arbitrary punishment for trying to work with the Treasury is distressing. Some useful programs, like those designed to help finance consumer loans, won't work because of this irresponsible hectoring.

Last but not least, the President screaming that the hedge funds are looking for an unjustified taxpayer-funded bailout is the big lie writ large. Find me a hedge fund that has been bailed out. Find me a hedge fund, even a failed one, that has asked for one. In fact, it was only because hedge funds have not taken government funds that they could stand up to this bullying. The TARP recipients had no choice but to go along. The hedge funds were singled out only because
they are unpopular, not because they behaved any differently from any other ethical manager of other people's money. The President’s comments here are backwards and libelous. Yet, somehow I don’t think the hedge funds will be following ACORN’s lead and trucking in a bunch of paid professional protestors soon. Hedge funds really need a community organizer.

This is America. We have a free enterprise system that has worked spectacularly for us for two hundred plus years. When it fails it fixes itself. Most importantly, it is not an owned lackey of the oval office to be scolded for disobedience by the President.

I am ready for my “personalized” tax rate now.

The Number One Cereal in the Game

2009-05-01T21:05:00.004-04:00

Mom's Best Naturals, is the cereal you should be eating. As you might have read in Women's Day, Mom's Best has no artificial colors, flavors, hydrogenated oils or high-fructose corn syrup.* It is also much cheaper than advertised brands. They feature knock offs of cereals you might otherwise buy, but are often a bit lower in sugar. My favorites are, Oats and Honey (Honey Bunches of Oates), Mallow Oats (Lucky Charms), and Honey-ful Wheat (Honey Smacks). All as good, or better than their competition.

*Some varieties have some, but it is kept to a minimum.

What the Hell is Going on at Fox News?

2009-04-24T18:55:00.001-04:00

It is this sort of devastatingly obvious logic that leads to the conclusion that all politicians are criminals.

At least Moldovan chicks get it

2009-04-14T23:31:00.002-04:00

Dear America, you are stupid

2009-04-09T19:31:00.001-04:00

Just 53% Say Capitalism Better Than Socialism
Thursday, April 09, 2009

Only 53% of American adults believe capitalism is better than socialism.

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey found that 20% disagree and say socialism is better. Twenty-seven percent (27%) are not sure which is better.

Adults under 30 are essentially evenly divided: 37% prefer capitalism, 33% socialism, and 30% are undecided. Thirty-somethings are a bit more supportive of the free-enterprise approach with 49% for capitalism and 26% for socialism. Adults over 40 strongly favor capitalism, and just 13% of those older Americans believe socialism is better.

Investors by a 5-to-1 margin choose capitalism. As for those who do not invest, 40% say capitalism is better while 25% prefer socialism.

There is a partisan gap as well. Republicans - by an 11-to-1 margin - favor capitalism. Democrats are much more closely divided: Just 39% say capitalism is better while 30% prefer socialism. As for those not affiliated with either major political party, 48% say capitalism is best, and 21% opt for socialism.

Are you fucking kidding me?

2009-04-08T20:31:00.001-04:00

Kal Penn takes a job with White House

April 8, 2009

Actor Kal Penn takes a job with White House

Kal Penn, known for his role as a stoned underachiever in the "Harold & Kumar" movies, is putting aside the doobie -- and his role as Dr. Kutner on Fox's "House" -- in exchange for a new job at the White House.

The actor has been hired as an associate director at the Office of Public Liaison, where he will help the Obama administration connect with arts and entertainment groups as well as the Asian and Pacific Islander communities, according to an Associated Press report.

Entertainment Weekly broke the story Tuesday in an interview on its website in which Penn stated that he will "do outreach with the American public and with different organizations."

"House" viewers were shocked when his Kutner character committed suicide on Monday night's episode, to write him off the show.

Penn was a vocal supporter of Obama during his presidential campaign. The actor was one of the speakers at Obama's inaugural concert at the Lincoln Memorial. He also participated in various rallies for the candidate on the campaign trail. Recently, the actor taught a course in Asian Americans and the media at the University of Pennsylvania.

Dumbest idea since the Segway or The Segway, now with GM?

2009-04-07T22:59:00.006-04:00

Segway Puma at Autoblog

ShamWow!!!

2009-03-30T17:46:00.005-04:00

Honestly, this is what you get for $1000?

ShamWow Guy's Cannibal Hooker, Post-Beating

The Hooker-Beating ShamWow Guy Is a Renegade Ex-Scientologist

Fridge Advice

2009-03-29T15:30:00.002-04:00

Lather Up

2009-03-27T19:32:00.001-04:00

AIG Resignation Letter

2009-03-25T23:49:00.000-04:00

Dear Mr. Liddy,

It is with deep regret that I submit my notice of resignation from A.I.G. Financial Products. I hope you take the time to read this entire letter. Before describing the details of my decision, I want to offer some context:

I am proud of everything I have done for the commodity and equity divisions of A.I.G.-F.P. I was in no way involved in — or responsible for — the credit default swap transactions that have hamstrung A.I.G. Nor were more than a handful of the 400 current employees of A.I.G.-F.P. Most of those responsible have left the company and have conspicuously escaped the public outrage.

After 12 months of hard work dismantling the company — during which A.I.G. reassured us many times we would be rewarded in March 2009 — we in the financial products unit have been betrayed by A.I.G. and are being unfairly persecuted by elected officials. In response to this, I will now leave the company and donate my entire post-tax retention payment to those suffering from the global economic downturn. My intent is to keep none of the money myself.

I take this action after 11 years of dedicated, honorable service to A.I.G. I can no longer effectively perform my duties in this dysfunctional environment, nor am I being paid to do so. Like you, I was asked to work for an annual salary of $1, and I agreed out of a sense of duty to the company and to the public officials who have come to its aid. Having now been let down by both, I can no longer justify spending 10, 12, 14 hours a day away from my family for the benefit of those who have let me down.

You and I have never met or spoken to each other, so I’d like to tell you about myself. I was raised by schoolteachers working multiple jobs in a world of closing steel mills. My hard work earned me acceptance to M.I.T., and the institute’s generous financial aid enabled me to attend. I had fulfilled my American dream.

I started at this company in 1998 as an equity trader, became the head of equity and commodity trading and, a couple of years before A.I.G.’s meltdown last September, was named the head of business development for commodities. Over this period the equity and commodity units were consistently profitable — in most years generating net profits of well over $100 million. Most recently, during the dismantling of A.I.G.-F.P., I was an integral player in the pending sale of its well-regarded commodity index business to UBS. As you know, business unit sales like this are crucial to A.I.G.’s effort to repay the American taxpayer.

The profitability of the businesses with which I was associated clearly supported my compensation. I never received any pay resulting from the credit default swaps that are now losing so much money. I did, however, like many others here, lose a significant portion of my life savings in the form of deferred compensation invested in the capital of A.I.G.-F.P. because of those losses. In this way I have personally suffered from this controversial activity — directly as well as indirectly with the rest of the taxpayers.

I have the utmost respect for the civic duty that you are now performing at A.I.G. You are as blameless for these credit default swap losses as I am. You answered your country’s call and you are taking a tremendous beating for it.

But you also are aware that most of the employees of your financial products unit had nothing to do with the large losses. And I am disappointed and frustrated over your lack of support for us. I and many others in the unit feel betrayed that you failed to stand up for us in the face of untrue and unfair accusations from certain members of Congress last Wednesday and from the press over our retention payments, and that you didn’t defend us against the baseless and reckless comments made by the attorneys general of New York and Connecticut.

My guess is that in October, when you learned of these retention contracts, you realized that the employees of the financial products unit needed some incentive to stay and that the contracts, being both ethical and useful, should be left to stand. That’s probably why A.I.G. management assured us on three occasions during that month that the company would “live up to its commitment” to honor the contract guarantees.

That may be why you decided to accelerate by three months more than a quarter of the amounts due under the contracts. That action signified to us your support, and was hardly something that one would do if he truly found the contracts “distasteful.”

That may also be why you authorized the balance of the payments on March 13.

At no time during the past six months that you have been leading A.I.G. did you ask us to revise, renegotiate or break these contracts — until several hours before your appearance last week before Congress.

I think your initial decision to honor the contracts was both ethical and financially astute, but it seems to have been politically unwise. It’s now apparent that you either misunderstood the agreements that you had made — tacit or otherwise — with the Federal Reserve, the Treasury, various members of Congress and Attorney General Andrew Cuomo of New York, or were not strong enough to withstand the shifting political winds.

You’ve now asked the current employees of A.I.G.-F.P. to repay these earnings. As you can imagine, there has been a tremendous amount of serious thought and heated discussion about how we should respond to this breach of trust.

As most of us have done nothing wrong, guilt is not a motivation to surrender our earnings. We have worked 12 long months under these contracts and now deserve to be paid as promised. None of us should be cheated of our payments any more than a plumber should be cheated after he has fixed the pipes but a careless electrician causes a fire that burns down the house.

Many of the employees have, in the past six months, turned down job offers from more stable employers, based on A.I.G.’s assurances that the contracts would be honored. They are now angry about having been misled by A.I.G.’s promises and are not inclined to return the money as a favor to you.

The only real motivation that anyone at A.I.G.-F.P. now has is fear. Mr. Cuomo has threatened to “name and shame,” and his counterpart in Connecticut, Richard Blumenthal, has made similar threats — even though attorneys general are supposed to stand for due process, to conduct trials in courts and not the press.

So what am I to do? There’s no easy answer. I know that because of hard work I have benefited more than most during the economic boom and have saved enough that my family is unlikely to suffer devastating losses during the current bust. Some might argue that members of my profession have been overpaid, and I wouldn’t disagree.

That is why I have decided to donate 100 percent of the effective after-tax proceeds of my retention payment directly to organizations that are helping people who are suffering from the global downturn. This is not a tax-deduction gimmick; I simply believe that I at least deserve to dictate how my earnings are spent, and do not want to see them disappear back into the obscurity of A.I.G.’s or the federal government’s budget. Our earnings have caused such a distraction for so many from the more pressing issues our country faces, and I would like to see my share of it benefit those truly in need.

On March 16 I received a payment from A.I.G. amounting to $742,006.40, after taxes. In light of the uncertainty over the ultimate taxation and legal status of this payment, the actual amount I donate may be less — in fact, it may end up being far less if the recent House bill raising the tax on the retention payments to 90 percent stands. Once all the money is donated, you will immediately receive a list of all recipients.

This choice is right for me. I wish others at A.I.G.-F.P. luck finding peace with their difficult decision, and only hope their judgment is not clouded by fear.

Mr. Liddy, I wish you success in your commitment to return the money extended by the American government, and luck with the continued unwinding of the company’s diverse businesses — especially those remaining credit default swaps. I’ll continue over the short term to help make sure no balls are dropped, but after what’s happened this past week I can’t remain much longer — there is too much bad blood. I’m not sure how you will greet my resignation, but at least Attorney General Blumenthal should be relieved that I’ll leave under my own power and will not need to be “shoved out the door.”

Sincerely,

Jake DeSantis

Smoke a smarties

2009-03-24T21:29:00.001-04:00

Automaker shockingly realizes lighter is better

2009-03-15T10:16:00.003-04:00

Autoblog.com

"Audi is actively pursuing its "smaller-is-better credo." To that end, the automaker currently has a next-generation A5 prototype running around that's 880 pounds lighter than the current car."

"the A7 is already eight seconds faster than the current S5 around the Nurburgring, thanks primarily to its curb weight, which is expected to come in at around 3,000 pounds. We won't believe that until we see it on an official spec sheet, but it's comforting to know that at least one luxury automaker gets "it" and there's no doubt it will pay dividends in the marketplace if all these initiatives come to fruition."

Autoblog.com

"The Brit pub is reporting the imminent arrival of the Volkswagen Golf GTI-R, a hotter version of VW's iconic hatch with a more powerful variant of the turbocharged 2.0-liter motivating all four wheels.

The turbo'd four-pot is related to the Audi S3's mill, so expect output to be up and over 260 hp. And, according to the report, a major element of the GTI-R is weight reduction, so VW has opted to use the 2.0-liter turbo in favor of its 3.2-liter V6. The supposed weight-loss regime might come in the form of lighter structural and body components, along with a less luxurious interior that won't infringe on the premium confines of the R32 and Scirocco."

Cocaine

2009-03-14T14:57:00.001-04:00

The Jesus Factor

Many Boston teens surveyed say Rihanna is at fault for assault

2009-03-14T13:52:00.001-04:00

Boston.com

"Of the teens questioned, more than half said both Brown, 19, and Rihanna, 21, were equally responsible for the assault. More than half said the media were treating Brown unfairly, and 46 percent said Rihanna was responsible for the incident."

John Stewart Interviews Cramer, Shockingly Good

2009-03-12T23:29:00.002-04:00

He skewered the scumbag. Lets hope John takes his own criticism to heart and stops offering softball interviews to fellow liberals.

Kill the golden goose part 2

2009-03-12T18:56:00.001-04:00

Corporate oil booms in low-tax Switzerland

"The tidy towns and mountain vistas of Switzerland are an unlikely setting for an oil boom.

Yet a wave of energy companies has in the last few months announced plans to move to Switzerland -- mainly for its appeal as a low-tax corporate domicile that looks relatively likely to stay out of reach of Barack Obama's tax-seeking administration.

In a country with scant crude oil production of its own, the virtual energy boom has changed the canton or state of Zug, about 30 minutes' drive from Zurich, beyond all recognition. Its economy was based on farming until it slashed tax rates to attract commerce after World War Two."

"Local authorities say about 13 percent of full-time jobs in Zug canton are in the raw materials sector.

Over the past six months companies including offshore drilling contractors Noble Corp and Transocean, energy-focused engineering group Foster Wheeler and oilfield services company Weatherfield International have all announced plans to shift domicile to Switzerland."

Urban-Suburban Hip Hop Situations

2009-03-11T19:37:00.000-04:00

Revolution Time

2009-03-11T18:07:00.000-04:00

"I may run for president of Texas" - Chuck Norris

Widely known as the toughest man in America, Mr. Norris writes, "From the East Coast to the "Left Coast," America seems to be moving further and further from its founders' vision and government." And suggests people might finally get fed up and do something about it. However, unlikely, let us hope he is right.

Turbo Commie

2009-03-10T17:27:00.001-04:00

I don't know what it is, maybe it is my love to the simplicity of hatchbacks in general, particularly of the tuned variety. Maybe it is the completely insanity of it. However, if Ford or GM made a car that looked like this, that was twin turbo and 325 Horsepower. I would consider buying it. Stupid Volkswagen, just make an R(anything) that weighs less than a ton and a half.

The Great Communicator

2009-03-10T16:01:00.001-04:00

Apparently the teleprompter broke.

Kill the golden goose

2009-03-10T15:55:00.000-04:00

"According to the mayor's office, the top 1% of city taxpayers earning $500,000 or more are responsible for 47.8% of income tax revenue."

Surely, now an opportune time to raise taxes on those paying all the taxes. Thank god Mark Page, the city budget director at least has some sense.

It amazes me, in this age of increasing portability of business due to communications and transportation that anyone would even want to live in New York City.

Game Over

2009-03-06T20:38:00.000-05:00

Clinton, Lavrov push wrong reset button on ties

REUTERS
Reuters North American News Service

Mar 06, 2009 13:23 EST

GENEVA, March 6 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton presented Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov with a red "reset button" to symbolise improved ties, but the gift drew smiles as the word "reset" was mistranslated into the Russian for "overcharge".

"I would like to present you with a little gift that represents what President Obama and Vice President Biden and I have been saying and that is: 'We want to reset our relationship and so we will do it together," said Clinton, presenting Lavrov with a palm-sized yellow box with a red button.

Clinton joked to Lavrov: "We worked hard to get the right Russian word. Do you think we got it?"

"You got it wrong," said Lavrov, smiling as the two pushed the reset button together before dinner at a Geneva hotel.

He told Clinton the word "Peregruzka" meant "overcharge", to which Clinton replied: "We won't let you do that to us."

"We mean it and we look forward to it," she said of "resetting" the relationship, a phrase that Joe Biden first used at a security conference in Munich.

Lavrov said he would put the gift on his desk. (Reporting by Sue Pleming; Editing by Janet Lawrence)

Daft Punk scores "Tron" soundtrack

2009-03-05T22:33:00.000-05:00

Yahoo News

NEW YORK (Billboard) – Daft Punk, the French electronica duo known for their robot personas, will compose the score for "TR2N," Walt Disney Pictures' update of its 1982 science fiction classic "Tron."

The film, currently in production, is tentatively scheduled for a 2011 release.

The "TR2N" score marks Daft Punk's first foray into the studio since 2005's "Human After All." After an extended hiatus, the duo reemerged in 2007 for an extensive world tour, spawning the Grammy-wining live set "Alive 2007." The group's 2001 track "Harder Better Faster Stronger" was adapted by Kanye West for his single "Stronger," and the pair appeared at the 2008 Grammy Awards with the rapper.

The musicians, Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter, split their time between Paris and Los Angeles, where they have assembled a new recording studio for the TR2N project.

Daft Punk have worked in film before, most notably as directors of their feature "Electroma," although that film used none of the group's own music.

The original "Tron," which pioneered the use of computer graphics, was scored by Wendy Carlos, an electronic musician and composer whose "Switched on Bach" album was one of the first to highlight the Moog synthesizer as a musical instrument.

At Least He Can Read

2009-03-05T22:16:00.000-05:00

Obama's safety net: the TelePrompter

From Politico.com via Lew Rockwell

"President Barack Obama doesn’t go anywhere without his TelePrompter.

...

Obama’s reliance on the teleprompter is unusual — not only because he is famous for his oratory, but because no other president has used one so consistently and at so many events, large and small.

After the teleprompter malfunctioned a few times last summer and Obama delivered some less-than-soaring speeches, reports surfaced that he was training to wean himself off of the device while on vacation in Hawaii. But no such luck.

...

“It’s just something presidents haven’t done,” said Martha Joynt Kumar, a presidential historian who has held court in the White House since December 1975."

If ya got some white friends, they'll be clapping like this, y'all.

2009-02-28T09:35:00.000-05:00

Random QBert post

2009-02-27T23:14:00.001-05:00

GOP needs 'hip-hop' makeover

2009-02-22T17:13:00.000-05:00

"Newly elected Republican National Committee Chairman Michael S. Steele plans an “off the hook” public relations offensive to attract younger voters, especially blacks and Hispanics, by applying the party's principles to “urban-suburban hip-hop settings.”

Full Article

Clearly the problem with the Republican party was it isn't hip hop enough.

Dear NYU, there is a lesson here

2009-02-20T19:00:00.000-05:00

The lesson is simple, don't let kids like this into your school. Similarly, don't offer tenure to faculty that help to cultivate this sort of anti-social behavior. Communism is about greed. These kids want something they cannot afford to pay for and they are willing to violate the rights of others to get it. That is the essence of greed.

To be certain, the banner makes a valid point. NYU does over charge many students. Many qualified students are likely overcharged in order to compensate for the undercharging of many students. The problem is easily resolved, but I doubt these kids would like the solution.

Contango and Crash

2009-02-13T18:27:00.000-05:00

The above chart shows the year to date performance of two different "Double Long" Oil investments you could have made to speculate on the price of oil. Clearly investments that have the seemingly same objective, doubling the performance of an investment in oil futures contracts. Regardless of what one feels about the direction of oil, clearly there is a dramatic dispersion in the performance.

Clearly Ultra DJ-AIG Crude Oil (UCO) and PowerShares DB Crude Oil Double Long have similar names. The difference is in the "roll method" the funds use in the futures market and the leverage methods. The DB has a proprietary optimizion method that attempts to mitigate the effects of contango by buying the contracts that cost the least per month to hold. The AIG index lacks this. Futher, the DB index is leveraged monthly vs. daily. Proshares has a good explaination of this issue on there site.

Bottom line stick with investments you understand or seek advice of someone who does understand. Most people don't understand contango or the way daily compounding effects long term returns. People who lost 40% in UCO probably had no idea what they were getting involved with.

*This blog is not a suggestion to buy or sell any security.

Please VW don't do it

2009-02-12T18:20:00.000-05:00

As seen on Autoblog. A terrible, terrible design. VW don't start selling shitty Americanized cars. People already hate your stupid Dodge minivan.

Please build: GTI - 200 lbs + 80 horsepower + 4 Motion = R20

And no, please don't try to build this car without 4 Motion. It will be awful.

Fast, good, pasta.

2009-02-09T22:36:00.000-05:00

Very simple.

Boil water.

Add salt (it should taste like the sea as they say).

Cook spaghetti until very close to done. More than say, if you were going to finish it in a tomato sauce.

Add olive oil, balsamic, crumbled bleu cheese, and black pepper to taste.

This would probably work with ramen. Gourmet dorm food.

High at the dentist, great stuff

2009-02-04T20:03:00.000-05:00

Baked Beans

2009-02-02T19:09:00.000-05:00

I loosely followed this recipe over the weekend, with 5 pieces of bacon omitting the salt pork, and prepared mustard instead of powder (a somewhat random quantity). I also put in a bit less ketchup. Cooking them far longer than suggested helps with the texture of the beans. However, I was bit short on soaking the beans. To anyone who hasn't used dry beans before, reading up on phytohaemagglutinin is a good idea.

I normally avoid Emeril's recipes as the seem to be untested or just not that good. This is an exception. Even if you don't know how to cook, this will probably turn out decent. Just be sure to cook the bacon until it is reasonably crispy. Once the onion and celery was added to the bacon, I knew it would be delicious. It takes what you expect to be a forgetable side, to the status of something that could be eaten as a meal.