Business

What’s been interesting to watch throughout this financial crisis is the global reach of our mortage meltdown and the consequences our actions have brought upon other countries curriency’s (Iceland teeters on brink of bankruptcy).  I know Iceland is small, “home to just 320,000 people on a territory the size of Kentucky, Iceland (but it) has a formidable international reach because of an outsized banking sector that set out with Viking confidence to conquer swaths of the British economy _ from fashion retailers to top soccer teams. The strategy gave Icelanders one of the world’s highest per capita incomes. But now they are watching helplessly as their economy implodes _ their currency losing almost half its value, and their heavily exposed banks collapsing under the weight of debts incurred by lending in the boom times.”  So it’s all smiles in Iceland.  Side note: Anyone else pick up on the phrase “Viking confidence,” I love it.  How about when China is out there destroying it’s environment, creating new massive public works type projects, and growing their economy at record rates we start referring to this industrious fortitude as “Mongolian confidence.”

Billionaire and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg doesn’t think the financial crisis can be fixed by just one country. “Bloomberg says current problems are so grave that no one country can solve them alone.” So how far down the rabbit hole have we tumbled?

French President Nicolas Sarkozy is calling for one world financial system to help us steer out of this “crisis.” President Sarkozy is asking for, “a real and complete reform of the international financial system.” He said, “all actors” must be supervised, including credit-rating firms and hedge funds. Executive-pay systems must also be reviewed, he said.  We want a new world to come out of this,” Sarkozy said. We want to set up the basis for a capitalism of entrepreneurs, not speculators.”

Even the US Federal Reserve has gotten into the mix, “in a rare coordinated move, the Federal Reserve and other major central banks from around the world slashed interest rates Wednesday to prevent a mushrooming financial crisis from becoming a global economic meltdown.”

Added together these statements, various actions taken, etc can lead to the possible conclusion that there’s a coordinated effort to move to a one world economy, utilizing the current economic conditions to facilitate a rapid move.  We’ve already seen the AMERO agreement happen right behind our backs.  This would necessarily suprise me.  Check out www.Amerocurrency.com for more information.  Although admittedly this about as big of a stretch as a black man becoming President.  Oh wait, that’s about to happen.

Analyst’s have been saying that a collapsing dollar would likely result in “Amero” since 2006. The idea is reduce the value of the dollar down to that of the peso and the integration of currencies is a lot easier.

The Fed said that an 85-billion-dollar loan facility made available to AIG last month had been used up and that the new cash would be transferred from the New York Fed, which would take securities from AIG and inject cash in return. ”The New York Fed will borrow up to 37.8 billion dollars in investment-grade, fixed-income securities from AIG in return for cash collateral,” a statement from the Federal Reserve said. 

So here’s the problem with giving out money to US corporations with no consequences what’s to stop them from coming back and asking for more? That’s what’s happened with AIG and over the past 20 years with several Airline carriers.  What’s next OPEC needs some help as Oil is dropping quicker than you can say Henry Nostrilman.  

This guy did a bang up job during Congressional questioning of AIG executives whom they’re now giving MORE money too. This country is lost. No Nostrilman didn’t arrest anyone or really do anything to hold ANYONE accountable for the current financial crisis but he did make a few people feel pretty bad about being ridiculously rich.  

Oh, right, right, they also used OUR money to fund a, “$440,000 retreat to a posh California resort.“  Why can’t we, at the very least, put some Office Space styled scare into them? 

It’s ok, I’ve figured out how this problem came to be: Wall Street finally got a hold of, the much hyped, Matthew Lesko book Free Money.

Obama’s fund-raising problem isn’t your typical lack-of-funds dilemma.  His campaign isn’t short on funds as its been well documented that he has set records with total contributions up to $458 million.  

Obama’s problems stem from where he is getting his money.  ”About half the bounty coming from donors who contribute $200 or less. Aides say that’s an illustration of a truly democratic campaign. To critics, though, it can be an invitation for fraud and illegal foreign cash because donors giving individual sums of $200 or less don’t have to be publicly reported.”

“Consider the cases of Obama donors “Doodad Pro” of Nunda, N.Y., who gave $17,130, and “Good Will” of Austin, Texas, who gave more than $11,000—both in excess of the $2,300-per-person federal limit. In two recent letters to the Obama campaign, Federal Election Commission auditors flagged those (and other) donors and informed the campaign that the sums had to be returned. Neither name had ever been publicly reported because both individuals made online donations in $10 and $25 increments. “Good Will” listed his employer as “Loving” and his occupation as “You,” while supplying as his address 1015 Norwood Park Boulevard, which is shared by the Austin nonprofit Goodwill Industries.” This isn’t going unnoticed as the RNC is now asking the FEC to investigate these suspicious donations.

“This summer, watchdog groups asked both campaigns to share more information about its small donors. The McCain campaign agreed; the Obama campaign did not.”  Hmmm, that’s weird why not? What does he have to hide?  For someone that campaigns on the theme’s of “Change” and “Hope,” he’s offering no change from the typical politics of corruption and offers this writer no hope. I know he’s perfect, right?

because they’re fu*king tasty.

Congress, apparently, has pulled their proverbial heads out of their ass. They’ve decided if we don’t get our money back in the newly re-named rescue plan, come on let’s call it what it is a bail out, then the businesses we are bailing out get taxed.  Wow, common sense, so bizarre.

“If after five years … the CBO decides that the American taxpayer has lost money in this, then there would be a fee on financial institutions.”

This isn’t exactly a new story but one of the more succinct articles on the issue.  The Internet is running out of IP addresses.  Actually this is kind of an issue considering how many companies run SaaS based businesses or at least have an Internet address not to mention the sheer volume of business done over the internet from booking your flight to buying a TV.  I can’t imagine having to actually call Southwest.  

Here’s what how it works and what happens. 

“Every computer and online device is assigned a unique IP address, but the pool of unallocated numbers is about to dry up. “This is like the Internet running out of telephone numbers and with no new numbers, you can’t have more subscribers.” When Mr Cerf and others founded the Internet system in 1977, he set in place “Internet protocol version four” (IPv4) which provided 4.2 billion addresses. With the number of Internet-enabled devices, particularly mobile phones, soaring, less than 14 per cent of those addresses remain vacant.  It is estimated that IPv4 addresses, each of which is a series of 32 binary digits, will run out in 2010 and possibly as early as next year.”

What are we doing about it?

“When Mr Cerf and others founded the internet system in 1977, he set in place “internet protocol version four” (IPv4) which provided 4.2 billion addresses. With the number of internet-enabled devices, particularly mobile phones, soaring, less than 14 per cent of those addresses remain vacant. It is estimated that IPv4 addresses, each of which is a series of 32 binary digits, will run out in 2010 and possibly as early as next year.  A new system, called IPv6, has been ready for implementation for more than a decade. Under IPv6, each address has 128 bits and so provides 340 trillion, trillion, trillion different addresses - that is 340,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000. It is assumed that this will meet humanity’s needs for decades to come.”

Where are we now?

“A new system, called IPv6, has been ready for implementation for more than a decade.  Under IPv6, each address has 128 bits and so provides 340 trillion, trillion, trillion different addresses - that is 340,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000. It is assumed that this will meet humanity’s needs for decades to come.” 

Thank god we thought ahead about something. Recently I feel like we live in Hillary’s “Village” full of idiots.

Caught up with the blame game and bail out hearings many of us are missing what OUR elected representatives in Congress are doing in the late hours of the evening. No they’re not monkeying around.

“Congress is scrambling to pass the Pentagon budget, aid for flood and hurricane victims and $25 billion in loans for Detroit automakers in a late-session burst of activity that’s flying under the radar compared with efforts to bail out Wall Street.”

Nice, good to know their digging themselves a deeper hole.  Sadly at our expense.

“Discussions on the budget are far overshadowed by the ongoing debate over a $700 billion bailout plan for Wall Street. But the amount of money at stake — including a $488 billion Pentagon funding bill that hasn’t seen a second’s worth of public debate or review — is almost as great. Details of the emerging legislation remain secret, but its outlines have come out in interviews with aides to both the House and Senate Appropriations committees, as well as aides to top House and Senate leaders.”

So in the midst of a historic financial bailout for illegal lending practices which, in and of itself, is total bullshiot but just to put a cherry on top of all this we’re now bailing out Detroit automakers.  Nice.  Our new flag?

A team of researchers at UC Berkeley have developed a new technology that will allow you to in theory become invisible.  Finally a replacement for Clearasil. 

“Scientists say they are a step closer to developing materials that could render people and objects invisible. Researchers have demonstrated for the first time they were able to cloak three-dimensional objects using artificially engineered materials that redirect light around the objects. Previously, they only have been able to cloak very thin two-dimensional objects.”

This technology, unfortunately, will be strictly for military use.  It would be an incredible feat to be able to hide a invading platoon or a brigade of tanks.

“This is the first time where we show that you can actually take electromagnetic waves and wrap them around some region that you want to conceal and restore them on the other side. The electromagnetic sleight-of-hand is enabled by novel, human-made substances called metamaterials.”

This technology was originally discovered by Ted Danson who has been using it to hide his career for years now.

The Dallas-Fort Worth airport has a Best Buy vending machine that sells electronic gadgets like Apple’s popular ipod.  “The Best Buy express vending machine has some of the best selling portable electronic products from a regular Best Buy store, including digital cameras, Bluetooth headsets, Bose noise canceling headphones and of course a selection of Apple iPods.”

Cool. Finally all the convenience of a vending machine without the hassle of dealing with the crowds at Best Buy or the annoying Best Buy employee who likes to waste your time impressing you with his vast array of useless knowledge about digital cameras or the latest craze in popped blue collars.

Apparently these vending machines are extremely profitable.  Back in 2006, “an iPod vending machine at Atlanta airport was selling $55,000 a month in iPods alone (that is about 7 iPods a day).”

Find a vending machine near you.

I never thought I would see this day.  A common sense ruling, out of a California courtroom, in favor of the consumer.  “The fees that cell phone carriers charge customers who break service contracts took a big hit in a California courtroom when a judge said such charges by Sprint Nextel Corp. likely violate state law. The judge, in a tentative ruling issued late Monday, said Sprint will have to pay $18.3 million to customers who sued over the fees and credit $54.8 million to those who were charged but did not pay the fees.”

The article goes on to state that, “the same judge is considering other lawsuits against telecommunications companies over their so-called early termination fees, which can range from $150 to $225. This month Verizon Wireless agreed to pay $21 million to settle an identical lawsuit just as trial was starting.”  Imagine being able to go from carrier to carrier without any penalty.  This ruling will mean an increase in competition and a decrease in costs.  Net, Net good for us.

AhMADinejad says current oil prices are a ”fake” and do to weakened dollar. “At a time when the growth of consumption is lower than the growth of production and the market is full of oil, prices are rising and this trend is completely fake and imposed,”

He might have something here.  At least the rest of the world respects/trusts him more then Bush.

Along the same vein Big Oil to return to Iraq.  Bring on the conspiracy theories.