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The rough politics of European adjustment Nov 30th, 2010 by Michael Pettis Posted in Euro If Europe is going to “resolve” the current crisis in an orderly way, it is going to have to move very quickly – not just for the obvious financial reasons, but for much narrower political reasons. I am pretty sure that the evolution of European politics over the next few years will make an orderly solution progressively more difficult. /snip My skepticism was strengthened by the historical argument – no fiscally fragmented currency union had ever survived a real global liquidity contraction. /snip I have...

Microsoft's annual meeting of shareholders in Bellevue this morning was pretty much the standard routine -- except for one question toward the end. The company's nine-member board was reappointed and a lone shareholder proposal, to establish a board environmental committee, was rejected. CEO Steve Ballmer touted the company's revenue and earnings growth. Shareholders complained about the stagnant share price and pressed for a higher dividend. Ballmer talked about Microsoft's product pipeline and finance chief Peter Klein noted that the company has returned more than $170 billion to shareholders in the form of dividends and stock buybacks over the past decade....

Link only, per requirements of King Bloomberg I of New York City's news service.

Fears of a euro break-up have reached the point where the European Central Bank feels compelled to issue a legal analysis of what would happen if a country tried to leave monetary union.

“…For the world's more full of weeping than you can understand. …”~W.B. Yeats First, my title is in no way intended to be a slight to C.S. Lewis, but rather a tribute and expression of gratitude for his many works that have profoundly influenced my intellectual and spiritual life these past years. Mimicry, it is said, is the sincerest form of flattery, and while I get the impression that Mr. Lewis was not particularly prone to vanity, I like to think he might be smiling down with the knowledge that my humble efforts here have grown out of thoughts and...

Pop group A-ha have announced they are to call it a day, just months after achieving a top 10 album in the UK. "We've literally lived the ultimate boy's adventure tale," the group, which formed 25 years ago, said. The trio added that the split would allow them to pursue "other meaningful aspects of life, be it humanitarian work, politics, or whatever else". The Norwegian band scored international hits with The Sun Always Shines On TV and Take On Me in the 1980s. Their most recent album, Foot Of The Mountain, marked a return to their synth-pop roots after a...

The biblical story of Adam and Eve suggests that Eve’s disobedience to God introduced sin to the world which ultimately led to the downfall of man and mankind. It is a story repeated over and over again in the Christian arena. It’s the first story a child learns which attempts to explain why there is so much suffering in life. It is a story which puts the burden of death, destruction, disobedience, and suffering at the feet of Eve, Adam’s wife, or as the Biblical writers describes her – Adam’s Helpmeet. While the story of Adam and Eve is true,...

AIG considers break-up in bid to stay afloat By Francesco Guerrera in New York and Sundeep Tucker in Hong Kong Published: February 25 2009 23:42 | Last updated: February 25 2009 23:42 AIG and the US authorities are in advanced discussions over a radical restructuring that would split the stricken insurer into at least three government-controlled divisions in an attempt to keep it afloat, according to people close to the situation. The restructuring, described by one insider as a “controlled break-up”, could lead to the end of AIG’s 90-year history as a stand-alone global insurance conglomerate. It also could provide...

In 1990, few were predicting the breakup of the Soviet Union. But it came – only a year later. With 2009 set to begin in a few days, there is someone predicting the breakup of the United States – a year from now. His name is Igor Panarin, a former KGB analyst and dean of the Russian Foreign Ministry's school for foreign diplomats – in other words, a serious fellow. For him, it's nothing new. He's been making the same prediction for last 10 years. But, until recently, no one took him seriously. And then came the economic calamity that...

A leading Russian political analyst has said the economic turmoil in the United States has confirmed his long-held view that the country is heading for collapse, and will divide into separate parts. Professor Igor Panarin said in an interview with the respected daily IZVESTIA published on Monday: "The dollar is not secured by anything. The country's foreign debt has grown like an avalanche, even though in the early 1980s there was no debt. By 1998, when I first made my prediction, it had exceeded $2 trillion. Now it is more than 11 trillion. This is a pyramid that can only...

"By 1998, when I first made my prediction, it had exceeded $2 trillion. Now it is more than 11 trillion. This is a pyramid that can only collapse." ... "It is already collapsing. Due to the financial crisis, three of the largest and oldest five banks on Wall Street have already ceased to exist, and two are barely surviving." ... "Two countries could assume this role: China, with its vast reserves, and Russia, which could play the role of a regulator in Eurasia." ... "Millions of citizens there have lost their savings. ... whole cities will be left without work...

LEAN-MAN BROTHERS By MARK DeCAMBRE September 11, 2008 -- Lehman Brothers is likely to look more like a beefed-up version of advisory firm Lazard and less like a bulge-bracket Wall Street firm after the dust settles on its planned "bad-bank" spin-off. Should the 158-year-old firm retain its independence and not be bought outright, as many are speculating might happen, observers expect the global franchise to exist as a much smaller company. Predictions are that Lehman, which currently has roughly 24,000 employees, might need to shrink by 7,000 or 8,000 in order to confront a tumultuous market and prepare for the...

Senator Barack Obama sought on Wednesday to set aside the controversy over his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr., and steer the conversation in the Democratic presidential campaign back to the economy. One day after forcefully breaking with Mr. Wright, Mr. Obama returned to Indiana for a series of events intended to highlight his proposals for tax cuts for the middle class. With six days to go before crucial primaries in Indiana and North Carolina, Mr. Obama is trying to retake control of his message, which had been overshadowed by incendiary remarks made by Mr. Wright and by Mr....

March 5, 2008 Market Place Assurances From Citigroup, but Skepticism on Wall Street By ERIC DASH Sanford I. Weill built Citigroup into one of the world’s largest banking companies. Now, Vikram S. Pandit is watching Mr. Weill’s creation wither in the stock market. Reflecting a punishing yearlong decline, Citigroup’s stock price plummeted on Tuesday to its lowest level since 1998, when Mr. Weill formed the financial conglomerate through the merger of Travelers and Citicorp. The shares sank 99 cents, or 4.3 percent, to $22.10, as concern spread that new multibillion-dollar losses might force Citigroup to go hat in hand to...

Monolines given five days to find funds By Aline Van Duyn in Washington and Michael Mackenzie in New York Published: February 14 2008 14:54 | Last updated: February 14 2008 21:47 Eliot Spitzer, New York governor, on Thursday gave bond insurers three to five business days to find fresh capital, or face a potential break-up by state regulators who want to safeguard the municipal bond markets. Mr Spitzer’s warning came shortly before Moody’s Investors Service highlighted the concerns about the bond insurers by withdrawing its triple-A credit rating for privately held Financial Guaranty Insurance Company. However, the sting of Moody’s...

Motorola eyes breakup of company to gain telecom 'leadership' Thu Jan 31, 5:25 PM ET Motorola said Thursday it is studying a possible breakup of the company in an effort "to recapture global market leadership" in the mobile phone market, and to enhance shareholder value. The struggling company based in Schaumburg, Illinois, said it is "exploring the structural and strategic realignment of its businesses." This may include the separation of its Mobile Devices division from its other businesses "in order to permit each business to grow and better serve its customers," the company said in a statement. Motorola, once the...

It’s a disaster scenario that Hollywood has picked up on (think Deep Impact). An incoming object menaces the Earth. Scientists try to destroy it with nuclear weapons, but the horrified populace soon discovers that the blast has simply broken the object into pieces, each with the potential to wreak havoc planet-wide. Now we learn that an impact between two asteroids causing a similar crack-up may have resulted in the cataclysmic event some 65 million years ago that destroyed the dinosaurs. Researchers from Southwest Research Institute and Charles University (Prague) have been studying the asteroid (298) Baptistina, combining their observations with...

Do you agree with the government's motion that recognizes Quebec as a nation within Canada? Yes No