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HomeDoyle Holiday Cheer
Posted by Larry Doyle on December 23rd, 2010 7:58 AM |
What do you get when you put five Irish guys involved in finance around a table?
1. A lot of laughs.
2. Varied opinions.
3. Interesting insights.
4. A mix of plenty BS and zero BS depending on the topic.
5. Real bonding and true friendship.
6. ‘Sense on cents.’
7. All of the above.
Well, last evening 4 of my 7 siblings (6 brothers) and I got together with our respective families, including 16 nieces and nephews, for some Doyle holiday cheer. We covered all of the points highlighted above, plus some. Having experienced many of these get togethers over the years, I often wish that a tape recorder were running to capture the material and bantering. (more…)
A ‘Graphic’ View of the U.S. Credit Collapse
Posted by Larry Doyle on December 14th, 2010 6:28 AM |
If a picture paints a thousand words, then the graphs I am highlighting today would encompass many volumes. I thank the regular reader of Sense on Cents who brought them to my attention. Major prop to Barry Ritholtz of The Big Picture who ran this commentary yesterday. Major credit to the writer at the Global Macro Monitor blog.
The Global Macro Monitor blog was started by an independent trader and economist and, in a prior life, was a global macro hedge fund PM/trader, headed emerging market bond trading desks on Wall Street, and an economist/global strategist, beginning his career at the World Bank in the mid 1980’s. His unique and unconventional views are reflected on his website at marcromon.wordpress.com.
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We constructed these charts with data from today’s release of the Federal Reserve’s Flow of Funds. They are both stunning and frightening as they illustrate the cardiac arrest that took place in the credit markets. The collapse in credit issuance/borrowing began in 2008 and would have been net negative without the Federal government. In 2009, for example, the Federal government was 141 percent of total net credit borrowings. (more…)
“The Lack of Transparency and Accountability at FINRA Is Absurd”
Posted by Larry Doyle on December 10th, 2010 6:46 AM |
I detest those people and organizations paying mere lip service to issues needing real transparency and accountability.
I love having the voice provided by Sense on Cents so I can highlight a wide array of these issues and so people can more effectively navigate the economic landscape. I also love being able to ask the hard questions and call out those whom I think are not serving the public interest.
What else do I love? I love when a voice far stronger than my own echoes my thoughts, shares my opinion, and blasts away in pursuit of real truth, transparency, and integrity along our economic landscape.
With only a few exceptions, the media as a whole has shown itself unwilling to truly take the gloves off and go after the aforementioned ‘lip serving’ individuals and institutions. Independent watchdogs in pursuit of good government are far more aggressive.
On this note and against this backdrop, I have to admit my adrenaline picked up yesterday. How so? Let’s navigate as I was informed of the following: (more…)
Operation Broken Trust Missed “The Big One”
Posted by Larry Doyle on December 8th, 2010 7:55 AM |
$8 billion is a lot of money, right? Right.
But when is $8 billion NOT a lot of money?
$8 billion is NOT a lot of money when it is compared to $35 billion, $135 billion, or $335 billion. Agreed?
Agreed. Thank you. Let’s continue.
Sense on Cents is a huge proponent of exposing and prosecuting financial fraud wherever it occurs. To this end, I was happy to see that the Feds have had their ‘street cleaners’ operating overtime the last few months. The results of the Fed’s ‘street cleaning’, also known as Operation Broken Trust, is a not insignificant collection of 231 cases totaling $8 billion in losses. Well done. In all sincerity, I commend each and every individual involved in this effort. While those arrested deserve due process, they also deserve to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. If guilty, I hope they receive maximum sentences.
Regrettably, though, the street cleaners missed “The Big One.” Which scam is that? A scam which by any measure could reasonably be described by any of those much larger figures referenced above. (more…)
Fooling Some of the People All of the Time
Posted by Larry Doyle on December 7th, 2010 9:21 AM |
Who is willing to stand up and call out the companies, the financial regulators, and others who both enabled and embodied the practices which brought about our financial crisis?
There have been and will continue to be many well written books highlighting some of the finer points from this economic period. Will there be any books written which truly take off the gloves and call out the individuals and institutions deeply involved in the ‘Wall Street-Washington incest’ central to our economic demise? One book I plan to read seems to address this very theme. I thank a regular reader of Sense on Cents for bringing David Einhorn’s Fooling Some of the People All of the Time to my attention.
To those involved in the financial industry, Einhorn needs no introduction. To those in the general public, let me inform you that David Einhorn–more than any other individual– publicly called out Lehman Bros. as a disaster waiting to happen, and well in advance of anybody saying the same. What does Einhorn have to say now? What does he address in this book? Let’s navigate. (more…)
Will States, such as California, File Chapter 9?
Posted by Larry Doyle on December 3rd, 2010 6:38 AM |
Are those large waves roiling the world of municipal finance–and centered on California–to be feared?
Are they an indication of an oncoming tsunami? Or are they to be discounted and taken as just another “Hey, dude, don’t worry. Surf’s up!!”
Well, perhaps those less concerned about what is just ‘off the coast’ may care to ‘break out their boards’ but prudence dictates we take a harder look at what is causing the recent waves in the world of municipal finance. These factors include: (more…)
Lessons Learned Growing up in Boston, MA
Posted by Larry Doyle on December 1st, 2010 10:21 AM |
I loved growing up in Boston. My beloved knows how often I think back to the lessons learned and ‘education’ received in those formative years of the 1960s and early ’70s.
While growing up as a youth in Boston, my friends and I experienced plenty of situations that shaped our characters and our outlook. I know for a fact that my youthful experiences also had a profound impact on shaping my instincts.
What did I learn growing up in Boston? What did I learn riding those city buses and trolley cars? What were the lessons learned at Hynes, Fallon, and Billings Fields? What will I never forget when my friends and I ‘hustled’ our way into sports venues (gaining entry to the Boston “Gaahden” via the fire exits, sneaking into Boston College football games amidst the college band)? (more…)
Which U.S. Bank Will Wikileaks Expose?
Posted by Larry Doyle on November 30th, 2010 6:28 AM |
Truth, transparency, and integrity.
If I had a nickel for each and every time I wrote those prized virtues here at Sense on Cents, I would have a lot of nickels. I not only espouse these principles in my writing. I strongly believe that the pursuit of these virtues is the foundation for real economic success, if not life itself.
While each of these principles may be defined differently depending on one’s perspective, in terms of transparency, most people would be able to say, “Well, I’d know it if I saw it.” The world is now beginning to see a lot more transparency and accompanying material. How so? Wikileaks. Who is Wikileaks and what are they getting ready to release? (more…)
