Re: Re: New risk rules of FI's
According to a colleague who contributes to the writing of these agreements, the 1988 agreement gave ample considerations to Japanese banking needs. Japanese banks at the time had much capital gains and so the agreement allowed them to convert 40% of capital gains into permanent capital. This of course, on the balance sheet between assets (permanent capital being a part of that) and liabilities, would lesen the risk; but always according to my colleague who is, by the way, the Guru of banking arrangments, the banks' ties to the japanese stock market and its decline, in combination with bad loans at high tide a la Minsky, had more to do with the problems of japanese banks than did the basel agreement.. then again, my colleague is a principal contributor to these agreements. In any case balance sheet thinking to an economist should be treated like a virus, if one waits it goes away be itself, so hic rhodus, hic salta. --- Michael Perelman [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I have read accounts to the effect that the inability to comply with the Basel agreement was what did in the Japanese banks. I wonder what the consequences would be of this new policy. -- Michael Perelman Economics Department California State University Chico, CA 95929 Tel. 530-898-5321 E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED] __ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Auctions - Buy the things you want at great prices. http://auctions.yahoo.com/
Free Mike!
Today's Feed daily is my plea to Free Mike Milken! http://www.feedmag.com/templates/select_template.php3?a_id=1581. Doug
Re: Energy deregulation GATS
It seems to me that Governor Gray Davis has a easy solution to the current energy crunch, which seems to have shut pen-l down for awhile: he could allow electricity retail prices to rise, while allowing California consumers to write off electricity costs on their state income taxes this year. (The latter is possible because the state government is running a budget surplus.) This is not the best solution, but it would work, perhaps to give breathing room to allow a better solution. Gene, what do you think? At 05:49 PM 1/22/01 -0800, you wrote: The Globe and Mail January 22, 2001 U.S. touts California-style power plan By Barrie McKenna SAN FRANCISCO -- The U.S. government is pushing California- style power deregulation on the rest of the world even as the state's controversial electricity free market experiment continues to unravel at home. Just weeks before Californians were hit with the first power blackouts since the Second World War, the United States was quietly lobbying in Geneva to convince Canada and other U.S. trading partners that electricity deregulation should be an integral part of a proposed free trade in services deal. Jim Devine [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://bellarmine.lmu.edu/~jdevine
RE: bankruptcy and corporate auditing
Dave, Wouldn't it have been better by your analysis to let that big hedge fund go bankrupt recently, like normal capitalism ? Charles Brown
RE: Re: Energy deregulation GATS
problem is a lot of folks pay little or no income tax but still pay utility bills. mbs It seems to me that Governor Gray Davis has a easy solution to the current energy crunch, which seems to have shut pen-l down for awhile: he could allow electricity retail prices to rise, while allowing California consumers to write off electricity costs on their state income taxes this year. (The latter is possible because the state government is running a budget surplus.) This is not the best solution, but it would work, perhaps to give breathing room to allow a better solution. Gene, what do you think? At 05:49 PM 1/22/01 -0800, you wrote: The Globe and Mail January 22, 2001 U.S. touts California-style power plan By Barrie McKenna SAN FRANCISCO -- The U.S. government is pushing California- style power deregulation on the rest of the world even as the state's controversial electricity free market experiment continues to unravel at home. Just weeks before Californians were hit with the first power blackouts since the Second World War, the United States was quietly lobbying in Geneva to convince Canada and other U.S. trading partners that electricity deregulation should be an integral part of a proposed free trade in services deal. Jim Devine [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://bellarmine.lmu.edu/~jdevine
Re: RE: Re: Energy deregulation GATS
then, make it a refundable tax credit, or lower the state sales tax further. At 11:55 AM 1/23/01 -0500, you wrote: problem is a lot of folks pay little or no income tax but still pay utility bills. mbs It seems to me that Governor Gray Davis has a easy solution to the current energy crunch, which seems to have shut pen-l down for awhile: he could allow electricity retail prices to rise, while allowing California consumers to write off electricity costs on their state income taxes this year. (The latter is possible because the state government is running a budget surplus.) This is not the best solution, but it would work, perhaps to give breathing room to allow a better solution. Gene, what do you think? At 05:49 PM 1/22/01 -0800, you wrote: The Globe and Mail January 22, 2001 U.S. touts California-style power plan By Barrie McKenna SAN FRANCISCO -- The U.S. government is pushing California- style power deregulation on the rest of the world even as the state's controversial electricity free market experiment continues to unravel at home. Just weeks before Californians were hit with the first power blackouts since the Second World War, the United States was quietly lobbying in Geneva to convince Canada and other U.S. trading partners that electricity deregulation should be an integral part of a proposed free trade in services deal. Jim Devine [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://bellarmine.lmu.edu/~jdevine Jim Devine [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://bellarmine.lmu.edu/~jdevine
BLS Daily Report
BLS DAILY REPORT, MONDAY, JANUARY 22, 2001 Regional and state unemployment rates were steady in December with all four regions reporting little or no change and 43 states recording changes of less than 0.3 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports. ... (Daily Labor Report, page D-8). The Wall Street Journal's graph "Tracking the Economy" forecasts that the Employment Cost Index for the Fourth Quarter, to be released Thursday, will be up 1.1 percent, according to the Thomson Global Forecast. The previous quarter's increase was 0.9 percent. The U.S. trade deficit in goods and services narrowed 1.7 percent in November, as imports declined more than exports, the Commerce Department says. This was the second month in a row that the deficit posted an improvement. ... (Daily Labor Report, page D-1)_The U.S. trade deficit declined in November for a second consecutive month. Imports of oil, cars, and computers fell. The 2- month decline was the longest since May through July 1997. Many economists are predicting a slow improvement in the trade deficit in 2001, as weaker U.S. economic growth translates into falling demand for imported goods. There is also hope that foreign economic growth will pick up and boost U.S. exports and that the price of oil, a big part of the import bill, will stabilize. ... (Washington Post, Jan. 20, page E1; New York Times, Jan. 20, page B3)_The U.S. trade deficit shrank in November, reflecting a slowdown in the economy and offering further proof that U.S. consumer demand is cooling off. Indeed, consumer demand is slowing globally. U.S. imports had the biggest decline in a decade. But exports, for the third month in a row, slowed as well, indicating activity overseas is drying up. ... (Wall Street Journal, page A2). A plunge in consumer confidence not only leads shoppers to be more cautious, but also signals manufacturers to slow their assembly lines. Ford Motor Co. last month said it would scale back first-quarter North American production to 1.05 million vehicles from the initial estimate of 1.16 million. Even the more optimistic first projection was down from the 1.27 million cars and trucks produced in the first quarter last year. A precipitous drop in the University of Michigan's consumer-sentiment index in mid-December "moved us from the edge of the radar screen to the bull's eye," said Ford's U.S. sales analyst manager. On Friday, the Michigan index dropped again, to a preliminary January reading of 93.6 from 98.4 in December. The decline exceeded market expectations and marks the index's lowest level since the Asian financial crisis of 1997-98. In the past 2 months, the index has fallen 14 points, the sharpest 2-month decline since the last recession. ... (Wall Street Journal, page A4). Gasoline consumption in the United States fell about 1 percent last year, the first decline since 1991 and a rare phenomenon during an economic expansion, the American Petroleum Institute said. The institute, the oil industry's main trade association, also said that demand for all oil products was about the same in 2000 as in 1999, also unusual during boom times. Demand for jet fuel and truck fuel rose, offsetting the decline in gasoline. The decline in gasoline consumption apparently resulted from less driving, because the number of vehicles continued to increase. ... (New York Times, Jan. 20, page B1). application/ms-tnef
Daily Recession Watch Report
Michigan town's pain signals hard times Cadillac feels first ripples of an economic slowdown Dale Young / The Detroit News Jon Anderson of Four Winns rests on a boat mid-assembly line. The plant closed four days before Christmas, leaving 500 workers jobless. The company is looking for a new owner. By Francis X. Donnelly / The Detroit News CADILLAC -- This small, blue-collar city in northwest Michigan has the economic flu. It began in the outlying strip malls and spread to the factories and workers' homes. It's also beginning to infiltrate hotels and restaurants. Dale Young / The Detroit News Solomon Trofatter, manager of Cadillac's pawn shop, says more and more people seek fast cash as jobs become scarce. The source is a slowdown in the national economy. People are buying fewer cars, pleasure boats and other items, leading to the making of fewer products. That has meant plant closings and layoffs, which could lead to even less buying. Nearly 1,100 workers, a tenth of Cadillac's population, have lost their jobs since Christmas. Four Winns boat makers, the city's flagship business, is looking for a new owner. Stage, a department store that takes up half a block of downtown, has gone bankrupt. The slowing economy is being felt throughout the United States, but is more concentrated in Cadillac because of its heavy industrial base. It's easy to follow the consequences as they move from industry to industry because, in a city where most businesses are within walking distance, the ripples don't have as far to travel. "We're only as good as the economy," Mayor Ron Blanchard said. "If the economy is way down, we'll be way down. There's nothing we can do about it." Local merchants have tried to quell residents' fears about the fallout. They know slowdowns are influenced as much by perception as by cold economic statistics. That is, people who believe the economy will worsen will spend less, leading to a bigger slowdown. But it's tough to mollify a community where so many residents know someone who lost a job or is in danger of doing so. The layoffs are Topic A in diners and bars, Jennifer Trofatter said. Trofatter helps run the Fast Cash pawn shop, which has been scurrying to keep up with customers -- employed and unemployed alike -- looking to trade goods for some pocket change. "People are coming in all the time," she said. "Everyone knows someone who's been laid off." Growing with industry Industry has been a part of Cadillac since the city was carved out of dense maple and pine in 1874. Its earliest settlers came to work at one of four sawmills on what is now Lake Cadillac. About Cadillac Population: 10,107 Founded: 1874 Main types of industry: Manufacturing, retail and tourism-related Biggest employer: Avon Rubber Plastics with 892 workers Unemployment rate: 6.6 percent Estimated per capita income: $18,334 Source: Cadillac Area Chamber of Commerce Layoff anxiety What do you think are the chances that your company will lay off employees this year? Very likely / already have About a 50-50 chance Not likely The city, which now surrounds the lake, took its name from Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac, the founder of Detroit. That's not the only tie between the two cities, old-timers say. Cadillac has been a steady supplier of rubber products to the auto industry since B.F. Goodrich opened a plant here in 1937. The plant helped revive a community whose lumber industry was decimated by the Depression. Goodrich moved out of town in 1959 but some workers stayed behind to eventually open several rubber companies that became the new mainstay of the community. One of them was James Frisbie. "This was a town where industry had a good chance to succeed," said Frisbie, an 88-year-old retiree. "The chamber of commerce did a lot to promote industry." The auto rubber industry helped this part of Michigan flourish during the 1990s. The population within 25 miles of Cadillac grew 15 percent during the decade, from 58,747 to 67,395, according to the Census Bureau. Cadillac ran out of places to put the new residents so they spread into the surrounding rural communities. Chasing those denizens is a plethora of retail chains. For a small community whose closest metro area, Grand Rapids, is 100 miles to the south, Cadillac has a high number of retailers. The heaviest concentration is along U.S. 131 just north of Cadillac. The stretch of highway boasts several miles of businesses whose variety would rival any part of Metro Detroit. "Everything is malls, malls, malls," said Michele Wood, a clerk at the downtown Chef's Deli. "This is not a one-horse town anymore." In the past two years, Home Depot, Meijer and Office Depot have opened large stores that the locals call "big boxes." The parking lot of the 180,000-square-foot Meijer
My neighbor, GM, Fortune 500 company
World Auto View Depend on GM for your livelihood? Reasons adding up for you to worry By Daniel Howes / The Detroit News FRANKFURT, Germany--If there are virtually no problems in today's auto industry that can't be cured with great cars and trucks, as Nissan President Carlos Ghosn says, then those who depend on Detroit's automakers ought to be a little worried. Detroit can, of course, build great products when it wants to. Just look at DaimlerChrysler AG's PT Cruiser, General Motors Corp.'s large pickups and Ford Motor Co.'s constantly morphing lineup of trucks and sport-utility vehicles. But those successes of the 1990s, trumpeted as evidence that Detroit's renaissance was real, are in danger of being overrun. Blame stubbornly high fixed costs, long-term labor contracts that stifle flexibility, nagging quality problems (real and perceived) and the comfortable tendency to focus on what works (trucks and sport-utes) and limp along with the rest. That's Chrysler problem these days. And GM's, too. Yet the constant talk of Chrysler's restructuring, due next month, is overshadowing a potentially far larger shakeout at GM that would make any change at Chrysler seem mild by comparison. Simply put, the state of GM should worry anyone in Metro Detroit - or the world, for that matter - whose livelihood depends on the General for income, contracts or charitable support. Sure, it's got a $13.3-billion cash hoard. Yes, it booked profits in North America and worldwide. And you can bet that President Rick Wagoner Jr., the youngest chief executive in GM history, would not stand by should GM nose-dive. He won't. But it means something when people inside the company tell you privately that the last time they were this concerned for their company, former-Chairman Bob Stempel and President Lloyd Reuss were running the place. We all know what happened next. The argument that a smaller, more profitable GM is preferable to a larger, money-losing GM has always made sense. We're now entering a time, however, when the slimmer GM is making less money - and claiming less market share - amid fierce attacks from its Japanese, German and South Korean rivals. The numbers don't lie. Neither do the reactions to some important products in the GM pipeline, the hot Chevrolet SSR and sharp Buick Bengal concept notwithstanding. Conventional wisdom holds that GM basically is incapable of generating excitement with its new cars and trucks. For once, I agree. You can feel the uneasiness about GM's business prospects in North America and Europe, despite bullishness from executives. The Opel lineup for Europe is tired. Plans for Saab, the quirky Swedish brand, aren't showing any public signs of movement. The edginess of the "new" Cadillac, judging by what we've seen, looks like designs for designers - not customers. None of this is comforting. The nascent revolution that Wagoner began by killing Oldsmobile and ordering a 10-percent cut in the white-collar workforce should only be the beginning. But we don't know if it's more like the end. It can't be. Arch-rival Ford is far better balanced in more segments of the volume and luxury markets than GM, thanks to Wolfgang Reitzle's Premier Automotive Group and an improving Ford car line-up under Richard Parry-Jones. In response, GM's Wagoner likes to say, "We have what we have." That's the problem. Still.
what is productivity
Sven Larsen posted this to another list. The interesting part, for me, is the subjective nature of what is, or is not productive -- sort of like the discussion we had long ago about measuring GDP. Economics attempts to project itself as some sort of objective science, but A Danish woman is before a tax appeals board today to defend her right to make a tax deduction for expenses she had while undertaking a silicon implant operation. The woman, a strip danser, can show records she has doubled her income after the operation. She also says she had the implants inserted only to "stay in business" and "keep up with larger competition [sic]". Investments in production equipment or equipment necessary for one's ability to stay active on the labor market is eligible for tax exemption, but the local tax office denied her implants tax exempt status with the motivation that it cannot be ruled out she will be able to avail herself to her own pleasure of those implants when she's off work, which would then be a disqualifying circumstance. Today, while presenting her case to the appeals board, the woman promised she would give the board a chance to inspect the results of her income-enhancing investment, so they can make their own, unbiased judgment. Wonder how the IRS would tackle a case like this. /srl -- Sven R Larson PhD; Assistant professor of economics Department of Social Sciences, Bldg. 22.2 Roskilde University Pb 260 -- Michael Perelman Economics Department California State University Chico, CA 95929 Tel. 530-898-5321 E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]
question about pen-l contents
In response to my request Bob Naiman is posting Dean Baker's Economic Reporting Review. We've also then getting Paul Kniesel's antifascist compilation. My own thinking is that the latter is a bit off topic for us, since many people are concerned about the excessive crush of pen-l posts. Maybe you would be best to reply to me personally regarding this sort of material so as not to overload the list. -- Michael Perelman Economics Department California State University Chico, CA 95929 Tel. 530-898-5321 E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]
RE: Free Mike!
Milken got screwed. He was not charged with, and never convicted of, insider trading. In fact, I bet there is not a single person on this list who has a clue what he was charged with and how trivial the charges actually were. The fact is he did more to democratize capital than anybody alive and thereby made some serious enemies, as Dough Henwood's article states. The fact that Marc Rich was pardoned and Milken was not is conclusive proof that Clinton is really as corrupt as he appears. David Shemano -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]On Behalf Of Doug Henwood Sent: Tuesday, January 23, 2001 8:44 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: [PEN-L:7187] Free Mike! Today's Feed daily is my plea to Free Mike Milken! http://www.feedmag.com/templates/select_template.php3?a_id=1581. Doug
Re: RE: Free Mike!
David Shemano wrote: Milken got screwed. He was not charged with, and never convicted of, insider trading. In fact, I bet there is not a single person on this list who has a clue what he was charged with and how trivial the charges actually were. Even more challenging: who were the victims of Milken's "crimes"? Don't anyone say "workers," because there are plenty of thoroughly legal financial practices that take more out of the hide of workers than anything MM ever did. The fact is he did more to democratize capital than anybody alive and thereby made some serious enemies, as Dough Henwood's article states. I could use some dough. Wanna send some? -- Doug Henwood Left Business Observer Village Station - PO Box 953 New York NY 10014-0704 USA +1-212-741-9852 voice +1-212-807-9152 fax email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] web: http://www.panix.com/~dhenwood/LBO_home.html
RE: Re: RE: Free Mike!
Doug Henwood wrote: - Milken got screwed. He was not charged with, and never convicted of, insider trading. In fact, I bet there is not a single person on this list who has a clue what he was charged with and how trivial the charges actually were. Even more challenging: who were the victims of Milken's "crimes"? Don't anyone say "workers," because there are plenty of thoroughly legal financial practices that take more out of the hide of workers than anything MM ever did. The fact is he did more to democratize capital than anybody alive and thereby made some serious enemies, as Dough Henwood's article states. I could use some dough. Wanna send some? --- Here is Milken's website. Send him an email with your request. He appears to be very generous. http://www.mikemilken.com/index.html David Shemano
Special Issue #2 On Ashcroft Nomination (#505)
/=-=-=-=-Click Here Support Our Sponsor-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=\ Start eWorking! Get benefits and regular paychecks while working as a freelancer or consultant with eWork Services. Find your ideal project and declare your independence at: http://click.topica.com/aaabfIbz8SnrbAjwjxa/eWork \=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=/ __ The Internet Anti-Fascist: Sunday, 21 January 2001 Special Issue #2 On Ashcroft Nomination (#505) __ 8) webmaster StopJohnAshcroft.org, "Oppose John Ashcroft For Attorney General," 11 Jan 01 9) FAIR, "Southern Partisan: "Setting the Record Straight": Attorney general nominee praised white supremacist magazine," 12 Jan 01 10) Joe Conason (New York Observer), "Why Did Ashcroft Try to Help Dr. Sell?," 15 Jan 01 11) Joe Conason (Salon), "Ashcroft's tough Sell: A segregationist group is banking on the hard-on-crime attorney general nominee to drop a murder conspiracy case against one of its own," 16 Jan 01 - - - - - 8) Oppose John Ashcroft For Attorney General webmaster StopJohnAshcroft.org 11 Jan 01 Dear friend of drug law reform: As you've probably read in mainstream news accounts, former US Senator John Ashcroft (R-MO) has been nominated by President- Elect George W. Bush for the office of Attorney General. DRCNet, as a nonpartisan organization devoted strictly to drug policy reform, is opposing the Ashcroft nomination because of his record as one of the most hawkish drug warriors supporting some of the most extreme drug war legislation during his tenure in the Senate. We are writing to ask you to visit a web site we've set up to encourage grassroots opposition to the Ashcroft nomination -- http://www.StopJohnAshcroft.org -- and to use the information and the online petitions there to help defeat this nomination while there's still time. If drug policy and related Constitutional issues are the criteria, there is no question that John Ashcroft has one of the worst records on Capitol Hill. As Senator, John Ashcroft sponsored a bill that would have simultaneously violated the spirit if not the letter of both the 1st and 4th amendments to the US Constitution: the "Methamphetamine Anti- Proliferation Act" would have criminalized certain drug- and drug policy- related discussions on the Internet, and would have allowed police to conduct secret searches of homes, with the residents never being informed before or after that the police were there. Indeed, in his six years in the Senate, Ashcroft proposed amendments to the Constitution a full seven times, including an amendment to make it easier to amend the Constitution. As Senator, John Ashcroft demonstrated an unwillingness to deal seriously with the problem of racial disparity in the criminal justice system. While outwardly professing support for a bill to study racial profiling, Sen. Ashcroft in reality use his chairmanship of the Subcommittee on the Constitution to bottle it up in committee for several months; the bill never made it to the Senate floor despite bipartisan support. In response to charges that the powder/crack cocaine sentencing disparity is racially discriminatory, Sen. Ashcroft rejected legislation recommended by the US Sentencing Commission and sponsored by African American legislators that would have reduced crack cocaine sentences to the level of powder cocaine sentences. Instead, Sen. Ashcroft supported a bill to raise the powder cocaine sentences -- despite a consensus among criminal justice experts that the disparities are driven by enforcement policy and prosecutorial bias in conjunction with the laws, and that powder cocaine enforcement is also carried out in a racially discriminatory way. Sen. Ashcroft objected vociferously to spending money on drug treatment rather than drug interdiction, claiming that treatment "enables" drug users and that enforcement is a more effective use of funds. But after decades characterized by intensive interdiction efforts during which time the availability of drugs has increased and the price plummeted, and despite study after study showing that treatment is dramatically more effective than enforcement, to claim that interdiction is more effective than treatment demonstrates an astonishing inability or unwillingness to evaluate drug policy in an objective manner. Indeed, there isn't clear evidence that drug interdiction is more effective than doing nothing; to claim interdiction is more effective than treatment is simply off the reality meter. As Attorney General, John Ashcroft would have enormous power and influence over policies such as these. Particularly troubling is his lack of seriousness about racial disparity in the criminal justice system, at a time when the problem of racial profiling is just beginning to get attention. The
Re: Re: RE: Re: Energy deregulation GATS
Just quickly: Jim, are you proposing to funnel public money to the utilities by them charging customers higher prices and then the customers get re-imbursed out of the state treasury? Utilities get more money, customers come out even, but taxpayers pay? Not very appealing to me. For twenty-five years we've had national and states giving money to low income people to offset the utility bills. I've never like that, either. Just keeps the political temperature down while paying utilities top dollar, doesn't it? Gene Jim Devine wrote: then, make it a refundable tax credit, or lower the state sales tax further. At 11:55 AM 1/23/01 -0500, you wrote: problem is a lot of folks pay little or no income tax but still pay utility bills. mbs It seems to me that Governor Gray Davis has a easy solution to the current energy crunch, which seems to have shut pen-l down for awhile: he could allow electricity retail prices to rise, while allowing California consumers to write off electricity costs on their state income taxes this year. (The latter is possible because the state government is running a budget surplus.) This is not the best solution, but it would work, perhaps to give breathing room to allow a better solution. Gene, what do you think? At 05:49 PM 1/22/01 -0800, you wrote: The Globe and Mail January 22, 2001 U.S. touts California-style power plan By Barrie McKenna SAN FRANCISCO -- The U.S. government is pushing California- style power deregulation on the rest of the world even as the state's controversial electricity free market experiment continues to unravel at home. Just weeks before Californians were hit with the first power blackouts since the Second World War, the United States was quietly lobbying in Geneva to convince Canada and other U.S. trading partners that electricity deregulation should be an integral part of a proposed free trade in services deal. Jim Devine [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://bellarmine.lmu.edu/~jdevine Jim Devine [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://bellarmine.lmu.edu/~jdevine
Fwd: prison question
from SLATE: USA [Today] ... tops its front with the capture yesterday at a Colorado RV park of four of those Texas prison escapees. Rather than also surrender, a fifth shot himself, and the remaining two convicts are still at large. The cops got their key tip from a viewer of America's Most Wanted. The WP and NYT also front the story. does anyone know, did those guys escape from a government-run or a privately-run prison? In the past, some people have escaped from privately-run prisons, with the government paying to cost of recapture, etc. Jim Devine [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://bellarmine.lmu.edu/~JDevine
Re: RE: Free Mike!
At 03:41 PM 01/23/2001 -0800, you wrote: . The fact that Marc Rich was pardoned and Milken was not is conclusive proof that Clinton is really as corrupt as he appears. hey, man! you're dissing the man who ended welfare as we know it and showed the Sudan who was boss! ;-) Jim Devine [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://bellarmine.lmu.edu/~JDevine
Re: what is productivity
Michael Perelman posted: Sven Larsen posted this to another list. The interesting part, for me, is the subjective nature of what is, or is not productive -- sort of like the discussion we had long ago about measuring GDP. Economics attempts to project itself as some sort of objective science, but A Danish woman is before a tax appeals board today to defend her right to make a tax deduction for expenses she had while undertaking a silicon implant operation. The woman, a strip danser, can show records she has doubled her income after the operation. She also says she had the implants inserted only to "stay in business" and "keep up with larger competition [sic]". It seems that the definition of productivity becomes more subjective when the production of surplus value concerns activities other than single-minded dedication to the production of more widgets in a shorter period of time. Investments in production equipment or equipment necessary for one's ability to stay active on the labor market is eligible for tax exemption, but the local tax office denied her implants tax exempt status with the motivation that it cannot be ruled out she will be able to avail herself to her own pleasure of those implants when she's off work, which would then be a disqualifying circumstance. Today, while presenting her case to the appeals board, the woman promised she would give the board a chance to inspect the results of her income-enhancing investment, so they can make their own, unbiased judgment. It seems, however, at least certain that the Danish tax officials in question are misinformed of one objective fact: "All types of breast surgery, whether reconstruction or commercial augmentation result in some loss of sensitivity" (at http://www.pinkribbon.com/recon.htm). This being the case, the tax officials are wrong to deny the strip dancer her tax exemption, since silicon implants cannot enhance actually diminish her sensual pleasures. The woman underwent the surgery for the purpose of making her labor more productive, at considerable health risks to herself. Yoshie
Re: Free Mike!
Nobody commented that he also freed Susan Rosenberg and Linda Evans -- the latter, you may recall, asked for help from pen-l. Yes, Rich is slime. He also engaged in union busting, if I recall correctly. Stewart is a better place to look for what Milken did. Stewart, James B. 1991. Den of Thieves (NY: Simon and Schuster). 183: "Because of extraordinary control over the junk bond market, Milken could buy back securities at artificially low prices from Drexel clients who had no way of knowing their actual value; sell them to Boesky at a small profit; have Boesky resell the securities to Drexel at a much higher price; and in turn resell them to Drexel clients at still higher prices." On Tue, Jan 23, 2001 at 08:14:02PM -0800, Jim Devine wrote: At 03:41 PM 01/23/2001 -0800, you wrote: . The fact that Marc Rich was pardoned and Milken was not is conclusive proof that Clinton is really as corrupt as he appears. hey, man! you're dissing the man who ended welfare as we know it and showed the Sudan who was boss! ;-) Jim Devine [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://bellarmine.lmu.edu/~JDevine -- Michael Perelman Economics Department California State University Chico, CA 95929 Tel. 530-898-5321 E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Why we call for Civilization, not globalization
[Yet more on the phlogiston that is "the free market"] http://www.iht.com/articles/8510.html As Asian Reforms Go Into Eclipse, Growth Outlook Darkens Michael Richardson International Herald Tribune Wednesday, January 24, 2001 SINGAPORE: The signs are surfacing across Asia. . In South Korea, officials decide to bail out heavily indebted conglomerates. In Indonesia, the central bank announces that it will enforce aggressively what it says are existing curbs on the supply of rupiahs available to offshore institutions. In Malaysia, Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad renews his call for Asia to reject "unfettered predatory capitalism and the absolutely free market" that he says are being imposed on the region by Western powers. . East Asian governments apparently are retreating from free-market principles and abandoning key reform efforts just as their export-oriented economies are slowing because of shrinking sales to the United States. The backsliding is expected to intensify as the U.S. economic downturn and the threat of continued high oil prices bring tougher times to many East Asian countries in coming months, making it more difficult for political leaders to make economically painful and unpopular decisions. . But the cost, economists and bankers warn, will be bigger debts and slower growth that will further undermine business and investment confidence, already sagging as a result of political instability in the region. . For the first time since the financial crisis of 1997 and 1998, East Asia faces a difficult external outlook. The United States, which absorbs more than 20 percent of the region's exports, is slowing more quickly than had been forecast just a few weeks ago, and orders for electronics, East Asia's leading export, are falling. . The regional monitoring unit of the Asian Development Bank warned recently that the slowing of the drive for reform in some countries, particularly Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand, was a cause for serious concern. . "Implementation of reforms may be more difficult in a context of slower growth," the bank said, "but the costs of inaction are likely to increase in a less hospitable global environment." . It added that South Korea and Malaysia as well as Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand were facing "the double whammy of increased external and domestic risks." . Other analysts said that China, widely considered to have played an important role in helping East Asia recover from the last crisis by sticking to its market-reform efforts and not devaluing its currency, was likely to be less resolute this year as slowing exports to the United States put a brake on growth. . David Roche, managing director of Independent Strategy, an investment advisory company in London, said many Asian countries had failed to reform the financial systems that were the root cause of the currency turmoil that started in Thailand in mid-1997. "Banks were bailed out, not reformed," he said. . Among the signs of backsliding that worry foreign bankers and investors are: . South Korea's bailout of its chaebol, or big conglomerates. . The newly elected Thai government's aversion to selling banks to foreign interests and its pledge to use $12 billion to buy bad debt from Thai banks. . The unraveling of Malaysia's privatization program. . The slowing of state enterprise and bank reform in China. . Indonesia's curb on the free movement of capital. . The International Monetary Fund, which marshaled billions of dollars in emergency loans to help Thailand, Indonesia and South Korea recover from the 1997 crisis, has called on the region to intensify, not slacken, reform efforts. The Fund's managing director, Horst Koehler, said the IMF expected economic growth in Asia, excluding Japan, to slow to around 5 percent in 2001, from about 8 percent last year, as exports faltered. . "I would consider such a slowdown more as a normalization than a cause for doom and gloom, and justifying neither panic nor frantic actions," he said, noting that East Asian countries had cut their short-term debts, rebuilt their foreign-exchange reserves and were operating more flexible exchange-rate policies. . "The slowdown that causes me greater concern is that of progress in structural reforms in many Asian countries," Mr. Koehler said. . In South Korea, officials said action to rescue chaebol was just a temporary measure. The state-owned Korea Development Bank is to pay about 25 trillion won ($19.62 billion) of 65 trillion won in corporate debt that is maturing this year. . In Indonesia, the central bank's actions would make it more difficult for speculators to attack the rupiah, which fell about 25 percent against the dollar in the past year as the country's problems grew. . In the Philippines, the weeks of political turmoil that forced President Joseph Estrada to resign over the weekend sent stocks and the peso into a tailspin, diverting policymakers from the urgent task of improving tax collection
Putin's KGB instincts on Chechnya
The following Guardian article probably comes as much from economic considerations as political. In order to maintain the central integrity of Russia and to dominate the strategic oil area of the Caucasus, Putin played the Chechen card and won the presidential succession to Yeltsin. The coordinated bombing of blocks of Russian flats was very helpful for this project His exit strategy however needs more calculation. Having large numbers of troops in Chechnya is a cost liability because they are targets. Reframe the problem as purely one of terrorism and it is obvious that the successor to the KGB, the FSB, is the agency to control the situation. It is of course Putin's firm. They will mimimise the target they present to the enemy; they will know best how to destabilise the leadership of the resistance, and how to work with "constitutional" forces to set up a peaceful government within the Russian Federation. They will cause fewer random atrocities to the civilian population, torture fewer people but more efficiently, and with less damaging reports leaking out to interfering western human rights monitoring agencies. Perhaps he will pull it off and the governance of Chechnya will merge imperceptibly with the total social management that is the frame of thinking of most governments today. It will be interesting to see the cautious congratulatory comments from western agencies. Putin puts KGB's successors in charge of war to crush guerrillas Special report: crisis in Chechnya Ian Traynor in Moscow Tuesday January 23, 2001 Sixteen months into Russia's savage war of attrition in Chechnya and with no end in sight, President Vladimir Putin yesterday stripped his army generals of their command of the campaign and put the domestic security service, the main successor to the KGB, in charge of the Chechnya war. In what appeared to be a vote of no confidence in the generals' ability to tame the Chechen rebels, despite repeated bragging that they have been crushed, Mr Putin put a close ally, Nikolai Patrushev, head of the FSB (domestic security service), in command and ordered him to report on his progress by mid-May. Moscow says it has 80,000 troops in Chechnya struggling to contain what it puts at 1,000 guerrillas. But by the official tally, widely seen as too low, the Russians are being killed at the rate of more than 160 a month, with almost 500 being wounded as the rebels use ruthless hit-and-run tactics. Its principal garrison Gudermes, long under ostensible Russian control and the headquarters for the civil administration of Chechnya, is the latest battleground, according to Russian media yesterday. Guerrillas attacked the main hospital on Sunday, keeping Russian troops under fire for eight hours before melting away into the darkness. According to the Chechens, they left 20 Russian soldiers dead. Moscow admitted losing four soldiers and confirmed that many were injured in a cafe bomb blast in Gudermes. The guerrillas are also targeting "collaborationist" members of the pro-Moscow Chechen administration and its local supporters every week. The lightning speed of the attack highlights the vulnerability of the Russian conscripts, who hole up each evening in converted schools and public buildings, surrounded by mines and barbed wire. They live in fear of the rebels who attack checkpoints, mine roads and ambush Russian convoys. Sergei Ponomarenko, a Russian who recently resigned as a local government chief in Chechnya, told the newspaper Izvestiya that the guerrillas - who routinely ignore curfews and distribute propaganda leaflets "to show who's really boss" - have seized the initiative. When Chechen snipers hit a Russian, Moscow's forces commonly respond with indiscriminate artillery barrages which maim and kill civilians or launch "cleansing" raids on villages and towns, dragging away males of fighting age. "This has turned into a war against an entire civilian population. That's a fact, that's the reality," Ruslan Khasbulatov, a former Russian parliamentary leader and himself a Chechen, told the Russian government recently. Russian or loyalist Chechen administrators and military officers, meanwhile, are using their positions to line their pockets, Mr Ponomarenko said, an assertion echoed by Mr Khasbulatov who said the generals wanted the war to go on because of the opportunities for plundering and profiteering. Mr Putin's move yesterday may be an attempt to break this cycle of viciousness and seal a victory in Chechnya. But it also seems a counsel of despair. The president recently described Chechnya as the source of "Russia's national shame". It also propelled him to power in 1999. Yesterday's move was a snub to the army generals who, according to Mr Khasbulatov, are deliberately prolonging the war to enhance their clout in Russian politics and to exact retribution for their defeat in the last Chechen war of 1994-96. In a decree that
Re: Re: Energy deregulation GATS
The tax write off answer is better than no solution at all, but there are two problems: 1. It doesn't address the basic issues -- deregulation has caused shortages and rampant energy price inflation. 2. It assumes that consumer will have enough money to pay quickly escalating costs and then wait a year to ge their money back. For the poor, especially the elderly on fixed incomes, this may not be true. maggie coleman Jim Devine wrote: It seems to me that Governor Gray Davis has a easy solution to the current energy crunch, which seems to have shut pen-l down for awhile: he could allow electricity retail prices to rise, while allowing California consumers to write off electricity costs on their state income taxes this year. (The latter is possible because the state government is running a budget surplus.) This is not the best solution, but it would work, perhaps to give breathing room to allow a better solution. Gene, what do you think? At 05:49 PM 1/22/01 -0800, you wrote: The Globe and Mail January 22, 2001 U.S. touts California-style power plan By Barrie McKenna SAN FRANCISCO -- The U.S. government is pushing California- style power deregulation on the rest of the world even as the state's controversial electricity free market experiment continues to unravel at home. Just weeks before Californians were hit with the first power blackouts since the Second World War, the United States was quietly lobbying in Geneva to convince Canada and other U.S. trading partners that electricity deregulation should be an integral part of a proposed free trade in services deal. Jim Devine [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://bellarmine.lmu.edu/~jdevine
