NOT NEEDED

Had a perfectly wonderful weekend with nary a care in the world and apparently neither did anyone else.  Things appear to be exactly as I left them except that the football season has ended in England which means no more premiership matches in the middle of the week forcing me to occupy my spare time with less important things such as bank crises and ridiculous fiscal and monetary policies seemingly all around the world.  So much to do.

One thing I will have more time for is Tim Geithner's new book which he has been humping unmercifully on every media outlet and all the ships at sea.  So far, no one has panned it or gotten terribly upset.  It seems to be self-serving, then again I can't remember the last time a personal memoir reached the conclusion, "I am an idiot," so one can overlook that.  I expect to be able to comment a good deal more once I get my free--preferably autographed--copy, but there were a couple of things that struck me in the overall impression that can be gleaned from the reviews and certain quotes that have emerged.

To begin, let me say that comments from people for whom I have a great deal of respect indicate that in the midst of the crisis, Geithner did a hell of a job, which is all the more striking as it is clear that his credentials for becoming the head of the New York Federal Reserve, pretty much confirmed by his own words, were the political and personal ties to the Clintonistas headed by Bob Rubin whose political and financial influence crossed party lines and intertwined with the Goldman Sachs connection both at Treasury and at the Chairmanship of the NY Fed.  He was as I used to refer to him as a "Suit" and quite frankly, though he has grown in stature I have a feeling that he is still a suit although one with the ability to stay cool and calm in the midst of a crisis which is no mean feat and one not to be belittled.  So, he's a guy who hadn't a clue as to what the job was about who apparently rose to the occasion and performed.  Good on ya.

Then again, in his published excerps, in speaking of the catalysts of the crisis, Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers, he seems to overlook the fact that these were not surprises to which one awoke on a Monday morning; the seeds of collapse had been sown years before and had well-taken root and most importantly, had been recognized by those with more experience and savvy.  The truth is his institution, which was best equipped to recognize and assess the systemic risk that was growing on a daily basis was caught seemingly unawares, and it to that he must answer.

It is simple to speak in hindsight but the colossal mistake was to "save" Bear and destroy Lehman, more so because there was no secret that Lehman had been warned time and again as to the state of their financial condition and "saving" Bear should have in no way be thought of relieving the pressure on Lehman.  Bear could have been allowed to fail without so much as a whimper which might…and I emphasize, "might"…have influenced future developments especially on the part of Lehman which could have defused or certainly alleviated the destruction that followed.  In my mind,  there is much of the failure in regulatory bodies…not the lack of regulation…that was central to this crisis.  But that is another book to be written by someone else and some other time.

With all of that said, he should be a good read and help him in his retirement planning.  Little has been said as to what he thinks about the "reforms" to the system, or if it has been said, I missed it.  After all, I was with grandchildren which tends to make me less perceptive to external sounds.  I'm sure he feels much has been accomplished but more could be done.  Memo to Tim:  get real.  Maybe you didn't know squat before but by this time you should be pretty much clued in.  Then again, that may be asking for a bit too much.

BACK FOR A BIT

Or at least until Thanksgiving.  The pundits were bang-on the jobs number last week which was a stinker.  I shall say one more thing:  The decline in the number of unemployed to 7.8% a month before the election surprised no one: The figure was cooked and anyone with a brain in his head expected it to be.  There wasn't a bid for an over-8% number...not one, which is a sad commentary as to the state of confidence in this administration.  Believe it or not that was the fact.  Onward.

Over there, Angie's going to Greece tomorrow and the last time there were these many troops deployed in Athens, German paratroopers were raining down.  Think Angie will strap one on just for old times sake?  Wouldn't that be a kick?  No one can quite figure out why she is going unless it is to show that there are really no hard feeling while whispering in the ear of every Greek she meets, "Give me my (^&*#%%(& money back!"  I guess it is that thing called diplomacy which I know  needs practiced from time to time, but never really understood why except to demonstrate good breeding.  In the world of the real there seems to be more support for the position that this is the end of the line for Greece; no more money, no more extensions, no more "adjustments" in lending conditions.  I still continue to believe in my new position that they will get through the end of the year (yeah, I was off-base there too) but with no miracle in sight and the fiscal status of the country truly dire, surely the end must come soon.  And perhaps this is why Angie is going--to deliver this precise message.  Let's face it, it's as good a guess as any other.

Over here, the WSJ's leading article today concerned itself with the new extortion racket in which the New York State Attorney General, Eric Schneiderman is currently engaged aided and abetted this time for political reasons by The Leader's Justice Department.  The tour de force surrounds the claim that J.P.Morgan engaged in improper underwriting standards in the marketing of mortgage backed securities resulting in a loss of, well, we're not sure, but a REALLY BIG loss to the public.

The enormous irony of all this is that J.P never got into the business; Jamie was trying to but everything went to hell before he could proving that sometimes it's better to be lucky than good...except when there is a scuzz bucket like Schneiderman around.  You see, Jamie thought he was performing a mitzva when he agreed to purchase Bear Stearns which was causing no little embarrassment to the regulatory community and disquiet among financial institutions.  He was asked to help and having done so he is being asked to take it in the neck for the underwriting Bear did by the afore-mentioned scuzz bucket.

This is a law suit made out of whole cloth.  Bear was a bucket shop and peddled rubbish and should have been allowed to fail instead of Lehman which might have made all the difference in the world.  But they weren't and it didn't and in attempting to work with the regulators they (AND their shareholders) wind up with this.  Go to trial and they probably win hands down but Schneiderman learned from the Mann Act violator for whom he worked and is looking for a big settlement which he will probably get.  It aint fair sez I, remembering that Eliot Spitzer NEVER earned a conviction on any corporate wrongdoing suit either as AG or Governor.  If this is the best we can do for ourselves?  Just thought I would bring it up.