Archive for October, 2008
U.S. Summons Only Super Elite Bankers to a Meeting
October 14th, 2008Via: Economic Policy Journal: The Bush administration summoned executives from leading banks to a meeting in Washington Monday afternoon to work out details of the $700 billion plan. And, as they say in Chicago, “If you are not at the table, you are on the menu.” For the record those expected at the table are: […]
How Does “Unlimited Funds” Sound?
October 14th, 2008Via: Bloomberg: The U.S. Federal Reserve led an unprecedented push by central banks to flood financial markets with dollars, backing up government efforts to restore confidence in the banking system. The ECB, the Bank of England and the Swiss central bank will offer unlimited dollar funds in auctions with maturities of seven days, 28 days […]
U.S. Treasury Said to Invest in Nine Major U.S. Banks
October 14th, 2008“My dear guests, I am Mr. Roarke, your host. Welcome to Fantasy Island.” Via: Bloomberg: The Bush administration will announce a plan to rescue frozen credit markets that includes spending about half of a total of $250 billion for preferred shares of nine major banks, people briefed on the matter said. The companies are Citigroup […]
Swindling, Iron Triangle Style
October 13th, 2008Via: New York Times: They huddled in a quiet corner at the US Airways lounge at Ronald Reagan National Airport, sipping bottomless cups of coffee as they plotted to turn America’s missile defense program into a personal cash machine. Michael Cantrell, an engineer at the Army Space and Missile Defense Command headquarters in Huntsville, Ala., […]
Army Orders Pain Ray Trucks; New Report Shows ‘Potential for Death’
October 13th, 2008Via: Wired: “As a consequence, the ADS provides the technical possibility to produce burns of second and third degree. Because the beam of diameter 2 m and above is wider than human size, such burns would occur over considerable parts of the body, up to 50% of its surface. Second- and third-degree burns covering more […]
Bank of America: Is It Just Me…
October 13th, 2008UPDATE 3: It’s Working Again It’s there now. * Twilight Zone Music * UPDATE 2: Telephone Banking Seems to Work I called back and used the automated system. I was able to check my account balance. UPDATE 1: My Checking Account Is No Longer Listed in My Online Banking Profile When I logged into online […]
German Bailout Likely to Be Over $400 Billion
October 12th, 2008Via: Wall Street Journal: German Chancellor Angela Merkel heads to Paris to present Sunday to her colleagues from the euro zone a financial sector bailout plan for Germany that’s expected to be more than half the size of what has been enacted in the U.S. A person familiar with the situation told Dow Jones Newswires […]
Austria Witnesses New Gold Rush
October 12th, 2008Welcome to the public participation phase. Via: BBC: Ordinary Austrians, shocked by the precipitous falls in their own stock market – which was suspended this week for the first time ever – are also looking for a more solid store of wealth. The shop at the Austrian Mint usually specialises in selling collectors’ coins. But […]
Florida: Elderly Man Jailed, Can’t Afford to Maintain His Lawn
October 12th, 2008UPDATE: Man Jailed for Brown Lawn Gets Help from Neighbors Via: St. Petersburg Times: On Friday morning, Joseph Prudente put on a pair of shorts and his “Grandpa Gone Wild” T-shirt. He took off his wedding band and put his heart medication in a plastic Wal-Mart bag. Then his daughter drove him to jail. Grandpa […]
British People Buying Home Safes; Lack of Faith in Banking System
October 12th, 2008Via: Telegraph: Sales of household safes have surged as wealthy savers concerned about the health of banks opt to keep cash at home. Leading safe manufacturers contacted by The Times said that they had seen a big increase in demand. Many predicted that fears of meltdown in the banking sector would mean a further rush […]
