Time (July 9)
For the first time in nearly a century, “densely packed urban areas grew faster than suburbs.” If the trend continues, Time suggests “it could be good news for the environment, reducing the time commuters spend in gas-guzzling cars going to and from their jobs in the city.” It might “also be good for America’s social ecology.” Suburbanization has largely isolated the rich from the poor. Urbanization could lead to more mixing, stronger relationships and greater empathy as social and ethnic classes converge more frequently.
For the first time in nearly a century, “densely packed urban areas grew faster than suburbs.” If the trend continues, Time suggests “it could be good news for the environment, reducing the time commuters spend in gas-guzzling cars going to and from their jobs in the city.” It might “also be good for America’s social ecology.” Suburbanization has largely isolated the rich from the poor. Urbanization could lead to more mixing, stronger relationships and greater empathy as social and ethnic classes converge more frequently.
Tags: Empathy, Environment, Ethnic, Social, Suburbanization, U.S., Urbanization
Washington Post (July 9)
The U.S. made a huge “blunder” in the 1960s and is still paying the price. “Since 1961, the federal government has balanced its budget only five times. Arguably, only one of these (1969) resulted from policy; the other four (1998-2001) stemmed heavily from the surging tax revenue of the then-economic boom. We are now facing the consequences of all these permissive deficits.”
Financial Times (July 8)
“If the eurozone did not exist, the world would be focused on America’s recovery problem.” With unemployment so high and Treasuries so low, Congress should be utilizing fiscal stimulus. Since they’re not going to, the Fed should step in with quantitative easing. “Last month’s jobs report confirmed that the US recovery is stalling for the third year in a row….The case is now strong enough for the Fed to embark on a QE3 asset-purchase programme at its next meeting at the end of July.”
The Economist (July 7)
The latest banking scandal may have been a tipping point in the court of public opinion. “The attempts to rig LIBOR (the London inter-bank offered rate), a benchmark interest rate, not only betray a culture of casual dishonesty; they set the stage for lawsuits and more regulation right the way round the globe. This could well be global finance’s “tobacco moment”.
The latest banking scandal may have been a tipping point in the court of public opinion. “The attempts to rig LIBOR (the London inter-bank offered rate), a benchmark interest rate, not only betray a culture of casual dishonesty; they set the stage for lawsuits and more regulation right the way round the globe. This could well be global finance’s “tobacco moment”.
Tags: Banking, Global finance, LIBOR, Regulation, Scandal, UK
Wall Street Journal (July 6)
The scandal over manipulation of the London Interbank Offered Rate (Libor) is “more proof of the failing wizardry of the First World’s monetary-cum-banking arrangements.” During the crisis, regulators relied on “questionably legal improvisations” to keep the whole system afloat. A rise in Libor could have set off a panic. “The larger lesson isn’t that bankers are moral scum, badder than the rest of us. The Libor scandal is another testimony (as if more were needed) of just how lacking in rational design most human institutions inevitably are.”
The scandal over manipulation of the London Interbank Offered Rate (Libor) is “more proof of the failing wizardry of the First World’s monetary-cum-banking arrangements.” During the crisis, regulators relied on “questionably legal improvisations” to keep the whole system afloat. A rise in Libor could have set off a panic. “The larger lesson isn’t that bankers are moral scum, badder than the rest of us. The Libor scandal is another testimony (as if more were needed) of just how lacking in rational design most human institutions inevitably are.”
Wall Street Journal (July 6)
On August 22, the SEC is expected to vote on conflict minerals. A new regulation could require companies to verify and report the origins of even trace amounts of tin, tungsten, tantalum or gold. Costs could be staggering. “To comply with the law, companies will have to disclose if any of the minerals that make up the metals in their products were mined in the Congo. That means every company must trace every product back through the supply chain, and then have the findings certified by an independent third party.”
Tags: Conflict minerals, Gold, SEC, Supply chain, Tantalum, The Congo, Tin, Tungsten
New York Times (July 4)New York Times (July 4)
The exact role of a director remains something subject to debate. “At Fortune 500 companies last year, the median compensation for a director was $212,512. Other boards pay less but are apparently also less demanding; in the Caymans, one person is a director of about 260 hedge funds.”The exact role of a director remains something subject to debate. “At Fortune 500 companies last year, the median compensation for a director was $212,512. Other boards pay less but are apparently also less demanding; in the Caymans, one person is a director of about 260 hedge funds.”
Tags: Compensation, Directors, Fortune 500, Hedge funds
Washington Post (July 3)Washington Post (July 3)
A “freak summer storm that laid waste to much of the mid-Atlantic on Friday night left chaos in its howling wake — and a mess of questions about the region’s capacity to cope with the unexpected.” Emergency 911 phone service was disrupted, as was electricity supply. In certain areas, nearly 10% of customers were expected to still be powerless a week after the storm. “The storm gave rise to massive inconveniences and discomforts across the Washington area. Usefully, it also exposed the region’s absence of reliable fail-safes, spotty preparedness and sluggish response times in the face of emergencies. Now it’s up to leaders to identify and act on those shortcomings.”A “freak summer storm that laid waste to much of the mid-Atlantic on Friday night left chaos in its howling wake — and a mess of questions about the region’s capacity to cope with the unexpected.” Emergency 911 phone service was disrupted, as was electricity supply. In certain areas, nearly 10% of customers were expected to still be powerless a week after the storm. “The storm gave rise to massive inconveniences and discomforts across the Washington area. Usefully, it also exposed the region’s absence of reliable fail-safes, spotty preparedness and sluggish response times in the face of emergencies. Now it’s up to leaders to identify and act on those shortcomings.”
Tags: 9/11, Disaster preparedness, Electricity, Storm, Washington
Financial Times (July 2)
Prime Minister Noda took a step in the right direction by increasing the consumption tax. “It was right of Mr Noda to push for the reform, which lifts the 5 per cent consumption tax to 8 per cent, then 10 per cent by 2015.” By achieving the increase, he has defied “impressions that Japan’s politicians cannot get anything done.” The increase will help to narrow the revenue gap. It will also begin to redistribute wealth from older generations to younger generations.
Reuters (June 30)
The S&P 500 closed June with a bang, despite posting the first loss in 3 quarters. “Stocks surged on Friday to close out a sour quarter on a high note as investors cheered an agreement by European leaders to stabilize the region’s banks, a pact that helped remove some of the uncertainty that has plagued markets. The broad rally was the S&P 500’s best day since December 20 and helped the benchmark index trim its quarterly loss to 3.3 percent.”
The S&P 500 closed June with a bang, despite posting the first loss in 3 quarters. “Stocks surged on Friday to close out a sour quarter on a high note as investors cheered an agreement by European leaders to stabilize the region’s banks, a pact that helped remove some of the uncertainty that has plagued markets. The broad rally was the S&P 500’s best day since December 20 and helped the benchmark index trim its quarterly loss to 3.3 percent.”
Tags: Banks, Europe, Investors, S&P 500, Uncertainty
