Financial fuckery thread

[Elder Iptuous]

wow.  that's really something!
do you suspect that she will even feel the need to respond to this article, though? 
it seems, from my perspective, that while we were in the thick of the economic meltdown's media attention, articles like this would get passed around and shared by J.Q.Public who would try to understand how they were getting fucked over, and Taibbi was particularly good at explaining it in common terms.

it seems that sentiment of scrutiny on our economic elites has dried up to a large extent these days. to be sure, there's a heightened belief that "yeah, the rich are fucking us", but there's not any more widely held appetite to process, let alone get outraged, at specific instances like this, odious as they may be.

or perhaps it's just projection on my part....  i feel kind of fatalistic regarding these matters lately. 
i mean, this is pretty crappy here, and i recognize that, and i just feel a headshake and a shrug, when i think i should feel some anger.

[Cain]

No, I think you're right. 

I think it's going to take a much bigger crash than 2008 for things to get shaken up.  Incidentally, you might also want to read Taibbi's article on Neil Barofsky's book.  He explains just how utterly insulated D.C. is from the rest of the country and the consequences of its actions.

[Elder Iptuous]

i'll queue it up. 
thanks

[Disco Pickle]

And yet, no arrests, and no breaking up the institutions.



TOO BIG TO PROSECUTE.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2011/04/14/business/20110414-prosecute.html

a comparison between the cases and prosecutions brought during the S&L and 2007 crisis.

Seems to me that the wolves swapped out their silk suits for wool blends somewhere in late 94. 

My thoughts on this have been taking me back to the 6 degrees of separation concept.  The people who become heads of the SEC and top banks all either know each other personally, or could very easily be within a minimum of 6 degrees of anyone who does, or could be up and coming. 

Even in a city as populous as D.C. and NY, the insular world the sort of people who fill these positions inhabits should be very finite by design, considering the wealth and pedigree required to ever occupy once of these positions.

Distastefully as it is, it's going to happen that they're covering each other's asses.  Like a well run drug ring, the ones at the top rarely get caught, because they've insulated themselves with multiple layers of actors, making moves on their behalf.

This isn't meant to be a "why it happens"    That's clearly money. 

More of a how, I guess.   I'll chew on it a bit more.   

[Junkenstein]

http://www.businessinsider.com/john-kerry-heinz-ketchup-2013-2

The "Oracle of Omaha" Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway and investment firm 3G Capital are buying ketchup maker Heinz for $28 billion.
The stock is up over 20 percent in the pre-market.
Everyone is probably wondering how much Secretary of State John Kerry and his wife Teresa Heinz Kerry, the Heinz ketchup heiress, might make from this deal.
All members of the Senate, House, Executive branch and Judicial branch are required to disclose assets belonging to their spouse and/or dependent children, according to Open Secrets.
According to Open Secrets, last year then-Senator Kerry disclosed his 2011 assets, which included a valuation of $3,000,003 worth of HJ Heinz Co.

[Cain]

http://www.cnbc.com/id/100442841

Acting just one day after the surprise announcement that H.J. Heinz would be acquired by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway and Brazil-based 3G Capital for $23.3 billion, the SEC has gone to court to freeze assets associated with what it calls "highly suspicious options trading."

The SEC accuses "unknown traders" of having advance word of the deal and buying options a day ahead of the news to make "risky bets" that Heinz's stock price would rise. Both the size and the timing of the trades raised suspicions at the SEC.

Of course, this wouldn't be the first time that unusual trading practices and Warren Buffett have appeared in the same sentence.  Or does everyone need yet another reminder of Buffett's investment in Goldman Sachs (and subsequent public defence of them)?

[Cain]

If Berlusconi keeps on going this way, he's going to suffer an "accident".  I mean, he's not saying anything didn't already know, but being so brazen and blatant about it...well it's really going to upset those with images to maintain.

http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/be7b2b5c-76bb-11e2-ac91-00144feabdc0.html

Former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi has defended the need for bribery in winning contracts for Italy's multinationals, as politicians campaigning in general elections have been forced to respond to a welter of corruption scandals revolving around the nexus of politics and business.

"Bribes are a phenomenon that exists and it's useless to deny the existence of these necessary situations when you are negotiating with third world countries and regimes," Mr Berlusconi, leader of a centre-right coalition and seeking his fourth stint in office, said on Thursday.

[Junkenstein]

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/jackson-jr-plea-deal-implicates-wife-article-1.1265389

WASHINGTON — Former Congressman Jessie Jackson Jr. used $750,000 in campaign funds to buy personal items ranging from a $43,000 gold Rolex watch to a $4,600 fedora worn by Michael Jackson, the Justice Department charged Friday.
Federal prosecutors slapped the one-time rising political star with fraud and conspiracy charges as they revealed the stunning allegations of misspending.
In an affidavit, prosecutors said Jackson used his campaign kitty to buy everything from a $5,000 football signed by U.S. presidents, furs and a cashmere cape to memorabilia related to Bruce Lee and Jimi Hendrix.
Jackson, the son of the famous civil rights leader, is expected to plead guilty, one of his lawyers said.

Fairly small scale compared to the rest of the thread.

[Junkenstein]

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/burger-king-net-up-94-on-lower-expenses-2013-02-15?Link=obinsite

Burger King Worldwide Inc.'s BKW +0.40%  fourth-quarter profit jumped 94% as the hamburger chain recorded a sharp drop in expenses, outweighing a slump in revenue driven by foreign-currency headwinds.

Shares of Burger King rose 3.7% to $17.20 in recent premarket trading as results beat Wall Street estimates. The stock has risen 8.4% in the past three months

I have neigh idea how the accomplished this.

[Cain]

Hah, you're optimistic.

Horse is far more expensive than rat.

[Junkenstein]

I know, I just couldn't think of a good Rat pun.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/100464841

What if there was a Ketchup War, yet no one showed up to fight?

The surprise deal that saw Berkshire Hathaway and 3G Capital Management swoop in this with a $28 billion bid for ketchup maker H.J. Heinz, came with an interesting wrinkle that links two of the world's biggest burger behemoths.

Call it two degrees of supply chain separation: 3G owns a majority stake in Burger King, which is a direct competitor of McDonald's. Heinz — now partly owned and likely to be run by 3G — supplies red sauce to both fast food giants.

Heinz new ownership structure raised an improbable, yet plausible, possibility. If the new bosses at 3G wanted to squeeze Burger King's competition, it could terminate the agreement to supply Heinz ketchup to McDonalds.

Ketchup war sounds so much more interesting in my head.

[Pergamos]

I know, I just couldn't think of a good Rat pun.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/100464841

What if there was a Ketchup War, yet no one showed up to fight?

The surprise deal that saw Berkshire Hathaway and 3G Capital Management swoop in this with a $28 billion bid for ketchup maker H.J. Heinz, came with an interesting wrinkle that links two of the world's biggest burger behemoths.

Call it two degrees of supply chain separation: 3G owns a majority stake in Burger King, which is a direct competitor of McDonald's. Heinz — now partly owned and likely to be run by 3G — supplies red sauce to both fast food giants.

Heinz new ownership structure raised an improbable, yet plausible, possibility. If the new bosses at 3G wanted to squeeze Burger King's competition, it could terminate the agreement to supply Heinz ketchup to McDonalds.

Ketchup war sounds so much more interesting in my head.

Not supplying ketchup might squeeze them, charging McDonalds more than they charge Burger King seems like a more likely tactic though.

[Junkenstein]

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-57570925-38/need-bitcoins-this-atm-takes-dollars-and-funds-your-account/?part=rss&subj=news&tag=title

Someone was talking about Bitcoins recently, here's a development with absolutely no problems whatsoever.

NASHUA, N.H. -- Zach Harvey has an ambitious plan to accelerate adoption of the Internet's favorite alternative currency: installing in thousands of bars, restaurants, and grocery stores ATMs that will let you buy Bitcoins anonymously.
It's the opposite of a traditional automated teller that dispenses currency. Instead, these Bitcoin ATMs will accept dollar bills -- using the same validation mechanism as vending machines -- and instantly convert the amount to Bitcoins and deposit the result in your account.
"It's even easier than just using a regular ATM," says Harvey, 33, who demonstrated the device to CNET this weekend at the Free State Project's annual Liberty Forum. "You could probably do it in about five seconds. The thing that would take the longest would be the bill validator taking in the dollar."

I am interested in alternative currencies and would like to see one work sometime. I'm pretty sure this isn't going to be one of them.

[The Good Reverend Roger]

I am interested in alternative currencies and would like to see one work sometime.

I am interested in alternative influenza, because the old kind isn't cool anymore.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

The problem with alternative currencies is that at the end of the day, it's still just a virtual representation of goods or services. Exchanging one for the other has no benefit that I can think of.