June 2010
7 posts
"Republique Exemplaire" : Et si pendant la coupe... →
“La lecture du rapport sur cette proposition de loi est édifiant : le rapporteur (madame le sénateur Anne-Marie Escoffier, RDSE, Aveyron), après avoir justement rappelé que ce délit s’appuie sur le devoir de probité des élus, justifie cette proposition par cette formidable affirmation, titre de la deuxième partie de son rapport : cette proposition de loi vise “à mieux...
« Le principal problème du logement en France... →
Alain Dinin dans “Les Echos”
Deux mots pour sortir la France de la crise:... →
Objectif Liberté explore depuis maintenant 7 ans les possibilités de réformes libérales qui se présenteraient à un gouvernement courageux et lucide. Voici donc la synthèse de 7 années de propositions
AFP: Hamas refusing to allow flotilla aid into... →
Another proof of hamas duplicity and Israel good faith
Local social policies perform better than national... →
localism undergirds the notion of responsibility: our responsibility to support ourselves if we can, and our responsibility to those around us – not an abstract category of “the underprivileged”, but visible neighbours – who, for whatever reason, cannot support themselves. No longer is obligation discharged when we have paid our taxes. Localism, in short, would make us better citizens.
Václav Klaus: 'The Euro Zone Has Failed' →
The European “soziale Marktwirtschaft” is an unproductive variant of a welfare state, of state paternalism, of “leisure” society, of high taxes and low motivation to work.
Le futur, c'est tout de suite: Quand la Chine... →
Quand on demande à Mao Yushi quels sont les principaux risques pour la société chinoise, il en cite deux : l’éclatement de la bulle immobilière et le chômage des jeunes diplômés. Sur six millions de diplômés chaque année, trois ans plus tard, la moitié n’a toujours pas trouvé d’emploi parce que l’économie chinoise, l’atelier du monde, ne génère pas suffisamment d’emplois qualifiés pour...
May 2010
4 posts
Quel délai sépare la France de la Grèce ? →
Le tort majeur des économies sociales-démocrates est d’avoir oublié que les efforts qu’on ne fait pas maintenant seront à faire plus tard, intérêts inclus.
Dettes : pas de « miracle » japonais pour l'Europe... →
On entend actuellement beaucoup parler du FMI comme “sauveur potentiel” des états en difficulté. Mais là encore il faut être réaliste : L’essentiel des ressources du FMI provient des USA et de l’Europe, c’est à dire d’états surendettés.
USA - Le crédit immobilier nationalisé →
The U.S. government’s massive share of the nation’s mortgage market grew even larger during the first quarter. Government-related entities backed 96.5% of all home loans during the first quarter, up from 90% in 2009, according to Inside Mortgage Finance. The increase was driven by a jump in the share of loans backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government-owned housing-finance...
The trillion-dollar fraud - Why the fed should be... →
What concerns many knowledgeable investors is that the Fed doesn’t have the money needed to purchase these assets and instead prints new money. As of March 2010, there was approximately $1 trillion of currency outstanding in the country, not including the more than $1 trillion of bank reserves at the Fed. So if the Fed doesn’t shrink its balance sheet, we can expect inflation to...
April 2010
9 posts
Builders Are Getting Desperate To Sell →
On Friday, the home-buyer tax credit bonanza comes to a close. And the heat is on for home builders, who ramped up construction because of the credit, to unload their supply.
Martin Feldstein : Pourquoi la Grèce fera défaut... →
Si la Grèce était restée en dehors de la zone euro et avait gardé ses drachmes, la forte augmentation des réserves d’obligations grecques aurait entrainé une baisse de la drachme et une hausse des taux d’intérêts sur ces obligations. Mais comme les obligations en euros de la Grèce s’apparentaient aux obligations en euros des autres pays, les taux d’intérêt sur les obligations grecques n’ont...
(Vintage) : The Formula That Killed Wall Street →
In finance, you can never reduce risk outright; you can only try to set up a market in which people who don’t want risk sell it to those who do. But in the CDO market, people used the Gaussian copula model to convince themselves they didn’t have any risk at all, when in fact they just didn’t have any risk 99 percent of the time. The other 1 percent of the time they blew up. Those...
Bank Profits Dimmed by Prospect of Home-Equity... →
Bank of America Corp., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Wells Fargo & Co. may have to set aside an additional $30 billion to cover possible losses on home-equity loans, an amount almost equal to analysts’ estimates of profit at the three banks this year.
L'Allemagne émet des doutes sur le plan d'aide à... →
La Grèce ne s’est toujours pas remise financièrement de l’organisation des Jeux olympiques de 2004. De son côté, la Chine a vu toutes les formes de bulles d’actifs exploser en 2008 après les J.O. de Pékin. Dans de telles conditions, on peut s’interroger sur l’existence d’un syndrome pré- ou post-olympique qui rendrait la situation économique des pays...
Les banques françaises sur-exposées aux PIIGS ? →
According to the IMF, the total amount of foreign claims, in this case focusing on Southern Europe countries, better known as PIIGS, on European international banks is $1.54 trillion. And while many have claimed that Germany would stand to lose the most from an implosion in the European periphery, that is in fact not true true: with $781 billion, France has much more at stake than Germany, whose...
Le retour de la Grande Bretagne de heath et... →
Trash Collecting Entrepreneur Squashed In San Francisco : When the local garbage company and its union found out about “Joe” they complained to the city. Within a year a law was passed stating that garbage service was now mandatory for all residents at the price the city’s monopoly charged, which was shortly raised. And Joe? For a while he still took our recyclables until he...
China's Real Estate Bubble : How could it end well... →
The average apartment (1000 sq feet) will cost $90,000. This comparable with US condo prices in a second tier city. The price/income ratio is 25.7 for a single buyer! Even with a two-wage-earner family, the ratio is larger than 10.
Liberalize immigration rules to crush black market... →
What would give the results we’re after? Liberalization. The whole reason the immigration black market exists is because the legal channels are so cumbersome and restrictive. Lighten the paperwork and regulatory burden, then. The more unattractive legality becomes, the more attractive illegality looks in comparison. This is an urgent problem. Black markets are dangerous to a free society....
March 2010
36 posts
L'état de l'état de droit en France - réunion... →
Il y a un an, à l’occasion de la sortie de leur livre “Avancer vers l’Etat de droit”, édité sous la direction de Guy Millière, l’Institut Turgot avait organisé à l’Assemblée nationale une réunion dont Me Jean-Philippe Delsol, Me Jean-Philippe Feldman et Me Patrick Simon étaient les invités. Le thème de la réunion était “la présomption...
Sarkonomics - "oui au capitalisme , non au marché" →
Sarkozy à New -York : “Les prix essentiels, dit aussi le Président , devraient être fixes , en particulier” le prix du pétrole “et “la valeur relative de l’euro et du dollar”. Il n’est pas supportable, dit-il, que “ça bouge tout le temps”.
Je crains que l’élève Sarkozy ne soit pas accepté en première année d’économie à...
Only a few bunch of whiners in Tea Parties ? ... →
Chine : une bulle à hauts risques →
Selon Standard Chartered, une banque internationale basée en Grande-Bretagne, le prix moyen des terrains en Chine a augmenté de 106 % l’an dernier, avec plus de 200 % à Shanghai, près de 400 % à Guangzhou et de 876 % à Wenzhou, ce qui pousse la banque à penser que le programme de relance chinois a créé une bulle, en particulier dans les grandes villes.
"Bienvenue au Canada", tabernacle ! →
Dean Steacy, lead investigator of the Canadian “Human Rights” Commission: “Freedom of speech is an American concept, so I don’t give it any value”.
« Affaire Zemmour » : la censure ne doit pas... →
Article 11 de la Déclaration des Droits de l’Homme et du Citoyen de 1789 : « La libre communication des pensées et des opinions est un des droits les plus précieux de l’homme ; tout citoyen peut donc parler, écrire, imprimer librement, sauf à répondre de l’abus de cette liberté dans les cas déterminés par la loi ».Voltaire n’aurait peut-être pas été d’accord avec...
Who will Opt Out? Could Obamacare actually reduce... →
Many of the young and healthy will simply opt out. After all, the bill will not allow discrimination based on preexisting conditions. Thus, it practically begs the young and healthy to opt out. Moreover, many healthy individuals approaching retirement will opt out as well. Illegal aliens sure will not be buying coverage. Finally, there are many who cannot afford, or believe they cannot afford...
100 Milliards de pertes pour Fannie et Freddie →
100 milliards de dollars : c’est le montant des pertes pour Fannie Mae et Freddie Mac en 2009. Les deux géants américains du refinancement hypothécaire ont respectivement enregistré des déficits de 74,4 et 25,7 milliards de dollars au cours de l’année écoulée.
Vive le capitalisme ! →
Un Indien vivant de longue date en Californie revient à Bombay pour assister au mariage du fils de l’un de ses amis. Il remarque que la famille de la mariée n’est pas de la même caste… mais d’une caste inférieure. Il se demande s’il faut dire quelque chose ; les habitudes ont peut-être changé durant ses nombreuses années d’absence ?
Il finit par se...
More and more households in foreclosure in 2010 →
About 2.82 million U.S. homeowners lost their properties to foreclosure in 2009 and 4.5 million filings are expected in 2010, according to RealtyTrac
IMF : Housing Prices, More Room to Fall →
Historic records lead to an uncomfortable conclusion: house prices in many countries still have room to fall.
Victory for Bloomberg in Freedom of Information... →
The U.S. Court of Appeals in Manhattan ruled today that the Fed must release records of the unprecedented $2 trillion U.S. loan program launched primarily after the 2008 collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. The ruling upholds a decision of a lower-court judge, who in August ordered that the information be released.
Vive les spéculateurs ! →
Les spéculateurs remplissent une fonction essentielle dans l’économie : leurs actions imposent une discipline aux entreprises et aux gouvernements. Une discipline plus efficace que la réglementation, même la plus sévère. Si vous gérez mal vos affaires, les spéculateurs vont miser sur votre échec. Et comme ces gens mettent leur propre argent en jeu – et qu’ils perdront des milliards s’ils se...
More importantly than the "Geithner Scandal", the... →
Of greater importance is the recognition that all of the big banks are probably insolvent. Another financial crisis is nearly certain to hit in coming months—probably before summer. The belief that together Geithner and Bernanke have resolved the crisis and that they have put the economy on a path to recovery will be exposed as wishful thinking. In the bigger scheme of things, this is only 1931....
French Regional Elections : Is there still hope... →
Is there still hope for the French classical liberals? Those last ones are very active on the blogosphere, bypassing mainstream media. Alternative Libérale is trying hard to unify every single freedom fighter, in the context of a difficult political system for new party to break through. What about taking control of an existing party from the inside? Until now the french liberals gained very...
Housing bust outcomes could be really more... →
Housing booms tend to be more dangerous than stock market bubbles, and are often followed by periods of prolonged economic weakness. A study by the IMF found that output losses after house-price busts in rich countries have, on average, been twice as large as those after stock market crashes. The economic damage this time could be worse than in the past because house prices are more likely to fall...
Spanish-like land bubble in China →
Strangely, while the purchasing power of families was shrinking, that of the land buyers, the majority of which are state-owned enterprises, was lavishing relentlessly. The year 2009 spawned many “land kings,” companies that won land biddings with astoundingly high offerings. At least half of these land kings are affiliated with the central government. As a matter of fact, among the 129...
Record numbers of Chinese complain about inflation →
Inflation in China is now outstripping the interest rate on bank deposits and property prices, which are not accounted for in the CPI, have risen rapidly in China’s cities. In Shanghai, prices were up 68pc in January from the previous year.
Mortgage delinquencies at historic highs →
Delinquency rates have hit historic highs. More than 7.4 million home loans nationwide are in some stage of delinquency or foreclosure, with another 1 million properties either bank-owned or sold out of foreclosure. An incredible 10% of all U.S. loans are delinquent.
Interdire les CDS ? C'est complètement dingue... →
Pourquoi interdire les CDS ? D’après les incompétents surdiplômés qui envisagent cette mesure, le problème n’est pas la fièvre mortelle dont le patient est saisi, dù bien sûr au surendettement de nos Etats dont ils sont directement responsables, mais le thermomètre qui mesure cette fièvre. Il faut donc de toute urgence empaler le porteur de mauvaises nouvelles. Si les CDS sur la Grèce ont...
Ramat Shlomo: is construction a sin? →
The Middle East is spread over something like 10 million squared kilometers and not much is being built on most of it. That’s OK. But when a civilized country of Israel, with its 20 thousand squared kilometers - a quarter of a percent of the Middle East - dares to plan a construction of new houses in a region that covers a few squared kilometers on the Eastern side of their holy city,...
De la crise grecque à la crise européenne →
Ce que nous redoutions semble malheureusement en passe de se produire, on le saura lundi prochain : l’Allemagne, la France, et d’autres pays européennes, vont offrir des garanties financières à leurs institutions financières pour qu’elles achètent des emprunts grecs
Mourir par la France ! →
Et puis s’il la ramène trop je pourrais lui glisser un petit mot sur les notes de frais que lui et ses copains laissent dans les cafés ou restaurants de la commune quand ils vont baffrer à nos frais. Notes qui ne sont payées que très tardivement et encore quand les commerçants osent aller demander leur du. Comprenez que pour un cafetier, aller demander ce qui lui est du, c’est risquer...
It's really different this time: Public financial... →
Kansas City School District Faces Bankruptcy, Closes 29 of 61 schools; Every Child Left Behind For Decades
Origin of the Housing Bubble: “The National... →
Under the NHS the considerable resources of the Federal Government were brought to bear on expanding homeownership. In 1994 HUD directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to proliferate subprime lending. These combined Government Sponsored Entities (GSEs) act as a functional monopoly within the mortgage market. As such, they enjoyed substantial influence over lending standards, credit availability and...
Transit Oriented Development: If Not San... →
The article reveals how transit oriented development (TOD) is often based upon fragile foundations that amount to an ideological swindle. It is important to recognize that the Fog City Journal is no right wing or libertarian organ. There is little market for that in the city of San Francisco. The leftish bent of the Fog City Journal, combined with author Marc Salomon’s unusually incisive (and...
China: another empty city... →
The one drawback: at the moment, Chenggong is almost completely empty. Its wide streets are all but bereft of traffic, a bank branch has no customers and leaves collect in the foyers of the municipal offices.
charles hugh smith-Why California Is Doomed →
The dysfunctions crippling California would easily fill a volume: a dysfunctional Legislature that has been gerrymandered to protect virtually every seat; a dysfunctional proposition system which enables special interests to craft Protected Fiefdoms via the ballot box; recalcitrant public unions who don’t see anything wrong with public servants getting 90% of top-pay in pensions while still...
And you call this a "free market's crisis" ? →
The Asylum Runs The Government: Government Sponsored Freddie Mac Will Buy Out “substantially all” 120-Day Delinquent Mortgages ! US taxpayers, protect your wallets…
Europe: Atlas Shrugged come true? →
For the proponents of bigger EU government, the current situation is an “opportunity” to push for more centralised powers and more regulations. In the new presidents-top-heavy institutional architecture, the most enthusiastic is Herman Van Rompuy who would like to see the European Council as the new seat of economic governance. The “EU 2020 strategy” is starting to look like a blueprint for the...