From Pine View Farm

December, 2009 archive

The Right Hand Selleth, the Left Hand Selleth Short 0

Reuters:

Investigators in Congress, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority are looking at banks’ sales of complicated instruments known as collateralized debt obligations, according to the paper.

It said banks that created these securities, and then bet on their failing, or similar securities failing, include Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and Deutsche Bank.

Business Week story here.

Detailed explanation here.

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Your Tax Dollars at Work 0

I know I’ve mentioned this before, but it’s worth springing for the January/February Playboy to read the full story.

Six years later, Playboy magazine has revealed that the CIA fell victim to an elaborate con by a compulsive gambler who claimed to have developed software that discovered al-Jazeera broadcasts were being used to transmit messages to terrorists buried deep in America.

Dennis Montgomery, 56, the co-owner of a software gaming company in Nevada, who has since been arrested for bouncing $1m worth of cheques, claims his program read messages hidden in barcodes listing international flights to the US, their positions and airports to be targeted.

Next time you see some spy story depicting the CIA as technologically sophisticated, do yourself a favor. Turn off the TV and go read something believable, like the story of Rapunzel.

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Santa Delivers 0

An Android.

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QOTD 0

Beverly Beckham in the Boston Globe:

My mother continued all of her life to sign her Christmas gifts to me, “Love, Santa.’’ She believed in enchantment and strove to keep it. It’s what we all do every Christmas: We invent a better world.

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Merry Christmas 0

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Making a List and Checking It Twice 0

Beard? Check.

Sack? Check.

Gun? Check.

Nashville cops are hunting a rogue Saint Nick who on Tuesday robbed a SunTrust Bank because “Santa needed to pay his elves”, as the perp explained to staff.

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You Scream, We All Scream 0

The assailant was scooped up by the law.

A woman was severely beaten during an argument over spilled ice cream late Tuesday night.

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Nothing To Do, Nowhere To Go 0

No last minute Christmas shopping for these folks, but the overall total sinking from previous weeks:

A . . . report from the Labor Department showed initial claims for state unemployment benefits fell 28,000 to 452,000 last week. That was the lowest level since early September 2008. Economists had expected a drop of only 10,000.

In other news, orders for durable goods up.

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Californicated 1

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, anticipating a $21 billion budget deficit, plans to ask President Barack Obama to ease mandates and minimums on social programs to save as much as $8 billion.

Given that years of Republican misrule have rendered California unable to provide basic services, it must be tempting just to send them to the IMF, which specializes in ungovernable third-world countries.

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QOTD 0

Molly Ivins, from the Quotemaster:

Whatever you do, don’t give up. Because all you can do once you’ve given up is bitch. I’ve known some great bitchers in my time. With some it’s a passion, with others an art.

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Shopping List 0

We always gave cookies:

Kathleen Messick, who teaches English as a second language in the Cape Henlopen School District, taught kindergarten years ago at Millsboro Elementary School when a girl gave her a red-and-black lace negligee (remember, kindergarten–ed.).

The slinky nightwear was a bit too much for her tastes, she said, and she never wore it.

There’s more.

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Merry Christmas 0

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God Answers Prayers 0

Sometimes, the answer is, “No.”

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Merry Christmas 0

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Your Tax Dollars at Work 0

Fiscal Republicanity (hey! that rhymes with Hannity!):

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

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404 0

Bill Shein.

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Scrooged 0

Auth

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Snow Run-Out (Updated) 3

Snow breaks Delaware’s snow-removal budget:

The state has $3.2 million in its snow removal account. But it costs between $3.5 million and $4 million for every 8 inches of snow that falls, Delaware Department of Transportation Secretary Carolann Wicks said.

$3.2 mil per eight inches. And Delaware is a small state.

My brother sent me a picture showing almost twice eight inches in his yard.

The White Death

Addendum:

Here’s the picture I sent him in return, taken from the door to the deck. The temperature was about 31 Fahrenheits at the time.

I haven’t heard from him since.

Read more »

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The Phony “War on Christmas” 0

A historical perspective. Read the whole thing.:

Once upon a time, in the good old days, Americans celebrated Christmas in their public schools. They sang hymns, hung stockings, and decorated trees. And nobody complained.

There’s just one problem with this bleak winter’s tale: It’s not true. Despite what you might hear about our contemporary “War on Christmas,” holiday celebrations have sparked dissent in American public schools for more than a century. By pretending otherwise, we miss an opportunity to teach our children something important about America.

I was in a store yesterday. A check-out clerk routinely said “Merry Christmas” to the customer ahead of me; she, in return said to the clerk, “Thank you for saying, ‘Merry Christmas.'”

I thought, “Fox News viewer,” then silently told me to STFU.

Furrfu.

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Merry Christmas 0

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