The Dow had it’s record highest point gain today up almost 940. Although it was up a bit today, Oil prices have been retreating and have been steadily below $90/bbl for several days. And have you noticed the price of gasoline has also been declining?

Of course, we all know it’s not over yet, but it’s good to see some positive signs. Unfortunately, the price of diesel fuel has not come down with trhe price of gasoline, apparently due to supply issues worldwide. And this will keep the price of consumer goods general higher. Seems like[...]

I’m tired of everyone dumping on George Bush.  I’m the first to admit that he has some serious leadership deficiencies, but he is the President and won the job fair and square twice, despite what the Libs think.  As President, he deserves our respect, just like Nixon and Clinton did.  For eight years, I had [...]

At 6:00 this morning I was in the middle of my daily 15 minute workout routine, watching CNBC’s Squawk Box and trying to get a read on the markets.  If you’re unfamiliar with this show, it’s hosted by Joe Kernan, Becky Quick and Carl Quintinilla.  If my local cable provider would broadcast Fox Business, I’m sure [...]

I have to admit, my thoughts regarding the latest financial debacles waver from one extreme to the other.  My initial instinct is that the markets need to be stabilized, and anything that provides a floor for a stock market in apparent free fall is a good thing.
My next thought is that $700 billion is a [...]

There seems to be a ton of news lately, and for a change, not all of it bad.  First, we have the Beijing Olympiad and the Chinese display of cultural prowess.  Fortunately for us, we have the best athletes in the world.
But in case you haven’t noticed, the Russians and Vladimir Putin have invaded the [...]

20 years ago I looked at a map of the regional Federal Reserve Banks and I thought:  Why do we have banks in Richmond, Philadelphia and New York?  Cleveland and Chicago?  St. Louis and Kansas City?  Why does the San Francisco bank handle everything west of Denver?  Why do we need 12 banks?  At the [...]

What a day. I’m sorry, but politically, not one that I’m proud of:
1) Alphonso Jackson resigns as HUD secretary (effective April 18). Few doubt there is something to allegations of favoritism. See my previous posting on the temptations of power.
2) Henry Paulson presents a plan to overhaul the Fed that is not [...]

Let Friday, early news about a plan to broadly expand the power of the Federal Reserve was released.  Evidently the plan will be formally announced in a speech by Treasury Secretary Paulson.
I’m a bit out of breath.
McGehee was the first I saw to make mention that something like this was seriously in the works.  He [...]

Well, Hillary appears to be attempting to make EVERYONE happy.
More government money to rescue folks who simply bought more house than they could afford. According to a Wall Street Journal story Tuesday, Hillary proposes:

Freezing Forclosures for 90 days
Freezing Interest-rate Resets on Sub-primes for 5 years
Establish a $30 billion fund so states and cities can [...]

This morning brought news of a refinement of the JPMorgan/Bear Stearns deal. Evidently, Bear Stearns stockholders aren’t happy about the $2/share deal, and want something better. Wouldn’t we all.
What will be interesting is whether the Fed accepts the deal or not. I favored the original deal, but the new deal appears to [...]