Bonus Bananas July 22, 2011

1) Citing deficit, ratings agency downgrades U.S. credit (Yahoo! News) - It had to happen sooner or later. The first of what may be several actual downgrades of US credit has happened, and it comes from an independent ratings agency that isn't on the take from the banks and the government. Egan-Jones lowered the US rating from AAA to AA+ on Monday.

2) Goldman’s best days may be over (MarketWatch) - In this sobering assessment of the raft of issues weighing on Goldman Sachs today, David Weidner posits that the vampire squid's best days may be behind it. He says investors should get used to lower quarterly and annual results as the firm winds down risk.

3) Scrap the Accredited Investor Rule (The American) - This probably deserves a post all its own, and I may even write one next week. I couldn't agree more that the Accredited Investor Rule does more to hurt investors today than to protect them. There was definitely a time and place for the rule, but there is no need for it in the modern era where information is at everyone's fingertips.

4) Facebook Twins Respond to Larry Summers’ ‘Asshole’ Comment (Gawker) - Unless you've been living under a rock, you know that former Harvard president and Chief Economic Adviser Larry Summers recently called the Winklevi assholes. In typical Winklevi fashion, the twins have taken to whining about it - this time to current Harvard president Drew Gilpin Faust. We get it, guys. He's an asshole, you're assholes, the whole fucking world is full of assholes because another asshole far more talented than you assholes made you assholes rich without either of you lifting an asshole finger. Assholes.

5) Stranger moves into foreclosed home, citing little-knownTexas law (KHOU) - You gotta hand it to this guy for balls and creativity. Citing a seldom used legal process known as "adverse possession", Kenneth Robinson has taken ownership of a $300,000 home for just $16 worth of paperwork. Of course the neighbors are pissed. But I can vouch for the process, because the city of New Orleans was encouraging real estate investors like me to do the very same thing with blighted properties before Hurricane Katrina. Only a sucker pays retail.

6) The Journal Becomes Fox-ified (NY Times) - Joe Nocera bemoans the fate of the Wall Street Journal after falling into the hands of Rupert Murdoch. He has a point about a few things. The articles are not nearly as in-depth as they once were, and though the Urinal always leaned to the right, the current editorial slant mirrors Murdoch's Fox News. But let's face it: would you rather have your boss see you reading the Journal or the Post?

7) My life as a live nude girl (NY Post) - Speaking of the Post, this is a fantastic article written by one of the last Times Square peep show girls; a girl who is now a reporter for the Post. These stories always fascinate me (what can I say? I've got a soft spot for strippers), and Sheila McClear doesn't disappoint. I'm looking forward to her book, The Last of the Live Nude Girls: A Memoir, when it comes out in a couple weeks.

8) Krokodil: The drug that eats junkies (The Independent) - This is just gnarly. The heroin problem in Russia has gotten so bad that addicts have formulated a recipe for a heroin knock-off which they cook up from memory a couple times a day. The downside? It's called Krokodil (crocodile) because your skin actually turns to scales before sloughing off of your bones. I like to party as much as the next guy, but geez.

9) The 9 Most Important Things to Remember If You Want to Sell Your Startup (TechCrunch) - A little something for the entrepreneurs among us. James Altucher wrote this for TechCrunch last month, and it is really solid advice. I wish I had known a couple of these things before selling my yacht brokerage.

10) Corporate Tax Holiday in Debt Ceiling Deal: Where's the Uproar? (Rolling Stone) - Matt Taibbi takes politicians (and voters) to task for considering yet another "one time" tax repatriation holiday for corporations. Look, I'm as anti-tax as the next guy, but this country was founded (and funded, originally) on excise taxes. Ever since individual income taxation became the law of the land, corporations have gotten away with murder tax-wise. This bullshit has to stop.

My video of the week this week is one that will actually make you think. It's all about the impact complex algorithms are having on our everyday lives. The talk was delivered a week ago at TED Global, and it's been tearing up the Internet ever since. Really good stuff, and food for thought. Have we created a new sentient species?

That's it for this week, guys! Let me know what you think in the comments, and have a great weekend!

 

5) I think its pretty clear who the biggest asshole in the whole facebook fiasco was.

8) Really wish you had linked to this video so everyone could get a feel for how fucked up this shit is. Don't watch the video if you are a pussy or are eating. Check it out:

10) How is it not a better idea to give them a 'bring you shit back and we won't be mad' day than the alternative of not getting any of the tax revenue? Not that I think anything will actually come out of it but maybe I just don't understand tax policy well enough.

If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses - Henry Ford
 
happypantsmcgee:
5) I think its pretty clear who the biggest asshole in the whole facebook fiasco was. .

HPM, I respectfully disagree. Those twins are what is wrong with America. After Zuckerburg stole their idea and started pushing facebook on other campuses, they did nothing . Seriously, if I were in their shoes, I would have used my money to, 1) launch my own social networking site (even if I have to pay programmers to work around the clock), 2) launch a denial-of-service attack on facebook, 3) Beat Zuckerberg's ass.

Seriously, the fact that those silver-spoon assholes sat on their hands and said, "ohh, the humanity," just how that they have nothing but big sweaty pussies between their legs.

I am not cocky, I am confident, and when you tell me I am the best it is a compliment. -Styles P
 
eokpar02:
happypantsmcgee:
5) I think its pretty clear who the biggest asshole in the whole facebook fiasco was. .

HPM, I respectfully disagree. Those twins are what is wrong with America. After Zuckerburg stole their idea and started pushing facebook on other campuses, they did nothing . Seriously, if I were in their shoes, I would have used my money to, 1) launch my own social networking site (even if I have to pay programmers to work around the clock), 2) launch a denial-of-service attack on facebook, 3) Beat Zuckerberg's ass.

Seriously, the fact that those silver-spoon assholes sat on their hands and said, "ohh, the humanity," just how that they have nothing but big sweaty pussies between their legs.

I would have done the same thing (probably mostly number 3) but that doesn't change all of the other cocksucker shit that Zuck did.
If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses - Henry Ford
 
happypantsmcgee:
10) How is it not a better idea to give them a 'bring you shit back and we won't be mad' day than the alternative of not getting any of the tax revenue? Not that I think anything will actually come out of it but maybe I just don't understand tax policy well enough.

In theory, it's actually not a bad idea. But in practice the only way to make it work and stop the abuse is to close the overseas loophole at the same time. In other words, overseas profits will be taxed at the normal corporate rate going forward, and you guys have this one chance to bring all your money home for the last time.

 
happypantsmcgee:
8) Really wish you had linked to this video so everyone could get a feel for how fucked up this shit is. Don't watch the video if you are a pussy or are eating. Check it out:

Could this be social Darwinism? The life expectancy of those who this stuff is less than a year.

I am not cocky, I am confident, and when you tell me I am the best it is a compliment. -Styles P
 

5 is Golden. I heard about this story and I am interested in finding foreclosed properties around my area where I can do this.

I am not cocky, I am confident, and when you tell me I am the best it is a compliment. -Styles P
 

Really cool stuff, I always look forward to these

eokpar02:
#5 is Golden. I heard about this story and I am interested in finding foreclosed properties around my area where I can do this.
Yup, reading about this now, and there's GOT to be some more opportunities open.

Commentary on #4 was freakin hilarious. assholes

Get busy living
 
Best Response
Edmundo Braverman:
1) 10) Corporate Tax Holiday in Debt Ceiling Deal: Where's the Uproar? (Rolling Stone) - Matt Taibbi takes politicians (and voters) to task for considering yet another "one time" tax repatriation holiday for corporations. Look, I'm as anti-tax as the next guy, but this country was founded (and funded, originally) on excise taxes. Ever since individual income taxation became the law of the land, corporations have gotten away with murder tax-wise. This bullshit has to stop.

maybe the US system is a bit different from Canada but I have yet to understand why corporations get taxed in the first place. If the shareholder gets taxed on the dividends and capital gains of the stock, the result is usually double-taxation. In Canuckistan there are means to reduce the amount of double taxation but it still happens. Eliminating corporate taxes would eliminate a large part of the economy that focuses on wealth distribution (tax departments, accountants, lawyers) that could be focused on real wealth creating opportunities.

 
down on the upside:
Edmundo Braverman:
1) 10) Corporate Tax Holiday in Debt Ceiling Deal: Where's the Uproar? (Rolling Stone) - Matt Taibbi takes politicians (and voters) to task for considering yet another "one time" tax repatriation holiday for corporations. Look, I'm as anti-tax as the next guy, but this country was founded (and funded, originally) on excise taxes. Ever since individual income taxation became the law of the land, corporations have gotten away with murder tax-wise. This bullshit has to stop.

maybe the US system is a bit different from Canada but I have yet to understand why corporations get taxed in the first place. If the shareholder gets taxed on the dividends and capital gains of the stock, the result is usually double-taxation. In Canuckistan there are means to reduce the amount of double taxation but it still happens. Eliminating corporate taxes would eliminate a large part of the economy that focuses on wealth distribution (tax departments, accountants, lawyers) that could be focused on real wealth creating opportunities.

Eliminating all personal income taxes would have the same effect, be more democratic, and spur growth. That's why the U.S. was founded with that tax structure and was a beacon of light to the world for the first 130 or so years of its existence.

 

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