CHAN AKYA

February 9, 2010

"Do not be very upright in your dealings for you would see by going to the forest that straight trees are cut down while crooked ones are left standing." - Chanakya (350-275 BC)

For more on the original Chanakya, the inventor of skullduggery, click here.

The hair of Damocles' sword

United States Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner's future in office might be short, with a warning by Moody's Investors Service that the US is at risk of losing its triple A credit rating giving more ammunition to critics of his handling of the financial crisis. Whoever his successor, humiliating deals with China are likely to remain part of a thankless workload.

(Feb 05, '10)

Vestigial organs

As governments in the United States and Europe figure out how to bail out their struggling states - California and Greece are the prime candidates for failure - the rest of the world can consider the human body's vestigial organs, such as the appendix, and wonder if such a fate awaits the US dollar and the euro.

(Jan 29, '10)

Bonus battles

The popular view that bank bonuses represent greed, gluttony and perhaps lust ignores the factors allowing banks to make such money - central bankers' sloth and government pride in their financial systems. When the bonus drama ends, it will be because people realize the true culprits are, indeed, governments.

(Jan 22, '10)

Nine pins from '09

The ghosts of the year past are wasting little time in making their chilling presence felt on the investment outlook for 2010. From Alcoa's earnings results to China's monetary tightening to increasing preference for cash, the harbingers are spooky at best.

(Jan 15, '10)

What's in a name?

Renaming the world's tallest building to honor Dubai's financial rescuer may mark the death of a non-resource-based model of development in the Arab world. It could also serve to encourage other similar changes - RBS could be renamed the People's Bank of Britain, or California (given the right terms with China) could become Xinjiang (West).

(Jan 06, '10)

It's who you know

Perhaps the best way to summarize 2009 would be to look at the obvious winners, such as Wall Street and Big Government, against less obvious losers, such as taxpayers, the unemployed and small businessmen globally. With the Japanese way of capitalism well established, the year could be remembered as sowing the seeds of the longest depression the world has seen. While that may be an awful thought, think what will need to happen to end such a depression.

(Dec 23, '09)

How to solve climate change

The failure of the Copenhagen summit on climate change is exactly as expected. Whenever people try to come together and solve an issue that is of importance to all of humanity, the binding force has to be greed or fear; but never altruism. There isn't enough fear in climate science yet, so an economic approach is the only one that could have worked.

(Dec 21, '09)

Currency pegs hung out to dry

Following the Dubai debacle, a lot of hogwash has been written about currency pegs, specifically Dubai's "bad" one and China's "good" one. Whether a currency peg is intended to address external or domestic imbalances, it will likely be the source of significant volatility, detrimental in the long run for those wishing to take undue advantage.

(Dec 08, '09)

Dubai, debt and a return to reality

The trouble with debt-burdened Dubai isn't that its woes could trigger serious shocks around the global financial system. Rather, that irrespective of liquidity conditions, the world remains an unforgiving place for those who borrowed too much and gave up too little in return. Various other notions, such as "too big to fail" and "implicit guarantee", will soon fall by the wayside.

(Nov 30, '09)

Hollywood, the macabre

The latest and most popular releases from Hollywood present disturbing vignettes of where the West in general and the United States in particular are headed. Teenage vampires in New Moon represent the age-old quest for immortality, even as 2012 plays truant with Armageddon. Both represent a grudging acceptance, if not adulation, of unattainable elite status.

(Nov 24, '09)

No country for gold men

People of all nationalities should now look to gold as the ultimate hedge against inflation as well as globally irresponsible monetary policy, as the absence of an exit strategy from central banks combined with an explicit targeting of inflationary increases would create the ideal conditions for wholesale destruction of savings stored through financial instruments.

(Nov 13, '09)

Moving the leverage fulcrum

The picture is familiar - higher oil prices, a lower US dollar, and rising US stocks. Missing from the picture is the leverage taken in, and related to, monetary expansion in China - and what happens once that expansion is removed.

(Nov 06, '09)

Time to go Dutch

The ruling by the European Union Commissioner for Competition that Dutch bank ING Groep should sell its insurance unit and US banking arm demonstrates that the Europeans, unlike their US counterparts, are taking the right route regarding stewardship of the global financial system.

(Oct 30, '09)

Dogs, banks, bones of contention

Over-aggressive, yappy and totally incapable of fending for themselves - today's banks are similar to breeds of small dog created by human manipulation. Banks, like Chihuahuas and Pekinese, know that any misstep would lead to a rescue by their masters, without whom they would turn into furry balls of trembling fear. Thus, these freaks of nature indulge in increasingly unsustainable behavior.

(Oct 23, '09)

Us and them

Controlling the renewed menace of the Taliban will involve actions in the United States and Europe to destroy the demand for heroin and oil, the twin fuels of Islamic fundamentalism. Getting this achieved may not be the most popular course of action, but it is more likely to succeed than mere adjustments to the current war strategy. Historical evidence involving the decline of the British Empire favors the notion, too.

(Oct 19, '09)

Start
Previous
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Next
End

THREAD: Re:The hair of Damocles' sword
Chan Akya
(Feb 09, '10)
Btw, Allen I did forget to compliment you on the wonderful picture that accompanied this article. CA
Read full post/respond
THREAD: Re:Vestigial organs
Chan Akya
(Feb 09, '10)
Ding raises an interesting point - albeit way too early in my day for me to make proper sense of it. In any event, the notion that government servants are NECESSARILY inep...
Read full post/respond
THREAD: Re:Vestigial organs
MonsoonWind
(Feb 09, '10)
ding73ding wrote: MonsoonWind wrote: ding73ding wrote: BUT. With Harper and Rudd in power in CA and AU respectively. I think AU is going the right way while ...
Read full post/respond
THREAD: The hair of Damocles' sword
aquicke
(Feb 09, '10)
ding73ding wrote: You were, rightfully, shooting flaming arrows at inept government officials, the Paulsons and Geithners. But are you trying to get your audience t...
Read full post/respond
THREAD: Re:Vestigial organs
aquicke
(Feb 09, '10)
ding73ding wrote: And... linking to your recent masterpiece: Hair of Damocles' sword (http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Global_Economy/LB06Dj01.html) Please, AQ, don't mu...
Read full post/respond
THREAD: Re:Vestigial organs
ding73ding
(Feb 08, '10)
And... linking to your recent masterpiece: Hair of Damocles' sword (http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Global_Economy/LB06Dj01.html) Please, AQ, don't mutilate this thread. ...
Read full post/respond
THREAD: Re:Vestigial organs
ding73ding
(Feb 08, '10)
Chan Akya wrote: That is good stuff = thanks ding for the wonderful posts. You are way too kind The only thing I would add to the discussion is the point...
Read full post/respond
THREAD: Re:Vestigial organs
Chan Akya
(Feb 08, '10)
That is good stuff = thanks ding for the wonderful posts. The only thing I would add to the discussion is the point you make about non-leveraged inflows that still hel...
Read full post/respond
THREAD: Re:Vestigial organs
ding73ding
(Feb 08, '10)
And I need to add: why I point my spear at the whole country not just at Harper. Both Liberals and Conservatives have had plenty of time to work out their respective in...
Read full post/respond
THREAD: Re:Vestigial organs
ding73ding
(Feb 08, '10)
MonsoonWind wrote: ding73ding wrote: BUT. With Harper and Rudd in power in CA and AU respectively. I think AU is going the right way while CA is wobbling if not ...
Read full post/respond

More...

Login

The hair of Damocles' sword

Vestigial organs

Bonus battles

Nine pins from '09

What's in a name?

It's who you know

How to solve climate change

Currency pegs hung out to dry

Dubai, debt and a return to reality

Hollywood, the macabre

No country for gold men

Moving the leverage fulcrum

Time to go Dutch

Dogs, banks, bones of contention

Us and them

Contents

Customize ATOL:

Your Customized Pages

Your News

Your Business

Community Links

Columns

Services

Info