You know where I stand, I hate the very concept of a transaction tax, but if we were to have one, then let me go the "lesser evil" route. Because as it stands, what's been proposed will not work. First the guy who posted about financial markets was spot on. You'll kill what's good about the markets along with bad. Companies need capital, hell the government now needs a stock market because it owns so much stock (as citizens, it would be nice if Uncle Sam made a profit on that stock so it could redeploy that capital to say infrastructure, I'm just saying.). Robert challenged me to come up with an alternative to meet his objections, so I will give it a go.

Hello everyone, happy Monday to you all on Economic Populist. Today marks the return of a series I had put off for health reasons (actually this is the second attempt, sorry). On this inaugural I would like to focus on the foreign investor. As many readers of my past columns know, Manufacturing Monday has been a staunch advocate of building products here. Primarily focusing on promoting our current captains of industry to open up a shop here instead of say Asia or Mexico. Or in getting new (green) industries going. If they (being foreign countries) are "taking" our jobs, how about us getting some from their companies?

A smart kid and KIA

I’m a sucker for barbeques, especially good ones.  Normally I’m not a “family” person, but I am a people person.  When it comes to barbeques, though I tend to even go to the ones my family puts out.  This year I hosted, unfortunately the weather was not on my side and being someone into risk management I decided to hold an “indoor bbq.”  The food, as always, was good, but my other type of appetite was also satisfied, my hunger for news and tid bits. 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Bank of America has been deemed to need an additional $34 billion in capital, according to the results of a government stress test, a source familiar with the results said on Tuesday.

A Bank of America spokesman declined comment.

The amount is far higher than published reports had speculated the largest bank might need. It is certain to increase the pressure on Chief Executive Kenneth Lewis, whom shareholders ousted as chairman last week.

BofA to need $34 billion in capital: source | Reuters

Yesterday I read about how the folks at AIG will be getting their bonuses. Like many of you, this infuriated me to no end. Once more, failed business people gaining reward for their bad decisions. The shareholder has lost most of the value in the equity in the company. The taxpayer (and also now a shareholder) has actually gotten two punches in the gut, including diminishing share value they've also had to put up billions of dollars. Frankly enough is enough.

Greetings everyone, and welcome to a new edition of the Manufacturing series! Been ill again, so haven't kept up. Rest assured, I'm in somewhat top form now. But enough about me, we got manufacturing stuff to talk about! Some interesting news out there, but first, of course the Numbers!

The Numbers

Times have been tough for manufacturing, we all know this. And the current business cycle has been especially cruel. Month after month of job losses, plant closures, the pairing down of work hours, you name it. In some places, this has sadly been old hat, just ask the folks around Detroit. It's as if you could amalgamate this country's industrial base as a very large person, say back to the middle of the last century, and is now looking like one of those sickly persons one sees in a famine. But could we start seeing a bottoming?

Today I was watching Federal Reserve Chairman, Ben Bernanke testify before Congress. One of the committeemen brought up the uptick rule to him, and whether we should bring it back. He gave one of those cryptic answers where one wondered whether we should or shouldn't have it.

(As reported from Bloomberg, on the 25th of February, 2009.)

A primer on the uptick rule

While recovering from another illness I read an interesting piece on Daily Kos. I originally was writing this up as a response to Billmon's excellent article today, Chocolate Covered Cotton. For the record, he makes some very valid points. The whole system is now burnt, and we the average citizen has to pay for what really is fraud on a massive scale. Saying all this, I have to take issue on the idea on the concept of CDOs, Swaps and the entire idea of securitization of loans being total junk. That isn't to say that whats out there isn't toxic, but I'm looking forward.