So THAT’s What *Lehman Bros. Did If all you did was skim The Wall Street Journal’s headlines today, you could be mistaken for thinking that the average American’s financial health was improving — sort of like a dieter finally losing those pesky, excess pounds. The reality is a bit different. As the Journal article makes...Read More
Wall St. Pay: the (Dis)Honor System Lives! So, how do people on Wall Street — and their defenders, like The Wall Street Journal — define “restraint?” A. Turning down the heat to 65 degrees.B. Cancelling their cable subscription.C. Taking public transportation to work, instead of the car.D. Paying one’s self only $9 million, instead of...Read More
“Shame on You, Wall Street Journal!” Long-time stock market watchers are familiar with “The Magazine Cover Indicator”: when Business Week (or Fortune, or Forbes, or Newsweek) runs a cover with the title, “The Death of Equities,” or some such — stop what you’re doing, call your broker (does anyone still have one??) . . ....Read More
Misleading, Sensationalized Headlines Just days ago, Barry Ritholtz called out The Wall Street Journal for its (increasingly) misleading, out-of-context headlines. I just ran into another example yesterday on the otherwise credible RealClearMarkets.com, which aggregates the top 30 or so business-related print and blog pieces daily (mine have appeared more than a dozen times in the...Read More
The Wall Street Journal’s Take on Wall Street President Barack Obama proposed new limits on the size and activities of the nation’s largest banks, pushing a more muscular approach toward regulation that yanked down bank stocks and raised the stakes in his campaign to show he’s tough on Wall Street. –“New Bank Rules Sink Stocks“;...Read More
“Lumpy” Home Repairs How much should you earmark for annual home upkeep? According to one LA-based Realtor: Homeowners should have 1% of the purchase price of their home in savings for improvements and surprise expenses. That is the absolute minimum. It’s better to have 2% to 3% socked away somewhere. –“Home Costs Keep Going Up“;...Read More
