…based on this story of a $12B money market fund (Putnam Prime Money Market Fund) closing up. As the Washington Post says,

“The Putnam action is likely to increase concern among investors about the safety of investments in money-market funds, traditionally viewed as basically comparable to bank accounts. Investors pulled an estimated $80 billion from money-market funds yesterday, according to Crane Data, which tracks the industry.”

People in risker investments expect and are told to expert downturns. People with money market funds do not. As well, if money market funds are in taking a hit, no type of investment is safe.

More here.

Not only is this book good, but there is a very good web site for it here: The Ghost Map by Steven Johnson.

It is a book of many subjects and many ideas conveyed along with a strong narrative. I’d highly recommend it, just for that.

The ideas are not idle, however: though set in 19th century London, I kept thinking about the listeria outbreak and the SARS epidemic the whole time I was reading it. I also thought of a recent comment by an expert on cancer who spoke of how our current approaches many not be right to deal with cancer. This reminded me of the experts in this book who struggle to deal with cholera without any of the ideas of disease that we have. Perhaps in 20 or more years, people will look back and see how we struggled with dealing with cancer. To them it will be a disease that is  will be as straightforward to deal with, just like we deal with cholera.

If you get an opportunity, pick up the book. At the very least, check out the web site. Either way, you’ll get lots of good ideas that will get your thinking.

Like this:

The blog  oliveloaf design has more great photos to inspire your senses, too.

Slate magazine uses the topic of a new film, Bottle Shock, to go over the history of California chardonnay. It is ironic that after beating the French at their own game, California chardonnay evolved away from that taste and towards the oaky, buttery, non-acidic wine that most people love, save the author of this piece (and those of the ABC crowd: anything but chardonnay).

As for me, I think there is a time and place for everything, and there are times when I like that rich taste of those wines. But I like to go with the ABC crowd too and find other varietals and other styles to try, whether it is Viogniers, Reislings, or Chenin Blancs, to name a few (though I tend to avoid Pinot Grigio).

See the article here: The last great California chardonnays. – By Mike Steinberger – Slate Magazine

If you are one of those people scratching their head/worrying about this, check out this:

AIG bailout might work out well for taxpayers – CNN.com

Notice the word might.

See here: Washington Mutual Is Said to Consider Sale – NYTimes.com

You can also see who the players are that are in a position of strength: Wells Fargo, JP Morgan Chase. In fact, the nytimes has a great graphic here that shows the major financial companies and who is/was in trouble. (It’s alot!)

How much has been lost in the last year? Only 4 trillion, give or take a few billion.

Signs of that can be seen in this article in the the Globe and Mail’s reportonbusiness.com: Banking crisis crosses Atlantic.

First, smart banks, like Lloyd’s, are going to take advantage of this crisis to snap up banks that they have had their eye on for some time. Bank of America did the same thing. If you start to see mergers over the next few weeks, it may not be so much that both parties are desparate; rather it may be that one party is the wounded prey and the other party is the stronger hunter.

Second, you may see the concept of “national” banks come to the fore.  Just like countries subsidize agriculture and airlines, you may see countries subsidize national banks, as well. It would be an extension of a country’s central bank, but it would be a commercial enterprise with restrictions. (For example, they may have a mandate to do a certain percentage of banking within the country they reside in.)

This is merely a prediction, but not an unlikely one, given the way things are going.

On the other hand, Chinese banks could come along and just swallow up a good portion of American and European banks, and that would be that. I am betting on the former, but we will see.

Galbraith writes well, and he writes particularly well on the subject of the Great Crash of 1929. If you don’t know much about it before reading his book, you may be surprised to read that the Great Crash was something of a prolonged affair. Indeed, throughout the crisis, there was more than one occasion when people thought and hoped that stability had been achieved, only to see that hope destroyed.

You can find Extracts from “The Great Crash: 1929” by John Kenneth Galbraith (First Published 1955; 1961 Reprint) at Lachlan Cranswick’s Personal Homepage.. I recommend the book. If ever there was a time to read it, this week would be a good one.

(photo Brian Snyder/Reuters)

…is best captured in this quote from this article, Morgan Stanley Considers Merger With Wachovia:

“executives like John A. Thain, the chief executive of Merrill and a former Goldman executive, say investment banks will need large bases of deposits to shore up their capital for times of trouble.”

The problem is, capital is moving across the world, to China and India. It’s the Asian banks that will have more of the capital as the years pass, not the American banks. The Asian banks will be the ones that grow in the near future, provided that they can run their affairs wisely.

When I read this article (6 Food Mistakes Parents Make) I thought: I do just the opposite of many of these things. And for good reason! I tried following some of these rules, and found when I did the opposite, I got a better result. Results trump rules.

As a parent, it helps to have guidelines, especially when you are uncertain. But you should always do what’s best for your child, not what may work for children generally.

While it remains to be seen how well this works, news of Zimbabwe Rivals Sign Power-Sharing Agreement (at NYTimes.com) should halt the downward spiral that Zimbabwe had been in and perhaps reverse the direction of the country. If things go well, Zimbabwe could be a great nation. Sometimes things do work out for the best: let’s hope that happens here.

Why? According to TIME:

“Its collapse would be as close to an extinction-level event as the financial markets have seen since the Great Depression,” wrote money manager Michael Lewitt in Tuesday morning’s New York Times. There’s also the fact that through its insurance policies AIG touches far more regular Americans (and consumers around the world) than Lehman Bros. did.

It astounds me that businesses are aloud to be this toxic and get away with it. There was also this quote:

Plus, AIG’s insurance businesses make so much money that they could conceivably pay off the cost of the bailout within a few years.

What will be interesting for me is whether or not this actually happens. I suspect, instead, that the U.S. taxpayers will get stuck with the bill and then some other company will swoop in and take the assets.

Why the Government Won’t Let AIG Fail – TIME

Now, this is news to alot of us Canadians in the IT business. And to be fair to John McCain, it’s likely news to him, too. But not to his advisor, Douglas Holtz-Eakin, who perhaps got a bit too excited in his praise of his boss.

See here for more details: Adviser calls BlackBerry ‘miracle’ McCain ‘helped create’ – CNN.com

It’s all fun and games on the campaign trail. Well, not all fun and games, but this certain is.

As this Slate article puts it, All Eyes On AIG today. This article is good because it has a rundown of what all the business press is saying. Read it now and get the scoop on everyone else.

Bonus: it mentions Damien Hirst at the end! 🙂

This is funny:

No, I don’t think they are really hockey moms. In fact, it’s a great poke at the political ads that crop up like weeds on U.S. television (and now the Internet).

Whatever your thoughts on Sarah Palin, pro or con, her ability to bring juice boxes to a hockey game is not really one that should be considered in assessing her as a candidate. 🙂

(tip to andrewsullivan.com)

If you read articles in the nytimes.com, wsj.com, or other places, you will see people predicting this or that. The key thing to remember anytime you read such an article is: no one even remotely knows what will happen. What everyone — especially the man in the photo above — is trying to do is prevent the worst from happening and trying to make the most of a bad situation. That’s all you know. That’s about all they know, too.

In the meantime, read Wall St. in Worst Loss Since ’01, Despite Reassurances From Washington – NYTimes.com

It’s going to be a busy — and bad — week.

(Photo of U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. by Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)

I blame the nytimes.com for such good articles such as these, Damien Hirst at Sotheby’s – Thinking Outside the Dealer.
It had this nugget in it:

“This isn’t Mr. Hirst’s first foray into the auction business. A charity sale of works by 100 artists that he and Bono organized at Sotheby’s in New York in February raised $42 million for AIDS relief in Africa.”

Hirst goes big regardless of what he is doing. Good for him.

While the financial world was suffering, Mr. Hirst did well today, bring in $127.2 million at the first session of his art being auctioned at Sotheby’s. Remember, unlike Van Gogh, the artist is alive and well. Very well, financially.

However if you fear that everything is sold and there is nothing left, fear not. For the article said that:

‘One of his more macabre works, “Devil Worshiper,” a canvas with dead flies, didn’t sell. And neither did “Theology, Philosophy, Medicine, Justice,” which featured four bullsharks floating in two tanks.’

So there is still time. For more details, see Damien Hirst’s Mammoth Art Auction Attracts Plenty of Bidders, Despite Financial Turmoil – NYTimes.com

As I am reading about the meltdown occurring, there are lots of complex terms and ideas being used that discourage  people — like myself — from believing I could understand what is really going on. But you don’t have to understand everything to know when things are going wrong. I thought of that when I came across this nytimes.com blog that said this:

“It was a couple of years ago that we learned AIG had sold, and bought, so-called finite insurance to manipulate financial statements. At the time, the predominant reaction among Wall Streeters was amazement that Hank Greenberg would do that when AIG was so strong without it.

I thought, but don’t think I ever wrote, that perhaps we should wonder if the strength we thought we saw reflected other games that we had not recognized.

Lesson: If you find out management is willing to cut corners in the financial statements, you should flee.“

I put the lesson in bold, because the smart money does flee when it sees things like this.

You will likely see this in many places on the Internet, but just in case you haven’t, here is the very funny Cat vs Printer

Stormpulse is THE place to check if you are want to get all the details on hurricanes and other storms. It has alot of detail and great mapping.

As someone from Nova Scotia, I also appreciate the inclusion of Halifax and Sydney, N.S. on the map. 🙂

As we get hit with Gustav, Hannah, Ike and more, you want to check out Stormpulse.

This is the final track on The White Album, which was a double album released in the UK in November 1968. It’s a tender ballad written by John Lennon and sung by Ringo Starr, whose voice suited the song’s mood perfectly. It was completed with a lush score by Beatles producer George Martin, who also conducted the orchestra of 26 musicians. Along with the Mike Sammes Singers choral overdubs it was all consigned to the oxide particles in a late night session in Studio 1 at Abbey Road on July 22, 1968.

Many have thought this was a Paul McCartney song due to its gentle nature, but it does show John could write for the two opposite ends of the spectrum from the rockers like “Revolution” to the gentle “Julia.” (thanks, David – Wolverhampton, United Kingdom, for above 2)

John Lennon wrote this lullaby for his son, Julian. Julian did not discover this was written for him until 12 years after it’s release on The White Album.

Ringo sang this accompanied by a 30 piece orchestra and a choir. He is the only Beatle to appear on the song.

The Orchestra was scored by Beatles producer George Martin.

Songfacts from http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=175

I am not sure what I am supposed to make of these “commercials” with Jerry Seinfeld and Bill Gates. They are somewhere between a Seinfeld episode and that video of Bill Gates retiring.

I was surprised, but I actually laughed a number of times at this one:

First and foremost, this is funny. And that is the main point, I think. Enjoy!

Slate has a good rundown of the players in trouble in U.S. banking in this article:

Banking is tanking. – By Matthew Yeomans and Bernhard Warner – Slate Magazine

Yes, Apple’s new iPods in many colours are nice, but for real innovation, check out this posting on
Inhabitat about Tata’s NO MORE GAS Personal Electric Vehicle. It might look simply cute, but it can go 75 mph at a cost of $0.02 / mile. So find you what your two cents is worth and check out the article.

While there is alot of discussion regarding Gustav and Ike, the really disasters are piling up on Wall Street in downtown New York City, as this article in the Globe and Mail illustrates:

reportonbusiness.com: Field of possible Lehman buyers narrows

Like the hurricanes, there seems to be no end in sight in the near future.

I have heard of forms of tourism whereby travellers try to do good while visiting new places. But the Globe and Mail reports on a new form of tourism, whereby a

“stay at a remote country inn may not seem like an act of defiance. But as Eric Reguly reports, some of the loveliest guest houses in Sicily are former gangsters’ properties – part of a growing anti-Mafia tourism movement on the island”

See the Globe on a new form of ethical tourism here in this article, AWAY FROM THE MOB.

Via The Big Picture – Boston.com

As always, the Big Picture is superb.

(Tip via kottke.org)

Speak of older people, slate has a special issue on old people. They, not me, are calling it the geezer issue. While that is smart alecky, the stories themselves are interesting and worth a look.

From time to time magazines and associations will feature people with stories like: the top 30 under 30. Big deal! What is a big deal is Slate’s 80 over 80: The most powerful octogenarians in America. – – Slate Magazine

There are a lot of famous people over 80, over 90 even, that are still doing great things. Slate does an excellent job of telling you who they are, what they have done, and what they are doing, post 80.

For example, Cloris Leachman is 82 and is currently competing on the seventh season of Dancing with the Stars. And Jacques Barzun, who is 100, is a French-American scholar who has published nine books since turning 80. His last one at age 97,

Yes! You! You can have your face painted into a poster like this! Don’t believe it! Hah! Go to Maopost.com – Personalized Oil Paintings and see for yourself, capitalist running dog!

Now, I would just as soon see a black velvet painting of myself as have one of these, but this might be perfect for someone very political that you know (who has a good sense of irony and a good sense of humour!)

Now if someone were able to incorporate me into one of those posters of dogs playing cards….well, that I would like!

Not since Monty Python’s famous soccer game of German and Greek philosophers has anyone combined sports and philosophy so well. Ok, maybe no one has been trying. Regardless, this is brilliant

Pre-Game Coin Toss Makes Jacksonville Jaguars Realize Randomness Of Life

(tip to Andrew Sullivan)

According to this article at the blog, Inhabitat, it will produce 36.5 megawatts of power. And that’s just chickens! Other interesting facts:

• it costs 150 million euros to build
• it converts 440,000 tones of chicken manure into energy
• it helps with global warming

For the latest…um, poop?, see the link to Inhabitat. And check out other things on that blog: it’s packed with interesting features.

“sexual relationships with prohibited sources cannot, by definition, be arms’ length.”

From one of the three reports just released this Wednesday regarding the U.S. Department of the Interior. The details, which could be good material for a ‘West Wing meets Desparate Housewives’ TV series, can be found in this article: Sex, Drug Use and Graft Cited in Interior Department – NYTimes.com

It seems like an oxymoron, but when I come to think of it, it is likely not all that different than some muffins and pastries I see offered up in the morning. And…let’s face it….this looks so much nicer! 🙂

For the details, see Chocolate Breakfast Cake at have cake, will travel!

…you will want to keep tabs on FactCheck.org. It is a

“nonpartisan, nonprofit, “consumer advocate” for voters that aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics. We monitor the factual accuracy of what is said by major U.S. political players in the form of TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews, and news releases. Our goal is to apply the best practices of both journalism and scholarship, and to increase public knowledge and understanding.”

Both sides from time to time will stretch the truth and distort the facts. FactCheck.org should help you assess that.

He makes a strong case for it here in this opinion piece in the globeandmail.com: Handling of the listeriosis outbreak is a disgrace. Regardless of whether or not you agree with him, he raises some good points. In particular:

“Whether it’s water, food or infectious diseases, the principles are the same: You need to invest in public health infrastructure, particularly in good people; you need to value prevention, not just pay lip service; when threats to public health occur, you need to act forcefully and communicate well.”

I would argue that we need to go further: people need to understand the costs and risks of the way we live as clearly as we can. Whether it is the food we eat, the air we breathe, or the planet we inhabit. The good news is that we are getting better at coming to this understanding, when we put ourselves to the task. The bad news is, we have a way to go. In some cases, a long way to go.

The nytimes.com has what appears to be pretty good coverage of the games here: Paralympic Games

Besides the articles, great photos and other information, they also have links to other sites covering the games and lots of great YouTube videos.

I wish there was more and better coverage of these games. Not to mention better support for the athletes of these games. Perhaps in time, there will be. In the meantime, check it out at nytimes.com

One of the blogs on my blogroll belongs to an IBM Canada employee on assignment in Japan. While that keeps him busy, he manages to make the most of his time in Asia, and, better yet, he blogs about it here: Konnichiwa

For another who wonders what such a life would be like, or would like a Canadian’s perspective on Japan and Asia, I highly recommend his blog. It’s a great read.

I blogged before about How to build a very small house.

The nytimes.com has more on the phenomena here in this article: The Next Little Thing?

There is a simplicity associated with small houses that makes them appealing. Cost is another thing. Some of them have a nomadic aspect to them that makes them desirable, while avoiding the association with trailer homes (perhaps due to the design of them).

While they are small, they are no smaller than many one room apartments or condos that people often settle into as they get older. Yet unlike those urban dwellings, these small spaces can sit in locations with great vistas. (At least in theory.)

I think as more people buy and use these homes, we’ll see just how practical they are and how much people really like them. It should be a facinating experience. Perhaps in the future we will all become nomads.

(The highly evocative photo is by Stephanie Diani for The New York Times and accompanies the article).