NewsTrust - Finance - Most Recent Stories: Opinion (Mainstream)

The Austerity Debacle

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 00:00:00 -0800

New York Times - By Paul Krugman - Jan. 30 (Opinion) - Britain is doing worse this time than it did during the Great Depression. Four years into the Depression, British G.D.P. had regained its previous peak; four years after the Great Recession began, Britain is nowhere close to regaining its lost ground.

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David Cameron’s move to save the City, not the euro

Mon, 12 Dec 2011 00:00:00 -0800

Washington Post - By Anne Applebaum - Dec. 12 (Opinion) - .. no other European capital thinks quite like London, and no other European capital will think like London anytime soon.

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Central bank action: stunning move highlights sense of desperation

Thu, 01 Dec 2011 00:00:00 -0800

The Guardian - By Jill Treanor - Dec. 01 (Opinion) - European governments are desperately seeking a lender of last resort as sovereign debt exposure fears grow The stunning move by six central banks to announce emergency measures to push more dollars into the financial system shows just how desperate the authorities are to "ease strains in financial markets" that are making it difficult for some banks to operate as easily as normal. Jon Peace, head of European bank research at Nomura, said: "It is an evolution of the crisis from three years ago, when countries took on the risks of the banks. Back in 2008, there was a lender of last resort – countries bailed out banks. This time it is governments that need a lender of last resort – but there is no obvious lender of last resort." While the massive bank bailouts of October 2008 – in the month after Lehman collapsed – worked for a while in shoring up banks, confidence is again ebbing , even though the banks are much stronger then they were three years ago. This time the problems for banks is ...

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How Can Europe Possibly Save Itself?

Tue, 29 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -0800

Atlantic Monthly - By Megan McArdle - Nov. 29 (Opinion) - Well, things are getting a little gnarly in Europe. When you're down to the point of celebrating that Italy managed to place some debt at the low, low price of 7.6% . . . well, it's two for one drinks specials at the first class bar on the Titanic!

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#Occupy: The Tech at the Heart of the Movement

Wed, 16 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -0800

Atlantic Monthly - By Alexis Madrigal - Nov. 16 (Opinion) - With the police raids in the past few days of camps from Oakland to New York, the Occupy movement is at a key juncture. We want to step back and look at the role of technology in the protests' establishment, spread, and future. This essay inaugurates a series of stories on the ways that protesters have shaped technologies to fit their needs -- and how technologies opened up new space for their messages. Let's start with what seems self-evident, but what I'm sure is more complex than it appears: Occupy is different from the protests that preceded it. To be honest, I'm not sure anyone can explain why. The list of factors contributing to its outstanding run is long: economic circumstances, a distance from the enforced patriotism that followed 9/11, disappointment on the left with Obama's presidency, the failure to adequately regulate banks, the neverending foreclosure crisis, the Adbusters provenance, severe cuts to social programs at the state and local level, the language of occupation, and the prolonged nature of the engagement.

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End Bonuses for Bankers

Tue, 08 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -0800

New York Times - Nov. 08 (Opinion) -

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The euro crisis: Eurodoom

Wed, 02 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Economist - Nov. 02 (Editorial) - I suppose it's worth mentioning that Europe is back to crumbling before our very eyes. Late yesterday, the prime minister of Greece announced a plan to hold a referendum on the newly negotiated rescue deal. I'll let Roberto Perli, from the International Strategy and Investment Group, explain the political dynamics: Papandreou’s motives are understandable: So far the opposition has provided no support for the measures that he has been forced to push through, and he and his party have been left alone facing the public anger.

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Occupy Wall Street: Washington Still Doesn't Get It

Wed, 26 Oct 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Rolling Stone - By Matt Taibbi - Oct. 26 (Opinion) - I'll have more coming out about this in a few days, but there have been two disgusting developments in the realm of plutcratic intervention on behalf

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Fed-up customers taking action against big banks

Thu, 20 Oct 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Salt Lake Tribune - Oct. 20 - By paul beebe The Salt Lake Tribune Published Oct 19, 2011 07:41PM MDT Public anger that sparked the Occupy Wall Street protest is spilling over into direct action against Utah and U.S. banks, especially ones that took federal bailout money and charge high bank fees to make up for lost income while cutting back on lending and paying big bonuses. The fury is showing up in calls for customers to move their deposits to other banks or credit unions as a way to strike back at financial institutions that activists say have too much power in Washington. The latest moveme... ...

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Wall Street protests hitting home with everyday Americans

Tue, 18 Oct 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Chicago Tribune - Oct. 18 (Opinion) - — The Occupy Wall Street demonstrators have been criticized for being permanent protesters, hippies and excitement seekers who can be ignored because they have no specific agenda.

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The American Autumn: An Accurate Protest Movement Scares The Pants Off Conservatives In Both Parties | adn.com

Sun, 16 Oct 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Anchorage Daily News - By Rudy_Wittshirk - Oct. 16 (Opinion) - Now there is another precisely-aimed protest movement in America. “Occupy Wall Street” looks like it has “legs”---and if those legs don’t freeze off this Winter, watch out!

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How to save the euro

Thu, 15 Sep 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Economist - Sep. 15 (Editorial) - So grave, so menacing, so unstoppable has the euro crisis become that even rescue talk only fuels ever-rising panic. Investors have sniffed out that Europe’s leaders seem unwilling ever to do enough. Yet unless politicians act fast to persuade the world that their desire to preserve the euro is greater than the markets’ ability to bet against it, the single currency faces ruin. As credit lines gum up and outsiders plead for action, it is not just the euro that is at risk, but the future of the European Union and the health of the world economy.

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SEC No Evil

Fri, 19 Aug 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Countdown - By Keith Olbermann, Matt Taibbi - Aug. 19 (Interview) - 'In this 'Countdown' exclusive interview, Keith sits down with Rolling Stone contributing editor Matt Taibbi to discuss breaking the story about the Securities and Exchange Commission destroying the records of promising cases in the years leading up to the financial meltdown.'

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Is the U.S. capable of leading the world out of economic turmoil?

Tue, 09 Aug 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Washington Post - By E.J. Dionne - Aug. 09 (Opinion) - The world is looking to the United States to help power a recovery and provide leadership, writes E.J. Dionne Jr. Meanwhile, ultraconservatives are so dogmatic about slashing government they are prepared to boot away our nation's influence.

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DNC chair blames Tea Party ‘tyrants’ for S&P credit rating downgrade

Mon, 08 Aug 2011 00:00:00 -0700

The Hill - By Alicia M. Cohn - Aug. 08 (Opinion) - Alicia M. Cohn / The Hill: DNC chair blames Tea Party ‘tyrants’ for S&P credit rating downgrade — The head of the Democratic National Committee joined Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) on Monday in casting blame for the U.S. credit downgrade on the Tea Party movement. — Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) …

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The Great Recession, Part II

Thu, 07 Jul 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Slate - By Joseph E. Stiglitz - Jul. 07 (Opinion) - Regrettably, the financial markets and right-wing economists have gotten the problem exactly backward: They believe that austerity produces confidence, and that confidence will produce growth. But austerity undermines growth, worsening the government's fiscal position, or at least yielding less improvement than austerity's advocates promise. On both counts, confidence is undermined, and a downward spiral is set in motion.

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The Mistake of 2010

Fri, 03 Jun 2011 00:00:00 -0700

New York Times - By Paul Krugman - Jun. 03 (Opinion) - A look at some recent dismal economic data shows the results of a pivot away from jobs to other concerns.

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The classical view of the global recession

Wed, 01 Jun 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Financial Times - By Gavyn Davies - Jun. 01 (Opinion) - The disappointing economic data on US activity in recent months has brought a key policy debate back into focus. Is there a chronic shortage of growth in the developed world, and if so what should be done about it?

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When Austerity Fails

Mon, 23 May 2011 00:00:00 -0700

New York Times - By Paul Krugman - May. 23 (Opinion) - I often complain, with reason, about the state of economic discussion in the United States. And the irresponsibility of certain politicians — like those Republicans claiming that defaulting on U.S. debt would be no big deal — is scary.

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Goldman Sachs Executives Lied To Their Customers And Congress

Tue, 17 May 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Rolling Stone - By Henry Blodget, Matt Taibbi - May. 17 (Interview) - Taibbi argues that Goldman Sachs executives lied when they testified in front of Congress in the aftermath of the crisis. Unlike other commentators who grouse about how Wall Street execs should be tossed in jail, Taibbi actually provides specifics. He takes quotes from some of the Goldman execs who testified, including CEO Lloyd Blankfein and CFO David Viniar, and then juxtaposes them with what he believes to be the truth at the time.

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The People vs. Goldman Sachs

Fri, 13 May 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Rolling Stone - By Matt Taibbi - May. 13 (Editorial) - To recap: Goldman, to get $1.2 billion in crap off its books, dumps a huge lot of deadly mortgages on its clients, lies about where that crap came from and claims it believes in the product even as it's betting $2 billion against it. When its victims try to run out of the burning house, Goldman stands in the doorway, blasts them all with gasoline before they can escape, and then has the balls to send a bill overcharging its victims for the pleasure of getting fried.

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The People vs. Goldman Sachs

Wed, 11 May 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Rolling Stone - May. 11 (Opinion) - A Senate committee has laid out the evidence. Now the Justice Department should bring criminal charges.

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The Unwisdom of Elites

Mon, 09 May 2011 00:00:00 -0700

New York Times - By Paul Krugman - May. 09 (Opinion) - The past three years have been a disaster for most Western economies. The United States has mass long-term unemployment for the first time since the 1930s. Meanwhile, Europe’s single currency is coming apart at the seams. How did it all go so wrong?

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How Goldman Sachs Created the Food Crisis

Sat, 30 Apr 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Foreign Policy - By Frederick Kaufman - Apr. 30 (Opinion) - It took the brilliant minds of Goldman Sachs to realize the simple truth that nothing is more valuable than our daily bread. And where there's value, there's money to be made.

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The Intimidated Fed

Fri, 29 Apr 2011 00:00:00 -0700

New York Times - By Paul Krugman - Apr. 29 (Opinion) - So much for addressing the dismal unemployment picture during the Fed chairman’s press conference. Instead, Ben Bernanke is bending to the inflationistas.

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