Bumped into one of the big boys at a top 3 US bank. He’s a buddy so I came clean. Told him my story: You see, when your bank got the big bailout my capitalist conscience cried, “Eric, move your accounts from this wounded lamb and give it to a wolf.” But that’s a real hassle and I’m kinda busy, and of course you had that gov’t guarantee; I did nothing. Then without warning you cut my home-equity line of credit from $5

What a silly wk, hot air and garbage everywhere. WSJ announced the stress tests were unreliable (my kiddies knew that), and FT announced German banks need $135bln to meet rule changes (of course the rules won’t change for yrs). But the beach boys, hungover and tan, saw the tape on Tues and sold, sold, sold. Anglo Irish split into a good/bad bank, said, “the final cost won’t bankrupt Ireland”; so now we know the odds

Mara told me to, “Get out, go climb a mountain”. She does that before I jet off to meet lots of people. You see, speaking in front of strangers makes me anxious, always has. It’s part of my karma, it’s just who I am. And it might not make much sense, but that’s how karma works. Climbing helps make it go away. Plus, the more I speak, the better it gets, and I speak a lot these days, so I suck less. Mkts force traders

Hope all goes well. Got myself caught in a fast mkt in Chicago, lost count, still adding my fills, think I met somethin’ like 23 firms. The boys are getting loose in the saddle, ready to start switching horses soon; different tone from 3mths ago.. Overall: What a silly wk, hot air and garbage everywhere. WSJ announced the stress tests were unreliable (my kiddies knew that), and FT announced German banks need $135bln

As a kid I’d gaze up at airplanes and wish I could be in one looking down; wondered how small I musta looked. Careful what you wish for, eh? Nowadays I always grab the window and peer down. Greater NY, seething with endless miles of streets, towers and traffic, boasts 19.1mm dreamers. The LA sprawl quietly creeps up the hills, pressing its luck, as 12.9mm bake in its smog. They’re the top 2 US cities; population 32mm

Off to the Windy City, warm intros always appreciated. Overall: The BOJ hinted at aggressive ease but then merely tinkered and this along with the Fed’s recent modest moves left traders wondering if these guys are almost out of Red Bull. S&P’s finished their worst August in 9yrs -4.7%. The calendar flipped, US ISM surged, and the boys got caught with their beachballs deep underwater. Stocks rocketed as less-bad n

The BOJ hinted at aggressive ease but then merely tinkered and this along with the Fed’s recent modest moves left traders wondering if these guys are almost out of Red Bull. S&P’s finished their worst August in 9yrs -4.7%. The calendar flipped, US ISM surged, and the boys got caught with their beachballs deep underwater. Stocks rocketed as less-bad news crawled out of shadows – world equities gained $1.2trln on t

Data flow was just horrible. Home sales plunge by a record, taking the US back to ’93 levels. Ireland’s downgrade spooked investors, CDS for peripheral EU rose by 5-10% (Portugal CDS 330bps, Ireland 325, Italy 227, Greece 921, and Spain 244). Morgan Stanley said a Gov’t default is likely but didn’t name names (desperate clients pay high fees – why upset ‘em). Asian numbers showed ongoing deceleration. Japan jawboned

Mara texted me, “u leave me, I’ll kill ya”. Kinda late, I’d just landed at JFK. She says that every time a friend gets divorced. I got that text once last yr and 3x this mth. All young families, very sad indeed. The recent 3 involve job loss in real estate & retail. Year 3 of the Global Financial Crisis is taking it’s toll. Savings are exhausted, depression’s setting in. For those employed, life is fine. For the

Hope all goes well. Met with lots of good folks in the Lone Star and Empire States. I had a better wk than our portfolio did. Declines in risk assets and USD strength hurt. We’ve been hoping for some weakness to buy and it often hurts on the way in. Overall: Data flow was just horrible. Home sales plunge by a record, taking the US back to ’93 levels. Ireland’s downgrade spooked investors, CDS for peripheral EU rose b