Totally unrelated to markets (except with respect to psychology).....
Macro Man played golf today for the first time in about eighteen months (the interregnum naturally a result of his knee injury.) Someone astonishingly, he parred the first hole....then took 4 shots to get out of the bunker on the second hole (his tee shot having lipped off the green on the par 3.)
The good news is that he didn't take 4 shots to get out of any other bunker on the course. The bad news is that this was because he got loads of practice playing out of the sand, as he displayed an uncanny ability to spray shots into bunkers on virtually every hole of the course.
'Tis really a funny old game....
Macro Man played golf today for the first time in about eighteen months (the interregnum naturally a result of his knee injury.) Someone astonishingly, he parred the first hole....then took 4 shots to get out of the bunker on the second hole (his tee shot having lipped off the green on the par 3.)
The good news is that he didn't take 4 shots to get out of any other bunker on the course. The bad news is that this was because he got loads of practice playing out of the sand, as he displayed an uncanny ability to spray shots into bunkers on virtually every hole of the course.
'Tis really a funny old game....
13 comments
Click here for commentsGS and J Paulson charged with fraud !! Astonishing. You are really going to have some great material to write about next week.
ReplyDon't over-swing, control your ball! Reminds me of the last time I played in Bermuda. There was sand everywhere, mostly underneath my Callaway.
Very jealous you are out on the course. Getting long bonds before you left was a great idea.
Everytime when MM is away, there is some shocking news. No exception this time.
ReplyI just wonder if this GS/Paulson episode has any lasting effect on markets. Not quite sure right now.
You know, if you look at all that Magnetar news you'll see that these guys weren't the only people building customized crap CDOs for hedge funds.....
ReplyIts a civil suit, cop a plea, pay a few hundred mil in fines and you're done. Not worth losing 15% of your market cap.
Whoever punched out today, Nemo is always happy to take your money.
See your point Nemo, but wondering if this isn't a sort of "Hand Signal" that the government is going to start to look after the other Street - Main St. - for a while, and that banker welfare is becoming a less popular program as certain senior management are apparently to be transferred to the Ossining* branch office.
Reply* That's Sing Sing, BTW.
Maybe so. But honestly, the guys who did half of this stuff - heads of structured credit and the like - they're out of the industry and have been for a while (because they, you know, got fired and such). If it becomes a bizzaro witch hunt ex post though then all bets are off.
ReplyI was just thinking that since Obama's HAND SIGNAL to buy in March 2009, TPTB have managed the risk asset markets very carefully through two mechanisms: Trillions of QE and an outpouring of HAPPY CLAPPY talk, marching bands and drum majorettes. Suddenly the news flow has altered, and the tone of the music has changed.
Reply"But how strange the change
from MAJOR to MINOR....
every time we say Goodbye..."
Or this is a warning to financial industry from the White House: Do not come across us on financial regulation reform, or we will dig up your previous dirt.
Replyhttp://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2010/04/sec-sues-goldman-for-fraud.html
ReplyIt seems Naked capitalism found that Obama just sent out letters to people at the same time to ask for supports for his financial regulation reform. Surprise?
Those Chicago boys know how to play HARDBALL.
ReplyBTW, the PM of Norway is stuck in New York waiting for a flight home. But it's not a problem. Apparently you can easily run a moderately sized Scandinavian country from a Lapp Top.
Macro-Man's Law: If Macro-Man goes on vacation, the market gets wrecked. No exceptions.
Replycuing up the 'welcome back kotter' theme song for ya MM!
Replycitigroup earnings and IBM after the close bring another manic monday (28-4 last 32 mondays producing all of the SPX net gain since the run began)
goldman tends to do well after these -10% bursts:
http://www.bespokeinvest.com/thinkbig/2010/4/16/10-down-days-for-goldman-sachs-gs.html
just starting to check out the cot reports and finding open interest on the TY keeps going up to a very high level and large specs are around the 5 yr record net short level...commercials have been taking the long side in the TY and US all the way since the 'yields up' talk began and ran the TNX to 40
Britain and Germany have not been slow in following the squeeze GS movement - think of it as not so much enthusiasm for financial reform but rather a convenient means to play to populist sentiment and reassure the public that someone other than the taxpayer is going to pay for the mess one way or the other. Better the dogs of public opinion be given a target to bay at than to have their attention focussed on what really matters?
ReplyAww, that's a low blow at Norway. No telling what boredom may prompt a PM to do after 3 days of being stuck at the airport. About the only people who might find some comic relief in this are those who were savaged by the currency moves the Norwegians sprang on heir neighbours 2 years ago.Cosmic payback?
Witchhunt? Highly Unlikely - probably business as usual when the dust settles, probably takes longer than the volvanic dust but does anyone really see the fraternity turning on itself any time soon. Then again it might be worth noting if the exodus radar for exbankers moving away to sunny retreats which have no extradition treaty with the USA records a blip?
LB, you've been working that Lapp Top angle for a while, I just need to say that I appreciated it.....
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