What I’m Reading

Reading is good, it is one of those things more people, like the host of idiots that come over here and try to spin each and every post that points out the irony, hypocrisy, recklessness, and out right bullshit of the GOP and it’s supporters.  People like them don’t read books, because they get all they need to know from reading the NRO, watching FOX news.  They are told not to read papers and books written by NYTimes pulitzer prize winning journalist, nobel prize winning economists etc.  Those people are dumb and biased.    Here is another book they won’t read.  It would educate them about the citizens of Afghanistan and Iraq.  It would tell them what they need to know about how those people (yes I said those) view Americans, how they view war, how they view each other in battle and how they view Americans in their country on their soil.  Sort of important things to know really, so when you are watching/listening a blonde bobblehead read a telemprompter and are dazzled by her insane reading ability and uncomparable brilliance you will stop yourself and say, “Hey, what she just said is complete bullshit”. But alas, why bother to read and learn on your own.  Support the war, put a magnet on your car and talk down people against it. 

The Forever War by Dexter Filkins: Book Cover

Pick up “THE FOREVER WAR”. Believe it or not daughter #2 had it on her summer reading list, she never finished it because she didn’t like the violence in it. Unbeknowst to me it was on the NY Times 10 best books of the year.

Requiem for Old School Capitalism

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Winthrop Smith — son of one of the original partners of Merrill Lynch Pearce Fenner and Smith — gave an occasionally angry eulogy for Merrill Lynch at the shareholders meeting that was to approve ML being sold to Bank of America:

Today did not have to come. In the past it was Merrill Lynch that came to the rescue of Goodbody, White Weld and Becker. It was Merrill Lynch that strong and successful firms like Fenner & Beane, CJ Devine, Smith New Court, DSP in India, Midland Walwyn in Canada and Mercury Asset Management wanted to join. Merrill always thrived in times of turmoil and grew market share. Today did not have to come.

Today is not the result of the sub-prime mess or synthetic CDOs. They are the symptoms. This is the story of failed leadership and the failure of a Board of Directors to understand what was happening to this great company, and its failure to take action soon enough.

I stand here today and say shame to both the current as well as the former Directors who allowed this former CEO to wreak havoc on this great company.
Shame on them for allowing this former CEO to consciously and openly disparage Mother Merrill, throw our founding principles down a flight of stairs and tear out the soul of the firm.