Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Monday, March 30, 2009
PENSION INSURER SWITCHED TO STOCKS RIGHT BEFORE CRASH -- by Susie Madrak 3-30-09
I've been thinking lately that it makes a lot more sense to have national health care and a national pension plan. This only confirms it:
WASHINGTON - Just months before the start of last year's stock market collapse, the federal agency that insures the retirement funds of 44 million Americans departed from its conservative investment strategy and decided to put much of its $64 billion insurance fund into stocks.
Switching from a heavy reliance on bonds, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation decided to pour billions of dollars into speculative investments such as stocks in emerging foreign markets, real estate, and private equity funds.
The agency refused to say how much of the new investment strategy has been implemented or how the fund has fared during the downturn. The agency would only say that its fund was down 6.5 percent - and all of its stock-related investments were down 23 percent - as of last Sept. 30, the end of its fiscal year. But that was before most of the recent stock market decline and just before the investment switch was scheduled to begin in earnest.
No statistics on the fund's subsequent performance were released.
Nonetheless, analysts expressed concern that large portions of the trust fund might have been lost at a time when many private pension plans are suffering major losses. The guarantee fund would be the only way to cover the plans if their companies go into bankruptcy.
"The truth is, this could be huge," said Zvi Bodie, a Boston University finance professor who in 2002 advised the agency to rely almost entirely on bonds. "This has the potential to be another several hundred billion dollars. If the auto companies go under, they have huge unfunded liabilities" in pension plans that would be passed on to the agency.
[...] Analysts also believe the strategy would not have been approved if the government had foreseen the precipitous decline in the stock market.
Now, they warn about a "perfect storm" scenario in which the agency's fund plummets in value just as more companies go into bankruptcy and pass their pension responsibilities onto the insurance fund. Many analysts say it is inevitable that the agency will face significantly increased liabilities in coming months.
"The worst case scenario is coming to pass," said Mark Ruloff, a fellow at the Pension Finance Institute, an independent group that monitors pensions. He said the agency leaders "fail to realize that they are an insurer of pension plans and therefore should be investing differently than the risk their participants are taking."
WASHINGTON - Just months before the start of last year's stock market collapse, the federal agency that insures the retirement funds of 44 million Americans departed from its conservative investment strategy and decided to put much of its $64 billion insurance fund into stocks.
Switching from a heavy reliance on bonds, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation decided to pour billions of dollars into speculative investments such as stocks in emerging foreign markets, real estate, and private equity funds.
The agency refused to say how much of the new investment strategy has been implemented or how the fund has fared during the downturn. The agency would only say that its fund was down 6.5 percent - and all of its stock-related investments were down 23 percent - as of last Sept. 30, the end of its fiscal year. But that was before most of the recent stock market decline and just before the investment switch was scheduled to begin in earnest.
No statistics on the fund's subsequent performance were released.
Nonetheless, analysts expressed concern that large portions of the trust fund might have been lost at a time when many private pension plans are suffering major losses. The guarantee fund would be the only way to cover the plans if their companies go into bankruptcy.
"The truth is, this could be huge," said Zvi Bodie, a Boston University finance professor who in 2002 advised the agency to rely almost entirely on bonds. "This has the potential to be another several hundred billion dollars. If the auto companies go under, they have huge unfunded liabilities" in pension plans that would be passed on to the agency.
[...] Analysts also believe the strategy would not have been approved if the government had foreseen the precipitous decline in the stock market.
Now, they warn about a "perfect storm" scenario in which the agency's fund plummets in value just as more companies go into bankruptcy and pass their pension responsibilities onto the insurance fund. Many analysts say it is inevitable that the agency will face significantly increased liabilities in coming months.
"The worst case scenario is coming to pass," said Mark Ruloff, a fellow at the Pension Finance Institute, an independent group that monitors pensions. He said the agency leaders "fail to realize that they are an insurer of pension plans and therefore should be investing differently than the risk their participants are taking."
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Monday, March 23, 2009
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Friday, March 20, 2009
Thursday, March 19, 2009
'Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is to tell them they are . . . .
being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country."
-- Herman Goering, Interview at Nuremburg
trials, April 14, 1946
-- Herman Goering, Interview at Nuremburg
trials, April 14, 1946
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Friday, March 13, 2009
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
THAT WACKY WALKER IS REALLY OUT THERE NOW . . . wants to become president of Texas
What the Huck? Chuck Norris' roundhouse kick to the gut of American democracy
That was fast. It was just one year ago that right-wing martial arts guru Chuck Norris was a sought-after "get" for the GOP presidential candidates like Mike Huckabee, who paraded the star of "Walker, Texas Ranger" around the nation after the anti-abortion actor endorsed him in the primaries.
But now it's 2009, Barack Obama is in the White House, and the inventor of chun kuk do is preaching the martial art of insurrection against the U.S. government. He also wants to run for -- and no, I'm not making this up -- "the president of Texas.":
The call by some right wing leaders for rebellion and for the military to refuse the commander in chief’s orders is joined by Chuck Norris who claims that thousands of right wing cell groups have organized and are ready for a second American Revolution. During an appearance on the Glen Beck radio show he promised that if things get any worse from his point of view he may “run for president of Texas.” The martial artist/actor/activist claims that Texas was never formally a part of the United States in the first place and that if rebellion is to come through secession Texas would lead the way.
Norris really comes close to crossing a line with this:
Norris claims that; “Thousands of cell groups will be united around the country in solidarity over the concerns for our nation.” The right wing cells will meet during a live telecast, "We Surround Them," on Friday March 13 at 5 p.m.
He closes with the words of Sam Houston followed by a plug for his next martial arts event.
“We view ourselves on the eve of battle."
You really have to almost laugh at some of this. For eight years, progressives were lambasted -- in the face of the most unpopular and arguably the worst American president since the Civil War -- as victims of "Bush derangement syndrome" or as "Kos Kooks." That was largely because in the face of a government that invaded another nation on bogus pretenses and violated laws on core issues like torture and domestic spying, a few people advocated impeachment, a deliberative process under the U.S. Constitution, and a tiny handful talked about things like moving to Canada.
Meanwhile, less than two months into the Obama administration, right-wingers are stocking the basement pantry, piling up the shotguns and organizing "cells," all with the help of a talk-show host who coincidentially became unhinged after he drove down the ratings at CNN Headline News, something that most people didn't think was possible. There's a lot to hash out in this country over the next few years but it's becoming more and more clear who respects the Constitution, and who does not.
Posted by Will Bunch @ 10:20 AM Permalink | 70 comments
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Monday, March 09, 2009
Saturday, March 07, 2009
Wednesday, March 04, 2009
TURLEY: BUSH MEMOS THE "VERY DEFINITION OF TYRANNY"
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FDR SPEECH AT MADISON SQUARE GARDENS 1936 -- GREAT SPEECH
FDR SPEECH AT MADISON SQUARE GARDENS 1936 --- GREAT SPEECH
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