NEW YORK – Wall Street retreated Monday after Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac fell to their lowest levels in nearly 20 years on concerns that the government might need to bail out the mortgage financiers. Weakness in the overall financial sector sent the Dow Jones industrial average down more than 175 points.
Archive for August 18th, 2008
Where did this financial turbulence come from?
How the subprime debacle got started and where it might end up. The most recent iteration of America’s economic system has its roots in a small meeting in Bretton Woods, NH, in 1944. The hope – and assumption – that developed during that meeting was that out of the victory of World War II, a single global trade and economic supremacy (potentially a nation state) would emerge, ending fascism and all other “isms”. In this meeting, there was an assent to certain financial dynamics, particularly an assent to the gold standard.
Fast forward to August, 1971. Facing many new economic hardships, the emergence of credible international technical and industrial competition, and unprecedented capital calls on the U.S. Treasury, the United Stated decided to supplant its previously established economic ground rules. Today, we have forgotten what happened in 1971.
Blue Cross of Idaho, Gold's Gym endorse Smokefree Boise
Idaho’s largest insurer and the biggest co-ed gym chain in the world are the latest supporters of an effort to ban smoking from Boise bars. Blue Cross of Idaho, which has 550,000 members, and Gold’s Gym, with more than 600 facilities in 42 states and 30 countries, have endorsed Smokefree Boise, adding to a growing list of high profile healthcare, fitness and business leaders backing the group.
Would You Judge A Real Estate Broker By His Blog?
The Washington Post reports that consumers are starting to judge real estate agents by their blogs. Almost 10% of real estate brokers are apparently blogging, a number that is likely to rise faster than that sketchy “up and coming” neighborhood you’ve heard about for years.
