Chet Reads & Writes* » Finance http://chetgassett.com Sat, 28 Jan 2012 13:00:06 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 Bending AIG Over the Proverbial Barrel http://chetgassett.com/2009/03/bending-aig-over-the-proverbial-barrel/ http://chetgassett.com/2009/03/bending-aig-over-the-proverbial-barrel/#comments Mon, 16 Mar 2009 22:21:20 +0000 Chet http://chetgassett.com/blog/?p=143 New York state attorney general, Andrew Cuomo, has had enough of Taxpayer money being used as bonuses. Today he sent a letter along to AIG’s Chariman & CEO Edward M. Liddy demanding to know why bonuses are being given to AIG Financial Products. This is the section of AIG that sent the mega-firm down the tube in the first place, and now they’re getting bonuses. Glad to know the citizens aren’t the only people who find this to be a little fishy. Check out the full letter from Cuomo at the link below.

Cuomo’s Letter to AIG

UPDATE @ 5:30 3/16:

Cuomo meant business and held up his promise to subpoena AIG if the information was not received by 4:00 p.m. today.

New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has subpoenaed American International Group Inc to get information about $165 million in bonuses the insurer is paying. Cuomo said in an interview with CNBC that his office wants to understand why AIG felt compelled to pay the bonuses to employees of its derivatives unit, the main source of the insurer’s troubles. Cuomo wants to see the contracts and is demanding a list of the bonus recipients. He noted that if the government hadn’t saved AIG, the bonus contracts would have been void. Contracts can also be re-negotiated, he added.

Courtesy of MarketWatch.com

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]]> http://chetgassett.com/2009/03/bending-aig-over-the-proverbial-barrel/feed/ 0 The Church of Chicken Little http://chetgassett.com/2008/10/the-church-of-chicken-little/ http://chetgassett.com/2008/10/the-church-of-chicken-little/#comments Sat, 11 Oct 2008 19:33:27 +0000 Chet http://chetgassett.com/chets_blog/?p=128

This is a graph of the Dow Jones Industrial Average on Friday October 10, 2008. There were a lot of very nice peaks, but there were also very, very many more valleys. I love the valleys within the valleys. I’m just a meek PR major, what do I know about economics and/or the stock market. Ladies and Gentlemen I know that when the markets are down, you do not sell. I don’t know who started this wonderful trend of panicking when someone yells, “the sky is falling!” It has the same resounding effect as, and I’m stealing this directly from Dr. Chris White, yelling “FIRE!” in a crowded theatre. Everyone jumps up drops their belongings and runs away crying.

This sheep-like mentality is killing me. I don’t usually watch the markets, but after the whopping 700+ point drop last week, I haven’t been able to stop watching. There are a lot of people that have lost a lot of money in the recent market flops, but I am having trouble sympathizing with some individuals that are selling out, because they think it’s the smarter thing to do. This is what happens when you allow people who don’t know even the basics of supply and demand to invest in the markets. People sell when the prices start falling because they seem to not understand that Warren Buffet is going to come in behind them and buy their newly dropped stock, and the prices will rise again. If no one wants it, then the prices are low. Thusly is everyone sells their shares, the prices drop. It’s a very simple concept. Honestly if I wasn’t living the life of an undergrad, I’d be investing. There are quite a few nice deals out there currently among the floundering prices, Ford Motors is down to $2.00 a share of Christ’s sake.

Maybe I’m too young and naïve to understand what’s going wrong. I feel reassured by the people I’ve discussed this with that I’m not an idiot, but the sellers are. I hope life works out for everyone.

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