Wednesday - What! Me Worry?

That's the line from Alfred E. Neuman, the youthful fool of Mad Magazine fame. Yes, I still subscribe and read Mad magazine once in a while ;-)

Yes, I'm still bullish. I think this is still a rich man's panic - investors in beefers are panicking as are their managers. And the mortgage lending industry nonsense is returning to the time-tested practices: 80% loan, verify income, debt service coverage, etc. Golly, how onerous!

That was the standard from the 1930s until recently when the creative finance guys and hedge funds got involved. People could borrow over 80%, but had to buy mortgage insurance or qualify under the VA or FHA.

WSJ: warehouse lines to many small mortgage bankers and brokers are going away -> their product was garbage and there's no market now. Also, "... allowing banks to grab a bigger share of the market" -> that's part of my reasoning for buying big positions in the big banks, like BAC.

WSJ: US move to expand access to data from spy satellites is likely to to ignite privacy debate. Hmmm ... living in the woods with overhead concealment seems smarter & smarter ;-)

Today's CPI number is important. The key data points are the core CPI and the year-over-year core CPI. Last month, the year-over-year core CPI was 2.2%. I'd like to see a number that is flat or a downtick.

On another topic: let's deconstruct this quote from Reuters ->
"WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The top U.S. commander in Iraq will recommend pulling U.S. troops out of some areas where commanders believe security has improved, the Los Angeles Times said on Wednesday, citing Bush administration officials"

Did you notice that word, "recommend"? Uh, the "top US Commander" will "recommend". Hmmmm. Is he the "commander" or not? Or is the "war" being run by "Bush administration officials" - aka micromanaging? I'll bet it's micromanaging.

I think that Rumsfeld, Cheney and Bush and now Gates, Cheney & Bush were micromanaging all along. And the Pentagon buttkissers, too. That explains a lot of the odd, counter-productive, silly decisions that have been made for five years. Like letting Fallujah fester & develop into a terrorist/Al Quaeda base early on. And all the concern about being "nice" to the Iraqis. And the rules of engagement that tie our troops into knots. Once again, the W Bush == Lyndon appellation works perfectly. Phooey!

More W idiocy: WSJ - "The Bush administration is moving towards blacklisting Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps as a 'terrorist' organization, subjecting at least part of the entity to financial sanctions." Huh? What the heck were they before - an Iranian Boy Scouts????

Is all official Washington stupid or part of the problem? They seem to have a serious "enemy recognition" problem!

IF I was paranoid, I'd think they want more terrorism so they can grab more power.

PS: I guess Warren Buffet reads this blog - he took a stake in BAC, among others ;-))

PPS: Good CPI numbers - core yoy was flat with June at 2.2% Good news.

P^3S: Santelli on Babblevision confirms what I've been saying - no mortgage funding problem for the traditional home loans: 20% down, income verified, 30 years, fixed rates. The creative financing is dead, though.

P^4S: Hello Ben? Three month T-bills are at 4%. Your overnight rate is ... 5.25%. Uh ... don't you think your monetary policy is a bit tight?