Battle of Stalingrad
Battle of Stalingrad 08/21/1942—2/02/1943 Overview The Battle of Stalingrad is considered by many historians to been the turning point in World War II in Europe. In essence, the battle bled the German army dry in [...]
Normandy Remembered
"Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force! You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade…. The eyes of the world are upon you. The hopes and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march [...]
Financial Missteps at Harvard Likely Could Have Been Avoided
The extraction in the U.S. of oil and natural gas from shale rock remains controversial. On the one hand, the benefits from this domestic power source are so great that they have changed the [...]
Automobile Show Trials
I spent two years in Ann Arbor, Michigan at the height of the American automobile industry (1966-1968). Many of my colleagues took positions with automobile related companies. If Detroit would have enjoyed the weather [...]
Solving the Global Financial Crisis Will Require Global Cooperation
World stock markets have dropped 5 percent to 10 percent following the G-20 meeting that ended Nov. 16. Investors lack confidence that governments can halt the slumping world economy or unfreeze credit markets. For [...]
Congress Must Tread Carefully in Any Bailout of the Big Three
This past week, executives from the Big Three automakers -- General Motors, Ford and Chrysler -- pitched key congressional leaders for an increase in bailout funds to $50 billion. Mounting legislative opposition, especially from [...]
Navigating a Flattened World When the Good Times End
Those were the days, my friend. We thought they'd never end. Alas, the good times ended! It is hard to believe that just 12 months ago, the world seemed so rosy. We explicitly believed [...]
Reflections of Anna Schwartz Co-Author with Nobel Laureate Milton Friedman on the Seminal: A Monetary History of the United States
In this week’s Barron’s, Jack Willoughby interviewed Anna Schwartz, one of the most respected economists of our time. Ms. Scwartz felt that the bailout plan was too opaque and ad hoc to work. Ms. [...]
J.P. Morgan’s Financial Progeny Continue to Espouse His Ideas
Just over 100 years after the Panic of 1907, we should remember the legacy of John Pierpont "J.P." Morgan, the most influential financier and commercial banker in American history. His high standings will always retain [...]
Paying Tribute to Elie Wiesel: A-7713 (Tattoo on his left arm)
Several weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to attend an 80th birthday commemoration for Elie Wiesel at the 92nd Y. In hindsight, I wish over the years I had attended more of his lectures because [...]
Three Yards Forward is Better Than Government ‘Failed Mary’
Congress has passed the bailout. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson's Hail Mary pass sought to break the financial gridlock that stopped lending and restore confidence in our financial institutions. Paulson argued that the $700 billion [...]
Feldstein Housing Proposal
IntroductionMartin Feldstein, the former Chairman of Council of Economic Advisors under Ronald Reagan, proposed a better solution to the housing than the current economic recovery proposal that will be considered by the House of Representatives [...]
America’s Distrust of Wall Street has Deep Roots in Our History
The stunning defeat in the House of Representatives of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 reflects deep-seated dislike for Wall Street that has roots back to the founding of our country. Most Americans [...]
Derivatives Play a Vital Role in Global Financial Marketplace
This past week witnessed almost a complete meltdown of the global financial system after derivatives knocked down Lehman Brothers and AIG. Worldwide losses from speculative excesses could exceed $1 trillion, and the word "derivative" [...]
Alleged High Jinks at Interior May Have Cost the U.S. Billions
Earl Devaney, inspector general of the Interior Department, reported last week that a two-year investigation has uncovered a "culture of substance abuse and promiscuity" within the department's Mineral Management Services, or MMS. This department, [...]
Credit Crisis Strains Government’s Options
By Jon Hilsenrath, David Enrich and Deborah Solomon A year into a credit crisis that started with troubled mortgages to sketchy borrowers, the financial system is reeling once again, casting a pall over a [...]
Too Big to Fail… or to Survive? Determining U.S. Bailout Policy
During the next 12 months, very large companies from such divergent industries as investment and commercial banking, automobile and airlines will seek significant help from the federal government to avert bankruptcy. Their executives argue that [...]
Conceived in ‘Sin,’ GSE’s Must Deal With the Consequences
As Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac totter toward a government bailout, we might recall that they may have been "conceived in sin." In an July 28 New Yorker article, "Sponsoring Recklessness," James Surowiecki pointed [...]
China is Returning to Greatness on the World Economy’s Stage
The spectacular festivities that opened the Beijing Olympics visually portrayed the optimistic forecasts of economist Jeffrey Sachs, who said, "China is the most successful development story in world history." Most economists feel that sometime in [...]
Mario’s Story: The Sixth Amendment
When the Nazis came for the communists, I remained silent; I was not a communist. When they locked up the social democrats, I remained silent; I was not a social democrat. When they came for the trade unionists, [...]
Many Blame the Bean Counters, but Who is Really Responsible?
In today's Mad Hatter World, we might remember the Queen of Hearts, the mean-spirited sovereign created by Lewis Carroll in "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland." She sentenced her subjects to death for the slightest offense, [...]
John McCain’s Running Mate Paulson, Palin and Pit Bulls
Now that John McCain has selected his running mate—Pit Bull Palin, I feel that I can share my preference John Paulson. Since most of my best friends are Republicans, and at 64 I am running [...]
U.S. Housing Market Changes Drastically as New Help Arrives
The dice have been rolled for the fate of 300 million Americans. Congress recently enacted legislation to resolve the worst housing crisis since the Great Depression. This will be the government's greatest effort to [...]
Can Unprecedented Steps Contain the Current Economic Meltdown?
Since the cracks that turned into earthquakes began convulsing the economy in the summer of 2007, pundits have actively debated both the depth of the financial downturn and its duration. More than $300 billion [...]
Four Emerging Economic Giants Could Set the Course for the World
In 2003, a Goldman Sachs economic team led by Jim O'Neill focused on the positive prospects of four developing countries -- Brazil, Russia, India and China, or "BRIC." In a paper "Dreaming with BRICs: The [...]
Russia’s Challenge is Converting Oil Wealth Into Industrial Strength
Over the past decade, the fortunes of Russia and its leading oil and gas company, Gazprom, have improved dramatically. A decade ago, the price of oil was languishing and Russia was facing possible bankruptcy. [...]
Learning to Bear the Unbearable as we Face a $1 Trillion Nightmare
In order to convince his subjects of the wisdom of surrendering after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945, Japanese Emperor Hirohito announced over the radio to his beleaguered people that they [...]
Imaginary Witness: Hollywood and the Holocaust (2004)
Personal Background: On reflection, I would not have written an essay about Hollywood’s failure to produce movies that focused on anti-Semitism and the Holocaust from 1930-1962 without the influence of both of my parents. [...]
With Big Deficit Comes Less Ability to Stop Those Foreign Takeovers
'If summer were spring and the other way round, Then all the world would be upside down." In 1781, the above ditty, "The World Turned Upside Down," was reputedly played as the defeated British [...]
One Trillion Dollar Nightmare: Transcript of Charlie Rose’s interview with Gladstone Duck
Transcript of Charlie Rose’s interview with Gladstone Duck, The Senior Economic Advisor to the third party candidate Mickey Mouse. Charlie Rose: I want to welcome back Gladstone who has been my guest on many [...]
Credit Default Swaps: A $45 Trillion Dollar Market
Transcript of Charlie Rose’s interview with Gladstone Duck, The Senior Economic Advisor to the third party candidate Mickey Mouse. Charlie Rose: I want to welcome back Gladstone who has been my guest on many [...]
Lower Returns and More Oversight Mark the New Era on Wall Street
During the past few weeks, a consensus has emerged that Wall Street has entered a new era of lower returns on equity, thinner profits, fewer jobs and more federal oversight. The declining fortune of [...]
Weapons of Mass Destruction: Not an Elite Club
The purported reconnaissance flight by some 250 Israeli airplanes over Iran’s fledgling nuclear program reflects several ominous trends. A number of countries have jump-started nuclear programs by obtaining needed technology from Pakistan, Russia, North [...]
Hard Times Ahead for U.S. Carmakers
I have been captivated by the declining fortunes of the Big Three -- General Motors, Ford and Chrysler -- since I spent 1968 doing post-graduate research at Oxford on these automakers. Needless to say, their [...]
Major Economic Engines Decline, Boding Ill for a Quick Recovery
In recent weeks, key economic data highlight concerns that the economy will not rebound until sometime in 2009. In at least three key areas -- housing, automobiles and retail sales -- recently reported numbers [...]
Agencies Brewing Housing Fixes Dubbed the ‘Clouseau Brigade’
Over the years, I have developed great sympathy for Inspector Jacques Clouseau's boss -- Commissioner Charles Dreyfus. The good commissioner and I twitch when we observe inept moves. Although Clouseau (Peter Sellers) bungled catching the [...]