Saturday, March 28, 2009

Obama and the Banks; Points of View - AIG, Healthcare, and Cap & Trade

Ahhh, the joys of spring. The flowers, the rain, the birds, the tax returns, The Masters, March Madness, etc. This weekend finds the entire staff at Rollins & Associates relaxing at their homes "barred" from going into the office.

For this Saturday, let's start with an article from The Wall Street Journal discussing Friday's meeting between 15 bank CEO's and President Obama. It seems that there was quite a bit of give and take from both sides. Also, there have been various themes during the week in economics and politics, so below are some of the different editorials from the week. It starts with a very interesting letter of resignation from a VP at AIG, covers the US healthcare system, and finishes with a favorable view of energy's Cap and Trade (more nuclear energy please)...

Bankers, Obama in Uneasy Truce - By Jonathan Weisman, Damian Paletta, and Dan Fitzpatrick - The Wall Street Journal - "That was one topic of discussion Friday at a meeting all sides described as cordial. According to participants, some of the chiefs told the president they want to return their bailout money later this year, but Mr. Obama told them that regulators would permit such a move only if the banks were truly healthy." "For his part, Mr. Obama told the group that bankers should be more modest in their compensation and spending practices, participants said. The bankers responded that the administration should try to cool its anti-Wall Street rhetoric."

Dear A.I.G., I Quit! - By Jake DeSantis - The New York Times - "I take this action after 11 years of dedicated, honorable service to A.I.G. I can no longer effectively perform my duties in this dysfunctional environment, nor am I being paid to do so. Like you, I was asked to work for an annual salary of $1, and I agreed out of a sense of duty to the company and to the public officials who have come to its aid. Having now been let down by both, I can no longer justify spending 10, 12, 14 hours a day away from my family for the benefit of those who have let me down."

How U.S. Health Care Really Stacks Up - By Investor's Business Daily - "Facts: A movie has been made solely to criticize it. The left treats it as if it's an invader that must be repelled. Most Americans, however, are satisfied with this object of so much hate — America's health care industry."

The Carbon Cap Dilemma - By J. Wayne Leonard - The Wall Street Journal - "On the one hand, environmentalists claim that climate change is a 'planetary emergency,' perhaps the greatest threat ever to face humanity. On the other, nuclear energy is still verboten in the green catechism -- despite the fact that it provides roughly one-fifth of U.S. electricity, all of it free of carbon emissions. And without more nuclear power, it is nearly impossible to see even the glimmers of any low-emission future."

Sources: The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Investor's Business Daily

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