Assorted Links (7/14/2010)

Here’s a list of articles that I have been reading lately:

For a New Generation, an Elusive American Dream – NYTimes.com

www.nytimes.com

“In the Nicholson family, America is not delivering for a grandson as it did for his father and grandfather.”

NHTSA: No, Toyotas do not Suddenly Accelerate Unless You Press the Accelerator

www.theatlantic.com

“At the apex of PJ O’Rourke’s description of the 1980s Sudden Acceleration Incident craze…”

‘Artificial Intelligence’ Gains Fans Among Investors – WSJ.com

online.wsj.com

“A new wave of investment firms are turning to artificial-intelligence programs to make trading decisions. The programs are designed to crunch numbers, learn from decisions, and adapt. Some are having success.”

Shadow Banking

www.ny.frb.org

Here’s some “light” reading for folks who are interested in having a better understanding of how financial intermediation works in the real world: “The rapid growth of the market-based financial system since the mid-1980s changed the nature of financial intermediation in the United States profoundly. Within the market-based financial system, shadow banks are particularly important institutions.”

James Woolsey and Rebeccah Heinrichs: Iran and the Missile Defense Imperative – WSJ.com

online.wsj.com

“R. James Woolsey and Rebeccah Heinrichs write in The Wall Street Journal that U.S. intelligence now sees Tehran developing intercontinental missiles by 2015. If we continue our current strategy, we will not be able to counter the threat.”

Jenkins: Bank CEOs and the Bewitching Carrot – WSJ.com

online.wsj.com

“Holman Jenkins writes in The Wall Street Journal that shareholders of large, publicly traded banks have a higher appetite for risk than is compatible with our regulatory system.”

The Uncertainty Principle – WSJ.com

online.wsj.com

“The Wall Street Journal writes that Dodd-Frank will require at least 243 new federal rule-makings and lots of economic uncertainty for struggling businesses.”

Nation Demands Tax Dollars Only Be Wasted On Stuff That’s Awesome

www.theonion.com

Satire concerning “stimulus spending” from The Onion… “Nine of 10 respondents said they favor the continued public financing of new sports stadiums, but only if the old ones are imploded in an elaborate pyrotechnic display that everyone can watch from reclining chairs as AC/DC’s “Highway To Hell” blasts in the background.”

Q&A: The Limits of Arbitrage – Fama/French Forum

www.dimensional.com

“The people in behavioral finance treat the Shleifer and Vishny (1997) paper as if it is empirical evidence. In fact, it is theory built on a set of assumptions – in the end, a clever set of claims. It can’t discredit market efficiency until it is supported by rigorous empirical work.”

The electoral consequences of large fiscal adjustments

www.voxeu.org

“The market turmoil in recent weeks pose a key question: can European governments credibly commit to cutting their deficits? This column presents evidence that fiscal adjustments do not increase the likelihood of electoral defeat for incumbent governments.”

Eating to Live or Living to Eat? http://on.wsj.com/aw8phL  

Mission Group Reels After Losses in Uganda http://on.wsj.com/clhkDG