(c) 2008 Ira Artman

[Prior] STERLING SLIVERS  -  Say It Ain’t So, Joe [World Series Theme]

Rod:
Sometimes, you just wish that everyone would stop their posturing, get down to business, and simply play ball…

Baseball Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis banned Shoeless Joe Jackson from the game in 1921.  Jackson, one of the greatest ballplayers of all time, admitted under oath that he had conspired with his Chicago Black Sox teammates to  fix the 1919 World Series.    Following his testimony, Jackson left the courthouse, and – according to some accounts – ran into a young boy who cried  – Say it ain’t so, Joe!

Joe Nocera  is a business columnist for the New York Times.  Nocera has received numerous awards for his investigative journalism, and was said to be a finalist for the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary. 

These are just a few of the reasons why you must read his article, So When Will Banks Give Loans? which appeared on the first page of the 25 Oct 2008 New York Times Business section.

Below are mere fragments of Nocera’s startling article:

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    • In point of fact, the dirty little secret of the banking industry is that it has no intention of using the ["bailout"] money [received from the government] to make new loans. But … [there was one] executive …[who was] indiscreet enough to say it within earshot of a journalist….

    • It is starting to appear as if one of Treasury’s key rationales for the recapitalization program – namely, that it will cause banks to start lending again – is a fig leaf, Treasury’s version of the weapons of mass destruction…

    • In fact, Treasury wants banks to acquire each other and is using its power to inject capital to force a new and wrenching round of bank consolidation…

    • I don’t know about you, but I’m starting to feel as if we’ve been sold a bill of goods…

You will find the complete text of Nocera’s piece here:

Joe Nocera, The New York Times – So When Will Banks Give Loans?, 25 Oct 2008.

[World Series Theme] 

Rod:
The 2008 World Series is tied – the Phillies and Rays have split the first two games, and there are less than three months remaining in the current administration – “It ain’t over ‘til it’s over”. 

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I used to work with numbers for a living, but now I’m trying to cover all of the bases,  as I look for my next job or ‘idea’.   Till next time – Ira Artman 

REFERENCES

 
Joe Nocera, The New York Times – So When Will Banks Give Loans?, 25 Oct 2008.

 
Joe Strupp, All Business/Editor & Publisher – List of Leaked Pulitzer Finalists Expanded!, 14 Mar 2007.

 
Liz Magnes & Sandra Bendor, Two White Mothers – Take Me Out To The Ballgame, Rhapsody/Jazzd Recordings, 2005.