Chart of the Week: Yields on U.S. 10-Year Treasury Notes Below 3%  - … While difficult to discern from the graph, this is the first week the yield on that bond has ever closed below 3.0%. The reason for the low yield is the overwhelming demand cause by investors who are embracing a flight to safety approach to investing and see U.S. government debt as a safe haven for their assets.  .. - VIX and More   (Note: Monday afternoon 10yr = closed at 2.73 - BC)

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Will Baby Boomers Start Selling Their Homes for Liquidity?  - by James Eckler - … With over 75 million baby boomers looking ahead at uncertainty, more job shortages for older people, and a largely unfunded Social Security and Medicare system (especially Medicare), they will begin to consider how to get liquidity from their hardest to liquidate assets – their houses.  … - seeking alpha

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Obama’s Tax Choices - Janet Novack - Forbes.com’s tax experts talk about what Obama can, should and will do to the tax code. - Forbes

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Treasuries Set for Best Month Since 1981 Amid Time of ‘Trial’ - … “The primary driver behind the fall in Treasury yields this month was the deterioration in the economy and the sinking realization that deflation could be a factor of life going forward,” said Bulent Baygun, … - Bloomberg 

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Lock In Low Gas Prices - … We recently came across a good article highlighting a simple way to lock in low gas prices.  The US Gasoline Fund (UGA) is an ETF that tracks the price of gasoline futures in the US.  … -  Bespoke Investment Group

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Incredible collection of videos - Video-o-rama: A mixed-up financial world - Posted by Prieur du Plessis -  Investment Postcards from Capetown

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HANK’S BAD GAMBLE - CRITICS: RESCUE PLAN BUNGLES MAKE PROFIT LESS LIKELY - article implies gov’t should buy common stock in banks instead of preferred stock - TERI BUHL - NY Post 

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Editorial: Fed Targets Mortgage Markets - Hitting home - The federal government’s dizzying series of bailouts finally has taken aim at the industry where the cash can do the most good - housing. - Philadelphia Inquirer

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Bailing Away - There is as yet no effort to deal effectively with the underlying causes of the problem, especially mass mortgage defaults that feed bank losses. … - New York Times

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great chart - bailouts now and then - How Many Words is This Picture Worth? - … However, it appears we have little choice in the matter now and a massive full-scale effort to re-ignite the economy is underway.  For better or for worse, here we go.  … - Ockham Research 

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Understanding Synthetic Bonds - Felix Salmon - … What Eisman is saying is that there were mortgage-backed securities, and then there were synthetic mortgage-backed securities; when the banks ran out of actual MBS to sell to investors, they sold them synthetic MBS instead. And yes, that was allowed. … - Portfolio.com 

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CFO Survey: Credit Noose Is Tightening - Vincent Ryan - Bank-client relationships are fraying, and TARP capital will do little to stimulate lending to companies in need of funds, say finance chiefs. - CFO.com

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    IRA ARTMAN SECTION - thanks Ira: 

Is TARP Unconstitutional? - George F. Will - TARP and ADD - Congress has made bureaucrats into legislators; or perhaps it has made Hank Paulson into the fourth branch of government. - NewsWeek   

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From Market Economy to Political Economy - By Charles Krauthammer - Washington Post -  Charles Krauthammer on bailout/politicization and more
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news source reference keep this  - Inside Accounts Receivable Management - for those that need cash …   InsideArm

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The Fair Value Controversy: Ignoring the Real Issue -  In the context of the measures being taken to put an end to the current financial crisis, the extent to which fair value accounting can be blamed—or whether it can be blamed at all—for the intensification of the slump has been widely debated. This new EDHEC position paper shows that this debate, which ignores the real issues, has led to accounting changes that are at odds with their objectives. -  EDHEC Risk 

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Price Declines Accelerate in September Data - By Dean Baker - CEPR.net - Ira’s comment: Perhaps the most disturbing item in the new data was the continued price decline in cities without bubbles.