I will put Scott Burns column form the Sunday 12/3/06 DMN on reserve in the library.  You will recall that when we discussed time value of money concepts, I was careful to go over the pitfalls of making  a low or no down payment mortgage, particularly at the top of a housing boom.  Scott Burns,…

I think the worst advice any young person ever gets is Never give up. Ususally the person really means, perhaps you should re think the original goal in terms of recent information on the effort.  But in many cases, giving up and going to the next gig is a better idea.  GM is a case…

First we’ll kill all the lawyersKing Henry VI, Scene 2 Alan Murray speculates on the outcome of the Committee on Capital Markets Regulation on page A2 of the Wed 11/29 WSJ. The conclusion is -too many lawyers.  Too many complex regulations and too many mouthings of what is money. Incredibly the SEC is staffed with…

Yesterday one of you indicated that you had not seen the movie Patton.   Wait no longer it is on AMC tonite Thursday  11/30 at 7 PM.  Make plenty of popcorn as it runs near three hours, 180 absorbing minutes. You can read some reviews on the hyperlink. Some actors get the role of a lifetime…

No less than the CEO of the Institute of Management Accountants weighs in with this article on SARBOX.  He demands change now, noting that London has enacted controls with out the hue and cry over here which has doubled audit fees. Check it out. DLE

Check out this article on Six Sigma at Motorla.  The authors explain how Six Sigma, a left brain analytical discipline with roots in Deming’s TQM, mates with right brain innovation to come up with products like the RAZAR phone. This is another good example of my increasing interest in DESIGN and that a portion of…

Okay, you heard both guest speakers say some of the same things in two days, even though they have never met one another or discussed what we have been doing in class with me.  Each recommended reading Business Week and the WSJ.  In addition, they both recommended improving your public speaking. These are all things…

Perhaps so, in the last month Gary Schilling in his Forbes column and Jim Rogers on Neal Cavuto’s show have both predicted recessions beginning in December.  Now comes Hoisington Investment Management  based in Austin TX.  Their prediction is also based on the combination of a collapsing housing market and an inverted yield curve.  This firm…

Don’t let the Washington circus fool you, there are always figures that move behind the scenes between adn among various administrations.  This story about  Hank Paulson  reveals a great deal about how things really work at the White House and in shaping foreign policy.  I have mentioned before that no matter what party occupies the…

Forensic heads up, don’t miss the article on the front page of the tuesday Nov 21 WSJ, it describes how the FBI is working to catch crooks in cyberspcace particularly working in other countries.  Note, applicants need math, computer, and accounting skills!