So I just finished reading Accidental Billionaires and started The Facebook Effect. Both books deal with that great timesuck, Facebook.com. Now I don't spend much time on facebook (check in once every few weeks???), but I am fascinated by the narrative of its founding and its incredible growth. Both books address the founding of the company, Accidental Billionaires in depth, The Facebook Effect superficially and both books introduce us to Mark Zuckerberg. Thats about all they have in common. I have yet to read two books about the same subject that diverge in such a degree on what, where, why and how things happened. Accidental Billionaires (from now on AB) went into depth on the beginnings of the company in that eponymous college dorm room and the characters who helped M.Z. start the phenom that is facebook. The Facebook Effect (from now on TFE) introduced us to the people facebook would like to credit with its founding. That is the crux of what is wrong with TFE. While AB seems to produce a more well rounded view of the founding of facebook, TFE is all about the Zucker Love. For example, did you know that an early strategic treatise on the direction and future facebook offerings, written by M.Z., has the "weight" of Michelangelo's notebooks? Neither did I until TFE told me so (I nearly packed it in right there as I rolled my eyes and laughed out loud at the absurdity of that statement. FYI - Mark Zuckerberg's handwriting is "beautiful", roll my eyes some more). While AB reads like the movie script that it turned into, TFE is 384 pages of public relations / Zucker Love dribble. I will be the first to deny any and all writing talents ascribed to me, but TFE reads like a high school essay (including high school like snide remarks) at times and insults its readers with overt explanations of obvious conclusions at others. Do we really need to know that Shawn Parkers girlfriend was kind enough to let him stay in an extra room while some construction debris was cleaned up. NO!
In conclusion, both books have their issues and biased views, but TBE goes overboard with its Zucker Love while AB is definitely anti Zucker Love. Both books deal with the founding story, but only TFE goes past that founding story and takes us up to 2010 (while keeping up the Zucker Lover throughout). So I'll leave it to you dear readers which book you like better, Zucker Love or Anti Zucker Love. I know which way I'm leaning.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Monday, April 18, 2011
Turning 40
Over the weekend a blessed event took place in our household (shophold???). We had a birthday. 40 wonderful time units. See the one year anniversary post here.
Yes the KTM turned 40 hours this weekend. Good times were had by all except that the rear tire decided to get flattened by something.
Yes the KTM turned 40 hours this weekend. Good times were had by all except that the rear tire decided to get flattened by something.
Paper Slips and Electronic Blips
So, after looking back through my latest posts I've decided that maybe I will only post once a month. I know, I know how will you go on with life with me posting fascinating finance facts only once a month, but don't worry, I have faith that you will endure.
Anyway, so today Standard and Poor's put the United States government on notice that its run away spending has not gone unnoticed. By cutting the USA's credit outlook to negative, S&P basically stated that they think the USA has a 1 in 3 chance of being downgraded (credit wise) in the future. This means that if the USA can borrow at a hypothetical 3% today with its AAA rating, in the future, that interest rate may climb to a hypothetical 3.5%, all things being equal. This doesn't sound like much of a difference, but multiply those additional 50 basis points by trillions of dollars of debt and you begin talking about real money.
What I find fascinating is that the cost of insuring US debt rose to ~95 basis points. Who is selling this insurance? AIG ;). Who is buying? If you need to cash in on this insurance, there is nobody on earth who can honor these CDS agreements. You see, if the US government defaults ("all" US government debt is priced in US dollars that the US government can print at will), then the world has crashed and paper slips and electronic blips will mean nothing. I'm exaggerating slightly, but only slightly. I guess the tin foil hat crowd could be right and we do have aliens among us. The aliens could sell the insurance and honor the agreements since their economic system should be uncorrelated to the earths finances. But, that assumes that they haven't been here long enough to become fully invested in the US / Greece / Japan / Ireland / Portugal / Spain / England / France / etc. by buying the massive amounts of debt that have spilled off the printers machines. Kang and Kodos, I beseech thee to forgive our mis-spending ways and allow us three cups of drool instead of two. All hail our Rigellian overlords. VOTE KODOS!!!!
Anyway, so today Standard and Poor's put the United States government on notice that its run away spending has not gone unnoticed. By cutting the USA's credit outlook to negative, S&P basically stated that they think the USA has a 1 in 3 chance of being downgraded (credit wise) in the future. This means that if the USA can borrow at a hypothetical 3% today with its AAA rating, in the future, that interest rate may climb to a hypothetical 3.5%, all things being equal. This doesn't sound like much of a difference, but multiply those additional 50 basis points by trillions of dollars of debt and you begin talking about real money.
What I find fascinating is that the cost of insuring US debt rose to ~95 basis points. Who is selling this insurance? AIG ;). Who is buying? If you need to cash in on this insurance, there is nobody on earth who can honor these CDS agreements. You see, if the US government defaults ("all" US government debt is priced in US dollars that the US government can print at will), then the world has crashed and paper slips and electronic blips will mean nothing. I'm exaggerating slightly, but only slightly. I guess the tin foil hat crowd could be right and we do have aliens among us. The aliens could sell the insurance and honor the agreements since their economic system should be uncorrelated to the earths finances. But, that assumes that they haven't been here long enough to become fully invested in the US / Greece / Japan / Ireland / Portugal / Spain / England / France / etc. by buying the massive amounts of debt that have spilled off the printers machines. Kang and Kodos, I beseech thee to forgive our mis-spending ways and allow us three cups of drool instead of two. All hail our Rigellian overlords. VOTE KODOS!!!!
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