bills_fan

Not really. See, instead of linking to a newspaper article, I will link you to the definitive legal treatise on this subject, "Securities Activities of Banks," by Melanie Fein (a book, BTW, I have on my shelf) and you can read about it yourself. GS was neutered primarily in the 1980s and early 1990s, when securities activities really took off. Essentially, GS was created to make commercial banking a utility function, rather than a dynamic business. You've heard the phrase "banker's hours?" Well thats where it came from. Investment banking, on the other hand, was the dynamic, risk-taking business that drove so much innovation. Commercial bankers chipped away at the securities activities they could engage in for years, before finally winning the war in the 1990s, well before the relevant provisions of GS were repealed. Happy reading. Securities Activities of Banks

Only to the extent that Lynch is missing the first few games of the year which puts more pressure on our passing game and on Fred Jackson. Otherwise, no, not all. When I was 22-24 years old, I did some pretty stupid drunken things as well. They would have been exacerbated had I been a famous millionaire NFL player.

No, no it did not. Gramm-Leach Bliley Act, which repealed Glass Stegal, basically codified existing court decisions relating to the breaking down of barriers between commercial and investment banks. Essentially, since Glass Stegal was passed, the commercial banks had been chipping away at it via the courts to try and get access to the more profitable investment banking activities (which they assumed they could do better, due to their larger balance sheets). So, at the time the Gramm-Leach Bliley Act was passed there was precious little new activities that banks (commercial or investment) could do. The biggest changes in that law related to merchant banking, not separation of commercial and investment banking (which had largely been done away with via 70 years of court decisions).

Karma right. F*7k the fans and move the team, get to play in Cup finals and then win Cup a few years later. Methinks the hockey gods screwed that one up.

You want to goose the economy, for real? Offer U.S. companies a one-time 6 month window where they can repatriate overseas dollars tax-free provided the money goes to create jobs or in capital investment. Watch how fast the economy rockets forward for 5 years off that little 6 month window. Of course, then the gov't would not have control over where the money was spent....

Very true. Here's a link that details Garner's life after football. Pretty sad. http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,...53,00.html?pg=1

I agree with you. The human interest stuff is nice, but my patience for it is wearing thin given all the losing. I really don't care what guys like Lynch or Whitner do in the offseason, provided they bring it on fall sundays. To the extent they can't bring it on fall sundays due to offseason issues, then I care. Kelly/Bruce/Reed etc. were no choirboys. If the internet, cell-phone cameras and the break down of the good ol boys network existed in the early 90s, a lot more offseason crap would have been known. Guess what, I don't care. They brought it on fall sundays. Tim, nice article. I do wish you had covered a few more of the football related items such as weight (keep it or lose it), speed and possible role for Maybin (every down or one trick pony) in the piece (although I understand such information may not be known).

Exactly. And Butler is a very good RG. He is mean, nasty and a bit of a mauler. I really liked him next to Langston Walker. I hope we sign Levi just to keep that right side together. I thought they did a decent job.

Totally agree. Butler is very good. I actually really like our right side from last year and don't want to mess with it.

Also Mike Hamby (the illustrator of the Darby the Dinosaur series). Hamby And, of course, Ray Bentley himself... Ray

I'd be pretty happy with LT Jones RG Wood C Hamgartner RG Butler RT Walker

Hey BiB...enjoying a Laphroaig 27 year old tonight....I know you'd approve, this stuff is good. To you and finding peace. RIP.

Reading this list of mostly 1st and 2nd roudners makes me wonder why we get so hyped up for the draft. I was hoping we would get some of those guys and they turned out to contribute very little. Some of them will be decent in time, but I think its rare for rookies to come in and make a huge impact on your team (other than at RB, and perhaps CB). I know there are many obvious exceptions, but it always seems like the draft is a 50/50 proposition and free agency or a trade is the better route many times.

Nice charts showing a pretty good rally. Why not look at this chart and let me know if you see anything similar. And please, don't follow the stupid CNBC idiots or Bernanke for that matter. He's wrong and will look as foolish come October as the below look to you. "This is the time to buy stocks. This is the time to recall the words of the late J. P. Morgan... that any man who is bearish on America will go broke. Within a few days there is likely to be a bear panic rather than a bull panic. Many of the low prices as a result of this hysterical selling are not likely to be reached again in many years." - R. W. McNeel, market analyst, as quoted in the New York Herald Tribune, October 30, 1929 "I see nothing in the present situation that is either menacing or warrants pessimism... I have every confidence that there will be a revival of activity in the spring, and that during this coming year the country will make steady progress." - Andrew W. Mellon, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury December 31, 1929 "The spring of 1930 marks the end of a period of grave concern...American business is steadily coming back to a normal level of prosperity." - Julius Barnes, head of Hoover's National Business Survey Conference, Mar 16, 1930 "While the crash only took place six months ago, I am convinced we have now passed through the worst -- and with continued unity of effort we shall rapidly recover. There has been no significant bank or industrial failure. That danger, too, is safely behind us." - Herbert Hoover, President of the United States, May 1, 1930 And, of course, the real kicker.... "All safe deposit boxes in banks or financial institutions have been sealed... and may only be opened in the presence of an agent of the I.R.S." - President F.D. Roosevelt, 1933

Kinda makes you long for the days Aaron Burr was leading a coup to break the Lousiana Purchase off from the rest of the country. At least he was a smart VP with balls.

Megan Fox...mmmm.

Seems pretty balanced to me with Roberts, Scalia, Thomas, and Alito the conservatives Stevens, Souter, Ginsburg and Breyer the liberals and Kennedy the modeate swing vote. Do you disagree?

Very concerned. If Jax would take a 3 and a 5 in the 10 draft (same as they took for Stroud) for Henderson, I'd be all for that.

Yep. And lets not forget that the hedge funds/other secured creditors have investors that they have to answer to. If they took a worse deal than they could have gotten in bankruptcy, they would be subject to a myriad of investor lawsuits. I'm guessing the government did not offer to indemnify the secured creditors against any and all investor claims related to taking a bad deal on Chrysler debt. A lot is riding on the rulings of the bankruptcy judge here, I don't envy his position.

As I said back inS ept, the $700 bil was a bad, but very necessary idea. We were days away from a total collapse and that bill calmed the markets tremendously. I don't like it, but it was necessary. Agreed, that Rs blaming Ds is foolish.

Can you imagine the no huddle with the Bills D from 2004...that gambling, big-play D? That would have been something to see.

Love it.."droptastic"

Guess we're not going to have to worry too much about Obama's budget... http://www.businessinsider.com/quantitativ...ing-fail-2009-4 My advice is if you have not yet refi'd your house, do so right now.

And the infamous b.harami meltdown... Meltdown

I voted for Retatta, but will have to check out a couple I missed like the TraceyLee thread. We should link each of the classics in here, just for furture ease of reference. Retatta