Turtle Rules

Why protest at the state capital? Go directly to the address of the source.

Address:
Russell Pearce’s home address

http://156.42.40.50/UnOfficialDocs/pdf/20020907518.pdf

Email Address:
rpearce@azleg.gov

This is the guys legislative district – Map
Think of the demographics of that neighborhood. Then register to vote, https://servicearizona.com/webapp/evoter/?popularclick

The US Security and Exchange Commission’s civil suit against Goldman Sachs will be vigorously contested by the defendant. It is interesting to speculate which side will win; but we will not know the result for months. Irrespective of the eventual outcome, however, the case has far-reaching implications for the financial reform legislation Congress is considering.

Whether or not Goldman is guilty, the transaction in question clearly had no social benefit. It involved a complex synthetic security derived from existing mortgage-backed securities by cloning them into imaginary units that mimicked the originals. This synthetic collateralised debt obligation did not finance the ownership of any additional homes or allocate capital more efficiently; it merely swelled the volume of mortgage-backed securities that lost value when the housing bubble burst. The primary purpose of the transaction was to generate fees and commissions.

This is a clear demonstration of how derivatives and synthetic securities have been used to create imaginary value out of thin air. More triple A CDOs were created than there were underlying triple A assets. This was done on a large scale in spite of the fact that all of the parties involved were sophisticated investors. The process went on for years and culminated in a crash that caused wealth destruction amounting to trillions of dollars. It cannot be allowed to continue. The use of derivatives and other synthetic instruments must be regulated even if all the parties are sophisticated investors. Ordinary securities must be registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission before they can be traded. Synthetic securities ought to be similarly registered, although the task could be assigned to a different authority, such as the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

Derivatives can serve many useful purposes, but they also contain hidden dangers. For instance, they can pile up hidden imbalances in supply or demand which may suddenly be revealed when a threshold is breached. This is true of so-called knockout options, used in currency hedging. It was also true of the portfolio insurance programs that caused the New York Stock Exchange’s Black Monday in October 1987. The subsequent introduction of circuit breakers tacitly acknowledged that derivatives can cause discontinuities, but the proper conclusions were not drawn.

Credit default swaps are particularly suspect. They are supposed to provide insurance against default to bondholders. But because they are freely tradable, they can be used to mount bear raids; in addition to insurance they also provide a license to kill. Their use ought to be confined to those who have a insurable interest in the bonds of a country or company.

It will be the task of regulators to understand derivatives and synthetic securities and refuse to allow their creation if they cannot fully evaluate their systemic risks. That task cannot be left to investors, contrary to the diktats of the market fundamentalist dogma that prevailed until recently.

Derivatives traded on exchanges should be registered as a class. Tailor-made derivatives would have to be registered individually, with regulators obliged to understand the risks involved. Registration is laborious and time-consuming, and would discourage the use of over-the-counter derivatives. Tailor-made products could be put together from exchange-traded instruments. This would prevent a recurrence of the abuses which contributed to the 2008 crash.

Requiring derivatives and synthetic securities to be registered would be simple and effective; yet the legislation currently under consideration contains no such requirement. The Senate Agriculture Committee proposes blocking deposit-taking banks from making markets in swaps. This is an excellent proposal which would go a long way in reducing the interconnectedness of markets and preventing contagion, but it would not regulate derivatives.

The five big banks which serve as marketmakers and account for over 95 per cent of the US’s outstanding over-the-counter transactions are likely to oppose it because it would hit their profits. It is more puzzling that some multinational corporations are also opposed. The only explanation is that tailor-made derivatives can facilitate tax avoidance and manipulation of earnings. These considerations ought not to influence the legislation.

The writer is chairman of Soros Fund Management

” We stay blissfully insulated from it, so that in those rare instances when we’re graphically exposed to it, we can tell ourselves that it’s all very unusual and rare. ”

“As with Abu Ghraib, and again assuming this is what it seems to be, the temptation will be to blame the operations-level people who were, in this case, chuckling as they mowed people down. That’s not where the real responsibility lies.”

Imagine for a second that this video is shot in the suburbs of the United States. The victims American citizens the attackers Iraqi, Russian, Chinese or any other nationality. We would truely be outraged. As they chuckle when they shoot down innocent Americans how would this make you feel? The world needs more empathy.

More information can be found here –

Is the news media shielding us creating a comfortable buffer from reality?
http://www.i-am-bored.com/bored_link.cfm?link_id=48547

I’m not going to make the pitch that we need to reduce our carbon output.  Conservative friends of mine will argue “follow the money” that there is no such thing as global warming.  It is all for financial gain that the world is warming.  That there are no negative repercussions of burning all of that oil and releasing it into the ozone.  Again I’m not making this as an argument to make ourselves energy efficient and to start using renewable sources. 

However, it is undeniable that importing 20 million barrels of oil does have negative repercussions.  We are empowering and financing foreign companies.  Some of which or the majority of them some might argue hate our country.  Either way exporting all of this national wealth will not make us a safe country.  It will inevitably destroy us as a country and bankrupt future generations.  With that being said I think everyone who can afford to install solar panels should make the investment.  I understand that solar is not going to exactly reduce our import of oil.  However, it is a very good time to make the investment.  This is the first step in using renewable resources to survive. 

The reason to invest now is simple.  The government is willing to cover 30% of the costs through tax credits. Secondly being a customer of Arizona SRP will cut you a check for $2.70 per watt installed up to 5 kilowatts.  Lastly the state of Arizona will give you $1000 credit on your taxes as well.  I will outline the total costs here next.

I will save you the trouble of calling every solar installer in AZ since there are tons of them.  Here is a list of all of the vendors I contacted and their costs.

Outlining all of these companies there are many that are very competitive.  It seems like $5/watt is the going rate for legitimate companies.  I however found an installer from California looking to expand his business to Arizona.  I was able to sign a contract for $4.75/watt.  This means my 5kw system(the largest SRP will reimburse) breaks down as follows.

$23,730.50 total cost

$13,500.00 SRP rebate

$1,000.00 State rebate

$7,119.15 or  $3,069.15 Federal rebate

This means the total cost of my system in the end wil be $6,161.35 or $2,111.35.  There is a reason for the two different prices.  You will find half of the solar installers will tell you the 30% federal rebate is based on the total system price.  Others will say you must take 30% of  total system price minus the SRP rebate which is significantly smaller.  One thing you must keep in mind,  if you do take the federal rebate check on the total cost you must report the SRP rebate as additional income.  Which the other method you do not.  This from what I understand is still a grey area. 

Other important things to watch out for:

1.  Scam artists – There are a lot of shady solar installers out there.  I will give you two instances of shady installers I ran into. 

     a.  The first company is Solar City.  I ran into them about a year ago and they have very tricky tactics to rob you blind.  Basically they will cover the costs of the system.  But your return on investment will be 20 years as to if you just pay the money upfront it will be more around 5.  They have recently came out with a new scam called the lease prepay.  I was contacted my Mike Richter one of their sales consultants(scam artists) who tried to sell me this new lease prepay and tried to pass it as the best and cheaper solar investment.  Basically they charge you half the price $3,000 for the system.  But it is a lease and belongs to them.  After 15 years they can just come and take it back.  Since solar systems are supposed to last 30 years that means you’re losing 15 years of $1000/year in energy savings or $15k all by saving $3k in the beginning.  Hardly worth it in my opinion.  Also keep in mind the system may last 40 years that is $25k total you’re missing out on.  You can tell by the 50 page contract they want you to sign something is up with this company.

2.  Solar panels/Invertors – These are the next item you should be certain of.  Make sure you are getting a 90% efficiency at 10 year warranty and 80% efficiency at 25 year warranty.  I think the electric companies require this anyways in order for you to get funding from them.  However, it is one thing I would make sure you have.  Also keep in mind it is said the invertors die at about 15 years.  So keep in mind this is going to have to be replaced.  It is not a big deal and you can probably hire an electrician to do it in one hour.

     a.  There are different types of solar panels you can puchase monocrystalline and polycrystalline are the two most common types of PV.  Monocrystalline are better because they are grown from one crystal and not multiple ones.  This typically means the efficiency of these panels are better.  However, if you can get polycrystalline for a better rate I would not sway you from doing so.   The reason being is the only downside is they take up more space because they are not as efficient at turning light into energy.  A 200 watt monocrystalline is the same thing as a 200 watt polycrystalline panel.  They are just larger.  So if you have the roof space save yourself the money.  Other than the size required these panels are the same.

  I do not recommend amphorous solar panels.  Everything I’ve read on them states that they lose their ability to create energy significantly faster than the traditional solar panels.  So basically they are not going to last as long.

How much can I save?

Everyone wants to know how much solar is going to save them.  I’m anticipating my 5kw system will save me about $1000/year.  You may have different results there is one utility I love it is located here, http://www.recsolar.com/residentialhome.aspx.  It wil help you assess your situation.  If you consider for $6k you can save $1000/year that means my system will pay for itself in 6 years.  That is however considering there will be absolutely no energy infllation.  I do not believe this is the case but I wanted to use conservative numbers.  So you consider the system will pay itself off in 6 years you then get at least another 24 years or $24k.  I understand there may be better invstment options out there in which you can stick your $6k.  But you must step up.  Now is the time to start using renewable energy resources.  If not for our environment then for our national security.

Some items you will need are as follows:
Compass (if you want a true north pointing star, who doesn’t?)
T-square large and small
pencil
concrete backer board if it is not downstairs
string for circle measurements

The first thing you want to do obviously is rip up your existing flooring. Here are some images of my floor currently.

Next what you’ll want to do is use your compass to figure out your true north. Nobody wants a compass rose that points in the wrong direction. All you basically need to do is draw your design on the floor after that is complete. You’ll want to find your image on the internet. This is the one that I used.

From that image here is what I draw on my floor.

I ended up using a marker because the pencil kept getting wiped away.

After you have drawn your design the next step is as simple as laying the tile over it drawing an outline and start cutting.

Now that I have finished dry cutting all of the pieces it’s time to mix up the concrete and permanently put the pieces down. I’m about 30 hours into this so far.

Finally finished with the grout. Project Complete.

Intrade has shown to be deadly accurate. There is however almost 4 months until the end of June.