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Living In An Upside Down World
June 30, 2013 by DeBorrah K. Ogans
Filed under Society & Culture
Today we are living within an upside down world. In many instances what is wrong is embraced as right. What is right is embraced as wrong. This is why it is so very important that you get to know the TRUTH of GOD'S WORD. Know firsthand, for yourself intimately and personally who GOD and HIS WORD IS! This way you will not be so easily towed right along with everything you hear and see.
The Apostle Paul wanted to alert the Church to see how to recognize and confront "false teaching." Paul wrote to the Church extensively because he was so concerned that so many were getting caught up with the bureaucracy and the traditions of man. Paul encouraged the Church to preserve, model, embrace and live out Christian principles in every area of their daily life. Today, right now, we too need to be mindful of these very same things.
Quite often when one reads and visits the corridors of Scripture they see the characters and situations as merely historical and sometimes fictional. This can often cause one to become far removed. The Word is alive and powerful! The wealth of applicable practical wisdom endowed within the Scriptures often goes over their heads. This causes them to respond in an aloof manner to the lessons presented and overlook the wisdom lessons intended.
The people, prophets, priests and kings were real genuine people. In the Word you can discover people from every facet of life. They too have authentic issues no different from what we see today. God really is the same God who always was and always will be! He is eternal; in Him through His Son Christ Jesus we who believe, have the gift of eternal life. Time belongs to Him. Time is constructed for us to be able to relate within a time frame. We have all the time we need to do whatever it is God has created each one of us to be! When we have completed our course we go home to our Lord.
God is endless; He is the Alpha & Omega. The Beginning and the End!
The Book of Ephesians is an excellent Book to indulge your mind in for spiritual enlightenment. The Church became embroiled in endless questions. Arguments, politics and controversies often took them away from studying and applying the Scriptures. We must be mindful that it is so important to not get side-tracked from the intended purpose. It is important to sincerely desire and ask to be filled with His Holy Spirit. In order to glean the true intended meaning of the Scriptures we must rightfully divide and apply its intended purposes.
Many strive for popularity, prestige and recognition from peers rather than seek for God's approval. These things within themselves are not bad, but we must know that man is fickle and inconsistently changes very easily. Discernment is Key! Therefore it is important to know that through the Lord we really have everything we will ever need. He really does know everything we think, say do or do not do! Thank You Lord for Your Omnipresence!
Although it may not be readily tangibly present, we can rest assure that His power is always accessible. Ephesians tells us "Jesus Christ has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight…" Believe and ponder on this passage of Scripture for a while. Absorb and go deeply into its contents to glean the intended benefits. Let this reinforce within you the security and spiritual significance that rings forth. It says not some but all spiritual blessings.
There are a wealth of benefits in knowing and having a personal intimate relationship with the Lord. These blessings are not always visible where one can see. But they are available and accessible in the eternal heavenly spiritual realm. It is important to know how to "BE STILL & KNOW!" This means that they are eternal. God chose us and we belong to Him. This all took place way back before any of us even existed. Our little finite minds cannot conceive the totality of God. We are just minute particles in His whole scheme of things. No matter how small, large, visible or unseen it is all relevant to Him. We must daily grow in His Grace. We must trust HIM more. We must be committed to; "Walk by FAITH!"
When any scene or situation presents itself on our life's canvas we must seek His direction to properly apply and paint the intended strokes. Having the proper attitude about God is necessary to deal with any present injustices. Persecution and misunderstanding will attempt to take a dominant position to etch insecurity and doubt onto the forefront of your life canvas. Yielding subdued hues and shades of gray to subliminally overshadow the main theme. But as you always keep in mind that God knows you, His Light will shine forth in the midst even when darkness tries to impose itself upon you.
We must remain steadfast and unmovable upon His Word! For it is a "Solid Rock Foundation!" We cannot predict the future precisely. But we can focus, trust and put our faith in God our Creator and Maker who knows us and will watch over and protect us living in and upside down world.
God allows both good and bad times for all of us. "He is not a respecter of persons." We must learn to consistently lean and put our faith and trust in Him. In order to not be pulled into whatever is suddenly hurled into your direction even though intended to snarl, derail, discredit our credibility or entrap us, our focus must be on HIM! We must learn how not to allow insults, injustices or any storm or seasonal moment in time define the totality of our existence.
When you spend time in His presence you can abide under the shadow of The Almighty because you know that He knows and that is what ultimately truly matters. Ecclesiastes tells us that, "There is something else meaningless that occurs on earth; righteous men who get what the wicked deserve, and wicked men who get what the righteous deserve." We are living in an upside down world. The point that I am trying to make is that life has a deeper meaning than what man sees. Many seek first as a top priority to be affirmed and recognized in the eyes of man. Momentarily this may satisfy an inner longing, life on this side of heaven is short, there really is a deeper meaning to life.
If all the wisdom, prestige or power that the world has to offer were available it would be but a minute particle in regards to the infinite wisdom and power of the Lord. Perhaps this is why Jesus Christ made Himself of no reputation? Yes we are "in the world but not of the world!" For, "it is Him we live and move and have our being." Although often unrecognized or accepted by the masses Jesus did not deter from His life purpose. He remained faithful and committed to the will of His Father in and often, cruel, often harsh upside down world.
God sees and knows it all. It is not merely how things appear or seem. We all will have to stand before an all-knowing all-wise God who knows where our hearts and minds are as well as our intentions. Know the Lord and His Word so you are not towed along with the "false teaching" of anyone. We are living in an upside down world. Ephesians says "have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. But everything is exposed to the Light becomes visible, for the Light makes everything visible…"
God tells us to live as children of the Light. When you are walking in the Light you know that whatever darkness tries to overshadow your life's canvas, that your Creator, Your Maker, Our heavenly Father is omniscient. Be patient and be reassured He is totally aware! You can surely trust Him to keep you right side up, living in and upside down world.
Notice how most animals walk on all fours. God Created us as His children to walk uprightly, our hands should be readily available to reach up and Praise Him! It is important to be aware of what is going on about us. We do not want to live in denial neither is it healthy. Life without God is futile, meaningless. God's Word is our life manual and essential intrinsic tool to help us navigate through life. We can find hope in the midst of sorrow, joy in the midst of sadness, comfort in the midst of pain, encouragement in the midst of persecution and peace within the midst of an upside down world.
Make it a priority to spend some time in His Word not only on Sunday or whatever your designated Bible Study night may be. Study all through the week! The Book of Ecclesiastes tells us " Whatever is has already been, and what will be has been before." Yes we should be aware living in an upside down world, but not totally alarmed. Through the eyes of God we can see and recognize life problems and realize that God does have a plan to take us through whatever comes our way.
Through faith we can trust God and always seek His will for our path forward regardless of where you are in life. God has a plan for the lives of all of His children. God's plan simply is to daily live for Him. Ecclesiastes ends by telling us that "Now all has been heard here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep His commandments. FOR THIS IS THE WHOLE, DUTY OF MAN. For GOD will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil." This is true even living in and upside down world.
Holy Matrimony – Chapter 1 – Marriage Who's Idea Is It Anyway ?
January 31, 2012 by DeBorrah K. Ogans
Filed under Archives
Marriage is for two mature responsible adults. One male and one female. Or one man and one woman created by God. It was God's idea from the beginning of time that man and woman co-habit in a loving monogamous relationship. God formed Adam out of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life. He placed man in the Garden of Eden to work and care for it. He even gave man instructions. "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die". Genesis 1: 16-17 NIV
It was God who decided that the man He created should not be alone. "The Lord God said, It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him." Genesis 2: 18 NIV. God decided that Adam needed a companion. He caused Adam to sleep deeply and extracted one of his rib bones. From this he made woman. She became bone of his bones and flesh of his flesh. Woman came out of man. She came from his side. Someone for him to love and cherish to be close to his side.
Why all the historical religious stuff? Remember anything can be religious. This is a profound spiritual truth! God is the exclusive Creator of mankind. Man and Woman came from God. Not apes. No big bang! Not evolution! Who made the first car? Who made the first stoplight? Who made the first TV? Who invented computers? Give credit where it is due! GOD made man and woman.
God's design for marriage has not changed! The Supreme Court of the United States has voted against the WORD of GOD and has sanctioned same-sex unions. It is so very important to know that MARRIAGE GOD'S WAY WORKS!
Purchase your copy of "Holy Matrimony" to read more…


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It can get you into all sorts of trouble, including becoming inconsistent. That has just happened with Chicago Fed Charles Evans. According to Ryan Avent:
THOSE of us who have spent much of the past few years complaining that Federal Reserve policy was too tight to nurture a strong economic recovery are grateful for Chicago Fed president Charles Evans. Mr Evans has made two invaluable contributions to monetary policy-making. He has made himself an open advocate for a more "dovish" policy regime: a departure of sorts within the Federal Open Market Committee, where the loudest voices are nearly always those calling for tighter policy. And he has pushed the committee toward a policy framework that represents a real advance for the central bank. Mr Evans was an early supporter of using numerical thresholds to shape communication about future interest rate decisions. He would swap out guidance suggesting rates would stay low for an extended period or until a calendar date for language relating future interest rate moves to rates of unemployment and inflation, making it much easier for markets to understand what economic conditions the Fed is trying to achieve.
Perhaps more important, Mr Evans' first pass at the thresholds was surprisingly inflation-tolerant. He reckoned the FOMC should leave rates low until unemployment fell below 7%, so long as inflation remained below 3%. A tolerance for higher inflation may be a critical ingredient in recovery from the sort of recession America faced in 2007-2009, in which deflationary pressures were significant and the Fed's policy rate was stuck at the zero lower bound. It has been encouraging to watch other FOMC members come around to Mr Evans' view, and to see Fed policy inch in his direction.
But Mr Evans' latest speech is a little disconcerting, because it seems to reflect a slightly more inflation-averse perspective. He seems to have moved toward the view of Chairman Ben Bernanke, that the Fed can immaculately boost real growth without any inflationary consequences (or, if you like, "side benefits").
Why, instead of providing a numerical value for a nominal spending target, did Evans tweak with inflation and unemployment numbers? Now he wants no Fed interest rate action until unemployment comes down to 6.5% and inflation is not above 2.5%. Evans says:
With regard to the inflation safeguard, I have previously discussed how the 3 percent threshold is a symmetric and reasonable treatment of our 2 percent target. This is consistent with the usual fluctuations in inflation and the range of uncertainty over its forecasts. But I am aware that the 3 percent threshold makes many people anxious.
He´s NOT aware, he was made aware! It´s not politically correct for the Fed to mention any rate higher than 2%, ever! That´s become an impregnable firewall. Soon he´ll be down to Kocherlakota´s 2.25%. Maybe that´s the acceptable threshold "margin of fluctuation".

subset: commoncrawl


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The Undercover Soundtrack – Warren FitzGerald
Posted by Roz Morris @Roz_Morris in Undercover Soundtrack on April 9, 2014
'A trickle of notes can flood your thoughts with broken things'
Once a week I host a writer who uses music as part of their creative environment – perhaps to connect with a character, populate a mysterious place, or hold a moment still to explore its depths. This week my guest is former rock singer and multi-award-winning author Warren FitzGerald @Warren_FitzG
Soundtrack by Gustavo Santaolalla, Ludovico Einaudi
Music is evil. It's the Juju man messing with your head. It's the sound of Bacardi Breezers clinking in the park when your soul is really being blasted by icy winds. And worse, perhaps, a carefully chosen trickle of notes can flood your thoughts with broken things when really the forecast is fine.
So says one of the characters in a novel I'm working on at the moment. I agree with her: her reasons. But the conclusion I draw is different. For me music is not evil, music is awesome, powerful, magical. That's probably something most of us feel, but perhaps I have studied its effect a little more than some because of my previous incarnation as a singer which included the joy and stress of being in a struggling rock band to the buzz of performing all over the world as a session singer to audiences as big as 20,000 people, and trust me that is awesome, powerful, magical!
The inspiration for my latest novel Tying Down The Sun came from my recent travels through South America. A heady few months in a continent booming with music. Latin Americans love their music and they love it loud. But the greater part of this novel concerns itself with a harrowing kidnapping which takes place within the beautiful jungles of the Sierra Nevada, Colombia. A place, which when I trekked through there a couple of years back, was one of the few parts on the continent so remote I did not hear music. But music has been crucial in helping me recall and verbalizethat landscape and its own intense soundtrack sung only by cicadas and silence.
The work of Argentinean musician Gustavo Santaolalla particularly from the film soundtracks for Babel and The Motorcycle Diaries was the obvious choice for me if I ever needed to recapture the atmosphere of those majestic landscapes and precious ruins I came across as I backpacked around Peru, Colombia and Bolivia. Every haunting track Santaolalla produces echoes with the vastness of the great waterways of South America, of the endless rain forests, the mountain ranges, the windswept deserts and their icy emerald lakes. If I ever for a moment forgot what it felt like to be there I would just play Deportation/Iguazu and I would be transported there once again with my characters, perched on the edge of Ciudad Perdida, the lost city, couched among jungle clad mountains which joyfully weep with silent waterfalls. And if that's all it takes to get me back to those heart-swelling places then music (like literature) is truly magical.
Looking for freedom
The two protagonists in Tying Down The Sun are both young women looking for freedom. We first meet 14-year-old Luz as she is deciding to break away from her isolated Amazonian village and its customs which she finds barbaric, only to escape to a life as a child soldier in the National Liberation Army (ELN), taking freedom from her hostages yet soon realising she is in fact as disenfranchised as them. And we first meet Sarah as she marvels at the natural wonders and ancient indigenous cultures of South America, as she lets her hair down after finishing her degree in London, before she becomes one of those hostages herself.
Some of Sarah's five fellow captives begin their carefree tourist trek through the rain forests equipped with I-pods to supply them with entertainment on the long nights under the stars, but as the unplanned days and weeks at gunpoint pass, the batteries die and music becomes a rare commodity. Just before the last I-pod loses power, Sarah and Luz cement their unlikely friendship by appreciating a piece by Beethoven. The same piece doesn't do much for me, but in order to understand how it might move some of my characters I indulged in a piano recording which affects me enormously. I Giorni by Ludovico Einaudi was the piece I used to get myself 'in the zone' because the opening few notes alone break my heart every time I hear them. Beautiful because it's so sad, or sad because it's so beautiful, this recording makes my heart feel like bursting, I think, because the images it conjures (long lost lovers reunited and caressing each other like blind people feeling their way, crashing waves seen silently through the window of an idyllic cottage, to name a few) are never in reality without their spoiling imperfections.
Like me, Luz desperately tries to remain cynical about life and love even though her heart and phenomena such as music tempt her to believe life can be perfect:
I played Te Aviso, Te Anuncio and remembered the wonderful ache in my feet as I stomped through cigarette butts and plastic cups. I played Crazy In Love and felt the luxurious sickness in my stomach when I used to twirl until everyone else disappeared.
As the reader and Sarah find out just what horrors Luz has had to endure in her young life already, they surely can't blame her for her cynicism, but I have hope for Luz because the one word from her indigenous language of Quechua which she clings on to, despite abandoning the rest of her Amazonian roots, is tinkuy. Tinkuy means to dance, but it also means to battle. As Luz's uncle tells her:
There is no separate word for each. It is just a matter of interpretation, a matter of context. But you have to decide which way you are going to go. Are you going to battle through life or are you going to dance?
I'll leave the reader to decide if my hope for Luz is justified; to decide whether the novel ends with a battle or a dance.
A graduate of Warwick University and former singer in rock bands, these days Warren FitzGerald often finds himself in remote and ostensibly dangerous corners of the globe. His travel usually involves voluntary work on projects including the building of a health centre in Kibungo, Rwanda (the setting for his first novel, The Go-Away Bird), living on a rubbish dump in Nicaragua (the subject of a documentary film he is currently working on) and trekking through the combat zones and cocaine regions of the Sierra Nevada, Colombia (the setting for his new book Tying Down the Sun).Warren's first novel, The Go-Away Bird won the Amazon Rising Stars Award 2010, Authors' Club Best First Book Award (longlisted) 2011 and was Waterstones' Book of the Month: Oct 2011. He lives in London. Find him on Facebook and tweet him as @Warren_FitzG
Amazon Rising Stars Award 2010, authors, Authors' Club Best First Book Award, Babel, Beethoven, Bolivia, characters, Ciudad Perdida, Colombia, contemporary fiction, Desert Island Discs, drama, entertainment, Gustavo Santaolalla, hostages, incarnation, kidnap, kidnap stories, Latin America, literary fiction, Ludovico Einaudi, male writers, music, music for writers, music for writing, music of Latin America, music of South America, musician-turned-writer, musicians, My Memories of a Future Life, Nail Your Novel, National Liberation Army, Peru, playlist for writers, rock singer, Roz Morris, session vocalist, Sierra Nevada, singers, South America, Sun, The Go-Away Bird, The Motorcycle Diaries, The Undercover Soundtrack, Tying Down The Sun, undercover soundtrack, vocalists, Warren FitzGerald, Waterstones' Book of the Month, writers, writing, writing to music
'A trickle of notes can flood your thoughts with broken things' – Warren FitzGerald
Posted by Roz Morris @Roz_Morris in Undercover Soundtrack on April 7, 2014
My guest this week has studied music more closely than some. His previous artistic incarnation was a rock singer – both with a band of his own and performing as a session vocalist to vast venues. (If you're very good, we'll include a video of him so you can see for yourself.) Now he has settled into an artform of lower decibel, but he hasn't left music behind. His latest novel, Tying Down The Sun, is the story of a kidnap in the Sierra Nevada and he used music to help him verbalise the landscape and to mark the plight of his captive characters as their ordeal wears on. He is Warren Fitzgerald and he'll be here on Wednesday with his Undercover Soundtrack.
authors, contemporary fiction, Desert Island Discs, drama, entertainment, incarnation, kidnap, kidnap stories, Latin America, literary fiction, male writers, music, music for writers, music for writing, music of Latin America, music of South America, musician-turned-writer, musicians, My Memories of a Future Life, Nail Your Novel, playlist for writers, rock singer, Roz Morris, session vocalist, Sierra Nevada, singers, South America, The Undercover Soundtrack, Tying Down The Sun, undercover soundtrack, vocalists, Warren FitzGerald, writers, writing, writing to music
- The Undercover Soundtrack is a series where writers - and occasionally other arty folk - reveal how music shapes their work.
- It began as a companion to my first novel, My Memories of a Future Life, and now thrives as a creative salon in its own right. Pull on your headphones and join us.
- If you're curious about the novel that started it all, click the image below.
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Multi-Story Pick of the Month March and October 2012
Alliance of Independent Authors Book of the Month, January 2013
Email merozmorriswriter at gmail dot com
- All content copyright Roz Morris 2011-2023. Nothing may be reproduced without my express permission in writing beforehand. Photography: Bonnie Schupp Photography, gcg2009 and Roz Morris
What is The Undercover Soundtrack?Sleeve notes here
For the soundtrack of My Memories of a Future Life, you'll need Chopin's Sonata in B Minor, Rachmaninov preludes, lashings of Grieg's piano concerto in A minor and The Clash's Rock the Kasbah (they go together well).
You'll also need Samuel Barber's Dover Beach on piano, although that doesn't actually exist so do the best you can.
And the novel's undercover pieces. You can find them here
Previous guests
- Aaron Sikes
- Adam Byatt
- Adrienne Thompson
- AJ Waines
- Alice Degan
- Alison Layland
- Amanya Maloba
- Andrea Darby
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- Catherynne M Valente
- Catriona Troth
- Chele Cooke
- Chris Cander
- Chris Hill
- Chrissie Parker
- Christina Banach
- Christine Tsen
- Claire King
- Claire Scobie
- Clare Flynn
- Consuelo Roland
- Corwin Ericson
- Dan Gennoe
- Dan Holloway
- Daniel Paisner
- Dave Malone
- Dave Morris
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- Debbie Bennett
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- JB Dutton
- Jennie Coughlin
- Jennifer Scoullar
- Jessica Bell
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- Karen Wojcik Berner
- Katharine Grant
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- Kelley Wilde
- Kelly Simmons
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- Kevin McGill
- Kim Cleary
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- Kirsty Greenwood
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- Laura K Cowan
- Laura Pauling
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- Leslie Welch
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- Liz Fisher-Frank
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- Nigel Featherstone
- Niki Valentine
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- Stephanie Carroll
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- Steven A McKay
- Susan Price
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- Tabitha Suzuma
- Tanya Landman
- Tawnysha Greene
- Ted Oswald
- Teresa Frohock
- Terrence McCauley
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- What's on their soundtracks? Zip down to the footer and you can search by artiste or composer. See who shares your taste in inspirational music
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The Squam Lake Group
The Squam Lake Group is a non-partisan, non-affiliated group of academics who offer guidance on the reform of financial regulation.
Our group's first meeting was at New Hampshire's Squam Lake in fall 2008, amidst the deepening capital-markets crisis. Although informed by this crisis — its events and the ongoing policy responses — the group is intentionally focused on longer-term issues. We aspire to help guide reform of capital markets—their structure, function, and regulation. We base this guidance on the group's collective academic, private sector, and public policy experience.
|The members of the Squam Lake Group are:
N. Baily -
Brookings Institution
John Y. Campbell - Harvard University
John H. Cochrane - University of Chicago
Douglas W. Diamond - University of Chicago
Darrell Duffie - Stanford University
Kenneth R. French - Dartmouth College
Anil K Kashyap - University of Chicago
|Frederic S. Mishkin -
Columbia University
David S. Scharfstein - Havard University
Robert J. Shiller - Yale University
Matthew J. Slaughter - Dartmouth College
René M. Stulz - Ohio State University
If it is available, a description of a member's compensated outside (non-academic) activities can be found by clicking his name.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) asked for comments on two possible reforms. The first (Alternative One) would require a floating net asset value (NAV) for all prime institutional money market funds. The second (Alternative Two) would allow money market funds to impose liquidity fees and redemption gates if liquid assets fall below a pre-specified threshold. We argue that the floating NAV described in Alternative One would not achieve the goal of materially decreasing the systemic risk posed by MMFs because the NAV would not reflect actual prices at which investors and the fund itself could transact in a crisis. Unless the SEC is able to create a system whereby reported NAVs reflect actual NAVs, investors will have incentives to run. At a minimum, if this alternative is adopted MMFs should not be allowed to use amortized cost accounting for instruments maturing in 60 days or less. We also argue that the liquidity fees and redemption gates described in Alternative Two could actually exacerbate run incentives and could be detrimental to financial stability. As we have written previously, an appropriately sized capital buffer for prime money market funds would have a more meaningful impact on financial stability.
UBS recently announced it would pay part of the bonuses of 6500 highly compensated employees with bonds that would be forfeited if the bank does not meet its capital requirements. This memo underscores the benefits of contingent deferred compensation and makes recommendations for how such compensation should be structured at systemically important institutions. We also revise our proposal for contingent convertible bonds, explaining how these hybrid bonds can be combined with better designs for deferred compensation to reduce the need for future bailouts.
In its Proposed Recommendations on Money Market Mutual Fund Reform, the Financial Stability Oversight Council states that "Reforms to address the structural vulnerabilities of money market mutual funds ('MMFs') are essential to safeguard financial stability." We concur. The structure of MMFs makes them vulnerable to rapid large-scale redemptions ("runs"). Our main concern is with prime MMFs because they are a key source of short-term financing to large global financial institutions. A run on prime MMFs can threaten the ability of these financial institutions to process payments and to extend credit to other market participants, businesses and households. We conclude that a floating net asset value would not achieve the goal of materially decreasing the systemic risk posed by MMFs because their assets do not have a liquid secondary market. We believe, as we have written previously, that an appropriately sized capital buffer for prime money market funds would achieve the Council's financial stability goals.
David Scharfstein's Testimony on Money Market Funds, Presented to the Senate Banking Committee, 6/21/12
Scharfstein argues that the current structure of money market funds creates fundamental risks for the financial system. Prime money market funds are a critical source of short-term funding for large banks. This funding is unstable, however, because the ability of investors to withdraw their funds on demand combined with the fixed NAV structure makes money market funds susceptible to runs by their investors. This threat is magnified during periods of stress to the financial system, when banks are most in need of funding. Capital buffers large enough to meaningfully reduce portfolio and run risk are a desirable next step to improve financial stability.
The current stable-NAV model for prime money market funds exposes fund investors and systemically important borrowers to runs like those that occurred after the failure of Lehman in September 2008. This Working Paper argues that, to reduce this risk, funds should have either floating NAVs or buffers provided by their sponsors that can absorb losses up to a level to be set by regulators. We suggest alternative designs for such a buffer, as well as considerations that should be taken into account when determining its required size.
Copyright © 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 Squam Lake Group • All Rights Reserved.


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This year's crop of political hopefuls in New York City went through their first official winnowing last week. It was filing deadline for New York candidates for the state legislature, the U.S. House of Representatives and some judgeships.
After months of fulminations and exploring, possible candidates had to determine whether they were serious about running for office this fall. If they were, they had to collect signatures and file petitions. Those who were not in earnest will have to wait until next year -- or the year after that. Although filing does not guarantee a candidate a place on the ballot, it represents a necessary step in a candidacy for incumbents and challengers alike.
This year, all the state's legislators -- in the State Senate and Assembly -- and its members of the U.S. House of Representatives, along with candidates for various judgeships, must face the voters.
To keep you informed on the latest in an election year that could bring change to Albany as well as to Washington, D.C., Gotham Gazette features:
Who's Running for What: Our listing of candidates for state office this year and city office in 2009 now reflects who actually filed for office last week. Based on Board of Election records, this is the most current list of who will appear on the September primary and November general election ballots for Congress and the legislature. We have also added judicial races along with some photos and links to campaign Web sites -- and campaign finance information (look for the latestfilings soon). And we continue to update the lists of candidates for city office in 2009.
Just type in the office that interests you, the name of the incumbent or the name of a candidate to find out who represents you now -- and who wants your vote.
Between now and the elections, Gotham Gazette will offer original reporting on some of the key races to represent New York City in Congress, the State Senate and the State Legislature.
In Flatbush, Running with Baggage (21st Senate District): Ethnic politics could play a key role in this campaign where incumbent Kevin Parker will face off against two term-limited City Council members in search of their next political job.
A Battle over Reform (25th Senate District): Longtime incumbent Martin Connor faces a challenge from Daniel Squadron in a campaign where both candidates call for change in Albany but disagree over how to deliver it.
Running Against Albany on Manhattan's Lower East Side (64th Assembly District): One of the state's most powerful men -- Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver -- faces two political novices bidding for political history in his rapidly changing home district.
A House Divided in Washington Heights (72nd Assembly District): At Manhattan's northern tip, term-limited City Councilmember Miguel Martinez is taking on his one-time political mentor, longtime incumbent Adriano Espaillat.
Let the Challenges Begin: Now that the petitions have been filed, the legal maneuvering starts as candidates take advantage of New York's complicated election laws to try to knock rivals off the ballot.
Donkey Con: Just how hard is it to take on an incumbent politician in New York? Play Gotham Gazette's version of a video arcade classic to find out.
A Tougher Year for Incumbents?: With Democrats on the verge of taking the State Senate from Republicans and a host of term-limited City Council members looking for a new job, this year's legislative elections could be far more competitive than usual. A preview of some of the key state contests.


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Home builders up 2 percent on strong housing starts data. October housing starts at 894,000, the highest level since July 2008.
Single-family home starts were basically flat, but there was a big increase in multifamily home starts.
Bottom line: The housing recovery is real, and housing starts are approaching the psychologically important 1 million level. This is far below the record of 2.2 million set in 2006, but those were unrealistic levels — the 10-year average is close to 1.2 million units. (Read More: House Prices Are Nowhere Near a Bottom: Analyst)
1) Ya think so? "In line with trends experienced over the last three years, Best Buy's third-quarter financial performance was clearly unsatisfactory," the company said. That's putting it mildly: Even with a preannouncement, Best Buy's $0.03 a share was shockingly below the $0.12 a share expected. Free cash flow was revised lower by 30 percent. Share buybacks were suspended. Margins are declining.
Look at this: Entertainment same-store sales down 18.5 percent; consumer electronics down 8.4 percent; and services down 4.6 percent. Computing and mobile phones up just 1 percent. Only appliances showed a significant gain, up 10.8 percent.
Bottom line: Apple and Amazon.com continue to eat into sales. Other promotions by discounters and clubs take market share away. Still a chance of a Schulze-led takeover, but potential buyers are likely to just wait for the price to drift even lower.
This was a $20 stock in August, now $12.
2) Government spending cuts are coming ... with or without sequestration. So says Honeywell : "We have a plan."
Sen. Harry Reid (D.-Nev.) on the "fiscal cliff":"Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth."
That's Mike Tyson's famous line — spoken in response to a reporter who said an opponent had a plan to defend against his left hook — is a favorite line on trading desks. It's the Wall Street equivalent of "the best-laid plans of mice and men..." or just, "Sh-- happens."
Defense stocks have rallied in the past few days on a new "plan" ... that much-feared cuts that would occur under sequestration would not happen, and that the final deal will contain only modest cuts.
Honeywell, in an analyst day meeting yesterday that was little-noted, said that defense cuts were coming, with or without sequestration. Specifically, Honeywell believes 80 percent of the cuts triggered by sequestration will happen, even if they won't really start cutting until 2014.
This will not be disastrous to Honeywell (the defense and space segment will likely see only a roughly 1 percent decline in revenues in the next few years, according to analysts. The big surprise was that Honeywell is not fighting the cuts. "They need to happen," Mike Madsen, president of the defense and space unit, said.
This, with just a little imagination, could easily be expanded to government spending in general: Regardless of the so-called fiscal cliff, there will be less spending by the federal government. Not just defense. Tech spending. General procurement. Office stuff. Just about everything.
—By CNBC's Bob Pisani
Bookmark CNBC Data Pages:
Want updates whenever a Trader Talk blog is filed? Follow me on Twitter: twitter.com/BobPisani.
Questions? Comments? firstname.lastname@example.com


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MLB.com thanks you for voting. Starting rosters will be announced on Sunday, July 6.
Be sure to return to MLB.com from Sunday, July 6 to Thursday, July 10, to cast your 2008 All-Star Game Final Vote for the final player for each League's 32-man roster.
Finally, on Tuesday, July 15, watch the 2008 All-Star Game live and come to MLB.com and submit your choice for the Ted Williams Most Valuable Player via the 2008 All-Star Game MVP Vote.


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Fall River mayor, tribe leader meet but remain mum on casino
All bets could be off, at least for players who are banking on a casino in Middleboro.
The leader of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe confirmed he has been meeting with the mayor of Fall River but would not discuss the details.
"The tribe has a new administration, naturally we are conducting all appropriate due diligence," Wampanoag Tribal Council Chairman Cedric Cromwell said Thursday in a prepared statement.
Cromwell would not say if the tribe is making a bid to open a tribal casino in Fall River.
Fall River Mayor William F. Flanagan could not be reached for comment.
Middleboro officials declined to comment on the development.
When Gov. Deval Patrick proposed legislation for three resort-style casinos in 2007, the bill called for one of those casinos to be located in Southeastern Massachusetts.
Kofi Jones, spokesman for Gregory Bialecki, secretary of Housing and Economic Development, said the tribe met with her boss two weeks ago for informal talks on the tribe's "perspective of gaming in the commonwealth."
In July 2007, Middleboro selectmen signed an agreement with the tribe to host a $1 billion resort casino complex on more than 500 acres off Route 44.
In October, the tribe announced a scaled-back version of the original proposal and, in December, it announced a pending deal with new investors, ending a drawn-out feud with casino tycoons Sol Kerzner, Len Wolman and Herb Strather, principals of TCAM.
If the tribe has set its sights on a new location for a casino, Fall River is a city with infrastructure already in place, and the plan would fit in with the governor's push to revitalize the depressed region.
Fall River is developing a 300-acre executive park, with its own highway exit recently built with stimulus money, and it will be connected to Boston by train when the Southcoast rail comes through.
The recent deal with new investors promises to bring an infusion of cash to the tribe.
The new partner, Arkana Limited, owned by the Malaysian family of Lim Kok Thay, an affiliate of the investment firm of Kien Huat, has cash reserves of more than $3 billion.
It is the largest casino operator in Asia and has bankrolled casino resorts in Australia, the Americas, the United Kingdom, the Philippines and Singapore.
The Mashpee isn't the first tribe with which the Malaysia group has worked.
According to published reports, there is a complaint before the New York State Racing and Wagering Board alleging the organization hijacked the chief executive officer's position in an bid to take over Empire Resorts.
Joseph Bernstein, former CEO, outlined a detailed scheme Kien Haut used to gain control of Empire Resorts. A countercharge was filed against Bernstein earlier this month for breach of confidentiality.
The St. Regis Mohawk Tribe and Empire Resorts want to open an off-reservation casino in the Catskills.
The Enterprise


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Though wearable computing receives a great deal of publicity today, relatively little has been said about the prospects for wearables in the enterprise. That's surprising, because the enterprise could be where wearables really take off.
For consumers, wearables can carry a social stigma that might hold back adoption. That's not true in enterprises, where wearables will be seen as professional tools, as accepted as the UPS driver's brown uniform, the surgeon's scrubs and the engineer's clipboard. And wearable devices geared toward specific industry sectors don't have to be all things to a mass market of consumers. Specialized devices will empower professionals as diverse as surgeons, warehouse workers, police officers, technical field workers and product designers. Enterprises can also be conduits for getting consumers to use wearables.
Here are a few enterprise-focused wearable devices that are already hitting the market.
Fitness wearables for the masses
Fitness is one area where wearables have made some inroads. Nike, Jawbone, Fitbit, Adidas and BodyMedia are just some of the companies racing to capture the health-conscious consumer market. But it's a limited market. A Forrester survey revealed that just 5% of U.S. online consumers report using a wearable device to track their daily activity level. Though another 25% express interest in fitness wearables at the right price, the reality is that many "interested" consumers won't ever actually adopt a device.
However, if you bring the enterprise to bear on this market, the potential increases. Fitlinxx, a healthcare wearables company, is working through providers of employee wellness programs, healthcare providers, healthcare insurers and fitness facilities to expand its reach to consumers who might otherwise never use a wearable. For example, National Jewish Health, a healthcare provider, created a weight-loss program that integrated Fitlinxx's wearable technology. Over 2,000 people joined the 12-month program voluntarily. Those who completed the program lost 5% aggregate weight on average and saw a 13% year-on-year reduction in healthcare costs.
Stronger, Easier Authentication
Other vendors are targeting enterprises to distribute wearables to their employees. Authentication is a good example. Workers can be forced to respond to so many authentication requests in the course of the workday that it actually cuts into their productivity.
Most of these requests are addressed by just one of the three factors of authentication: something you know (a password, generally). An enterprise-focused vendor called Bionym, which was spun off from the University of Toronto, adds the two other factors -- something you are and something you have -- in an ingenious way. All three factors combined guarantee uniqueness, and the design of the Bionym approach addes persistence, which saves workers time by removing the need for repeated authentication.
The Bionym product achieves uniqueness by measuring heart patterns with an electrocardiogram (ECG) -- a completely individual identifier that is something you are. It offers persistence because the ECG is taken via a wristband -- something you have -- so that once authenticated, a worker remains authenticated, on all devices and applications, until the band is removed. Something you know comes into play when the user accesses the Bionym application on a registered device.
New forms of employee collaboration
At their best, enterprise wearables enable new usage scenarios. Some of the most interesting of these involve collaboration among employees.
Sociometric Solutions offers smart ID badges with a difference: They track employees' locations within the office and then correlate that data to track collaboration with peers. The badges also capture social signals (for example, is the employee listening to peers, or interrupting them?). Company managers receive aggregate reports on trends, and individual employees can learn how they compare to peers. For example, say that successful people in your role spend 25% of their time collaborating with the R&D department, but you only spend 10% of your time doing so. With this data, employees can work to improve their performance.
Vidcie by Looxcie employs head-mounted cameras to empower real-time video-based collaboration. For example, field services worker in manufacturing, telecommunications and other technically complex fields can stream videos of their current project and receive real-time input from peers. In the best cases, repeat visits can be avoided through this input.
Ultimately, both IT professionals and business leaders should embrace enterprise wearables as an opportunity to increase worker productivity, create loyal customer relationships and drive business process reinventions for their companies.
J.P. Gownder is a vice president and principal analyst at Forrester Research serving infrastructure and operations professionals.


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From now until May 6th you can head to the Xbox Video store for some of our newest and best anime on sale up to 50% off their normal season price! Don't have an Xbox console? No worries, just click here and pick something up from the following favorites:
Psycho Pass
Attack on Titan
Space Dandy
Robotics; Notes
Ghost in The Shell Arise 1


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April 16, 2009— -- When videos of employees violating a host of public health laws hit the Internet and went viral, Domino's Pizza knew it was facing a public relations crisis capable of damaging its well-known and well-regarded brand in a matter of days.
Through Twitter, blogs and YouTube, the videos had been viewed by millions of people, highlighting the power of social media to tarnish a 50-year-old brand virtually overnight.
Domino's was the latest company to be on the wrong end of a "Twitter storm," a spontaneously formed digital mob that rapidly shares information. The company's swift response to the employees and its wider customer base, using the same Web sites and media that spread the video, has been praised by observers who nevertheless wonder if the company can emerge unscathed.
Shot by one employee, the video depicted another worker in the kitchen of a Conover, N.C. franchise putting cheese in his nose, blowing mucous on a sandwich and a putting a sponge he would use to wash dishes between his buttocks.
"This is Michael's special Italian sandwich," said Michael Setzer, 32, on the video, before taking a piece of mozzarella cheese from his nose and putting it on a sandwich.
Setzer and his colleague Kristy Hammonds, 31, who shot the video and posted it online, both were arrested and charged with food tampering, a felony in North Carolina. The store at which they worked was shut down to be restaffed and disinfected, according to a company spokesman.
Calls made to Setzer and Hammonds by ABCNews.com were not returned.
The digital mob played a role in alerting the company to the errant employees and tracking down their identities. Readers of the consumer affairs blog consumerist.com, which posted the video early in the week, tracked Hammonds down through her YouTube account and identified the store from matching an exterior shot in a video with an image on Google maps.
"With customers' help, we were able to find the store identify the people involved," said Domino's spokesman Tim McIntyre. "By Tuesday, we had contacted the franchise owner, given him the info we had and told him to take quick and decisive action."
McIntyre said he first learned of the video from people who found it online and called or e-mailed him or the company.
Part of Domino's approach to handling the outcry of disgusted patrons was for McIntyre to directly respond to individuals, targeting bloggers who spread the video and whom he hoped would disseminate the company's response.
Rather than issue a formal press release to the mainstream press, which McIntyre feared would only encourage more people to find and view the video, he targeted the online audience that had expressed an interest.
"I'm savvy enough to know that if I'm contacted by a blogger, whatever I say is going to get posted," McIntyre said. "Even if I think I'm responding to an individual, I'm potentially talking to millions."
When the company received an e-mail from Hammonds apologizing for the prank and claiming the tainted food was never delivered, Domino's "copied e-mail verbatim and shared it with everyone," McIntyre said.
The company then posted a video response on YouTube by company president Patrick Doyle, in the hopes that the same Twitter members and bloggers who spread the video would spread the corporate reaction and apology.
"We sincerely apologize for this incident," said Doyle. "We thank members of the online community who quickly alerted us and allowed us to take immediate action."
McIntyre said the company made an effort not to hide anything, and despite a rapid response that addressed the public's concern, the company could have responded even faster.
"If there is a lesson here," he said, "it is to move faster than we did."
Companies are quickly realizing that social networks give customers an outlet to air grievances and stage a protest in a matter of hours, said Joseph Jaffe, president and chief interrupter of Crayon, a new media consulting company.
Earlier this week, Amazon.com issued a dry boilerplate press release in response to thousands of angry customers who found each other on Twitter and complained that the bookseller had removed gay-themed titles from best-seller lists.
In November, mothers enraged by a Motrin ad that suggested carrying babies in a sling was a painful trend created enough public outrage online to get the company to pull the ad.
Similarly, redesigned Tropicana containers were pulled from the shelves after an angry Twitter storm struck the company and forced a reversal.
The Internet has changed the public relations landscape for companies. It seems they no longer can ignore customers and hope problems disappear.
"The original [Domino's] video has [been] removed from YouTube and yet still out there," Jaffe said. "It has been duplicated, cloned, ripped and rebroadcast. This is the first time companies are learning that once something is out there, it's out there. No one is quick enough to destroy them or pull them down, so you have responded intelligently."
Jaffe lauded Domino's for its response but said the company made two mistakes.
For one, the company should have "blasted a press release" rather than targeted blogs.
Secondly, he said, Domino's and other companies have to be better at listening to the Internet. Corporations, he said, should monitor what is being said about them and actively engage those people to positively change what people think about them.


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If you're Horde, and you've made your way well into Dragonblight, you'll know what I'm talking about. And it doesn't end with the big scene at the Wrathgate. Oh, no. The story that ends there at the gate is literally mind blowing. You'll be shocked and asking yourself "The WHO? How is that possible? We all kind of knew, but this changes everything!"
But you follow up on things, join in on the action, help recover the situation, and bring it to the true conclusion of the quest chain.
If you're Alliance, you'll get bupkis. (Uh, my bad. See the edit note below!)
Which has me wondering: Will the Alliance get their Wrathgate later on in the WotLK? Or the Expansion perhaps? Something to do with the Emerald Dream? Will they have a "Dream Portal" quest chain that Horde are denied? Something centered on and/or revolving around Night Elves, Druids, and the Emerald Dream? Will it involve Azshara and her Naga and the Maelstrom? Will the greener side of the Stormrage family come back into play?
Time will tell. (And our level 80 (level 80 by that time) Night Elf Druids will have something to look forward to.)
Edit: I might do need to take that back. It would seem the Alliance have their share in this event as well. That's good to know. So, maybe, maybe not, there'll be an Alliance-centric version of something like this next Expansion, available, of course, to both side! 🙂


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ATLANTA (AP) — Jekyll Island's governing board on Monday approved a series of agreements with a developer to get a 200-room beachfront Westin Hotel project back on track, a spokesman for the island authority said.
The hotel is part of a broader plan to revitalize the tourist destination. The Jekyll Island Beach Village project also includes an adjacent convention center that just opened and plans for a second hotel, new shops, restaurants and public parks along the beach.
"It's hard to overstate how important this is," Jekyll Island Authority spokesman Eric Garvey said of the $41 million Westin project.
"The new convention center opened in May to rave reviews, but it's critical that we have the new hotel just adjacent to it to really make it all work," he said.
Construction of the Westin was to have started in September, but developers were unable to secure needed financing.
The agreements approved Monday by the board, meeting on Jekyll Island, allow the project to move forward, Garvey said.
"The timeline becomes more definite now that these agreements have been passed," he said.
Under the deal approved Monday, the Westin hotel must be under construction by April 30, 2013. It must be opened by Aug. 31, 2014.
The board approved a deal to use the new Jekyll Island Tourism Development Fund to enable the developer to secure financing for the Westin. The fund uses a portion of the hotel/motel tax collected from overnight visitors to the island.
For the first 10 years, the Westin Jekyll Island will be eligible to receive funds from the Jekyll Island Tourism Development Fund to help market property, the authority said in a statement. The 10-year total of the incentive amounts to $6.1 million.
Also planned is a 135-room Hyatt Place Hotel one block from the beach.
When completed, Jekyll Island Beach Village will be able to host 120 conventions per year, according to projections from the authority.
"The beachfront Westin will play a significant role in attracting businesses and leisure guests from across the country to Jekyll Island and the coast of Georgia," Bob Krueger, chairman of the Jekyll Island Authority, said in a statement.