The World I Know

$23 Quadrillion For A Packet of Cigarettes!

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 08:35:00 +0000

Josh Muszynski swiped his debit card at a local Mobil gas station to buy a pack of cigarettes for a few bucks - only to find his card charged $23,148,855,308,184,500. He was one of the many people hit by a VISA system glitch.

In case you can't figure out how much is $23 Quadrillion, that is about 2,007 times the size of the US national debt. If you could count, let us start counting from the "quadrillion" then "trillion" then "billion" than " million" then "thousand" than "hundred dollar".

$23,148,855,308,184,500 (twenty-three quadrillion, one hundred forty-eight trillion, eight hundred fifty-five billion, three hundred eight million, one hundred eighty-four thousand, five hundred dollars)-- that is how quadrillion dollars amount to! Whew!

"I thought somebody had bought Europe with my credit card," Muszynski said.

"It is a lot of money in the negative," he said. "Something I could never, ever, afford to pay back.

"My children could not afford it, grandchildren, nothing like that."

Dang! smoking is so expensive now, a country couldn't even pay its trillion-dollar debt, what more can a poor man with 23 quadrillion dollars of debt. LOL!

Anyone who thinks smoking isn't a costly addiction should ask poor Josh Muszynski. Time to quit smoking now! ROFL!

Read the full story HERE

The Recession Is Actually Getting Under Your Pants!

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 12:40:00 +0000

Ok! We can learn something new everyday, came across this article on MSN Money titled " How your undies track the recession!", this made me chuckle. According to economist Alan Greenspan, the former Federal Reserve chief, underwear sales are a great indicator of the economy's status.

Well, I believe everybody know about Alan Greenspan, It's nothing wrong to said that if you want to blame one person for this financial crisis, than Alan Greenspan is the guy. he is contributed so much of this financial meltdown for supporting the sub-prime mortgage strategy and drove US and the world into the ditch.

Now he want us to believe the recession is actually getting under your pants . when men aren't buying undies, our economy is in the tank, so instead of talking of the Fed's role is this financial meltdown fiasco. he is talking about underwear sales.

So interesting and "AMUSING"， read the article below.

How Your Undies Track The Recession

By Michael Brush

MSN Money

To help predict a recovery, economists such as Alan Greenspan look to men's underwear sales. Here's what those and other unusual economic indicators say about the road ahead.

Guys, if you want to know where the economy is headed next, look in your underwear drawer.

If you're like most men, you've got more than a few skivvies in, well, less than perfect condition.

If you're put off buying replacements -- and your significant other hasn't done it for you -- then guess what? The recession probably ain't over yet.

In fact, right now men's underwear sales suggest that things have bottomed but not started to recover.

Sure, this sounds trivial. But no less an economist than former Federal Reserve chief Alan Greenspan is a fan of men's underwear sales as an important economic indicator.

It's one of several unusual indicators economists turn to in hard times. We went looking through them in a quest for the much-discussed "green shoots" of an imminent recovery.

Underneath the underwear indicator

Greenspan reasons that because hardly anyone actually sees a guy's undies, they're the first thing men stop buying when the economy tightens. (He told this to National Public Radio's Robert Krulwich years ago.)

By extension, pent-up demand means underwear sales should be among the early risers when growth returns and consumers feel confident enough to shrug off "frugal fatigue," says Marshal Cohen, the chief industry analyst with NPD Group, which tracks consumer behavior.

After a 12-month, 12% decline through the end of January, men's underpants sales leveled off during February and March, according to NPD. That suggests the economic was stabilizing, Cohen says.

Click Here To Read Complete Source Article.

PASSAGE OF TIME LEAVES OUT NO ONE !!

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 10:35:00 +0000

Today is my birthday, a big thank you to all for the Happy Birthday wishes. Yup! I am celebrate my Big Four birthday, absolutely and totally don’t mind turning 40 & I feel proud of it.

My best friend send me this email to "encourage" and "comfort" me for turning 40, love it & would like to reproduce here. The title say it all & very true, hope that you guys like it & Again, thank you to everyone for the well wishes. I do appreciate it!

PASSAGE OF TIME LEAVES OUT NO ONE !!

I thought it happened only to me, but was consoled and encouraged after receiving this e-mail.

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Rod Stewart

Clint Eastwood

Russel Crowe

Brendan Fraser

Roger Moore

Richard Gere

Pierce Brosnan

Alec Baldwin

Mickey Rourke

Val Kilmer

I am feeling much much better now, ARE YOU FEELING BETTER TOO???
HAVE A GOOD DAY, FRIENDS!!!!

Another Milestone: Turning 40!

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Wed, 27 May 2009 05:57:00 +0000

I’m turning forty years old next Monday. Almost since the beginning of this year, I’ve been thinking about the past and the future. Turning forty made me not only think about what I hadn't accomplished, but also what I had accomplished.

When I reflect back on these and other comings and goings of my 40 years, I’m overwhelmed. I’ve been given privileges and opportunities that are far beyond anything I deserve. My life previously has been great, I am quite contented with my life, so far I have lived my life how I have wanted, I have a loving wife and 3 wonderful and lovely kids. happy home and comfortable life. I am really enjoy running my own business for the past 15 years, my job give me a lot of freedom and had many great experiences and able to met many great people.

That’s right, I’m 40 years old. FORTY!!! The big Four. So, What's so big about that number?

When I was younger , 30 was unthinkable. 40 is considered old people. I am forty now, it means I am getting older, approaching " over the hill" . 40 means I am hitting my midlife. It's a bit strange that I never feel like I will have a midlife crisis (To my wife: not to worry, I will not having an affair), I never had an issue of getting older. But I'd be lying if I said that I don't feel the pressure of time.

There are so many turning 40 jokes. Let me share with you one of my favorite:

" 40 year old person's life is a master "piece". If we split his life into two, left (below 40) & right (above 40); In the left nothing is right and in the right nothing is left (he is old) "

I think that’s a good joke, yup! I am forty – and proud of it!

Susan Boyle -Never Judge A Book By Its Cover

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 07:09:00 +0000

YouTube video of Susan Boyle is taking the Internet by storm, the video clip has been watched more than 5 million times in just 4 days.

Who is Susan Boyle?

Susan Boyle is a contestant on Britian's Got Talent. She's 47, lives along with a cat. She's frumpy, unemployed, from a small Scottish village. She is unmarried, and never been kissed. Her previous singing experience was limited to the church choir and karaoke. she was treated as a laughing stock when she walked on stage, the audience laughed and the judges shook their heads in disbelief as she said she would like to be as successful as Elaine Paige. In most respects, you might look at this kind of person many as Loser.

And now, go and watch her performance here! (the embed has been disabled). Trust me, It's must watch video, well worth the 7 minutes it takes to view !

Wow! Wow! Wow!

Gosh! What an amazing voice and stunning performance. When Susan Boyle turned mockery into awe and laughter into tears. I though, what a lesson in humility this is for all of us,

"Everyone laughed at you but no-one is laughing now. I'm reeling with shock." Holden added: "It's the biggest wake-up call ever."

Yup! It's the biggest wake-up call for all of us, There are so many lessons that we can learn from this woman's story. we are just like the three judges and the audience that alway love to judge people by appearance and only think the pretty and good looking are expected to achieve. It was rude, cruel and arrogant. Hopefully we learned the old adage: never judge a book by it's cover.

Now go and read her story here and here, you will definitely love this lady more!

From The Herald

Susan is a reminder that it's time we all looked a little deeper. She has lived an obscure but important life. She has been a companionable and caring daughter. It's people like her who are the unseen glue in society; the ones who day in and day out put themselves last. They make this country civilised and they deserve acknowledgement and respect.

Susan Boyle - you GO girl!

Now You Don't Need A Million Dollars To Live Like A Millionaire!

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 04:57:00 +0000

Thanks for the global credit crunch, now you don't need a million dollars to live like a millionaire!

Came across this interesting piece from www.matadorlife.com,,

What Can $150k Buy in Real Estate Around the World?

With the global credit crunch spiraling into an economic crisis, here’s what $150k can buy you right now around the world.

Argentina: Centro, Buenos Aires

USD Price: $149,000

Bedrooms: 2 Bathrooms: 1

Notes / Link: This place is fully remodeled and right in El Centro, 2 blocks from Teatro Colon.

Chile: Villarrica, Region 9

USD Price: $110,000

Bedrooms: 3 Bathrooms: 3

Notes / Link: This house is in the town of Villarrica, and has world-class backcountry terrain all around.

Russia: Chystye Prudy Area, Moscow

USD Price: $152,000 (approx.)

Bedrooms: 2 Bathrooms: 2

Notes / Link: Right in the center of Moscow.

South Africa: Jeffrey’s Bay, Eastern Cape

USD Price: $152,200 (approx.)

Bedrooms: 5 Bathrooms: 3

Notes / Link: This pad has a barbecue, garden, and you’re close to one of the sickest surf spots in the world.

Australia: Deniliquin, New South Wales

USD Price: $144,400 (approx.)

Bedrooms: 5 Bathrooms: 3

Notes / Links A full on 27-acre farm near thetown of Deniliquin. Extremely affordable Australian home loans are also available.

Portugal: Evora, Alentejo

USD Price: $150,500 (approx.)

Bedrooms: 2 Bathrooms: 1

Notes / Link: in sweet village of Viana do Alentejo.

Indonesia: Lovina, Bali

USD Price: $107,000 (approx.)

Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 2

Notes / Link: A straight-up private villa on Bali with mature palms / banana trees and some kind of ’split level swimming pool’. Ridiculous.

Croatia: Porec, Istria

USD Price: $150,700 (approx.)

Bedrooms: 3 Bathrooms: 2

Notes / Link: A 3-bedroom apartment with beach only 3 minutes away, along with the yacht marine of Cervar village.

Czech Republic: Prosek, Prague

USD Price: $144,000 (approx.)

Bedrooms: 2 Bathrooms: 1

Notes / Link: A newly renovated apartment with 74 m2 of living space and a 6-minute commute via subway to the city center.

New Zealand: Foxton

USD Price: $125,500 (approx.)

Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 2

Funky designed 4 bedroom home.

AIG Starts Makeover, Change Name & Logo!

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 06:41:00 +0000

Last week, AIG chief Edward Liddy was looking to change the company's "thoroughly wounded and disgraced" name, he told Capitol Hill, “I think the AIG name is so thoroughly wounded and disgraced that we’re probably going to have to change it.”

Talking about rebranding the company, if you've screwed up the business, changing your name and rebranding your business is really a good idea, It' is ironic that AIG should attempt a name and logo change, I actually have some idea of how the new name and logo for AIG should look like.........

What do you think? have a better and more creative name for AIG? Leave it in the comments section!

What Does One TRILLION Dollars Look Like?

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 05:58:00 +0000

As reported last week, The Federal Reserve Board announced that it would create another $ 1 trillion out of thin air in an effort to stimulate the economy and you might remember the $ 8 trillion stimulus packages and the $ 410 billion budget, and US national debt have hits the record up to $11 billion. Wow! billion here and trillion there--it’s pretty easy to lose track of exactly what a trillion dollars represents.

How exactly one trillion dollars looks like? Here's a helpful visual.

We'll start with a $100 dollar bill. Currently the largest U.S. denomination in general circulation. Most everyone has seen them, slighty fewer have owned them. Guaranteed to make friends wherever they go.

A packet of one hundred $100 bills is less than 1/2" thick and contains $10,000. Fits in your pocket easily and is more than enough for week or two of shamefully decadent fun.

Believe it or not, this next little pile is $1 million dollars (100 packets of $10,000). You could stuff that into a grocery bag and walk around with it.

While a measly $1 million looked a little unimpressive, $100 million is a little more respectable. It fits neatly on a standard pallet...

And $1 BILLION dollars... now we're really getting somewhere...

Next we'll look at ONE TRILLION dollars. This is that number we've been hearing so much about. What is a trillion dollars? Well, it's a million million. It's a thousand billio

n. It's a one followed by 12 zeros.

You ready for this?

It's pretty surprising.

Go ahead...

Scroll down...

Ladies and gentlemen... I give you $1 trillion dollars...

Notice those pallets are double stacked.
...and remember those are $100 bills.

So the next time you hear someone toss around the phrase "trillion dollars"... that's what they're talking about.

Notice how small of you standing right next to the double stacked pallets of money and this is ONE TRILLION dollars exactly look like and please don't forgot we are talking about of $1o trillion (1o times of the double stacked pallets) of money/debt pumped into the US economy over last six month and up to $11 trillion of the US national debt!!!!

Anyone want to bet how long US national debt will take to get to $ 15 trillion ?

AIG In Cartoons

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 10:12:00 +0000

AIG maybe is the most hated company in the US today and a symbol that is all wrong in the US economy!

As I said on my previous post, I am tired and sicked of this outrageous "Bailout King"and not going to argue about this ridiculous bailout saga anymore. But I would like to share with all of you some of my personal favorite cartoons of AIG that make me laughs, I love all these cartoons. It puts things in perspective so well. the world is tough enough as it is, why not lighten up our mood with some of the best humor inside the cartoons. Enjoy and everyone have a great day!

I only have one last word to say, Screw you AIG!

AIG $62 Billion Loss : Let's Do Some Math!

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 06:28:00 +0000

Well, It's now official. American International Group (AIG) announced the largest quarterly loss in corporate history at $61.7 billion as US throwing another $30 billion into AIG black hole.

I have to admit I am sicked of AIG and really don't want to talk more of this AIG bailout saga, why not let us do some math!

Bailout into AIG.. so far!

September 16, 2008
$85 billion loan

October 8, 2008
$38 billion loan

November 9, 2008
$40 billion loan

March 1, 2009
$30 billion loan

Total so far: $180 billion.

AIG lost.. so far!

Quarterly loss : $61,7-billion for the October to December period.

Yearly loss : $99.3 billion

Let's see if we can break it down into a more reasonable number & help you to understand more of the actual meaning of these number

Every day AIG lost: $670 million.

Every hour AIG lost: $27.9 million.

Every minute AIG lost: $465 thousand.

Every second AIG lost: $7,750.

So impressive right? AIG $62 billion loss also mean...

AIG's $62 billion loss is more than Bill Gates's net worth of $57-billion as of last September! That's nearly $470 thousand a minute! I bet many of you will never see this figure in your life!

If $62-billion was spread across the US population, Americans could each get about $200 per person and probably average monthly income per household in some countries!

The $62 billion lost is more than the Gross Domestic Product( GDP) of some countries like Sudan, Luxembourg, Sri Lanka, Cuba..etc.

Every six and half seconds, AIG loses the equivalent of the median household income in the US.

Americans spent at world's largest retailer Wal-Mart Stores in the fourth quarter is $67.4 billion, so AIG's loss amounts to 92% of the spending!

In other words, It's more like, It would take a person spending $1-million per day, everyday, the next 169 years to spend as much money as AIG lost during the fourth quarter, which lasted just 92 days.

Wow! you can spending $1-million everyday in the next 169 years!

Thanks for ruining my mood, you bastards!

Update 6:45pm :

Just came across this interesting piece, what would AIG's $62 billion loss buy? from Peter Wilkinson from CNN. he has been running the number on AIG loss and doing a great job, Let us see what else would $62 billion buy?

1. It could pay off the combined national debts of China, Australia, Mexico and Ukraine, according to 2008 estimates by the CIA Factbook, and still have plenty left over for a good night out.

2. Shareholders could use the money they lost to buy a great fleet of planes. $62 billion would buy almost 250 Boeing 747 jumbos at about $250 million each, although they would need plenty left over to run them.

3. Britain's Queen Elizabeth II might not be moving any time soon, but the money could buy 46 Buckingham Palaces, according to a 2008 estimate of its market value by the Daily Telegraph newspaper. And still leave some remaining to buy her weekend retreat, Windsor Castle.

6. The money would provide the income for 210 seasons of the world's richest football club, Manchester United. Although not if the players crashed their cars every week.

8. Given an average used car price of $13,900 in the United States and an average car length of 5 meters, $62 billion will buy enough of them to create a traffic jam from New York to Beijing AND back.

Read the full artilce here

AIG:A Black Hole Get Bigger?

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 08:47:00 +0000

Reuters reports that American International Group Inc (AIG), rescued twice last year by the U.S. government, is asking for more aid and bracing for a fourth-quarter loss of roughly $60 billion, a source familiar with the matter said. It would be the biggest loss in a quarter in corporate history.

Wow! so impressive! $60 billion loss. this AIG loss might be the ugliest loss so far in this financial crisis . I believe this loss will be eating up a trillion dollars a quarter a year from now, just wondering how big is the black hole of AIG, seem like the big hole has grows bigger and bigger, as I mentioned many times on my previous posts , it doesn't matter how much bailout money you put in, the thing is it will be no end and not work. the AIG's losses are infinite if based on it every single CDS contract it draw defaults, based on AIG risk models, I can't imagine if AIG files for bankruptcy now, all his global counter parties will go burst immediately and the global economy will get sucked in & the world financial system will be collapsed! Yup! AIG will simply absorb the world of its derivative gambling bets like that! full stop!

From CNBC

Sources close to the company said the loss will be near $60 billion due to writedowns on a variety of assets including commercial real estate. That massive loss is likely to spur downgrades in its insurance and credit ratings that will force AIG to raise collateral that it doesn't have.

Please make it stop, I am SICKED of AIG !

Check out this wonderful cartoon from Eric. G. Lewis that said it all, click on cartoon for larger image in new window.

And with that, I REST MY CASE!

Here's The Problem, We Really Hate You!

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 03:29:00 +0000

A guy walks into a bank and says to the teller at the window, "I want to open a fuckin' checking account"
To which the lady replied, "I beg your pardon, what did you say?"
"Listen up dammit, I said I want to open a fuckin' checking account right now."
"Sir, I'm sorry but we do not tolerate that kind of language in this bank!" The teller left the window and went over to the bank manager and told him about her situation. They both returned and the manager asked, "What seems to be the problem here?"
"There's no damn problem," the man said, "I just won 50 million in the lottery and I want to open a fuckin' checking account in this damn bank!"
"I see sir," the manager said, "and this bitch is giving you a hard time?"

****************************************

A man walks into a New York City bank and says he wants to borrow $2,000 for three weeks. The loan officer asks him what kind of collateral he has. The man says "I've got a Rolls Royce -- keep it until the loan is paid off -- here are the keys." The loan officer promptly has the car driven into the bank's underground parking for safe keeping, and gives the man $2,000.
Three weeks later the man comes into the bank, pays back the $2,000 loan, plus $10 interest, and regains possession of the Rolls Royce. The loan officer asks him, "Sir, if I may ask, why would a man who drives a Rolls Royce need to borrow two thousand dollars?"
The man answers, "I had to go to Europe for three weeks, and where else could I store a Rolls Royce for that long for ten dollars?"

I love all the good bankers jokes, it give me a warm glow, and not because I hate bankers, It's because jokes are the best response to a crisis and can help us to cope with the problems and forget the fear. (Ok! I tell a lie, I hate bankers, so what!)

Right now, bankers are not very popular. They are the one who being held responsible for playing a large part in the global financial meltdown. we also heard all the crazy news of the irresponsible greedy bankers that spent taxpayers' money on shameful bonuses, jets, junkets and recently A banker running up a £43,000 bar bill going crazy on champagne at a London nightclub make me puke!

So, is it right to hate the bankers? They are the obvious target now. And sorry to said that in many respects they deserve it.

I came across this article published on The Sun, UK. Why bankers leave a bitter taste by Al Murray, the article seem to sum things up correctly about the banking problem and explain it in such a simple way, priceless!

Why bankers leave a bitter taste
By AL MURRAY

FIRST thing’s first, I am not one to shy away from the big stories.
It’s time for some Credit Crunch Blah Blah, and what a surprise, the banks have screwed something up! Who’d have thought it, eh?
The people who make sure your cashpoint card doesn’t work when you’re abroad, who write you a £20 letter about your £10 overdraft, have cocked it all up.
No one knows how or why or when — least of all them — but somehow they’ve lost more money than anyone has lost before.
Thing is, when you take a step back and think about it, you realise just whose money it is.
Yes. IT’S OUR MONEY! They lost our money. Whose money? OUR MONEY!
So what do they do about it? Long before they apologise, long before they put their own money on a horse and hope it comes in (which is what anyone normal would do, let’s face it) they go to Gordon Brown, cap in hand and ask him to help them out.
They say: “We’ve lost a load of money, we don’t know where the money is, help us, please!” (Whose money? OUR MONEY!) And then Gordon Brown says: “Aye, laddies, I’ll help ya oot, here’s a cheque for 70 ballion poonds, that should cover it.” That’s nice and dandy of him, but whose money is he giving them? That’s right, OUR MONEY! So he’s given them OUR MONEY to replace OUR MONEY that they’ve lost.
But the trouble is he’s not got enough money because it’s been spent on Health and Safety and second houses for MPs, and so he’s had to borrow some more money.
So he goes to another bank and borrows a load more money, and whose money is it that he borrows? — OUR MONEY!
So he’s borrowing OUR MONEY to replace OUR MONEY, that he’s already spent, to replace OUR MONEY that the banks lost.
And how’s he going to pay off that loan? By raising taxes — which come out of OUR MONEY!
So he’s going to insist we cough up more of OUR MONEY to repay the loan of OUR MONEY needed to replace OUR MONEY the banks need to replace OUR MONEY that they lost. In other words, we pay four times over. Thanks for that.

But here’s the part that really gets my goat. I don’t have a goat, but feel like I should buy one just so it can get got. The banks’ one job is to look after our money — that’s it, it’s not like they’ve got anything else to do, is it? That’s what they do, look after money.
Stick it in a safe, sit a bloke next to the safe, fill up the cashpoint machine as and when. It can’t be hard, can it?
If I can figure it out, why does a bloke who gets a million Pound bonus at Christmas not realise any of this?
Banks look after money, full stop. A bank that doesn’t have any money in it is just a building, the same way a pint without any beer in it is just a glass.
What’s worse is we don’t hear the bloody end of it, it’s all over the telly and papers. Ironically it’s the financial experts who are raking it in.
It’s lucky the media doesn’t charge us a tenner every time they tell us the country’s gone overdrawn like the banks do, otherwise we’d have even less money.
I might start it. You’ve got no money mate, there you go, I’ve just provided you with a service.
Please send cheques payable to Al Murray The Pub Landlord, c/o The Sun.

Hope that you enjoy reading this article like I do, I have one more advise for all the irresponsible, reckless and greedy fat cats out there, you should never try this, you might end up like the person in below pic......

The Crisis of Credit Visualized !!

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 05:09:00 +0000

The short and simple story of the credit crisis from The Crisis of Credit Visualized, very nice video with a very good and fair explanation, awesome!

The video have some fun, did you realize in this video all the good guys are skinny and bad guys are FAT, LOL! Oops! Time to lose some weight!

Dubai Bubble Burst???

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 03:23:00 +0000

I think the shit has certainly hit the fan.......

Booming oil prices have turned Dubai into a land of opportunity and a playground of the rich, and many Kiwi workers have gone there chasing big pay packets. But even Dubai is feeling the crunch of the worldwide economic crisis now. the real estate prices, which rose dramatically during Dubai’s six-year boom, apparently, have dropped 50 percent or more over the past two or three months and major construction projects have been suspended or cancelled and ten of thousands foreign workers have left as work dries up and visas are rescinded.

Foreign workers make up 90% of Dubai’s population. local newspapers reported that, the government, is canceling 1,500 work visas every day. Over 50,000 were nixed in January alone — up 86% from January 2008.

Here’s another interesting detail of imploding Dubai's economy: with the economy in free fall, newspapers have reported that more over 3,000 cars currently sitting abandoned in the Dubai Airport and thousands more rest ownerless in garages across the city, says The New York Time.

It's a crime in Dubai to not pay your bills… so fearing imprisonment, leagues of unemployed are buying one-way tickets out of Dubai and leaving everything they can’t fit in a suitcase — cars included...

Dubai , a six-year boom that turned sand dunes into a glittering metropolis, creating the world's tallest building, its biggest shopping mall and now the real estate bubble has burst on the back of borrowed cash and speculative investment, the stock market has plunged 70%, banks have stopped lending... sound like it could get very NASTY!

Read the article :Laid-Off Foreigners Flee as Dubai Spirals Down

Malaysian Motorists Upset Gods???

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 03:11:00 +0000

***WARNING : CONTENT MIGHT BE OFFENSIVE!!!****

I found recently the review of Malaysian national cars- Proton & Perodua by UK popular magazine Top Gear are very sarcasm, distasteful, disgustful and infantile. Some of you might feel offensive when you read the reviews, below are some of the harsh words.....

" Truly awful, but we are grateful to Proton for reminding us how good every small car on sale in the UK is...."

" These appallingly under-developed, outdated and plain ugly offering come from Malaysia's least desirable brand..think about it, even if you are doggedly pro-Malaysia, you don't have to buy one of these"

"so poor it deserves to benefit from the next Comic Relief"

"named after the ice lolly, but not as sweet, desirable or long lasting..."

"... we don't know what Malaysian motorists did to upset the gods, but it must have been pretty serious, judging by the punishment they seem to be getting, still at least the domestic audience think this stuff is the norm-what on earth do they think they are doing bringing it to the UK? Walk away!"

Read more on the picture below, click the image to enlarge..

I don't know I should feel angry, sad or funny when I read it. Frankly speaking, I can't accept and I don't like this type of sarcastic, narrow minded, distrustful and immature comments. It feel pain to read it, although I know the reviews are not 100% true and over exaggerate. In fact I hope Malaysian government should listen to. I am sure most of the Malaysian are very much well-versed with the problems of this national cars issue, thus I have no intention to deliberate it any further here.

So why not let us read it like a funny stand up comics instead of you feel so angry until you want to start the JIHAD against this country or boycott that country. no point right? Yup! before I finish it, I would like introduce our latest models of our national cars to UK, I believe these cars will be quite sellable in UK market because the country now are in such a bad shape and the economy are so terrible, I think they might like the cars, check it out!

Cheers!

Bank Bonuses- Are They STILL Don't Get It !!!

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 13:04:00 +0000

We have always heard that banks don't have enough capital to fix their problems so they need more taxpayer bailout money to clean up their mess but while the fact that some of these fat cats still cried for their handsome bonuses and feel that they work longer hours a week so therefore they deserve to be paid outrageous sums of money, recently the news of The Royal of Bank of Scoltand (RBS) who consider to paying a billion po unds in bonuses to award its staff make my head spin!

News that the Royal Bank of Scotland Group plans to spend £1bn of taxpayers money on staff bonuses comes as nothing new because I believe you still remembered how the Bank of America received a total $45 billion in bailout and quietly using it to covering an estimated $4 billion in bonuses to already high-paid employees of recently acquired Merrill Lynch took up one chunk of the money even after posting a $27 billion loss for 2008.
John A. Thain, Merrill Lynch’s chief executive, defending bonuses as a way to keep “your best people ". What nonsense! these money worshipping "people" then give themselves $4 billion in bonuses for bankrupting the nation because they want to keep "good talent"?

From what I read even though the Wall Street bonuses fell 44% from a year ago in 2008, the $18 billion bonus pool was still the sixth-biggest ever.

I really think the banking culture of enormous bonuses have to be evaluate. It's so ridiculous those senior bankers were rewarded for taking risks that blew up their banks and the economy. When the world is in financial chaos and yet the bank staff are crying for their bonuses. if taxpayers hadn't rescued those banks then those employees wouldn't have jobs and they have to forget about the bonuses. I don't think these fat cats get it and they think we are over reacting.

It's just simple that Bonuses should only be paid if the banks is back in profit, If the banks is in debt or nearly nationalized , profit should be used to pay off debt or pay back to the shareholder before being paid for the bonuses, Let me make it more simple, when I worked for a company that went into bankrupt, where was my bonus last year? Of course there wasn't one, how foolish( or greedy) the bankers want their bonuses when they actually lose vast amounts of other people’s money and still asking for the rescue. never in all my days, however, has the industry been in such disrepute. Never before have bankers been so ridiculed, and held out as examples of all that is wrong in our society.

Meanwhile, It's so entertaining to read about some of the bankers said that they willing to GIVE UP their bonuses, In fact, what they should know is you are not give up the bonuses, you just not deserved it and you are not worthy and would likely get nothing in the first place!!!

I agree with Paul Krugman as these banks have negative net worths, they will probably all have to be nationalized. As bankers will be government employees, their salaries will be commensurate to all other government jobs (low) until the banks go private again some day, as they did in Sweden. I like Paul Krugman not because he win a Nobel prize but he is someone who really know about the economics and better than any economists I have seen,

Check out his latest op-ed piece in New York Time -Bailouts for Bunglers , very well written article...

"the plans for rescuing the banking system are shaping up as a classic exercise in “lemon socialism”: taxpayers bear the cost if things go wrong, but stockholders and executives get the benefits if things go right...."

Bailouts for Bunglers

By PAUL KRUGMAN

Question: what happens if you lose vast amounts of other people’s money? Answer: you get a big gift from the federal government — but the president says some very harsh things about you before forking over the cash.
Am I being unfair? I hope so. But right now that’s what seems to be happening.

Just to be clear, I’m not talking about the Obama administration’s plan to support jobs and output with a large, temporary rise in federal spending, which is very much the right thing to do. I’m talking, instead, about the administration’s plans for a banking system rescue — plans that are shaping up as a classic exercise in “lemon socialism”: taxpayers bear the cost if things go wrong, but stockholders and executives get the benefits if things go right.

When I read recent remarks on financial policy by top Obama administration officials, I feel as if I’ve entered a time warp — as if it’s still 2005, Alan Greenspan is still the Maestro, and bankers are still heroes of capitalism.

“We have a financial system that is run by private shareholders, managed by private institutions, and we’d like to do our best to preserve that system,” says Timothy Geithner, the Treasury secretary — as he prepares to put taxpayers on the hook for that system’s immense losses.

Meanwhile, a Washington Post report based on administration sources says that Mr. Geithner and Lawrence Summers, President Obama’s top economic adviser, “think governments make poor bank managers” — as opposed, presumably, to the private-sector geniuses who managed to lose more than a trillion dollars in the space of a few years.

And this prejudice in favor of private control, even when the government is putting up all the money, seems to be warping the administration’s response to the financial crisis.

Now, something must be done to shore up the financial system. The chaos after Lehman Brothers failed showed that letting major financial institutions collapse can be very bad for the economy’s health. And a number of major institutions are dangerously close to the edge.

So banks need more capital. In normal times, banks raise capital by selling stock to private investors, who receive a share in the bank’s ownership in return. You might think, then, that if banks currently can’t or won’t raise enough capital from private investors, the government should do what a private investor would: provide capital in return for partial ownership.

But bank stocks are worth so little these days — Citigroup and Bank of America have a combined market value of only $52 billion — that the ownership wouldn’t be partial: pumping in enough taxpayer money to make the banks sound would, in effect, turn them into publicly owned enterprises.

My response to this prospect is: so? If taxpayers are footing the bill for rescuing the banks, why shouldn’t they get ownership, at least until private buyers can be found? But the Obama administration appears to be tying itself in knots to avoid this outcome.

If news reports are right, the bank rescue plan will contain two main elements: government purchases of some troubled bank assets and guarantees against losses on other assets. The guarantees would represent a big gift to bank stockholders; the purchases might not, if the price was fair — but prices would, The Financial Times reports, probably be based on “valuation models” rather than market prices, suggesting that the government would be making a big gift here, too.

And in return for what is likely to be a huge subsidy to stockholders, taxpayers will get, well, nothing.

Will there at least be limits on executive compensation, to prevent more of the rip-offs that have enraged the public? President Obama denounced Wall Street bonuses in his latest weekly address — but according to The Washington Post, “the administration is likely to refrain from imposing tougher restrictions on executive compensation at most firms receiving government aid” because “harsh limits could discourage some firms from asking for aid.” This suggests that Mr. Obama’s tough talk is just for show.

Meanwhile, Wall Street’s culture of excess seems to have been barely dented by the crisis. “Say I’m a banker and I created $30 million. I should get a part of that,” one banker told The New York Times. And if you’re a banker and you destroyed $30 billion? Uncle Sam to the rescue!
There’s more at stake here than fairness, although that matters too. Saving the economy is going to be very expensive: that $800 billion stimulus plan is probably just a down payment, and rescuing the financial system, even if it’s done right, is going to cost hundreds of billions more. We can’t afford to squander money giving huge windfalls to banks and their executives, merely to preserve the illusion of private ownership.

Are they STILL don't get it !!!

How Can You Not Love A Financial Crisis Humor???

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 12:19:00 +0000

Came across this Op-Ed piece from New York Time - Dialing for derivative, yesterday, written by Comedian Rick Moranis, imagines calling a financial institution, BadBank, otherwise known as “Slumdog Billionaire.”

Rick Moranis is a retired Canadian actor, comedian and musician, known for his comedy work on SCTV and appeared in several Hollywood films including Ghostbusters, Little Shop of Horrors, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, Spaceballs, Parenthood and My Blue Heaven.

I am quite enjoy reading the humor he wrote about the derivative. At times, his efforts to be witty get a little cute, but I thoroughly enjoyed this Op-Ed piece on credit derivatives. It make me laughs. great job at injecting humor into this situation. I always highlighted that it is so important to maintaining a strong sense of humor in these troubling times, when I read this piece, that was as funny as all get out!!

Here's a taste:

THANK you for calling BadBank, otherwise known as “Slumdog Billionaire.”

This call will not be monitored for quality control.

One of our customer service representatives will be with you as soon as he is paroled.

If you are calling for a loan, a bonus, a bailout or season tickets to all home games at BadField, please stay on the line.

To have a lost Super Bowl bet bought, please call back tomorrow.

For account balances, please call GoodBank.

Please listen to the following options. If you do not understand options and would like a tutorial on options, shorts, puts, calls, spreads, hedging, derivatives, credit default swaps, collateralized-debt obligations, front-running or insider trading or would like to access a directory of interior decorators, please press 1.

If you are calling from a rotary phone, you’ve got other problems.

Due to high caller volume, the Clawback Prevention Hotline has an unusually long wait time.

If you are calling about the stimulus plan and have a better plan, say, “Better plan.”

I’m sorry, I didn’t understand that.

If you are a feeder fund looking for a soup kitchen, please hang up.

If you would like to reach Mr. Soros, please keep pressing the pound key until your fingers begin to bleed.

One moment please.

If you enjoyed that musical interlude and wish to download that selection from BadTunes, please press the star key.

If you wish to check the toxicity of your assets or require a hazardous-materials suit, please call back.

If you need help transferring offshore non-toxic assets off-planet, someone will call you back.

If you would like to be connected to MalBanque, MaloBanco, MalaBanca or VurstBanken, please press acht.

If you can keep your hairstyle when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on you ...

If you would like to order alcohol, tobacco or firearms, please press 2.

If you would like to speak with someone who sounds as if he knows what he’s talking about and works all day in shirtsleeves, just like the anchors on CNBC, press 3.

If you would like to purchase a new American car, made in Ontario, with zero down, zero-percent financing, no credit check, eye test, age or driver’s license requirement, press the start button.

If you are applying for relief from a student loan, press 4 if you’re a student and 5 if you are posing as a student.

If you are calling to redeem BadPoints for accommodations at Davos 2010, forget it.

If you are an official of the S.E.C., F.B.I., Treasury or Fed and wish to order a BadBank cap or windbreaker, please press the redial button and start this call over again.

If you believe that the Ponzi scheme should be forever renamed, please text “50Large” to “American Idol.”

If you actually do anything legitimate for a living and can build, fix, weld, paint, plumb, wire, polish, lift, mold, sew, knit, cook, cobble, darn and/or knead, please check to see if you have dialed the right number.

And So on, How can you not love a financial crisis humor????

Bailout Comedy & Rap!

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 07:51:00 +0000

It is very important that we keep a sense of humor during these depressing times, we have so many reasons to angry, pissed, frustrated and fed up with all the depressing and ridiculous happenings in the whole world of late, but a sense of humor and a good laugh keep us going, below are two of my favorite comedy bailout video from John Stewart :The Daily Show Comedy, hope that can lighten up your bad mood, enjoy!

1. Awkward Loan Interview - Henry Paulson & Ben Bernanke appear in Congress with hat in hand for the world's most awkward interview ever.

( You can watch the video HERE in case the video didn't show up)

2. Debt To America - Paulson as Dracula and if you don't know how much is $700 billion? the answer is the money could buy every single American 2,000 McDonald's apple pies.

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Debt to America!

Daily Show Full Episodes
Funny Political Videos

Important Things With Demetri Martin
More Funny Videos

(You can watch the video HERE in case the video didn't show up!)

Still in the mood for more humor, what about a bailout rap, take a look at this great music video performed by 47 years old stockbroker Gregg Somerville with music composed and production by Christopher Conti. Video taken by Mowgli Freree. Great stuff, great lyric, great music & excellent work.

Cheers!

Source : The Daily Bail

Picture Puzzle!

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 12:36:00 +0000

Take a look of below pictures, can you guess these mystery objects in the pictures?

Candies?
Chocolates?
Stones?
Bricks?
Tiles
--??
--??
--??
--??
--??

Just in case you are scratching your head now and didn't guess, let me give you more hints to show you more clearer images....

Now you got it, above pictures are the growing stocks of UNSOLD CARS around the world.

Car makers around the world are cutting production as inventories build up to unprecedented levels. Storage areas and docksides are now packed with vast expanses of unsold cars as demand slumps

Pretty scary right? I think we will have cheapest cars very soon and who know you might get 50% discount or Buy 1 free 1 car sales promotion??

Source : Guardian

Jim Rogers : U.K. Is Finished !

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 07:26:00 +0000

Jim Rogers - My favorite investment guru ,adventure capitalist and one of the world leading investor has issued a grim prophecy of Britain's financial future - said the “U.K. is finished” and investors should sell the British pound.

Jim Roger, a vocal critic of America and Britain has now predicted that the UK currency will fall below its record low of US$1.0520 reached in February 1985.

“I would urge you to sell any sterling you might have,” said Rogers. “It’s finished. I hate to say it, but I would not put any money in the U.K.”

The pound is a currency with no underpinning and should fall against the dollar and the euro and the UK has nothing to sell to the world once the North Sea Oil ends. He says his view reflects the UK’s dire economic situation:

“It’s simple, the UK has nothing to sell.”

Mr Rogers says the two main pillars of support for sterling have been North Sea oil and the strength of the UK financial services sector, in particular, the City of London’s role. But Mr Rogers says just as North Sea oil is running out, so London’s standing as a major financial centre is set to suffer.

"If it weren’t for the North Sea, the British Pound would have already disappeared. It’s more doomed. The UK has been exporting oil for 26 years; within the decade, the UK will be a net importer of oil again, and they have nothing else to sell to the world once the oil dries up."

“I don’t think there is a sound UK bank now, at least, if there is one I don’t know about it,” he says. “The City of London is finished, the financial centre of the world is moving east. All the money is in Asia. Why would it go back to the west? You don’t need London,” says Mr Rogers.

You might not agreed about what Mr. Rogers said, but you definitely cannot under estimate the influence and the prediction of this legendary investor, after one day of his "good words" of the pound, the reaction was instant -according to Bloomberg.com, The pound dropped to a record low against the yen and all-time low against the dollar and breached $1.40 for the first time since 2001.

Oops! this doesn’t sound very good right?

Many of you might think Mr. Rogers is a bit too harsh but the words of the Yale and Oxford-educated Rogers are definitely worthy of attention. One of his proven record was he and his partner -Soros once "broke" the bank of England many years ago that from betting against the pound on Black Wednesday, the day the currency was pulled out of the ERM in 1993 and they made £1bn.

In my view, Britain has a very weak foreign reserves( $61bn dollars), even less than the small countries like Malaysia or Thailand. The foreign liabilities of the UK banks are $4.4 trillion, twice of the annual GDP. Like what Rogers said the oil and finance were big earners and are on the downward slope now, while housing is a disaster, all these factors are some of the major concern about the outlook of U.K. What make the investors more worried about the British economy are the the stability of the UK's financial system. recently the U.K. government try to "save the world" by injecting an extra 100 billion pounds ($142 billion) to support the nation’s banks is foolhardy. why those morons don't understand that the bailouts are not likely to work, they should allowing the banks to fail and stop throwing good money (tax payer money)to the weak companies.

Enjoy the great video of Jim Rogers here

Want To Get Rich? Check Your Finger First!

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 12:00:00 +0000

Want to get rich? check your finger first! If your ring finger longer than your index finger? Well, if it is, it mean that you’re going to be rich!

According to the researchers at the University of Cambridge in England, the length of a man's fingers may predict his success in the City, research findings suggest that men with longer ring fingers, compared to index fingers, tended to be more successful in the financial.

So next time when you hire the trader for your stock trading, make sure you check his fingers first and for all the single ladies out there who looking for rich husband, you might need to check his fingers before you ties the knot.

Seriously, I don't know where do they come up with all this stupid research? Did you still remember in last year, in the separate study, the same researchers reported that the male testosterone hormone that drives male aggression and sexual interest also seemed able to boost short term success at finance and make an unusually big profit. It mean that those horny guy who has big fingers that likely to be success. It's bull crap, I don't buy into it! but for the entertaining purpose, I still want to share this wasted ink research to you, you can read the article here or below.

Finger Length May Predict Financial Success

WASHINGTON — The length of a man's ring finger may predict his success as a financial trader. Researchers at the University of Cambridge in England report that men with longer ring fingers, compared to their index fingers, tended to be more successful in the frantic high-frequency trading in the London financial district.

Indeed, the impact of biology on success was about equal to years of experience at the job, the team led by physiologist John M. Coates reports in Monday's edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The same ring-to-index finger ratio has previously been associated with success in competitive sports such as soccer and basketball, the researchers noted.

The length ratio between those two fingers is determined during the development of the fetus and the relatively longer ring finger indicates greater exposure to the male hormone androgen, the researchers noted.

Previous studies have found that such exposure can lead to increased confidence, risk preferences, search persistence, heightened vigilance and quickened reaction times.

In a separate study last year, Coates and colleagues reported that the hormone that drives male aggression and sexual interest also seemed able to boost short term success at finance.

They studied male financial traders in London, taking saliva samples in the morning and evening. They found that those with higher levels of testosterone in the morning were more likely to make an unusually big profit that day. Testosterone, best known as the male sex hormone, affects aggression, confidence and risk-taking.

In the new study, the researchers measured the right hands of 44 male stock traders who were engaged in a type of trade that involved rapid decision-making and quick physical reactions.

Over 20 months those with longer ring fingers compared to their index fingers made 11 times more money than those with the shortest ring fingers. Over the same time the most experienced traders made about 9 times more than the least experienced ones.

Looking only at experienced traders, the long-ring-finger folks earned 5 times more than those with short ring fingers.

While the finger ratio, showing fetal exposure to male hormones, appears to signal likely success in high-actively trading that calls for risk-taking and quick reactions, it may not indicate people who would do well at other sorts of financial activities, the researchers said.

Some traders require additional skills on dealing with clients and sales workers.

And the advantage may even reverse for some, Coates team said, such as traders taking a more analytical and long-term approach to the markets.

One study, which looked at average finger ratios in university departments found that faculty from math, science and engineering exhibited longer index finger ratio, rather than ring finger, they noted.

Thanks God For Coffee!

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 05:05:00 +0000

I love coffee....Yes, I love coffee, love it. I am one of those people who crazy about the coffee. I've got to have it every morning. I love the smell, warmth, taste and ritual of the coffee in the morning. It's the most obvious of my must haves in my life.

A new study conducted by the University of Durham University showed that drinking a lot of coffee make you hallucinate. The research, which was performed on 200 students at the university, shows that those who had a higher caffeine intake (of more than seven cups a day) are more likely to report hallucinatory experience such as hearing voices and seeing things that are not there.

So it's true that you could get more then the shakes from too many cups of coffee. Well! since I am so addicted to coffee,who care about the voice, voice are not big deal for me, it's fun to seeing things that not there like Ghost or UFO!!! or I probably also can read my future from the coffee drains!

Ok, forget about the research, let me share some of my favorite coffee jokes to you, have a laugh and take a look at the lighter side of life with these Coffee jokes.

Four Catholic ladies were having coffee.
The first Catholic woman tells her friends "My son is a priest. When he walks into a room, everyone calls him "Father."

The second Catholic woman chirps, "My son is a bishop. Whenever he walks into a room, people call him, "Your Grace."

The third Catholic mother says, "My son is a cardinal. Whenever he walks into a room, people say, "Your Eminence."

Since the fourth Catholic woman sips her coffee in silence, the first three women give her this subtle, "Well?"

So she replies, "My son is a gorgeous, 6' 2", hard-bodied dancer. When he walks into a room, people say, "Oh my God!"

Cousin Elly is the world's worst at getting instructions mixed up. When she got married her husband bought her one of those fancy, electric coffee makers. It had all the latest gadgets on it. Salesman Riley carefully explained how everything worked; how to plug it in, set the timer, go back to bed, and upon rising, the coffee is ready." A few weeks later Elly was back in the store and Riley asked her how she liked the coffee maker. "Wonderful!" she replied, "However, there's one thing I don't understand. Why do I have to go to bed every time I want to make a pot of coffee?"

I met someone in the elevator who was drinking coffee and complaining about how coffee made him nervous. I said "Why don't you quit drinking coffee?" He said "Because if I didn't have the shakes, I wouldn't get any exercise at all."

Hope that you guys enjoy the jokes and please share your views in the comment and tell me a funny story about coffee, or an embarrassing one, or the moment you first got addicted to coffee. must be related to coffee, you know anything coffee related that is going to make me smile!

Hello World!

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 06:26:00 +0000

I am very happy to share this wonderful arrival of the new member in my family, Baby Seline arrived on Saturday, Jan 10 at 2:10pm, She weighted in at 3.5kg(7.72 pounds) and is 58cm (22.83 inches) long. Both Mom and baby were fine and healthy. Thanks for all who prayed for us, above are the photos of her after a few hour she was born...She would like to said Hello to everyone!

Hilarious! Newstopia explains the Reserve Bank

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 02:33:00 +0000

Hey guys! check out this hilarious video. It makes my head spin, It using the hilarious way to pointing out the immorality of central banking and all the problem behind all the paper money printing by central banks.

This video was taken from the TV show "Newstopia", they explain the role of the Reserve Bank of Australia and how they control inflation. I laughed so hard when i watch this video especially the last scene, a lot of killer stuff, LOL, LMAO!

How Wrong They Were ! Worst Predictions of 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Ng) — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 14:06:00 +0000

Yeah..yeah, It's time of the year again- time for people made about the lousy predictions of 2009. For me, there isn't much we can say yet about 2009, The year is too new, and I am actually more interested to look at how lousy the predictions of last year, why not let us look back the worst financial predictions that were made about 2008 and have a laugh over them, you will agreed with me some people's predictions were truly spectacular and there were so damn wrong!

Below are two pieces I came across on the web…a bit of comedy and nausea at the same time:

A. The Worst Predictions About 2008 (Businessweek)

1. “A very powerful and durable rally is in the works. But it may need another couple of days to lift off. Hold the fort and keep the faith!” — Richard Band, editor, Profitable Investing Letter, Mar. 27, 2008

At the time of the prediction, the Dow Jones industrial average was at 12,300. By late December it was at 8,500

2. AIG (NYSE:AIG - News) “could have huge gains in the second quarter.” — Bijan Moazami, analyst, Friedman, Billings, Ramsey, May 9, 2008

AIG wound up losing $5 billion in that quarter and $25 billion in the next. It was taken over in September by the U.S. government, which will spend or lend $150 billion to keep it afloat.

3. “I think this is a case where Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE - News) and Fannie Mae (NYSE:FNM - News) are fundamentally sound. They’re not in danger of going under I think they are in good shape going forward.” — Barney Frank (D-Mass.), House Financial Services Committee chairman, July 14, 2008

Two months later, the government forced the mortgage giants into conservatorships and pledged to invest up to $100 billion in each.

4. “I’m not an economist but I do believe that we’re growing.” —President George W. Bush, in a July 15, 2008 press conference

Nope. Gross domestic product shrank at a 0.5% annual rate in the July-September quarter. On Dec. 1, the National Bureau of Economic Research declared that a recession had begun in December 2007.

5. “I think Bob Steel’s the one guy I trust to turn this bank around, which is why I’ve told you on weakness to buy Wachovia.” —Jim Cramer, CNBC commentator, Mar. 11, 2008

Two weeks later, Wachovia came within hours of failure as depositors fled. Steel eventually agreed to a takeover by Wells Fargo. Wachovia shares lost half their value from Sept. 15 to Dec. 29.

6. “Existing-Home Sales to Trend Up in 2008″ — Headline of a National Association of Realtors press release, Dec. 9, 2007

On Dec. 23, 2008, the group said November sales were running at an annual rate of 4.5 million — down 11% from a year earlier — in the worst housing slump since the Depression.

7. “I think you’ll see (oil prices at) $150 a barrel by the end of the year” — T. Boone Pickens, June 20, 2008

Oil was then around $135 a barrel. By late December it was below $40.

8. “I expect there will be some failures. I don’t anticipate any serious problems of that sort among the large internationally active banks that make up a very substantial part of our banking system.” — Ben Bernanke, Federal Reserve chairman, Feb. 28, 2008

In September, Washington Mutual became the largest financial institution in U.S. history to fail. Citigroup (NYSE:C - News) needed an even bigger rescue in November.

9. “In today’s regulatory environment, it’s virtually impossible to violate rules.” — Bernard Madoff, money manager, Oct. 20, 2007

About a year later, Madoff — who once headed the Nasdaq Stock Market — told investigators he had cost his investors $50 billion in an alleged Ponzi scheme.

10. "There's growing evidence that parts of the debt markets…are coming back to life." —Peter Coy and Mara Der Hovanesian, BusinessWeek, Oct. 1, 2007.

B. 2008 Investment Guides Are HILA RIOUS (New York Magazine)

1.Jon Birger, senior writer, Fortune’s Investors Guide 2008
What he said then: “Question: What do you call it when an $8 billion asset write-down translates into a $30 billion loss in market cap? Answer: an overreaction … Smart investors should buy [Merrill Lynch] stock before everyone else comes to their senses.”
What we know now: Merrill agreed to sell itself Bank of America to avoid a Lehman-like flameout in a deal closing in January. Meanwhile, Merrill's shares plummeted 77 percent.

2.Elaine Garzarelli, president of Garzarelli Capital, in Business Week's Investment Outlook 2008
What she said then: “Garzarelli is advising investors to buy some of the most beaten-down stocks, including those of giant financial institutions such as Lehman Brothers, Bear Stearns, and Merrill Lynch. What would cause her to turn bearish? Not much. ‘Our indicators are extremely bullish.’”
What we know now: As of January 1, none of these firms will still exist. Lehman went bankrupt. JPMorgan and Chase bought Bear Stearns in a fire sale. We all know Merrill’s fate.

3.Sarah Ketterer, CEO of Causeway Capital Management in Fortune’s Investors Guide 2008
What she said then: Q: “Sarah, where to you see value?” A: “There are [financial firms] that have been tainted by this huge credit problem … Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have been pummeled. Our stress-test analysis indicates those stocks are at bargain basement prices.”
What we know now: The federal government placed these two lenders under “conservatorship” in September. By then, shares of Fannie and Freddie had lost 90 percent of their value.

4. Jon Birger, senior writer, in Fortune’s Investors Guide 2008
What he said then: “CEO Jeffrey Immelt has been leading a successful makeover at General Electric, though you wouldn't know it from GE’s flaccid stock price. Our bet is that in a stormy market investors will gravitate toward the ultimate blue chip.”
What we know now: GE’s stock price has tumbled 55 percent percent this year and it’s on the verge of losing its triple-A credit rating. Analysts are nervous about its financial-services division, which provides about half of GE’s earnings.

If you read my previous post, I advise you guys that it's always risky to trust politicians or financial 'professionals' with your money. For the volatile market like this, my advise to you is you should just learn from this smart lady in below.... print it out and keep it by your side to cheer you up as necessary.

Cheers!