Years of Poems and Spirits

Just come across the concept of TED Spread: the spread b/w noncollateralized short term (3-month) loan and the rate of 3m T-Bill.

Related concepts: Eurodollar (see class notes from Fin576/Debra Glassman), LIBOR (see site FAQ), interbank loan wholesale market, LIBOR-OSI spread (collateralized loan rate)

Significance:

• Measurement of credit risk, particularly banking and financial system.
• Recent spike (see chart above).
• May be used against GDP per capita change and/or market charts to validate low correlation (see also delta in SP500).
• Further proof of no direct connection of financial market health with boarder economy: counter argument of Greenspan Put’s rationale

Other resources: Paul Krugman’s articles, Matt Ferris’s blog entry (Amazing kid. Where was I when I got out of college? Totally put me to shame, sigh …)

Colin said something rather interesting yesterday: it is OK to have an unitary administrative structure and an authoritarian rule, or a decentralized structure and democracy. But China seems to have the wrong combination: a decentralized structure and an authoritarian rule. And this is a fiefdom pattern.

Thoughts: that echoes well with Pei Minxin’s “Trapped Transition”. The book didn’t make sense to me then because he was charging that China has degraded into predatory state. The latter definition sounds too much like Robert Bate’s Africa so I didn’t take it well. But I may need to take a second look at his argument. Particularly now that I have learned more about the local-center tension.

Colin also said something like the early Federalists didn’t care for party politics. Probably should follow up more on the Federalists thought and early American ethos. That also conforms to Confucius’ saying “君子不党”, although I am already a convert of the instituational argument for the party system.

Collected the following during the paper-writing days, never had the chance to write them down. Here they are:

The New Yorker:

2007/11/12 James Surowiecki: why high compensation structure may undermine Principals’ interests:
1. Hedge fund managers reap large rewards on the upside without a correspondingly punitive downside
2. Stock option grant may “underplay risk is at work in … corporate America”
3. Higher portion of stock options in CEO pay lead to higher stock volatility (data available)

July 7-14, 2008: Adam Kirsch’s story about John Keats:
Very moving recount of a genius whose talent precedes his time. The article reminded me of a rather obscure essay written by Christian Andersen, “The Thorny Road of Honor“. I read the Chinese version (光荣的荆棘路) translated by 叶君健 when I was 15 years old. It made my blood boil and led me to a rather literary youth.

Keats’ life seems to be another moving case of redemption: in his death bed, he was bemoaning his lack of achievement,

‘I have left no immortal work behind me—nothing to make my friends proud of my memory—but I have lov’d the principle of beauty in all things, and if I had had time I would have made myself remember’d.’

He dictated his own epitaph, “Here lies one whose name was writ on water”.

His sense of mortality echoes particularly loud in me: “I have an habitual feeling of my real life having past, and that I am leading a posthumous existence.”

It wasn’t an easy read at all. But considering this book: Stanley Plumly “Posthumous Keats” (Norton; $27.95)

Oct 15, Jerome Groopman, Silent Minds:

How patients in vegetative state can still recognize faces, understand sentences and even imagine playing tennis. It is a very heavy read. But was impressed by the research methods.

Nov. Connie Bruck, Rough Rider:

“Liquidity equals value.” Very enlightening. Really solidified my view on the nature of Liquidity.

Foreign Affairs:

Richard Betts, “A Disciplined Defense“:  Many figures available on defense spending, historical comparison and mis-appropriation.

Michael Desch, “Bush and the Generals“: A very spirited critique of the current civilian-military relations. Insightful reading of Huntington’s “The Soldier and the State”. Also in the context: McMaster’s thesis, etc.

Yuliya Tymoshenko, “Containing Russia“: That was an awesome article. Realist arguments at its best. Reminded me of the time of 苏秦，张仪.