Dec. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Liliane Bettencourt, the world's wealthiest woman, entrusted part of her $22.9 billion fortune with Bernard Madoff through the fund manager found dead in New York yesterday, two people familiar with the matter said. The 86-year-old daughter of L'Oreal SA founder Eugene Schueller was the first investor in a fund managed by Access International Advisors, the people said, speaking on condition of anonymity because her investment isn't public. The body of Access co-founder Thierry Magon de La Villehuchet, 65, was found in his Madison Avenue office yesterday. Police said he probably killed himself. Bettencourt, a Parisian, joins wealthy individuals from around the world, including Spanish billionaire Alicia Koplowitz, U.S. moviemaker Steven Spielberg and Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel, among victims of what Madoff, 70, told investigators was a $50 billion Ponzi scheme. "More high-profile names who have been victimized by Madoff will start to become known now," said Ron Geffner, who represents hedge funds at the New York-based law firm Sadis & Goldberg LLP. "There's a strong sense of anguish, fear and distrust."
Dec. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Liliane Bettencourt, the world's wealthiest woman, entrusted part of her $22.9 billion fortune with Bernard Madoff through the fund manager found dead in New York yesterday, two people familiar with the matter said.
The 86-year-old daughter of L'Oreal SA founder Eugene Schueller was the first investor in a fund managed by Access International Advisors, the people said, speaking on condition of anonymity because her investment isn't public. The body of Access co-founder Thierry Magon de La Villehuchet, 65, was found in his Madison Avenue office yesterday. Police said he probably killed himself.
Bettencourt, a Parisian, joins wealthy individuals from around the world, including Spanish billionaire Alicia Koplowitz, U.S. moviemaker Steven Spielberg and Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel, among victims of what Madoff, 70, told investigators was a $50 billion Ponzi scheme.
"More high-profile names who have been victimized by Madoff will start to become known now," said Ron Geffner, who represents hedge funds at the New York-based law firm Sadis & Goldberg LLP. "There's a strong sense of anguish, fear and distrust."
Rich people victims? OMG!!!!!
That 'probably killed himself' is an interesting touch. Don't the police know?
Show some damn respect. Bloomberg do. Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.
don't you think that's sad ? Not personally, but culturally keep to the Fen Causeway
. And when he failed in that [q]uest, he coldn't live with the perceived blow to his self-esteem.
Helen, you are a hopeless romantic (or wicked snarky). According to other reports, he'd tried and failed to recover the principal invested. The more accurate conjecture presumes he feared prolonged prosecution and imprisonment.
Consider another more pedestrian example of investigative decorum, 'probability' hot off the press.
'Santa' opens fire at Calif. party
The man arrived at the party in Covina late Wednesday and immediately opened fire with a handgun, police Lt. Pat Buchanan said. Buchanan says three bodies were found after the fire was put out. He could not say how the fire started or how the three people died.... Police received several 911 calls with reports of shots fired at 11:30 p.m. Wednesday night, and were still hearing gunshots after they arrived and found the house in flames, Buchanan said. At first, firefighters were held back by police because shots were still being fired, authorities said.
Buchanan says three bodies were found after the fire was put out. He could not say how the fire started or how the three people died....
Police received several 911 calls with reports of shots fired at 11:30 p.m. Wednesday night, and were still hearing gunshots after they arrived and found the house in flames, Buchanan said.
At first, firefighters were held back by police because shots were still being fired, authorities said.
huh. Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.
Liliane is a Footnote to elohim | Bloomberg | 25 Dec 2008
New York University, the largest private university in the U.S. by number of students, became the latest known victim of Bernard Madoff's alleged $50 billion Ponzi scheme when it sued a fund manager over $24 million in losses. J. Ezra Merkin, his Gabriel Capital LP fund and Ariel Fund Ltd. invested NYU's money with Madoff without telling investors or proper due diligence, according to a complaint filed yesterday in New York state court in Manhattan. NYU, which said it had $94 million invested in Ariel, alleged Merkin made all the investment and executive decisions for the fund. ... Merkin, the chairman of GMAC LLC, the finance arm of General Motors Corp. [49% stake] that is 51 percent owned by Cerberus Capital Management LLC [privately-held Chrysler], was also blamed by Yeshiva University for losses. The school alleged it lost about $110 million in investments tied to Madoff, most through Merkin's Ascot Partners LP fund. Merkin resigned as a [Yeshiva] school trustee [?!] and as its investment chairman on Dec. 12. Madoff was also a trustee. Additionally, Tufts University said last week that it lost $20 million, or less than 2 percent of its endowment, from investments through Ascot.
J. Ezra Merkin, his Gabriel Capital LP fund and Ariel Fund Ltd. invested NYU's money with Madoff without telling investors or proper due diligence, according to a complaint filed yesterday in New York state court in Manhattan. NYU, which said it had $94 million invested in Ariel, alleged Merkin made all the investment and executive decisions for the fund. ...
Merkin, the chairman of GMAC LLC, the finance arm of General Motors Corp. [49% stake] that is 51 percent owned by Cerberus Capital Management LLC [privately-held Chrysler], was also blamed by Yeshiva University for losses. The school alleged it lost about $110 million in investments tied to Madoff, most through Merkin's Ascot Partners LP fund.
Merkin resigned as a [Yeshiva] school trustee [?!] and as its investment chairman on Dec. 12. Madoff was also a trustee. Additionally, Tufts University said last week that it lost $20 million, or less than 2 percent of its endowment, from investments through Ascot.
Firstly, there are no coincidences. Merkin screwed a yeshiva, he screwed GMAC.
Secondly, GMAC cascade of losses is attributable to ResCap mortgage biz which turned south Q4 2006, not either supplier obligations or consumer defaults -- which were flat because Murkins and Yurpeens needs they cars.
For the fourth quarter, ResCap posted an operating loss of $651 million, a decrease from earnings of $118 million in the prior-year period. The loss reflects increased reserves related to both higher delinquency and greater loss severity in the nonprime held for investment loan portfolio, more difficult market conditions for mortgages held for sale, and credit losses related to lending relationships with certain third-party nonprime market participants. In addition, rising short-term interest rates and market volatility suppressed the value of the mortgage servicing assets, and the slowdown in new home construction negatively affected financial performance.
Thirdly, GMAC defaulted its bond holders over a year ago. Its campaign to convert debt to equity began Q3 2007 (pdf).
GMAC and ResCap maintained strong liquidity and capital positions in the quarter Cash and certain marketable securities totaled $28.8 billion at the end of 9/39/07 [FYE] -- Of this total, ResCap held $6.5 billion, including $2.2 billion at GMAC BankGMAC injected $1 billion of capital into ResCap in Q3 2007Owners intend to convert $1.1 billion of GMAC preferred equity to common equity as of 11/1/07
By July 2008, the losses were almost too big to shuffle in three-card monte. See? Players kicked the core business to the curb to pocket bubble banking returns.
Finance holding company regulators, i.e. the FRB, with FDIC, extended GMAC resolution deadline three times, the latest being 26 Dec 2008. Anticipating failure to close a swap deal with bondholders, again, this week the FRB extinguishes GMAC Level I assets and "grants" GMAC a bank holding company charter on the back of its sorry depository subsidiary. The business press insinuates the timing of this "emergency" determination is a Bush boon to preserve factory jobs. (Don't get me started on the MOU... or the GM/UAW gag on VEBA terms in the 2007 contract ...)
Hell, no | Dealbook | 19 Dec 2008
GMAC is trying to restructure $38 billion of debt but is short of the 75 percent of approvals needed to become a bank holding company and qualify for funds from the Treasury Department's $700 billion rescue package.
One final note: Geithner runs that operation for Paulson et al out of the FRBNY, and he's not going anywhere come 21 January 2009. Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.
A Voluntary Employees Beneficiary Association (VEBA) is a tax-exempt trust authorized by Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(9). The tax objective of this type of benefit plan are to (1) enable your employer to make tax-free deposits on your behalf to the Plan, (2) to credit [sure as hell ain't the same thing as to collect] employee accounts with tax-free investment earnings, and (3) to enable employees to obtain tax-free reimbursements for medical expenses and insurance premium payments --'nother flava of health savings accounts (HSAs). You know who shovelled that shite ...
The backstory on UAW Ford, Chrysler, and GM is the foundation of a new pyramid scheme. Like Barry's little noted campaign recommendation to establish mandatory 401* contributions. Seriously. ALL your payrolls is mine to play with.
(Santa finished wrapping another xmas ...) Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.
BERLIN: Helmut Schmidt, a chain-smoking former German chancellor, celebrated his 90th birthday Tuesday amid an improbable revival in popularity for a prickly man with no-nonsense views that contrast sharply to many current leaders. Schmidt may not have scaled the heights of popularity while chancellor of West Germany for eight turbulent years. Critics say his dismissal of leftist views spawned the Greens Party and cost his Social Democrats, or SPD, a power base it has yet to win back. But in retirement, he has attained the broad acclaim he lacked during his years in office from 1974-82. According to a survey by the Forsa polling institute, Schmidt ranks as the "coolest guy in Germany" and he tops several other polls as the country's most popular leader. Finance Minister Peer Steinbrück, a fellow Hamburg native and a determined opponent of government spending to stimulate growth in the current crisis, regularly seeks Schmidt's counsel.
BERLIN: Helmut Schmidt, a chain-smoking former German chancellor, celebrated his 90th birthday Tuesday amid an improbable revival in popularity for a prickly man with no-nonsense views that contrast sharply to many current leaders.
Schmidt may not have scaled the heights of popularity while chancellor of West Germany for eight turbulent years. Critics say his dismissal of leftist views spawned the Greens Party and cost his Social Democrats, or SPD, a power base it has yet to win back.
But in retirement, he has attained the broad acclaim he lacked during his years in office from 1974-82.
According to a survey by the Forsa polling institute, Schmidt ranks as the "coolest guy in Germany" and he tops several other polls as the country's most popular leader.
Finance Minister Peer Steinbrück, a fellow Hamburg native and a determined opponent of government spending to stimulate growth in the current crisis, regularly seeks Schmidt's counsel.
The inquiry into whether President-elect Barack Obama's staff had any inappropriate contacts with Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich was bound to meet its pre-conceived conclusion
Brought to you from Fox Noos, Closed-Loop specialists working from a TV set near you.
It's all good | WUSA9 | 23 Dec 2008
The interviews with Obama, along with incoming chief of staff Rahm Emanuel and adviser Valerie Jarrett [I defy anyone to produce a good word about this person's business ventures in Chicago RE or Project Vote], were disclosed Tuesday in an internal report produced for Obama on contacts with Blagojevich. Obama delayed releasing his report until those interviews were completed with U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald's staff, incoming White House attorney Greg Craig said in the review he wrote for Obama. Obama had no contact with the governor or his aides, the report states. Prosecutors have said Obama is not implicated in the case. Emanuel was the only Obama transition team member who discussed the Senate appointment with Blagojevich, and those conversations were "totally appropriate and acceptable," Craig said Tuesday. No one on Obama's transition team discussed any deals or had any knowledge of deals, Craig's report said. ... The report said Obama authorized Emanuel to pass on the names of four people he considered to be highly qualified to take over his seat [say what?] -- Illinois Comptroller Dan Hynes, Illinois Veterans' Affairs Director Tammy Duckworth, Rep. Jan Schakowsky and Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. [oops!] Obama later offered other names of what he thought were qualified candidates [say what?!], including Attorney General Lisa Madigan and Chicago Urban League Director Cheryle Jackson, the report said. "Mr. Harris did not make any effort to extract a personal benefit for the governor in any of these conversations," the report said. There was no discussion of a Cabinet position, creation of a nonprofit foundation for Blagojevich, a private sector position or of any other personal benefit for the governor, according to the report. The report said that earlier, Emanuel recommended Jarrett for the Senate seat [oops!] without Obama's knowledge, and Jarrett later accepted a job as a senior White House adviser (Ambinder on WH office of Intergovernmental Affairs and Public Liaison).
Obama had no contact with the governor or his aides, the report states. Prosecutors have said Obama is not implicated in the case.
Emanuel was the only Obama transition team member who discussed the Senate appointment with Blagojevich, and those conversations were "totally appropriate and acceptable," Craig said Tuesday. No one on Obama's transition team discussed any deals or had any knowledge of deals, Craig's report said. ...
The report said Obama authorized Emanuel to pass on the names of four people he considered to be highly qualified to take over his seat [say what?] -- Illinois Comptroller Dan Hynes, Illinois Veterans' Affairs Director Tammy Duckworth, Rep. Jan Schakowsky and Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. [oops!]
Obama later offered other names of what he thought were qualified candidates [say what?!], including Attorney General Lisa Madigan and Chicago Urban League Director Cheryle Jackson, the report said.
"Mr. Harris did not make any effort to extract a personal benefit for the governor in any of these conversations," the report said. There was no discussion of a Cabinet position, creation of a nonprofit foundation for Blagojevich, a private sector position or of any other personal benefit for the governor, according to the report.
The report said that earlier, Emanuel recommended Jarrett for the Senate seat [oops!] without Obama's knowledge, and Jarrett later accepted a job as a senior White House adviser (Ambinder on WH office of Intergovernmental Affairs and Public Liaison).
Lay down with dogs, bebe, get on up with failures to communicate. O hark, yon New New Dealers return! Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.
The Most Important White House Office
Everyone who wants anything from the federal government has to interface with the now conjoined office of intergovernmental affairs and public liaison in the Obama White House. To head this office, Obama has appointed his best friend and most trusted counselor, Valerie Jarrett. Jarrett has appointed as her chief of staff Michael Strautmanis, one of the Obama family's best friends and another trusted confidant. Traditionally, the intergovernmental affairs portfolio and the OPL portfolio have been kept separate, although Karl Rove unified them in the Bush White House. Cecilia Munoz, a senior vice president at the National Council for La Raza [residential RE/CRA/FHA broker --Latino segment], is a powerhouse who knows everyone in Washington. She's going to be the formal director of intergovernmental affairs. Tina Tchen, another long-time Obama friend, will be the head of the office of public liaison. ... The bigger the federal government gets, the more important these offices become. They'll probably be THE powerhouse in the Obama White House from the perspective of politics, constituency relations, interest and client groups, the Washington community, state, local and tribal governments. Jarrett won't just pass messages between the outside world and the president. Her job will be manage the relationship between the outside world and the president, and, vitally, she and her staff will have the juice to make decisions about how the Obama administration relates to just about every external constituency.
Cecilia Munoz, a senior vice president at the National Council for La Raza [residential RE/CRA/FHA broker --Latino segment], is a powerhouse who knows everyone in Washington. She's going to be the formal director of intergovernmental affairs. Tina Tchen, another long-time Obama friend, will be the head of the office of public liaison. ...
The bigger the federal government gets, the more important these offices become. They'll probably be THE powerhouse in the Obama White House from the perspective of politics, constituency relations, interest and client groups, the Washington community, state, local and tribal governments. Jarrett won't just pass messages between the outside world and the president. Her job will be manage the relationship between the outside world and the president, and, vitally, she and her staff will have the juice to make decisions about how the Obama administration relates to just about every external constituency.
Hey, y'all don't bring your feet to the camp fire. Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.
LONDON (AFP) -- Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will deliver an alternative Christmas message on Channel Four to rival Queen Elizabeth II's annual address, the broadcaster said Wednesday.Ahmadinejad, whose comments will go out on 1915 GMT on Christmas Day, will say that if Jesus Christ were alive today, he would oppose "bullying, ill-tempered and expansionist powers," according to a pre-released transcript.Britain and Iran have had rocky relations since the 1979 Islamic revolution, particularly over Iran's disputed nuclear programme, which the West fears could be used to build arms but Tehran insists is for civilian purposes.Ahmadinejad is the most high-profile guest yet on Channel Four's alternative broadcast, which was started in 1993 and has seen Jesse Jackson, Brigitte Bardot and cartoon character Marge Simpson among others take to the airwaves.
LONDON (AFP) -- Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will deliver an alternative Christmas message on Channel Four to rival Queen Elizabeth II's annual address, the broadcaster said Wednesday.
Ahmadinejad, whose comments will go out on 1915 GMT on Christmas Day, will say that if Jesus Christ were alive today, he would oppose "bullying, ill-tempered and expansionist powers," according to a pre-released transcript.
Britain and Iran have had rocky relations since the 1979 Islamic revolution, particularly over Iran's disputed nuclear programme, which the West fears could be used to build arms but Tehran insists is for civilian purposes.
Ahmadinejad is the most high-profile guest yet on Channel Four's alternative broadcast, which was started in 1993 and has seen Jesse Jackson, Brigitte Bardot and cartoon character Marge Simpson among others take to the airwaves.
FYI:
Haltija (haltia) is a spirit, gnome or elf-like creature in Finnish mythology, that guards, helps or protects something or somebody. The word is possibly derived from the Gothic *haltijar, and referred to the original settler of a homestead -- although this is not the only possible etymology. In common Finnish, depending on the context, "haltija" means holder, occupant, lord, master, owner-occupier, occupier, possessor, bearer, or owner. There are lots of different haltijas. Nature has its own haltijas, for example the haltijas of water and haltijas of the forest. The graveyard has its own haltijas, Kalman väki, ("folk of death"). Human settlements have haltijas. One type is Tonttu or Maan haltija (Haltija of land). Tonttu is a Finnish version of the Swedish Tomte. Both tonttu and tomte are related to the words tontti (Finnish) and tomt (Swedish). They mean a lot and building site, and later protected by a local spirit, a tonttu (tomte is also known as tomtgubbe, "lot old man" in Swedish) . Kotihaltija (home elf, home gnome) is the word for the tonttu who lives in every home. He takes care of the house, but it is important to treat him with respect. The saunatonttu lives in the sauna and protects it, but also makes sure that people will not behave improperly in it. Joulutonttu is Finnish for Christmas elf. Unlike some Christmas elves, the Finnish Joulutonttu is thought not to have pointy ears. Even humans have their personal haltijas, which are their protecting spirits similar to angels in Christianity. One of them is Luonto, which means "nature".
In common Finnish, depending on the context, "haltija" means holder, occupant, lord, master, owner-occupier, occupier, possessor, bearer, or owner.
There are lots of different haltijas. Nature has its own haltijas, for example the haltijas of water and haltijas of the forest. The graveyard has its own haltijas, Kalman väki, ("folk of death").
Human settlements have haltijas. One type is Tonttu or Maan haltija (Haltija of land). Tonttu is a Finnish version of the Swedish Tomte. Both tonttu and tomte are related to the words tontti (Finnish) and tomt (Swedish). They mean a lot and building site, and later protected by a local spirit, a tonttu (tomte is also known as tomtgubbe, "lot old man" in Swedish) . Kotihaltija (home elf, home gnome) is the word for the tonttu who lives in every home. He takes care of the house, but it is important to treat him with respect. The saunatonttu lives in the sauna and protects it, but also makes sure that people will not behave improperly in it. Joulutonttu is Finnish for Christmas elf. Unlike some Christmas elves, the Finnish Joulutonttu is thought not to have pointy ears.
Even humans have their personal haltijas, which are their protecting spirits similar to angels in Christianity. One of them is Luonto, which means "nature".
Tonttu Kim is my dearest friend's daughter, 'enjoying' her first Jul or Yule. This picture was taken before the schnapps You can't be me, I'm taken
