Sunday, September 28, 2014

Vague yet Good but there's Ackman

Hank told me that an analyst by the name of Richard Vague was on Book TV talking about EM08, specifically, on re-structuring the debt so that the economy could get back to spending instead of tightening its belt. I don't know how long C-Span leaves this up, but Here's the link.

While what Vague proposes is much more sensible than the insanity of the Bush2/Obama admins and Bernanke/Yellen Feds, the essential problem is this: it's socialist and utterly, completely unfair. Particularly with what we now know about the massive fraud and non-disclosure (in particular, ninja loans, robo-signing and not disclosing the real state of toxicity on behalf of Merril when then BoA Chair/Pres.CEO Ken Lewis and Merril CEO John Thain held their dog and pony press con announcing the takeover of Merril by BoA which subsequently and justifiably -- led to shareholder litigation).

(I do think his theory of meltdowns being the result of non-governmental debt -- a better way, methinks, of describing it, rather than constantly differentiating and synthesizing between "private and business" -- is interesting and makes sense. I'm going to sit with it a while.)

A much saner and fairer strategy is converting debt to equity. In other words, the bondholders have to take a loss (at least temporarily) or, in the popular parlance, take a haircut. I remembered hearing this the first time from Pershing Square's Bill Ackman on the Charlie Rose Show from April 24, 2009.

Bonds, like equities, are bets. And sometimes, you lose a bet. Plain and simple. But listen to these segments and you'll hear them all concur that the bondholders would rather take money from us to cover their losses. Duh. That frickin' Bill Gross plus Mohammed El-Arian probably got on the horn to Bush 2 and Bernanke as well.

Yet, it is kind of amazing to hear this level of frankness on the Charlie Rose Show. I think that worthless Sorkin is the one who calls out Gross. So maybe he's a little less worthless.

The other notable thing is the ersatz nattering by Sorkin and Kate Kelly, the former the NYT's econ wunderkind -- don't ask me why -- and the hopelessly lost (irrelevant? afterthought?) Kate Kelly of the WSJ. Watch her as the director cuts to her as Ackman schools the audience on why debt to equity makes sense. She looks like a freshman witnessing Wittgenstein.

THIS -- Ackman's lesson -- was THE way to have handled EM08. Not socialism, which both parties have their hands in. By the way, I'm attributing this strategy to Ackman but am aware this is just a bankruptcy re-structuring. Makes sense to me.

Note: I couldn't find the entire segment, but these two parts have Ackman kicking ass. The difference in gravitas between him and the others -- and that includes Nobel Laureate Stiglitz -- is remarkable. Now notice: Sorkin and Kelly? Journalists. Stiglitz? Academician. Ackman? Entrepreneur.

Nothing wrong with the other professions, but after listening to these clips, who do you think has a grip?

He can be controversial, as his recent bouts with Herbalife attest to, but in mere months after the fall of 2008, Ackman had the way out.

Talk about a missed opportunity. 


Friday, September 05, 2014

The Finished Product: Auntie Frances

Frances Sumiko Yoshida-Wiley

Since the Wileys lived 2,000 miles away, we rarely saw one another, but the news of Auntie's passing of course still hurts us all out here in Cali. So, I told my cousin Kim that while I wanted to memorialize her mom, it then hit me; with such limited interaction, what would I say? I'd pretty much committed my Wiley recollections when writing about her son, cousin Joey.

Given that my approach would have to be wide-angled, where's the hook? More, is such an approach worthy? In the end, ascribing thoughts and feelings to someone you've affection for and have very limited interaction with is tough.

But this is Ma's sister.

The ego pushes on, but honestly, because I feel so strongly about the Yoshidas, and in this moment, my mother's sister, that generation and their time.

So here's to some reaching, some talking about Auntie via indirect lenses. After quite a bit of pondering, I think the heart of it is this American story whose great chapter is coming to a close. Like Ma's passing, the Yoshidas – the Nisei -- mark a unique time in American history, where rising from the depths through a get it done attitude into cool, fresh air was done en masse. I, and all of my cousins, are the fruits, the living embodiment of an America that was. Not earth shattering, but it's our story.

The saying is, you can't choose your family, but the Yoshidas are lucky; we come from solid stock. The family huddles don't happen anymore, so, yes, here's to nostalgia. Really, it isn't so much about nostalgia, but reverence. I can see how that sounds corny, but I'm long past the point where what the Yoshidas slogged through impressed me. Romantic, yes, and not wide-eyed, but a bit misty-eyed.

There's all of that and the practicality of speaking from the heart about a woman I barely knew but am bound to through blood and affection. My mother's sister.

=====================================================================

Auntie said something the last time I saw her in Chi: I'd kill for my kids, and it's something that's always stuck. While the context is lost, the intensity isn't; she meant it with every fiber. I'm agnostic when it comes to astrology, but it does seem that the nature of us Cancers is to feel intensely; you see, here's something Auntie and I share besides blood: we have the same birthday.

Having read Auntie's bio forwarded by Kim made me smile: intellectual prowess, artistic bent and a touch of precociousness – chutzpah, maybe...? – stood her out among 7 brothers and sisters.

Auntie on the left bent over leaning on May, Ma on the ground. The BEST.
Her siblings shared that penchant for cracking up duly noted when writing about Ma. Seems whenever the Yoshida sisters got together something would set them off, and Auntie Frances, Auntie May and Ma seemed to always be removing their glasses at some point, crying tears of laughter. Since I was an only kid, the Wileys or any family that rolled through LA, would
May, Frances, Ross, Ma, Kathy. Auntie's already got the bug!
invariably stay with us, so ringside seats seeing these scenes play out are enduring memories. Luck's given us Yoshida cousins a great family – and stor
ies -- separated by geography but united by such a great spirit.

When the Wiley brood rolled through LA back in the day the cousins stayed with us, and I went from an only child to swimming in cousins. There's a couple of good stories in there. Here's one; Ma and Auntie had us boys in the bathroom prepping us for a bath. So, I stripped down to the tighty whiteys and then stood up straight. Auntie, a shock of hair across her face, was bent over, going through the task that for her was by now routine, busily pulling up Larry's or Jimi's – or both! -- t-shirt over his head. I think Joey was already butt naked.

Auntie: C'mon Geoffrey!
Me: Uh....
Auntie: (not missing a beat) Oh! You haven't got anything I haven't seen, and if you do, show me!

Amidst her intellect and artistic leanings, I think that straightforward pragmatism is something her generation had, but in many ways, is lost today. Yeah, life's uncomfortable at times and can be tough. Shut up and play yer guitar!

America recently crossed a milestone: More of us now live in cities than rural areas. Coming up in Lindsay, the Yoshidas were country as all get out, and so it was with Auntie developing her dislike of chicken from plucking them. There's much more, of course, even in the face of my romanticizing the Brokaw dubbed 'Greatest Generation.” Bottom line, I'd bet that not one of the 25 Yoshida cousins has ever plucked a chicken (at least willingly), much less experienced a day of hunger.

Despite the betrayal of her country to her family, Auntie Frances got on with it. She couldn't have been happy about the prison camps (let's call them what they were), but her drive to excel was evident; her masters from Chicago and especially her 8 kids, the ones she'd kill for. And a gaggle of grandkids.

It's funny how getting older brings the essentials into focus, nearer, and yet still beyond reach. Why are we here? Auntie Frances and her generation didn't beseech the heavens from rooftops, nor did they indulge in selfies much less in “finding themselves,” but just got on with business. “No monku-ing” was their motto. They are the last of an America that needs some of that old school grit now.

We watched Michael Jordan perform jaw-dropping feats, but hidden away are the endless days and nights of practice. The Malcolm Gladwell codified "10,000 hours" minimum practice it takes to become good at something.

I hated every minute of training, but I said, 'Don't quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.
--Muhammad Ali


So, there's the finished product that was Auntie Frances, a drive to excel and the bevy of good people she produced and helped. It's not the spotlight or in the championship ring. It's pulling off my cousin's t-shirt as a little kid to get ready for a bath. It's being mad at Joey and trying to whup his butt but giving up and flopping in a chair because he was making her laugh so much. A shock of hair and the Yoshida love of laughter. 

No, it's not the bright lights, it's answering life with getting down to it. Being a country girl from Lindsay, what's hidden is the practice, those plucked chickens.