Hedge Fund Proposal Would Allow Secretive Enclave to Open Up

The tight-lipped world of hedge funds might soon be able to speak more freely.

The Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday proposed rules that would remove a longtime prohibition against general solicitation by hedge funds, a huge change for an industry that has ballooned in size and influence in recent decades.

Read the rest here.

Occupy Wall Street, the global movement against inequality that ignited in Manhattan last year, will mark its first anniversary by trying to block traffic in the financial district and encircle the New York Stock Exchange.

Planning for the Sept. 17 protest, dubbed S17, follows months of internal debate and flagging interest, according to interviews with organizers. The morning action may include attempts to make citizens’ arrests of bankers, and some activists intend to bring handcuffs, they said.

Read the rest here.

This is the story of a dick in a box.

Read the article here.

From the Bonddad Blog:

But the Case Shiller index is only one house price index. There are a dozen such indexes, all relying on different methods. There are asking prices indexes, median and mean sales price indexes, and repeat sales indexes. Within each type there are seasonally adjusted and non-seasonally adjusted metrics. Back in April I reported on slew of house price indexes, and concluded that March may have marked the turn in the market. With the Case Schiller index turning positive YoY, now is a good time to check those indexes again. Do they contradict the Case Shiller turning point, or do they confirm it?

Read the rest here.

A great chart-chomping Dow Theory blog post can be read here.

Video and transcripts of one of the best speeches of the night are here.

Condor Options is out with an excellent read about volatility of volatility.

Read the article here.

Read the interview here.

Source: VIRGIN

See a chart of the best-ever post-war stock market rallies, here.

H/T The Other McCain

Teenagers who regularly smoke cannabis are putting themselves at risk of permanently damaging their intelligence, according to a landmark study.

Read the rest here.

A great read from iBC’s own Redman.

Volume tends to be the go-to excuse for bears as this market keeps grinding higher.  While I have nothing new to say, I wanted to share two articles that highlight on why volume on the indices should not be a factor in your bull/bear case.

Read the rest here.

• An international group of prominent scientists supports the idea that animals are conscious and aware to the degree that humans are.
• The list includes all mammals, birds and even some encephlopods.
• The group says consciousness can emerge even in those animals that are very much unlike humans

Read the rest here.

Pew Research conducted an exhaustive survey monitoring how favorably or unfavorably President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney were being portrayed in all media outlets. Pew discovered that during morning and evening network news, Obama was portrayed much more favorably than Romney, even in the midst of a slumping economy.

Read the rest here.

FRANKFURT — The president of the German central bank said in an interview published Sunday that he remained staunchly opposed to government bond purchases by the European Central Bank, a position that could make it more difficult to deploy a weapon many economists believe is essential to saving the euro.

Read the rest here.

Simon Johnson’s new piece is worth a read…

Two diametrically opposed views of Wall Street and the dangers posed by global megabanks came more clearly into focus last week.  On the one hand, William B. Harrison, Jr. – former chairman of JP Morgan Chase – argued in the New York Times that today’s massive banks are an essential part of a well-functioning market economy, and not at all helped by implicit government subsidies.

On the other hand, there is a new powerful voice who knows how big banks really work and who is willing to tell the truth in great and convincing detail.  Jeff Connaughton – a former senior political adviser who has worked both for and against powerful Wall Street interests over the years – has just published a page-turning memoir that is also a damning critique of how Wall Street operates, the political capture of Washington, and our collective failure to reform finance in the past four years.  “The Payoff: Why Wall Street Always Wins,” is the perfect antidote to disinformation put about by global megabanks and their friends.

Specifically, Mr. Harrison makes six related arguments regarding why we should not break up our largest banks.  Each of these is clearly and directly refuted by Mr. Connaughton’s experience and the evidence he presents.

Read the rest here.

A recovery in housing could boost Weyerhaeuser’s sales and earnings, and unlock the value of its high-quality timberland and real-estate assets. A REIT with rising payouts.

Read the rest here.

(Reuters) – The streak is over, but is the trend intact?

A six-week string of gains in the S&P 500 .SPX ended on Friday amid shifting expectations for central bank stimulus. This week could bring clarity on that issue, and that could determine whether the recent rally that took the index to four-year highs will persist.

Read the rest here.

On August 24^th, we warned on Forbes that Tropical Storm Isaac could pose a threat to energy markets and even rival Hurricane Katrina in its destructive power (Could Tropical Storm Isaac Turn Into Another Katrina?).  While the computer models are still showing a substantial spread in solutions, it appears more likely that Isaac will make landfall somewhere near the Louisiana, Mississippi Gulf Coast.  This track will provide the storm more time to intensify over the very warm water of the Gulf of Mexico.

Read the rest here.