World faces total financial meltdown: Spain's bank chief

http://www.businessday.com.au/business/world-business/world-faces-total-financial-meltdown-spains-bank-chief-20081222-734j.html
Just another sunny day.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/21/AR2008122102171.html?hpid=topnews

In hard times, analysts say, nations are more inclined to take steps that inhibit trade, often with dire consequences. Trade restrictions imposed by countries trying to protect domestic industries in the 1930s, for instance, escalated into a global trade war that deepened and prolonged the Great Depression.

Count on politicans to due the wrong thing.

What Bush did.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/21/business/21admin.html?em
I dislike look back pieces like this cause it is easier to see the right answer in hindsight. However there are several key points to the article which are correct.
Give it a read and decided for yourself.

Lets check on Ireland

http://bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aMlHWBjivGkw&refer=home

The government will inject 1.5 billion euros into Anglo Irish in return for preference shares with 75 percent of its voting rights, the government said late yesterday. Allied Irish Banks Plc and Bank of Ireland Plc surged in Dublin trading after getting 2 billion euros apiece.

So you made loans and need a government hand out. No Problem.

Chrysler dead man limping

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/22/business/22chrysler.html?_r=1

In other words, Cerberus appears willing to give up its 80.1 percent stake in Chrysler to the United Automobile Workers and anyone else the troubled automaker owes money to.

Why would you do this? Cause the liabilities are not worth the risk anymore.

Cerberus officials lobbied the White House last week to prevent the private equity firm from being held responsible for the Chrysler loans if the automaker cannot repay them, according to people with knowledge of the talks who declined to be identified because the discussions were private.

But Chrysler executives, who are responsible for the day-to-day operations of the company, were shut out of the discussions, those people said.

Whoops looks like someone has a hot potato

Can you spare a rubel comrade.

http://bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=avGyVvJh9b3w&refer=home

Without a revival in commodity prices or state help, some Russian companies risk failing, according to Pacific Investment Management Co., which runs the world’s largest bond fund.

Not going to happen anytime soon.

Failure to Bail out Bank Topples Belgian Government

http://www.cnbc.com/id/28325166

Third time the government has falling in a year. Just more cracks.