REGULATION

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SEC chief backs 'systemic risk council' idea

The head of the Securities and Exchange Commission said Friday she favors a new proposal for federal regulators sharing oversight of companies that pose financial risks to the economy.

Judge: Fla.'s Cuban travel law unconstitutional

A judge says a Florida law that would make it more expensive for travel agents to book trips to Cuba is unconstitutional because it interferes with foreign policy.

Obama says unregulated markets went off rails

President Barack Obama says the market is the most effective mechanism for producing wealth, but it goes off the rails sometimes.

Hedge funds generally accept Obama oversight plan

Hedge funds generally accept the Obama administration's proposal to require managers to register with regulators, but want to ensure their information will be kept confidential when Congress acts, the head of the industry's trade group said Tuesday.

Analysis: Pendulum swings to financial restraints

Capitalism can't always be trusted. If you're too big to fail, you're too big to make all your own decisions, according to the emerging view in Washington.

SEC chairman sees independent role for agency

The head of the Securities and Exchange Commission said Thursday the agency must play a key role as an independent watchdog protecting investors in the new system of financial regulation that is being crafted.

Financial overhaul plan draws GOP opposition

The Obama administration's aggressive plan for strict scrutiny of hedge funds and other freewheeling investors, part of the biggest expansion of financial restraints since the Great Depression, is drawing instant opposition from Republican lawmakers and the rules' targets. And skeptics are questioning whether the new rulebook would work anyway.

Administration seeks action on financial overhaul

The administration wants Congress to act quickly on legislation that would give it sweeping new powers to seize financial firms whose collapse could jeopardize the U.S. economy, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said Wednesday.

'Too big to fail' must end, policymakers say

Giving the government new powers to seize big troubled companies on Thursday became the new focus of debate in Congress as lawmakers and the administration begin efforts to overhaul the nation's financial rule book.

UK financial services regulator proposes shakeup

Britain's financial services watchdog proposed sweeping changes to global banking regulations on Wednesday, including a crackdown on the "shadow banking" activities of institutions like hedge funds.

Lawmakers debate Fed's role in financial overhaul

Greater transparency from banks, corporations and other market players will be demanded under the overhaul of the nation's financial rules that Congress is embarking on, but the role of the Federal Reserve is an early sticking point in those plans.

House panel adopts financial oversight bill

Congress is moving forward on an ambitious project to impose new government reins on the financial markets. A House panel on Thursday cleared a measure to expand regulation of complex financial instruments and the authority of a small federal agency.

Congressional leaders propose new financial reins

Congressional leaders are proposing new government oversight over Wild West corners of the financial markets that operate largely in secrecy and have been pinned as potential threats to stability. Fresh targets are hedge funds and the $60 trillion global market in credit default swaps — a form of insurance against loan defaults.

UK financial regulator calls for world watchdog

Britain's top financial regulator said Wednesday institutions such as the International Monetary Fund must tackle the economic crisis, but that global rules — and perhaps even a world regulatory body — will be needed eventually.

Nasdaq CEO sees market role in financial crisis

The markets can help the nation emerge from the current financial crisis by providing transparency for secretive investments that helped fuel the disaster, but the government needs to put better rules in place to make that happen, the head of the Nasdaq stock market said Thursday.

CFTC head calls for new regulatory regime

The head of the federal agency that oversees commodities trading wants to replace it and the Securities and Exchange Commission with three new regulators to better deal with an increasingly complex financial system.

Lawmakers may draft tougher finance rules

Lawmakers waded gingerly Tuesday into a complex debate over how to overhaul the regulatory structure overseeing the U.S. financial system, promising stricter rules governing risky financial products that are seen as responsible for the current financial crisis.

Battered financial industry faces more oversight

With the passage of the $700 billion rescue package, the financial industry will face greater congressional scrutiny in coming weeks and months.

Federal judge bars Fla. law on Cuba travel bond

A Florida law that would make it more expensive for travel agents to book trips to Cuba is likely unconstitutional, a federal judge ruled Wednesday.

Comcast appeals FCC Web traffic-blocking decision

Comcast Corp. is appealing an FCC ruling that the company is improperly blocking customers' Web traffic, triggering a legal battle that could determine the extent of the government's authority to regulate the Internet.

FCC rules Comcast violated Internet access policy

A divided Federal Communications Commission has ruled that Comcast Corp. violated federal policy when it blocked Internet traffic for some subscribers and has ordered the cable giant to change the way it manages its network.

FCC chief hopes Comcast sanction serves as warning

A recommendation to punish Comcast Corp. for blocking subscribers' Internet traffic should serve as a warning to other service providers, the nation's top telecommunications regulator said Friday.

Housing-credit woes spur calls for more federal regulation

A heavier federal hand is reaching into American life as politicians in both parties demand an overhaul of government financial regulation and more protection for homeowners in the face of mortgage woes and a weakening economy.

Senators debate future of Web

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin said Tuesday his agency has all the authority it needs to prevent Internet service providers from discriminating against Web surfers and that new legislation is unnecessary.

Organizer Disputes Comcast Over Hearing

The organizer of a federal hearing at Harvard Law School on Comcast Corp.'s treatment of subscriber Internet traffic on Wednesday said "seat-warmers" apparently hired by the company prevented other attendees from getting in.

Will the FDA Kill Adult Stem Cell Medicine?
Source: hplusmagazine.com

The FDA contends that if one cultures stem cells at all, regardless of the use of those cells, then it's a prescription drug.

Trillions in Bailouts and Not One Investigation?
Source: Talking Points Memo

Of course these were the same arguments that were used in the attempt to stymie the original regulations in the 1930s. It s not like the bankers of that earlier period accepted these restrictions with open arms.

An Affordable Salvation - Paul Krugman
Source: The New York Times

The 2008 election ended the reign of junk science in our nation's capital, and the chances of meaningful action on climate change, probably through a cap-and-trade system on emissions, have risen sharply.

The Root of the Problem

In looking for a reason for our current economic issues it appears that most people think the problem is just a few years old. They find a point that backs their cause and stop looking.

Obama wants to make America more like Europe
Source: The Times

In the end, Americans will live in smaller houses, drive cars more like those to which Europeans are accustomed, and will rely on European-style healthcare. In short, we will be more like you, which is after all the social democratic model to which Obama wants to convert America.

A 'cult of finance' protecting failed banks, economists say - MarketWatch
Source: MarketWatch.com

Even after they were bailed out at a cost of trillions of dollars, U.S.

AIG outrage dominates U.S. insurance hearing
Source: Reuters

Now it gets complicated. Aside from the obvious outrage about the bonuses, these factors will be crucial elements in any regulatory act:

Wake up and smell the pepper spray. These 3,609 new laws are to control us, not protect us
Source: the Mail online

Yet let's try to remember the last full-on riot in Britain that resulted from a political rally – ah yes, the Poll Tax riots almost 20 years ago. But the police are still authorised to use Tasers and firearm-trained TSG officers carry pistols or sub-machine guns.

E.P.A. Clears the Way for Regulation of Warming Gases - NYTimes.com
Source: The New York Times

The Environmental Protection Agency on Friday formally declared carbon dioxide and five other heat-trapping gases to be pollutants that threaten public health and welfare, setting in motion a process that for the first time in the United States will regulate the gases blamed for  …

E.P.A. to Clear the Way for Regulation of Warming Gases
Source: The New York Times

The Environmental Protection Agency on Friday formally declared carbon dioxide and five other heat-trapping gases to be pollutants that threaten public health and welfare, setting in motion a process that for the first time in the United States will regulate the gases blamed for  …

To Fill Food Safety Gap, Processors Pay Inspectors
Source: The New York Times

Clipboard in hand, Debra Anderson spent three hours one recent sunny morning trooping through a field of romaine lettuce looking for trouble.

Keeping consumers safe from financial products: As some call for a financial products safety commission, industry balks
Source: MarketWatch.com

They are the lead-painted toys of the financial world: Exploding mortgages and credit cards with sky-high rates.

Debt is Not Money – and Must Be Regulated
Source: Common Dreams

Over the past three decades - largely since Reagan - debt (both private and public/government) has expanded much more rapidly than the economy has grown.

Crisis Altering Wall Street as Big Banks Lose Top Talent
Source: The New York Times

As Washington cracks down on compensation and tightens regulation of banks, a brain drain is occurring at some of the biggest ones.

Cycle-proof regulation | The Economist
Source: The Economist

AS THE G20 summit showed, we typically regulate in the midst of a bust.

Paul Krugman on: Making Banking Boring
Source: The New York Times

Thirty-plus years ago, when I was a graduate student in economics, only the least ambitious of my classmates sought careers in the financial world.

Obama - The Charming Menace to Peace and Prosperity
Source: townhall.com

Obama seeks to replace entrepreneurs with bureaucrats. He emboldens our enemies, who interpret his words of outreach and humility as signs of weakness.

Credit Card Industry Defeated for Now | American News Project
Source: americannewsproject.com

Hidden penalties, sudden interest rate hikes, and deceptive language are just a few of the questionable tactics used by credit card companies to extract money from increasingly stressed consumers. Now, some on Capitol Hill are trying to regulate the more abusive practices.

The Credit Rating Firms Are Like Cancer To The Financial System
Source: The L.A. Times

Yet the rating process is shot through with conflicts of interest. The agencies get almost all of their income from fees for rating securities, and those fees are paid by the issuers of those securities.

Iceland report a timely reminder that no regulatory system can be foolproof - Telegraph
Source: Telegraph

I thoroughly recommend the Treasury Select Committee's report into the Icelandic banking crisis.

Summer of Outrage II - There Will Be Blood
Source: The Accidental Hunt Brothers Blog

.....Even though the economy continues to struggle, investors are looking ahead to time when the massive rescue efforts by central banks and governments gain traction.

FDA Hasn't Intensified Inspections At Peanut Facilities, Despite Illness - washingtonpost.com
Source: The Washington Post

Despite four outbreaks of salmonella illness from peanut products in the past three years, the federal government has not changed the safety measures required of peanut companies or instructed its inspectors to test for the bacteria.

Notice to Employees

Parsed from an email I received today - Original Writer Unknown. To All My Valued Employees,