AIG Isn't Too Big Too Fail
So says Lucian Bebchuk in the WSJ: While AIG has thus far been able to cover derivative losses using government funds, the possibility of large additional losses must be recognized. AIG recently stated that it still has about $1.6 trillion in “notional derivatives exposure.” Suppose, for example, that AIG ends up with losses equal to, ... AIG Isn't Too Big Too Fail
Gabriel on Trinko After Linkline
Manfred Gabriel (Antitrust Review) writes that Linkline extends the reach of Trinko in some important ways: The opinion of the court in Linkline, Chief Justice Roberts writes that Trinko: … makes clear that if a firm has no antitrust duty to deal with its competitors at wholesale, it certainly has no duty to deal under ... Gabriel on Trinko After Linkline
Free Trade Petition
Atlas Economic Research Foundation is circulating a petition in favor of free trade (HT Sasha Volokh). The plan is to unveil the petition before the April 1 G20 meetings in London. Here is the text of the petition. You can sign it here if you are interested. Free Trade Is the Best Policy The specter ... Free Trade Petition
OK, The Stimulus and Bailouts are One Thing …
But THIS is where I draw the line. Go Bruins.
I Guess I Have to Rewrite My Contracts Final
Maybe it was too easy anyway. I mean, who hasn’t heard this one before? Jinsoo Kim begins his opening brief by stating, “Blood may be thicker than water, but here it?s far weightier than a peppercorn.”1 Kim appeals from the trial court?s refusal to enforce a gratuitous promise, handwritten in his friend’s own blood, to ... I Guess I Have to Rewrite My Contracts Final
On the Whole Foods Settlement
Thom kicked off discussion of the FTC and Whole Foods’ settlement on a critical note: It’s pretty impressive that the Commissioners were willing to stand their ground in the face of evidence that Whole Foods wasn’t earning monopoly profits, that numerous grocery retailers are moving toward the Whole Foods format, that there are obvious economies ... On the Whole Foods Settlement
Varney Confirmation Hearings
Webcast and testimony are available. Here is the paragraph from the testimony setting forth objectives for the new DOJ enforcement regime with some brief commentary below: There are three main areas that, if confirmed, I will focus on as the Assistant Attorney General for Antitrust. First, we must rebalance legal and economic theories in antitrust ... Varney Confirmation Hearings
Some Links
Pharma Mergers! The unintended consequences of disability law (Freakonomics) Posner on the Failure of Capitalism — a book I that I suspect will attract much attention Congratulations to Scott Kieff who is heading from Wash U to GW The FTC gets PI in CCC/Mitchell
Evans and Schmalensee Webinar on Two-Sided Markets
Here is a link to the latest Competition Policy International Webinar series on antitrust issues in two-sided markets by David Evans and Richard Schmalansee. Here is the course description: It is now widely recognized by antitrust and economic scholars that analyzing competitive practices such as mergers and abuse of dominance in two-sided industries requires special ... Evans and Schmalensee Webinar on Two-Sided Markets
The Demarcus Cousins Saga Ends
We’ve been following the Demarcus Cousins saga. For those who haven’t, Cousins is a blue chip high school basketball recruit who has been bargaining hard with the University of Alabama-Birmingham (UAB) over signing his National Letter of Intent — the letter that commits a player to attend the university and imposes the penalty of giving ... The Demarcus Cousins Saga Ends
"Editing Reality With Both Hands … "
The post title is stolen from a commenter (Unit) at this post over at Austrian Economists. Delong’s comment editing practices (the selective editing even more so than the deleting of comments with opposing points of view) are disturbing to say the least. Here’s an excerpt from the post: See this post of DeLong’s that is ... "Editing Reality With Both Hands … "
Verret on the Self-Defeating Bailout
My colleague JW Verret has an interesting take on the bank bailout at Forbes.com: This deal was intended to bolster public confidence in banks, while at the same time minimizing the cost of the bailout when Treasury sells its shares once markets pick up. The form of equity Treasury has taken, and plans to take ... Verret on the Self-Defeating Bailout
