Parsad

A $300M fund company from Canada won the lunch last week. Cheers! http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idCAN0838940520090708?rpc=44

John Meriwether, who ran LTCM into the ground, is closing his latest hedge fund due to losses. Wow, only 15-1 leverage this time and it didn't work as well! ::) Cheers! http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=a5QBxVSIpVuA

I agree Packer. I think he's a very good researcher, but not so good when it comes to the practical application of his research. Cheers!

No, I'm not talking about Madoff. In Mark Mitchell's piece on Dendreon, there was a link to a 1985 WSJ article on short-selling, which throughly discusses some of Jim Chanos strategies back then. Nothing has changed! Here is just a sampling of what Chanos was doing back then...sound familiar to Fairfax shareholders? http://www.deepcapture.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/Market-Hardball-Aggressive-Methods-Of-Some-Short-Sellers.pdf In recent interviews with this newspaper, Mr. Chanos referred to Coleco Industries Inc.'s management as "liars," called a recent First Executive transaction "fraudulent" and stated matter-of-factly that Integrated Resources "won't be around in five years." Because such comments usually are spoken, shorts rarely are held accountable if their exaggerations don't materialize. You really should also read about his actions around First Executive and E.F. Hutton, which were abhorently unethical. Disgusting pig of a man! Perhaps he does have two horns and spreads syphilis. Cheers!

Wow, as I mentioned that Chapter 3 is where it starts to get interesting, Chapters 4 and 5 continue to illuminate the interconnections within the web of Wall Street's powerful hedge fund managers. While the writing needs work, the details are fascinating! A while ago, I tried to challenge Sam Antar, Gary Weiss and Tracey Conen regarding their bashing articles on Overstock.com. Out of the blue, I received a friendly warning by a well-known investment manager that I should be careful. This manager was very sincere and said that these guys are very well connected. I'm starting to find out exactly who they are connected to now! Cheers! Chapter 4: http://www.deepcapture.com/michael-milken-60000-deaths-and-the-story-of-dendreon-chapter-4-of-15/ Chapter 5: http://www.deepcapture.com/michael-milken-60000-deaths-and-the-story-of-dendreon-chapter-5-of-15/ Chapter 6: http://www.deepcapture.com/michael-milken-60000-deaths-and-the-story-of-dendreon-chapter-6-of-15/ Chapter 7: http://www.deepcapture.com/michael-milken-60000-deaths-and-the-story-of-dendreon-chapter-7-of-15/ Chapter 8: http://www.deepcapture.com/michael-milken-60000-deaths-and-the-story-of-dendreon-chapter-8-of-15/

Fortune article about economist Robert Schiller...some interesting points about Shiller in it. I have a lot of respect for his research. http://money.cnn.com/2009/07/06/real_estate/robert_shiller_housing_market.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2009070710 I'm kind of flabbergasted by his comments on his company hedging all sorts of risk. Surprised that he believes he can do so, especially after how their original hedge against oil prices had to be shut down and examples we've seen of LTCM and other hedge funds. Cheers!

Is this a good contrarian indicator?? Almost certainly! Cheers!

Signs seem to point to the uptick rule being brought back. Cheers! http://www.cnbc.com/id/31719408

What happens when people refuse to accept the IOU's? Will the government then step in? They are already beginning to cut services...I would imagine property taxes will go up if Prop 13 is repealed? What if they can't repeal Prop 13, as they need a two-thirds majority? Do commercial taxes go up...but businesses will relocate head offices. So many possibilities. This is not a situation I have any comfort with! Cheers!

I'm more concerned about these situations than I am corporate America itself. California, Michigan, Eastern Europe, Iceland...etc. Bigger systemic issues? Cheers! http://www.cnbc.com/id/31706621

Apparently, they are selling quite a few: http://www.cnbc.com/id/31708955 Cheers!

I would hate to see the current FFH share price if FFH didn't realize $2.1B on the CDS portfolio (thanks in large part to Brian) Prem's the best at giving out credit rather than ever taking any for himself, but our fearless leader also deserves significant credit, as does Francis Chou. As both Francis and Brian told the story at our dinner, they were dry for ideas at Hamblin-Watsa, and Prem asked everyone outright if anyone had any good ideas...anything! Francis and Brian sort of looked at each other and then brought up the idea of the credit default swaps. Prem was astute enough to take a shot on the idea considering what they expected to happen to the financial industry some time in the future. Then smart enough to hold on to them as they reaped just about all they could from them. Cheers!

Spending 2008 bonus? He deserves at least that. Hope he doesn't read this. ;D Yup, they do. Brian will probably ask for a bigger bonus now next time. ;D Cheers!

While long-term I think Buffett can still beat the S&P500 by a couple of percentage points, size really is starting to be an issue, as is the permanent ownership of more and more companies. Still far better than owning the index thought! Cheers! http://www.cnbc.com/id/31670203

Hi Folks, Please have all your questions in by Friday, as I will be compiling them and setting up the interview over the weekend. Thanks very much!

Totally agree Crip! If he really does want to turn over a new leaf, stopping others is probably the best place to start. Albeit, not like Sam Antar's bullshit reformation. Anyone else notice Sam hardly posts about Overstock anymore? Cheers!

Globe & Mail has a story on what Madoff's life will now be like: http://www.globeinvestor.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20090629.wmadoffjail0629/GIStory/ While he won't be allowed conjugal visits, I suspect he will now be the boytoy of some guy named "Butch" in cellblock D. Cheers!

Maybe they can keep him on a respirator and heart/lung machine, but hopefully Madoff lives long enough to serve at least half that sentence! ;D Cheers! http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aCaVUDaGGcAY

What are they talking about...that BHRG cut capacity in the 2nd Q? In the 1st Q, revenues at BHRG were up three fold, so I don't understand exactly what they are referring to. Cheers!

Story on Zhao Danyang, the fellow who bought last year's "Lunch With Buffett" auction. Cheers! http://money.cnn.com/2009/06/26/magazines/fortune/lunch_buffett_danyang.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2009062610

We normally stick to value-investing related topics, but I thought this story of a woman in New Jersey, who uses the power of capitalism to assist small business owners was a great story. Cheers! http://www.cnn.com/2009/LIVING/worklife/06/18/cnnheroes.alfa.demmellash/index.html

Completely off-topic, but because he was such a huge influence on pop-culture and music, I thought I would mention it. Michael Jackson has died of a heart attack at age 50. Sadly, a girl I had a crush on as a young boy, Farrah Fawcett, also passed away today. Should probably wait till CNN has said it, but these guys are pretty good when it comes to this stuff: http://www.tmz.com/

I wonder if this issue impacted any institutional investors from buying FFH or ORH? Almost certainly to a degree. I'm sure the ones who also bailed once most of the CDS gains had been reaped, paid particular attention to that paragraph. Cheers!

What is left of the thesis anyway? - Excessive leverage - Nope - Lack of Liquidity - Nope - Underreserved - Nope - Unethical Management - Nope - Offshore Accounts Hiding Problems - Nope - Investment Returns Can't Be Maintained - Nope - Debt At Subs Is High - Nope - Insurance Businesses Are Crap - Nope - Runoff Will Require Capital Over Time - Nope - SEC Investigation Into Reinsurance Activities - Nope What's left? - So-called "Warren Buffett of the North" - Well, he one-upped the master in 2008 - Jim Chanos Says "This Thing Is Going To Zero" - Priceless! Cheers!

So does the SEC now refund all of our legal costs? ;D I expect a minimum of a pint of blood when Fairfax goes to trial against the hedgies! Cheers!