Second Opinion

More IPO Madness: TPG may be eying an IPO of Myer department stores in Australia. (FT) Deal Trends: It's a buyers market. Carried Interest blog has some thoughts on how that's affecting M&A transactions. (Carried Interest) Wondering What Was Up With Twitter Today? Apparently the social networking site, alongside Facebook and Livejournal, were hacked. (WSJ) Remember the Men of the Financial Crisis? Meet the ladies. (Clusterstock) Good Money After Bad? Oak Hill is shelling out more capital toward Duane Reade. Bad idea? Some investors think so... (NY Post)

The Fee War: "Unlike many private-equity firms which have reduced fees, hedge funds aren't budging without concessions such as longer lock-up periods and commitments of at least $100 million, according to money managers and consultants." (Bloomberg) Rewarding Bad Actors: "If you aren't outraged, you haven't been paying attention." (Paul Krugman) The truth about grit: "Modern science builds the case for an old-fashioned virtue - and uncovers new secrets to success." ( Boston.com) Tarnished Brand: Well Matt Tiabbi and others seemed to have succeeded. According to a study conducted by the Financial Times, Goldman Sachs' brand and reputation have been "tarnished." (FT) That group of "others" includes Zero Hedge according to Wall Street Cheat Sheet. Back and Forth: Seeking Alpha's Robert Solomon is bearish on private equity, so he naturally disagrees with Economist's hopeful article from last week. (Seeking Alpha)

One Take on The Delphi Saga: "Through all the gyrations and the endless bankruptcy, nothing much has changed: GM still can't afford to lose Delphi, and Delphi still can't afford to be liquidated. So did it really make sense to spin Delphi off in 1999? Of course not. But that's what Wall Street wanted, and that's what Wall Street got. One can never underestimate the finance business's hatred for old-line vertically integrated companies." (Big Money) Six Words To Live By on the Internet: According to Fred Wilson: open, global, mobile, social, playful, and intelligent. He says we need to work on the intelligent part. (A VC) Michael Milken's New Project: a user-generated website focused on executives. (Bits) HR: Meet the new head of private equity at Illinois Teachers. (P&I) No Short Sleeves or Yellow Pantsuits: Life as a Woman at Lehman Japan (Deal Journal)

The Barbarians are Coming: The Economist argues that, thanks to a few IPOs and a handful of deals, private equity is waking up from the dead. I think it's a little early to say that. (Economist) New Terms: This one is new to me at least-"Ramen Profitable" aka a startup that makes just enough to pay the founders' living expenses. (Paul Graham) Rants: Why Neal Patel doesn't want you to start a company. (Quick Sprout) According to an anecdote: Sex in the office is yet another victim of the recession. (Clusterstock) An Outsiders Point of View: Is private equity good for technology vendors? (Human Capitalist)

Take-Downs: The New York Post puts a hit on Sun Capital Partners. Not once, but twice in one issue. When Wasn't Friendster For Sale? (I mean, ever since the social networking site turned down its first ever buyout offer and realized it wasn't getting another...) Either way, TechCrunch has obtained (perhaps in an attempt by Friendster's I-bankers Morgan Stanley to drum up some bids) Friendster's official marketing materials aimed at potential Asian suitors. (TechCrunch) The New Joblessness: The U.S. economy is not only shedding jobs at a record rate; it is shedding more jobs than it is supposed to. (NYT) Surprise! A buyout firm actually write its portfolio up this quarter! (Reuters) Buffet's Cartoon: The "Secret Millionaires Club" is the title of a new cartoon staring the Oracle of Omaha, in which Buffett's cartoon likeness ... dispenses investment advice to a motley crew of kids from Omaha. (Deal Journal)

Can't Get Enough CIT Drama? Here's a full recap of the deathwatch. (Clusterstock) Alan Blinder: The U.S. economy appears to be hitting bottom. And that's both good and bad. (NY Times) Proof That Twitter Is A Bunch of Crap? According to the The Poop Index, there are more people talking about pooping on Twitter than world peace, world hunger, or nuclear proliferation. (Gizmodo) Wow: Years after beginning a sale process (we're talking pre-recession people), fashion company Tory Burch sells a stake... to a Mexican firm I've never heard of. (Press release) Poor, Poor Rich People: "As if market forces and malevolent actors weren't enough, the rich are now finding themselves targeted by politicians." (Moneybox)

Buyout Firms Like Old Media? OpenGate Capital (you know, the firm that bought TV Guide without TVGuide.com) is participating in the auction for BusinessWeek (BusinessWeek) Damage Control: Brynnwood Partners and portfolio company Stella D'Oro just wants to say that it is not the evil force behind the conflicts between Stella D'Oro and its union. (Businesswire) FYI: The rotation and orbit of planet Earth is powered by the continuous pronouncement (by private equiteers) that private equity only invests in the best management teams. (Private Equiteer) Studies: Europe doesn't really have a "hotbed of innovation" like Silicon Valley. How is innovation connected to private equity ownership there? (Financierworldwide)

All Equity: In one of the largest deals of the year, Apax plans to take Bankrate private with all equity for $571 million. (Bloomberg) Poor Harman: Their rumoured takeover offer turned out to be fiction, which is even worse than the real offer that fell through back in ‘07. Beware unknown Mideast investors bearing big LBO premiums. (Deal Journal) Which College's Graduates Make the Most Money? Hint: It's not Harvard, Stanford, or MIT (Atlantic Monthly) Conference Call Hijinks: Do these things need security? A man posing as a Piper Jaffray analyst infiltrated Western Union's conference call and cursed at the CEO. (Bloomberg)

Scoops: Blackstone is reportedly eying an Asian real estate fund operated by Merrill Lynch. (Deal) Via Abnormal Returns: I haven't read this yet, but I suspect it would be a worthwhile read for both small cap investors and middle market buyout funds. It's a Brandes Institute white paper from April called Is U.S. Small Cap a Viable Alternative to U.S. Private Equity? (SSRN via AR) Spoiler Alert: No. Do good students become good entrepreneurs? (You're The Boss) Recession Not Vicey Enough: Even though the S&P is up more than 43% for the year, the Vice Fund is only up 24%. (Zerobeta)

The Internet is Dead (As An Investment): James Altucher can live all day on the internet, but he tells clients to "run for the hills" when investing in it. (DJ) Chronicling Facebook Without Facetime: A critical look at the new book "The Accidental Billionaires." Best moment in the book? When the readers learn that Zuckerberg's business cards say "I'm CEO - Bitch." (NYT) PE + Banks: In the South, Navigation Capital Partners and others are on the prowl for bank investments. (Atlanta Business Journal) PE-Backed Bust: Wilton Holdings, the maker of food decorating equipment, backed by GTCR, was forced into bankruptcy by a creditor owned by Towerbrook Capital. That's a recent deal which always confused me given the narrow, narrow narrow niche served by Wilton... (Reuters) 80s Revival: The Pac-Man bid (where a target turns around and makes a bid for its suitor) is back. (Reuters)