Second Opinion

Happy Three Day Weekend! Oh Man: The AP is losing this war and "quickly becoming the RIAA of the news industry." From Techcrunch: A country radio station in Tennessee, WTNQ-FM, received a cease-and-desist letter warning from an A.P. vice president of affiliate relations for posting videos from the A.P.'s official Youtube channel on its Website. (Techcrunch) Henry Blodget: Is GE Capital is just another Bear Stearns with a friendly logo? (Clusterstock) Get Ready: The author who predicted crisis sees inflation ahead. (But then again, is track record really a solid predictor for future performance?) (Reuters) Hummer Sputtering: The offers for GM's Hummer brand, which include some private equity firms, have come down significantly. What, people don't want to drive gas-guzzling luxury vehicles in a recession? (Dealzone) Now Hiring: Laid off Wall Streeters are interested in Uncle Sam's Fed job fair. (Bloomberg)

Oops: Did lawyers from New York's elite Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz mess up the Hexion Specialty Chemicals/Huntsman situation? Deal Journal reports yes, through "an operatic series of bad decisions and miscalculations." (DJ) While Everyone Sits On Their Hands: Sullivan and Cromwell says, "Deals are always risky, but doing nothing in a downturn may be the riskiest move of all." (BusinessWeek) Opposite Day: Yesterday we learned about "Obama-friendly" PE investing. Here's one company ideally suited not to prosper under the new administration. (Slate) Rule #1 of Pirate Negotiating: Don't give up your hostage (especially if it's the only one you have) before they do. According to reports on the ongoing saga: "After negotiating with the pirates, the civilian crew released the one pirate they had, expecting the pirates to release the captain, the sources added, but that did not happen." Ouch. (MSNBC)

Ripple: Private equity firms are planning for an "Obama effect," according to panelists at a Chicago AGC event. "Wherever they say they're spending money, PE firms will try to capitalize on that." (Chicago Tribune) Not a Sucker's Rally: Henry Blodget thinks we're seeing lights at the end of the tunnel. (Clusterstock) Hope You Didn't Follow His Stock Advice: Lenny Dykstra is broke and having his mansion and private jet yanked from him by a private equity firm (albeit one I've never heard of). (Fin Alternatives) Pimco: "Not very subtly distancing itself from the PPIP, which has only gotten less popular as its details have emerged." (Talking Points Memo) Did You Know: The last private equity deal valued at more than $1 billion was Blackstone's $1.19 billion deal for Allied Security Holding in July, 2008. (CNBC)

IPO Chatter: It's back. But is it just chatter? Just because more companies want to go public, and there's one well-received IPO on the books, doesn't mean all the signs of a revival are there. (WSJ) Bank Meltdown Tours: One enterprising former banker is taking advantage of the crisis. "Instead of leaving Wall Street, Luan ... has launched a financial meltdown tour, guiding packs of mostly European tourists around the epicenter of the collapse-and explaining his own role in the crisis along the way." (Big Money) Breaking Ground: Can private equity play the infrastructure game? (The Deal) Yikes: What can happen when you lend or buy the debt in your own portfolio companies. (Reuters Columnist Margaret Doyle)

Signs: Things are so bad that lenders are ignoring defaults? (Economic Trend Analysis) Give Me One Reason: Why we should treat Detroit more harshly than Wall Street. (Breakingviews via Abnormal Returns) HEY! The Depression is over! Because Jim Cramer says so! (Cityfile) Happy To Know: Polaroids will live on under the umbrella of a private equity firm (after another failed to save it from a second bankruptcy). (Boston Business Journal)

Greed Now Bad: Maurice Greenberg testifies, calls traders greedy. (Dealbook) Creativity: Yesterday we discussed how KKR is getting creative with debt. Today Deal Professor looks at Blackstone's Freescale situation. (Dealbook) GAH! CNBC breaks out the Nonabox. (Infectious Greed) More Bad News: Pensions face a severe, synchronized downturn. (Naked Capitalism)

Happy April Fool's Day! Also, Happy Financial Fools Day: Protest reports from the G20 convention, from Reuters. And From The Front Lines: A photo that shows the ratio of press to protesters. (DB) Meanwhile: He-Man and "Postman Pat" are being rescued by private equity firm GTCR. Huzzah. (Dealzone) "Hubris" Interesting facts from this NY Times article on Cerberus' Investment in Chrysler:

MBAs: What are they actually learning? Felix Salmon says he hopes that "if there isn't any demand for financial whizzbangery any more, then maybe the supply of it will wither quite quickly." (Market Movers) In Related News, "Duh" Department: BusinessWeek says networking is important for MBAs to find jobs. (BW) No Bankers: Soho House members in the financial industry have learned their presence isn't wanted anymore. (NY Post) Bubblespeak: "The Orwellian language of Wall Street finds its way to the Treasury Department." (Daniel Gross)

Deal Professor: Some thoughts on the absence of deals. "Private equity remains dead, dead, dead." (Dealbook) Op-Ed: We're not the boss of AIG, by Carl Icahn. (NY Times) A Culprit! The pay scale of banks is at least part of the reason they failed, a new survey says. (WSJ) Shouts & Murmurs: Woody Allen on Madoff. (New Yorker) Reliable Source: More evidence of the NY Post's credibility... The supposed Wall Streeter turned stripper they recently profiled was an actress, it turns out. (Huffington Post)

Shrinkage: AIG's private equity funds have seen a decline as steep as that of Terra Firma. (WSJ) Everyone's Talking About: The worthlessness of MBAs. Matthew Stewart writes, "The economic crisis has exposed the myth of business-school expertise." (The Big Money) AIG Wife: "We Were Betrayed!" (Clusterstock) Editorial: The Deal's Robert Teitelman discusses the exit stage left of "equity culture" and incoming of populist culture. (Dealscape) Something About This Headline: GE Cap Tries To Reposses Jalopy Jet. As a lender to a bankrupt clothing company, the firm gets the exciting task of liquidating its near-worthless assets. (Dealscape)