Second Opinion

Lifestyles Of The No Longer Rich And Never Very Famous: New York Magazine published a cringe-worthy story about whiny bankers who won't be getting their bonuses this year. It's not helping the whole PR battle against Wall Street right now-why not cover the out-of-work bankers who are having one hell of a time trying to find a new job? Dealbook has a summary. Dear Chrysler, Head To Delaware: Or so that's why Peter Morici, a business professor, thinks is the best option for the Cerberus-backed auto maker, ruling out a merger with GM. However, a Chapter 11 move would wipe out Cerberus' 81% stake, something I highly doubt the turnaround firm would readily agree to. AHA!: I knew it. Henry Kravis finally admitted that private equity got his returns through quick flips and dividend recaps. Dan has already covered these speeches of guilt admission, but I wanted to point out that I desperately hope this sentiment trickles down to the middle market. The phrase "value-add" is such a cliché, regardless of whether or not its true. At least someone isn't trying to spin us. Meanwhile: Reuters outlines in greater depth the possibility of bankers apologizing to "main street" and employees as a way to re-gain trust and respect. It wouldn't hurt. Hey, it might make visits to the gym safer for Dick Fuld (just kidding, that punch looks like it was an unsubstantiated rumour).

All Facebook All The Time: Could the spate of Facebook departures hint at a potential sale? Mergermarket thinks so. Sinfest: How The Credit Crisis Was Solved. Ouch, And Also Haha: Chesapeake Energy throws propriety to the wind in its Investor Day presentation slides. A way to lighten the mood perhaps? The painful ball-crush image labeled "Lehman Brothers" certainly begs the question of how exposed the firm was. Careerbuilder.com is Thriving These Days: Evidenced by the two-block-long line of 2300 job-seeking hopefuls at a recent job fair in Chelsea. We Go Viral. We Get On The Net, And We Blog It Out: Job hunters can take some guerilla self-marketing tactics from Glass Hammer's Pimp My LinkedIn guide. (Kudos to anyone who can name the commercial that uses the above line.)

Greed Is Good: The Chuck Norris of Finance? Gordon Gekko is apparently returning to kick the credit crunch's ass in a sequel to the famous 80s movie, Wall Street. Michael Douglas is thinking about starring in the movie, which will be called Money Never Sleeps. Times have changed, Mr. Gekko, and shareholder activists aren't what they used to be. Commitment Letter: Huntsman's, disclosed via Deal Professor. According to him, the MAC wording actually deprives the banks of the ability to call "MAC" if Hexion had waived its right. That fact is moot after the court determined Huntsman to be solvent. But as Deal Professor says, that's a lot to give up. Candidates Provide Color: On their capital gains tax stances. Does this mean if McCain lets carried interest be, and lowers capital gains taxes, PE will be taking home a lower tax rate on carry? Business Week Blogs: How can we fix the economic system, or at least make it stronger for the future? One MBA professor says confidence and challenging questions are one way. "I think the average employee, maybe a business school graduate, lacks the confidence to ask the tough questions."

Speaking Of Rising Default Rates: Naked Capitalism elaborates on the other economic shoe dropping, as it relates to bad LBO loans, and that rising default rate we are hearing about. The amount considered "bad" has nearly tripled. Sad Guys On Trading Floors: There are a lot of photos of trading floor distress. Enough to make a topical comedic blog on it. David Pilling: Did America hang itself with an Asian rope? Despite the ridiculous metaphorical lead, the FT columnist very keenly points out how Asia has played a part in America's financial downfall in more than one way. But: Just when we thought we had it bad, Business Week reports that Europe is even less suited to handle a crisis.

Scandalous: AIG spent almost half a million on a luxurious party just days after the firm asked for its bailout. Not great news to surface on the day it asks for more bailing out. And certainly not good news for diminishing that whole "Wall Street Fat Cat Thing..." Just Wow: The Times Square national debt counter has run out of spaces. See how they squeezed the one in with the dollar sign? Chris O'Brien: We should be happy the IPO market is what it is. If not, the valley could be as bad off as Wall Street, right now, he argues. "So it's bad. And getting worse. But it would be an even bigger disaster if IPO mania had returned," he writes. Talking Taxes: Obama and McCain's Tax plans, broken down in specific terms like I haven't seen before. Thanks, Business Pundit. PEC: Apparently the Government Accountability Office issued a report yesterday, which stated that private equity, is, in fact not evil, and strengthens the financial performance of companies. Naturally, PEC approves.

Dealscape: Welcome to Great Depression 2.0. Here come the boutique advisory and buyout shops. PR Wars: The civil kind, not ones waged against the press. I wonder if Kekst & Co. was hurt by its sale to Publicis? Or did it sell because they were slumping? Probably neither, but they've been ousted as the number one M&A PR firm by value. Brunswick pushed ‘em out, thanks to their representation on Inbev/Anheuser. But no worries, Kekst maintained the top spot for deal volume (and I'm sure that like a good PR firm they'd spin that as more important). Ha: Dealzone brings the economic humour. Question: Define a Balance Sheet. Answer: There are two sides to a Balance Sheet: the Left & the Right (Liabilities and Assets respectively). On the Left side there is nothing right. On the Right side, there is nothing left. False Optimism: Investment Pros Whisper Bottom Is Near? Really?