LyrArc Article Gist
President Obama's address at the White House on financial regulatory reform. They cover all aspects of the financial system, and focus on the structural deficiencies that were evident in this crisis from the late night meetings needed to resolve the situations at Lehman, AIG and other financial firms, because no structure existed for an orderly resolution. The decision was made to give the Fed powers - for both the responsibility and the accountability to be clear- to resolve these situations and to set new rules that ensure that risks do not build up in the system. Besides the Fed's new powers, a new oversight council consisting of regulators from all areas is expected to monitor risks and assess areas of weakness. The other critical aspect is the consumer protection agency. Its job will be to ensure openness, fair-dealing and transparency take place for financial products like mortgages, credit cards and other loans. Other areas of weakness in the financial system in which players are able to game the system or thwart the proper functioning of free markets, are addressed one by one. By not scrapping the old system and building from there- instead preferring to correct areas of weakness akin to major remodeling of an old structure like you find in major European cities- Obama says he understands that "markets are not an unalloyed force for good or evil" as zealous free marketers or those who see the ills of capitalism in its raw form would have one believe. So he goes on to say " in many ways our financial system reflects us." The most government can do, or the best it can do -and it becomes a necessary obligation of government for markets to function correctly- is to set the rules of the road correctly, rules of openness, fair-dealing and transparency; the rest is upto us....

LyrArc Article Gist
A summary of President Obama's financial regualory reform proposal by the WSJ Washington Wire. The official document is titled, A New Foundation: Rebuilding Financial Supervision and Regulation, running 89 pages.

LyrArc Article Gist
Germany's Economic Ministry is part of aconsortium to fund aproject called Desertec, which plans to to generate soalr energy in the Maghreb desert in North Africa and transmit it through anew grid of high-voltage transmission lines. IT would use low-tech methods using mirrors in the deseertto jeat up water, which drives turbines in alocal power plant. The new initiative could provide 15% of the energy needs of Europe, and would require cooperation from different European countries. The consortium also includes Siemens, Deutsche Bank, energy company RWE and Munich Re.