World News Insights
1-3 Minute Gist
Search, personalize, or simply browse. Follow the world around you from gist and context to insights.
Who we are | Our Credo | Ways of using Lyrarc | FAQ | Send Feedback | First Letter From the Editor
Sign up. It's free and easy to use
Create an account
to personalize your feed of articles and topics.
Browse Articles or use Lyrarc's US patented "Groups" and "Links" for new insights. A Lyrarc Group of Articles on a topic gives insights into particular angles shown in the Group Title. A Lyrarc Link shows more specific insights for 2 articles.
All Topics Links
Greece and living up to euro currency responsibilities- efforts under Papadopoulos 2002, Giannitsis 2001, Manos 1998 and Tsipras's commitment in 2015 15
01/28/2013
Can Greece live up to its euro currency responsibilities, is the question raised inside the eurozone, as Greece renews its commitment to reforms to build a modern economy. A look back at politicians who emphasized euro currency responsibilities and the candid remarks by Tsipras in an intervew with Bret Stephens of the WSJ.
Linked Articles
The Politicians Who Warned Greece—but Were Ignored
Wall Street Journal 07/11/2015
Stephens: The Conscience of a RadicalWall Street Journal 01/28/2013
Governor Jerry Brown of California and investing in higher education- Brown's effort to replicate a remarkable feat under Edmund Brown
01/10/2013
Jerry Brown's father, Edmund Brown, was Governor of California in the 1960's when he helped build the UC and Cal State university system into a beacon for other states. The state's higher education system became a gateway into the U.S. middle class and powered the state's tech industry.
Linked Articles
Brown Looks at Reshaping Californiaâs Higher Education
New York Times 01/28/2013
State’s Rare Sight: A Budget SurplusWall Street Journal 01/10/2013
Auditor General and Supreme Court three panel bench in India agree that there was an improper allocation of coal licenses in India
12/28/2012
India's Supreme Court confirms in August 2014 an earlier report by the Auditor General about improper allocation of coal licenses under the Congress party administration of former prime minister Manmohan Singh. Because this is in a strategic sector of energy where India has fallen behind it has many implications for declining economic growth.
Linked Articles
India Allocated Coal Fields to Private Companies Illegally, Top Court Rules
New York Times 08/25/2014
India’s chief auditor leads battle against corruption - The Washington PostWashington Post 12/28/2012
CBO projections in Jan 2014 show the U.S. debt stabilizing at 74% of GDP in 2014 and deficits below 3% for 2014-2017
12/16/2012
Higher economic growth of about 3% for 2014-2017 and the phasing out of spending to counter the effects of the severe recession of 2008-2010, have helped the U.S. stabilize debt levels and reduce deficits. After 2018 the long range projections show debt to GDP climbing to reach 79% in 2024.
Linked Articles
CBO | The Budget and Economic Outlook: 2014 to 2024
Unknown 02/05/2014
That Terrible TrillionNew York Times 12/16/2012
The virtues of low profile journalism in an age of partisan opinion- Bob Schieffer in 3 decades at CBS
10/21/2012
Linked Articles
Bob Schieffer of ‘Face the Nation’ Prepares to Sign Off
New York Times 05/29/2015
Moderator Keeps a Low Profile Before Final DebateNew York Times 10/21/2012
Russian president Putin and BP's 20% stake in Rosneft
10/18/2012
Putin sees the larger British ownership stake in Rosneft a offering more stability to the company. This also provides Russia with a reliable partner on other projects and access to new technology. Putin defended the deal for Rosneft to acquire TNK-BP because of the endless conflicts between the partners, which he says he warned against at the outset. He pointed to the 50-50 ownership arrangement in TNK-BP as inherently unstable leaving no one in control.
Linked Articles
Moscow Had 'Mixed Feelings' on TNK-BP Deal, Putin Says
Wall Street Journal 10/25/2012
BP Nears Deal to Sell TNK-BP StakeWall Street Journal 10/18/2012
The new Jinping-Keqiang leadership and reducing pharmaceutical and healthcare costs to help consumers in China (1)
10/03/2012
After a decade of decline in consumer spending in favor of infrastructure spending to where it is now only 35% of GDP, or half that in the U.S. as a percentage of GDP, China's leadership realizes the need to help consumers. It is seen as high on the list of priorities for the Party's survival. Ordinary Chinese, rural households and the elderly are seriously affected by the high cost of healthcare and the need to set aside a large portion of savings for medical emergencies (Orlik). This further depresses consumer after the impact of low savings rates. With a bursting of the property bubble the money depositors shifted to real estate is also at risk for middle class investors.
Linked Articles
Wall Street Journal 10/03/2012
Politics Is a Bitter Pill for GlaxoWall Street Journal 07/25/2013
The founder of the literature of China's officialdom and a professor at Chongqing University on China's search for its soul in the midst of modernization
09/09/2012
Linked Articles
The Deeply Odd Lives of Chinese Bureaucrats
Wall Street Journal 03/14/2013
What Keeps the Chinese Up at NightNew York Times 09/09/2012
The Obama admnistration and the conflict in Syria
08/28/2012
A brief history shows the Alawite community constitutes about 13% of the population in Syria and live mainly in the coastal region near the Mediterranean. Under the French Alawites generally supported the colonial regime and the community was used by the French colonial regime to act as a buffer as they ruled a predominantly Sunni population. The Alawites joined the military and Hafez Assad, an Alawite general, seized control in 1971. His son now rules Syria. The Obama administration has largely missed the struggle of the people for freedom from dictatorships in Syria and Egypt under Mubarak.. With Turkey and Egypt supporting the young people in Syria, the U.S. investment is minor in military and other support compared to the cost of letting the war continue with unintended consequences for the entire region.
Linked Articles
New York Times 11/13/2012
Assad Draws Shock Troops From Elite Sect in SyriaWall Street Journal 08/28/2012
The changes at Barclays Bank in 2012-2013
08/09/2012
Linked Articles
A Five Point Plan for Barclays
Wall Street Journal 08/10/2012
Barclays New Chairman’s on What a Chairman Should BeWall Street Journal 08/09/2012
Kazuo Inamori's turnaround of Japan Airlines (JAL)
07/30/2012
Kazuo Inamori founded Kyocera and is considered one of Japan's leading corporate leaders along with such names as Sony's Akio Morita, and Honda's Soichiro Honda. At age 77, Inamori took up the task of revitalizing Japan Airlines and turning around the airline after huge losses. The story of how he managed to accomplish this using his unique management philosophy, cost management, JAL's strategies, and employee efforts.
Linked Articles
Japan Airlines Roars Back With an Eye on U.S. Market
Wall Street Journal 07/30/2012
‘Mikoshi’ Management: How Kazuo Inamori Lifted Japan AirlinesWall Street Journal 07/30/2012
Profits hard to come by at Amazon as it focusses on growth as the overriding goal
07/27/2012
Linked Articles
Amazon Profit Margins Evaporate
Wall Street Journal 07/27/2012
Amazon's Growth Story Keeps SellingWall Street Journal 01/31/2014
Spain macroprudential supervision of its banking system once lauded now turns out to be "timid" and false, could the same be true for China?
07/18/2012
Spain's central bank had a reputation of providing good supervision for Spain's banking system. The problems at the Cajas Savings banks and the current assessment after the request for $125 billion in EU funds for Spain's banks shows how this turned out to be false. Does China face a similiar problem with its housing bubble. The U.S., UK and Spain, failed to control and manage the effects of a housing bubble, can China be a lone exception? Rapid growth enabled China to cope with bad loans in the banking system, with slower growth, a weak European market for exports, and a stimulus that is about one eighth the size in annual investment- one trillion yuan over 4 years in the current stimulus compared to 4 trillion over 2009-2010 in the last stimulus plan. Can China manage this bubble, does it have the experience managing this type of problem or has it papered over the problems as Spain did? This has repercussions for industries and countries from the export sector in Germany, Australia and Brazil to industries such as the German automobile industry, and companies such as Caterpillar.
Linked Articles
As China’s economy slows, real estate bubble looms - The Washington Post
Washington Post 10/03/2012
Spanish Official: Slow Reaction to CrisisWall Street Journal 07/18/2012
Losses and management turnover at mining companies leading to scaling back of orders of mining equipment and Caterpillar performance
01/18/2013
Losses at Rio Tinto and Anglo-American with risky projects is leading to management turnover and a scaling back in investment. The lower commodity prices, declining growth in China and risk averse strategies in turn affects Caterpillar's growth in its key mining equipment business. Analysts do not expect the situation to improve till 2015.
Linked Articles
Caterpillar Chief Faults China Unit
Wall Street Journal 01/29/2013
Miner Rio Tinto Ousts CEO as Bad Bets Cost BillionsWall Street Journal 01/18/2013
The University of Minnesota- high tution costs and bureaucracy
12/28/2012
High administrative costs at the University of Minnesota and the high tution costs and debt servicing cost.
Linked Articles
Minnesota Lawmakers Consider Funds for College
Wall Street Journal 03/14/2013
Deans List: Hiring Spree Fattens College Bureaucracy—And TuitionWall Street Journal 12/28/2012
The Swiss central bank's effort to keep Swiss Franc at 1.20 to the dollar and Japan's Abe government's push for the yen at 90 to the dollar
12/25/2012
A determined effort by the Swiss National Bank to preserve export competitiveness as eurozone economies contract in 2013, by printing francs and buying up euros and foreign assets. The effort is designed to counteract declining wages and prices in Switzerland. The newly elected Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe supports aggressive action by Japan's central bank to keep the yen between 85 yen and 90 yen to the U.S. dollar.
Linked Articles
Wall Street Journal 12/25/2012
Button-Down Central Bank Bets It AllWall Street Journal 01/09/2013
U.S. Fed chairman Bernanke's activist interest rate policies to tackle high unemployment and central bankers from MIT
12/12/2012
A pragmatic activist focus in economic thinking shaped at the MIT economics department in Cambridge, Masachusetts. The ECB's Mario Draghi, Bank of England's Mervyn King, and Bernanke shaped their thinking at MIT. Draghi and Bernanke had the same PhD. advisor- Stanley Fischer. Factors calling for a pragmatic approach include the lack of political agreement on th deficit, the housing and foreclosure crisis effects, higher inequality and unemployment effects on the middle class, the effects of the globalized economy on working class manufacturing jobs, people dropping out of the labor foce, and lower inflation, which called for a larger focus on unemployment. Bernanke emphasized the "enormous waste in human potential and productive resources of the economy" throughout 2009-2012. Draghi emphasized the abnormal nature of excessive borrowing interest rates for Italy and Spain during the ECB's bond buying efforts in 2011-2012. Both efforts had a stabilizing effect on the economies of the U.S. and Europe during a period of political discord about future policy.
Linked Articles
Wall Street Journal 12/13/2012
MIT Forged Activist Views of Central Bank Role and Cinched Central Bankers' TiesWall Street Journal 12/12/2012
German chancellor Merkel and the EU plan for aid to Spain's banks in Oct. 2012
10/18/2012
Merkel turns down an effort pushed by France and Spain at the Oct. 2012 EU leaders meeting for direct aid to Spanish banks. Instead money has to go from the European Stability Mechanism fund to Spain after a request by Spain for aid. The aid request by Spain would be met under program of conditionality set by the IMF, EU and ECB. Spain is delaying a request for aid as borrowing rates on Spanish bonds declined to about 5% by late October 2012. The Rajoy government in Spain faces regional spending problems and separatis sentiment in addition to high unemployment and a worsening situation with its banks. Merkel faces elections for chancellor in Germany in Sept. 2013 and says more time is needed to setup the eurozone banking supervisory authority- to be set up in the course of 2013 with the legal setup completed by Jan 2013 as a concession to France. This would push banking supervision and financial architecture till after the election.
Linked Articles
German Refusal on Bank Aid Mars European Summit
New York Times 10/19/2012
Europe Seeks a Spain StrategyWall Street Journal 10/18/2012
Mo Yan and Wang Xiaofang exposing corruption and arrogant government officials in China through fictional characters and humor
10/11/2012
Both writers use fictional characters to vent people's anger at arrogant officials from the government and party- this predates the communist regime and goes back to the days from the earlier part of the twentieth century down to the present day.
Linked Articles
The Deeply Odd Lives of Chinese Bureaucrats
Wall Street Journal 03/14/2013
Mo Yan Mines a Deep Well of Material in ChinaNew York Times 10/11/2012
ECB president Mario Draghi and the pragmatic and activist approach developed at the MIT Economics department
10/02/2012
Linked Articles
How ECB Chief Outflanked German Foe in Fight for Euro
Wall Street Journal 10/02/2012
MIT Forged Activist Views of Central Bank Role and Cinched Central Bankers' TiesWall Street Journal 12/12/2012
President Obama's second term- (3) failure to lead on the domestic front and how it relates to Syria-Iraq, the careful observations of Panetta and Woodward
09/07/2012
Leon Panetta, U.S. Defense Secretary under Obama, who was also U.S. president Clinton's chief of staff, and Bob Woodward, renown Washington Post journalist, say Obama failed to lead on domestic policy issues and his own agenda during the first term.
Linked Articles
Wall Street Journal 09/07/2012
Former Defense Chief Panetta Criticizes Obama in New MemoirWall Street Journal 10/07/2014
How keeping seniors as a protected class in current Social Security proposals impacts the young and leads to shrinking investments in defense, social programs, research, education and infrastructure
08/16/2012
This includes the Republican Paul Ryan proposal which also stays away from touching Social Security for today's seniors and passes on the costs to the young. Democrats are using demagoguery and intimidation on this issue. Samuelson cites CBO estimates which show that even with shrinking defense and nondiscretionary spending by a third the U.S. deficit would still be 6.75% of GDP in 2023.
Linked Articles
Robert Samuelson: Ryan’s budget asks nothing of the elderly -; unfortunately - The Washington Post
Washington Post 08/16/2012
Mr. Biden falls flat - The Washington PostWashington Post 08/16/2012
The costly software failure that cost U.S. brokerage house Knight Capital $440 million with erroneous orders on August 1, 2012
08/02/2012
Software that was introduced without proper testing by management at Knight Capital resulted in a blizzard of wrong orders going out on August 1. This led to suspension of trading on the New York Stock Exchange after identifying Knight Capital as the source.
Linked Articles
Trying to be Nimble Knight Capital Stumbles
New York Times 08/02/2012
Knight Capital Says Trading Glitch Cost it $440 MillionNew York Times 08/02/2012
U.S. Federal Reserve policy with GDP growth of 1.5% in the second quarter of 2012
07/28/2012
Janet Yellen, deputy chairman at the U.S. Fed says there is need for the Fed to act considering the risks emerging from the eurozone and lack of policy direction from the U.S. Congress.
Linked Articles
Some at Fed Urge Pre-emptive Stimulus
New York Times 07/30/2012
Weak Economy Heads LowerWall Street Journal 07/28/2012
The slow response of Spain compared to the more aggressive aproach of France
07/18/2012
The contrast between Spain's lack of strong and quick action for its banking problems and France's aggressive approach to its debt problem. Spain's problems come from the housing bubble and bad loans in parts of the banking sector especially the cajas savings banks. The lack of strong and early action by bank supervisors at the central bank and the government to cleanup the banks created conditions requiring a bailout. The problems in France which did not experience a housing bubble were the result of slow growth, rising debt and deficits. France took an aggressive approach to tackle these problems, with shared sacrifices, and setting a goal of bringing the deficit down to 3% in 2013 with its 2013 budget.
Linked Articles
France's New Budget Focuses on Cutting Deficit
New York Times 09/28/2012
Spanish Official: Slow Reaction to CrisisWall Street Journal 07/18/2012
We took a different way to help millions around the world build educated informed mindsets that affects and shapes their lives. For a future that is open, global and digital, with everyone having access to high quality information. We believe in the renewal of America, renewal of Europe, the renewal of India, the rest of Asia, Latin America and Africa. The renewal of our supply chains, health, education, infrastructure, as we rebuild our countries after the pandemic. Literacy and knowledge we believe cannot thrive and grow in a world of web bots, web crawlers, or AI. This requires human curiosity, human learning, and human imagination. We take as inspiration the saying- “One has to be free, and as broad as sky. One has to have a mind that is crystal clear, only then can truth shine in it.” Every contribution whether big or small is precious- in this crisis and ahead.
Support Lyrarc from as small as $1
Terms and Conditions | Copyright Policy | Privacy Policy | Contact Us