My news roundup article, Missing Stanford and His Destructive Path is up at Real Clear World Blog. Please read it and leave a comment.

Still on the Stanford subject,

A comparison between Stanford and Madoff at the WSJ:

And a note on the bloggers’ influence in the investigation, from The Economist,

The SEC stepped up its probe after its Madoff mis-steps. But a bigger impetus may have been a deeply sceptical report on Stanford’s investment returns, published in January by Alex Dalmady, an independent analyst. The blogosphere picked this up, and within days it was making headlines worldwide. This offers hope for those who despair of the SEC’s bungling, suggesting that in the internet age forensic vigilantes and devil-may-care bloggers can, to some extent, fill the gap left by dilatory regulators and libel-constrained mainstream media.

Bloomberg

R. Allen Stanford and his employees contributed $31,750 to Barack Obama’s presidential run, making the new president the third-largest recipient of Stanford campaign cash, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

An Obama aide, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the money was donated yesterday to charity.

UPDATE
Ain’t that the truth

This new scandal, coupled with Bernard Madoff’s pyramid, plus the Colombian pyramids scheme, plus the Brazilian and Mexican derivatives scandals that triggered a tumble in stocks, is helping erode the confidence in financial markets built up for years, and giving another excuse to populist presidents and politicians (most them opportunistic idiots) for launching attacks on banks and free markets and corporate independence.

Check out also The Devil’s Excrement‘s posts on Stanford, which Kate recommends in the comments.

Earlier today: Part 1 & Podcast.

Share on Facebook