Send Stern Back To Earth

Rumors abound that Howard Stern may return to terrestrial radio. However, Stern constantly bags on terrestrial radio while he's doing his shows on Sirius, and Mel Karmazin swears it will never happen.

Perhaps they protest too much, and he will go back. But why is this such a terrible thing? Has he really brought in enough paying subscribers to earn that phenomenal amount of money he was paid to come to Sirius (and would, presumably, be returning most of if he broke his contract)?

I think not. If he goes, it may be a good thing for SIRI. Maybe it'll even encourage them to merge with XM, which is probably the best thing that could happen for satellite radio.

Making The Deflationary Case

Three things suggesting deflation, rather than inflation, could take hold:

1) Whiskey and Gunpowder's recent rundown of cheaper steaks at Outback, Cheesecake Factory's discount lunch menu, and TGI Friday's four-dollar appetizers.

2) $15 sneakers endorsed by Stephon Marbury.

3) The housing market.

Private Equity in ETF Form

There are a few business development companies making short-term and unsecured loans and those will soon be bundled into a nice little ETF. You can wait for the ETF, or you can buy up a few of them in anticipation. Via Marketwatch:

"The American Stock Exchange expects to start calculating and publishing the Listed Private Equity Index by the end of September, and PowerShares expects to launch the ETF next month. Because the index isn't yet published, Red Rocks can't comment on its initial components. Stocks that seem likely to make the cut include Apollo Investment (AINV), KKR Financial (KFN), Gladstone Capital (GLAD) and Allied Capital (ALD) . Most of these companies are affiliated with private-equity firms and make loans to private companies."

I picked up a little AINV. Buy it in the next 45 mins to get the 9/28 dividend.

Bies: Um, Sucks To Be The Kozlovs

The entirety of Governor Bies' commentary on the gangland-style assassination of Russian central banker Andrei Kozlov:

"We at the Board were shocked and saddened to learn of the death of Andrei Kozlov. His courage and vigor in pursuing the betterment of his country's banking system earned respect and admiration throughout the world. We extend our deepest condolences to his family."

No fighting words -- you afraid his enemies are now loitering around Brighton Beach? Hell, the Russian market didn't even blink. Maybe nobody wants Russia to be cleaned up...

Most Condos Have Bathtubs

http://www.condoflip.com/condo_flip_panic_buttons.asp

The site proclaims "Bubbles Are For Bathtubs" proudly on its front page. However, it has a traffic-light-style system for liquidation:

"If you are a seller using Condo Flip, we give you an opportunity to lower your price to a point that makes your condo irresistible to another buyer. Essentially, you are creating a dramatic price drop."

In a listing, green is a seller asking for a profit; yellow is essentially break-even; red indicates willingness to take a loss. I browsed through the listings and there's not many reds to be seen yet, but watch that space.

Reserved for D. Patrick

Race-car chica Danica Patrick inked a big deal today with Motorola. Sponsors have fawned over her recently, despite the fact that she has never won a race.

Do they see this as a chance to ink a cheaper deal with a up-and-comer, or has she merely done a better job marketing herself as "racing girlie novelty item" than she does driving a car around in circles?

Brings Anna Kournikova's mediocre tennis career to mind, though Danica has a far lower hooch factor. Ah, well, we can't all be Maria Sharapova.

Not All In The Family?

Bill Ford Jr. finally resigned as Ford's CEO today. The market has been clamoring for this for a while, but it will do nothing to relieve the company of its unfunded pension liabilities and medical liabilities.

To survive, Ford doesn't need to be taken private. It needs to slag that all in bankruptcy, and reorganize; that's The Way Forward.