Links For a Rainy Tuesday

Egypt’s Stock Exchange will open on Wednesday.

Small business in the Atlanta Federal Reserve district are optimistic.  Especially small businesses less than seven years of age.

Charlie Sheen is winning.  Sold out two shows at the Chicago theatre, two in Detroit, and now two at Radio City Music Hall in New York.  I think he should move to Miami and be the next Jackie Gleason.

Why is Paul Krugman still on television?  It’s really too bad he won a Nobel Prize for Economics.  He is a hack.

It’s not over in Europe.  There are still plenty of tough financial fiscal decisions to come.   Britain is borrowing more money than expected and closing what they see are tax loopholes for the rich.  I think the rich will just call it higher taxes.

If you dislike Gaddhafi, short gold.

Good nuclear news out of Japan.

Former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty has begun his Presidential campaign.  I met him in Chicago over a year ago at an event for his PAC.  He is not flashy.  Very down to earth.  We talked about our upbringings, and compared notes on Minnesota, where one side of my family is from. He doesn’t have the name recognition of the others yet but I like him more than Newt Gingrich, Mike Huckabee, Sarah Palin, Ron Paul, and Mitt Romney.  I want to hear more from Mitch Daniels and Haley Barbour. It’s good he is starting early.  Hope he is ready to eat a lot of bacon in Iowa, and maple syrup in New Hampshire.

But economist Steven Levitt likes chicken wings.  Harold’s Chicken Shack is a fixture on the south side of Chicago.

Facebook is now worth 85 billion.  Yes, Points and Figures is on Facebook, “like” us here.

Why Women Rule the Internet.  Who says they don’t rule everything else?

The Willis (Sears) Tower in Chicago is being outfitted with solar windows.  At an angel organization I co-founded, Hyde Park Angels, we have looked at solar window companies. So far, none have been economical without heavy subsidy from the government.  One company we looked at was pretty neat.  Instead of an entire window, it had a film you put on.  Hopefully they have rigorous unbiased metrics to analyze data from the Willis Tower.  My experience is everyone wants solar to work, but when you dig into the numbers it only delivers 10% of promised power.

We are supposed to get some snow later in the week here in Chicago.  Check out my pal’s Jeep.  It’s going to snow at least six inches in Duluth, MN today.

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