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Tiger Woods’ Marriage is Over – People Magazine

Another source says, “She’s made up her mind. There’s nothing to think about: he’s never going to change,”

Gulf Monetary Union to Launch Currency – What Does It Mean? – Mish

S.F. employment expected to improve – SF Business Times

What do we really learn from a crisis? – The Christian Science Monitor

The 1980’s farming bubble taught some hard truths. Did they stick?

4 Big Mortgage Backers Swim in Ocean of Debt – The New York Times

Even as the biggest banks repay their government debt in what is being heralded as a successful rescue program, four troubled giants of the financial world remain on government life support.

Homebuyer Tax-Credit Extension Fails as Catalyst – Bloomberg

“The extension has not materially helped traffic or sales despite the program’s expansion,” Carl Reichardt, a Wells Fargo analyst, wrote yesterday in a report.

Answers About Debt, Collection Agencies, and More – Minyanville

Bank Lending Is Collapsing All Around The Globe – Clusterstock

Housing Won’t Collapse in 2010, says Radar Logic – HousingWire

The threat to the budding growth is the shadow inventory of foreclosures. According to the report, delinquencies have reached their highest peak in decades and the most bearish observers believe the inventory will flood the market once the government programs end, boosting supply and decreasing home prices.

But Radar Logic analysts side with those like Rick Sharga of RealtyTrac in saying that banks will slowly burn through the shadow inventory, releasing them gradually onto the market.

Weekly Initial Unemployment Claims – Calculated Risk

Although falling, the level of the 4 week average is still high, suggesting continuing job losses.

The Decade of Decadence – Minyanville, Todd Harrison

It was the best of times and the worst of times, with moments of moderation sprinkled in for good measure. History will describe this decade as a stretch when most folks followed the pied piper of immediate gratification, losing sight of what truly mattered and why.

That’s not to say everyone transgressed but few emerged unscathed once the Age of Austerity arrived.

Morgan Stanley to Walk Away from 5 San Francisco Towers - Bloomberg

Morgan Stanley, the securities firm that spent more than $8 billion on commercial property in 2007, plans to relinquish five San Francisco office buildings to its lender two years after purchasing them from Blackstone Group LP near the top of the market.

The bank has been negotiating an “orderly transfer” of the towers since earlier this year, Alyson Barnes, a Morgan Stanley spokeswoman, said yesterday in a telephone interview. AREA Property Partners will take over the buildings. Barnes declined to say when the transfer will occur.

“This isn’t a default or foreclosure situation,” Barnes said. “We are going to give them the properties to get out of the loan obligation.”

How is that not a default?