Hot Links & Some Election Day Thoughts

Ooooweeee!  It’s the most important election ever, for two years!  Supposedly the candidates have spent a combined $3 billion on this campaign, a record and dramatically higher than last election’s record $2.4 billion.  No recession for demagogues.

Today, Americans are faced with a choice that would make Sophie bite her nails.  We can either vote for the party that believes human beings rode dinosaurs 6000 years ago or the party that thinks it’s really mean when we refuse to allow Al Qaeda operatives to matriculate at American universities.

I’m not sure who said it but my favorite quip this year was that the ‘die’ option in ‘Vote or Die’ is looking pretty good right about now.

I live in New York, so we’re getting Governor Cuomo, which I guess is ok.  His dad was the big political boss of New York state when I was a kid so he has the name brand recognition thing going for him.  Some of my earliest memories are of my father driving me from soccer matches to little league games, listening to talk radio and blurting out things like “goddamn Cuomo!” and “stop making speeches and do something already, Cuomo!”  So Cuomo Fils gets my vote I guess.  Whatever.

Anyway, some links as you ponder which life-changing candidate you’ll be helping to anoint elect today…

Barton Biggs and Jeremy Grantham, both of whom loathed the dot com bubble, are totally cool with the emerging markets bubble.  (Bloomberg)

Heidi Moore: No matter who wins the elections, Wall Street basically loses.  OR DO THEY!?!  No, just kidding, they do.  (DealBook)

Hedgie William von Mueffling, besides having a really cool Bond villain name, has also raised a ton of cash by going long only.  (WSJ)

Speaking of hedge funds, Leigh Drogen says their structure is archaic.  (SurfviewCapital)

SEC sets aside $542 million whistleblower fund.  Snitches rejoice.  (FAMag)

Elliot Turner elaborates on my contention that Ethanol is stupid and dangerous.  (WallStCheatSheet)

Commercial RE and shopping mall giant Simon Properties sees an uptick.  (NYP)

Becky Quick on the foolishness of China-bashing.  (Fortune)

The post-election risk is an easing up on the shadow banking system.  (TBP)

Don’t miss Howard Lindzon’s Cisco ad!  The coolest.  (HowardLindzon)