Under the headline report entitled “Regulatory Capture: Systematic and Institutionalized Corruption of Regulators under Neoliberal Regime” is this quote.

“Regulatory bodies, like the people who comprise them…mellow, and in old age…they become, with some exceptions, either an arm of the industry they are regulating or senile.”

John Kenneth Galbraith

Let’s pause and list just 12 of those in the 21^st Century. Odds are good that several will ring a bell for most readers over 30, and numbers in their 20s.

• Enron,
• WorldCom,
• Boeing 737 Max,
• VW EmissionsGate a.k.a. “DieselGate,”
• Solyndra,
• Theranos,
• Tyco,
• Xerox,
• Madoff,
• WeWork,
• Lehman Brothers,
• Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac (Government Sponsored Enterprises or GSEs).

When grouped in that fashion, it is quite surprising to see such a bullet list. Hundreds of billions of dollars were collectively lost by investors. Many involved deception involving so-called independent auditors. They routinely exposed regulatory failures. Each involved corporate corruption that often had directly political connections.

Against that backdrop, GoodReads has the full quote Galbraith: “Moreover, regulatory bodies, like the people who comprise them, have a marked life cycle. In youth they are vigorous, aggressive, evangelistic, and even intolerant. Later they mellow, and in old age—after a matter of ten or fifteen years—they become, with some exceptions, either an arm of the industry they are regulating or senile.” – John Kenneth Galbraith, in The Great Crash of 1929.

 

Casino Capitalism also has this quotable quote:

Money! Backroom Deals! Secrecy! Political Power! Captured Government! Scandal! Suspicion! Major Money!

“Americans live in Russia, but they think they live in Sweden.”

– Chrystia Freeland

 

Now, with that said, one more pull quotes from a new deep dive into this topic, plus a bonus, from the report linked here.

 

> “It’s the illusionary effect where if you repeat a lie enough times people start to believe it especially if you have credible names surrounding the product.” – Cold Fusion.

> In each of these cases, there were several layers of individuals and groups that are benefiting directly or indirectly from the apparently fraudulent and otherwise allegedly illegal corporate behaviors.

 

There are those who have either been too distracted, are benefiting, blinded, or are otherwise unaware of this serious pattern of decades of corrupt behavior. In fairness, there may be a good reason. Where is the mainstream media in connecting the dots on this same list above? The search result below tells a tale.

 

 

That list above does not include other scandals that might be added, some of which clearly include ties to Warren Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway.

 

• Wells Fargo
• Clinton Foundation
• Nor should we forget that Buffett-led Berkshire dumped their shares of Fannie and Freddie in advance of the 2008 housing-financial crisis.

 

Buffett quotes shed some light on this troubling list.

 

 

That list above are a teaser. But the list in and of itself is not evidence. It is useful as an attention getting to get people to look at the evidence in the reports linked below. Because these vexing problems play into specific aspects of manufactured housing. Each report below is a deeper dive. Set aside the time, because the getting the full picture and then sharing it is an important aspect of exposing and ending this stunning string of failures.

 

 

 

 

What is occurring in Washington, D.C. is the Buffett Moat method on steroids. To get a sense of that, see the report linked below.  But a special report on the impact of the trends in Washington is planned for the near term. Stay tuned.

 

 

The two bullet above’s merit a recap, before we pivot toward the headlines from the mainstream news and the various industry and market snapshots.

 

• “It’s the illusionary effect where if you repeat a lie enough times people start to believe it especially if you have credible names surrounding the product.” – Cold Fusion.
• In each of these cases, there were several layers of individuals and groups that are benefiting directly or indirectly from the apparently fraudulent and otherwise allegedly illegal corporate behaviors.

 

Notice: While the arrangement or layout of this report has been modified, several elements of the basic concepts used before are still the same. The headlines that follow below can be reviewed at a glance to save time while providing insights across the left-right media divide. Additionally, those headlines often provide clues as to possible ‘market moving’ reports.

 

Market Indicator Closing Summaries – Yahoo Finance Closing Tickers on MHProNews…

Headlines from left-of-center CNN Business

• Steel prices have tripled
• A worker inspects structural steel beams during production at the SME Steel Contractors facility in West Jordan, Utah, U.S., on Feb. 1, 2021. Markit is scheduled to release manufacturing figures on February 3.
• The US is experiencing a steel boom so strong some are convinced it will end in tears
• Jamie Dimon calls Biden’s tax hike plan ‘a little crazy’
• Major Tesla investor dumps a big chunk of shares
• Desperate buyers are going to extremes to land a home
• Applebee’s shorter menu is here to stay. Here’s what got cut
• One of the world’s top restaurants is going vegan. Here’s what could go wrong
• Mortgage rates are falling again
• IBM says it has created the world’s smallest microchip. It’s the size of a fingernail
• The head of Yale’s massive endowment fund has died
• Tucker Carlson’s Fox News colleagues call out his dangerous anti-vaccination rhetoric
• Are you a working parent facing a child-care dilemma when you return to the office? Share your story
• WASHINGTON D.C., USA – JANUARY 6: US President Donald Trumps supporters gather outside the Capitol building in Washington D.C., United States on January 06, 2021. Pro-Trump rioters stormed the US Capitol as lawmakers were set to sign off Wednesday on President-elect Joe Biden’s electoral victory in what was supposed to be a routine process headed to Inauguration Day.
• Facebook told to investigate its role in insurrection
• Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Gary Gensler testifies before the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill July 30, 2013 in Washington, DC. Gensler and Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary Jo White testified and took questions from Senators during the hearing titled, “Mitigating Systemic Risk in Financial Markets through Wall Street Reforms”
• Biden’s Wall Street cop is putting Robinhood on notice
• The Gates family house in the Medina area of Seattle in January 2000.
• A look at Bill and Melinda Gates’ enormous lakefront home
• THE BUSINESS OF SPACE
• Jeff Bezos, chief executive officer of Amazon.com Inc. and founder of Blue Origin LLC, speaks at the unveiling of the Blue Origin New Shepard system during the Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, Colorado, U.S., on Wednesday, April 5, 2017. Bezos has been reinvesting money he made at Amazon since he started his space exploration company more than a decade ago, and has plans to launch paying tourists into space within two years.
• Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin to auction ticket for first space tourism flight
• SpaceX lands Mars rocket prototype for the first time
• Elon Musk on Mars: ‘You might not come back alive’
• SpaceX wins $2.9 billion NASA contract for lunar lander
• Battle of the billionaires: Jeff Bezos’ rocket company protests SpaceX’s latest NASA contract
• CRYPTOCURRENCY CRAZE
• In this photo illustration the logo of the new Chia cryptocurrency is reflected in a plate of a computer hard disk. The hype around this cryptocurrency has already caused an increase in the prices of hard drives for computers.
• A new crypto called chia claims to solve bitcoin’s biggest problem
• What is bitcoin cash?
• Gary Vaynerchuk: NFT is the next Amazon
• Ethereum’s 27-year-old creator is now a billionaire
• Want to invest in crypto? Here’s what you need to know

Headlines from right-of-center Newsmax 

• Ex-Campaign Chiefs Fear Twin ‘Headaches’ Will Cost Dems Dearly in 2022
• The Biden Presidency
• Education Sec. Cardona: Nation’s Schools Fully Open by September
• DOJ Warns Arizona Recount May Illegally Intimidate Voters
• Blinken: US Stands With Ukraine Against Russia
• Newt Gingrich: China ‘Thrilled’ to Be Gifted Vaccine Tech
• White House Blasts Florida Voting Law: ‘Wrong Direction’
• Rick Scott Demands Answers on Any Abuses of Enhanced Jobless Benefits
• Grassley Escalates Call for John Kerry Iran Probe
• Nikki Haley Rips Biden’s ‘Welfare’ Plan
• US Downplays Prospect of Post-Brexit Trade Deal with UK
• Blinken Says US May Ramp up Security Assistance to Ukraine
• Jill Biden to Meet Military Spouses in Colorado
• More The Biden Presidency
• Newsfront
• Ilhan Omar: ‘Let’s Grow a Backbone’ and ‘Abolish the Filibuster’
• Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., on Thursday called on Democrats to come together to “abolish the filibuster” and “move legislation” in a message that ends: “Let’s grow a backbone,”…
• Dem Ex-Campaign Chiefs Fear Twin ‘Headaches’ Could Cost Party 2022 Control
• Former Democrat campaign chiefs are reportedly alarmed by the party’s
• Facebook’s Trump Verdict Renews Calls to Revoke Legal Shield
• The decision by a Facebook Inc. panel to extend for up to six months
• Moderna Booster Shows Promising Results Against COVID-19 Variants
• Moderna on Wednesday reported positive early results for its booster
• Related
• Small Business COVID-19 Relief Program Runs Out of Money
• Schools Turn Focus to Mental Health of Students Reeling From Pandemic
• Gottlieb: Biden’s Goal of 70 Percent Vaccinated Achievable
• DC Mayor Doubling Down on ‘No Dancing’ Weddings
• CDC Advances Plan for Resumption of US Passenger Cruises
• On Social Media, Memories Pop up from a Pandemic Still Going
• Twitter Suspends @DJTDesk Account Despite No Official Link to Trump
• A Twitter account suspended by the social media giant Wednesday after
• Related
• Trump Slams Media Over ‘The Big Lie’
• Stefanik Supporter: Cheney ‘In a Position to Get Booted Two Months Ago’
• Families of 9/11 Victims Frustrated Over FBI’s Latest Delay in Releasing Documents
• Nearly two decades after a team of highly coordinated and
• Florida: Say Bye To Expensive Solar Panels If You Own A Home in Kissimmee
• EnergyBillCruncher
• Education Sec. Cardona: Nation’s Schools Fully Open by September
• The nation’s schools will most likely be open for full-time,
• NY’s Sheldon Silver Ordered Back to Federal Prison: AP Source
• Former New York Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver will be returned to
• World’s Largest Gold and Silver Shortage is Here
• SPONSOR: GoldPro offers the lowest prices, hassle free
• DeSantis Signs ‘Strongest Election Integrity’ Law in US
• While signing the state’s new voting law during a television
• University of Miami May Face $75 Million Tab to Change Building Name: Report
• The University of Miami could end up paying as much as $75 million to
• O’Reilly Grills Futurist Who Says Biden’s Presidency Will Create Massive Wealth
• The Oxford Communique
• Newt Gingrich: China ‘Thrilled’ to Be Gifted Vaccine Tech
• China will be “thrilled” over the Biden administration’s announcement
• Ex-AG Eric Holder Gets Swiss Billionaire’s Backing for Partisan Gerrymandering Group
• Former Attorney General Eric Holder’s effort to redraw electoral maps
• California Bar Owner Busted for Peddling Fake COVID Vaccine Cards
• A California bar owner who sold undercover agents fake COVID-19
• Texas Senate Passes Bill Allowing People to Carry Handguns Without License
• The Texas Senate has approved a Republican-led effort to allow people
• Oversight Board Member: Facebook’s Trump Referral Was ‘Lazy’
• A member of the independent Oversight Board is knocking Facebook for [Full Story]
• Related
• Mike McConnell to Newsmax TV: Facebook Must Be ‘Less Loaded’
• Grassley Escalates Call for John Kerry Iran Probe
• Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, has asked Secretary of State Antony
• US Jobless Claims Curb to Pandemic Low of 498,000
• The number of Americans seeking unemployment aid fell last week to
• Rome Jury Convicts 2 US Friends in Slaying of Police Officer
• A jury in Italy convicted two American friends in the 2019 slaying in
• South Carolina House Adds Firing Squad to Execution Methods
• The South Carolina House has voted to add death by firing squad to
• Trump Slams Media Over ‘The Big Lie’
• Former President Donald Trump on Thursday continued to accuse
• Wittman to Newsmax TV: Honeywell Fine Not Enough for Sharing Data With China
• Rob Wittman, R-Va., Thursday blasted a $13 million fine on
• Poll Finds 1 in 6 Workers Stay at Unwanted Job for Health Insurance
• More than 16% of adult workers stay in jobs they might otherwise
• Colombians March in 8th Day of Protests, Police Deploy Tear Gas
• Riot police fired tear gas at protesters in Bogota on Wednesday
• Trump Jr. to Newsmax TV: Dems Want Trump Silenced Because They Know He Resonates With Americans
• Liberals are attempting to silence former President Donald Trump
• Court Upholds California Governor’s Use of Emergency Powers
• California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s use of emergency powers to make
• Democrats, Arizona Senate in Deal to Ensure Recount Security
• The Arizona Democratic Party has reached a deal with the
• Stacey Abrams’ First Three Romance Novels Returning to Shelves
• Fans of former Georgia gubernatorial candidate and political activist
• Florida Gov. to Sign Budget Including $1,000 Bonuses for Police, First Responders
• Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) said he will soon sign a budget that
• US Backs Waiver of Patent Protection for Vaccines
• President Joe Biden’s administration has officially announced its
• Bill Gates Shifted $1.8 Billion in Stock to Melinda on Day of Divorce News
• Bill Gates’s investment firm Cascade Investment transferred $1.8
• More Newsfront
• Finance
• US Unemployment Claims Curb to Pandemic Low of 498K
• The number of Americans seeking unemployment aid fell last week to 498,000, the lowest point since the viral pandemic struck 14 months ago and a sign of the job market’s growing strength as businesses reopen and consumers step up spending. [Full Story]
• Biden Would Like Corporate Tax of 25-28%: CNBC
• Companies Warn of US Labor Shortages Economists Call Temporary
• IBM Unveils 2-nanometer Chip Technology for Faster Computing
• Bombardier Profit Jumps as Wealthy Travelers Return to Flying
• More Finance
• Health
• Study Examines Why COVID-19 Mortality Rates Higher Among Hispanics
• Hispanic people in America have died at disproportionately higher rates than whites from COVID-19. A new study found Hispanics accounted for almost 41% of age-adjusted deaths, although they make up only 19% of the population.
• 5 Myths About Germs
• Only 25 Percent of Sunscreens Offer Safe Protection
• A Vitamin Could Be Key to Women’s Pain After Knee Replacement
• Heart Disease Often Comes in Pairs, Spouse Study Shows

 

Manufactured Housing Industry Investments Connected Closing Equities Tickers

Some of these firms invest in manufactured housing, or are otherwise connected, but may do other forms of investing or business activities too.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • NOTE: The chart below includes the Canadian stock, ECN, which purchased Triad Financial Services, a manufactured home industry lender
                        • NOTE: Drew changed its name and trading symbol at the end of 2016 to Lippert (LCII).
                        • NOTE: Deer Valley was largely taken private, say company insiders in a message to MHProNews on 12.15.2020, but there are still some outstanding shares of  the stock from the days when it was a publicly traded firm.  Thus, there is still periodic activity on DVLY.

Spring 2021…

Berkshire Hathaway is the parent company to Clayton Homes, 21^st Mortgage, Vanderbilt Mortgage and other factory built housing industry suppliers.
· LCI Industries, Patrick, UFPI, and LP each are suppliers to the manufactured housing industry, among others.
· AMG, CG, and TAVFX have investments in manufactured housing related businesses. For insights from third-parties and clients about our publisher, click here.
Enjoy these ‘blast from the past’ comments.

MHProNews. MHProNews – previously a.k.a. MHMSM.com – has celebrated our 11th year of publishing, and is starting our 12the year of serving the industry as the runaway most-read trade media.

Sample Kudos over the years…

It is now 11+ years and counting…

Learn more about our evolutionary journey as the industry’s leading trade media, at the report linked below.

· For expert manufactured housing business development or other professional services, click here.
· To sign up in seconds for our industry leading emailed headline news updates, click here.

Disclosure. MHProNews holds no positions in the stocks in this report.

That’s a wrap on this installment of “News Through the Lens of Manufactured Homes and Factory-Built Housing” © where “We Provide, You Decide.” © (Affordable housing, manufactured homes, stock, investing, data, metrics, reports, fact-checks, analysis, and commentary. Third-party images or content are provided under fair use guidelines for media.) (See Related Reports, further below. Text/image boxes often are hot-linked to other reports that can be access by clicking on them.)

By L.A. “Tony” Kovach – for MHLivingNews.com.
Tony earned a journalism scholarship and earned numerous awards in history and in manufactured housing. For example, he earned the prestigious Lottinville Award in history from the University of Oklahoma, where he studied history and business management. He’s a managing member and co-founder of LifeStyle Factory Homes, LLC, the parent company to MHProNews, and MHLivingNews.com. This article reflects the LLC’s and/or the writer’s position, and may or may not reflect the views of sponsors or supporters.

LATonyKovach.