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The Opalesque Team: “We are deep in the pickle jar and it seems likely that, in terms of economic pain, 2009 will be the worst year in the lives of the majority of Americans, Brits, and others,” states a gloomy Jeremy Grantham in his January 2009 Quarterly letter released by $107bln investment management firm GMO.

As he points out the write down of perceived wealth equal to one and a half times GDP, Grantham describes the financial situation in the US as being so dire that comparison’s to the Japanese crisis of 1989 leave him hoping that we do as well in avoiding a severe depression.

On Wednesday the US House approved the $819bln stimulus plan and the Senate prepares to see a slightly altered version brought to the floor on Monday, and expected to near $900bln in stimulus. Senate Democrats are reportedly under pressure from the Obama White House to openly receive proposals from Republicans willing to support the final legislation. However Grantham, self described as “exultant” at Obama’s election is not enamored of the steps the new President has taken putting together the team to deal with the current financial crisis.

Citing the “yes men” that President Obama has brought on board, Grantham discusses the missed opportunity to appoint those predisposed to “resist the establishment’s greedy joyride of risk taking and sloppy standards”. Of the team, which includes Larry Summers, Gary Gensler, Tim Geithner and Mary Schapiro the only source of hope f......................

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