By James Kwak

“Fed Tells Big Banks to Shrink or Else,” the Wall Street Journal proclaimed in the headline of its lead story today.* If only.

What the Federal Reserve actually did is impose new, additional capital requirements for the largest banks. JPMorgan Chase, for example, will have to hold 4.5 percentage points more capital than it would have had to otherwise. This is clearly a good thing, since it means that the banks that could do the most damage to the financial system will be a little bit safer. But it is neither a complete solution, nor is it the draconian constraint that the banks and the Journal make it out to be.

For starters, the rule will have no effect on seven of the eight banks in question (JPMorgan is the exception), since they already have enough capital to meet the new requirements. That alone should let you…

I met Colossus when I worked as a personal injury paralegal. I became even better acquainted with this computer program after I set up the Personal Injury Protection (PIP) department at the law firm where I worked. Within a short period of time, I had figured out which keywords and CPT codes were accepted and which were rejected. However this did not guarantee that the claim would be paid. It was my job to wrangle with the insurance adjuster in the event that Colossus rejected a valid claim, which was often. I once drafted a complaint for 24 cents because the insurance adjuster was rude. Yep, 24 cents. The attorney who signed the complaint laughed but I was able to get $2,100 in attorney’s fees plus the 24 cents and our court costs from the insurance company before any court appearances.

Allstate always had a reputation of not settling claims…