Morgan Stanley

How Wall Street and Washington Conspired to Spike Gas Prices

By Pete Kotz On July 11, 2008, the price of oil rose to $147 per barrel, a record high. Gas stations engaged in hot pursuit as the price of a gallon rocketed past $4. All hell was about to break loose. The country's largest banks had already begun to implode through arrogance and ineptitude. Now t ... More >>

50 Most Ridiculous Vanity Plates in L.A.

Forget 140 characters: try eight! In a city full of networking self-promoters and wannabe celebs, it's no surprise that ridiculous vanity license plates abound. That little space on the back of your car represents a precursor to the away message and the Facebook status, albeit a near-permanent one. ... More >>

Should China Own the L.A. Subway?

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is getting desperate. His ambitious plan to squeeze 30 years of public-transit construction into a mere 10 -- by borrowing $10 billion or so from the federal government -- has been scoffed at and dismissed by Congressmembers for a few years now. But seeing as ... More >>

City Council Pays for Needless Study By Not Doing Its Homework

Barry Minkow Fraud: How He Duped the FBI to Tell Him Secret Info on Lennar Corp.

By Beth Barrett ​New details emerged in a plea deal signed by Barry Minkow showing how the ZZZZ Best con man-turned-fraud buster and pastor cleverly exploited the FBI to get proprietary information on home-builder Lennar Corp. -- then used that knowledge illegally to make huge secret trades ... More >>

City Hall's Gift to Goldman Sachs

A vast upsizing of the Playa Vista minicity means $146 million for Wall Street partners

Down on Main Street

A guide to living among the crack addicts, mentally ill, homeless and young-pros-on-the-go in a changing downtown

Bonfire of the Vanity Affairs

WEB UPDATE: Graydon Carter targeted by Republican attack dogs . . . and other comedies

Baby Greens

Politics may be a drag, but kids today are turning Green instead of tuning out

The Dozen Rip-offs

The lights are on, but California’s power contracts are a mess

Net Edibles

Chew on these fast facts and estimates