On Marc's Mind is a weekly column written by Marc Baum, CEO of IPO.com. A securities industry professional for almost 20 years, each week Marc brings you his perspective of what is going on the world. From micro topics to macro views, On Marc's Mind is sure to get you thinking. Marc welcomes your feedback at marc@ipo.com.

On Marc's Mind: For Everything There is a Season
This week, one subway train that ran local since September 11th suddenly went express uptown from Chambers Street. A little thing and not an everyday occurrence, but still, sliding into this Thanksgiving, it made all of us on that crowded subway car so much happier that strangers talked about it with each other. The express train is just one more sign that the city, along with its perpetual motion, is beginning to reassert itself.  [More]

On Marc's Mind: Back In The Saddle Again?
If you don't pay attention too closely, you could almost believe that the IPO market is back to full strength. After all, seven companies went public this week, the biggest number in over a year. It's the first time since September 11th that the IPO market has operated at full speed, and for that reason alone, this week is undoubtedly a good one. But there are at least two ways in which this week may not be a purely positive sign: it's too narrow, and it may be too much, too soon.  [More]

On Marc's Mind: Tying It All Together
You’d think that more than 200 years after the founding of our republic, we could figure out a political philosophy that works for us, that is adaptable enough to be responsive to changed circumstances but solid enough so that we and others never doubt what we stand for. In truth, that doesn’t seem to be our way.  [More]

On Marc's Mind: Bipartisanship Takes A Hike
One of the few bright spots in the bleak days immediately following September 11th was the way in which so many people rose above their own concerns to work for the common good. Even in Congress, where cynicism has reached epidemic proportions in recent years, it seemed that our leaders were ready to do a job worthy of their brave constituents. How quickly things change.  [More]

On Marc's Mind: America’s Oil Addiction
It’s time to get real about oil. I can’t be the only one who notices that U.S. foreign policy continues to be held hostage to our dependence on it. Sensible people might have thought that we Americans would have learned our lesson from the 1973 Arab oil embargo, which prompted a recession that lingered for most of that decade. Twenty years later, we were on the battlefields of Kuwait, keeping their oilfields out of Saddam Hussein’s hands and cheap gasoline in our tanks. And just ten years later, we are back in the neighborhood.  [More]

On Marc's Mind: The Politics of Reconstruction
I read with dismay Senator Don Nickles' (R - Oklahoma) recent comments about full funding for the reconstruction of New York City. The substance of Senator Nickles comments was that many states are watching their economic health deteriorate and that somehow New York City and New York State were not in substantially different positions.  [More]

On Marc's Mind: A Fitting Memorial
In prepared testimony at his July confirmation hearings, Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Harvey Pitt highlighted, as one of the four main goals of his then prospective tenure, the review and modernization of U.S. securities laws, the bulk of which are now almost 70 years old.  [More]

On Marc's Mind: Reminders Of Our Prior Life
Almost three weeks after the attacks, we are being reminded of what was going on before. Though nothing can compare with the murders down the street, the speed with which human perseverance propels us to return to a patterned life continues to amaze me and inspire me with awe.  [More]

On Marc's Mind: Illusions of the Information Age
It was hard to be surprised when stocks collapsed following President Bush’s September 20th speech. Wall Street craves certainty, and the president was offering very little of that.   [More]