Karl Denninger

Karl Denninger is an American technology businessman, finance blogger, and political activist, sometimes referred to as a founding member[1] of the Tea Party movement.

Denninger giving an interview on RT America

Technology entrepreneurship

Denninger was the founder and CEO of MCSNet in Chicago. Opened as Macro Computer Solutions, Incorporated in 1987, it expanded its service offerings in 1993 to become one of the area's first commercial internet service providers.[2][3] Among its customers was the Chicago Public Library, which relied on MCSNet for both internet access and web hosting.[4] In 1997 he led a coalition of ISPs in setting up the Enhanced Domain Name System, a short-lived alternative DNS root which allowed registrants to add their own generic top-level domains.[5][6] Denninger continued to run MCSNet until August 1998, when he sold it to Winstar Communications for an undisclosed amount.[2] For his efforts, the Chicago Sun-Times dubbed him one of "the movers and shakers who brought Chicago into the Internet Age".[3] After the sale of MCSNet, he moved to Florida, where he began to devote more time to stock trading and political activism.[3][7]

Blogging and political activism

Denninger is a founding contributor to the libertarian-oriented finance blog market-ticker.org, and has used the internet to bring attention to his concerns with the financial system.[8] He now utilizes his blog to sell his home networking daemon and sell the artwork of his highly independent daughter. In the aftermath of the March 2008 collapse of Bear Stearns, he helped found the website FedUpUSA.org[9] He came to national attention for the criticisms of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 which he posted on FedUpUSA.org in September that year. Of special concern to Denninger was the over-the-counter trading of credit default swaps, as well as the high leverage of financial institutions; his objections to the bailout plan stemmed from the fact that it did not address either of these issues.[7] He has also spoken out against high-frequency trading, particularly in the aftermath of the 2010 Flash Crash.[8]

Denninger was also one of the early members of the Tea Party movement, sometimes referred to as a founder.[9][10] On January 20, 2009, the day of President Obama's first inauguration, he published a blog post calling on readers to mail tea bags to the White House and Congress on February 1, echoing a suggestion by a commenter on one of his earlier blog posts.[11][12] However, Denninger later expressed concern with the Tea Party movement, stating in an October 20, 2010 blog post that Republicans had hijacked the movement and perverted its original goals to the standard Republican concerns of "guns, gays and God".[10]

Media appearances

Denninger has been invited as a guest on a variety of television and radio programs. In July 2009, he appeared on CNBC Reports.[13] In April 2010, he appeared on the Glenn Beck show, where he spoke about the FedUpUSA.org website.[14] In October 2011, he appeared on The Dylan Ratigan Show on MSNBC to voice his support for the Occupy Wall Street movement.[15] In January 2013, he spoke with Voice of Russia in an interview covering a variety of topics, including the United States public debt, Medicare reform, and his opposition to Keynesian economics.[16]

Books

• Leverage: How Cheap Money Will Destroy the World, Wiley, November 2011, ISBN 978-1-118-12284-6.

References

1. "Tea Party Founder RIPS Palin And Gingrich". Huffington Post. 2010-10-20.
2. Coates, James (1998-09-28). "You've Got Dough". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2013-01-06.
3. "The movers and shakers who brought Chicago into the Internet Age". Chicago Sun-Times. 2003-12-09. Retrieved 2013-01-05.
4. "Library Shelves Plan For Own On-line Service". Chicago Tribune. 1997-01-17. Retrieved 2013-01-06.
5. Rodger, Will (February 1997). "Schism hits Domain Name System". Inter@ctive Week. 4 (5). Retrieved 2013-01-05.
6. "Rogue domains revolt". CNET. 1997-03-04. Retrieved 2013-01-06.
7. Denis, Alex (2008-09-24). "Niceville Man Gets National Attention". WJHG News. Retrieved 2013-01-05.
8. Dodge, John (2010-05-07). "Anatomy of a Plunge: Geyser of Orders Put NYSE in 'Slow Mode'". Securities Technology Monitor. Archived from the original on 2013-10-29. Retrieved 2013-01-05.
9. Semprini, Francesco (2010-10-26). "Il fondatore del movimento, Karl Denninger, si scaglia contro l'ex governatore dell'Alaska e i Patriots". La Stampa. Retrieved 2013-01-05.
10. Tencer, Daniel (20 October 2010). "Tea Party 'founder': Palin, Gingrich a 'joke'". The Raw Story. Retrieved 24 October 2010.
11. Denninger, Karl (2009-01-20). "February 1st Tea Party?". The Market Ticker. Retrieved 2013-01-05.
12. "Jane Hamsher: A Teabagger Timeline: Koch, Coors, Newt, Dick Armey There From The Start". The Huffington Post. 16 May 2009. Retrieved 2010-04-27.
13. "Blog Blog Blog". CNBC Reports. 2009-07-10. Retrieved 2013-01-05.
14. "FedUpUSA on Glenn Beck Show". YouTube. Retrieved 2010-04-27.
15. "Finding common ground to 'Get Money Out'". MSNBC. 2011-10-04. Archived from the original on 2009-07-04. Retrieved 2013-01-09.
16. "'The US politicians from both parties have promoted the debt leverage as a means of buying votes' - Denninger". Voice of Russia. 2013-01-24. Retrieved 2013-01-24.

External links

• The Market Ticker, Denninger's financially focused blog
• Market Ticker Forum, the blog's user forums
• FedUpUSA, site Denninger helped found to bring public awareness regarding financial system and government corruption
• Sucker Forum, a site catering to dissatisfied members and former members of Ticker Forum