Innocence Project Progresses | Dan Zwirn "Interested"

If you haven't chanced upon Dan Zwirn on Facebook, then you wouldn't know that one of his interests is the Innocence Project.  The project, which flies somewhat under the radar in terms of the amount of publicity it receives, is gaining momentum and making a bigger impact each and every year.  Taken from their website, "The Innocence Project is a national litigation and public policy organization dedicated to exonerating wrongfully convicted people through DNA testing and reforming the criminal justice system to prevent future injustice."  The project's mission is more clearly stated through the oversimplified statistic presented in the upper right corner of the Project's homepage (lower right portion of header), "March 12, 2012: 289 Exonerated".

The Innocence Project is a non-profit legal clinic affiliated with the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University.  From having less than a dozen post-conviction DNA exonerations between 1989 and its "official" birth in 1992, the Innocence project has since been averaging between 15 and 20 exonerations annually over the last decade.  Remarkably, they have earned exonerations in 35 states and Washington, D.C., making their mark nationally despite their prime ops taking place in NYC.  Being a NYC native himself, Dan Zwirn is somewhat of a supportive neighbor of the Innocence Project.

Although the program is performing exceptionally and their success gives reason for celebration, it is obvious that the work must weigh heavy on the hearts of those involved.  Recall the movie, "The Hurricane"- The story of Rubin "Hurricane" Carter, a boxer wrongly imprisoned for murder, and the people who aided in his fight to prove his innocence (IMDB.com).  While his exoneration was triumphant and left viewers with a small feeling of comfort at the end, it was nearly impossible to avoid having a stronger feeling of sadness and anger as a result of the countless number of years that Rubin Carter wrongfully spent behind bars while the life and promise of success he once knew was stripped away.  

Through the work of the Innocence Project, we learn the following:

• Seventeen people had been sentenced to death before DNA proved their innocence and led to their release.
• The average sentence served by DNA exonerees has been 13 years.
• About 70 percent of those exonerated by DNA testing are members of minority groups.
• In almost 40 percent of DNA exoneration cases, the actual perpetrator has been identified by DNA testing.

It is evident that the work of the Innocence Project is helping to fix some of the wrong decisions that were made by the Justice system.  At the same time, it is also evident that there is still a lot of work to be done and a greater amount of support that the non-profit operation could use to handle more cases.  If one organization can find point out 289 wrong decision over just 2 decades, the daunting statistic becomes the exponentially higher number of cases that exist that have yet to surface and, therefore, the coinciding devastation that innocent people have suffered (and continue to suffer) having been wrongfully accused of a crime they did not commit.  To help, you can make a donation to the Innocence Project. 

D.B. Zwirn Presentation | Tonight 6pm

Dan Zwirn is giving a presentation tonight entitled, "Exploiting the Full Spectrum of Illiquid Investments", at 6pm at Bernstein Global Wealth Management (Sponsor).  Talk is co-sponsored by the Harvard Business School Club of New York (HBSCNY) and the Harvard Business School Angels of New York (HBSANY).  Read more about this D.B. Zwirn event.

Investors, Capital, Markets - All in a Day's Work at Brookings Institution

The Brookings Institution is a nonprofit public policy organization based in Washington, DC considered to be the most influential, most quoted and most trusted think tank.  The Brookings Institution traces its beginnings to 1916, when a group of leading reformers founded the Institute for Government Research (IGR), the first private organization devoted to analyzing public policy issues at the national level (Ref: Brookings Institution History).  Two sister organizations were created.  First, in 1922, the Institute of Economics was created.  Then, in 1924 a graduate school was created.  They merged in 1927 and the Brookings Institution Trustees picked the first president, University of Chicago professor, Harold Moulton.

Harold Moulton
First President | Brookings Institution

As a Brookings Institution Trustee, Dan Zwirn supports the Brookings Institution mission to conduct high-quality, independent research and provide innovative, practical recommendations in an effort to strengthen American democracy, foster the economic and social welfare, security and opportunity of all Americans and secure a more open, safe, prosperous and cooperative international system.

In the past year, Dan Zwirn contributed to a Brookings Institution publication entitled, "Rebuilding America: The Role of Foreign Capital and Global Foreign Investors".  Summarily, the paper was about the influence that foreign government entities had in the world economy and the mere "partial" understanding that American political leaders and policy makers had of investing practices, management and governance of these sources of foreign capital. Below is an excerpt:

Sovereign wealth funds, foreign state managed social security plans, foreign currency reserve funds, foreign government employee pension funds, state-controlled operating companies and other foreign investing vehicles today collectively control trillions of dollars in assets and are projected to maintain significant growth over the next decade. These disparate foreign government entities－characterized in this report as Global Public Investors (“GPIs”)－are becoming increasingly influential players in the world economy. In the volatile contemporary global financial environment, the investment strategies of these foreign entities will impact capital flows and affect markets around the world.

Currently we find ourselves faced with an economy filled with uncertainty.  However, we find it certain that the U.S. economy is influenced by foreign investment activity whether it be directly or indirectly.  Mr. Zwirn, among many other highly intelligent and dedicated experts, has dedicated a career to understanding finance and developing sound investment strategies.   His contribution of knowledge to various organizations such as the Brookings Institution is an invaluable service that helps decision makers understand and manage the uncertainty of the world market - bringing the U.S. economy one step closer to success.

Who's Winning the Competition?

Apple iOS versus Google Android Sales

Although Apple iOS devices once dominated the smartphone market share, Android devices have quickly gained ground through recent years. In fact, as of the last quarter, Android sales have substantially increased while Apple has staggered. Last quarter, Android accounted for fifty-three percent of smartphone sales and had three times more shipments than just one year ago. On the other hand, Apple only made up of twenty-eight percent of all smartphone sales in the last quarter and saw its market share drop down to fifteen percent, down from seventeen percent a year ago. In many ways, Android is taking the smartphone market by storm. 

iPhone vs Android

In order to explain Apple's recent decrease in smartphone sales, it should not be forgotten that many consumers knew Apple would be announcing its newest iPhone in October, leading many to opt to delay their purchases. However, experts still believe that when factoring holiday purchases into consideration, Android sales are still exponentially growing faster than Apple iOS sales. When smartphone sales are computed, Apple sales come from strictly iPhone sales whereas Android sales include many different products. Since Android is an operating system for smartphones designed by Google, as opposed to a phone model, any smartphone that runs Android is counted as an Android sale. Thus, Apple has found itself being outsold with a three to one ratio of Android phones to Apple iPhones.

Several key reasons arise in explaining why consumers are choosing Android devices over Apple iOS devices. A large reason why users are opting for Android devices instead of Apple iOS devices is the freedom that the Android operating system offers for the user. Based on Linux, an open source operating system, Android strongly believes that the user should be able to have almost complete control over their device. As a result, Android devices are much easier to customize. On the other hand, if users want to customize iOS devices, they usually must jailbreak their devices, which in turn breaches their Apple warranties. While Apple once dominated in terms of their vast App Store, the Android App Store recently overtook iOS in mobile app downloads in the second quarter of 2011 and now have forty-four percent of the share. Apple's iOS carries thirty-three percent of the mobile app download market share. However, the Apple App Store still offers substantially more apps with more than 500,000 applications versus the Android App Store, which carries slightly more than 250,000 applications. Although Android sales are growing much faster than Apple sales, Apple still makes up the majority of smartphone profits. Apple accounts for fifty-two percent of smartphone profits, while the other forty-eight percent is dispersed among other smartphones. Since Google gives Android away, it is difficult to derive how much profit Google makes from Android smartphones.

At the end of the day, it is almost impossible to determine who is currently winning in the smartphone market, but at the moment, Android is certainly presenting itself as a major competitor to the Apple iPhone. On one hand, one can say that Android is faring better than Apple since it is selling the most units. However, on the other hand, one can say that Apple is dominating the market since it carries the majority of the market share. Only time will tell which smartphone leader will come out on top.  Wonder which device top trader, Dan Zwirn, would invest in?

Economic Turmoil Continues in Europe

The breakdown of the European financial market continues as Spain and France are reported to be on the brink of joining the economic crisis. This is in addition to rising fears in Italy, where even after the resignation of Silvio Berlusconi government bond yields have climbed over 7% amidst fears over the crisis. Spain and France have also seen a rise in bond yields, which experts believe are strong indicators that the two countries share a similar fate to their struggling neighbor.

Currently, ten year bonds in Spain have climbed to 6.3%, whereas French bonds are at 3.67%. Furthermore, the indexes tracking the French and Spanish markets have tumbled in recent weeks. As the crisis hits nation after nation, many financial experts are now calling for the European Central Bank (ECB) to act as a tourniquet to stop the endless financial bleeding.

Economists believe it will be highly unlikely another nation such as China will provide the requisite capital to bail out Europe. Consequently the ECB is the only available lender capable of purchasing sovereign debt. Without swift action, Spanish bonds may rise above 7%, which in turn may affect France. The interconnected nature of the European market has resulted in many investors predicting a domino effect unless the ECB takes actions similar to what the U.S. government did in 2008. At the time, the government bailed out a number of institutions to avoid financial meltdown. In Europe, however, many leaders are unwilling to even address the topic of a bailout given the stigma it has with the general public.

In fact, European governments are primarily focusing on austerity measures to deal with their fiscal problems. While a trimmed budget, revenue increases, and more responsible spending is the better long term strategy for reducing debt, the short term crisis is in need of more immediate action. Moreover, austerity measures may even exacerbate the problems by reducing growth and discouraging lending.

Nevertheless, the news in Europe is not entirely bad. Yields in Germany, the Netherlands, and Sweden are still relatively low. On the other hand, lack of a widespread sell-off may indicate that the activity in the Spanish and French bond market is not the product of investor panic, but rather the ability to deftly identify which European nations are in trouble. Unfortunately, the list of troubled nations is growing quickly. For instance, yield on Spanish debt was below 5% just this October. As of last week, French bond yields were less than at the start of the year.

The fear that the European banking crisis may begin to spread like a contagion is why many are calling for the ECB to act now. Without immediate action, the debt crisis may continue to spread throughout the continent, affecting the very foundation of the European economy.

Mt. Lebanon, PA - Home of the Blue Devils

Dan Zwirn grew up in Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania in the South Hills of Pittsburgh.  He attended Mt. Lebanon High School.  Home of the "Blue Devils", Mt. Lebanon is part of the WPIAL Class AAAA - Great Southern Conference, participating in a variety of sports, including football.  The Mt. Lebanon football squad put together an impressive season this year going 4-1 in their conference and 6-3 overall, their only division loss coming in their last regular season game at the hands of Upper St. Claire (5-0,8-1).  Finishing 2nd in their division, the Blue Devils scored an average of 25ppg while holding their opponents to a season average of just 15.7ppg.  A big conference win came against Baldwin who finished nearly .500 on the season but was blown out by the Blue Devils in a 38-7 bout.  Mt. Lebanon also posted two shut-outs this season, 16-0 against Penn Hills (non-division 5-1, 5-4), and 38-0 against Canon-McMillan (0-5, 0-9).


Mt. Lebanon takes on Big East Conference 3rd place finisher Woodland Hills (4-2, 6-3) tomorrow (November 4th, 2011) in the first round of the WPIAL Class AAAA playoffs.  The game will be played at Mt. Lebanon High School and is scheduled to start at 7:30pm.  More standings and playoff information for the WPIAL 2011-2012 season can be found in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette sports section.

Thanks for Stopping By!

Welcome to the Dan Zwirn blog spot.  Check back periodically for updates.