The Cosmic Order Reasserts Itself

After a week of focusing on the Insurance & Technology's 10th anniversary Elite 8 issue, the world seems to have begun a move to normality. As we report in I&T Daily today, insurers are showing signs of stress, from a rating perspective, but that is only to be expected at this stage of the crisis. A glance at the Wall Street Journal's financial news shows both the continuation of extraordinary measures -- e.g., the Netherlands' planned injection of $13.4 billion into ING, among other newly announced European measures -- as well as signs of stabilization. "Futures Rise on Hints of Thaw," trumpets one headline; "Global Indexes Advance," announces another.Perhaps the surest sign that the cosmic order is reasserting itself is the Boston Red Sox's loss of the American League championship to the Tampa Bay Rays last night. However, the Curse of the Bambino remains broken and the Sox retain their place in the pantheon of recent World Series winners.

In the I&T blog today, we present the "pantheon" of Elite 8 Award winners in simple list form, including every honoree since the inception of the Award in 1999. "The Elite 8 Hall of Fame," a graphically enhanced version of the list, including reporting about and photographs of past honorees, appears in the print and online versions of the current 10th Anniversary Elite 8 Issue.Perhaps the surest sign that the cosmic order is reasserting itself is the Boston Red Sox's loss of the American League championship to the Tampa Bay Rays last night. However, the Curse of the Bambino remains broken and the Sox retain their place in the pantheon of recent World Series winners.

Anthony O'Donnell has covered technology in the insurance industry since 2000, when he joined the editorial staff of Insurance & Technology. As an editor and reporter for I&T and the InformationWeek Financial Services of TechWeb he has written on all areas of information ... View Full Bio