It really shouldn't come as too big of a surprise, but today's release of housing starts for May show another tough month. The subprime mortgage woes continue to weigh on lenders, who have been seriously cutting back on loan approvals for new home buyers, and who can really blame them? As Jonathan Berr wrote last week, foreclosures have been rising -- with May seeing a jump of 90% -- and show no signs of slowing.

So, given the current mortgage situation, it was not a shocker to see another month of weak home starts. Last month saw a 2.1 percent drop in construction of new homes and apartments. This is what analysts had been expecting to see, and represented the weakest month since January. We now see construction levels a pretty amazing 24.2 percent below this time last year.

If you are crossing your fingers and hoping to see construction numbers rise over the next couple of months, I wouldn't. Things are pointing to even worse numbers moving forward. Builder sentiment is now running at the lowest rate it has been at during the past 16 years. In May the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market index was sitting at 30, and analysts were expecting to see that level hold this month, but that was not to be. After a 2 point drop down to 28 we are at a point where we haven't been since way back in February of 1991 when the index dipped down to a measly 27.

While the picture is not looking good, once again, this is nothing new or shocking. We have known for a while that the market was weak and foreclosures were on the rise, and lower construction is just the natural reaction to what is going on in the marketplace. As more people find themselves struggling to keep up with their mortgages, more and more houses are going to hit the market, and at lower prices than we have seen in recent years.

BloggingStock.com's Jonathan Berr had a good piece on the implications of Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX). This is a federal law that Congress rushed into effect after the implosions of Enron and WorldCom. Basically, SOX has imposed some tough regulations on public companies in terms of disclosures and internal controls.

However, SOX can be difficult for small companies and some critics think that the U.S. IPO market has, as a result, been stunted. In fact, some U.S. companies are listing their shares in more favorable markets, such as the AIM market in London.

Well, there may be some change. Today, the Nasdaq announced that it has hired former Senator Michael Oxley as its non-executive vice chairman. No doubt, he will be a great advisor, but he may also help the financial industry push for adjustments in SOX.

It's likely to take time, but Nasdaq's move is definitely savvy.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including the Complete M&A Handbook and the EDGAR-Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements.

I received a torrent of comments to my recent blog post: American Idol: Are Indian call centers skewing the vote? and some of the responses had me rolling with laughter. I'm sure my perspective will not be shared by all, but shared it will be. Among all opinions there was consensus that contestant Sanjaya has outlasted his level of talent. My colleague Jonathan Berr had a different view when he posted Vote for the Worst is messing with American Idol, not Indian call centers. Still others thought Sanjaya was still on the show because he was an anti-judges vote, or young and cute, or even gay... a gay vote?

Having read everyone's thinking on the subject, which was one of my motivations for writing the story, I think it is all of the above. I hope that the "Vote for the Worst" does not have a major impact on the eventual outcome. Consider that the show has created opportunities for young talent to gain an audience, while entertaining millions with something better than infomercials and melodramas about doom and destruction.

The funniest comment of the week goes to VM who thought to critique my commentary with humor and succeeded. Thanks VM:

I own 25 call centers in India, and all my staff is just sitting idle during the American Idol. It is the great Indian Idle during American Idol.

So I have asked them to download the American Idol video -- as it is available on Bit Torrent as soon as it is aired -- there are lots of fans in India who download the show immediately, and get Sanjaya's number and start voting for him. For every vote, I reward with a point, and with every 100 points, they get a pay grade increase. So -- American Idol contestants, contact me if you want to win -- I can hook you up.