* Treasury Dep’t says U.S. bank lending decreased in February.
* Sam Zell on Tribune acquisition: “I made a mistake.”
* Morning Call: U.S. futures fall as General Growth’s bankruptcy offsets J.P. Morgan’s earnings, London up early, European shares extend gains, the Nikkei’s gains vanish after China’s GDP report and Hong Kong falls on that same data.
* PIPE issuance drops in Q1, following a relatively soft 2008 (save for those injections into the banking sector, like WaMu).
* Last week, we wrote about an academic study that found business plans are mostly a waste of time, vis-a-vis raising venture capital. Venture capitalist Healy Jones has some additional thoughts.
* Kleiner Perkins fix-it guy Mike Long is now at Terralliance.
* Sarah Lacy vs. The NY Times, as reported by the New York Observer. The only winner is everyone’s Comscore.
*Â A new cybersecurity bill may give President Obama (or whoever is in office) the power to shut down portions of the Internet.
* Dave Callaway: Investors are about to receive their stress test.
* Steve Schwarzman shares some capitalist angst.
* In honor of the Bruins-Canadiens series beginning tonight, a little something to get us ready: