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ECRI Recession Watch: Decline In Growth Index Continues To Moderate By Doug Short November 18, 2011 The Weekly Leading Index (WLI) growth indicator of the Economic Cycle Research Institute (ECRI) posted -7.9 in its latest reading, data through November 11. The latest public data point is less negative than last week's -8.5 and continues the trend off its interim low of -10.1 on October 14. Last week I posted the November 7th CNBC interview with Lakshman Achuthan, the Co-founder of ECRI. I'm again including video because ECRI continues to feature it on their website here, which I see as evidence...

Believe it or not, a place exists where companies are hiring like crazy, and you can make $15 an hour serving tacos, $25 an hour waiting tables and $80,000 a year driving trucks. You just have to move to North Dakota. Specifically, to one of the tiny towns surrounding the oil-rich Bakken formation, estimated to hold anywhere between 4 billion and 24 billion barrels of oil. Oil companies have only recently discovered ways to tap this reserve. And along with the manpower needed to extract the oil, the town is now scrambling to find workers to support the new rush...

Millions of dollars worth of federal contracts transformed Anita Talwar from a government accounting clerk into a wealthy woman — one who can afford a $2.8 million home in the Washington suburbs with its own elevator, wine cellar and Swarovski crystal chandeliers. Talwar, a 59-year-old immigrant from India, had no idea that she and her husband would amass a small fortune when she launched a company providing tech support to the federal government in 1987. But she shrewdly took advantage of programs for minority-owned small businesses and rode a boom in federal contracting. Talwar’s success — and that of hundreds...

I filled a 20lb LNG tank this afternoon and now with the valve open it won't release the gas. BBQ ruined. The guy where I got the gas says the valve is stuck or broken closed inside. Is there anything I can do?

Minnesota soldiers got a chance to train with the latest and greatest in new weapons on Wednesday at Camp Ripley. It’s the M-777 canon designed to hit a target with near complete accuracy up to 15 miles away. The state of Minnesota now has 12 of the big guns and Minnesota National Guard troops had a chance to fire the weapons up. “Two million dollars for a Howitzer, you can’t put a price on a life. It’s a small price to pay, if we can keep our soldiers alive down range,” said Minnesota National Guard Capt. Steve Hall. The soldiers...

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — Ground-breaking on new U.S. housing units recovered a bit in May after a sharp drop in April, but remained well below levels that would provide any boost to the economy. Starts rose 3.5% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 560,000, but remain 5.6% below March, the Commerce Department said. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch were expecting a smaller gain, with starts forecasted to rise to a 550,000 rate. See MarketWatch calendar with forecasts of major indicators.

At least five Taliban militants were killed and five others were wounded in an exlosion in eastern Nuristan province on Friday, local officials said. The blast happened at 12:00 am local time when Taliban in Chatras area of Nuristan were teaching a 12-year-old boy how to perform a sucide attack, and the explosion occurred when they tied a suicide vest on him, Gen. Shams-ur-Rahman Zahid, police chief of Nuristan province told TOLOnews. Two Arab militants were also killed in the incident, he added. Nuristan borders Pakistan and militants are active in most of its villages. It comes as more than...

Tuesday evening, residents across Virginia Beach, Norfolk and Suffolk, Va., dialed 911 to report what sounded what a large explosion. Today, a NASA scientist explained that it might have been a meteor. The area is home to several military bases, so residents are accustomed to loud sounds. This was out of the ordinary, though; several 911 callers reported a loud noise that rattled their screen doors and windows. One woman told the local television station, WAVY, that it felt like an earthquake. That's not uncharacteristic for a sonic boom created by a meteor, said Joe Zawodny, a senior research scientist...

Key EXCERPT: If one believes as I do that QE II has been negative for the economy it is logical to now anticipate the opposite as we near the end of the program. Just as the effects of QE II were felt before its actual implementation, so too will the effects of its end be anticipated. That appears to be happening now. Commodity prices that started rising before the start of QE are now peaking before the end. Interest rates that rose with QE are now falling. For the economy, the end of QE should be positive as commodity prices...

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A tractor trailer rig carrying explosives from the McAlester Army Ammunition Plant that was involved in a crash on Interstate 40 has been moved. Representatives from Fort Sill Army Post in Lawton inspected the truck Wednesday afternoon and the vehicle was moved from the scene. Deputy Fire Chief Cecil Clay says the semi had 28,000 pounds of military ordnance inside. Officials had to wait for military authorization for the load to be checked.

Australians are partying like it's 1999, but for Americans it's more like 1937.  That's the year recovery from the Great Depression, already under way when FDR took office, collapsed under the weight of Keynesian spending and settled into four more years of economic stagnation. One reason why Australians are so well off is that under the benign policies of conservative leader John Howard, their energy and mining industries were allowed to function unimpeded.  Whether that pro-growth tax and regulatory environment will continue under current Prime Minister Julia Guillard is doubtful, but for the present Australians are reaping the rewards...

RUSH: We start in Indianapolis. This is John. Great to have you, sir. You're up first. You set the tone for the day as far as callers are concerned. It's a very important role that has befallen you. CALLER: Hey, Rush. I know it's a heavy responsibility. Hey, the reason I'm calling is there's talk out there now about how the great Clinton tax increase of the early nineties spurred economic growth, and it's a lie that we have to keep combating. I know you do it but what people have to remember is that in the wake of that...

Oil-drilling activity in the U.S. has accelerated to a pace not seen in a generation as energy companies, oilfield contractors and landowners rush to exploit newly profitable sources of crude. The number of rigs aiming for oil in the U.S. is the highest since at least 1987, according to Baker Hughes Inc. The 818 rigs tallied by the oilfield-service company last week are nearly double last year's count and about 10 times the number that were drilling for oil in the late 1990s. While the drilling surge is unlikely to yield enough crude to alter the global oil-supply picture, analysts...

Productivity gains mean many low-skilled workers are shut out The U.S. manufacturing sector is roaring back after the worst recession in generations. So why aren’t factory jobs coming back as quickly? One big reason: Business executives like Drew Greenblatt, owner of Baltimore-based Marlin Steel Wire Products, have figured out how to make more widgets with the same number of workers. To do so, he's had to upgrade the skills — and wages — of his employees. But his profits are bigger than ever.

INTRO Let me guess, you have seen a few models in your local store, you have seen some ads in the gun rags, and a "guy" you know thinks his rifle is "the best." And now you need some help separating the wheat from the chaff, and have come here to find out what is best for you. Am I close? I am going to assume you plan to take this into harm's way, or at least want a rifle CAPABLE of being taken onto a "two-way" range. If you just want a recreational shooter, just pick up whatever fits...

Commodities have been the story of 2010, having been much more robust than any other capital market this year. Oil is up a relatively weak 22%, a paltry move in comparison to metals like copper, up more than 30%, or silver, up 70%. Soft commodities have shown even greater strength, with corn, wheat, coffee up around 50% for the year while cotton has nearly doubled in price. What the heck is going on ? I've been following and trading commodities for most of my adult life and while I have seen moves like these in the past, this universal commodity...

DEVELOPING: Authorities have found what appear to be "improvised explosives" and materials to make homemade bombs at a home in Connecticut. [Snip] Police and FBI agents are at the scene Thursday and authorities are waiting for a judge to sign a search warrant application.

Today, some of the Pimpbusters held a social event at Blogger Overlord Central Command (BOCC.) One of the topics discussed (and tested) was new and innovative techniques for Blogpimp Deterrent Systems (BPDS). Please see the video here. Excerpt. Read more at Just kidding! No excerpt! We're not blogpimps.

The Rev. Terry Jones caved. We did not. Here's what happens when one pound of Tannerite meets the Quran. One shot from an AR15 sends this hate manual straight to Allah. After the smoke cleared, we celebrated by eating a delicious pulled pork BBQ sandwich. MMMMM PORK. This is how we do it in the hills of North Georgia, USA. Florida, not so much.

At least 10 people are believed to have been killed in a powerful explosion in the Somali capital, Mogadishu. The dead were reported to have been anti-government militants, thought to have been killed when their bombs exploded prematurely. The militiamen died in two separate blasts, 10 while preparing a car bomb and another as he planted a roadside bomb, it was reported. The blasts early on Saturday were heard across the city. Three Pakistanis, two Indians, an Afghan and an Algerian were among the dead, the Somali Information Ministry said in a statement. The government cited "security sources" as the...