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According to OECD, teen unemployment rates (under 25) in Europe continue to escalate, particularly in Greece and Spain. eurounemploy That is scary looking! It reminds me of The Who’s song “Teenage Wasteland.” But, the US is no slouch when it comes to teen unemployment. The 16-19 cohort is seeing an unemployment rate of 22.60% while to 20-24 cohort is experiencing 12.80% unemployment. For the sake of comparison, I also included Germany teenage (under 25) unemployment which is 7.70%. unemployteenusgerm For the entire population, here is a chart of labor force participation in Germany, Spain, USA and Mexico. lfp103113 Even beleaguered...

It is no secret that The Fed is mulling over further monetary stimulus. Whether it is quantitative easing (QE3) or curve twisting (Twist3) remains to be seen. Senators Jim Demint (R-SC) and Mike Lee (R-Utah) have proposed legislation, S.3240, that caps the balances of reserves of depository institutions. AYO12664 “Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no action may be taken by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System or the Federal Open Market Committee on or after the date of enactment of this Act that would result in the total of the factors affecting reserve balances of depository...

The Spanish Prisoner is a confidence trick originating in the late 19th century. The con artist tells “the mark” that a wealthy person is being held captive and that money needs to be raised to release the wealthy person from the jailers. Allegedly, when the prisoner is released, the mark will receive a handsome reward. Needless to say, something always goes wrong with the negotiations and the mark is asked for more and more money until there is nothing left. Western governments have perfected the “New Spanish Prisoner” to an art form where the government asks Central Banks, investors and...

WASHINGTON – Here's Michelle Obama's advice for couples this Valentine's Day: Laugh with your partner. She says it's what she and President Barack Obama do, and it seems to be working. Their marriage, although tested throughout the years by his political ambitions — for the Illinois Senate, the U.S. Senate and later president — is going on 19 years. "I think a lot of laughing," the first lady said Tuesday at a White House luncheon with reporters who asked about the Obamas' union. "I think in our house we don't take ourselves too seriously, and laughter is the best form...

BEIJING (Reuters) - Humans are stripping nature at an unprecedented rate and will need two planets' worth of natural resources every year by 2050 on current trends, the WWF conservation group said on Tuesday. ADVERTISEMENT Populations of many species, from fish to mammals, had fallen by about a third from 1970 to 2003 largely because of human threats such as pollution, clearing of forests and overfishing, the group also said in a two-yearly report. "For more than 20 years we have exceeded the earth's ability to support a consumptive lifestyle that is unsustainable and we cannot afford to continue down...