http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/economy/ en-us Mon, 4 Jan 2010 19:02:47 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2420747/posts Excuse my english - I woke up this morning, thinking whew...holidays finally gone, we can get back to work. I was happy and all excited. Suddenly, for some reason, an image went through my mind - like a flash - an image which had everything in it in one shot and then I got sick to my stomach. I suddenly saw, in one second, all what happened last year in America - banks, auto, all the executive orders, islam invasion even in the government, dictatorial arrogance, rules of engagement, healthcare...all the same than where I escaped from - and I... me http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2420747/posts#comment Mon, 4 Jan 2010 19:02:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421689/posts If we as a state want to make a New Year&#x27;s resolution, I suggest taking a good look at the California we have created. From our out-of-sync tax system to our out-of-control civil service, it&#x27;s time for politicians to begin an honest dialogue about what we&#x27;ve become. Take the civil service. The system was set up so politicians like me couldn&#x27;t come in and fire the people (relatives) hired by the guy they beat and replace them with their own friends and relatives. Over the years, however, the civil service system has changed from one that protects jobs to one... SFGate.com (San Francisco Chronicle) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421689/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 21:45:14 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421676/posts View data table: http://www.cardealerreviews.org/?p=118875 Car Dealer Reviews http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421676/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 21:26:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421655/posts Increasing terrorist threats, global warming, health care, or mounting deficits and debt. We hear the constant drumbeat from the right and left everyday. If we take the politics out of the equation, and rely on history, which of these are most likely to cause widespread chaos, and even destruction in the United States? The answers may surprise you. U4prez http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421655/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 21:01:42 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2421609/posts Barney Frank says that Fannie/Freddie have morphed exclusively into a public policy instrument following the housing collapse. Starting at 4:12 in video: &#x93;Remember now that Fannie and Freddie have been converted, they were problematic before, and we didn&#x92;t get around &#x92;til 2007 of passing that reform&#x85; Part of the losses of Fannie and Freddie is that since the housing collapse, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have become a kind of public utility. They are not what they used to be, that hybrid, inappropriately hybrid, private stock company/public policy instrument. They have become the public utility that finances housing&#x85;&#x94; WATCH: http://butasforme.com/2010/01/05/video-barney-frank-fannie-freddie-are-basically-public-policy-instruments-of-the-government/ butasforme http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2421609/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 20:03:34 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421280/posts How Deflation Is Inflation Economics / Inflation Jan 04, 2010 - 03:20 AM By: Shelby_H_Moore Let&#x27;s squash the debate between deflationalists and hyper-inflationalists. Here follows the math that shows how we get the equivalent effect of price inflation (and skyrocketing gold price) when there is deflation on a debt money standard. In short, purchasing power is decreasing during deflation on a debt money standard. That has a similar wealth destroying effect as price inflation. Purchasing power is decreasing because private sector (non-government) share of total debt is decreasing, as well for a more complex second reason. What deflationalists miss is... Market Oracle http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421280/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 13:22:10 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2421517/posts In another example of why unions are antithetical to good government, a pliant, left-wing judge in California has ruled that the Schwarzenegger Administration cannot furlough state workers that belong to three powerful public employees unions. Governor Schwarzenegger has been battling to cut his over spent state budget for several years now and one of the solutions to the problem that he lit upon was the idea that he might furlough his workforce. He would give these workers a few days a month off without pay and this would save the taxpayer&#x27;s millions. It is a good idea and one that... Publius Forum http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2421517/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 18:24:28 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421395/posts Florida businesses are being hit by a sharp increase in unemployment compensation taxes coming due...At a minimum, the annual tax for each employee would increase from $8.40 to $100.30. The maximum rate would rise from $378 per worker to $459. Herald tribune http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421395/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 16:01:15 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2421394/posts Recovery.gov, the Obama administration&#x92;s supposedly transparent attempt to let citizens know how every dollar of the $787 billion stimulus package was spent, is turning out to be a lot more comic fiction than fact. Not only have fake jobs been reported in phantom congressional districts, Steve Allen Adams of NewMexicoWatchdog.org discovered that some of the $27 million of federal money his state received also went to nonexistent zip codes: http://newmexico.watchdog.org/2010/01/03/federal-stimulus-funds-reportedly-spent-in-nonexistent-zip-codes/ &#x93;Closer examination of the latest recovery.gov report for New Mexico shows hundreds of thousands of dollars sent to and credited with creating jobs in zip codes that do not exist... washington examiner http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2421394/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 16:00:40 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421426/posts Government employees are about to get screwed on their pensions. The money isn&#x27;t there to pay out. They&#x27;ll tax the rest of us , but there are many, many other government priorities for the tax money. Government-employee pension benefits are going to be cut. According to the chairman of New Jersey&#x92;s pension fund, the US public pension system faces a higher-than-expected shortfall of more than $2 trillion. State and local governments are correctly perceived to be in serious difficulty,&#x94; Orin Kramer told the Financial Times. &#x93;If you factor in the reality of these unfunded promises, their deficits will rise exponentially.&#x94;... Economic Policy Journal http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421426/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 16:31:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421413/posts The Trouble With China by: John Mason January 05, 2010 China seems to be determined to continue to peg the value of its currency against the dollar. Then it points its finger at the United States anytime someone representing the United States raises a question about its practice. As long as China continues to follow this policy, the United States is locked into a corner with no really good options. The problem of the United States is the problem of a country that has lost its discipline: a person, an organization, a nation, that loses its discipline is only left... Seeking Alpha http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421413/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 16:21:26 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421386/posts Economists Don&#x27;t Know Jack: This Is Going To Be A Barnburner Of A Recovery Daniel Gross Jan. 5, 2010, 9:31 AM Since 2007, the consensus of the economic establishment&#x97;bankers, policymakers, CEOs, stock analysts, pundits&#x97;has been catastrophically wrong. They didn&#x27;t see the economic storm clouds gathering. When the raindrops began to fall, they failed to forecast the deluge. As a result, throughout 2008, executives, investors, and consumers chased the economy down&#x97;cutting back after things unexpectedly got worse; cutting back again when the roof fell in. The Great Panic of 2008 may have destroyed blind optimism. But if excessive optimism was the... The Business Insider<b> http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421386/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 15:52:35 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421375/posts WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Pending sales of previously owned U.S. homes fell more than expected in November because of the end of a rush to beat the initial expiration of a popular tax credit, a survey showed on Tuesday. abc http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421375/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 15:31:05 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421367/posts Pending home sales unexpectedly plunged in November, according to a report issued Tuesday by the National Association of Realtors, a big correction after several months of positive gains for a closely-watched indicator of housing market activity. According to the industry group, November pending home sales activity dropped by 16% to a reading of 96.0, compared with the previous month&#x92;s reading of 114.3. The drop was much larger than expected by Wall Street, which was looking for a dip of 2% for the indicator for November. It was the largest drop, point-wise, since the industry group started the index in 2001,... FoxNews http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421367/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 15:25:57 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421188/posts I Know What Keeps Obama Awake at Night Submitted by madhedgefundtrader on 01/04/2010 09:14 -0500 While Obama relaxes in Hawaii, sipping Mai Tai&#x92;s adorned with little umbrellas and hooking up with distant relatives, a potential nightmare is giving him sleepless nights. Let&#x92;s say we spend our $2 trillion in stimulus and get a couple of quarters of decent growth. The &#x93;V&#x94; is in. Then once the effects of record government spending wear off, we slip back into a deep recession, setting up a classic &#x93;W.&#x94; Unemployment never does stop climbing, reaching 15% by year end, and 25% when you throw... Zero Hedge http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421188/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 07:47:40 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421143/posts A dismal job market, a crippled real estate sector and hobbled banks will keep a lid on U.S. economic growth over the coming decade, some of the nation&#x27;s leading economists said on Sunday. U.S. Speaking at American Economic Association&#x27;s mammoth yearly gathering, experts from a range of political leanings were in surprising agreement when it came to the chances for a robust and sustained expansion: They are slim. Many predicted U.S. gross domestic product would expand less than 2 percent per year over the next 10 years. That stands in sharp contrast to the immediate aftermath of other steep economic... Reuters http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421143/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 05:10:54 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421121/posts Global Bear Rally Will Deflate As Japan Leads World In Sovereign Bond Crisis Milton Keynes will be vindicated. Lord Keynes will lose some of his new-found gloss. The Krugman doctrine that we should all spend our way back to health by pushing deficits to the brink of a debt spiral &#x96; or beyond the brink &#x96; will be seen as dangerous. By Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, International Business Editor Published: 6:15AM GMT 04 Jan 2010 The contraction of M3 money in the US and Europe over the last six months will slowly puncture economic recovery as 2010 unfolds, with the time-honoured lag... The Telegraph (UK) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421121/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 04:32:57 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421102/posts How Rising Oil Prices Will Force U.S. Into A Post-Industrial Wasteland James Kunstler Jan. 4, 2010, 5:12 PM It&#x27;s the first business day of the new year and oil is trading above $80 a barrel, which means the price has re-entered the danger zone where it can crush industrial economies. This is a central element of the predicament we find ourselves in. The US economy is essentially a Happy Motoring economy. During the whole nervous period since the collapse of Lehman Brothers, American gasoline consumption hardly went down at all, though so many other activities collapsed, from house-building to trucking.... The Business Insider http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421102/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 04:04:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421008/posts Fiscal Policy: The new year saw the death of the estate tax. But like Freddie Krueger, this epitome of class warfare and wealth redistribution is sure to return to wreak havoc among the living. Once dubbed the &#x22;Paris Hilton&#x22; tax, the levy is supposed to target the inherited wealth of the super-rich who really didn&#x27;t earn it or don&#x27;t really need so much of it. Or so we&#x27;re told. But at some point, even inherited wealth was created and taxed in its creation. The death tax is double taxation, and just because you can&#x27;t take it with you doesn&#x27;t mean... Investors.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421008/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 01:07:50 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421098/posts Signs of a &#x22;new era&#x22; in housing are everywhere. Housing construction is taking place at record rates. New records for real estate prices are being set across the country, especially on the east and west coasts. Booming home prices and record low interest rates are allowing homeowners to refinance their mortgages, &#x22;extract equity&#x22; to increase their spending, and lower their monthly payment! As one loan officer explained to me: &#x22;It&#x27;s almost too good to be true.&#x22; In fact, it is too good to be true. What the prophets of the new housing paradigm don&#x27;t discuss is that real estate markets... Mises Institute http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421098/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 03:53:06 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421093/posts AP: 2009 bankruptcies total 1.4 million, up 32 pct By MIKE BAKER, Associated Press Writer Mon Jan 4, 4:12 pm ET RALEIGH, N.C. &#x96; U.S. consumers and businesses are filing for bankruptcy at a pace that made 2009 the seventh-worst year on record, with more than 1.4 million petitions submitted, an Associated Press tally showed Monday. The AP gathered data from the nation&#x27;s 90 bankruptcy districts and found 1.43 million filings, an increase of 32 percent from 2008. There were 116,000 recorded bankruptcies in December, up 22 percent from the same month a year before. While experts believe some of... AP http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421093/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 03:39:06 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421065/posts Greg Mankiw&#x27;s recent blog post carries a rather risky title: &#x22;The Monetary Base Is Exploding. So What?&#x22; I really am trying to understand the viewpoint of the wide range of economists (including Mankiw, Paul Krugman, Scott Sumner, Mike &#x22;Mish&#x22; Shedlock, Bryan Caplan, and David R. Henderson) who think the dollar is not going to fall sharply in the foreseeable future. But I&#x27;ve yet to see a convincing explanation as to how Bernanke (or his successor) is going to avoid large price inflation, given the corner the Fed and the feds have painted us into. Mankiw&#x27;s latest post recapitulates many of... Mises Institute http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421065/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 02:29:22 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2420976/posts roughly 18,000 people in Central New York ... are working part-time because they can&#x92;t find full-time work. They aren&#x92;t counted in the unemployment numbers released every month because they are working. Just not enough. People who have stopped looking for work also aren&#x92;t counted in the monthly unemployment figures. If both groups were counted, the Syracuse area&#x92;s unemployment rate would be 14.8 percent. That&#x92;s almost 50,000 people, and almost double the unemployment rate in November, 7.8 percent. The Post-Standard-Syracuse NY http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2420976/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 00:34:16 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2420946/posts In a new 2010 outlook, via Bloomberg, PIMCO&#x27;s Paul A. McCulley reveals his firm&#x27;s uber-cautious stance towards bonds, amid the massive borrowing underway in the UK and the US. ----- PIMCO Managing Director Paul McCulley leads the firm&#x92;s quarterly Cyclical Economic Forums, in which investment professionals from around the world gather to discuss the outlook for the global economy and financial markets over the next six to 12 months. In the following interview, Mr. McCulley discusses the results of the December Forum and its implications for PIMCO&#x92;s investment strategy in 2010. Q: PIMCO recently developed its outlook for 2010. What... The Business Insider http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2420946/posts#comment Mon, 4 Jan 2010 23:57:19 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2420919/posts California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger reportedly intends to ask this week for a federal bailout to keep his state from going bankrupt. But most voters have never been fans of any kind of federal bailout, and most continue to oppose a bailout for California, even when told what specific budget cuts may be necessary. A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows just 27% of voters nationwide believe the federal government should provide bailout funding for California. Fifty-five percent (55%) think the federal government should let the state go bankrupt instead. Seventeen percent (17%) are not sure. No matter how you... Rasmussen Reports http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2420919/posts#comment Mon, 4 Jan 2010 23:20:17 GMT