economy

Slow Down

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 05:02:27 PST

Thank you for reading my blog. Everybody miss the point why the Economy is slowing down. The Ceo”s of america, cuts jobs to make their bonus checks.Whena person lose their jobs over cuts,it effects everybody,but not the Executives of any company.

They cut jobs or hours from the employees, from the bottom of the list. When they lose their job,they have their 401k and cut their spending, to make ends meet. And hope they pay their bills.The next company suffer from it.

The ceo will get their pay and bonus, regardless if the company does good or bad. People are sacred and don't know if they will be next line for the cuts. When ceo”s are forced out, they still get their Executive-compensation.

Will Obama Really Change Our Economy?

Mon, 01 Dec 2008 10:22:43 PST

Now im not one to bash future presidents or even past ones. Except for the one's who talk of change and yet show no results,no changes and no resolutions to our economy, homeless or state funded agencies that are being cut due to lack of funding because the higher up's have to have more spending money in their pocket or to aid the people who attacked our twin towers in the first place. We as american's should let them rebuild their country so our president can rebuid ours. But will Obama change this? Honestly seeing is believing.

I just want to say Obama bring our troops home and lets rebuild America. Let the other countries fend for themselves. Why? Because isn't that what AMERICA is being told? Too bad, sorry , don't have the resources to help you but we will take your money and screw your people.

I would like to see Obama run this country like it should be run,. Mr. President Elect put your foot down and say enough is enough. Stop taking our resources, our jobs and fend for yourselves.

Economy Crisis

Fri, 28 Nov 2008 06:28:56 PST

What started the major economy crisis, that is making people lose thousands of jobs, is the raising taxes. Because of the raising taxes many are left homless and jobs are being lost.

Homes can't be afforded for so they have to be taken by the government and sold to other people for lower prices than they are meant to be. This takes a large part in why the housing industry is so bad right now-- only to sell, not to buy.

Jobs are the main part of any country. Without jobs there will be not economy and not taxes. That means that milita would not be payable and your lives could be in danger at the exact moment that you are reading this. Even before there was money (notes), people had jobs and traded with items such as fur and clothes. Without any support of the people, with contributing to support of the government then there would be chaos throughout the country.

The point is that when enough people lose their jobs then the end of America will be coming sooner than we thought, hoped, and dreamed.

Any questions? Just comment.

Global Financial Crisis - How It Unveiled a Hypocrisy

Sun, 23 Nov 2008 09:58:28 PST

The global financial crisis has taught us several lessons. Some people see it as a corrective measure that ought to happen once in a while in order to clean the system. Some people see it as a reminder to introduce better banking reforms. Some others see it as the demolition of the capitalistic giants and an equal shift of power towards the East. However, for a child in Africa who is minutes away from dying due to malnutrition, figures such as 700 billion are nothing but a stripping of the masks from the faces of the same world leaders who promised her food but reneged on it later, claiming they didn’t have enough money. Earlier this year 22 billion dollars was pledged to handle the issue of rising food prices. And while the 700 billion dollars will reach the pockets of those concerned with very little delay, only 10 percent of the 22 billion has materialized so far.

The urgency the world governments are showing in handling the current economic crisis might make it look as though the world is facing an apocalypse. However, there is an actual worsening life or death situation taking place in parallel and none of these governments has sought to show even half the urgency they are showing right now.

What excuse do the world leaders have in justifying their squabbles over funds every time money was promised for the developing countries? The figures 10 billion and 22 billion seemed so heavy when they fell off their tongues back then and now figures like 25 billion are being tossed around ever so casually. If addressing the 850 million hungry people was a priority back then, then addressing the 925 million people who are currently in starvation today is an even urgent issue. But sadly, the world leaders are too busy bailing out the rich pockets that landed us in the current state of quagmire to take notice.

And the facts remain as grim as ever. According to the UN, 17 million people are facing starvation due to drought and high food prices. The international aid agency Oxfam states that close to 13 billion dollars have been pledged so far in aid. However, the UN estimates that an additional 25 - 40 billion dollars are required to deal with the global food crisis that is spiralling out of control and ruining the lives of the world’s poor.

It is understandable that the world leaders are under immense pressure to put out the conflagration that has wrought havoc in the financial world. Which is why there is a need for an even urgent response from their ends. If the current financial crisis is affecting the world’s affluent and middle class, then it is crippling the poor. Around one sixth of the world is facing starvation, with a child dying every three seconds in continents like Africa. If this does not qualify as registering immediate response, then the world has lost its moral uprightness.

The 16th of October was marked as the World Food Day and Kofi Annan’s statement, that around 10,000 children in Third World countries would be dying that day due to starvation, was a staggering truth; but the richer nations seem to be unperturbed by it. Meanwhile the figure of 925 million is set to increase to 975 million by the end of the year, by which time CEOs will be back in their million dollar mansions. You go back on your word to the banks - families might not be able to afford cars. But you renege on the promises made to the world’s poor - the same families die of hunger.

This shameless reneging of the world leaders on issues such as climate change and world poverty has brought to light the hypocrisy that masks their philanthropic gestures. The last thought on the mind of the African child as she dies will be that the leaders of the world, who had promised her a life, deceived her. And as she takes in her last breath, the figures 700 billion will linger in front of her eyes as a reminder that her life was less important than the comfort of those in the developed world.

Shareholders in America

Sat, 22 Nov 2008 07:07:11 PST

There is an enormous pool of talent and energy in America . The challenge is how to focus that talent and energy to make America work better for the future.

Hundreds of billions of dollars are being thrown at the financial crisis. But to many of us it seems like the money is being thrown into a black hole, never to be seen again.

Meanwhile, we're seeing our jobs disappear. Our home values decline. Our savings evaporate. We feel like there's nothing we can do to turn this around.

But there is something each of can do. We can go to work at rebuilding America .

We need to convert this country to renewable energy.

We need to teach our kids. We need to retrain ourselves for the future work.

We need to take care of our elderly and sick.

We need to rebuild our infrastructure.

There is a vast array of purposeful work to be done.

What we need is a plan and leadership to marshal our talents and energy to get busy doing what needs to be done.

There is talk about another economic stimulus plan. This is an opportunity to not only stimulate our economy, but also to refocus the nation's talent and energy into purposeful work that will make this country a much better place.

Instead of makework type jobs, there are many tasks that need to be done which are investments in America .

We are all shareholders in America . Our investment can be our time and energy to do the things that need doing.

We need to create jobs…new jobs that rebuild America "s social and physical infrastructure.

There is a pervasive desire across the land to do something. This is similar to the sense of national unity and purpose immediately after 9/11. But we don"t need to be told to go shopping. We need to know where we can show up tomorrow, roll up our sleeves, and get busy doing something real and meaningful.

If we could put people on the moon in ten years we can do anything we set our minds and spirits to do.

Look what we did in electing Barak Obama.

In ten years we can be transformed in our energy systems, and vastly reduce the threat of global warming and eliminate our dependence on foreign oil in the process.

In ten years we can transform our educational systems so the best of our abilities are nurtured and made available for the future.

In ten years we can transform our health care system so it is not only the best in the world, it is affordable and accessible by everyone.

But we've got to start now. We have to invest in the American people, and not only give them something worthwhile to do, we need to make them shareholders in America where they will get a direct benefit from the effort they put in to rebuild the country.

Big Trouble for the Big Three

Sat, 22 Nov 2008 06:02:29 PST

Washington bails out financial institutions to the tune of a trillion dollars, these were Paulson and Bernaki's buddies. They told us how important it was, how the economy would collapse without it. Just another whale of a lie from the Bush administration. It's all a part of GWB's masterplan. I say this because Curious George made the comment that he hopes he lives to see the day when all unions are destroyed.

Well, Wall street has pretty much collapsed anyway, and it looks like Citigroup is about to fall. All this bail out did was put cash back into the pockets of the CEO's, who aren't doing what they were supposed to do with it, which was to give relief to people that are in foreclosure.

I grew up in Detroit, and some of us kinda figured that we would work at an auto plant when we graduated. That was 1980 and the downsizing had already began, with the introduction of robotic technology there just wasn't any new hiring at any of the auto makers. So I learned to weld and got a job with a company that provided giant air handling equipment for the auto plants. I did this for about ten years, and then switched jobs to install fire sprinkler systems. This was another job that depends on the auto industry (in Detroit) heavily. When ever a plant had to change the assembly line, if our pipes were in the way we would go in and move them, or there was the systems that had been in operation for more than 50 years that would need to be replaced.

2000 the supreme court wrongly gives the presidency to George Bush. From that moment on a down hill spiral had started, George and his republican house and senate deregulated the financial industry that made a lot of millionaires and probably some billionaires to boot. He made sure that the people that he put in charge of the NLRB knew his agenda, KILL the UNIONS. Does anybody really think that they get payed holidays because your boss is a nice guy, does he give you insurance out of the kindness of his heart, vacation pay, sick leave and the list goes on and on and on.

People like to jump all over the unions, they get payed too much, they stick up for lazy people. Bull crap, they get pay raises to keep up with inflation. Because they know that if they negotiate as a group they stand a better chance of getting what they want. If the people at Walmart smartened up, they would get payed better too. You see I now live in florida and one thing I've noticed besides the lack of unions, is that these companies charge the same prices for there goods as the companies in the north do. But they pay their employees a lot less. Thats why the owner of this one company that I applied for a job at drove a brand new corvette and his wife drove a new Cadilac Escalade. I don't care what they drive, except your not going to get me to do all the work and can only afford to drive a ten year old car, while you and your ole lady take exotic vacations all over the world.

The auto makers have done this to themselves. Yes, in a way they have, but what you also have to look at is did they build smaller cars that got good gas mileage, that are as good as any import? Yes, did the American consumer buy them? No. They wanted the big SUV's the Hummers, Lincoln Navigators and Cadillac Escalades or the big cars with lots of leg room. All up until the time that gasoline shot up to 3 and 4 dollars a gallon. Detroit was giving you what you wanted, now all the sudden thats a problem. Shame on you. These free trade agreements have not been especially kind to Detroit either, while we can ship our products over seas, it's a very limited amount compared to the way that foreign auto makers have flooded our market with their cars. With no regard to workers rights in these countries, they have a lot less overhead than our companies.

Who stood up for this country in a bigger way than the auto industry during WWII, they retooled their assembly lines to churn out the best military machine the world had ever seen. If we let them fail who will be able to do it again? The tax revenue loss from all the people that collect paychecks from an auto related jobwill cripple this country. Then what do we do when China says hey I think I want you to clean up this debt that you owe us? Thats one situation we must not let happen, but will if we lets these auto companies fail.

Now, I have these two great ideas in my head that I haven't seen anybody doing. One is for the auto industry and the other is for residential. I have been trying to contact people to talk with about this but keep running into walls. I know that both ideas will change everything considerably. I just need to knock on the right doors and to this point I haven't. If anyone out there can steer me in the right direction I would appreciate it. Please leave me a comment.

Buy American Cars. Shop for American products, stop going to walmart. Sure it might cost a little bit more, but I'd rather see the money in an Americans hand than someone elses.

News Media... I Don't Think I Like You Anymore

Wed, 19 Nov 2008 08:54:35 PST

Dear News Media,

I hate you. You are a sell out. I know, I know, its seems a bit harsh but its the truth. I don’t expect you to fully understand that statement as nothing you seem to expel is actually the truth. Most people take everything you say or write as the God's honest, no denying, very much a fact, truth. Sadly, I do not. There used to be a few that channels of yours that I could watch without wanting to pluck my eyes out, or a few newspapers I could read without wanting to slam my head into a wall. That number is decreasing dramatically as we speak. Fox, CNN, BBC, Sky, The New York Times, The Mail (on Sunday, cause that is the only time I buy) and especially the Metro and the London Paper. Technically those last two don’t really count because they are more morning tabloid trash with only a bit of readable, valid news. It’s amazing to me that you get away with it. Where are the indigent consumers who want the truth?

I don’t know where everyone else is, but I am here, and I am annoyed. Annoyed doesn’t seem strong enough. I am incensed, hacked off, frustrated, irate, irritated, exasperated and (my favourite) cheesed off! That’s right, I have had it with your bitter, negative diatribe of the world. Whether its the economy crashing or Britney Spears gaining a few pounds (gasp!) I. can. not. handle. it. This must stop and it must stop now!

I often think that the current economic crisis is your fault. Perhaps I shouldn’t put all the blame onto you. I say 60/40, no 70/30... at least 70/30 your fault to actual fiscal problems. There is always drama with you. It seems like no one has ever mentioned it before but no one likes a drama queen! Every ebb and flow of society, whether it’s a footballer salary or a credit crunch doesn’t need to be reported with such ghastly exaggerated detail. And on that note, why do you insist on coming up with those annoyingly clever little names for everything? Credit Crunch, High Street Hanging, Bail-Out Bill....have you ever thought that it is those cutesy little names that make the problem seem more evident, more real and hence more lingering? Not to mention they are annoying. Why cant you just call it an economic change, a shift in money interests... I hold you responsible for the crashing of the stock market and the folding of the banks.

Ok, I realise there is actually a real economic problem and you, as the media, do have some what of a responsibility to relay information to the public. But couldn’t it be in a more realistic, less tainted, dramatic way? Everyone has an opinion, but what happened to unbiased journalism? What happened to the plain and simple truth? Sadly, I feel you have strayed from your roots. you have sold out. Your papers and T.V. channels seem to be more about pomp and circumstance rather than hard facts; news as reality T.V. rather than an accurate portrayal of real life. Its sad because its all we have. You seem much more concerned with entertainment and the making a buck than with actually telling the public the news! I thought that is what you were suppose to be about?! News! No way around it. You are a sell out.

My indigent letter to you will not change a thing. No matter how much I personify you, you are still a giant, blood sucking, cut throat, money minded, corporate organisation. Nothing me, as the little man, has to say will make a difference. But just so you know, when I win the £192 million up in the lottery, I will buy one of you, maybe Sky or Fox. And I will change you. I will go back to real journalism; slowly I will invade your corrupt and annoyingly dramatic organisations until I have infiltrated all of you like a deadly virus. I will report things openly, plainly and truthfully. Whether they realise it now or not, the world will welcome the change. And I will be glad to finally be rid of you, you lying media fear-mongerer.

Sincerely,

Kristina Rhys

What Really Caused the Financial Crisis: Credit Default Swaps

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 04:45:57 PST

Many people think that “bad mortgages and housing loans” invoked our current financial crisis. It is true that these were a large part of the problem, but there was an equally large, and much more disturbing component: Credit Default Swaps. This financial instrument spawned tens of trillions of dollars worth of debt in a variety of corporations.

It began as a type of insurance policy. When one bank, company or person bought bonds from an enterprise, they could pay a small percentage of the money to a third party. In exchange, the outside party would guarantee to pay the full price of the bonds to the investor in the rare event that the company selling bonds failed to pay them back.

For example, if Company A wants cash for an endeavor, and Company B has money to lend, then Co B might loan Co A $50 billion, and Co A would agree to pay back the money, and 10% interest in a year. However, just in case Co A went bankrupt, and could never follow through on the agreement, Co B may pay a third corporation (in this case called Company C) a small percentage of the loan value, such as $1-1.5 Billion. If Co A did in fact fail to produce the money, Co C would pay it instead to Co B.

Eventually, people arranged Credit Default Swaps as a sort of “bet” that an enterprise would fail. If an investor predicted that a company would crash, they could pay someone to insure them as though they had a bond in the company. Even though they would never need to buy the bond, the investor would receive the full bond price from the insurance party for only paying a small percentage of its value. According to NPR, because of this betting, at one point different companies throughout the world were guaranteeing to pay each other a total of 60 trillion dollars through Credit Default Swaps if certain bonds defaulted, when there was only 5 trillion dollars in the whole bond market.

This still could have worked out fine, except for the fact that corporations insured bonds that they could never possibly pay off. They just assumed that companies like Lehman brothers were too trustworthy to crash. Once a few banks started to fail, Credit Default Swaps brought many more down with them.

Stop the Presses: Newspapers are Dead

Sun, 16 Nov 2008 04:13:36 PST

When I was a boy we had two major daily newspapers in my town, and many weeklies. I remember how my father used to come home from work and sit on our front porch and read the afternoon newspaper, taking his time with each section, including the Comics.
Those days are long gone. The afternoon newspaper that my Dad used to read went out of business 25 years ago, along with afternoon papers everywhere, and now even the morning newspapers are in dire straits.
The Newspaper Guild of America reported last month that according to its latest six month audit, newspaper circulation at the major U.S. publications was down yet again, forcing drastic cuts in newsrooms across the United States. The news was bleak everywhere: Gannett announced plans to lay off 10 percent of its workforce, amounting to 3,000 employees; The Christian Science Monitor announced plans to completely discontinue its print newspaper, after 100 years in business; The Los Angeles Times cut 75 of its newsroom employees, about ten percent of its staff. All across the country, big staff cuts were being announced.
This trend started years ago when people started tuning in to evening news shows on television, but it's accelerated with the growth of the Internet. There are so many ways to get your daily news online now that even TV news programs have seen their numbers decline.
This trend saddens me, because I remember fondly the days when a print newspaper was something to be savored. Like my father, I read every section, and I had favorite columnists and writers just as much as favorite comic strips. Nowadays I still get a morning newspaper, but I rarely read the whole thing. I usually go to the Sports section and see how my local teams did, although most days I already know because I saw the results on TV or the Internet. My biggest reason for reading the newspaper today? To read the high school sports stories, because my children or their friends are sometimes featured in the accounts.
When my kids graduate from high school I probably won't even need a newspaper. I'll be another one of the thousands of people who has cancelled a subscription. I'll be partially to blame for an event that was unimaginable for hundreds of years: the death of the daily newspaper.
Oh, newspapers won't die completely, only their print versions. There are hundreds of online editions these days, and although it's still in doubt whether they can make enough money with online editions (Web sites like Craigslist have taken away a lot of the revenue that newspapers used to get from classified ads), some of them will probably survive.
However, what's troubling is when you consider what will replace them. As I said, most people get their news these days from a variety of sources, including talk radio and blogs. These last two media are not always known for their objectivity or accuracy, and that means millions of people will not be getting the kind of unbiased, accurate reporting they could rely on from newspapers. What will happen when people have to form their opinions based on these sources? How can citizens in a democracy make wise decisions if they don't have a source of unbiased news? There are many advantages to the new technology, it’s true, and cell phones, instant messaging, and blogs can get the news out fast when there's a natural disaster like a forest fire or an earthquake. But when the fire is put out or the storm is over, where is the kind of measured analysis that comes afterward? Where is the investigative reporting that determines who was to blame for the disaster, or how to prevent it in the future? I don't think blogs will be able to serve that function very well.
Hopefully, this situation will sort itself out. Either the current platforms we have, like blogging, will become more dependable and accurate, or there will be some new technology that will help us to get our news in an accurate, objective fashion.
What is unavoidably true, however, is that print newspapers are rapidly becoming extinct.

Will Obama Help the Economy or Hurt the Economy?

Sat, 15 Nov 2008 06:07:40 PST

Obama says that he will help the economy, thats why he was elected, right? Or was the election more of a racial argument? He intends to raise the capital-gains tax rate from 15 to 20 percent for people earning more than $250,000. It's possible that the $250,000 may get lowered as the need for money to fuel other programs gets heated. If so, it's possible 2008 may be the last year to sell stocks and get only a 15 percent tax on your profit. Some questions to ask yourself, does Wall Street fare better with one party in the White House?

Research shows that in the past 80 years that American stock markets have performed better under Democrats, but the Republicans would correctly point out that the result is distorted due to the Internet revolution that took place during the Clinton administration. Does Obama have any experience in this field? Sure, he was a senator (or something in those terms), but that is WAY different from being the president of the United States. So answer this question. Will he help our economy or just make it worse? If you voted for him, Why? I am just seeing what the real reason people voted for him was? Because they wanted a change? Or because he is African American?