Morihei Ueshiba"A good stance and posture reflect a proper state of mind."
Repeating mistakes of the 1930s
“We are back in a danger zone,” says a top economist at the International Monetary Fund. Though an understatement, it captures the central paradox of this year’s annual meeting of the IMF and World Bank. Everyone is alarmed at the swift deterioration of the economic outlook, but there is no leadership — no consensus on what to do or, even when crude agreement exists, little conviction that practical politics will permit action. There is a hazardous vacuum of ideas and power.
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Moody's analyst: Odds of recession "almost even"
Mark Zandi says political vitriol in D.C. "eviscerated confidence" and slowed economy, and continues to do so; Lawmakers need to "get it together"
Poker Site Fires Back at U.S.
Attorneys for Full Tilt Poker fired back at the U.S. Justice Department's civil case against the poker website, decrying the government's assertion that their company ran a massive "Ponzi scheme."
Federal Reserve to buy longer-term bonds to try to lower interest rates, boost economy
The Federal Reserve took a dramatic step Wednesday to help revive the economy, resuming its unconventional efforts at stimulating growth nearly a year after embarking on an initiative that ultimately failed to deliver a healthy recovery.
The Fed’s latest move aims to lower interest rates on mortgages and other long-term loans without making another major infusion of money into the economy — and brushes aside a crescendo of criticism from Republicans who have been making the Fed a campaign issue.
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Greg Sargent: Republicans support jobs creation, too
Okay, this is just crazy.
As I’ve been noting here regularly, there’s a striking disconnect in public opinion: While disapproval of Obama is running strong on the economy, and while pessimism is running high that he’ll turn it around, solid majorities support the actual fiscal policies Obama has been championing.
View Entire Story » | 0 CommentsAnalysis: Deficit plan not class warfare, Obama insists - USA Today
 CBC.ca |
Analysis: Deficit plan not class warfare, Obama insists
USA Today WASHINGTON – In unveiling his deficit-reduction plan Monday, President Obama spelled out stark ideological distinctions between himself and Republicans on the path to repairing a gloomy American economy. ... Obama Tax Proposal Exchanges Conciliation for Confrontation Moderate Dems duck, cover on tax hikes Obama's deficit proposal marks a move away from compromise |
Fed considers buying more long-term Treasury bonds to lower rates
The Federal Reserve is moving toward new steps aimed at lowering interest rates on mortgages and other kinds of long-term loans, without making another massive infusion of money into the economy.
When Fed officials hold a pivotal meeting in two weeks, they will strongly consider buying more long-term Treasury bonds, which should lead to lower interest rates for those bonds and other long-term investments. This would ultimately make it cheaper for businesses to borrow money for investments and push more dollars into the stock market, in addition to reducing rates on mortgages and other consumer loans.
View Entire Story » | 0 CommentsW. Bank's Zoellick says double-dip recession unlikely
SINGAPORE (Reuters) - The global economy is unlikely to fall back into recession but there are risks, World Bank President Robert Zoellick said on Tuesday.
Swiss National Bank pegs franc to euro
GENEVA (AP) — The Swiss National Bank on Tuesday decided to fix the country's exchange rate at 1.20 francs per euro and indicated it would buy an unlimited amount of euros regardless of the risk to maintain that value.
The central bank is exercising what many analysts in recent weeks had called the last-ditch "nuclear option" to shield the Swiss economy and exporters from the damaging impact of a strong franc.
"The current massive overvaluation of the Swiss franc poses an acute threat to the Swiss and carries the risk of a deflationary development," the bank said in a statement that announced the goal of "a substantial and sustained weakening of the Swiss franc.
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Some companies pay their CEOs more than Uncle Sam, study says
It has become a bipartisan article of faith in some quarters that the income tax on U.S. corporations must be lowered.
But for many large U.S. companies, the burden of U.S. taxation pales in comparison with what they pay their chief executives, according to a study released Wednesday by the Institute of Policy Studies, a liberal think tank.
Of last year’s 100 highest-paid corporate executives in the United States, 25 earned more in pay than their company recorded as a tax expense in 2010.
View Entire Story » | 0 CommentsConsumer fears put economy on the brink
While the Dow Jones industrial average and the unemployment rate get more attention, the shoppers outside a Wal-Mart in Northern Virginia offer a taste of what some economists believe is the more immediate reason that the U.S. economy may be on the verge of another recession.
Americans are still spooked.
More than two years after the recession’s official end, people are driving their cars a year longer, holding back on jewelry and furniture, and swapping brand names for cheaper store brands at the supermarket.
View Entire Story » | 0 CommentsOklahoma Watch: Transferring tax breaks raises concerns state's residents
By WARREN VIETH
A survey by SoonerPoll.com on behalf of Oklahoma Watch revealed most Oklahoma voters had a lack of familiarity with the 480 credits, deductions, exemptions and other incentives contained in the Oklahoma tax code.
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Analysis: Fed would get little bang from balance sheet tweak
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Facing pressure to keep money printing in check, U.S. central bankers are mulling a modest approach to stimulus that would give the struggling economy only a tiny boost -- if it helps at all.
Gold Plunges 5.6%, Ending Below $1,800
Gold futures ended the regular session down by $104, or 5.6%, at $1,757.30 an ounce for the most-active contract, in the second-biggest dollar decline ever.
Budget Office: Deficit to Hit $1.28 Trillion, Slight Reduction From Record Years
WASHINGTON -- The federal budget deficit will hit $1.28 trillion this year, congressional budgeters reported Wednesday, down slightly from the previous two years but enough to set off new warnings about a sluggish economy and major long-term debt.
Economists Split Over Path Forward
Business economists are split on whether more austerity or more stimulus is the best path forward for U.S. fiscal policy, according to a new survey, highlighting the dilemma facing policy makers.
Corporations pushing for job-creation tax breaks shield U.S.-vs.-abroad hiring data
Some of the country’s best-known multinationals closely guard a number they don’t want anyone to know: the breakdown between their jobs here and abroad.
So secretive are these companies that they hand the figure over to government statisticians on the condition that officials will release only an aggregate number. The latest data show that multinationals cut 2.9 million jobs in the United States and added 2.4 million overseas between 2000 and 2009.
Some of the same companies that do not report their jobs breakdown, including Apple and Pfizer, are pushing lawmakers to cut their tax bills in the name of job creation in the United States.
View Entire Story » | 0 CommentsGov. O’Malley says Maryland needs to be open to tax increases to address budget problems
OCEAN CITY, Md. — Gov. Martin O’Malley said Maryland must be open to new taxes to address the state’s budget problems next year, and he cautioned Saturday that the state must be prepared for serious ripple effects from potentially deep budget cuts by the federal government.
O’Malley, who gave his annual speech to the summer conference of the Maryland Association of Counties in Ocean City, cited three primary shortfalls. The first is a state budget deficit of about $1 billion. He also said action is needed to maintain sewage treatment upgrades in the state. The governor also highlighted shortfalls in funding for transportation infrastructure.
View Entire Story » | 0 CommentsFitch affirms U.S. at AAA, outlook stable
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Fitch Ratings said on Tuesday it affirmed the United States' top-notch credit rating at AAA, giving the world's largest economy a reprieve after it was downgraded by Standard & Poor's little more than a week ago.
A war tax? It’s still not a bad idea
White House Press Secretary Jay Carney last Wednesday caught my eye when he talked about members of Congress, currently vocal about the deficit, who were on Capitol Hill over the past decade and voted for unpaid large tax cuts but “put two wars on the credit card without paying for them.”
That last phrase reflected words used in 2007 by several House Democrats who wanted to institute a war surtax to pay for the then-increasing costs of U.S. activities in Iraq and Afghanistan.
These days, one of them, Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.), believes such a levy should be on the agenda of the debt-reduction “supercommittee.”
View Entire Story » | 0 CommentsBuffett's Harsh Message to 'Coddled' Mega Rich
Warren Buffett, who is estimated to be worth more than $47 billion, called on Congress to commit to "shared sacrifice" and raise taxes on people earning more than $1 million.
Wall Street's wild week continues as Dow soars
Dow Jones shoots up 423 points on small but positive economic signs; First time ever Dow has had four straight 400-point days
US Trade Deficit Balloons to Three-Year High
The U.S. trade deficit rose in June to its highest level since October 2008 as soft overseas demand reduced industrial...
View Entire Story » | 0 CommentsObama to Congress: Send Me a Highway Bill
President Obama urged Michigan factory workers to “tell Congress to get past their differences and send me a road construction...
View Entire Story » | 0 CommentsMichigan Dumps 30,000 College Students From Food Stamps Program, Saves $75M
About 30,000 college students are getting a real-world lesson in economics after cash-hungry Michigan kicked them off of food stamps to save roughly $75 million per year.