Monday, February 23rd, 2009 at
3:04 am
Oscar Countdown: The bleachers have a VIP, too (AP)
AP – It takes persistence and a bit of luck to get to sit in the bleachers for the red carpet star-watching party on Oscar Sunday. One fan’s dedication has made her a VIP in her own right.
“UPS lost my $375 package!”
Question: I recently used UPS to ship a package valued at $375. The employee at the UPS customer center filled out the shipping label for me, but never asked about the value of the package’s contents. The shipment was lost in transit, and UPS is telling me that they will only reimburse $100 (plus the [...]
Saturday, February 21st, 2009 at
11:17 am
This is of course big big news–a plan that may help millions of people affected by this economic meltdown.
Some critics claim that the government has no business getting involved in the private market. Others complain that it’s nothing short of a colossal waste of money. Others complain that it rewards bad behavior by bailing out those who tried to live beyond their means.
As always, the truth probably lies somewhere in between. Sure there are people who took a gamble and lost but there are also plenty of other who were outright lied to and swindled and set up with a mortgage that was bound to ruin them financially.
It’s a sad fact that most consumers are not very financially literate and so these con men selling no interest loans, adjustable rate mortgages with huge rate increases a year or two down the road, and low teaser payments for a few years with huge balloon payments due were able to convince people to take on loans that they could not afford. The flip-side of course is that some consumers lied to themselves about what they could afford or otherwise allowed themselves to believe the myth.
What we can all agree on though is that we’re in one heck of a mess. Greed and excess were partly to blame. Lack of regulation of the markets, derivitives, the mortgage industry and the recent trend of deregulation and changing the rules of what banks, savings and loans, investment banks can do is, no doubt, a much larger part of the problem. Corporations have but one goal–increase profits and shareholder return. Unfortunatly, having that as the only goal of existance tends to leave a lot of wreckage and and damage in its wake.
So for all the flaws in this mortgage bailout plan, we at least can hope that it signals a shift in the focus of our government from bowing to the gods of profit-at-any-cost to a more rounded policy that focuses on improving the daily lives of everyday American citizens. That’s a priority that is way overdue.
Friday, February 20th, 2009 at
9:04 am
Foreclosures ignite hot Bay Area homes sales – San Francisco Gate
Friday, February 20, 2009 A total of 3,918 existing single-family homes changed hands in the nine-county region last month, a big jump from 2,312 sales in January 2008, according to research firm MDA DataQuick of San Diego. For the first time, more
Study claims housing is becoming more affordable in Vermont – Brattleboro Reformer
RUTLAND – A study by the Vermont Economy Newsletter says housing is becoming more affordable in the state. The newsletter studied all residential home sales from 1987 to 2008. The study found the share of a median family income needed to make house
Thursday, February 19th, 2009 at
1:27 pm
FOXNews |
Among the projects that they say would boost the nation's defense capabilities — and conceivably stimulate the economy through the jobs created to build them — are: — The Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV), an all-terrain, multi-purpose robot platform … |
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Dave Linthicum, who keeps his finger on the pulse of SOA through his consulting work, said last year at this time that he was seeing a slowing in SOA projects — as things got rocky with the economy. However, in one of his more recent posts, … |
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Thursday, February 19th, 2009 at
11:56 am
The Federal Government Gives Away Billion Dollars In Government Grants Each Month. Including Federal Grants, Small Business Grants and College Grants. More Here
Government grants by agency and topic area, and grant-related links. More Here
