Clipmarks | Economy Clips

Copenhagen Consequences:What You Need To Know

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 03:43:47 GMT

November 2, 2009

Copenhagen Consequences: What You Need To Know

The Next Kyoto?

U.S. Policy: In 1997 the U.S. Senate unanimously passed the Byrd-Hagel Resolution, which warned President Clinton not to enter into any global warming treaty that leaves out developing nations or hurts the American economy. This is still U.S. policy today and should serve as the overarching guidelines for the December global warming conference in Copenhagen.

An Expiring Kyoto: The Kyoto Protocol is the major global warming treaty currently in place, and it expires in 2012. The Copenhagen conference has long been seen by Kyoto proponents as critical for extending the provisions into the decades ahead.

Kyoto Not Ratified: After Vice President Al Gore agreed to the protocol, President Clinton failed to even submit it to the Senate, knowing there wasn't support for a treaty that so obviously violated the Byrd-Hagel Resolution.

More people on SF streets are newly homeless

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 18:47:39 GMT

clipped by: Lexica
clipper's remarks: More:

Twenty of 21 cities surveyed for a new report from U.S. Conference of Mayors reported an increase in requests for food, and 59 percent of those requests came from families. In addition, 16 of 25 cities reported a significant increase in homeless families, with San Francisco among the leaders.

"Monday we had 136 families on the waiting list for a shelter," said Dariush Kayhan, the city's homeless policy director. "That's 50 percent more than we had on the list one year ago."

What's more concerning is that, according to the city's Human Services Agency, 62 percent of those on the waiting list are new to the system. They haven't been homeless in San Francisco before…

Indications are that we are only seeing the beginning of what the faltering economy will do to those living on the edge of homelessness…single men, particularly returning veterans, continue to be most likely to end up on the street.

Clip Source: www.sfgate.com

Capt. Martin Cooper of the Salvation Army has been handing out free sandwiches and soup near the Civic Center in San Francisco for the last year and a half. Lately he's noticed some troubling changes.

First, he's been running out of food. He used to take 50 sandwiches. Now he takes 500 and it isn't enough. Second, Cooper has been surprised at the folks who are asking for a meal. They're often clean-shaven, well dressed and utterly desperate.

"We were over by the Civic Auditorium," Cooper said, "and there was a guy lying on the sidewalk with a blanket pulled over his head. I leaned down and asked him if he wanted something to eat. He pulled the blanket down and there was a 5-year-old little boy lying with him."

Recently he reached down to a man on the sidewalk and asked him if he wanted something to eat. The man asked if he had to pay for the food. Told that it was free, he admitted that he hadn't eaten in three days. Then he began to weep.

Tags: homelessness, economy, san-francisco, hunger

Finding business in a down economy

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 10:57:06 GMT

clipped by: lizanelson08
clipper's remarks: How to reach the top information technology professionals – C-level decision makers - from small to large biz, with an active purchase intent in proposal including ERP implementation, enterprise solutions, Oracle E-Business Suite(EBS), Financial • Supply Chain Management • Distribution • Human Resource Management Systems • Customer Relationship Management.

Clip Source: oracleapplicationdecisionmakerslist.blogspot.com

Despite some good news from the economy, the sales figures are still not on the gleeful side. Well, it's time to come with real sales strategies to make your biz beat the current market turmoil.

Find companies that are making best use of the downturn and see how you can emulate their strategies to entice your customers in your product/service

Narrow your target buying circle- Get more focused on your marketing by expanding your circle of marketing to cover top honcho in technology biz. By narrowing your niche, you can digitally target these prospects with valid proposals that meet their needs.

Out service the competition. Best amour against recession is with impeccable service level. In case you're running consulting service, do a fine job at pitching the best voice to your customers.

Focus on multi-channel marketing- Capitalize on multiple-contact information to expand your brand name in the market. Leverage social media, networking sites, call center and even postcards to reach prospects

Tags: database marketing to it specialists, successful e-mail marketing strategies, oracle database marketing, oracle dba users list

A FREE E-Book

Thu, 25 Dec 2008 19:35:59 GMT

clipped by: zalisan
clipper's remarks: Merry Christmas!

Clip Source: zenhabits.net

Free Ebook: Thriving on Less - Simplifying in a Tough Economy

“In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.” - Albert Einstein

Merry Christmas everyone! As a gift, I’d like to share with you my companion to The Power of Less — a free ebook called “THRIVING ON LESS: Simplifying in a Tough Economy“.

Go here to download the ebook for free. (Please note: click on the link to go to the download page — don’t click “save as” to save the ebook.)

Table of Contents

Introduction
1. A Simple Lifestyle
2. Focus on the Essentials
3. Thriving on Less, Not Struggling
4. Focusing on Enough, Not More
5. Make Small Financial Changes First
6. Look at Large Expenses for the Long Term
7. Changing Your Spending Habits
8. A Guide to Getting Out of Debt
9. Tools for a Frugal Life
10. Resources

I hope you enjoy it! Please feel free to share this free ebook with your friends through Twitter, email, Facebook, MySpace, forums, or your blog.

`We`re so fucked the rich are running out of things to steal` !

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 16:17:22 GMT

clipped by: beanz

Clip Source: www.rollingstone.com

Wall Street's Naked Swindle

On Tuesday, March 11th, 2008, somebody — nobody knows who — made one of the craziest bets Wall Street has ever seen. The mystery figure spent $1.7 million on a series of options, gambling that shares in the venerable investment bank Bear Stearns would lose more than half their value in nine days or less. It was madness — "like buying 1.7 million lottery tickets," according to one financial analyst.

But what's even crazier is that the bet paid.

Whoever bought those options on March 11th woke up on the morning of March 17th having made 159 times his money, or roughly $270 million.

the luckiest guy in the world, the smartest son of a bitch ever or…

What really happened to Bear and Lehman is that an economic drought temporarily left the hyenas without any more middle-class victims — and so they started eating each other

We're in a place we haven't been since the Depression: Our economy is so completely fucked, the rich are running out of things to steal.

Tags: us economy

A very special lecture on Ethics

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:48:07 GMT

clipped by: Antara
clipper's remarks: rest:

But when it comes to violating fundamental ethical principles, Spitzer has left prostitution behind in favor of mass theft and economic slavery:

[Spitzer's] lecture is about the basis for government intervention in the private economy. The title of the lecture is: "From Ayn Rand to Ken Feinberg — How Quickly the Paradigm Shifts. What Should Be the Rationale for Government Participation in the Market?"

The answer: the only rationale for Demonrats like Spitzer to seize control of the economy is that they think they can get away with it.

Clip Source: www.moonbattery.com

Our degenerate liberal elite rulers are redefining the term "self-parody":

Former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer will give a lecture Thursday afternoon at Harvard University's ethics center, raising a few questions over what the prostitute-visiting ex-official has to say on the topic.

The engagement drew an objection from the former madam whose escort service provided Spitzer with high-end hookers.

According to The New York Post, Kristin Davis, who reportedly repeatedly supplied Spitzer with an escort, wrote a protest letter to the Edmond J. Safra Foundation Center for Ethics calling Spitzer a "man without ethics."

"I am greatly intrigued as to what Mr. Spitzer could contribute to an ethical discussion when as Chief Executive Law Enforcement Officer of NY he broke numerous laws for which he has yet to be punished," she wrote, according to the newspaper. "As Attorney General he went around arresting and making examples out of the same escort agencies he was frequenting."

Tags: elliot spitzer, harvard ethics, fun with liberals

Celebrate Make Something Day

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 02:15:51 GMT

clipped by: willhelm
clipper's remarks: "The day after Thanksgiving, thousands of Americans head for the shopping malls for a ritual known as Black Friday, called such as it’s a day when many retailers move from the red (losses) into the black (gains).Who knows if this year will be like most others for retailers. But I’d challenge you to take this year off from Black Friday. Instead, celebrate Make Something Day. "

Clip Source: jasoncoker.net

It’s the time of year when we start thinking about gifts. No, I’m not talking about Christmas. Friends Jason and Brooke Evans started Make Something Day a couple years ago as a way of practicing an alternative economy of simplicity and gift-giving on the most conspicuous consumption day of the year: Black Friday. Naturally, this idea appealed to me right away as it goes hand-in-hand with the gift economy approach of the Twoshirts.org Community.

Here’s a snippet from the MSD website:

MAKE SOMETHING DAY HAPPENS THE DAY AFTER THANKSGIVING (USA). ON MAKE SOMETHING DAY YOU MAKE SOMETHING AS SPECIAL AND UNIQUE AS THE PERSON WHO IS RECEIVING YOUR GIFT. SOUND GOOD?

Check out the site. Get some ideas for things you can make for your friends and neighbors

Republicans Edge Ahead of Democrats for 2010 House Elections, Poll Shows

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 18:00:07 GMT

clipped by: billpar
clipper's remarks: Let's make sure it's a Hurricane and that the candidates are Fiscal conservatives. Otherwise, what is the point of getting a new bunch of Rino's to continue spending and mismanaging the economy.

Clip Source: www.foxnews.com

Republicans Edge Ahead of Democrats for 2010 House Elections, Poll Shows

According to a Gallup poll released Wednesday, 48 percent of voters said they would back a Republican, while 44 percent said they would support a Democrat, if the 2010 House elections were held today.

Republican National Committee chairman Michael Steele (AP).

Fresh off major Election Day victories in Virginia and New Jersey, Republicans got another boost Wednesday with a new Gallup poll that shows registered voters would favor the GOP over Democrats if the 2010 congressional election were held today.

Independent voters were decidedly stronger in their preference for a Republican candidate, choosing the GOP by a 22 percent margin -- 52 to 30 percent -- according to the survey.

"The wind is going to be at the backs of the Republicans" going into the 2010 midterm elections, but "it could be anything from a breeze to hurricane force," Sabato added.

Tags: politics

China's record debt has economists worried

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 16:14:23 GMT

clipped by: infidel70

Clip Source: money.cnn.com

In a world still awash in economic worry, China has stood apart as the one country that has come through the global slump with only the briefest of hiccups.

Last quarter the nation grew at a brisk 8.9% rate, and many economists expect it to expand even faster over the remainder of the year. Profits at large, state-owned companies that have benefited from Beijing's aggressive stimulus program are up sharply.

A lot of global CEOs, of course, are on the thank-God-for-China bandwagon, and it might seem a little churlish to question one of the world's few good-news economic stories. Yet a growing number of observers believe that China is creating its own bubble economy. And they have a case to make.

The U.S. fueled its housing and consumption bubbles by providing easy credit. China seems headed in the same direction, although the victims would be different this time.

In the first nine months of the year, Beijing has shoveled $1.27 trillion in new loans into the economy

"If an Institution is Too Big to Fail, It Is Too Big to Exist"

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 11:03:56 GMT

clipped by: katsteevns

Clip Source: www.truthout.org

Sen. Bernie Sanders: "If an Institution Is Too Big to Fail, It Is Too Big to Exist”

Friday 06 November 2009

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt) proposed legislation calling for the breakup of failing financial institutions within a year.

Alison Vekshin, reporting for Bloomberg:

"U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders unveiled legislation requiring Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to name banks whose collapse may shake the economy and break up the firms in a year, fueling efforts to end taxpayers bailouts....

"The legislation would give Geithner 90 days to list the commercial and investment banks, hedge funds and insurance companies deemed “too big to fail.” Those firms would be broken up within a year, he said. Representative Paul Kanjorski, a Pennsylvania Democrat, is considering a measure in the House that would break up large financial firms."

Cloward/Piven Strategy of Economic Recovery

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:37:33 GMT

clipped by: dl211
clipper's remarks: Obama adheres to the Saul Alinksy Rules for Radicals method of politics, which teaches the dark art of destroying political adversaries. However, that text reveals only one front in the radical left's war against America. The Cloward/Piven Strategy is another method employed by the radical Left to create and manage crisis. This strategy explains Rahm Emanuel's ominous statement, "You never want a serious crisis to go to waste."

The Cloward/Piven Strategy is named after Columbia University sociologists Richard Andrew Cloward and Frances Fox Piven. Their goal is to overthrow capitalism by overwhelming the government bureaucracy with entitlement demands. The created crisis provides the impetus to bring about radical political change.

Clip Source: www.americanthinker.com

The Cloward/Piven Strategy of Economic Recovery

Using borrowed money for a band-aid bailout of the economy should seem backwards to most people. However, it likely is a planned strategy to promote radical change. Those naively believing that President Obama is simply rewarding his far-left base, and will then move to the political center, must wise up.

The assumption that Obama will need the nation to prosper in order to protect the 2010 mid-term election incorrectly assumes that he esteems free market capitalism. He does not. Rather than win through superior ideas and policies, the Democrat plan for success in the mid-term elections is to win by destroying political opposition.

Tags: cloward, piven, economy, obama, socialism

Spirit of community and a feeling of power, belonging and sharing

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 20:58:23 GMT

clipped by: tidbit2

Clip Source: www.indymedia.ie

part of a vibrant, international grassroots movement that brings people together to explore how we – as communities - can respond to the environmental, economic and social challenges arising from climate change, resource depletion and an economy based on growth. We don’t look for anyone to blame or anyone to save us, but believe our communities have within themselves the innovation and ingenuity to create positive solutions to the converging crises of our time. We believe in igniting and supporting local responses at any level and from anyone – and aim to weave them together into a coordinated action plan for change towards a lower energy lifestyle. By building local resilience, we will be able to collectively respond to whatever the future may bring in a calm, positive and creative way. And by remembering how to live within our local means, we can rediscover the spirit of community and a feeling of power, belonging and sharing in a world that is vibrant, just and truly sustainable

Bank can't prove it owns the mortgage, Judge writes off $460k debt

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 05:32:58 GMT

clipped by: Spiritualmonkey
clipper's remarks: This is why Rep. Kaptur was telling people facing eviction to squat in their own homes, refuse to be evicted, and make the bank demonstrate in court that the debt is legitimate.

Possession is 9/10 of the law.

I predict that this is the first tremble of a massive shock-wave about to move through our economy.

Clip Source: www.dailyfinance.com

Those complex financial instruments known as mortgage-backed securities, which famously caused so much damage in the banking sector and the nation's economy when the housing bubble burst, are causing another problem for some mortgage lenders: the inability to prove that they have a legitimate claim to homes entering foreclosure.

This little problem led to a curious scene in White Plains, N.Y., federal court earlier this month when Judge Robert D. Drain eliminated more than $460,000 in mortgage debt on a delinquent borrower's property after PHH Mortgage failed to prove its claim to the property, as reported by The New York Times. In essence, the judge's ruling made the mortgage disappear.

So how was it that the mortgage company was unable to prove its claim? It goes back to those pesky mortgage-backed securities. Their structures are so complex that it's unclear what's in them

notes that left a trail, proving who owned what, weren't maintained

Tags: evictions, econopocalypse, real-estate, mortgages, wall-street, mortgagte-backed-securities

UNEMPLOYMENT TOPS 10 %

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:39:42 GMT

clipped by: kareval
clipper's remarks: The jobless rate rose to 10.2 percent from 9.8 percent in September. The jump reflects a sharp increase in the tally of unemployed Americans, which rose to 15.7 million from 15.1 million. That was much larger than the net loss of jobs, which is based on a survey of businesses.

Economists say it could climb as high as 10.5 percent next year because employers remain reluctant to hire.

Friday's report is the first since the government said last week that the economy grew at a 3.5 percent annual rate in the July-September quarter, the strongest signal yet that the economy is rebounding. But that isn't fast enough to spur rapid hiring, raising the specter of a jobless recovery.

"You need explosive growth to take the unemployment rate down," said Dan Greenhaus, chief economic strategist for New York-based investment firm Miller Tabak & Co.

Greenhaus said the economy soared by nearly 8 percent in 1983 after a steep recession, lowering the jobless rate by 2.5 percentage points that

Clip Source: www.foxnews.com

Unemployment Rate Tops 10 Percent as 16 Million People Look for Jobs

The Labor Department says the economy shed a net total of 190,000 jobs in October, less than the downwardly revised 219,000 lost in September.

WASHINGTON -- Nearly 16 million people can't find jobs, the Labor Department said Friday, pushing the unemployment rate over 10 percent for the first time since 1983.

The Labor Department said Friday that the economy shed a net total of 190,000 jobs in October, less than the downwardly revised 219,000 lost in September. August job losses were also revised lower, to 154,000 from 201,000.

But the loss of jobs last month exceeded economists' estimates. It's the 22nd straight month the U.S. economy has shed jobs, the longest on records dating back 70 years.

Counting those who have settled for part-time jobs or stopped looking for work, the unemployment rate would be 17.5 percent, the highest on records dating from 1994.

Is the Economy Recovering? The Curious Case of 1920 vs. 1929

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 22:05:52 GMT

clipped by: merrie
clipper's remarks: The basic questions we need to ask here are:

1. Why do economies recover?

2. Are we recovering?

Q. Why do economies recover?

A. They recover because bad investments made during the bubble are liquidated, valuable capital is no longer being wasted on them, new capital is formed from savings, and profitable enterprises attract new capital to expand. Low real interest rates caused by increased savings encourage borrowing, manufacturers use the capital to make new machines, producers of consumer goods buy them, cash goes through the system, consumers see things are getting better, more consumer goods are produced, and consumers buy them. It has to happen this way or the recovery will fail.

The difficult part of a recovery is ugly. Bankrupt firms need to fail so that valuable capital resources are not wasted on their continuing activities. This means that unemployment rises (10.2% now) and business bankruptcies are high. Trillions of dollars of asset values are wiped out.

Clip Source: www.zerohedge.com

By Jeff Harding
The Daily Capitalist

In order to understand the present state of the U.S. economy you have to understand that there are two things happening at once. For the most part they are in conflict with each other, in that one track can negatively impact the other.

Here are some of the economic data that have come out this week, in no particular order:

PositiveNegative The Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing index rose 3.1 points to 55.7, the third straight month of growth and the highest level since April 2006. A reading above 50 indicates expansion for the sector.Current-dollar personal income decreased $15.5 billion (0.5 percent) in the third quarter, in contrast to an increase of $19.1 billion (0.6 percent) in the second.

The ISM's employment index rose for the first time in 15 months as manufacturers sought to recall workers or enlist temporary help.

Consumer confidence fell to 47.7 in October, from 53.4 in September.

Tags: austrian economics, economic crisis, recovery, fed policy, fiscal stimulus, free market economics, keynesian economics, stimulus, obama administration, krugman