Archive for the 'Economy' Category
UK Banks Could be Shut Down or Forced Into Bail-Outs by Brussels
September 12th, 2012Via: Telegraph: A panel of European officials would be given sweeping new powers to police the financial sector across the continent but also in the City of London. They would be given “full decision making powers” to impose EU law and to arbitrate disputes between Britain and the eurozone over the risks posed by British […]
Moody’s Says U.S. Faces Loss of Aaa Without Budget Deal in 2013
September 11th, 2012Mmm hmm. Via: Bloomberg: Moody’s Investors Service said it may join Standard & Poor’s in downgrading the U.S.’s credit rating unless Congress reduces the percentage of debt-to-gross- domestic product during budget negotiations next year.
Pentagon Buying Chevy Volts to ‘Green Up’ Military
September 11th, 2012In other news: Government Motors Losing As Much As $49,000 On Each Volt It Builds. Via: The Washington Free Beacon: The Pentagon is buying Chevrolet Volts to help “green up” the military—while propping up sales of the bailed-out automaker’s most politicized car. The Department of Defense began purchasing the struggling luxury electric car, which retails […]
Step Right Up and Take a Ride on Thomas Friedman’s Hamster Wheel to the Good Life
September 10th, 2012The truth is, if you want a decent life, make sure that you’re engaged in lifelong learning about how to avoid the hellish circle jerk described in this New York Times piece. Check out the comments at the link if you need some comedy gold. Most people are telling Friedman where to insert it. Via: […]
Government Motors’ Volt: The Ugly Math of Low Sales, High Costs
September 10th, 2012Via: Reuters: General Motors Co sold a record number of Chevrolet Volt sedans in August — but that probably isn’t a good thing for the automaker’s bottom line. Nearly two years after the introduction of the path-breaking plug-in hybrid, GM is still losing as much as $49,000 on each Volt it builds, according to estimates […]
China Buys Australia’s Largest Cotton Producer
September 10th, 2012Via: Sydney Morning Herald: CHINESE investment in Australia almost doubled last year as the world’s second-largest economy flexed its economic muscles abroad, according to new data from the Ministry of Commerce. Recent Chinese investment in Australia includes the sale of Australia’s largest cotton producer, Cubbie Station, to a Chinese-led consortium, approved by the Foreign Investment […]
U.S. Jobless Rate Drops for the Worst of All Reasons
September 10th, 2012Via: Bloomberg: The unemployment rate fell to 8.1 percent from 8.3 percent, but that was only because 368,000 people left the labor force. The share of working-age people who are either working or looking for work—known as the labor-force participation rate—fell to its lowest level since September 1981. Related: Real Unemployment Rate: 20+%
Even Government Admits Fracking Mess in Wyoming
September 10th, 2012“The one—and only—place in the nation where fracking is causing water contamination…” Mmm hmm. Via: Bloomberg: Louis Meeks, a hay farmer in Pavillion, Wyo., holds a mason jar under a faucet in his house and turns on the water. It’s a demonstration he’s given to a slew of neighbors and government officials. The water, drawn […]
Open Thread: The One About Organic Food vs. Conventionally Produced Food
September 8th, 2012I saw the headline come up in a few places in my feed reader, but I didn’t bother to click through. I’m sure you know the one I’m talking about. Readers are submitting it now. Feel free to discuss, agree or disagree with it, but this one is like debates about Republicans and Democrats to […]
‘The Euro Is Irreversible’: ECB Will Buy Debt Nobody Else Wants
September 6th, 2012Via: New York Times: The European Central Bank on Thursday announced a sweeping program for buying the bonds of troubled euro zone countries, giving the bank potentially unprecedented power. While the bank’s president, Mario Draghi, insisted that the central bank was not violating a prohibition on its financing governments, it was effectively becoming lender of […]
