Archive for the 'Economy' Category
Howard Zinn Dies at 87
January 29th, 2010Via: Reuters: Historian and activist Howard Zinn, whose 1980 book “A People’s History of the United States” was a rallying cry for the American left in a conservative era, has died aged 87. Family members said Zinn, who for decades was a fixture in the U.S. civil rights and anti-war movements and lived in Auburndale, […]
Apple’s iPad as Metaphor for The Nightmare Future of Computing
January 29th, 2010Someone asked what I thought about Apple’s iPad. I wrote back: This was the most hype I’ve seen since Hope and Change. The iPad is going to save publishing. It’s going to save marriages. The blind will see and the deaf will hear! Pay Steve Jobs a commission everytime you want to scratch your ass […]
City Condems House Because Woman Was Trying to Save Money By Using Solar Panels and Batteries Instead of Utility Power
January 28th, 2010Via: Arizona Republic: An Avondale woman who spent 11 days sleeping in her car said the city treated her unfairly when her home was condemned in December for lack of electricity. But city officials said Christine Stevens violated building codes, a health and safety concern because Avondale homes are required to have heating systems and […]
S&P Issues a Warning on Japan’s Credit Rating
January 27th, 2010Via: Daily Finance: Credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s says it may downgrade Japan’s current AA sovereign debt rating by one “notch,” which would bring it to AA-. That’s particularly noteworthy because Japan is either the world’s No. 2 or No. 3 economy by GDP, virtually tied with China. S&P has officially changed its outlook […]
Toyota Halts U.S. Sales in Massive Recall of Eight Models with Sticking Accelerator Pedals
January 27th, 2010Via: New York Daily News: In a massive and unprecedented move, Toyota halted U.S. sales of eight models, including the best-selling Camry, with potentially faulty gas pedals. “This action is necessary until a remedy is finalized,” Bob Carter, Toyota’s group vice president and general manager, told the Associated Press. The models affected by the “stop […]
Verizon to Cut 13,000 Jobs
January 27th, 2010Via: Bloomberg: Verizon Communications Inc., coping with subscriber losses at its fixed-line phone business, plans to cut about 13,000 jobs at the division this year after posting fourth-quarter revenue that missed analysts’ estimates. The cuts will follow reductions of a similar size last year, Chief Financial Officer John Killian said on a conference call today. […]
28% of Orlando-Area Housing Units Vacant
January 27th, 2010Via: Orlando Sentinel: Orlando had more vacant houses, condos and apartments than any other major U.S. city during the third quarter, driving down rents and sparking landlord concessions just five years after finding an apartment was virtually impossible. The four-county metro area had a vacancy rate of 28 percent for all housing in the late […]
Better Off Deadbeat: People Get Into Debt, Learn the Law, Become “Credit Terrorists”
January 27th, 2010Via: Dallas Observer: While most Americans with unpaid bills dread the collector’s call, Cunningham sees them as lucrative opportunities. Many collection and credit card companies, intentionally or not, violate little-known consumer rights laws, and Cunningham’s favorite pastime is catching them doing so and then suing them. In fact, it’s a profitable side job. Call it […]
Head of Davos Security Dead, Just Before Start of Meeting, Police Suspect Suicide
January 27th, 2010Via: BBC: The police commander in charge of security at the World Economic Forum in Davos has been found dead in his hotel room, local authorities have said. Markus Reinhardt, 61, had been head of police in the Swiss canton of Graubunden since 1984. “All indications point to a suicide,” local police said in a […]
Why Does the Spending Freeze Exempt the Military?
January 26th, 2010Mmm hmm. Via: The Atlantic: President Obama’s announced freeze on non-military discretionary spending will be chewed over by analysts and spit on by both liberals and skeptical conservatives. But one aspect of the policy that won’t receive much chewing over is its qualifier: “non-military.” Even during periods of great deficit hawkery, it’s become rote in […]
