Haecus’s Weblog

Sun 6 Apr 2008

Brother, Can You Spare A Dime? — We Will All Sing Together “Happy Days Are Here Again” When The Recession Is Over

.. ..construction (down 51,000) and manufacturing (down 48,000).. ..professional and business services (down 35,000).. ..jobs in both residential and nonresidential sectors are now being slashed with 31,000 fewer residential construction jobs in March and 16,000 fewer doing work in nonresidential building.. ..slump in auto industry sales deepened in March.. ..continuing job loss in manufacturing reported later in the week.. ..many analysts to pin-point December or January as the start of the current recession.. ..if this recession is anything like the last recession, things could get a whole lot worse in short order.. ..this surge in jobless claims.. ..it’s hard to spin the data coming out of the Bureau of Labor Statistics these days.. ..the slowdown that many believed started late in 2007 has been confirmed by the recent developments in the labor market.. ..if this recession is like every other recession in the post-World War II era, unemployment will rise sharply from this point.. ..three consecutive months of nearly 80,000 jobs lost.. ..lending further credence to the notion that a recession is already underway.. ..confirm what is happening in the U.S. economy.. ..nonfarm payrolls declined by 80,000 in March along with losses of another 67,000 in the combined revisions for January.. ..

[01]
http://www.rttnews.com/sp/todaystop.asp?date=04/06/2008&item=2&vid=0
[02]
http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSL0630907620080406?sp=true
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http://www.petroleumworld.com/sunopf08040601.htm
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http://www.independent.ie/business/…-slump-or-a-.htmlssion-1339685.html
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http://www.courierpostonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080406/BUSINESS/804060337/1003/RSS03
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http://seekingalpha.com/article/71269-economic-report-summary-worst-labor-report-in-years
[07]
http://leisureguy.wordpress.com/2008/04/06/the-social-cost-of-no-bankruptcies/
[08]
http://freethemarketman.wordpress.com/2008/04/06/bankruptcies-the-no-1-growth-area-for-2008/
[09]
http://aftermathnews.wordpress.com/2008/04/06/huge-job-losses-set-off-recession-alarms/
[10]
http://www.therecruiterslounge.com/2008/04/05/okay-its-official-we-are-in-a-recession/
[11]
http://www.star-telegram.com/national_news/story/564589.html
[12]
http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives2/2008/04/020225.php
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http://www.news.com.au/mercury/story/0,22884,23488158-462,00.html?from=public_rss
[14]
http://www.kentucky.com/216/story/367305.html
[15]
http://www.charlotte.com/business/story/567531.html
[16]
http://sweetness-light.com/archive/ap-no-longer-a-question-of-recession-or-not
[17]
http://spittingvessel.blogspot.com/2008/04/recession-rocks-republicans.html
[18]
http://slashdot.org/~tomhudson/journal/200190?from=rss
[19]
http://protraderblog.blogspot.com/2008/04/economists-react-unmistakable-recession.html

____________________________________
Song: “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime”

They used to tell me I was building a dream, and so I followed the mob,
When there was earth to plow, or guns to bear, I was always there right on the job.
They used to tell me I was building a dream, with peace and glory ahead,
Why should I be standing in line, just waiting for bread?

Once I built a railroad, I made it run, made it race against time.
Once I built a railroad; now it’s done. Brother, can you spare a dime?
Once I built a tower, up to the sun, brick, and rivet, and lime;
Once I built a tower, now it’s done. Brother, can you spare a dime?

Once in khaki suits, gee we looked swell,
Full of that Yankee Doodly Dum,
Half a million boots went slogging through Hell,
And I was the kid with the drum!

Say, don’t you remember, they called me Al; it was Al all the time.
Why don’t you remember, I’m your pal? Buddy, can you spare a dime?

Once in khaki suits, gee we looked swell,
Full of that Yankee Doodly Dum,
Half a million boots went slogging through Hell,
And I was the kid with the drum!

Say, don’t you remember, they called me Al; it was Al all the time.
Say, don’t you remember, I’m your pal? Buddy, can you spare a dime?
____________________________________
Song: “Happy Days Are Here Again”

So long sad times
go long bad times
we are rid of you at last
howdy gay times
cludy gray times
you are now a thing of the past

Happy days are here again
the skies above are clear again
so let’s sing a song of cheer again
happy days are here again

All together shout it now
there’s no one
who can doubt it noe
so let’s tell the world about it now
happy days are here again

Your cares and troubles are gone
there’ll be no more from now on
from now on

happy days are here again
the skies above are so clear again
so let’s sing a song of cheer again
happy times
happy nights
happy days
are here again!
____________________________________

Senator Dodd Will Hold Hearings Next Week On Issues At The Heart Of America’s Housing Crisis

Senator Dodd Will Hold Hearings Next Week On Issues At The Heart Of America’s Housing Crisis
The chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, reacting to criticism that a bipartisan housing bill would do little for homeowners facing foreclosure, vowed yesterday to move quickly on broader legislation to help troubled borrowers get cheaper mortgages backed by public funds. Sen. Christopher J. Dodd (D-Conn.) said he will hold hearings next week on the measure, which is aimed at assisting distressed borrowers, particularly those who owe banks more than their homes are worth because of plummeting prices - an issue at the heart of the nation’s housing crisis. Under the proposal, the Federal Housing Administration would encourage lenders to forgive a portion of the loans and issue new, more affordable mortgages in exchange for the federal government’s financial backing. In the House, Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-Mass.) will hold hearings next week on a similar measure. He and Dodd said they hope to bring the matter to a vote in their respective chambers by the end of May. In a conference call with reporters, Dodd said he “tried desperately” this week to persuade Senate Republicans to support the FHA proposal as part of a bipartisan agreement to address the mortgage meltdown . But Republicans declined to include the complex measure in the hastily drafted housing bill being debated in the Senate. That measure would provide tax breaks for homeowners and home buyers, more money for foreclosure counseling, and $4 billion in grants so cities can buy foreclosed properties. But most of the money in the bill - $25.5 billion through 2010 - would be the in form of tax rebates to the slumping home-building industry and other businesses that are losing money, a fact that has drawn fire from some economists and consumer groups. Yesterday, Dodd acknowledged that he had reservations about the business-tax breaks. “I would have been more moderate on that, to put it mildly,” he said. But he defended the overall housing bill, saying it contains some “very good provisions” and has broken the political impasse that had prevented lawmakers from addressing the problems driving the nation toward recession. “Let me remind you, this is the first time we’ve gotten anything done. So it’s a little frustrating when I hear people say you didn’t get as much as you’d like,” Dodd said. “Would I have liked more in this bill? You bet. But a month ago, we couldn’t even debate a bill.” Yesterday, the Senate voted to expand the bipartisan housing bill, agreeing to add tax breaks for struggling Rust Belt manufacturers and for Gulf Coast residents who have received grants to rebuild homes destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. A long line of senators has formed to offer other provisions, including a temporary tax break for first-time home buyers, a plan to let people who are late with mortgage payments take money penalty-free from their retirement accounts, and a proposal to overhaul the oversight of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, government-chartered companies that buy up mortgages. Senate leaders expect to wrap up work on that bill early next week. Then it would move to the House, where its fate is far from certain. Frank said the House is likely to concur with the portion of the housing bill that would streamline the FHA, one of the top priorities of the Bush administration. That proposal would increase the size of the loans the FHA can insure, to $550,000 in the nation’s most expensive housing markets. The economic stimulus bill recently signed by the president temporarily raised the limit to $729,750 from $362,790. The FHA provision in the housing bill is separate from the proposal by Dodd and Frank to permit the FHA to underwrite risky mortgages. The House is also likely to approve of the Senate’s plan to authorize an additional $10 billion in tax-exempt mortgage revenue bonds, Frank said. That provision of the housing bill would permit state and local housing-finance agencies to help an additional 80,000 borrowers, including, for the first time, homeowners trying to shed expensive subprime loans. But Frank said there is “a lot of opposition in the House to the other tax cuts.”

[01]
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/040508D.shtml
[02]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/04/AR2008040403440.html?hpid=moreheadlines
[03]
http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Top_News/2008/04/05/lawmakers_push_mortgage_assistance_bills/5048/
[04]
http://politicom.moldova.org/stiri/eng/109594
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http://www.pbs.org/nbr/site/onair/transcripts/080404b/
[06]
http://www.kansas.com/508/story/361524.html
[07]
http://www.housingwire.com/2008/04/04/the-mortgage-mess-takes-center-stage-on-capitol-hill/
[08]
http://www.connpost.com/ci_8814545?source=rss
[09]
http://biz.yahoo.com/ibd/080404/general01.html?.v=1
[10]
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0408/9355.html

Sat 5 Apr 2008

Nevada Businessman Pays His Employees In $50 Gold Eagle Coins

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has reduced the key federal funds rate six times in as many months — reducing the cost for major borrowers significantly. This combines with providing $270 million in funding, plus $30 billion in additional guarantees, for JP Morgan Chase to buy Bear Stearns Cos. “Helicopter Ben” is living up to the nickname he earned after he remarked in a 2002 speech that he would stave off a recession even if he had to drop money from helicopters to do it. The results of these policies have been destructive. The dollar is collapsing not only against foreign currencies — we’re now at par with the Canadian dollar and rocketing toward a 2-1 deficit against the Euro — but also against commodities. Gold was passing the $1,000-an-ounce landmark, silver $20. Even industrial metals like copper and zinc are fetching record prices. Now, a spike in a particular commodity — say, for instance, $100-per-barrel oil — can be attributed to a shortage. But when they all move dramatically and simultaneously, it’s the purchasing power of our money that has gone down. In fact, the increasing cost of even the base metals recently prompted Edmund Moy, director of the United States Mint, to propose further debasing the copper and nickel-plated, zinc slugs we call coins by substituting color-coated steel. “Never before in our nation’s history has the government spent more money to mint and issue a coin than the coin’s legal tender value,” he claimed in testimony at a recent hearing before the House Financial Services Committee’s panel on monetary policy. But the U.S. mint continues to issue 1-ounce Gold Eagle coins currently worth about 18 times their $50 legal tender value. The beginning of the end for money “as sound as a dollar” was the creation of the Federal Reserve less than a century ago. The final blow came during the Nixon administration when our money’s last tie to anything of intrinsic worth was severed with the decree that even Silver Certificate currency would no long be redeemable in specie. Why would Bernanke, Moy, et al., want to degrade our money? Who benefits? The answer is: those who are at the head of the line. Creating an additional $270 million in U.S. currency to give JP Morgan Chase provided that company the means to acquire Bear Stearns. Then the owners of Bear Stearns spend the money on something else, albeit at slightly reduced purchasing-power value. The effects will continue to ripple outward, gradually diminishing. The amount of goods and services that can be bought with that $270 million must inevitably decline until the nominal value of the currency reaches equilibrium with the actual wealth available in the economy to purchase. And who will pay? You will — in the future when you go to draw out the money you put into your 401(k) in today’s dollars. Your investment won’t be worth as much as it should. What is amazing is that the public has acquiesced in this money-debasing. It ought to be self-evident that it is impossible to create wealth by making entries in a computer. One Nevada businessman may have found a way to bring the system crashing down — he has begun paying employees in those $50 Gold Eagle coins, making their annual salaries well below the threshold for even having to file tax returns. So far, the IRS is helpless to stop it.

http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080404/OPINION01/804040313/1007/OPINION

Fri 4 Apr 2008

U.S. Payrolls Contract By 80,000 In March 2008

In employment data that would seem worthy of the name recession, the government reported Friday the steepest monthly job losses in five years as well as a spike in the unemployment rate for March. The report confirms widespread pessimism about the near-term economic outlook. Nonfarm payrolls fell by an estimated 80,000 in March, the Labor Department said. It marked the largest decline seen since March 2003, underscoring how reluctant employers remain to committing to making new hires. Private-sector payrolls have now declined for four consecutive months, the data showed. Read full survey. The nation’s unemployment rate surged to 5.1% last month, the highest since September 2005. The decline in payrolls was steeper than the 60,000 decrease that had been expected by Wall Street economists surveyed by MarketWatch. See Economic Calendar. Adding to the sense of weakness in employment, payrolls in January and February were revised lower by a cumulative 67,000. Job losses thus have totaled 232,000 so far this year, an average of 77,000 lost jobs per month. The government’s separate household survey showed a decline in employment of 24,000 in March, and a 434,000 rise in unemployment. As a result, the unemployment rate rose. The job report should add to the growing sense that the Federal Reserve will cut the federal funds target interest rate again at its next meeting on April 29-30. The report suggests that businesses are growing increasingly cautious about hiring in the wake of the credit crunch and financial markets’ recent turmoil. Earlier this week, Fed chief Ben Bernanke said a recession was possible in the first six months of the year. But, in testimony before Congress, Bernanke stressed that the economy is still expected to turn around some time this summer. See full story. March’s data’s details. The weakness in last month’s nonfarm payroll growth was widespread. Only education, government, mining and food services added workers in the month. One factor depressing jobs was the ongoing strike by the United Auto Workers against American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc. Manufacturing jobs declined by 48,000, the biggest drop since July 2003. Construction jobs fell by 51,000. Jobs in services increased a slim 13,000, but retail jobs fell 12,000. Governments added 18,000 jobs. The health-care sector added 42,000 jobs, while leisure businesses added 18,000. But the number of temporary workers, considered a bellwether sector, dropped 42,000 in March. Meanwhile, the average hourly wage for March increased 5 cents, or 0.3%, to $17.86, in line with expectations. Hourly wages are up 3.6% in the past year. The average workweek rose six minutes to stand at 33.8 hours. Total hours worked in the economy rose 0.2% Average hours worked in manufacturing and factory overtime rose six minutes for March.

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/payrolls-contract-80000-jobless-rate/story.aspx?guid=%7B205C6DC6%2D40DA%2D4BBE%2D8AE4%2DE656839AD1E0%7D

Hastily Cobbled Together Housing Bill Is Of Limited Use To Borrowers Who May Soon Be In Trouble

For anyone hoping to buy a home, sell one or hold onto the one they have, the $15 billion housing bill unveiled in the Senate yesterday may mean nothing more than a bit of extra cash in the pocket. The housing bill, hastily cobbled together by Republican and Democratic leaders, would allow state and local property tax deductions this year of up to $1,000 for families and $500 for individuals who now can’t deduct that money. It also aims to spur demand for homes by providing a $7,000 tax break, split over two years, to anyone who buys a foreclosed home within a year of the bill’s enactment. But many consumer advocates say the Senate’s “Foreclosure Prevention Act” does not live up to its name. They say it fails to deliver swift help to the most distressed homeowners and is of limited use to borrowers who may soon be in trouble. “Anybody who gets money in their hands out of this bill will be happy, but that does not mean it will solve the larger social problem or larger economic problem,” said Peter Morici, economist and business school professor at the University of Maryland. Those who stand to benefit the most are home builders and businesses hit by the economic downturn. Through 2010, the entire tax package would cost about $28.8 billion, of which $25.5 billion would go to money-losing businesses in the form of tax rebates. They would give up other tax breaks, reducing the cost of the entire housing bill to $15 billion by 2018. The House plans to offer its own version of the legislation, and Democratic leaders said they would focus on different priorities. “Hopefully, the balance will swing to be in favor of the families who are in danger of losing their homes,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said. For consumer groups, the biggest setback was the Senate’s decision to strip the bill of a provision that would have allowed bankruptcy court judges to rewrite the terms of troubled loans for people who filed for personal bankruptcy. The Senate yesterday killed an effort to restore the measure. The measure could have saved more than half a million borrowers from foreclosure through 2009, according to its supporters, by allowing judges to lower the interest rates of mortgages, extend the life of the loans or forgive part of the debts. Of all the legislative proposals aimed at helping homeowners, consumer advocates said this one offered the most relief. But the lending industry lobbied against it, saying it would increase borrowing costs and encourage some to use bankruptcy as a cheap alternative to refinancing. Without the provision, “there’s no guarantee of any help whatsoever for many of the clients I work with,” said Nancy Ryan, a bankruptcy lawyer in Fairfax.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/03/AR2008040304030.html

Unemployment Rises To 5.1% As Employers Cut 80,000 Jobs — VIDEO

Employers buffeted by talk of a recession slashed 80,000 payroll jobs in March, the most in five years and the third straight month of losses. The unemployment rate jumped to 5.1 percent. The new employment figures sounded the loudest warning yet that the country could well be in a recession. The Labor Department reported that the seasonally adjusted civilian unemployment rate jumped from 4.8 percent in February to 5.1 percent in March. Though the figure is relatively moderate by historical standards, it was nonetheless the highest since September 2005, a time of job losses related to the devastating blows of Gulf Coast hurricanes. A NY Times/CBS report on the darkening state of the US economy aired Thursday, citing a poll shows that Americans are unsure about their economic future.

http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Unemployment_rises_to_5.1_as_employers_0404.html

Banking System Takeover By The Carlyle Group — Only The Carlyle Group Has The Capability To Study The Risks And Rewards Of Financial Institutions And To Supply The Necessary Funds

Filed under: Companies & Corporations, Economics — Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , — haecus @ 00 29

So what’s Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson’s call for changes in regulation of the financial markets all about? A clue may have been revealed today by Randal Quarles, former Under Secretary of the Treasury who led the Treasury Department’s effort in the coordination of the President’s Working Group on Financial Markets and is a current Managing Director at Carlyle Group. Quarles spoke at a luncheon meeting of the Washington DC-based National Economists Club. His topic: “Restructuring Financial Regulation”. Quarles told the luncheon group that he chose the topic in January. Hmmm. Didn’t Treasury Paulson just make the proposal to restructure the financial regulatory agencies last week? How did Quarles pick this topic back in January? Short-answer, Quarles is a major insider and his comments should be monitored to get a sense for what insiders are thinking. In his talk, Quarles said that estimates go into the hundreds of billions in terms of capital that will be required by the financial industry because of losses sustained as a result of the current crisis. He said there will be more financial institutions that will go under in coming months. He said that public markets will not supply the necessary funds because they don’t have the capabilities to study in detail the risks and potential rewards of the complex financials of financial institutions. He said private equity firms have the capabilities to do so and to supply the necessary funds. (N.B. Carlyle Group is a private equity firm). Quarles stated that some changes in the structure of regulations that Paulson proposed were necessary, but would take time to develop. He specifically stated that one regulation that needed to be changed is the limitation on the size of positions that non-banks can take in banks. (Note: Limitations in the size of non-banks positions in banks would limit Carlyle Group from taking large positions in banks). During the Q & A session, one questioner summarized Quarles talk this way: So what you said here today is that you would like to see regulatory changes to make it easier for private equity to take major positions in banks? And private equity, through various entities on and offshore gets its money from banks. So what you want is an environment where private equity can borrow from banks to takeover banks? In response, Quarles laughed. We might add this private equity acquisition of financial institutions will go on as the general public is scared off from investing in the financial institutions by scare headlines, or as Quarles would put it, “Public markets just don’t have the capabilities to judge the risks and rewards of the various financial institutions.” Translation: The public is not clued in on which firms the insiders have decided to let survive, like JPMorgan, and which they are going to takedown, like Bear Stearns.

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http://www.economicanalyticsgroup.com/2008/04/carlyle-groups-plan-to-take-over.html
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http://www.metro.co.uk/money/article.html?in_article_id=132794&in_page_id=36
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http://sg.news.yahoo.com/rtrs/20080402/tbs-markets-global-7318940.html
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http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/investing-and-markets/article.html?in_article_id=437012&in_page_id=3&ito=1565
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http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-23471332-details/Triple%20credit%20crunch:%20Repayments%20up%20for%2070%25%20of%20fixed-rate%20deals,%20First%20Direct%20says%20no%20to%20new%20customers%20and%20consumers%20shift%20debt%20to%20plastic/article.do
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http://www.rttnews.com/FOREX/FXTopStory.asp?date=04/03/2008&item=17
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http://news.scotsman.com/uk/Halifax-may-slam-door-on.3942258.jp
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http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/article.php?enewsid=100641
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http://www.24dash.com/news/Housing/2008-04-02-Three-million-families-face-negative-equity
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http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120709807127882047.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
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http://www.freedom4um.com/cgi-bin/readart.cgi?ArtNum=77083
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http://www.kentucky.com/473/story/361625.html
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http://casadelogo.typepad.com/factesque/2008/03/bush-and-the-ba.html

Wed 2 Apr 2008

Employment, Economic Growth, And Most Important Of All, The Foreclosure Rate From Real Economists

.. ..the U.S. economy is going through a very difficult period.. ..Congress’ Joint Economic Committee.. ..the Joint Economic Committee.. ..Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke.. ..a U.S. economic recession is possible.. ..debt market - both here and abroad - went sour big-time.. ..Bear Stearns (BSC, Fortune 500) let two of its hedge funds collapse.. ..recent actions taken by the Federal Reserve.. ..the National Bureau of Economic Research.. ..deterioration in the near-term outlook.. ..the great housing bust and credit crunch of 2007-08 suddenly fade away like a bad dream.. ..we’re in a dangerous and messy situation.. ..an economic slowdown.. ..we define a “depression” as.. ..inflation is defined as.. ..economic slumps in the housing, credit and financial areas.. ..mortgage-backed-securities problems.. ..Bernanke’s testimony before the Joint Economic Committee of Congress.. ..pessimistic assessment of the economy’s immediate prospects.. ..intensified strains in financial markets.. ..a continued rise in unemployment.. ..the economic outlook has worsened since the Fed’s last forecast.. ..consumers whose spending is indispensable to economic vitality.. ..we aren’t in a time of economic prosperity.. ..

[01]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/02/AR2008040201273.html?nav=rss_business/industries
[02]
http://www.latimes.com/news/la-fi-bernanke3apr03,1,571378.story?track=rss
[03]
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/apr/02/useconomy.creditcrunch?gusrc=rss&feed=networkfront
[04]
http://www.financialarmageddon.com/2008/04/the-great-depre.html
[05]
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=azJMg3HjKm90&refer=home
[06]
http://us-recession-2007.blogspot.com/2008/04/bernanke-sees-recession-risk.html
[07]
http://suzieqq.wordpress.com/2008/04/01/whack-a-mole-finance/
[08]
http://nevadathunder.com/?p=5310
[09]
http://mothanskin.blog-city.com/bernanke_and_paulson_are_already_on_it.htm
[10]
http://money.cnn.com/2008/04/02/markets/markets_newyork/index.htm?section=money_latest
[11]
http://joelwestlund.featuredblog.com/?p=64
[12]
http://getbillions.blogspot.com/2008/04/bernanke-us-may-slip-into-recession.html
[13]
http://10in3.blogspot.com/2008/04/recession-is-possible-for-us-economy.html

Senators Focus Their Attention On How To Help The Troubled U.S. Housing Market

.. ..Senators to be debating a bipartisan housing relief measure.. ..Senators agree to make deal on housing.. ..Senators agreed to cast partisan differences aside and put housing relief on the fast track.. ..pledged to work together to forge a housing solution.. ..the unprecedented role the Federal Reserve played by stepping into.. ..broader government action is needed to prevent a torrent of new foreclosures.. ..Senators set to debate housing crisis.. ..the different environment caused by last month’s collapse of Bear Stearns.. ..the new pledge of cooperation was the latest sign of fast-growing consensus among Congress.. ..further collapse of the housing and residential mortgage markets.. ..rising foreclosures and freezing credit markets.. ..Senate leaders acted under pressure to help Main Street.. ..Republican and Democratic leaders agreed to come up with a bill to aid homeowners and the market.. ..Senator Dodd says the package will deal with the core issues in the housing market.. ..resignation of Alphonso Jackson, the Bush administration’s secretary of Housing and Urban Development.. ..the government saved a Wall Street firm from bankruptcy.. ..Republicans were able to block the bill in February.. ..accusations that Mr. Jackson threatened to withdraw federal aid from the Philadelphia Housing Authority.. ..

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http://www.westchesterrealestateblog.com/2008/04/a-bipartisan-so.html
[02]
http://www.wbir.com/news/national/story.aspx?storyid=56265&provider=rss
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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/01/AR2008040100156.html?nav=rss_business/industries
[04]
http://www.usnews.com/usnews/politics/bulletin/bulletin_080402.htm#p1
[05]
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/story.aspx?guid=%7BB10F71FA%2D6E16%2D4A32%2D9AED%2DA2DE74F9DF94%7D&siteid=rss
[06]
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/senate-may-vote-housing-aid/story.aspx?guid=%7BB10F71FA-6E16-4A32-9AED-A2DE74F9DF94%7D&dist=msr_4
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http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/apr2008/db2008042_470576.htm?campaign_id=rss_daily
[08]
http://www.pbs.org/nbr/site/onair/transcripts/080401b/
[09]
http://www.usnews.com/articles/news/politics/2008/03/31/senators-set-to-debate-housing-crisis.html
[10]
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/31/washington/31cnd-jackson.html?em&ex=1207195200&en=65429d13306b2931&ei=5087%0A

Tue 1 Apr 2008

President Franklin D. Roosevelt & American Gold

.. ..Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt revolutionized the monetary system of the United States and set the nation on the road of inflationary plunder that has characterized other nations in history. The actions of these two presidents also provide a textbook example for understanding the animosity and antipathy that government officials historically have had toward precious metals (i.e., gold and silver coin) as a medium of exchange. With the holding in Griswold, the federal government was left with the power to borrow to finance its operations but without the authority to force people to accept its notes at face value for the payment of debts. Thus, the American people could still protect themselves from a profligate government by expressly providing that notes and contracts could be repaid only in money (i.e., gold coin), not in federal promises to repay money. The ultimate solution to this financial chaos, destruction, and morass lies in sound money. The ideal is a free market in money, as the Nobel Prize-winning economist Friedrich A. Hayek observed. The second-best solution is the type of gold standard established by the Framers, where gold and silver coin are the official money and where the federal government is required to redeem all bills and notes in such money. These two powers were not inconsistent with a monetary system based on gold and silver coin. People paid their taxes with their money, which meant gold and silver coins. And if government wished to borrow money from the citizenry, it would issue a promissory note or “bill” promising to pay back the gold coin that it received from the lender. But everyone understood that the actual money was the gold or silver coins, not the promissory notes. The notes simply evidenced the promise to repay the money.. ..

http://www.lewrockwell.com/hornberger/hornberger114.html

$1 Trillion Worth Of Defaults And Writedowns Expected Before Arriving At The Far Side Of The Bursting Credit Bubble

They’re Going To Have To Give Them Away In Florida
Senate’s Dodd: Paulson Plan “Not Even Close”
Truckers Protest Fuel Prices In Harrisburg
Wal-Mart Cancels 45 Superstore Projects
On Behalf Of Participants And Beneficiaries Of The Bear Stearns Companies
Fed Eyes Nordic-Style Nationalisation Of US Banks
Paulson: Change Rules For Wall Street

.. ..If the authorities threw the real estate crooks in jail.. ..is in denial about the RE market.. ..many people now view them as pitiful hasbeens clinging desperately to a chimera.. ..realtor millionaire-wannabes driving Hummers drenched in advertising.. ..selling cardboard boxes known recently as “houses” to the gullible.. ..they will not face the fact that their days as pseudo big shots are now over.. ..

[1]
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2008/03/31/cnfed131.xml
[2]
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08091/869366-100.stm
[3]
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aHCnscodO1s0
[4]
http://money.cnn.com/2008/03/31/news/economy/paulson_regulation/?postversion=2008033109
[5]
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080331/pl_nm/usa_economy_regulation_dodd_dc
[6]
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/al-norman/walmart-cancels-45-super_b_94112.html?view=print
[7]
http://thehousingbubbleblog.com/?p=4333
[8]
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/03-27-2008/0004781648&EDATE=

Mon 31 Mar 2008

Every Cloud Has A Silver Lining — Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life

Difficult times are like dark clouds that pass overhead and block the sun. When we look more closely at the edges of every cloud we can see the sun shining there like a silver lining.

>>>>>>THERE’S PLENTY OF JOB VACANCIES IN THE MILITARY<<<<<<

Always Look on the Bright Side of Life (from Monty Python)

Some things in life are bad
They can really make you mad
Other things just make you swear and curse.
When you’re chewing on life’s gristle
Don’t grumble, give a whistle
And this’ll help things turn out for the best…

And…always look on the bright side of life…
Always look on the light side of life…

If life seems jolly rotten
There’s something you’ve forgotten
And that’s to laugh and smile and dance and sing.
When you’re feeling in the dumps
Don’t be silly chumps
Just purse your lips and whistle - that’s the thing.

And…always look on the bright side of life…
Always look on the light side of life…

For life is quite absurd
And death’s the final word
You must always face the curtain with a bow.
Forget about your sin - give the audience a grin
Enjoy it - it’s your last chance anyhow.

So always look on the bright side of death
Just before you draw your terminal breath

Life’s a piece of shit
When you look at it
Life’s a laugh and death’s a joke, it’s true.
You’ll see it’s all a show
Keep ‘em laughing as you go
Just remember that the last laugh is on you.

And always look on the bright side of life…
Always look on the right side of life…
(Come on guys, cheer up!)
Always look on the bright side of life…
Always look on the bright side of life…
(Worse things happen at sea, you know.)
Always look on the bright side of life…
(I mean - what have you got to lose?)
(You know, you come from nothing - you’re going back to nothing.
What have you lost? Nothing!)
Always look on the right side of life…
_________________________
Words and Music by Eric Idle

Unemployment Expected To Grow

Wyeth Cutting 1,200 U.S. Jobs In Restructuring
Aloha Air Shuts Passenger Unit, Affecting 1,900 Jobs
Food Stamp Use In U.S. At Record Pace As Jobs Vanish
As Jobs Vanish And Prices Rise, Food Stamp Use Nears Record
Summer Job Outlook Tough As Sacramento Youth Find Out
Manhattan Hospital Cuts Jobs, Programs
City Workers Feeling The Credit Squeeze
Stocks May Trip On Jobs, Earnings View

.. ..inflation in prices of basic goods that leave more families feeling pinched.. ..

[1]
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/31/us/31foodstamps.html?ex=1364616000&en=cda9b249dabb4413&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
[2]
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/story.aspx?guid=%7B8B2423EE%2D4B34%2D42C0%2DB0F8%2DBAD8D1441EB7%7D&siteid=breitbart
[3]
http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/03/31/america/31foodstamps.php
[4]
http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30400-1311198,00.html?f=rss
[5]
http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/195508,stocks-may-trip-on-jobs-earnings-view.html
[6]
http://www.kansas.com/business/healthcare/story/355824.html
[7]
http://www.chinapost.com.tw/business/americas/2008/03/29/149445/Wyeth%2Dcutting.htm
[8]
http://www.news10.net/display_story.aspx?storyid=40019

Banks Held Mortgages On Their Balance Sheets As Derivatives Securities