2
POPSCould Bill Cost Hillary Cabinet Position? At issue are questions about the Clinton Global Initiative and possible conflicts of interest. " t could prove problematic for Obama if the former president continues to seek donations from foreign countries – at the same time his wife is asking them for diplomatic concessions as Secretary of State," Politico reports. "The Clinton Global initiative, which has raised more than $30 billion since 2005, has solicited major donations from a handful of foreign governments, including a $1 billion pledge from Norway in 2007." "The ball is very much in her court," a source told the website.
11
POPSSix Blackwater Guards 'May' Be Charged in Iraq Massacre Immunity and impunity have gone hand in hand. Representative Jim McDermott. "The private contracting thing is the most erosive thing that this administration has done. You look at all the things that are being run by private contractors, you simply cannot be handing money to a private contractor who is not under the law of that country or the law of this country and can do anything they want. They're really -- they're rogue outfits." Blackwater and at least 300 other companies have been hired by the US government for privatized armed services in Iraq to the tune of about $6 billion in taxpayer money..
5
POPSDetroit Automakers a Relic of the Past No one in the private sector is willing to pony up a dime for this business plan. GM stock is below its 1946 price, and one investment house has priced it at zero. The Detroit Three are taking advantage of the passage of the $700 billion financial bailout to argue that they, too, need government money to go on. But as Megan McArdle of The Atlantic argues, the finance firms are different. If credit coagulates, everyone suffers, while if the Detroit Three go bankrupt, their shareholders lose their stake, employee and retiree pay and benefits are cut, and real estate values go down in areas where the companies and their suppliers operate -- but life for most of us goes on. McArdle further argues that the capital invested in keeping the hulk of the Detroit Three operating pretty much as they are, unprofitably, will not be available to those whose startups could morph into the Microsofts and FedExes of the future.
2
POPSCA Air Pollution Deadlier Than Traffic Accidents The study found that the California Highway Patrol recorded 2,521 vehicular deaths in the San Joaquin Valley and South Coast Air Basin in 2006, compared to 3,812 deaths attributed to respiratory illness caused by particulate pollution. "It may be tempting to think California can't afford to clean up, but in fact dirty air is like a $28 billion lead balloon on our economy," Hall said.
4
POPSYet More Glad Tidings From The President-Select * Provide $50 billion to Jumpstart the Economy and Prevent 1 Million Americans from Losing Their Jobs: This relief would include a $25 billion State Growth Fund to prevent state and local cuts in health, education, housing, and heating assistance or counterproductive increases in property taxes, tolls or fees. The Obama-Biden relief plan will also include $25 billion in a Jobs and Growth Fund to prevent cutbacks in road and bridge maintenance and fund school repair - all to save more than 1 million jobs in danger of being cut. Provide Middle Class Americans Tax Relief Obama and Biden will cut income taxes by $1,000 for working families to offset the payroll tax they pay. * Provide a Tax Cut for Working Families: Obama and Biden will restore fairness to the tax code and provide 150 million workers the tax relief they need. This is “spreading the wealth around” — big time.
0
POPSWhy overhead matters $15 billion valuation my ass. Facebook just threw money at the scaling problem - and now they are in deep trouble.
0
POPSsubstance abuse programs To my point of view, an addict must read this article so he may know the fact that addiction is expensive and harmful.I must spread this link.
1
POPSGreed is the root cause of our collective problem in the meltdown We are seeing a meltdown essentially brought about by collective greed, ignorance and selfishness - no question. Perhaps now, as our savings and jobs evaporate we may better understand the plight of our planet, the young, the vulnerable,etc that we have tended to ignore for years.
2
POPSIndia a Humane Democracy Indian government has to overcome illiteracy and superstitions of the older generation before taking off on the road to progress and prosperity.
16
POPSGovernments Ignore Starving To Prop Up Banks Experts have blamed the increase in famine on a number of factors such as oil prices, the growing use of biofuels and increased consumption of high-calorie food, particularly meat, in emerging economies. World Food Day hopes to divert attention back onto this ongoing food crisis. Almost a BILLION people are starving. A billion!! Can we even fathom, how many people that is, who are desperately trying to survive from day to day? I read, that on a 2 dollar a day wage, people are having to spend about $1,77 on food and the prices are so high, that it doesn't even cover their daily caloric needs. That leaves precious little money for housing, health, education, etc. Could YOU feed yourself and your family for less than 2 bucks a day... EVERY day... and still be able to send your children to school, get healthcare, etc? Just imagine if it were you.
2
POPSTrillions in debt-No answers from Obama or McCain Leon Panetta, former budget director and chief of staff in the Clinton White House, recommended delaying or abandoning a lot of campaign promises. "The American people are not stupid," he said. "The real question is whether the leadership of this country will have the honesty to tell people what the real situation is."
11
POPSMcCain's new economy plan: cut rich people's taxes LOL! Ever-fecund with fresh ideas, M offers cut in capital gains tax "aimed straight at the middle class." Never mind that households earning less than $50,000 earn only 2.5% of capital gains. And in this market, how much capital gains tax will even be paid for this year? I imagine Obama quietly praying, "Thank you, God."
2
POPSMore on the Obama tax "plan" Because Mr. Obama's tax credits are phased out as incomes rise, they impose a huge "marginal" tax rate increase on low-income workers. The marginal tax rate refers to the rate on the next dollar of income earned. As the nearby chart illustrates, the marginal rate for millions of low- and middle-income workers would spike as they earn more income. Some families with an income of $40,000 could lose up to 40 cents in vanishing credits for every additional dollar earned from working overtime or taking a new job. As public policy, this is contradictory. The tax credits are sold in the name of "making work pay," but in practice they can be a disincentive to working harder, especially if you're a lower-income couple getting raises of $1,000 or $2,000 year. One mystery -- among many -- of the McCain campaign is why it has allowed Mr. Obama's 95% illusion to go unanswered.
0
POPSBiotech Buzz Kills Adam Feuerstein over at TheStreet.com always has smart things to say about biotech stocks. In his column today, he makes both Onyxx, which has a big-selling cancer drug, and Exelixis, which is testing cancer drugs, sound very risky. With the markets a mess, it's hard to see how the extremely risky world of cash-hungry biotechs is going to appeal to investors.
0
POPSBailout Price Tags Since 1971 A nice breakdown from the National Journal. Since 2001, the federal government's private sector bailouts add up to $1,032.4 billion. In the prior thirty years: $248.1 billion.
0
POPSTo Reward the Top 5 to 10% of Top Sellers AIG Spent US$440,000 on Spa and Resort after Bailout. The group booked the resort's 3,100-square-foot Presidential Suite for US$1,600 a night for five nights, a discount from the standard rate of US$3,200 a night, a hotel document released by the committee showed. It also paid US$1,075 in "no-show fees." "Have you heard of anything more outrageous?" said Representative Elijah Cummings, a Maryland Democrat, who plans to seek an investigation of the spending. "They were getting their manicures, their facials, pedicures, massages while the American people were footing the bill." The group occupied more than 60 rooms. Receipts provided by Mr. Waxman were dated Sept. 22 through Sept. 30. AIG was bailed out on Sept. 16. (*sigh* Clipmarks needs to make the character limit for clips bigger -.-)
4
POPS Oil Outlook Clouds Russia’s Economic Future That could trigger a vicious circle of falling income and investment, as production gets more expensive in Russia's aging fields. The era of record profits from oil and gas is over - that's according to Russia's Finance Minister Alexey Kudrin. 2008 is likely to be the year of peak oil and gas production in the country. The big oil companies are cutting investment in new projects. Russia has received up to $1 Billion a day in oil revenues in recent years, and the country's budget and economy remain highly dependent on hydrocarbon earnings. The world financial crisis and recession has triggered big falls in the world's oil price. That will significantly affect the Russian budget, according to Mikhail Kroutikhin, partner at Rusenergy.
3
Pops
Newest Clips
Latest Comments
Most Pops
Print
Save
Turn on live update