Rich Blog, Poor Blog

Last night I was watching NOW, featuring Harvard law professor and TPM guest writer Elizabeth Warren, ... History of the Credit Card." And do check out the full Elizabeth Warren interview. It reminded ... that was 'insuring' my credit card, charging a moderate fraction of the balance so that in the event I lost [more...]

Date: 2009-01-03 10:31:45

Blog posts (222) | Videos (124)
 

Pet Industry Trends

Our family has 4 dogs.  We also have a cat, but he really isn't our pet.  He simply chooses to live in the same house we do ... in urban areas." I don't consider myself a "pet parent" and our poor dogs will never visit a spa or stay ... , which is why Americans spent over $40 billion on their pets in 2008.  Picture credit to Small [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 20:34:33

Bond issuer upgrades look set to increase

Bond issuers poised for a credit-rating upgrade have exceeded the 12-month average for the first time in two years, according to Standard & Poor's in a report that signals improvements in the global economy.The ratings agency said 174 global iss ... [more...]

Date: 2009-09-29 17:48:20

Banking Industry Sinking Faster Than Government Can Bail?

A useful piece at the Wall Street Journal discusses the poor prospects for the US banking industry, ... and Treasury. The article makes much of recent and almost-certain-to-get-worse bank credit losses ... , are starting to mount. Construction loans were an important business for local and regional banks [more...]

Date: 2008-12-30 06:21:47

Is Obama Lazy? Proof?

Rick Moran, American Thinker, 3/7/09 All we’re getting is whispers from the press, of course, A raised eyebrow here, a sad shake of the head there. But the picture that is emerging of Barack Obama, the executive, is not very flattering if you look between the lines. Jennifer Rubin: Well, it’s becoming obvious he’s not really much of a manager, decider, legislation-craftsman, or supervisor. His vetting process is in shambles and key Treasury slots are still vacant. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 22:12:35

Paul Shaffer: Slipping F-- words into 'SNL' way before Jenny Slate

Nobody would want to be poor Jenny Slate, tripping on an F-bomb on her very first Saturday Night Live episode. But she’s in good company: Paul Shaffer thought his TV career was over when he committed a very similar gaffe, subbing a “f—ing” for a “flogging” in a Medieval-themed 1980 sketch, the first such utterance in SNL history. “It went really well in the dress rehearsal,” says Shaffer, who details the incident in his forthcoming memoir We’ll Be Here for the Rest of Our Lives. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 21:35:33

Michael Vick Speaks At Church

Michael Vick spoke against dog fighting yesterday at a church in Washington, D.C., the appearance was sponsored by the Humane Society of the United States. Since his release he has partnered with the HSUS to help bring national awareness about this sadistic “sport” and bring an end to it. Here are the details from the Associated Press . “I got caught up in the culture,” Vick told an audience at the Covenant Baptist Church, per the Associated Press. “I never thought that I would get caught. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 15:38:49

Germany - The Bitter-Sweet Tears Of Angela von Merkel

German voters gave Chancellor Angela Merkel the green light for a second term on Sunday, along with a clear mandate to form a new government with the liberal Free Democrat Party (FDP). But just what exactly is the new government likely to do? Merlek has been quick to pour cold water on any idea of early tax cuts, “I expect we’ll agree very quickly on tax policy, especially when you look at the leeway we have with the budget,” she is quoted as saying. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 22:01:26

CIT Shares and Debt Slump Amid Wait for Restructuring Plan

So much for that rally. After having climbed more than 4 percent over the four days through Tuesday, shares in the CIT Group plummeted more than 35 percent by Wednesday afternoon to about $1.43 each amid fears that the struggling lender may still need to file for bankruptcy protection and that its existing stock soon will be rendered worthless.News reports on Wednesday have pointed out that the company is working toward a more comprehensive restructuring plan ahead of a deadline Thursday. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 17:01:08

Student Loans Master Plan: Tips to Unearth the Easy Colleges

September 30, 2009 | By Barlena Axelsson In Finance | by Dorothy WestIf you are requiring bad credit student loans, you have fought with ruined finances in recent history, or have not had time to gain a good credit rating. Both of these aspects contribute to what is known as bad credit rating, and getting student cash under either one of those circumstances can be difficult in the ideal scenario.There are several processes you can utilize to make bad credit student loans possible to gain. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 18:56:02

Latest News in Stock Funds Markets - Dec 03, 2008

S&P hits session low after poor services data - Boston Globe 3 Dec 2008 at 8:58am NEW YORK (Reuters) ... lurching like an erratic elevator, the housing bust and credit crunch tipping the nation into recession [more...]

Date: 2008-12-03 16:37:15

Kanye West whines like a baby when nobody gives him chicken

Of course Kanye hasn’t really learned any lessons from the Taylor Swift incident . Of course he’s not really a changed man. Of course Kanye is still the biggest, bitchiest, nastiest diva in any given room. Of course. On Saturday, at the Hollywood Palladium, a fundraiser concert was held for the Common Ground Foundation. In addition to Kanye, Nas, Ludacris, Common, Mos Def, De La Soul, Heavy D and Queen Latifah were also in attendance and performed for the charity. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 15:46:41

Banks want to keep Americans stupid and in debt. A lesson in economics.

The first lesson we learned from the current economic collapse is: The market does not solve everything. Despite what the neo-cons like Ronald Reagan and George Dubbya told us, turning all state responsibility over to the market means that the entire country is motivated by profit and therefore operates under a value system of greed. This market-first government has not benefited most of us. In fact, it's only really benefited the super rich, like Reagan and Dubbya. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 17:20:32

FSA introduces latest measures to protect PPI consumers

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has revealed a package of measures to protect consumers in the Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) market and ensure they are better treated when buying PPI or complaining about it. Single premium PPI products have long been controversial, particularly with consumer watchdogs who claim that the policies are misleadingly front-loaded, accrue outrageous interest, and have strict pay-out terms and conditions. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 13:40:06

House Insurance — Proven Tips For Savings

by Chimezirim Gabriel Odimba Apart from if your house is being financed and you still have a mortgage on it, you can really opt to NOT insure your house. However, even after paying off their mortgage most people still like the peace of mind that a home insurance policy gives then about their home. For most of us, our home represents our single most important investment and/or property. So, we really don’t mind the additional expense that buying protection against its loss entails. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 15:06:40

A Delicate Balance: the history of Liberals and hung Parliaments

The Liberal Democrat History Grou p meeting at Bournemouth Conference, supported by The Guardian, looked at hung Parliaments. In his introduction, the meeting chair Duncan Brack explained that one reason for picking the topic is that work such as that by John Curtice has shown that the odds of the next general election producing a hung Parliament are much better than they have been for many years. It is a point that was also made earlier this year by Michael Crick . [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 12:20:31

Operation Rollback

Posted by Review-a-Day, September 29th, 2009 3 CommentsFiled under:Review-a-Day. The Retail Revolution: How Wal-Mart Created a Brave New World of Business by Nelson Lichtenstein Reviewed by Jefferson DeckerThe Nation In October 2003 employees at more than 800 chain supermarkets in California walked out of their jobs after management demanded pay cuts and a reduction in health insurance benefits. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 17:10:07

Understand How to Deal with Homeowners Insurance

Understand How to Deal with Homeowners Insurance by Matti BadshawAre you paying too much for homeowners insurance? Are you one of the many first time home owners who needs to find coverage for the first time? Either way, it is very important to learn a few things before you buy a policy for your house. After all, for most of us, our homes are the largest asset we own.Think about the things that a good policy must cover. It is obvious, I think, that the actual home will need to be protected. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 14:51:47

Ezra Klein’s Modified Limited Hangout (on the Public Option)

It seems Washington Post writer Ezra Klein has contradicted himself on the public option. To understand how, you’ll have to allow a bit of backstory… Back on June 25th , Morgen posted this video clip of Klein: Click here to view the embedded video. By chance, Ezra Klein had posted some criticism of our friend Ed Morrissey at Hot Air that same day. Ed responded to Ezra with this post and included Morgen’s video clip as part of his response. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 14:36:08

Sprint does one for the little guy. Drops Touch Pro2 down to $199

Even though I’m not very well versed (read: not at all) in the Windows Mobile world, the Touch Pro2 is a striking handset with good looking hardware and some pretty decent specs to boot. The sky high price tag a couple retailers such as Sprint and T-Mobile were charging was a huge sticking point however. Sure the TP2 is a good phone, but is it $349 good? Many and I would venture to say most would claim “No”. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 13:06:54

Gone!

Poor Chad!  His mother can’t let go and worse, she blogs about everything! Getting his jacket on, which isn’t easy with his bum arm! ... and his response would probably have been something like . . give me a credit card with no limit ... .  Nope, I’m really not doing as bad as I thought I might. What’s going to be kinda funny is that Chad [more...]

Date: 2009-01-08 02:17:57

Did God Really Grant Houses to the Poor? You Betcha!

Time magazine just put out an article about how a certain type of Pentecostal Evangelism likely put a large number of consumers more ... correlation. That’s what a scholar of the fast-growing brand of Pentecostal Christianity believes ... who got dicey mortgages to believe “God caused the bank to ignore my credit score and blessed [more...]

Date: 2008-10-06 06:39:32

Opting For Bad Credit Refinance Is Like Walking On Thin Ice

Opting For Bad Credit Refinance Is Like Walking On Thin Ice by Angus GuyWondering whether it is possible to get a bad credit refinanced or not? Well, you can most definitely get a bad credit refinanced as there are several people who take to this recourse. Normally, your credit ratings dictate the future prospects of availing a further credit. However, despite the low credit ratings; Bad Credit Refinance is definitely an option available.The bad credit situation is a result of various factors. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 21:56:17

Federal officials to review their handling of Station fire after Times investigation raises questions

  The U.S. Forest Service said today it would review the way the agency fought the Station fire amid questions raised in a Times investigation. The Times reported that the Forest Service had been confident that the fire was nearly contained on the first day, and the agency decided that evening to order just three water-dropping helicopters to hit the blaze shortly after dawn on its second day -- down from five on Day One, documents and interviews show. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 18:00:52

Vying for a Slice of One State’s Growing Hispanic Consumer Market – North Carolina’s booming Latino population fuels economic growth

When Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina noticed explosive growth in the state’s Hispanic population — now nearly 600,000 strong and 7 percent of the state’s residents — it saw an opportunity. But rather than just put up some Spanish-language signs and hire a few bilingual tellers, the commercial bank established an entirely new subsidiary. That subsidiary — Banco de la Gente — targets Latino customers. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 15:49:15

Retail Sales Disappoint

Retail sales disappoint….  Chuck’s views on the Lone Prop…  Waiting on the ECB…  Emerging market currencies sell off…  And Now… Today’s Pfennig! ... according to yesterday’s report from the Commerce Department. The falling home prices, rising job losses, and tighter credit have all combined to finally force US consumers to adjust their spending [more...]

Date: 2009-01-15 17:57:41

Emily’s List: 'Poor' musician edition

Happy Friday! Today is the birthday of several music greats; Joan Baez, Jimmy Page, Dave Matthews, and even AJ McLean of the Backstreet Boys ( ... and debt. 1. Everyday Finance explains what your FICO score is and why it matters. Don't feel bad ... of the composer Johann Strauss. This week's credit card roundup of posts from around the personal [more...]

Date: 2009-01-09 15:30:21

Chanel Poor

Top designer Karl Lagerfeld rises above recession.As the world spins deeper into recession our thoughts should always be with those who provide the truly important services to society - the fashion designers. Forget whining families on minimum wage and the smelly homeless, we need to remember that some of those hardest hit by the credit crunch [more...]

Date: 2009-01-16 10:15:00

Caterpillar’s infrastructure prospects

Standard & Poors rates Caterpillar a strong buy because of its potential to sell a lot of tractors as governments around the globe build bridges, ... the purchase or lease of equipment or on major repair and maintenance, according to a recent report ... frozen credit markets was evident in September 2008 at the height of the credit crunch [more...]

Date: 2009-01-06 16:47:51

Conservatives Beat The Drum For Permanent Corporate Tax Cuts

As the LA Times reported today, conservative support in Congress for President-elect Barack Obama’s proposed economic stimulus plan is ... record for such steps is poor in general, but they are particularly ill-suited for a recessionary period ... because there is no demand in the economy, asset prices are highly volatile, and credit is hard [more...]

Date: 2009-01-15 18:30:41

Tax or No Tax?

The good news: nearly 50% of American households (47%, to be precise) won’t pay any federal income tax in 2009. The bad news: the remaining 50% (or so) will have to foot the bill for everyone. You can thank (or blame) the new economic recovery package for bumping the percentage of taxpayers who won’t be paying a wee bit higher (about 10%). But don’t just start pointing fingers at the working poor. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 20:42:30

Short Term Funding

Readers Question: There appears to be a lack of credit to companies whereas there are huge amounts of money in money market funds ... of recession. A corportate loan has become a lot more risky because of the economic downturn. e.g. ... funds / finance institutions have had to write off bad loans meaning their balance sheets are pretty bad [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 09:51:39

Help! Poor Black People Are Stealing the Election from Rich White Guys

By Lloyd Hart You may have noticed over the last week the word acorn or to be more exact A.C.O.R.N ... bought all those bad loans (and have an automatic government rescue program to their charters ... practices in minority neighborhoods - a deliberate practice of banks not providing equal access to credit [more...]

Date: 2008-10-11 21:55:03

Lies and Deception

I hope you will agree that this letter if everyone signs on and sends it or a version of it to everyone in Washington it will alert those people we sent there we are aware of what needs to be done and if they don’t get busy and do it they need to start looking for a job. I am not only sending it to our elected but to columnist as well with the hope they will pick up on it and go with it. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 12:54:43

How Can Debt Consolidation Improve Your Financial Situation?

September 30, 2009 | By Edwood Woodward In Finance | by Edwood WoodwardDebt consolidation is considered as an option by those who wish to decrease the amount of their monthly installments for loans. People who are working hard to pay back their loans can actually take advantage of debt consolidation loan.A debt consolidation is particularly beneficial for those who have to suffer in the hands of their credit card debts. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 18:20:14

Prioritising

I’ve got a lot on my plate at the moment and all of it has to be done NOW. Perhaps before now. In fact, it has to be done quicker than it takes to write the word ‘now’.I finished the third draft of ’til Death last week and handed it in, the response was almost immediate - it’s spot on. Does that mean it’s finished and ready to go?Sadly, no [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 23:46:18

Busting the Ghosts of Hope

Expectations for Barack Obama’s presidency have continued to soar since his historic election. Millions believe change is possible. But what kind of change? And to whose benefit? Our country and our world are in crisis, and the tepid, incremental reforms Obama has been emphasizing aren’t going to cut it. It’s time to think outside the box [more...]

Date: 2009-01-16 16:44:52

One Sad Turtle

When I walked into Chez Oskar for a date with a librarian I was expecting an interesting evening that may or may not go somewhere. I have often been told my expectations are too high.    I take full responsibility for the evening. I met him on Craig’s List, where I swear, from now on I will only shop for sofas and kitchen appliances, not men [more...]

Date: 2009-01-18 00:36:04

De-leveraging the Children of Wall Street

submitted by James Baker Welch, VP of Rothschild Investments One of the most stunning facts of the 2008 Financial Melt-down has been the wholesale ... regulatory agencies to determine if the institution has met the credit needs of its entire community. 1   The CRA began to compel banks to underwrite less credit-worthy mortgage loans in order [more...]

Date: 2009-01-15 15:40:18

No Taxation Without Inflation

While reading a short essay by Donald H. Grove, I was pleasantly surprised to learn of Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) who “is a member of the House Financial Services Committee helping to hold the line against Chairman Barney Frank”, which automatically makes her one of my favorite people, [more...]

Date: 2009-01-15 18:40:26

Deal with Credit Before Divorce

by Rob Kosberg When you are about to file for divorce, you know that this is a horrible experience no matter how much you want to do it ... . Legal advice may help with this. Finances should be worked out, if at all possible, before the divorce is completed. Credit reports for each partner need to be secured, examined and fixed [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 22:06:48

Tourism and Bailouts

Halfpriceland - “Are you here for the nature or the exchange rate?” I won’t bore you with too much news or a bunch of statistics ... to when in need of CASH - tourism.  I hate subsidies and bailouts because they distort free-market forces.  However, we must differentiate between those and the need to recognize and operate tourism [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 13:20:40

Advice To Pres. Obama (#2): Yes We Can, But Will We?

The below post/letter is very important to me, and brings together much of what I have worked on the past few years ... particular issue runs the risk of creating more long term harm than good. In this letter, I attempt ... . In this letter, I would like to explain what some of these things are. In addition [more...]

Date: 2009-01-15 16:49:43

A Selection of Excerpts from GREAT POWERS: America and the World After Bush By Thomas P. M. Barnett Why our grand strategy needs to be realigned with the world "When 9/11 struck, America, feeling proprietary about the international liberal trade order we created and nurtured into global dominance, [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 17:56:11

Buck Slightly Higher

In the currency market, the dollar inched higher against the euro. Late Wednesday, the euro was trading at $1.3176 vs. $1.3187 on Tuesday ... margins.” The Fed’s Beige Book report covering early December to early January painted a sober picture. Conditions in the labor market were especially poor, with layoffs, hiring freezes, pay freezes [more...]

Date: 2009-01-15 19:10:52

Review: Boneshaker by Cherie Priest

Boneshaker by Cherie Priest Boneshaker Cherie Priest Tor, 2009 My love for Ms. Priest’s work has been professed before so this review is hardly unbiased.  Indeed, Boneshaker is certainly one of the catalysts that sent me on brief dip into the steampunk pool.  It is also the only steampunk novel I read this month that was set in America.  If my appreciation of Ms. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 20:16:32

Ainda o “downgrade” da S&P (3)

Bloomberg The risk of losses on European government bonds is mounting as the economic slowdown threatens credit ratings in Ireland, Portugal, Spain and Greece. Credit-default swaps tied to the debt of Ireland rose more than seven-fold ... to be threatened with a debt downgrade when Standard & Poor’s said the country’s long-term rating [more...]

Date: 2009-01-14 11:03:02

Feeding the poor to sharks?

Sunday, December 21, 2008 — charliemarks Crypto-Tory James Purnell (if he was Labour, it’d be Jim) ... who struggled to afford to repair a broken boiler or cope with some other domestic emergency. However ... rate found on High Street store cards and way above normal credit-card rates. This would add nearly [more...]

Date: 2008-12-21 08:29:52

Applying For Bad Credit Personal Loans Is Not Difficult

Anyone that has ever experienced credit problems knows what a terrible worry it is but there is definitely good news.  Years ago, it was almost impossible to get bad credit personal loans but that has changed drastically over the last few years.  Although some lenders used to feel bad credit had a social stigma [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 22:49:30

Norquist Compares The Corporate Tax Rate To Torture, Claims Cutting It Will ‘Stop Torturing Corporations’

Earlier this month, National Journal’s John Maggs sat down with anti-tax crusader Grover Norquist to discuss the future of ... out, permanent corporate tax cuts have a poor track record for providing stimulus: The track record for such steps is poor in general, but they are particularly ill-suited for a recessionary period. After [more...]

Date: 2009-01-16 18:48:27

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