Bit of a bummer, but well done:
Speedy Trials? Not In These Bad Economic Times
This is bad: The economic storm has come to this: Justice is being delayed or disrupted in state courtrooms across the country. Financially strapped New Hampshire has become a poster child for the problem. Among other cost-cutting measures, state courts will halt for a month all civil and criminal jury trials early next year to save $73,000 in jurors' per … Read More
Crackpot Conspiracy Theories
Remember how the Clintons murdered Vince Foster? That tripe was peddled around for years by conservative talk radio, and many still believe it today. As the New York Times pointed out yesterday, conservative talk radio is salivating now at the prospect of an Obama presidency. And already, they're rolling out conspiracy theories. We've already heard (endlessly) about how Obama's parents, the … Read More
The “Big Three” Automakers Start A PR Campaign
Off to a bad start, I'd say…..
Googleplex-NC Cancelled?
Blame the economy. North Carolina gave Google all kinds of money and tax incentives to expand its operations into the Tarheel State, in the hopes that it would provide jobs and spending. But construction of a huge data center has been halted, and Google is now turning down the grant and incentives. They may still come, but it could be … Read More
A Dollar Per Gallon of Gas?
Could happen this year, says this oil executive. It's under $1.70 around here, and still falling. But I don't think it'll be as low as a buck a gallon ever again. But I saw two Hummers out today. It's been a while…
Bridge Repair Will Help The Economic Downslide
Krugman is worried. We have the parachute, but we might not be able to deploy it before we hit the ground. In other words, we know Obama's plan to turn the economy around by building the infrastructure is a good one, but double-digit unemployment is just around the corner. The problem is: Infrastructure spending will take time to get going … Read More
Hat In Hand, Car Companies Are Back In Front Of Congress Asking For A Bailout
This time, they didn't fly in on corporate jets. They flew business class, and the CEO of Ford drove from Detroit to D.C. in a hybrid. In fact, all the CEOs from the Big Three automakers said they plan to sell their corporate jet fleet. The Ford CEO said he would take a $1 yearly salary, cancel all management employees' … Read More
Twelve Days Of Christmas More Expensive This Year
Last year the cost of 12 drummers drumming, 11 pipers piping… and a partridge in a pear tree was, collectively, $78,100. This year, it's going to run you $86,609. True, some of the items are cheaper this year. The five gold rings, for example, went from $395 each to $350 each. Lower food prices mean that the French hen and … Read More
Bush Was Warned
Remember when Bush was presented with an intelligence warning that "Bin Laden Determined to Strike U.S." and he pooh-poohed the whole thing, humoring the intelligence official by telling him, "You've covered your ass, now"? And then how, less than two months later, bin Laden struck? And remember when Bush proclaimed that he had no warning that the levies in New Orleans … Read More
The Current Recession Began in December 2007
So sayeth the NBER. The dating of the recession's beginning means we can say a few things now as "fact". This is the eleventh recession in the post-World War II era, but it is already one of the longest. The NBER announcement shows that our current downturn has lasted a year (and counting), and only two of the modern recessions (November … Read More
Where The Jobs Be At?
It's quite simple. All you have to do is think of every place in America where vaudevillians were born, and chances are it has made the CNN list for the 25 best cities to find a job. Sioux Falls, Bismarck, Lincoln (Nebraska), Des Moines, Sioux City — they're all on the list. Pocatello, Idaho, where Judy Garland was "born in … Read More
Depressing Economy Fact Of The Day
Almost half of the homes sold in the United States last month were foreclosure sales. UPDATE: Speaking of the economy, figures like 700 billion (which is the number given to the Bush bailout, as well as the additional bailout under Obama) cause one to turn white. But, believe it or not, that was apparently just peanuts: The U.S. government is prepared … Read More
Linking The War On Christmas To The Economic Crisis
I would call this "overreaching". From the Wall Street Journal, columnist Daniel Henninger writes: This year we celebrate the desacralized "holidays" amid what is for many unprecedented economic ruin — fortunes halved, jobs lost, homes foreclosed. People wonder, What happened? One man's theory: A nation whose people can't say "Merry Christmas" is a nation capable of ruining its own economy. … Read More
“Like Seeing A Guy Show Up At The Soup Kitchen In High-hat And Tuxedo”
More on the symbolic faux pax carried out by the CEOs of the Big Three automakers, who flew into D.C. on luxury corporate jets so that they could beg for a bailout at taxpayer expense: "There's a delicious irony in seeing private luxury jets flying into Washington, D.C., and people coming off of them with tin cups in their hands," … Read More