The GOP's Misplaced Rage. Leading conservative economist Bruce Bartlett writes that the Obama-hating town-hall mobs have it wrong—the person they should be angry with left the White House seven months ago. Where is the evidence that everything would be better if Republicans were in charge? Does anyone believe the economy would be growing faster or that unemployment would be lower today if John McCain had won the election? I know of no economist who holds that view. The economy is like an ocean liner that turns only very slowly. The gross domestic product and the level of employment would be pretty much the same today under any conceivable set of policies enacted since Barack Obama’s inauguration. Until conservatives once again hold Republicans to the same standard they hold Democrats, they will have no credibility and deserve no respect. In January, the Congressional Budget Office projected a deficit this year of $1.2 trillion before Obama took office, with no estimate for actions he might take.
Foreign Policy: Seven Questions: Bernard Lewis on the Two Biggest Myths About Islam. Where are they now: TheGlobe.com | The Industry Standard. TheGlobe.com. TheGlobe.com was an internet startup founded in 1994[1] by Cornell students Stephan Paternot and Todd Krizelman. A social networking service, theGlobe.com made headlines by going public on November 13, 1998 and posting the largest first day gain of any IPO in history up to that date.[2] Part of the dot-com bubble, the company's stock price collapsed the next year, and the company retrenched for several years before ceasing operations in 2008.
History[edit] Early success[edit] theglobe.com screenshoot (2012-05-20) While undergraduates at Cornell, Paternot and Krizelman encountered a primitive chatroom on the university's computer network and quickly became engrossed.[3] Realizing the business potential, the two raised $15,000 over the 1994 Christmas break and purchased an Apple Internet Server. The pair used the popularity of the site and the increasing interest in the internet in 1997 to secure $20 million in financing through Dancing Bear Investments. Decline and downfall[edit] Ten Notes on Crude Oil: The Fixation. In different economic eras, different things attract the attention of the media, investors, politicians, etc. Today a leading attention grabber would be crude oil, and the energy complex. It is a honeypot for conspiracy theorists and unscrupulous politicians (not quite an oxymoron). 1) Fuel is subsidized across much of the world, particularly in countries where there is a large state owned oil company.
Current high prices are making it difficult to maintain those subsidies, so countries like Egypt and Indonesia are reducing subsidies. Yet subsidies are not being eliminated everywhere yet. 2) Speculators — perhaps they need a new name, and a branding campaign. Risk bearers, maybe. Now, many commodities have no futures contracts. Some look at the dollar change in prices and think that speculation must be high. Do speculators include the ordinary shmoes like you and me who use ETFs? As I have commented before, I think the run-up in the price of oil is fundamental, not manipulation.