US Economy
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Michelle Kraus: The Great American Credit Catastrophe Is Our Generation's 911
The 9/11 of the middle class is the consumer credit debacle. It is the gift that keeps on giving. The reality is that the housing crisis is just one piece of this really big, ugly mess.Mortgage Mess US
The Stone is a forum for contemporary philosophers on issues both timely and timeless. As of today, the Troubled Asset Relief Program, known as TARP, the emergency bailouts born in the financial panic of 2008, is no more. Done. Finished. Kaput. Last month the Congressional Oversight Panel issued a report assessing the program.
Hegel on Wall Street - NYTimes.com
The Fix - TARP: How it's playing in the midterm campaigns
By Felicia Sonmez A new poll from the Pew Research Center/National Journal Congressional Connection indicates that the Troubled Asset Relief Program, which officially came to an end last Sunday , continues to be a major voting issue ahead of the November midterms. Forty-six percent of adults in the new survey said they would be less likely to vote for a candidate who "supported the government providing major loans to banks during the 2008 financial crisis." This was more than the number of voters who said they were less likely to vote for a candidate on any other issue. Two years after then-President George W. Bush signed the bill into law following its passage by the Senate and House , TARP (or "the Wall Street bailout," as most voters know it) continues to haunt candidates up and down the ballot.
Local governments are cutting jobs faster than any time in 30 years, as you can see in the graph below. I like Ezra's take on this. The government can't demand that private companies -- Starbucks, construction firms, etc -- hire workers. But it can keep public sector workers employed. We could have saved many of these local and state government jobs. Congress decided it wouldn't.
Time for Another State Bailout? - Derek Thompson - Business - The Atlantic
Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner stood before staff members at a recent town hall meeting and offered a eulogy for the government's $700 billion bank bailout program, which is set to expire Sunday, two turbulent years after Congress approved it during the heat of the financial crisis. He understood as well as anyone the paradox that the Troubled Assets Relief Program, or TARP, has come to represent: Economists largely agree that the massive federal bailouts beginning in 2008 saved the country from a financial abyss. But rarely has a government program become so widely reviled, so stigmatized, that even lawmakers who voted for it avoid the subject.
After 2 turbulent years, officials assess TARP
In economics , a bailout is an act of loaning or giving capital to an entity (a company, a country, or an individual) that is in danger of failing, in an attempt to save it from bankruptcy , insolvency , or total liquidation and ruin; or to allow a failing entity to fail gracefully without spreading contagion . [ 1 ] [ edit ] Overview
Bailout - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Do you find yourself wondering: How did we get here? How did the United States of America get into such a predicament whereby in one year, 2008, the financial system nearly vaporized, the stock market crashed, real estate tanked, and major corporations were being bailed out. . . .How did our great country, a bastion of capitalism, devolve into a Bailout Nation where the gains were privatized, but the losses were socialized?"
Bailout Nation
The global drug market will grow 5 to 7 percent in 2011, to $880 billion, as higher spending in nations like China, Brazil and India makes up for slow growth and patent losses in the United States, according to a forecast released Wednesday by IMS Health, an industry data company. Prescription drug sales in 17 countries are growing at a 15 to 17 percent clip, led by China. It alone is expected to have sales growing at a rate of 25 to 27 percent to $50 billion next year, IMS Health said. “It’s driven by the level of economic development in these markets and the growing demand for access to medicines and a growing commitment by governments to help make those treatment options available to their citizens,” Murray Aitken, the IMS senior vice president in charge of the research, said in an interview Thursday. The United States will remain the single largest pharmaceutical market, with 3 to 5 percent growth expected next year, IMS predicted.
New Forecast Sees Drug-Sales Growth Overseas - NYTimes.com
Employers Continue to Discriminate Against Jobless, Think 'The Best People Are Already Working'
The number of Americans who have been out of a job for a year or longer has reached a record 4.4 million, roughly equal to the population of Louisiana, according to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics report. The grim numbers may partially be attributed to the fact that employers are still openly discriminating against the unemployed --especially the longterm unemployed-- when deciding who to hire. A surprising number of Craigslist job ads are automatically disqualifying the long-term jobless by including the stipulations, "Must be currently employed," "No unemployed candidates will be considered," or "must have been employed within the last 6 months."
Stress Symptoms, Causes, Treatment - What are the effects of stress on medical and psychological conditions on MedicineNet
What do we know about using (activating) and overusing our internal systems that respond to stress? Animal and human research has taught us much about our internal stress systems. When laboratory animals are exposed to a prolonged stress (usually food deprivation, mild electrical stimulation of the foot, or handling), they develop a stress syndrome.What is a FICO ® score? It's a number that is formulated based on your credit history helping lenders evaluate your credit risk. Your FICO ® score is used to determine credit offers and interest rate.
Check Your FICO Credit Score and Credit Report Online
Credit score (United States) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A credit score in the United States is a number representing the creditworthiness of a person, the likelihood that person will pay his or her debts. Lenders, such as banks and credit card companies, use credit scores to evaluate the potential risk posed by lending money to consumers. Widespread use of credit scores has made credit more widely available and cheaper for consumers. [ 1 ] [ 2 ]FICO Scores
A consumer class action lawsuit was recently filed against ConsumerInfo.com in federal court in California. ConsumerInfo.com is an Experian company … A question I frequently receive is how mortgage delinquencies—late payments, short sales, foreclosures, etc.When you apply for credit – whether for a credit card, a car loan, or a mortgage – lenders want to know what risk they'd take by loaning money to you. FICO® scores are the credit scores most lenders use to determine your credit risk. You have three FICO scores, one for each of the three credit bureaus: Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax. Each score is based on information the credit bureau keeps on file about you. As this information changes, your credit scores tend to change as well.