From the category archives:
As the president Obama has to be optimistic on this subject but as a citizen I don’t, and I think that the unemployment situation is way worse than our leaders are conveying. Now days you have to be crazy to trust an employer we must learn the art of being self sufficient; if you have a job, great but you better have other means of income coming in because employers are cold blooded and there only concern is their bottom line.
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According to Business Insider It seems as if the economic heads over at Goldman Scachs believe that the job market is on the rebound; here is why, check it out:
Goldman Sachs issued a report this week called “The Labor Market: Crawling Out Of A Deep Hole.” It chronicles the plight of the US labor market and how unemployment is truly affecting the US. Job growth is weak, but after months (and years) of economic downturn, Goldman believes that we could be on the cusp of a rebound in both the economic and labor markets.
The report presents both sides of the story. There are indeed many reasons to be optimistic about recovery and lower unemployment rates. But we are also reminded that this will not be easy and there are many challenges ahead of us and will be for quite some time. Here To See Why They Are Hopeful
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In this morning’s Breakfast With Dave newsletter, Rosie discusses offers his doubts on the “recovery” in light of blatantly weak data.
Breakfast With Dave: The economy continues to pull a rabbit out of the hat and expand even with contracting employment and bank credit. As we stated above with respect to Wal-Mart’s weak sales data, how did Mr. Market manage to ignore the labour market news yesterday. All we hear from bullish strategists is that jobless claims are the key, and while they have been improving in recent months, yesterday’s data was disappointing in that claims rose 31,000 in the February 13 week, to 473,000. Unfortunately, that was the nonfarm payroll survey week.
While the number of continuing claims was unchanged at 4.56 million that understates the situation because when all the emergency benefit programs are included, the backlog of total unemployment claimants jumped 280k in the January 30 week to a whopping 11.7 million.
God its hard to get transparency from wall street and our government. I really wonder what are the true facts about the state of unemployment and our economy.
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Picture yourself as the host of an economists’ dinner party where no one is having any fun (perhaps not a hard thing to imagine). There are two competing schools of thought on what should be done to fix the party. The Keynesian economists in the room would tell you to break out the party games and snacks, and then force people into a rousing game of Twister. Meanwhile, Milton Friedman and his monetarist pals, have a different solution. Control the booze, and let the party take care of itself.
Of course, the economy is slightly more complicated than a dinner party gone bad, but the fundamental question is the same: Is it better to intervene when things go wrong, or attempt to prevent problems before they start? This article will explore the rise of the laid-back monetarist approach to controlling inflation, touching upon its proponents, successes and failures.
The Basics of Monetarism
Monetarism is a macroeconomic theory borne of criticism of Keynesian economics. It gets its name because of its focus on the role of money in the economy. This differs significantly from Keynesian economics, which emphasizes the role that the government plays in the economy through expenditures, rather than on the role of monetary policy. To monetarists, the best thing for the economy is to keep an eye on the money supply and let the market take care of itself: in the end, the theory goes, markets are more efficient at dealing with inflation and unemployment.
Milton Friedman, a Nobel Prize winning economist who once backed the Keynesian approach, was one of the first to break away from commonly accepted principles. In his work “A Monetary History of the United States, 1867-1960″ (1971), a collaborative effort with fellow economist Anna Schwartz, Friedman argued that the poor monetary policy of the Federal Reserve was the primary cause of the Great Depression in the United States, not problems within the savings and banking system. He argued that markets naturally move toward a stable center, and that it was an incorrectly set money supply that caused the market to behave erratically. With the collapse of the Bretton Woods system in the early 1970s and the subsequent increase in both unemployment and inflation, governments turned to monetarism to explain their predicaments. It was then that this economic school of thought gained more prominence.
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Amercian debt has long been considered “risk free.” But with the deficit blowing out, and sovereign nations around the world crumbling, more and more are wondering just how safe our debt actually is.
Hopefully, any real crisis is a long way off, or will never happen. But, just in case, we’ve put together a guide of who holds US debt, and what might trigger them to hit the SELL button. #1 on the list the
Federal Reserve and Intragovernmental Holdings: $5.127 trillion and rising*Nightmare Scenario: The Fed actually decides to get “independent” and refuses to go along with reckless spending.
Check it Out Here America’s 15 Biggest Lenders.
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$3.8 trillion isn’t fathomable for the average person but for a high powered government like ours, in the words of Drizzy Drake Its Money To Blooooow! Our government is getting it in.
The President’s budget has spelled out $3.8 trillion in spending for fiscal year 2011. Getting to that sort of number takes bureaucracy on a grand scale, and with all the government departments there is plenty of opportunity for such spending. Take a look at our break down of spending by department and some of the biggest projects each has in our line by line rundown. Click Here To Check It Out!
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The 64 interns in the Sacramento, Calif., Capital Fellows Program do no less than help draft state laws. They also write speeches, conduct policy briefings and take part in graduate-level seminars in government and public policy. So steeped are they in the work of real-life policymaking that many get offered full-time jobs in California’s state government when they finish the 10-month program, which runs from October to September. In addition, they get paid a handsome $1,972 a month, receive academic credit and get health insurance that includes dental and vision benefits.
That combination of meaningful work experience, pay, perks and career opportunities lands the Capital Fellows Program on a new list of the nation’s top internships, put out by career Web site Vault.com.
Vault has been publishing an annual internship directory since 1993. This year’s edition, the Vault Guide to Top Internships, lists 785 programs. From that list, Vault’s staff culled the top 10 by evaluating each job according to criteria that include pay and perks, training, mentorship and chances of getting a real job at the end of it all.
At a time when job-seeking college grads are expected to have résumés chock full of intern experience, they need more than ever to make sure those temporary jobs maximize career development and meaningful work. And it’s not just students who are taking on internships these days. The bleak unemployment picture has sent many laid-off workers looking for internships that might lead to full-time jobs.
Internships can be an excellent way to transition to a new career. For instance, those interested in consumer and aviation technology should consider a stint at Garmin International, the maker of navigation and communication equipment including GPS systems. An impressive 90% of Garmin’s interns get job offers at the end of its program. The internships run 12 to 14 weeks in the summer and six months in the fall and spring. The company is based in what many might consider the sticks–Olathe, Kan., 20 miles from Kansas City–but Garmin also offers internship slots in more glamorous locations including San Francisco and Tempe, Ariz. “You are treated as though you are a full-time employee with real responsibilities,” one Garmin intern told Vault.
Vault’s top 10 list includes two arts institutions, the Smithsonian, in Washington, D.C., and the Steppenwolf Theatre Company, in Chicago. Steppenwolf, the spawning ground of the superstars John Malkovich, Joan Allen and its cofounder Gary Sinise, takes 39 interns a year, and they learn, hands-on, the workings of a professional theater. Their work runs the gamut from fundraising and publicity to casting, carpentry, sound, stage and wardrobe work. Biweekly intern seminars with theater professionals enrich the experience.
In Pictures: The Top 10 Internships For 2010
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This interview is several months old but still very rich in information about, the recession, the state of our economy, and evaluating risk.
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It’s a signal of just how bad the economy was last year that investors will probably cheer if the Labor Department announces Friday that the December unemployment rate came in at 10%.
Never mind that you have to go back to the recession of 1982 to see similar jobless levels. After apparently hitting a peak of 10.2% in October, unemployment fell to 10% in November. Another month like that could indicate the economy has stopped shrinking and is even beginning to expand.
Now the question looms: Is inflation next? With the Treasury and Federal Reserve essentially printing U.S. currency and handing it to banks and overstretched lenders like Fannie Mae, there is always the chance that too many dollars chasing a fixed amount of goods will lead to higher prices. Inflation is at least as much based on perception of the future as conditions today, said Kevin Kleisen, an economist with the Federal Reserve Bank of Saint Louis and author of a recent report that suggests people should start thinking about the unthinkable.
“Right now inflation expectations are fairly low and stable, but if the market gets spooked–either from the Fed not withdrawing stimulus fast enough, or the rising budget deficit–that could lead to higher inflation expectations,” Kreisen said.
Friday’s release might have something for inflation bulls and bears. Jobless numbers are highly volatile from month to month and are calculated using a different survey than for nonfarm employment. So don’t be surprised if Friday’s release shows two different trends. Employment could rise while unemployment ticks up as well, said David Resler, chief economist for the U.S. at Nomura Securities in New York.
“Theres a chance the unemployment rate will dip below 10%, but I’m not sure we’ve seen the peak yet,” said Resler. “If you go by history, it could go higher even if the economy is improving.” For More Click Here
Many people dream of shedding the corporate life and starting their own companies. They imagine creating the next Google or Apple. From Steve Jobs to Bill Gates to Pierre Omidyar, many of the world’s richest people on the Forbes Billionaires List started as entrepreneurs, so it’s little wonder so many believe that’s the path to wealth and happiness. But getting a company going is hard and takes sacrifices, especially in this down market. More than 50% of companies fail in their first five years. Their founders spend much of that time skipping vacations and luxuries and sometimes even meals.
I’ve started three businesses, and I’ve invested in others as an angel investor and venture capitalist. I’ve often struggled and failed. My second start-up made $7,000 over three years while I lived in a $200-a-month apartment. With another one I gained 25 pounds during the first year, thanks to too many hurried dashes to McDonald’s. But I’m glad I chose the entrepreneurial path. I like the challenge of creating something from scratch.
I’ve learned a lot from my experiences. Before you venture out on your own, I offer you three myths about starting a business that I wish I had known before I began. For More Click Here
If you are active on Twitter, you are likely familiar with @maddow, @oprah, and even @digitalroyalty. Perhaps these notables are already in your network. But there’s a new generation of Twitter powerhouses that are worth watching.
These women tweeters have brands that are soaring–they have found their niche and are capitalizing on it through their work, their personalities, their writing, and now, their Twitter followings. They land securely in the range of the almost-famous, with their eventual domination of the Twittersphere not yet complete. But the 14 showcased here are all gaining steam fast and are on schedule to double (or more) in size in six months.
These “twilebrities” are constructing digital empires by building brands from the ground up. They are not only experts, but also extraordinarily engaging, hard working, interactive and responsive to their communities. And they are deserving of your follow. For More Click Here
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Obama’s Small Business Tax Cuts May Hurt Economic Growth:
In a speech last month at the venerable Brookings Institution, President Barack Obama laid out a series of objectives meant to stimulate economic activity. As he put it, “Our work is far from done.”
Obama’s proposed economic package includes an elimination of capital gains taxes on small-business investment as well as an extension of business equipment write-offs. Small businesses would be allowed to write off 100% of their capital equipment purchases, while large businesses could deduct 50% of those expenses in the first year.
Somewhat surprisingly, noted tax experts and supply-side thinkers Ernest Christian and Gary Robbins endorsed Obama’s tax pledge in a Wall Street Journal op-ed. They argue that the tax proposals were “the one right thing” in Obama’s address, the cuts being “a proven job-creating machine in the private sector.” Discounting that businesses are decidedly not in business to create jobs– the proposed cuts are at best geared toward a business climate that no longer exists; at worst they are merely subsidies masked as tax cuts.
First, supply-side tax policy is, at its core, all about incentives. But judging by his plan, Obama is creating incentives for businesses to remain small. As evidenced by the less favorable tax treatment proposed for large businesses, those that start small but grow into something larger will be penalized for doing so. Full Story Here
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Looking to snag shares of Facebook before it goes public? Felix Investments, a New York City investment manager, is giving rich clients a chance to do just that. The firm touts in a letter to potential investors: “Opportunities like this do not come along every day and we have not seen an opportunity like this since Google in 2004!”
Maybe for good reason. Felix is among a handful of firms vying to get an early jump on Facebook’s initial public offering (though the company says it has no plans of doing one). These firms have been pooling clients’ money to buy blocks of employee-held shares of the social network company before any IPO.
Felix Investments wouldn’t comment, but sources say the firm is looking to pay around $25 per share of Facebook, which values the company at close to $11 billion, according to private share marketplace SharesPost. Full Story Here
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Do you have trouble keeping New Year’s resolutions that involve losing weight or reading more? Maybe it’s time to put your time instead into resolutions that will pay real dividends down the road. Invest a few hours in making some simple money moves that will bulk up your portfolio and give you a solid chance of exiting 2010 more prosperous than you enter it.
Tough as the past year has been financially, the economy has provided a good opportunity to take a fresh, objective look at your financial future, says Roger Wohlner, financial planner in Arlington Heights, Ill.
“Periods of ups and downs in the market are very common, but rarely have we seen anything as extreme as we’ve seen over the last 15 months,” he says. “This is an especially opportune time for somebody to reassess his or her portfolio, retirement strategy and whole financial plan.”
Often the smartest moves you can make are tried-and-true ones–not the sort of stuff that’s been spawned as newfangled ways to protect yourself. In Depth: 10 Smart Money Moves For 2010
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