August 2010
66 posts
Home Prices Probably Cooled, U.S. Consumer...
Bloomberg: Purchases of new homes plunged in July to a record low, and the median price was the lowest level since 2003, Commerce Department data showed this month. The National Association of Realtors reported a record 27 percent drop in July sales of existing houses. Mounting Foreclosures Foreclosures may be an obstacle for much of the year. A record 269,962 U.S. homes were seized from...
Yen Plays Catch-Up for Asia With Target 75 to...
Bloomberg: Japan Prime Minister Naoto Kan says he is ready to take “bold” action as the yen approaches its postwar high against the dollar. Traders say new records are inevitable even after this year’s 9.8 percent gain. Japan’s currency needs to rise 46 percent to equal its strength in the mid-1990s based on the Westpac Real Effective Exchange Rate Trade Weighted yen index, which accounts for...
Are the drug cartels winning?
This weekends Financial Times had an article titled: “Mexicans fear cartels are winning.” The battle for control of the drug market is bloody and brutal; corruption and exploitation of vulnerable populations are rampant. Its tragic and there are no easy solutions. Some key points that stuck out for me: 28,000 Drug-related deaths in Mexico since 2006 80-90% of the drugs...
The fallacy of taking German lessons
If you missed the recent David Brooks op-ed you didn’t miss much. Mark Weisbrot gives a run down on why he was wrong in his claims about the German economy… Mark Weisbrot: Germany’s economic recovery has gathered steam lately and is being used – in both the European and the US press – to promote the view that Germany “had the formula right all along” and...
Economist's View: Did I Hear that Right? You Want...
Mark Thoma: When a Federal Reserve president calls for an increase in interest rates while the economy is still struggling to recover, something that repeats the errors of 1937-38, all of his buddies in academia should expect a reaction. It comes with the job. The fact that he can point to a model that failed to provide much help with the situation we’re in to justify the statement...
Nonsense from Deficit Hawks Threatens to Keep Tens...
Dean Baker: The NYT told readers that the Fed’s ability to take steps to boost the economy are limited because: “The dramatic expansion of the national debt — which began in the Bush administration, via hefty tax cuts and two wars — has ratcheted up fears that, one day, creditors like China and Japan might demand sharply higher interest rates to finance American spending.” It...
Economy & Fed - Investors braced for week of key...
Financial Times: A sustained rise in unemployment is one likely trigger for the Fed to launch further quantitative easing by buying billions of dollars of long-term assets such as Treasury bonds in an attempt to stimulate the economy. Non-farm payrolls data due on Friday, the most important indicator on the labour market and the US economy, are expected to show that private-sector employers...
The Downturn and the Large Deficits are Due to...
Dean Baker: If Greenspan and Bernanke (who was a Fed governor from 2002) had paid attention to the $8 trillion housing bubble, and prevented it from growing to the point where it could do so much damage, then the country would not be in a serious downturn today, and we would not be running a large budget deficit. It is only due to the incompetence of the people running the Fed that we are face...
A 1930s tax code can’t cut it in 2010 | ajc.com
Why is the guy loading trucks next to me paying a higher percentage of his income in state and local taxes than some lawyer with alligator skin shoes up in Atlanta? Alan Essig of GBPI in the AJC: Georgia is a vastly different place today compared to the 1930s, yet the state income tax looks much as it did in 1937, when $10,000 a year was an upper income. Most people probably agree that...
Georgia sex crime registry filled with errors
In a 53-page report, auditors faulted outdated computers, underfunding, understaffing and poor communication between government agencies. AJC: Georgia’s Sexual Offender Registry is supposed to give worried parents or residents a clear picture of what creeps might be living nearby and how creepy they might actually be. Phil Skinner, pskinner@ajc.com The relative of a hospitalized sex offender...
This is why the Ground Zero mosque is linked to...
The whole Ground Zero mosque issue is another example of the kind of journalism that Fox News perpetuated and the same fears and misinformation that Bush harnessed to propel us into the Iraq War. Fox News exploits fear, it enflames ignorance and pathology, in a small but angry base within the Republican Party. As the base goes so goes the talking points of Republican leadership because...
Thank you for helping me become a DFA All Star!
I just wanted to thank all of my supporters for their vote and their efforts to harness social networking via twitter, facebook, and blogs to help me get out the vote and win the DFA Grassroots All Star Competition. Democracy for America sent out an email blast making the announcement while Deana and I were at the Doctors office. It was a great surprise and I’m pumped up! We beat out...
There are alternatives to widespread cuts in...
Republicans in Georgia argue we have no choice but to make more cuts. Its not true, and shows a level of fiscal recklessness on their parts that is harmful to the quality of life of our citizens and is putting our long term economic prosperity at risk. The purpose of Government is to protect and empower its citizens. Fiscal responsibility must be a top priority because people depend on state...
Don't tell the Republicans: CBO: Stimulus raised...
Calculated Risk: From the Congressional Budget Office: Estimated Impact of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act on Employment and Economic Output from April 2010 Through June 2010 CBO estimates that in the second quarter of calendar year 2010, ARRA’s policies: They raised real (inflation-adjusted) gross domestic product (GDP) by between 1.7 percent and 4.5 percent, Lowered the...
There Is No "Bond Bubble" - Grasping Reality with...
Is it just me or are the many of the same people that claimed the stimulus wouldn’t grow the economy, that deficit spending was going to destory our fiscal future, and that hyperinflation was right around the corner are now looking for a post hoc excuse for why they were wrong…. Brad Delong: Long-term Treasury bond prices are about where they ought to be: they consist of a...
There is always someone to tell you that you are...
“Whatever course you decide upon, there is always someone to tell you that you are wrong. There are always difficulties arising which tempt you to believe that your critics are right. To map out a course of action and follow it to an end requires courage.” —Ralph Waldo Emerson Posted via email from Quote for the day | Comment »
Mitt Romney's got a plan
Ezra Klein takes a peek at Mitt Romney’s economic plan: The first few paragraphs of Mitt Romney’s job-creation proposal read like the introduction to a particularly boring segment on the Hannity show (“Almost every action the president has taken has deepened and lengthened the downturn”). But get past them, and Romney does something that most Republicans have shied from...
Good News, Dr. Laura: Your First Amendment Rights...
NPR: Laura Schlessinger is not the first person to invoke the First Amendment when undesirable consequences flow from controversial statements. Far from it. As you may have read, in announcing that she will abandon her radio show, Schlessinger said on Larry King Live, “I want my First Amendment rights back, which I can’t have on radio without the threat of attack on my advertisers...
Democrats cry foul: Fox News’ parent gives $1M for...
AJC: The parent of Fox News, a favorite among conservatives, is donating $1 million to the cause of electing Republican governors in the fall. The money will go to the Republican Governors Association. Democrats quickly criticized the contribution from Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. “For a media company — particularly one whose slogan is ‘fair and balanced’ — to be injecting themselves into the...
Economist's View: "Is the Unemployment Problem...
Mark Thoma: I see that the issue of structural versus cyclical unemployment is rearing its head again. Here’s something I posted at MoneyWatch a couple of weeks ago on this topic: Is the Unemployment Problem Cyclical or Structural?: As I noted in a previous post, economists define three types of unemployment: frictional, structural, and cyclical: Frictional unemployment is defined as the...
Upson guns-in-church case lands in federal court
Macon.Com: State and Upson County officials had the case moved to the U.S. District Court in Macon on Friday. The case garnered national news coverage when it was first filed a month ago in Upson County Superior Court by the Rev. Jonathan Wilkins of the Baptist Tabernacle of Thomaston, which is partnering with GeorgiaCarry.org Inc. on the lawsuit. Wilkins said he has a constitutional right to...
Hills named Georgia’s next treasurer
Atlanta Business Chronicle Gov. Sonny Perdue said late Monday Tommy Hills, the state’s first-ever chief financial officer, will become the Peach State’s next treasurer. Hill takes over Sept. 1, when Dan Ebersole retires from state government after spending the last 13 years as treasurer. “We have navigated two recessions in the past eight years, and Tommy and Dan have both been a steady hand on...
Treasury International Capital Data for June
U.S. Department of Treasury: The U.S. Department of the Treasury today released Treasury International Capital (TIC) data for June 2010. The next release, which will report on data for July 2010, is scheduled for September 16, 2010. Net foreign purchases of long-term securities were $44.4 billion. Net foreign purchases of long-term U.S. securities were $33.9 billion. Of this, net purchases by...
Georgia banks' troubled list shortens by two
AJC: The number of troubled banks in Georgia dipped slightly in the second quarter, but the degree of trouble worsened for some on the list. Seventy-six of the state’s banks had so-called “Texas ratios” — measuring delinquent loans to capital — above 100 percent at the end of the quarter, according to Atlanta broker/dealer FIG Partners. That was down from 78 at the...
Newt Gingrich compares mosque to Nazis
sigh…. Georgia Election News: Newt Gingrich, a former House speaker, Georgia congressman and potential 2012 candidate for the White House, is weighing in on the mosque controversy in New York City. Politico.com notes Gingrich compares support for the proposed Islamic center and mosque near ground zero to allowing Nazis to build next to the Holocaust museum. From Politico: “Nazis don’t...
China Has Long Been the World's Second Largest...
Dean Baker: The NYT is touting the big news. China just passed Japan as the world’s second largest economy! This is painful because the piece badly misleads readers about the relative size and importance of China’s economy. Measured by purchasing power parity — a measure that assigns the same price to goods and services regardless of where they are produced — China has...
Unemployment rates drop locally
Newton Citizen: The unemployment rate in Newton and Rockdale counties continues to be higher than the state and national levels, but there has been some improvement over the past six months, according to statistics from the Georgia Department of Labor. Georgia’s official unemployment rate is 10 percent, while the national rate is 9.5 percent. Those rates have been seasonally adjusted, meaning...
Newton County School SPLOST collection numbers...
Newton Citizen: Although the Newton County School System’s SPLOST collections started coming in slowly in this down economy, the figures are looking better. In the first six months of collections, the current SPLOST account received $5,133,774.50, averaging $855,629.08 per month, according to NCSS Deputy Superintendent Dennis Carpenter, who gave the figures during the Newton County Board of...
Global Recovery `Well in Place,'
Bloomberg: The global economic recovery is “well in place” and may accelerate as growth in developing nations counters a slowing pickup in Japan and the U.S., according to Templeton Asset Management Ltd.’s Mark Mobius. The so-called BRIC markets of Brazil, Russia, India and China, as well as Turkey and South Africa, will drive the recovery, said Mobius, who predicted the bull-market rally in...
Rome, Burning Of Rome Under Nero
Burning Of Rome Under Nero Nero, on arriving at the Ostian gate, halted, and said: “Houseless ruler of a houseless people, where shall I lay my unfortunate head for the night?” After he had passed the Clivus Delphini, he ascended the Appian aqueduct on steps prepared purposely. After him followed the Augustians and a choir of singers, bearing citharae, lutes, and other musical...
Sen. Bernie Sanders: Name Elizabeth Warren to...
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today pressed for President Obama to name consumer advocate and Harvard Professor Elizabeth Warren to head a new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau created by the new Wall Street reform law. “Elizabeth has played a great role in standing up to Wall Street. Given that the outrageous greed, recklessness and illegal behavior on Wall Street caused the horrendous...
Never apologize for where you come from...
A JimN2010 supporter just emailed wondering if I needed to worry about my antiwar activism in my early 20’s. I appreciate any questions, tips, insights as they are a great help. Here is my response…. I’m not ashamed of my efforts to stop a policy blunder before it happened. What I witnessed as an activist in the run up to the war is what threw me into politics headfirst. I...
What does winning the DFA All-Star endorsement in...
I’m still in the lead. Help me get the DFA endorsement by voting for me right now! A few people have asked what a DFA endorsement means. Here is the rundown from their The winner of the DFA All-Star endorsement in each state will receive: The title of “DFA (Your State) All-Star” At least one volunteer recruitment and fundraising e-mail from DFA Chair Jim Dean sent to every...
Scientists, the downside of science; GPPF, the...
Another gem from the good people at GPPF…aka “Georgia’s only Free Market Think Tank”. Don’t get me wrong, they have some good stuff from time to time—-when they don’t get bogged down in Ayn Rand-land ideology. But they also give some great red meat examples of the intellectual garbage that’s been coming out of the conservative movement over...
After Three Months of Deflation, Modest Uptick in...
Center for Economic and Policy Research has a run down of the new CPI numbers… The Consumer Price Index rose 0.3 percent in July, following three months of deflation. Over the last two years since the peak in the CPI, prices have fallen 0.7 percent. The rise in the overall rate of inflation was, in large part, due to a rebound in energy prices, which rose 2.6 percent in July. Core prices...
Help JimN2010 become a DFA Georgia All-Star
Help me win the Democracy for America Grassroots Endorsement. Go vote for me. Then take the next step and help me GOTV. Here’s three ways to Get-Out-The-Vote right now. 1) Send a personal note to friends, family, and co-workers and include the customized link below. When people click the link, your first choice candidate will already be filled in the first nomination spot....
Help JimN2010 become a DFA Georgia All-Star
Help me win the Democracy for America Grassroots Endorsement. Go vote for me. Then take the next step and help me GOTV. Here’s three ways to Get-Out-The-Vote right now. 1) Send a personal note to friends, family, and co-workers and include the customized link below. When people click the link, your first choice candidate will already be filled in the first nomination spot....
Quote for the day...
“Unless we rapidly re-enfranchise our dispossessed workers into the economy, unless we give them hope, our democracy is doomed.” —Chris Hedges Empire of Illusion Posted via email from Jim Nichols | Comment »
Justice...
“If you want peace, work for justice.” — H. L. Mencken Posted via email from Quote for the day | Comment »
The trucks won't load themselves---run-off...
Today is the Run-off Election here in GA. I didn’t early vote for once in my life so I actually have to go to the polls today [vote Gail Buckner!]. Run-off Elections are a great reminder of why we need Instant Run-off Voting I’m headed to work here are you morning reads… Quote of the Day: “How selfish soever man may be supposed, there are evidently some principles...
Instant Runoff Voting
Posted via email from Jim Nichols for Senate Blog | Comment »
Pentagon Plans Steps to Reduce Budget and Jobs
NYT: The potential savings Mr. Gates outlined are likely to be relatively modest in the context of a total Pentagon budget, including war fighting costs, projected to top $700 billion next year. The most significant step — in symbol and in substance — was his plan to close the military’s Joint Forces Command in Norfolk, Va. The command includes about 2,800 military and civilian positions...
Miscellaneous Reading: Helicopter drops, Personal...
Calculated Risk: A few articles of interest … From the BEA: Personal Income for Metropolitan Areas, 2009 Personal income declined in 2009 in most of the nation’s metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs), according to estimates released today by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.The per capita income in my MSA fell 3.8% last year. From Travis Berge and Oscar Jorda at the San Franscisco...
Rail Traffic increases 4.1% in July compared to...
Calculated Risk: From the Association of American Railroads: Rail Time Indicators. The AAR reports traffic in July 2010 was up 4.1% compared to July 2009 - and traffic was 14.6% lower than in July 2008. Click on graph for larger image in new window. This graph shows U.S. average weekly rail carloads (NSA). Traffic increased in 14 of 19 major commodity categories year-over-year.From AAR: • U.S....
Georgia DOT releases draft criteria for new metro...
SaportaReport If approved by voters in 2012, it is expected that the sales tax would generate about $7 billion over its 10-year life span. So the big test will be how those $7 billion will be invested. The framework for making those decisions is beginning to come light. On Thursday, Todd Long, director of planning for the Georgia Department of Transportation, released the “draft” criteria that...
Ga. seeks federal funds for high-speed rail
Atlanta Business Chronicle The Georgia Department of Transportation is working with its counterpart in Tennessee to seek $34 million in federal funds to build a high-speed rail line linking Atlanta with Chattanooga, Tenn. Earlier this summer, the Federal Railroad Administration announced that states could apply for funding through the U.S. High Speed Intercity Passenger Rail program created by...
Democratic Party Secretary of State run-off gets...
Press Release Sen. Gail Buckner sent out last night after an attack mail piece hit mailboxes across the state. Full disclosure I worked for Sen. Buckner as a legislative aide in 2009 and have been a supporter of her campaign from the get go. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – August 9, 2010 Contact: Sen. Gail Buckner 770-473-9039 or 404-932-2427 or gailbuckner@bellsouth.net SECRETARY OF STATE...
'Sick tax' would break economy, officials say
Chattanooga Times Free Press Health experts say proposed provider fees on hospitals would force some providers out of business, cost thousands of jobs and stall economic development in those communities. “Public health is critical to the well-being of our state,” Russ Toal, of the Georgia Public Health Association, told state lawmakers Thursday during a budget hearing on health care....
Regents to discuss possible college budget cuts
AJC: In what has become an annual tradition, the Board of Regents Tuesday will vote on budget reduction plans for the 35 colleges in the University System of Georgia. The proposals outline how campuses would cut spending by 4, 6 and 8 percent for the current 2011 fiscal year should the economy worsen. The options include what students have come to expect in recent years: bigger class sizes,...
Atlanta incomes sliced in 2009, report says |...
AJC: More proof of how painful it has been: Per capita income in metro Atlanta last year fell nearly three times as much as the U.S. average. Government data released Monday shows income falling in most American metro areas in 2009, with Atlanta down 4.8 percent – a loss of nearly a dollar in each $20. Nationally, personal income slid 1.8 percent in 2009, according to the report by the Bureau of...
