Middle Class

Goldman Sachs: Let Me Count the Ways You Offend Us

Marcella Mroczkowski | Posted 12.17.2009 | Business

Read More: Arlington National Cemetery, Goldman Sachs, Christianism, Derivatives, Freedom, Middle Class, Economic Crisis, Banking Crisis, Federal Reserve, Objectivism, Banking Industry, Taxpayers, Business News
Marcella Mroczkowski

How do you offend us, Goldman Sachs? Let me count the ways: nstead of investing that money to grow the economy you foster predatory lending to our more vulnerable citizens, to feed your derivative gambling.

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The Ultra-Elite Versus The Poor

Douglas MacKinnon | Posted 12.15.2009 | Politics

Read More: Poverty, US Poverty, Elite, Middle Class, Hollywood, Politics News
Douglas MacKinnon

The more I "succeed" in life, the more I'm repulsed by the one-tenth of one percent "above" me and the more I long for the values, ethics, and unseen valor of the "unwashed masses."

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The Middle Class Collapse

Les Leopold | Posted 12.16.2009 | Business

Read More: White House, Unemployment, Wealth, Bailout, Wall Street, Middle Class, Economic Crisis, Redistribution of Wealth, Financial Crisis, Banks, Billionaires, Joe the Plumber, Business News
Les Leopold

Do the super-rich really earn their wealth? Financial wealth is a slippery concept especially as it slithers through a mountain of bailouts now running somewhere near $13 trillion.

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How to Live on $0 a Day: Top Gift Ideas for 2009

Lesley Stern | Posted 12.16.2009 | Comedy

Read More: Debt, Economy, Eco-Friendly, Credit Cards, Financial Advice, Christmas, Financial Crisis, Christmas Shopping, Bonuses, Humor, Financial Reform, Satire, Middle Class, Comedy News, Comedy, Teabaggers, Depression, Recession, Comedy News
Lesley Stern

If you happen to have some spare sanitary napkins around, or know where you can borrow some, you've got the makings for some cushy slippers with non-slip grip strips and a built in deodorant feature for fresh feet.

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Two Scholars Ask: What if Marriage Is Bad for Us?

Bella DePaulo | Posted 12.12.2009 | Living

Read More: Social Security, Singled Out, Divorce, Civil Rights, Sociology, Middle Class, Matrimania, Pop Culture, Race, Cultures, Laura Kipnis, Happiness, Friendship, Isolation, Institutions, Politics, Mate Choice, Singlism, Wealth, Retirement Benefits, Love, Health Care, Status Quo, Family, Advocacy, Benefits, Marriage, Lifelong Singles, Domestic Gulag, Myths, Hollywood, Loneliness, Work, Health, Single, Health Insurance, Blaming the Victim, Single With Attitude, Living News
Bella DePaulo

Marriage is not for everyone, and people who want to stay single should not be targeted with singlism because of it.

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Elizabeth Warren Talks Death Of The Middle Class On Morning Joe (VIDEO)

Posted 12.11.2009 | Politics

Read More: Tarp, Morning Joe, Elizabeth Warren, Middle Class, Mika Brzezinski, Congressional Oversight Panel, Politics News

Elizabeth Warren, chair of the Congressional Oversight Panel created to monitor TARP and a Huffington Post blogger, appeared on MSNBC's Morning Joe ea...

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Sell Off The Yarmulkes, Here Comes Chanukah!

Lita Smith-Mines | Posted 12.10.2009 | Living

Read More: Attorneys, Holidays, Chanukah, Small Business, Unemployment, Economic Recession, Middle Class, Real Estate, Property Taxes, Hanukah, Religion, Living News
Lita Smith-Mines

Anyone who doubts in the unraveling of the middle class is welcome to join my Chanukah celebration this year. Just please bring the latkes, no-drip candles, and some presents for the kids.

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A Personal Appeal: The Middle-Class Health Tax Must Be Stopped

Richard (RJ) Eskow | Posted 12.08.2009 | Politics

Read More: Union Benefits, Middle-Class Squeeze, Tax Policy, Tax Inequity, Middle Class, Excise Tax, Health Reform, "Cadillac" Tax, Politics News
Richard (RJ) Eskow

The so-called (and misnamed) "Cadillac tax" is unfair and unwise. It's also a political landmine for its supporters, and a political goldmine for those who oppose all health reform.

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The Mayor's Legacy Dilemma

Stuart Appelbaum | Posted 12.07.2009 | New York

Read More: New York City Economy, Bronx, Kingsbridge Armory, Michael Bloomberg, Middle Class, Fiorello LaGuardia, New York News
Stuart Appelbaum

Bloomberg must begin to recognize that real prosperity doesn't trickle from the top down. The battle over jobs planned for the Kingsbridge Armory in the Bronx is his first challenge.

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The Credit Card as Company Store: How Congress Let It Happen

Linda R. Monk, J.D. | Posted 12.04.2009 | Business

Read More: Business News, Credit Crisis, Small Business, Credit Cards, Middle Class, Politics, Business News
Linda R. Monk, J.D.

There used to be laws in America against usury, the practice of gouging a debtor with outrageous interest rates all for the sin of being poor. There can be again, if we demand it.

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America Without a Middle Class

Elizabeth Warren | Posted 12.03.2009 | Business

Read More: Mortgage Crisis, Financial Crisis, U.S. Recession, Middle Class Economy, American Family, Spending, Middle Class, Elizabeth Warren, Business News
Elizabeth Warren

Can you imagine an America without a strong middle class? If you can, would it still be America as we know it?

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Rich Buying Again, But Middle Class Still Hurting

AP | EMILY FREDRIX | Posted 11.14.2009 | Business

Read More: Walmart, Wealthy, Luxury Shopping, Middle Class Economy, Luxury Brands, Middle Class, Consumer Spending, Wealthy Americans, Recession, Transparency, Business News

American shoppers are splitting again: The affluent are finally starting to buy, picking up designer clothes at places like Nordstrom, while those on ...

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Middle-Income Families Can Slip Through Cracks of ECE Policy

James Mejia | Posted 11.12.2009 | Denver

Read More: Early Childhood Education, Education, Pre-K, Middle-Class-Squeeze, Early Learning Challenge Fund, Middle Class, Preschool, Denver News
James Mejia

Early childhood education is again on the minds of our elected officials. Last month, the House passed the Early Learning Challenge Fund, which gives states a chance at $8 billion in competitive grants.

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Lessons of November

Max Fraad Wolff | Posted 11.05.2009 | Politics

Read More: Virginia, Election Reaction, Conservatives, New Jersey, Liberals, Middle Class, Wage Gap, Gay Marriage, Maine, Politics News
Max Fraad Wolff

I believe that hordes of voters went yesterday and voted for Republican candidates and discriminatory marriage platforms even though they voted for and like Obama. I also believe they are expressing an anger that liberal and conservative pundits alike do not understand.

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Goldman Sachs Seizing Homes Subprime Mortgages Bought

McClatchy | Greg Gordon | Posted 11.02.2009 | Business

Read More: Mtglq, Cases, Hank Paulson, Lawsuits, Middle Class, Suits, Goldman Sachs Subsidiaries, Housing Crisis, Working Class, Goldman Sachs, Judge Roger Efremsky, Lenders, Home Prices, Foreclosure, Subprime, Repossession, Roger Efremsky, Ge, Mortgage Brokers, Mortgage Crisis, Homeowners, Securities Exchange Commission, WMC Mortgage Corp, Judge William Aslup, Wall Street, GE Money, Wiliam Aslup, Henry Paulson, Banks, Sec, Subsidiaries, Business News

Goldman spent years buying hundreds of thousands of subprime mortgages, many of them from some of the more unsavory lenders in the business, and packa...

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I Am Not Paying Higher Taxes to Help the Uninsured

Blake Fleetwood | Posted 10.28.2009 | Politics

Read More: Prisoners-Dilemma, Game Theory, Middle Class, Health Care Reform, Universal Health Care, Obama Health Care, Health Care, Single Payer Health Care, Obama Universal Health Care, Obama Health Care Reform, Public Option, Politics News
Blake Fleetwood

No social program -- Medicare, social security, rent control, public universities -- that aims to help the poor can ever succeed without appealing to, and paying off, a broad middle class.

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The Stuy Town Decision: A Good Reality Check for New York

Elizabeth Donoghue | Posted 10.28.2009 | New York

Read More: Tenants Rights, Tenants, Real Estate Industry, Middle Class, Tishman Speyer Stuyvesant Town, New York City Real Estate, Stuyvesant Town, New York City Apartments, Peter Cooper Village, New York News
Elizabeth Donoghue

New York is experiencing what the rest of the country is, too: unemployment and hard times. The Stuy Town decision on rent regulation will help people keep their homes in this uncertain era.

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How To Live On $0 A Day: Rediscover the Childlike Joy of Halloween (Get Free Stuff)

Lesley Stern | Posted 10.26.2009 | Comedy

Read More: Candy, Food Pyramid, Depression, Middle Class, Economic Crisis, Halloween, Tricks, Recession, Advice, Financial Advice, Pharmaceutical Industry, Free Stuff, Treats, Satire, Trick-or-Treating, Nutrition, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Financial Crisis, Comedy, Economy, Milk Chocolate, Humor, Halloween Candy, Nuts, Raisins, Budget, Living, Thanksgiving, Comedy News
Lesley Stern

Halloween traditionally marks the end of the harvest season when people begin storing necessities for the long, lean months ahead. Which is exactly the way you should be looking at it now.

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Republicans Must Stop Playing Politics With Unemployment Benefits

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand | Posted 10.19.2009 | New York

Read More: Unemployment Benefits, Long Island, Senate Republicans, Recovery, Economic Policy, New York City, Middle Class, Economic Stimulus, Joblessness, Senate Democrats, Hudson Valley, Recession, New York News
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand

Rather than do what is right, Republicans did what was politically convenient, twice blocking the unemployment extension last week in an effort to derail other economic recovery programs.

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Lessons From Letterman in Health Reform

Robert Reich | Posted 10.19.2009 | Politics

Read More: Big Pharma, Senate Finance Committee Health Care Bill, Robert Reich, Public Option, Middle Class, Health Insurance, Obama Big Pharma, Barack Obama, Ama, Nancy Pelosi, American Medical Association, Health Care, Health Insurance Reform, David Letterman, Politics News
Robert Reich

If Obama doesn't weigh in forcefully and say "no" to the hush money arranged in January for Big Pharma, big insurance, and the AMA, America's middle class will get walloped. And so will he in 2012.

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Bernie Sanders: The Middle Class Today Is In Desperate Shape (VIDEO)

The Huffington Post | Posted 10.17.2009 | Politics

Read More: Senator Sanders Unfiltered, Wall Street Executive, Wall Street, Economic Crisis, Middle Class, Vermont, Bernie Sanders Unfiltered, Financial Crisis, Bernie Sanders, Wall Street Bonuses, Sanders, Politics News

Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-Vermont) was on fire in his weekly YouTube video, "Senator Sanders Unfiltered." "The reality is that the middle class today ...

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Last Words From the Vanishing Middle Class

Francine Hardaway | Posted 10.13.2009 | Politics

Read More: Capitalism: A Love Story, Michael Moore, Mortgage Relief, Phoenix, Aurora Loan Services, Loan, Small Business, Mortgage, Economic Crisis, Economic Hardship, Middle Class, Financial Crisis, Declining Middle Class, Mortgage Crisis, Politics News
Francine Hardaway

I personify the vanishing middle class. When I started my business in 1980, I had a pretty good life. Twenty-five years later, my standard of living has totally deteriorated.

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How The Middle Class Got Squeezed: Charles Hugh Smith

DailyFinance | Charles Hugh Smith | Posted 10.12.2009 | Business

Read More: Tarp, Elizabeth Warren, Middle Class Wages, Charles Hugh Smith, Middle Class, Globalization, Financial Innovation, Congressional Oversight Panel, Business News

The current recession has stoked deep-seated fears about a declining middle class. A great collective anxiety about such a decline has been floating a...

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Middle-Class Family Forced Into Homeless Shelter

The Huffington Post | Tam Vo | Posted 10.13.2009 | Impact

Read More: Foreclosures, Virginia, Job Loss, Middle Class Family, Middle Class, Homeless Shelters, Homeless, American Homelessness, Joblessness, Viriginia Homeless, Impact News

It's estimated that 7 million more homes are going into foreclosure, which is dramatically changing the the face of those who are without a place to l...

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Health Insurance Companies Want Severe Penalties For People Who Do Not Buy Coverage

The Associated Press | By ERICA WERNER | Posted 10.06.2009 | Politics

Read More: Lobbying, Lobbyists, Senate Finance Committee, Health CareHealth Care, Low-Income, Alissa Fox, Peter Orszag, Pre-Existing Conditions, Middle Class, Insurance Companies, Mandatory Insurance, Debbie Stabenow, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Health Insurance Companies, Schumer, Penalties, Public Option, Health Care Reform, Karen Ignagni, Individual Mandate, Chuck Schumer, America's Health Insurance Plans, Stabenow, Health Care, Politics News

WASHINGTON (AP)-- The health insurance industry doesn't want Congress to let you off easy if you decide to ignore a proposed requirement that all Amer...

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