Without the elements of trust and fairness, democracy and free market capitalism cannot work. And poll after consumer poll reveals that a greater percentage than not believes our government and the business and financial sectors are lacking both.

This is the first real attempt at truly comprehensive immigration reform, and it might actually have a shot. So what does this mean for startups? And why does this matter?

More than two thirds of manufacturers are having difficulty finding skilled employees. We cannot stand by hoping someone else will solve our skills gap crisis. Industry, government and educators need to work together to implement solutions that work.

This report takes a closer look at monetary policy, what the FOMC is trying to accomplish, where voting members are in the process and ultimately, how far we have traveled from "home."

The bond-rating agency Moody's made itself famous for giving subprime mortgage backed securities triple-A ratings at the peak of the housing bubble. Well, Moody's is back. They announced plans to change the way they treat pension obligations in assessing state and local government debt.

Proposed tax changes should have to stand on whether they'll a) help to raise the revenue we need to meet future challenges that are coming fast, or b) boost growth in ways that actually matter to contemporary economies.

OMAHA, Neb. -- Part rock concert, part investment workshop, the annual gathering of Berkshire Hathaway shareholders is an odd mix. But that's just ho...

Payrolls increased by 165,000 last month and the unemployment rate ticked down to 7.5 percent, in a jobs report that painted a considerably brighter picture than last month's version.

Nominal wages for incumbent workers are still pretty sticky. If you're lucky enough to have a job, think about your own case. I suspect you haven't seen much in the way of raises, but has your salary actually been cut in nominal terms?

Capitalism's founder Adam Smith's "invisible hand" is indeed invisible to most of society. However, that invisible hand now belongs to big business, finance and government -- to whom it is very visible indeed.

It all comes down to this, the U.S. government will not be able to service its debt once interest rates normalize, and that will be the sad truth regardless of what voodoo tricks Washington uses to report GDP.

If you have studied economics at the university level in the last 35 years, it is likely you were introduced to the concept of "asymmetrical information" and George Akerlof's famous 1970 article on markets for "lemons."

Expect next week's policy meetings to signal that central bank stand ready to step in, once again, to maintain the disconnect between buoyant equity markets and sluggish economic conditions -- not as an end in itself but, given Congressional dysfunction, as virtually the only way today to support economic activity (and it is rather imperfect as the expected benefits come with growing costs and risks). Look for the Federal Reserve to alter the thrust of its policy narrative. Rather than advance its prior emphasis on tapering its monthly $85 billion purchases of market securities, it will seek to reassure markets by iterating its willingness to do more if needed. Across the Atlantic, the European Central Bank will face increasing pressure to cut its interest rate (currently at 0.75%) and liberalize the collateral requirements it imposes -- both meant to loosen monetary conditions.

Is this bipartisan support to mitigate one of the noxious effects of sequestration? Or is it papering over the high-visibility stuff that affects the affluent while lots of other budget bleeding goes on beneath the radar?

Think about three million empty, decaying and devalued houses following the leveraged-up mortgage crash of 2008. And what about the jobs lost, and spike in the number of people living below the poverty line?

* First-quarter growth accelerates at 2.5 percent rate * Inventories, consumer spending boost growth * Business spending on equipment, software ...

You can't order up your government dysfunction with a side of efficiency. You're either on the we're-the-Tea-Party-and-we're-here-to-shut-things-down bus or you're off of it.