Us Economy

The Right Country for Old Men

Dan Dorfman | Posted 11.06.2009 | Business


Dan Dorfman

The last time I caught up with our octogenarian was in the summer of 2007. At the time, Russell made what I thought was a remarkable call, telling me he thought there was a good chance "all hell could break loose."

Bloomberg Blames Economic Backlash For Close Win

AP | SARA KUGLER | Posted 11.04.2009 | New York


NEW YORK — Democrats who saw how close their candidate came to unseating New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg agonized Wednesday about what might ha...

On Financial Reform

Hale "Bonddad" Stewart | Posted 11.04.2009 | Business


Hale

Many have blamed the repeal of Glass-Steagall as a primary driver of the financial meltdown; hence, putting it back in place should be part of financial reform. But there's more than one way to look at financial reform.

For Wall Street and Goldman Sachs the Party Continues

Joseph A. Palermo | Posted 11.02.2009 | Business


Joseph A. Palermo

A criminal gang of rich white guys in New York did some extremely reckless things with the nation's collective wealth, and the middle class got clobbered.

White House: 650,000 Jobs In New Stimulus Report

AP | MATT APUZZO and BRETT J. BLACKLEDGE | Posted 10.30.2009 | Business


WASHINGTON — Nearly 650,000 jobs have been saved or created under President Barack Obama's economic stimulus plan, the government said Friday, a...

'Third Quarter Growth' and Other Things That Mean Nothing To You

Allison Kilkenny | Posted 10.30.2009 | Business


Allison Kilkenny

If life still sucks for you: you're still unemployed, depressed, broke, homeless, or scraping by on food stamps, don't worry. You're not alone.

The Lawyers Who Would Torture

David A. Love | Posted 10.29.2009 | Books


David A. Love

Throughout history we have witnessed the ways in which societies compromise their legal systems to oppress the many, benefit the few, and sanction the unconscionable.

New Commerce Report Shows Economy Grew In Third Quarter, Signals End Of Recession: AP

AP | JEANNINE AVERSA | Posted 10.30.2009 | Business


WASHINGTON — After a record four straight losing quarters, the economy finally grew again. It was hardly a boom, and it was almost all because o...

Who Wants Yesterday's Frameworks?

Paul David Walker | Posted 10.26.2009 | Living


Paul David Walker

One of my mentors had said to me years ago, "Do you want to be right, or win." My thought sounded like Jack Welch, "I want both."

Wall Street Posts Strong Gains on Knowledge It Can Do Whatever the F*** it Wants

Jerome Halligan | Posted 10.23.2009 | Comedy


Jerome Halligan

The Dow Jones Industrial Average soared above 10,000 again Tuesday, chiefly on the strength of a report that Wall Street executives can do "basically anything they f***ing want, whenever they f***ing want."

You Don't Buy Clothes When You Get Foreclosed

Lita Smith-Mines | Posted 10.22.2009 | Business


Lita Smith-Mines

My foray back into stores after a long, involuntary hiatus was disturbing. The parking spaces and aisles were vacant. I guess, when you lose your house to foreclosure, your closets go too.

Federal Deficit Is A Triumph Of Fiscal Policy: Stan Collender

Capital Gains and Games | Stan Collender | Posted 10.20.2009 | Politics


Despite the headlines and the page-one, right-hand column, above-the-fold stories in the New York Times and Washington Post on Saturday, I'm not at al...

Krugman: The Banks Are Not Alright

New York Times | Paul Krugman | Posted 10.19.2009 | Business


It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. O.K., maybe not literally the worst, but definitely bad. And the contrast between the immense goo...

Soros: U.S. Economy Will Be A Drag On World Growth

Reuters | Posted 10.16.2009 | Business


Billionaire investor and philanthropist George Soros said on Thursday that the world's current "currency arrangements" are fraught with danger and tha...

Wall Street Treasury Complex is the Problem

Diane Francis | Posted 10.15.2009 | Business


Diane Francis

An examination of the causes of the financial meltdown and proposals for reform to prevent new catastrophic bubbles from forming and bursting.

$2.5 Billion Budget Cuts: Paterson To Slash Health, Education

nydailynews.com | Kenneth Lovett | Posted 10.15.2009 | New York


Get ready for more pain. Gov. Paterson will propose $2.5 billion in budget cuts today - primarily in health and education - to close a mushrooming def...

Where's the Reporting On the Fraud That Led to the Economic Collapse?

Barry Sussman | Posted 10.15.2009 | Media


Barry Sussman

Economist James Galbraith says America's economic collapse "was the product of wide-scale criminal fraud" but that the press, instead of investigating it properly, has treated it as a 'boys will be boys" phenomenon.

Eviction Yard Sale: A Scene That Is Surely Replicating Itself All Over America.

Rob Kall | Posted 10.14.2009 | Living


Rob Kall

A recent CNN study found that almost half of all Americans are living paycheck to paycheck.

Claude and Francois-Xavier Lalanne: Recession-Friendly Art Featured On New York City Streets

The New York Observer | Katharine Jose | Posted 10.12.2009 | New York


There is now a large bronze apple on the median of Park Avenue at 52nd Street, just west of the Seagrams building. The apple is large enough to notice...

Won't You Please Come to Chicago?

Dean Baker | Posted 10.12.2009 | Business


Dean Baker

The bankers wrecked the economy with their greed, ran off with taxpayer dollars in a massive bailout, and now plan to raise taxes for the rest of us. If that picture doesn't sound quite right, then go to Chicago.

"Fear and Loathing" in the American Workplace

Susan Older | Posted 10.11.2009 | Living


Susan Older

The unemployed grapple with their losses on a daily basis. But what about the ranks of the still-employed who live in fear of being tapped for the next layoff or becoming the target of managers who can fire them at will?

U.S. Job Openings Fall To Lowest Level In At Least Nine Years

AP | CHRISTOPHER S. RUGABER | Posted 10.09.2009 | Business


WASHINGTON — The number of job seekers competing for each opening has reached the highest point since the recession began, according to governme...

Most Low-Income New Yorkers Have Less Than $1K In Their Bank Accounts

Crain's New York Business | Daniel Massey | Posted 10.08.2009 | New York


A survey of low-income New Yorkers shows that two-thirds have less than $1,000 in savings to fall back on should even tougher times hit, while one-thi...

Are 44,000 Deaths a Year More Or Less Important Than 7.6 Million Lost Jobs?

Stephen Herrington | Posted 10.07.2009 | Politics


Stephen Herrington

44,000 deaths is the equivalent of 14.6 of Al Qaeda's 9/11s per year. It's 24 Katrina-scale disasters per year. It is a pandemic of omission and exclusion.

What a Difference a Year Makes: Lessons From a Family $1,000 Away From Homeless

Karen Talavera | Posted 10.07.2009 | Living


Karen Talavera

Among all possible parties to play the role of eleventh-hour savior for Debbie Hobson, there was our good ol' US government -- the IRS no less -- just doing its job.