STOCK MARKET WATCH, Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Source: du

STOCK MARKET WATCH, Wednesday, February 23, 2011

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Euro, Yen, Loonie, Silver and Gold

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Bush Administration Officials Convicted = 2
Names: David Safavian, James Fondren
Dishonorable Mention: former House majority leader, Tom DeLay

Bush Administration Officials Charged = 1
Name(s): Richard Lopez Razo

Financial Sector Officials Convicted since 1/20/09 = 11

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This thread contains opinions and observations. Individuals may post their experiences, inferences and opinions on this thread. However, it should not be construed as advice. It is unethical (and probably illegal) for financial recommendations to be given here.

Read more: du

Feb 23 07:00 MBA Mortgage Index 02/18 NA NA -9.5%
Feb 23 10:00 Existing Home Sales Jan 5.40M 5.23M 5.28M

http://www.briefing.com/Investor/Public/Calendars/EconomicCalendar.htm

(Reuters) - Applications for home mortgages rebounded last week, fueled by a jump in refinancing activity as interest rates pulled back, an industry group said on Wednesday.

The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage application activity, which includes both refinancing and home purchase demand, rose 13.2 percent in the week ended February 18. It was the biggest weekly jump since early October 2010.

"Ongoing turmoil in the Middle East brought interest rates lower last week. Borrowers took advantage of these lower rates, bringing application activity back near levels from two weeks ago, following sharp declines last week," Michael Fratantoni, MBA's vice president of research and economics, said in a statement.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/02/23/us-usa-economy-mortgages-idUSTRE71136Y20110223

Massaged to within an inch of actual life...

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Sales of existing homes rose a seasonally-adjusted 2.7% in January for the fifth monthly rise in six, a trade group said Wednesday as it also announced a major review into the quality of its data. The National Association of Realtors said sales of existing homes were at a seasonally-adjusted annualized rate of 5.36 million from a downwardly revised 5.22 million in December. Economists polled by MarketWatch expected a 5.22 million pace for January. On a year-over-year basis, sales rose 5.3%, and activity is now above the level when a now-expired tax credit existed. The realtors group also, as planned, revised monthly figures from 2008 to 2010 ahead of a bigger review that's due in the summer. The trade group's data has been called overstated by as much as 20% though the NAR's chief economist said he hoped the revision would be in "single digits." The median price of home sales - which weren't affected by this revision and aren't expected to be by the summer review - fell 3.7% from last year to $158,800, the lowest since April 2002.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/existing-home-sales-up-27-in-january-2011-02-23

SINGAPORE – Oil prices rose to fresh two-year highs near $96 a barrel in Asia on Wednesday amid trader concern a violent power struggle in Libya could disrupt crude supplies.

Benchmark crude for April delivery was up 47 cents at $95.89 a barrel — the highest since October 2008 — at late afternoon Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract jumped $5.71, or 6.4 percent, to settle at $95.42 on Tuesday.

In London, Brent crude for April delivery gained $1.08 to $106.86 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi on Tuesday called on supporters to attack anti-government demonstrators as protesters backed by defecting army units claimed control over almost the entire eastern half of the country, including several oil-producing areas.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/oil_prices

the protests from said oil companies? I don't know that such cynical manipulation exists. I'm just saying it would be a really shrewd business move. And while we're at it, if business profit makes up your sole ethic, this is the kind of world you can expect. Theft for profit, murder for profit, revolution for profit, slavery for profit--it's all okay if it's for profit.

No, I'd say this was another of those "unexpected" events. Since Gaddaffi had the place in chains for 40 years, they figured they were good for the foreseeable future. Too bad the crystal ball was cloudy.

Everyone is pulling out their citizenry. People are dying, refugees are flooding into Europe. It's the real thing.

Funny that it would be Libya. I thought for sure the Saudis.

Abdullah and the boys have had a few sleepless nights over the last month.

to take over as soon as he had the decency to die of old age. It was the perfect setup for the oil boys, dictatorship into the future until the wells petered out and then they'd go install dictators in somebody else's country and prop them up for decades.

No, the oil boys didn't want this one, it's really bad news. Libya isn't Egypt. It's still largely tribal, the identification with the old tribe and its region being as important as identification as Libyan. The tribe sitting on the oil is going to want to keep it. The other tribes are going to object, and there is likely to be a mess there for some time to come, whether or not Gadhafi realizes it's over and retires to a palatial villa in Italy.

While reform is necessary and desirable, the short term consequences will not be pretty.

the US is sponsoring the Muslim Brotherhood. But I don't believe that rumour any more than I believe we once supported and still support Al Quida. That's all just idol gossip. The Pentagon had the #2 of Al Quida over for tea, nothing out of the ordinary.


Edited to add: Demeter, while it does not benefit the US if the profit center goes up in flames, it would be foolish to think we didn't have operatives on the ground to see that we couldn't mold a fluid situation in our direction.

It's rather like "The Prisoner", with a different #2 every episode...

Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri

Al-Qaeda's theological leader
Born: 6/9/1951
Birthplace: Cairo, Egypt

Born into an affluent family, al-Zawahiri became active in militant Islam at an early age. At 15 he was arrested for membership in the Muslim Brotherhood, which sought to remove foreign influence from Egyptian society. Al-Zawahiri graduated from medical school in 1974. In the 1970s he joined the Egyptian Islamist movement, and served three years in prison, where he was tortured, in connection to the assassination of President Anwar Sadat. After his release he went to Saudi Arabia and the Pakistan, finally moving to Afghanistan, where he became Osama bin Laden's personal physician and an important adviser. Al-Zawahiri is suspected of helping organize the 1997 massacre of 67 foreign tourists at Luxor and was indicted by the U.S. in connection with the 1998 bombings of two U.S. embassies in Africa. Suspected of involvement in a series of assassinations and bombings against Egyptian targets. He was later sentenced to death by an Egyptian court. Al-Zawahiri is believed to have helped organize the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. The U.S. has offered a $25 million reward for al-Zawahiri.

More....

Read more: Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri — Infoplease.com http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0886167.html#ixzz1En6zODAW


Top bin Laden aide toured state / SPECIAL REPORT: Al-Zawahiri solicited funds under the guise of refugee reliefOctober 11, 2001|By Lance Williams, Erin McCormick, Chronicle Staff Writers



Terrorist bombs in 1998 destroyed the U.S. Embassy (pictured) in downtown Nairobi, Kenya, and the U.S. Embassy in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Associated Press photo by Dave CaulkinTwo confessed members of a Silicon Valley terrorist cell say they brought Osama bin Laden's top aide to the Bay Area several years ago to raise money for terror attacks, according to documents and interviews.

Ayman al-Zawahiri, who is bin Laden's chief deputy and a suspect in a long list of terrorist crimes that includes planning last month's attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, visited the United States in the 1990s on covert fund-raising trips, the two men have told authorities.

Traveling with a stolen passport supplied by the local terrorists and using a fake name, al-Zawahiri, who has called on Muslims to kill "Americans wherever they are," visited mosques in Santa Clara, Stockton and Sacramento as part of a coast-to-coast fund-raising mission, according to these accounts.

More.....

http://articles.sfgate.com/2001-10-11/news/17620561_1_al-zawahiri-laden-bin


Al Quaeda Tapes Digitally Doctored

<snip>


Both Kerry and Bush attributed the President's 2004 re-election to Osama Bin Laden's appearance in a video tape just days before the vote. Veteran newsman Walter Cronkite mused that the whole farce was a Karl Rove orchestrated set-up.

On the eve of the Iraq war during Colin Powell's infamous presentation to the UN, an audio tape in which bin Laden claimed he was allied with Saddam Hussein surfaced, a gift-wrapped present for the Neo-Cons who had consistently been proven wrong in their assertion that there was a connection between Iraq and 9/11.

Ayman Al-Zawahiri appeared right on cue at the exact same time two years running, days before the State of the Union, to slam Bush as a "butcher" and a "failure." His timing is impeccable! Right when Bush needs to reinforce the fear of the shadowy enemy each January to mute his critics before the big speech, al-Zawahiri pops up with the goods.

Krawetz's analysis (view in PDF) further concludes that different objects and green screen backgrounds have been artificially added to certain videos, including that of probable Mossad double agent Adam Pearlman, in order to "lend authority and reverence to the video".

The smoking gun remains the fact that the two logos, the As-Sahab "terrorist" media arm and the IntelCenter organization, were added at exactly the same time, meaning either that IntelCenter, with its close ties to the U.S. government and psychological operation, has terrorists on the payroll or that IntelCenter itself is doctoring and directly releasing Al-Qaeda propaganda tapes.

Both conclusions are equally disturbing and demand an immediate FBI investigation of IntelCenter and its owners.

http://www.bibliotecapleyades.net/sociopolitica/sociopol_binladen06.htm

Maybe I am just paranoid but I no faith in the government anymore of either party. They are capable of the most heinous of acts to protect their power, position, and money.

They deserve it. They've had them coming for a long time---it's just not possible to paper over or "disappear" the the facts anymore. Long live Wikileaks and Anonymous!!

Rough-rice for May delivery dropped 4.7 percent in Chicago, taking its three-day drop to 9.8 percent. Copper for delivery in three months fell 0.5 percent on the London Metal Exchange, and nickel and lead retreated. Cotton for delivery in May declined 3.7 percent. Gold rose 0.2 percent to $1,401.43 an ounce.

The euro appreciated against 12 out of its 16 most-traded peers, rising 0.6 percent versus the yen. The pound rallied, strengthening 0.5 percent against the Swiss franc, after minutes showed central bank policy maker Andrew Sentance voted for a 50 basis point increase.

...

More than three companies fell for every one that rose on the Stoxx 600, while the MSCI Asia Pacific Index lost 0.6 percent. OMV AG, central Europe’s biggest oil company, slumped 5.6 percent after Chief Executive Officer Wolfgang Ruttenstorfer said output from Libya could be halted. Air France-KLM Group, Europe’s second-largest airline by sales, dropped 1.6 percent. Accor SA, Europe’s biggest hotelier, slumped 3.8 percent after saying it will accelerate an asset-disposal plan.

Home Sales

The gain in U.S. futures indicated the S&P 500 may trim some of yesterday’s 2.1 percent plunge. Sales of previously owned U.S. homes probably dropped 1.1 percent in January to a 5.22 million annual rate, showing any recovery will take time to develop, economists said before a report from the National Association of Realtors, due at 10 a.m. in Washington.

/... http://noir.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aHv7KKhvSXlE&pos=2

Feb. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Rice fell in Chicago, heading for the biggest three-day drop since March 2009, and corn slid on speculation that protests in North Africa and the Middle East will curb demand.

Rice, corn, wheat and soybeans all fell by the maximum allowed by the exchange yesterday as violence escalated in Libya. National leader Muammar Qaddafi vowed to fight a growing rebellion until his “last drop of blood” as bodies were left in Tripoli’s streets. Uprisings toppled presidents in the past month in Tunisia and Egypt, the world’s largest wheat buyer.

“The uncertainty in the Middle East will have an effect” on demand for grains, said Andrew Dewing, chief executive of Dewing Grain in Aylsham, England. “Oil is probably, because of the situation, a more volatile commodity, and I suspect that’s where the funds are headed with their money. They’re coming out of grains and going into oil.”

Rice for May delivery declined 55.5 cents, or 3.8 percent, to $14.02 per 100 pounds at 9:38 a.m. London time on the Chicago Board of Trade. Prices have slid 9 percent since trading ended on Feb. 17, partly on speculation that growers will boost production of the grain.

/... http://noir.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aKtgGoe28XH8&pos=5

the rice with or without plastic.

Since I fall into a couple of those categories, no wonder I feel downtrodden.

He forgot women, liberals, atheists and educated, though. In general, if your aren't a white male Fundie, you are less than second class (unless you are an Overlord, in which case, there is no comparison).

Come to think of it, aren't the biggest, baddest Overlords white male fundies, like the Supremes, and the Kochs, and the BFEE?

I was really the economic/layoff news last night and I got SO ANGRY. The other groups in the cartoon have had to deal with being scapegoated for quite some time; now, as a member of a scapegoated group (union teachers), I'm experiencing first hand what it feels like.

Fortunately this hasn't hit locally, but we'll see.

In Texas, you learn to grow a tough hide.

I dedicate this song to you PBD....

"A Boy Named Sue"

My daddy left home when I was three
And he didn't leave much to ma and me
Just this old guitar and an empty bottle of booze.
Now, I don't blame him cause he run and hid
But the meanest thing that he ever did
Was before he left, he went and named me "Sue."

Well, he must o' thought that is quite a joke
And it got a lot of laughs from a' lots of folk,
It seems I had to fight my whole life through.
Some gal would giggle and I'd get red
And some guy'd laugh and I'd bust his head,
I tell ya, life ain't easy for a boy named "Sue."

Well, I grew up quick and I grew up mean,
My fist got hard and my wits got keen,
I'd roam from town to town to hide my shame.
But I made a vow to the moon and stars
That I'd search the honky-tonks and bars
And kill that man who gave me that awful name.

<snip>

I tell ya, I've fought tougher men
But I really can't remember when,
He kicked like a mule and he bit like a crocodile.
I heard him laugh and then I heard him cuss,
He went for his gun and I pulled mine first,
He stood there lookin' at me and I saw him smile.

And he said: "Son, this world is rough
And if a man's gonna make it, he's gotta be tough
And I knew I wouldn't be there to help ya along.
So I give ya that name and I said goodbye
I knew you'd have to get tough or die
And it's the name that helped to make you strong."

He said: "Now you just fought one hell of a fight
And I know you hate me, and you got the right
To kill me now, and I wouldn't blame you if you do.
But ya ought to thank me, before I die,
For the gravel in ya guts and the spit in ya eye
Cause I'm the son-of-a-bitch that named you "Sue.'"

<snip>

U.S. stock-index futures climbed, indicating the benchmark Standard & Poor’s 500 Index will rebound from the biggest drop since August.

Applied Materials Inc. advanced 1.2 percent in German trading as Piper Jaffray Cos. advised buying the shares. Hewlett-Packard Co. slumped 11 percent after the world’s largest computer maker forecast second-quarter profit and sales that missed analysts’ predictions.

Futures on the S&P 500 expiring in March gained 0.4 percent to 1,319.2 as of 10:2 a.m. in London. The measure tumbled 2.1 percent yesterday as escalating violence in Libya increased political tension in North Africa and the Middle East. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 0.3 percent to 12,220 today, while Nasdaq-100 Index futures advanced 0.4 percent to 2,330.5.

“It’s unlikely that instability in the Middle East is enough in its own right to destabilize the economic recovery,” said Joshua Raymond, a market strategist at City Index Ltd. in London. “Small corrections in prices can be healthy for long- term bull moves in equities.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-02-23/u-s-stock-futures-gain-s-p-500-may-rebound-from-biggst-drop-since-august.html

http://www.ianfraser.org/andrew-haldane-outlines-proposals-for-breaking-the-doom-loop/

The Bank of England’s Andy Haldane gave a fresh perspective on the causes of the global financial crisis and ran through the bank’s favoured cures at a recent lecture he gave to the Irish think tank the Institute of International and European Affairs.

Haldane, the BoE’s executive director of financial stability, who also sits on the Basel Committee, kicked off by reminding his audience of the severity of the crisis and why another one is literally unaffordable.

He said that the permanent loss of output caused by the global financial crisis is between $50 trillion ($50,000bn) and $200 trillion. That’s between one and four years’ global production of goods and services globally. He also put the amount of money thrown at the problem (in bailouts etc) by governments around the world at $15 trillion and counting — 13% of global GDP.

Charting the reasons for the global financial collapse Haldane said that UK and US banks (and those in certain other countries) had been allowed to grow too big. He described how they had ballooned their balance sheets in 2000-07 largely by lending vast sums to each other — as opposed to the real economy...

MORE AND VIDEO AT LINK

:patriot:

Welcome, brother.

Our union office has a poster with "racism," "sexism," "homophobia," etc. labeled on trash cans - we are all in this together, and we'll either stand together or fall alone.

I've been labeled an "Environmentalist"

Indian Scapegoat checking in (we survived the genocide and all we have to show for it is a lousy POW Camp-AKA the REZ)

Plank after plank of the mortgage recording company MERS’ business model has come under attack. To date, the results do not look good for the embattled company.

MERS has repeatedly insisted that its operations are legal. It would be more accurate to say that insufficient attention was paid to legal issues when the firm was created and the permissibility of its operations were under the radar and hence in a legal grey area for many years. Now that they have been challenged in court, MERS has had to retreat from many positions it took in public. Despite its protestations that everything it did was kosher, the database firm has now retreated from one of its widespread practices, of allowing foreclosures to be made in the name of MERS, after a number of state supreme courts and Federal bankruptcy courts issued rulings to the contrary.

Not surprisingly, MERS has the look of a company in trouble. Not only did its president R.K. Arnold resign in early January, but its corporate secretary, Bill Hultman, who among other things supervised its legal department, was demoted a few days ago. Having read a few of Arnold’s and Hultman’s evasive and damaging depositions, I have to wonder where the board has been all these years. This move is long overdue.

The week before, MERS suffered a major blow in a bankruptcy (Federal) court ruling in New York state, (in Re Ferrel R. Agard). The judge effectively found the MERS system to be evidence of…..precisely nothing. We’ve noted before the numerous flaws, troubling signs of a lack of standard database/data entry/data integrity protocols. Updating the records is strictly voluntary, and accuracy of changes to the database is the members’ responsibility. Given that the people who have access to the system are low level staff who are trained minimally if at all and subject to high levels of turnover, this “system” is a prescription for a record keeping mess.

And as the judge noted, there is no reason to believe anything, from either a practical or legal standpoint, that anything contained in MERS’ records corresponds to reality:

http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2011/02/mers-endgame-nearing-one-county-seeks-over-22-million-for-unpaid-recording-fees.html

Dismissal notices were sent to every public school teacher in Providence as a precaution because the budget process is still ongoing, a news release from the city said Tuesday.

The release said the notices were sent to comply with a state law that says teachers must be notified about potential layoffs by March 1.

City officials said all teachers were notified because the city's budget has yet to be determined.

"Because it is too early in the process to be certain of all possible changes to the school budget, issuing dismissal notices to all teachers provides maximum flexibility moving forward," the news release said.

http://www2.turnto10.com/news/2011/feb/22/all-providence-teachers-get-layoff-notices-precaut-ar-403579/

Marshall & Ilsley Corp. said it will cut employment by 143 positions — 15 of them in southeast Wisconsin — but said the layoffs are not related to the pending acquisition of M&I by BMO Financial.

The work force reduction amounts to 1.6 percent of Milwaukee-based M&I’s total employment, bank spokeswoman Sara Schmitz said Tuesday. The company is eliminating positions ranging from internal support to management-level. The affected employees “will receive generous severance packages, including outplacement services,” she said.

“This announcement is a result of an internal evaluation and realignment of staffing and was not related to the pending combination of M&I and BMO Financial Group,” Schmitz said.

http://www.bizjournals.com/milwaukee/news/2011/02/22/mi-cutting-143-positions.html

MASCOT, Tenn. (WVLT)-- Nearly 200 workers will lose their jobs this year because a distribution center for GE Energy is closing. Now, employees must find a new job to provide for their families, like Daniel Rippel.

"I was real excited. I just bought my first house with my wife, and when I came in Friday a man I don't even know tells me I'm going to lose my job," said Daniel Rippel who has been with TMSi since 2008. "It was devastating."

Rippel said his wife was unpacking boxes inside their new home, which they moved into just a couple of days ago, when he told her he will be losing his job. The 22-year-old said he will probably be the first to go in May, and he's already searching for a new job.

"Almost immediately was trying to figure out what we're going to do. It's rough," he said.

http://www.volunteertv.com/home/headlines/116636823.html

Wells Fargo & Co. is closing a customer service center in Jacksonville that employs 150 people, the company announced Tuesday.

The California-based company currently employs about 3,900 people in North Florida and 16,000 total in Florida after acquiring Wachovia Corp. in December 2008.

It currently has about 200 openings in North Florida, and the 150 workers at the Customer Connection center in Deerwood Park who are losing their jobs will have the opportunity to apply for those positions, Wells Fargo spokeswoman Kathy Harrison said.

The affected workers will also have access to career counseling and can apply for jobs at Customer Connection centers in other locations, Harrison said. The employees will receive moving assistance if they are accepted at another location.

Read more at Jacksonville.com: http://jacksonville.com/business/2011-02-22/story/wells-fargo-closing-jacksonville-service-center-employs-150#ixzz1Emd2AFII

for the fact that NO affected workers will be given slots...save for a few tokens (but only if WF feels the need to CYA its pathetic lies to the pink-slipped)

Management of Carlson Mktg did just that to workers in Dayton, OH when they took off for MN many years ago...

Nothing truthful to see here except the lay off notice.

MIDDLETOWN — A deal between two steel processing companies would eliminate scores of jobs from the Middletown area.

Announced Tuesday, the deal between Worthington Industries, Inc., and MISA Metals, Inc., would close some of MISA’s Middletown facilities, a move which will eliminate more than 100 jobs.

Columbus-based Worthington Industries and Marubeni-Itochu Steel America Inc. announced they struck a deal to form a joint venture of their steel building products companies. The steel companies agreed in principle on a joint venture of Dietrich Metal Framing, a subsidiary of Worthington, and ClarkWestern Building Systems, a subsidiary of MISA.

In the process, Worthington will acquire three of MISA Metal’s facilities in Ohio and Tennessee, closing MISA’s corporate office, the main plant and what’s called blue sky plant in Middletown probably in the next couple months, said Cathy Lyttle, Worthington Industries spokeswoman.

http://www.middletownjournal.com/news/middletown-news/misa-facilities-to-close-lose-100-plus-jobs-1088416.html?cxtype=rss_local-news

and if they want the job next year, will need to reapply (at lesser salary). But union will be gone?

Except we didn't even have a union to act as an excuse.

TBD.com, the high-profile Washington, D.C. news site that launched in August, is embarking on a massive round of layoffs, it was reported Wednesday. The site's editor, Erik Wemple, told the Washington City Paper that TBD will now become "a niche site on arts and entertainment," meaning that it is abandoning its attempt to be a local news site.

The Washington Business Journal reported that Albritton, the company which owns TBD, is eliminating the majority of the jobs at the site. "All but a handful" of the around two dozen staffers will be let go, the WBJ wrote.

The website WeLoveDC later reported that all of the news and sports reporters, as well as the social media team, is being fired.

The moves come two weeks after Albritton television station WJLA assumed control of TBD.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/23/huge-layoffs-at-tdbcom_n_827142.html

EATONTOWN — Three contractors at an Army installation in New Jersey that's preparing to close plan to lay off 525 workers beginning next month.

L-3 Services Inc., CTSC LLC, and TECOM-Vinnell Services filed notice of the layoffs with the state Labor Department.

Fort Monmouth is slated to close by mid-September and its mission will move to Aberdeen, Md.

Gary Ramsey, facilities manager at TECOM-Vinnell, which helps to maintain the fort's buildings and grounds told the Asbury Park Press it's sad because people have worked at the fort a long time.

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2011/02/three_fort_monmouth_contractor.html

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — The Salem-Keizer School District is considering closing some small schools and cutting 400 teaching positions next year to offset a $55 million budget shortfall.

Superintendent Sandy Husk presented options Tuesday night to a budget committee.

The Statesman Journal reports the cuts could be worse. The budget plans assume the Legislature will adopt a school fund higher than the one proposed by the governor. It also assumes employee unions will agree to reduce pay and benefits by at least $11 million.

http://www.koinlocal6.com/news/local/story/Salem-Keizer-considering-teacher-layoffs-school/Gw3QITf5M0GDdrOjmpfWBA.cspx

STOCKTON - Stockton Unified's trustees voted late Tuesday to send layoff notices to nearly 500 employees, including 270 teachers, as the district braces for the possibility of slashing as much as $28.3 million from its 2011-12 budget.

Chief Financial Officer Jason Willis told the board that to balance the district budget, $19.1 million in labor reductions are needed. The other $9.2 million in cuts would come from federal education jobs funding and from non-labor reductions to district spending.

"Many may ask, why is Stockton in this position?" Willis said to the trustees and the full house that packed the district boardroom. "The reality of the matter is, 75 percent of every dollar we receive ... comes from Sacramento. So in large part, where Sacramento goes is where Stockton and virtually every other district in California will follow."

Trustees voted 5-1, with Jose Morales dissenting, to send out the teacher and classified employee layoff notices.

http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20110223/A_NEWS/102230319/-1/A_NEWS04

February 22, 2011
Why Budget Cuts Don’t Bring Prosperity
By DAVID LEONHARDT
Washington

Remember the German economic boom of 2010?

Germany’s economic growth surged in the middle of last year, causing commentators both there and here to proclaim that American stimulus had failed and German austerity had worked. Germany’s announced budget cuts, the commentators said, had given private companies enough confidence in the government to begin spending their own money again.

Well, it turns out the German boom didn’t last long. With its modest stimulus winding down, Germany’s growth slowed sharply late last year, and its economic output still has not recovered to its prerecession peak. Output in the United States — where the stimulus program has been bigger and longer lasting — has recovered. This country would now need to suffer through a double-dip recession for its gross domestic product to be in the same condition as Germany’s.

Yet many members of Congress continue to insist that budget cuts are the path to prosperity. The only question in Washington seems to be how deeply to cut federal spending this year.

If the economy were at a different point in the cycle — not emerging from a financial crisis — the coming fight over spending could actually be quite productive. Republicans could force Democrats to make government more efficient, which Democrats rarely do on their own. Democrats could force Republicans to abandon the worst of their proposed cuts, like those to medical research, law enforcement, college financial aid and preschools. And maybe such a benevolent compromise can still occur over the next several years.

The immediate problem, however, is the fragility of the economy. Gross domestic product may have surpassed its previous peak, but it’s still growing too slowly for companies to be doing much hiring. States, of course, are making major cuts. A big round of federal cuts will only make things worse....

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/23/business/economy/23leonhardt.html?_r=1

i'll have to be more skeptical in the future when i read about how good the german economy is.

http://www.alternet.org/story/150010/us_uncut_--_a_grassroots_uprising_against_corporate_tax_deadbeats?page=entire


A few weeks before he died, Howard Zinn had lunch at the Warwick Hotel in Manhattan with New York Times columnist Bob Herbert. Their topic of conversation was, of course, social justice.

"If there is going to be change, real change," Zinn told Herbert, "it will have to work its way from the bottom up, from the people themselves. That's how change happens."


HOW THE BATTLE WAS ENGAGED.

IF I WERE TO DESIGNATE TARGETS FOR US-UNCUT, I'D START WITH KOCH INDUSTRIES AND GENERAL ELECTRIC. THEY ARE THE TWO BIGGEST NAILS STICKING OUT OF THE BODY POLITIC AND NEED TO BE POUNDED DOWN.

The IRS estimates that individuals and corporations currently hold $5 trillion in tax haven countries. Nearly two-thirds of corporations pay no taxes at all, and the great vampire squid, Goldman Sachs, which received $10 billion dollars in taxpayer money during the bailout, negotiated their tax rate down to one percent. The entire tax haven scam costs taxpayers as much as $100 billion per year....

Some of the worst corporate offenders are Hewlett-Packard, Verizon, Chevron, Ford, ExxonMobil and Bank of America. The biggest dodger is General Electric (GE), which, during a time of national economic crisis, actually made money on their tax filing in 2010. Though the company generated $10.3 billion in pretax income, it recorded $1.1 billion in tax benefits. Forbes calls this GE's "uncanny ability to lose lots of money in the US and make lots of money overseas, where tax rates are lower." Such activity is also known as tax dodging, but publications like Forbes prefer to avoid such shrill language...

It's too easily dodged.

All income received by human beings should be taxed, and all income should be taxed equally. Not a flat rate tax, but there should be no difference between earned income from wages and salaries, profit earned from self-employment, dividends from stocks owned, capital gains, inheritance, whatthefuckever. If you get it as income, it should be taxed.

Enough of this "well that's double taxation!" bullshit as a dodge. Lots of things get taxed twice. I pay tax on my income and I pay sales tax when I spend it. I pay property taxes every year on the same property, over and over and over again.

The government, in its many forms, protects and guarantees the transfer of wealth that is "income." those transfers should not be categorized differently just because some of them go mostly to wealthy people and some go mostly to poor people. All of them are transfers of wealth.

Tax rates based on the AMOUNT of income are one thing; tax rates based on the KIND of income are another.


Tansy Gold, who has had this discussion too many times with the BF, who invariably exits by changing the subject to sports

The Corpse have a slippery habit of shipping capital and income out of country whenever it pleases them, after stealing it from workers and taxpayers.

Actually, Tansy, Corpse can dodge taxes ONLY because they BOUGHT the government and the media and can shuffle profits out of the country while screwing local workers.

If national borders weren't so porous to corpses, then all nations would be in better shape. That's the whole game of NeoLiberalism, Free Markets and Globalism.

we'll talk fashion, shoes and taxes. --

1. I have absolutely no fashion sense whatsoever because my mother always told me NOTHING looked good on me, so I never cared.

2. I hate, loathe, and despise shoes. High heels ruined my feet so now I live in bare feet, granting only occasional wear to flip-flops and even more rarely well-worn sneakers.


I guess that means we'll have to discuss taxes.



Tansy Gold, famous for her bright green toenails all year 'round

and taxes.

i can do that for hours.

I am up for that. I can't do a mani because of my occupation, so I make up for in with pedis. By George, I have the best looking toes in a TSA lineup.

I am a real numbers geek too.

We will have a girls night out.:evilgrin:

taxes and toenail polish -- with cocktails.


i think we are on to something.

but I could be talked into this! :yourock:

:)

http://www.alternet.org/story/149991/how_corporations_have_mastered_the_art_of_not_paying_their_fair_share_of_taxes?page=entire

...Compare income taxes received by the federal government from individuals and from corporations (their profits are treated as their income), based on statistics from the Office of Management and the Budget in the White House, and the trend is clear. During the Great Depression, federal income tax receipts from individuals and corporations were roughly equal. During the second world war, income tax receipts from corporations were 50% greater than from individuals. The national crises of depression and war produced successful popular demands for corporations to contribute significant portions of federal tax revenues.

US corporations resented that arrangement, and after the war, they changed it. Corporate profits financed politicians' campaigns and lobbies to make sure that income tax receipts from individuals rose faster than those from corporations and that tax cuts were larger for corporations than for individuals. By the 1980s, individual income taxes regularly yielded four times more than taxes on corporations' profits.

Since the second world war, corporations have shifted much of the federal tax burden from themselves to the public – and especially onto the middle-income members of the public. No wonder a tax "revolt" developed, yet it did not push to stop or reverse that shift. Corporations had focused public anger elsewhere, against government expenditures as "wasteful" and against public employees as inefficient....

http://washingtonindependent.com/105733/are-nearly-a-third-of-american-households-underwater-financially



...The study breaks down average monthly household expenses in the state of Virginia and finds that to meet basic household expenses, the average household needs to earn approximately 200 percent of the federal poverty line. Put more simply, one needs to make at least twice what the federal government calls the poverty line in order to live in Virginia. And again, given Virginia’s relative economic health and perfectly average cost of living, the same is presumably true across the country.

Because the poverty line as determined by the federal government is a sliding scale based on household size, and census data on household income does not break things down by household size, it’s a bit difficult to wrangle statistics together meaningfully. But an extremely rough estimate based on the Census thresholds and the fact that the Census puts the median household size in the U.S. at 2.6 people would put the “median poverty line,” as it were, in the neighborhood of $16,500 — a bit north of the halfway point between the two- and three-person household poverty lines.

Based on the Cooper Center conclusion that people really need to be making about twice what the government says they need to be making just to get by, if you double that $16,500 to get an estimate of how much the average family really has to make just to break even, you end up with $33,000. Census data (PDF) indicate that an even 36 percent of households in the U.S. have an income of less than $35,000 a year. So to bring it all together, if the Cooper Center’s study can indeed be applied to the rest of the country, it’s possible that as many as a third of all American households aren’t pulling in enough income to break even without assistance — a far cry from the already-high 14.3 percent poverty rate officially published by the Census Bureau.

Although these are, again, very rough estimates, at least one figure cited in the Cooper Center’s report indicates that they may not be terribly far off: the Federal Reserve’s most recent Survey of Consumer Finances shows that a full 30% of Americans are what the Federal Reserve dubs “asset poor” — that is, they don’t have the savings to pay for retirement or children’s education funds, nor do they have enough money set aside to weather crises such as job loss or medical emergencies. These results are from 2007, before the U.S. economy went into freefall. The survey is conducted every three years, so the results from 2010’s survey may eventually paint an even grimmer picture once they are released.

which is set up for family only privacy, but the link at the button doesn't go to this story.

http://www.alternet.org/newsandviews/article/482082/top_dems_reject_social_security_cuts/#paragraph5

A group of powerful Dems have joined Sen. Harry Reid against assistant Senate majority leader and Obama ally Sen. Dick Durbin, who is part of the bipartisan Gang of Six "working on imaginary legislation" to implement the catfood commission. They include Sen. Chuck Schumer, Rep. Chris Van Hollen, and minority leader Nancy Pelosi. They're using the right messaging, too.

Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) both used the Sunday talk-show circuit to reiterate their support for the popular seniors benefit, arguing that it has no effect on the immediate deficit problems facing the country. "Social Security … does not contribute one penny to the deficit, and won't until 2037," Schumer said on CNN's "State of the Union." "By including it in these specific negotiations it makes it harder to deal with what is the immediate and dangerous problem, which is our immediate deficit over this year and the next several years. Because Social Security doesn't contribute to the debt," he added, "it makes sense to separate the two."

Van Hollen echoed that message on CBS' "Face the Nation."..."Social Security is not a driver of these deficits and debt," Van Hollen said, "and we're not going to balance the budget on the backs of Social Security beneficiaries. It is solvent – 100 percent – until the year 2037," he said....

Last week, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) vowed that any Social Security reforms would focus on ensuring the long-term solvency of the program. “Whatever we do for Social Security is not about reducing the deficit, it is about strengthening Social Security – the solvency of Social Security," she said. "Those are two separate, different questions."

Once again, the message that Social Security does not contribute to the deficit was heard loud and clear on the Sunday shows. Of course, what's depressing as hell in all of this is the capitulation to the austerity crowd--deficits aren't the nation's primary problem right now. It's jobs, jobs, jobs. But it's good to hear they've at least the Social Security/deficit bit worked out.

It's 3.3F at 8:30 am.

that's enough to stop me right there....no wind, apparently, which is a mercy, if you are into irony.

It's supposed to get warmer as the day and week progresses...there's a lot of snow to melt.

The family in MA seems to be quiescent--exhaustion, no doubt.

I made pot roast with cherry wine instead of water for the liquid and it was far superior--very tasty and smelled heavenly. (the wine was turning...waste not, want not. I must start devoting more time to circulating the wine stocks...)

The condo board is apparently also suffering from exhaustion--or brain deficit. Hard to tell which. So their inactions are going to precipitate another round of crises later in the year...the big projects and the finances are still on track, but we are going to have labor problems and legal ones, again...Time to beat the woods for replacement board members.

Personally, I'm tired of people "moving my cheese", as the motivational literature puts it. Or stealing it, which is more accurate.

I'm considering a mini-hibernation and general strike of my own, in which I don't leave the house and finally do some of my own housework...

The woodshed is way too 'roomy' for this time of year.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12550326

Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah has announced increased benefits for his citizens, as he returned after months abroad getting medical treatment.

There will be extra funds for housing, studying abroad and social security, according to state television.

King Abdullah has been away from the country for three months, during which time mass protests have changed the political landscape of the Middle East...

FOR THE KING, I OFFER THE FOLLOWING TUNE AND VIDEO CLIP:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8zx68HENIA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=grbSQ6O6kbs

With the facebook revolutions having claimed virtually every other country in the region, the time may be coming for that most important one of all. And if Facebook is to be relied on for its revolutionary calendar, a job it has so far done without reproach, the revolutionary wave will come to Saudi Arabia on March 20.That will also the day crude passes $200.

Also, instead of just announcing their rallying call, future protestors have listed their 12 demands:

1 – a constitutional monarchy between the king and government.
2 – a written constitution approved by the people in which governing powers will be determined.
3 – transparency, accountability in fighting corruption
4 – the Government in the service of the people
5 – legislative elections.
6 – public freedoms and respect for human rights
7 – allowing civil society institutions
8 – full citizenship and the abolition of all forms of discrimination.
9 – Adoption of the rights of women and non-discrimination against them.
10 – an independent and fair judiciary.
11 – impartial development and equitable distribution of wealth.
12 – to seriously address the problem of unemployment

Since none of these have a chance of going through in an absolute monarchy, things are about to get really hot.

/... http://www.zerohedge.com/article/if-mountain-will-not-come-muhammad-revolution-will-come-saudi-arabia-march-20

which will have the dubious pleasure of burying Rahm Emmanuel politically for the next 4 years...I hope they do a good job of it.

http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/Articles/2011/02/21/Unemployment-Pay-Deters-Would-Be-Entrepreneurs.aspx?utm_source=The+Fiscal+Times+Latest+News&utm_campaign=f337c67266-Latest_News_from_The_Fiscal_Times_02_21_11&utm_medium=email

...During economic downturns, it’s not unusual for laid-off employees ... to remake themselves as entrepreneurs. Right now more than 9.8 percent of all workers are self-employed, and more than a quarter of people laid off in the first six months of 2010 who hadn’t found jobs considered starting their own businesses, according to a CareerBuilder survey. But at a time when President Obama is promoting entrepreneurship and innovation, some unemployed workers are finding that state governments are hindering their start-up efforts. They say that the unemployment system forces them to make a difficult choice: Pursue their business plans by giving up the critical financial support they need — unemployment checks. The unemployment program prohibits people from starting businesses in lieu of looking for paying jobs — and that’s true in all states...
The unemployment program requires recipients to be actively looking for a wage or salaried job and available to take it — spending time starting a business instead of pursuing a paying job disqualifies a person from benefits.

...
The Self-Employment Assistance program (SEA) accommodates the business aspirations of the unemployed. Administered by the Department of Labor (DOL), it allows laid-off workers to get “self-employed allowance” checks while they participate in entrepreneurial training, write business plans and launch their ventures. Check amounts and the number of benefit weeks match what would-be entrepreneurs would have received through regular unemployment.

But here’s the rub: The program is voluntary for states, so only a handful offer the program thus far. According to the DOL, as of 2011, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Oregon and Pennsylvania participate in SEA. Workers apply at their local workforce commission office and they must show they’re working toward opening their own businesses...But even residents of those states have no guarantee of getting in. Only people likely to exhaust their unemployment benefits without finding a job (because they were employed in a declining industry, for example) can participate. This provision ensures that states don’t admit normally employable people who instead start businesses that go nowhere, costing the state more money — a key point, since by law a state can’t spend more on the program than what it would spend if program recipients were on regular unemployment. In Maine, one of the states offering the program, over the last five years, of about 425 applicants per year, the program has accepted 220...

Until yesterday, our village had the lowest price for gasoline, $2.86. Surrounding areas, the price was $3.15. Yesterday afternoon, the price spiked to $3.29, a jump of $0.43!
:wow:

we could have anarchy at home:scared: :nuke:

pre-1965 90% silver coin melt values @ $33.65/oz 2.4X Face value (FV)

Dimes- $2.40
Quarters- $6.01
Halves-$12.02
Morgan and Peace Dollars-$26.02

This only applies to junk values. Many coins will command better prices depending on date/mints and/or quality

1946-2011 Nickels- $0.0708346
1909-1982 Cent (95% copper)- $0.0281969

The economy may be on the mend, but the nation's banks are still looking a little green in the gills.

The number of banks at risk of failing rose for the 17th straight quarter to 884, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said Wednesday. That means 1 in 9 FDIC-insured institutions is at risk of collapse – which is the highest proportion in at least two decades.

The latest rise in the problem bank list comes as the banking industry has returned to profitability and the economy is showing signs of recovery.

U.S. banks made $21.7 billion in the fourth quarter, the FDIC said, marking their fourth straight quarter in the black following the financial meltdown of 2008-2009. Almost two-thirds of institutions showed year-over-year profit gains in the latest quarter, and the number of banks reporting losses declined.

http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2011/02/23/problem-bank-list-hits-new-high/

Repeat after me: "The economy is on the mend. The economy is on the mend. Ignore all of the data points that say otherwise. The economy is on the mend."

Feb. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City President Thomas Hoenig said U.S. regulators should avert another crisis by breaking up large financial institutions that pose a threat “to our capitalistic system.”

“I am convinced that the existence of too big to fail financial institutions poses the greatest risk to the U.S. economy,” Hoenig said today in Washington in the text of remarks prepared for a speech. “They must be broken up. We must not allow organizations operating under the safety net to pursue high-risk activities and we cannot let large organizations put our financial system at risk.”

Hoenig, the lone dissenter from every Fed meeting in 2010, has argued that legislation overhauling financial regulation that was signed into law by President Barack Obama in July didn’t go far enough to prevent the largest banks from taking excessive risks and increasing their market share.

/... http://noir.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aW5v96Zdrq.0&pos=3

---
And Wow: Fed's Hoenig Says United States Has "Deeply Undermined Free-Market Capitalism"

The Fed mutiny has arrived:

* HOENIG SAYS U.S. HAS `DEEPLY' UNDERMINED FREE-MARKET CAPITALISM
* HOENIG WARNS OF ESCALATING SERIES OF CRISES WITH RISING COSTS
* HOENIG: LARGE FINANCIAL FIRMS CAN EXPECT BAILOUTS IN FUTURE
* HOENIG SAYS BIG FINANCIAL FIRMS MUST NOT HOLD ECONOMY `HOSTAGE'
* HOENIG: LARGE FIRMS WERE `GAMING' CAPITAL STANDARDS PRE-CRISIS
* HOENIG:BIG FIRMS `HAVE SIGNIFICANT INCENTIVES' TO INCREASE RISK
* HOENIG: TOO-BIG-TO-FAIL FIRMS POSE `GREATEST RISK' TO ECONOMY
* HOENIG SAYS BIG FINANCIAL FIRMS ENJOY `HUGE' FUNDING ADVANTAGE

And the last one:

* FED'S HOENIG SAYS `HISTORY IS ON MY SIDE'

/... http://www.zerohedge.com/article/and-wow-feds-hoenig-says-united-states-has-deeply-undermined-free-market-capitalism

“"Inconceivable." You keep saying that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.”

being on the outside....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2whGEvy13Ag

you get the oil price chart for the day.

(Good day.)
3 makes an early day.
(Debt under Obama seems to jump up big then drop slowly maybe up a little and down a little for days--repeat.)
= Held by the Public + Intragovernmental(FICA)
= 9,490,899,277,201.22 + 4,633,932,602,590.10
UP 193,465,100.84 + UP 1,049,107,499.95

Source: Debt to the penny:
http://www.treasurydirect.gov/NP/BPDLogin?application=np

THINKING IN BILLIONS: Think 3 or 4 dollars per billion in a 311-Million person America.
If every American, man, woman and child puts in $3.21 THAT'S 1B$, and $3,211.37 makes 1T$.
A family of three: Mom, Dad, Child: $9.63, ABOUT TEN BUCKS for a 1B$ federal program.
I hope that is clear. However, I'd suggest using $3 per 1B$ to underestimate it.
Use $4 per 1B$ to overestimate the cost when thinking: Is the federal program worth it?
Aid to Dependant Children: 2B$/yr =$8/yr(a movie a year) Family of 3: $24/yr(an hour of bowling)

PERSONALIZED DEBT:
Every 12 seconds we net gain another American, so at the end of the workday of the report, there should be 311,393,792 people in America.
http://www.census.gov/population/www/popclockus.html ON 10/04/2010 04:37 -> 310,403,677
Currently, each of these Americans owe $45,360.03.
A family of three owes $136,080.09. (And that is IN ADDITION to their mortgage.)

ANALYSIS:
There were 24 reports in the last 30 to 31 days.
The average for the last 24 reports is 3,018,793,718.69.
The average for the last 30 days would be 2,415,034,974.95.
The average for the last 31 days would be 2,337,130,620.92.
There were 252 reports in 365 days of FY2007 averaging 1.99B$ per report, 1.37B$/day.
There were 253 reports in 366 days of FY2008 averaging 4.02B$ per report, 2.78B$/day.
There were 75 reports in 112 days of GWB's part of FY2009 averaging 8.03B$ per report, 5.38B$/day.
There were 174 reports in 253 days of Obama's part of FY2009 averaging 7.33B$ per report, 5.07B$/day so far.
There were 249 reports in 365 days of FY2009 averaging 7.57B$ per report, 5.16B$/day.
There were 251 reports in 365 days of FY2010 averaging 6.58B$ per report, 4.53B$/day.
There were 98 reports in 141 days of FY2011 averaging 5.75B$ per report, 3.99B$/day.
Above line should be okay

PROJECTION:
There are 702 days remaining in this Obama 1st term.
By that time the debt could be between 15.1 and 17.8T$.
It could be higher. It could be lower.

HISTORICAL:
President's term begins and ends on Jan 20.
(Guess who might want to hide the Reagan Bush years. Jan 20 data is missing before 1993.)
01/20/1993 _4,188,092,107,183.60 WJC Inaugural
01/22/2001 _5,728,195,796,181.57 WJC (UP 1,540,103,688,997.97)
01/20/2009 10,626,877,048,913.08 GWB (UP 4,898,681,252,731.43)
02/18/2011 14,124,831,879,791.32 BHO (UP 3,497,954,830,878.24 so far since Obama took office.)

FISCAL YEAR DEBT CHANGE, Sep 30 prior year to Sep 30 named year:
(One "* " for each 40B$ reached)
FY1994 +0,281,261,026,873.94 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1995 +0,281,232,990,696.07 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1996 +0,250,828,038,426.34 ------------* * * * * * WJC
FY1997 +0,188,335,072,261.61 ------------* * * * WJC
FY1998 +0,113,046,997,500.28 ------------* * WJC
FY1999 +0,130,077,892,735.81 ------------* * * WJC
FY2000 +0,017,907,308,253.43 ------------WJC
FY2001 +0,133,285,202,313.20 ------------* * * C&B
01-WJC +0,053,598,528,417.78 ------------* WJC 31% of FY, 40% of FY-Debt
01-GWB +0,079,686,673,895.42 ------------* GWB 69% of FY, 60% of FY-Debt
FY2002 +0,420,772,553,397.10 ------------* * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2003 +0,554,995,097,146.46 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2004 +0,595,821,633,586.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2005 +0,553,656,965,393.18 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2006 +0,574,264,237,491.73 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2007 +0,500,679,473,047.25 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2008 +1,017,071,524,649.92 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2009 +1,885,104,106,599.30 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * B&O
09GWB +0,602,152,152,000.60 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB 31% of FY, 32% of FY-Debt
09-BHO +1,282,951,954,598.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO 69% of FY, 68% of FY-Debt
FY2010 +1,651,794,027,380.00 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO
FY2011 +0,563,208,848,899.60 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO
Endof11 +1,457,951,984,740.10 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO

LAST FIFTEEN REPORTS OF ADDITIONS TO PUBLIC DEBT(NOT FICA):
01/31/2011 +072,534,426,006.14 ------------********** Mon
02/01/2011 -002,841,687,784.84 --
02/02/2011 +000,160,101,452.72 ------------********
02/03/2011 -011,756,222,449.85 -
02/04/2011 +000,096,985,369.31 ------------*******
02/07/2011 -000,024,110,721.58 ---- Mon
02/08/2011 +000,098,708,298.02 ------------*******
02/09/2011 +000,070,875,766.12 ------------*******
02/10/2011 -016,083,331,993.98 -
02/11/2011 -000,131,455,172.80 ---
02/14/2011 -001,050,366,540.96 -- Mon
02/15/2011 +048,146,191,309.44 ------------**********
02/16/2011 +000,114,208,468.26 ------------********
02/17/2011 -011,510,944,063.77 -
02/18/2011 +000,193,465,100.84 ------------********

78,016,843,043.07 Total of 15 above reports.

Heavy borrowing seems to start after 09/18/2008 while Bush was in power JUST BEFORE fiscal year end.
Bush admin borrowed $962,245,245,654.01 in those last 124 days in office crossing two fiscal years.
$360,093,093,653.42 in last 12 days of FY2008, and $602,152,152,000.59 in subsequent 112 days before leaving office.

For a prettier and more explanatory view of our nation's debt:
http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock
http://www.usdebtclock.org/
DUer primer on National debt

(Debt to the penny keeps changing. Stuff is missing. Best to keep our own history.) LAST REPORT:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=4742775&mesg_id=4742790

(Good day.)
Ah, for a shorter day.
(Debt under Obama seems to jump up big then drop slowly maybe up a little and down a little for days--repeat.)
= Held by the Public + Intragovernmental(FICA)
= 9,491,474,775,494.95 + 4,637,081,872,167.73
UP 575,498,293.73 + UP 3,149,269,577.63

Source: Debt to the penny:
http://www.treasurydirect.gov/NP/BPDLogin?application=np

THINKING IN BILLIONS: Think 3 or 4 dollars per billion in a 311-Million person America.
If every American, man, woman and child puts in $3.21 THAT'S 1B$, and $3,211.07 makes 1T$.
A family of three: Mom, Dad, Child: $9.63, ABOUT TEN BUCKS for a 1B$ federal program.
I hope that is clear. However, I'd suggest using $3 per 1B$ to underestimate it.
Use $4 per 1B$ to overestimate the cost when thinking: Is the federal program worth it?
Aid to Dependant Children: 2B$/yr =$8/yr(a movie a year) Family of 3: $24/yr(an hour of bowling)

PERSONALIZED DEBT:
Every 12 seconds we net gain another American, so at the end of the workday of the report, there should be 311,422,592 people in America.
http://www.census.gov/population/www/popclockus.html ON 10/04/2010 04:37 -> 310,403,677
Currently, each of these Americans owe $45,367.8.
A family of three owes $136,103.39. (And that is IN ADDITION to their mortgage.)

ANALYSIS:
There were 22 reports in the last 30 to 32 days.
The average for the last 22 reports is 3,109,985,827.10.
The average for the last 30 days would be 2,280,656,273.20.
The average for the last 32 days would be 2,138,115,256.13.
There were 252 reports in 365 days of FY2007 averaging 1.99B$ per report, 1.37B$/day.
There were 253 reports in 366 days of FY2008 averaging 4.02B$ per report, 2.78B$/day.
There were 75 reports in 112 days of GWB's part of FY2009 averaging 8.03B$ per report, 5.38B$/day.
There were 174 reports in 253 days of Obama's part of FY2009 averaging 7.33B$ per report, 5.07B$/day so far.
There were 249 reports in 365 days of FY2009 averaging 7.57B$ per report, 5.16B$/day.
There were 251 reports in 365 days of FY2010 averaging 6.58B$ per report, 4.53B$/day.
There were 99 reports in 145 days of FY2011 averaging 5.73B$ per report, 3.91B$/day.
Above line should be okay

PROJECTION:
There are 698 days remaining in this Obama 1st term.
By that time the debt could be between 15.1 and 17.7T$.
It could be higher. It could be lower.

HISTORICAL:
President's term begins and ends on Jan 20.
(Guess who might want to hide the Reagan Bush years. Jan 20 data is missing before 1993.)
01/20/1993 _4,188,092,107,183.60 WJC Inaugural
01/22/2001 _5,728,195,796,181.57 WJC (UP 1,540,103,688,997.97)
01/20/2009 10,626,877,048,913.08 GWB (UP 4,898,681,252,731.43)
02/22/2011 14,128,556,647,662.68 BHO (UP 3,501,679,598,749.60 so far since Obama took office.)

FISCAL YEAR DEBT CHANGE, Sep 30 prior year to Sep 30 named year:
(One "* " for each 40B$ reached)
FY1994 +0,281,261,026,873.94 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1995 +0,281,232,990,696.07 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1996 +0,250,828,038,426.34 ------------* * * * * * WJC
FY1997 +0,188,335,072,261.61 ------------* * * * WJC
FY1998 +0,113,046,997,500.28 ------------* * WJC
FY1999 +0,130,077,892,735.81 ------------* * * WJC
FY2000 +0,017,907,308,253.43 ------------WJC
FY2001 +0,133,285,202,313.20 ------------* * * C&B
01-WJC +0,053,598,528,417.78 ------------* WJC 31% of FY, 40% of FY-Debt
01-GWB +0,079,686,673,895.42 ------------* GWB 69% of FY, 60% of FY-Debt
FY2002 +0,420,772,553,397.10 ------------* * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2003 +0,554,995,097,146.46 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2004 +0,595,821,633,586.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2005 +0,553,656,965,393.18 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2006 +0,574,264,237,491.73 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2007 +0,500,679,473,047.25 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2008 +1,017,071,524,649.92 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2009 +1,885,104,106,599.30 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * B&O
09GWB +0,602,152,152,000.60 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB 31% of FY, 32% of FY-Debt
09-BHO +1,282,951,954,598.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO 69% of FY, 68% of FY-Debt
FY2010 +1,651,794,027,380.00 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO
FY2011 +0,566,933,616,770.90 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO
Endof11 +1,427,108,759,457.78 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO

LAST FIFTEEN REPORTS OF ADDITIONS TO PUBLIC DEBT(NOT FICA):
02/01/2011 -002,841,687,784.84 --
02/02/2011 +000,160,101,452.72 ------------********
02/03/2011 -011,756,222,449.85 -
02/04/2011 +000,096,985,369.31 ------------*******
02/07/2011 -000,024,110,721.58 ---- Mon
02/08/2011 +000,098,708,298.02 ------------*******
02/09/2011 +000,070,875,766.12 ------------*******
02/10/2011 -016,083,331,993.98 -
02/11/2011 -000,131,455,172.80 ---
02/14/2011 -001,050,366,540.96 -- Mon
02/15/2011 +048,146,191,309.44 ------------**********
02/16/2011 +000,114,208,468.26 ------------********
02/17/2011 -011,510,944,063.77 -
02/18/2011 +000,193,465,100.84 ------------********
02/22/2011 +000,575,498,293.73 ------------******** Tue

6,057,915,330.66 Total of 15 above reports.

Heavy borrowing seems to start after 09/18/2008 while Bush was in power JUST BEFORE fiscal year end.
Bush admin borrowed $962,245,245,654.01 in those last 124 days in office crossing two fiscal years.
$360,093,093,653.42 in last 12 days of FY2008, and $602,152,152,000.59 in subsequent 112 days before leaving office.

For a prettier and more explanatory view of our nation's debt:
http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock
http://www.usdebtclock.org/
DUer primer on National debt

(Debt to the penny keeps changing. Stuff is missing. Best to keep our own history.) LAST REPORT:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=4744452&mesg_id=4745683

:evilgrin: