recession

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Voters Punished Obama, Dems for Going Deaf
 Voters Punished Obama, 
 Dems for Going Deaf 
PEGGY NOONAN

Voters Punished Obama, Dems for Going Deaf

Election should be a wake-up call for out-of-touch White House

(Newser) - The Democratic Party should view its walloping in Tuesday's election as an opportunity to start listening before it's too late, writes Peggy Noonan . The Democrats have been focusing on the wrong issues since they gained power last year and that explains the huge swing to the Republicans in Virginia and...

Economic Fury Is the New Culture War
 Economic Fury 
 Is the New 
 Culture War 



PETER BEINART

Economic Fury Is the New Culture War

Deficits were the rallying cry for yesterday's winners

(Newser) - "Conservatives have supposedly gotten their groove back," Peter Beinart writes about the results of yesterday's state races, "but it's not the same old groove." The candidates who won—or almost won—downplayed social issues and focused on the economy, which Beinart calls the “new culture...

Half of US Kids Will Get Food Stamps at Some Point

Figure hits 90% for black children, study finds

(Newser) - Nearly half of all US children and 90% of black youngsters will be on food stamps at some point during childhood, and fallout from the current recession could push those numbers even higher, researchers say. The estimate comes from an analysis of 30 years of national data, and bolsters other...

Credit Stimulus for 650K Jobs: White House

Directly or indirectly, $150B spent has had great effect, report says

(Newser) - The economic stimulus package has already created or saved at least 650,000 jobs, the White House said today, even though just $150 billion of the $787 billion has been spent. And the number of jobs is closer to 1 million if it includes positions added indirectly, according to the...

US GDP Jump Hollow if Unemployment Keeps Rising
US GDP Jump Hollow if Unemployment Keeps Rising
ANALYSIS

US GDP Jump Hollow if Unemployment Keeps Rising

... and it's still rising faster than before recession

(Newser) - News that the US gross domestic product jumped 3.5% in the third quarter cheered investors and others, but the cheers will ring hollow if unemployment keeps rising, John Authers writes. Consumer spending rose even as disposable income fell—“ not a pattern that can be sustained for long, and...

Economy Grows in Q3, Signals End of Recession

Tenuous 3.5% growth is best showing in two years

(Newser) - The economy grew at a 3.5% pace in the third quarter, the best showing in two years, fueled by government-supported spending on cars and homes. The Commerce Department's report today delivered the strongest signal yet that the economy entered a new, though fragile, phase of recovery and that the...

US Glum on Economy &mdash; and GOP, Too
 US Glum on Economy 
 —and GOP, Too 
Poll

US Glum on Economy —and GOP, Too

Republican Party lacks opposition bump usually accompanying hard times

(Newser) - Americans are bummed about the economy, but that hasn’t given Republicans the usual opposition party boost in Washington. “The mood in America may be blue, but attitudes toward Washington are just jet black,” a pollster tells the Wall Street Journal . Some 58% of respondents think the economy...

Bartering Turns Into $10B Recession-Buster

More businesses signing on to trend of exchanging services

(Newser) - The global recession has made bartering hot, but don’t go thinking it’s all a backrub for a plumbing fix. Big money—though no cash—is changing hands through the world’s largest barter service, Bartercard. The worldwide service’s transactions are valued at $2 billion this year, up...

Recession Leads to Uptick in Teen Runaways

Increase in fleeing juveniles strains social services

(Newser) - More and more young Americans, including many under 13, have left home or been kicked out as foreclosures, unemployment, and the rising cost of living make conditions in lower-income homes even tougher than usual. Experts and government studies estimate that 1.6 million juveniles leave home each year, though there...

Gator Biz Caught in Jaws of Recession

Egg collection shrinks

(Newser) - No industry is safe from the recession, no matter how many teeth it has. The demand for alligator-skin accessories like handbags, watches, and belts has plummeted this year, leaving even top US gator farmers in danger of going out of business, USA Today reports. “This is, by far, the...

Bailout Is Bad News for Savers
Bailout
Is Bad News
for Savers
OPINION

Bailout Is Bad News for Savers

Banks get trillions, fixed-income investors get screwed: Sloan

(Newser) - Not fed up enough with just putting your taxpayer dollars directly on the line to bail out the nation’s banks? Allan Sloan has latched on to some insidious “collateral damage” from the government’s rescue plan, those trillions spent “to keep interest rates down to support the...

In New York, No One Matters But Bloomberg
 In New York, No One 
 Matters But Bloomberg 
the imperial mayor

In New York, No One Matters But Bloomberg

Political foes gone, power elite diminished, moneyed mayor calls all the shots

(Newser) - Say what you will about Michael Bloomberg—the perfect mayor for New York in a financial crisis or arrogant billionaire who's pretty much bought an unprecedented third term—above all, Chris Smith writes, he is “a one-man Establishment.” A perfect storm of his personal fortune, the vagaries of...

In Switch, 'Real Economy' Hits Big Banks
 In Switch, 
 'Real Economy' 
 Hits Big Banks 
PAUL KRUGMAN

In Switch, 'Real Economy' Hits Big Banks

Slumping profits are 'payback' from Main Street whipped by bad practices

(Newser) - Those concerned about the nation’s banks should forget about the “softly, softly policy” of the Obama administration that has allowed Goldman Sachs to go back to business as usual in spectacular fashion. The real problem, Paul Krugman writes, is banks like Citi and Bank of America that are...

How Australia Dodged the Recession

How one country ducked the economic downturn

(Newser) - Australia has weathered the financial crisis better than any other developed country. Last week its central bank raised interest rates, indicating its primary concern is now inflation, not growth. What were the keys? Phil Dobbie of BNET explains:
  • Befriending China: Australia used to export much of what it made to
...

School Volunteering Stresses Parents Out

Pressure to help out a source of anxiety for moms and dads

(Newser) - With school budgets slashed because of the weak economy, parents are feeling more pressure than ever to volunteer. About 64% of parents surveyed by Harris Interactive say they believe it's more important than ever to pitch in, with 53%—far more than last year— saying they planned to do just...

Obama's Stealth Stimulus: $250 Checks to Seniors

With social security stagnant, Obama proposes payment to elderly

(Newser) - Seniors won’t be getting a boost in their Social Security benefits this January, but President Obama tried to head off that announcement yesterday by encouraging Congress to give them all a one-time $250 check. The administration sees these payments, which would cost the government about $13 billion, as another...

Dow at 10,000? 'Hold the Cheering'
Dow at 10,000?
'Hold the Cheering'
analysts' reactions

Dow at 10,000? 'Hold the Cheering'

It's decent news, but let's not get carried away

(Newser) - The Dow hit 10,000 today, but most analysts aren't exactly falling off their chairs in excitement:
  • Mark Hulbert, MarketWatch: "It would be entirely in investors' rights to feel pretty good about it. But they're not, on the whole. That's surprising, and suggests to contrarian analysts" that a "
...

Pay Cuts: America's New Norm
 Pay Cuts: America's New Norm 

Pay Cuts: America's New Norm

Nine straight months of declining pay sets new record

(Newser) - In previous recessions, layoffs were the principal way for employers to cut costs—pay cuts were seen as demoralizing and a sure-fire way to lose workers to other jobs. But now pay cuts, sometimes in the form of demotions or shortened workweeks, are more common than at any time since...

Soaring Price of Wings Begets Boneless Substitutes

Perplexed eateries switch breast strips for once-cheaper wings

(Newser) - In a sign of a poultry market apocalypse, chicken wings are now more expensive than skinless, boneless chicken breast, because chicken wings are cheaper. Wait, what? Strange but true: thanks to the recession, restaurants are ordering less chicken breast, the New York Times explains, while consumers buy more of the...

Hollywood Heads Roll as DVD Sales Plunge

New studio heads place bets on 'branded entertainment'

(Newser) - In previous downturns, the corporate owners of America's movie studios would cut Hollywood some slack. Not anymore: these days, the corporate suites of LA look like the aftermath of a slasher flick, with old hands kicked out at Disney, Universal, MGM, and Paramount. With DVD sales down 25% and...

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