Can the state be trusted to do anything right? … Revelations of unacceptable snooping and the draconian treatment of whistleblowers are making a mockery of the government's quest for 'openness and transparency.' This week, Peter Francis, a former Special Branch covert agent, told Channel 4's 'Dispatches' that his job had been to infiltrate the grieving family and '...Read More
Rubio addresses tea party criticism on senate floor … Sen. Marco Rubio took to the floor of the U.S. Senate Wednesday afternoon, to address concerns that have arisen from some grassroots conservatives over his support of immigration reform. "I have received numerous emails and calls from conservatives and tea party activists," he said at the beginning of his remarks. "To hear...Read More
Why U.S. is being humiliated by the hunt for Snowden … The increasingly slapstick global steeplechase in pursuit of Edward Snowden, the former American contractor who leaked topsecret details of surveillance programs, looks like a cross between "The Hunt for Red October" and "The Bonfire of the Vanities." Nobody, except perhaps Snowden himself, is coming out of this well....Read More
Two Fed Presidents Emphasize Stimulus to Persist After QE Taper … Two Fed Presidents Emphasize Stimulus to Persist After QE Taper Two Federal Reserve (TREFTOTL) presidents who differ over the need for more stimulus emphasized that monetary policy remains accommodative, less than a week after a timeline to reduce bond purchase jolted financial markets. "What we're talking about here...Read More
Fed fights back against 'feral hogs' … A top US central banker on Monday warned the "feral hogs" of financial markets against trying to force the Federal Reserve to shelve plans to slow its bond buying, as yields on US Treasuries climbed to their highest level since August 2011. Richard Fisher, president of the Dallas Federal Reserve, said in an interview with the Financial...Read More
Analysis: Brazil riots raise questions over sporting mega-events … Brazilian anger against the cost of staging the World Cup could undermine the argument that host countries benefit from sporting mega-events as they become too big for most countries to handle. UEFA's idea of splitting the Euro 2020 championship into minitournaments hosted in 13 different countries could be one of the alt...Read More
Kevin Rudd ousts Australia Prime Minister Julia Gillard … Kevin Rudd is more popular with voters than Ms Gillard … He won 57 votes in a leadership ballot of Labor MPs and senators called by Ms Gillard, who received 45 votes. The change comes ahead of a general election due in September, which polls suggest Labor is set to lose. After the vote, Ms Gillard confirmed she would stand by a...Read More
Pensioners living on pocket money as savings crisis hits millions … Pensioners-living-on-pocket-money-as-savings-crisis-hits-millions … Almost two million retired adults in the UK have less disposable income than the average 11 year-old, as Britain's savings crisis creates a generation of "pension paupers". A new survey last night said 15 per cent of men and women in reti...Read More
How Much Beanie Babies Were Predicted To Be Worth Vs. How Much They're Really Worth … The 1998 edition of the Scholastic Beanie Baby Handbook listed the original price of Beanie Babies when they were first released, how much they sold for in 1998, and their estimated price in 2008. Beanie Babies were supposed to be a good investment. From page 27 of the book: " Basically, if you can...Read More
Two Fed Presidents Emphasize Stimulus to Persist After QE Taper … Two Fed Presidents Emphasize Stimulus to Persist After QE Taper Two Federal Reserve (TREFTOTL) presidents who differ over the need for more stimulus emphasized that monetary policy remains accommodative, less than a week after a timeline to reduce bond purchase jolted financial markets. "What we're talking about here...Read More
Fed fights back against 'feral hogs' … A top US central banker on Monday warned the "feral hogs" of financial markets against trying to force the Federal Reserve to shelve plans to slow its bond buying, as yields on US Treasuries climbed to their highest level since August 2011. Richard Fisher, president of the Dallas Federal Reserve, said in an interview with the Financial...Read More
Analysis: Brazil riots raise questions over sporting mega-events … Brazilian anger against the cost of staging the World Cup could undermine the argument that host countries benefit from sporting mega-events as they become too big for most countries to handle. UEFA's idea of splitting the Euro 2020 championship into minitournaments hosted in 13 different countries could be one of the alt...Read More
Kevin Rudd ousts Australia Prime Minister Julia Gillard … Kevin Rudd is more popular with voters than Ms Gillard … He won 57 votes in a leadership ballot of Labor MPs and senators called by Ms Gillard, who received 45 votes. The change comes ahead of a general election due in September, which polls suggest Labor is set to lose. After the vote, Ms Gillard confirmed she would stand by a...Read More
Pensioners living on pocket money as savings crisis hits millions … Pensioners-living-on-pocket-money-as-savings-crisis-hits-millions … Almost two million retired adults in the UK have less disposable income than the average 11 year-old, as Britain's savings crisis creates a generation of "pension paupers". A new survey last night said 15 per cent of men and women in reti...Read More
How Much Beanie Babies Were Predicted To Be Worth Vs. How Much They're Really Worth … The 1998 edition of the Scholastic Beanie Baby Handbook listed the original price of Beanie Babies when they were first released, how much they sold for in 1998, and their estimated price in 2008. Beanie Babies were supposed to be a good investment. From page 27 of the book: " Basically, if you can...Read More
Mark Carney: golden chance for return to prosperity beckons … Mark Carney has a golden opportunity to rescue Britain. The incoming Bank of England Governor has the Chancellor squarely behind him, a public desperate for new ideas to bolster the recovery, and a suite of powers to make rival central bankers jealous. With no ties to the UK, he doesn't need to curry political favour or burnis...Read More
The Federal Reserve's Framers Would Be Shocked … ONE hundred years ago today, President Woodrow Wilson went before Congress and demanded that it "act now" to create the Federal Reserve System. His proposal set off a fierce debate. One of the plan's most strident critics, Representative Charles A. Lindbergh Sr., the father of the aviator, predicted that the Federal Reserve A...Read More
76% of Americans are living paycheck-to-paycheck … Roughly three-quarters of Americans are living paycheck-to paycheck, with little to no emergency savings, according to a survey released by Bankrate.com Monday. Fewer than one in four Americans have enough money in their savings account to cover at least six months of expenses, enough to help cushion the blow of a job loss, medical emergency...Read More
Mark Carney: golden chance for return to prosperity beckons … Mark Carney has a golden opportunity to rescue Britain. The incoming Bank of England Governor has the Chancellor squarely behind him, a public desperate for new ideas to bolster the recovery, and a suite of powers to make rival central bankers jealous. With no ties to the UK, he doesn't need to curry political favour or burnis...Read More
The Federal Reserve's Framers Would Be Shocked … ONE hundred years ago today, President Woodrow Wilson went before Congress and demanded that it "act now" to create the Federal Reserve System. His proposal set off a fierce debate. One of the plan's most strident critics, Representative Charles A. Lindbergh Sr., the father of the aviator, predicted that the Federal Reserve A...Read More