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16 May 2011 23:20

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U.S.: Influential conservative says failing to raise debt limit bad

  • The full consequences of a default — or even the serious prospect of default — by the United States are impossible to predict and awesome to contemplate. […] The Nation can ill afford to allow such a result. The risks, the costs, the disruptions, and the incalculable damage lead me to but one conclusion: the Senate must pass this legislation before the Congress adjourns.
  • Ronald Reagan, circa 1983 • Regarding legislation to raise the debt limit. This guy seems like a flaming liberal, doesn’t he? Oh wait, maybe not. source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

01 Apr 2011 11:15

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U.S.: Unemployment falls, 261k new jobs added in March

  • 8.8% unemployment rate, lowest in two years source
  • » There’s more: In the last four months, unemployment has fallen a total of one percent. This may not seem significant, but it’s in fact the largest four-month drop since 1983. Even if the economy continued to grow at this rate, though, the US wouldn’t be back to pre-recession employment rates until–wait for it–2018. So while this is a good jobs report, it’s not quite good enough. Here’s to the future!
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Feb 2011 15:28

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Biz: Bookstore chain Borders, as currently constituted, goes belly-up

  • $1 billion in debt for the now-bankrupt bookstore chain source
  • » Sign of the times: In its Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the famed chain of bookstores will be forced to close 30 percent of its 600 stores, having been left somewhat behind by the changing nature of the book world (damn you, internet). Many analysts feel a tad downtrodden by the news. “This is the biggest bankruptcy in the history of the book business,” said Albert Greco, senior researcher at the Institute for Publishing Research. “This is really a depressing day.”
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

08 Feb 2011 09:53

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World: Dividing Sudan: Forgive us of our foreign debt. Please?

  • $38B the amount Sudan owes in foreign debt – $30 billion in debt arrears
  • 1993 the last time the country could get a loan from the World Bank
  • 75% the amount the country hopes to get forgiven before it splits source
  • » The spit has something to do with it: The size of Sudan’s debt could effectively limit the region’s ability to get a fresh start as it splits into two. Southern Sudanese official Gabriel Changson Chang is making a hard push for the changes before the countries divide. “We want both the north and south to be economically viable,” he says. Current president Omar al-Bashir has made similar claims as well, and with good reason: Half of the country’s population currently lives on less than $1 a day and need some sort of food aid.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

31 Jan 2011 21:46

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Politics: The RNC’s big bills: Michael Steele, what hast thou wrought?!

  • $23 million owed by the RNC to lenders and vendors source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

03 Jan 2011 21:08

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U.S.: Posted without comment: The National Debt, in Tetris form

Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

03 Jan 2011 10:15

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Politics: Why RNC chairman Michael Steele has no chance of being reelected

  • $20M the amount of debt the RNC will carry into this year – which is massive and will hurt Steele
  • $10M the amount of debt the fiscally-minded RNC will likely carry into the 2012 presidential year
  • $2M the largest amount of debt the RNC has had in a presidential year (in 2000) – until now source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

14 Nov 2010 11:11

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Biz, World: Ireland getting peer pressure to take bailouts to ease debt

  • Anyone know where Ireland can find 15 billion euros by Tuesday? The country of potato bread and U2 (to grossly oversimplify) needs some extra money to allay fears of other, fiscally stronger European countries, such as Germany, as well as to calm local markets, which went haywire on Friday on debt concerns. Ireland denies the need for an immediate bailout (despite a banking system in tatters), but outside sources, such as Barclay’s Capital, suggest that the country could need €80 billion (or $110 billion) in bailouts between 2011 and 2013. German Chancellor Angela Merkel says that political needs (including her own) may be in play. “There may be a conflict here between the interests of the financial world and the interests of politicians,” she said. One source suggests the possibility of an Irish default could hurt her crisis-resolution plans. Meanwhile, Ireland plans to release a budget next month it hopes will ease debt concerns. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

03 Oct 2010 16:36

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Politics: Top Republican “confused” about national debt

  • claim House Republican Eric Cantor stated yesterday that the US has acquired more debt in the last two years than the last 200 years combined.
  • fact The US accumulated $2.8 trillion in debt over the last two years. It was at $10.6 trillion prior to that; Cantor’s estimate was off by about $7.8 trillion.  source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Jun 2010 11:10

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World: David Cameron: Pull up your knickers, get ready for decades of austerity

“The decisions we make will affect every single person in our country,” Cameron says. “And the effects of those decisions will stay with us for years, perhaps decades, to come.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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