Two ways Obama’s health care plan is actually working

Who’s getting insured? A greater number of people under 26 now get to stay on their parents’ insurance. It helps because they’re paying for it — meaning that they’re helping lower costs for the elderly. When they get older, they’ll be helped by younger generations in the same way.
Who’s insuring people? As small businesses are getting incentives for providing health care, insurance-providing businesses with fewer than 10 employees have grown by 46%. That’s huge; it helps people who need health care most. And the IRS has approved more incentives, too. source

Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink

There are going to be a lot of judgment calls here. There are not going to be silver bullets or perfect answers.
Barack Obama • Speaking about the oil spill in Louisiana today. What are his plans? A few things. First off, check this site for the latest info on the response to the spill, which combines everything from all the involved parties. Second, he’s tripling the size of the response crews in Louisiana. Third, he’s keeping pressure on BP to pay for damages caused by the spill. Fourth, he’s going to help small business with loans needed due to the spill along with loan deferments for those they needed during Katrina. Finally, and most importantly, he’s approving a barrier island that will help prevent some of the oil from reaching shore. Will it help? Fingers crossed. source

Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

In the best of times you would have seen a situation where other lenders would certainly have been willing to consider getting into this business. In the current environment, given the constraints on credit generally, there’s not enough capacity out there.
Pryor Cashman bankruptcy group law partner Mark Jacobs • Discussing the shape of the market that CIT specializes in. The company, which is well-known for lending to small businesses, already dried up much of its lending due to the credit crunch and the company’s own financial woes. While the CIT says it will continue operating normally as it works its way through Chapter 11, businesses concerned about dealing with a bankrupt company have few other places to turn. In other words, a company that few people have heard of has huge amounts of power over businesses you go to every day. And that company just went bankrupt. Oh CIT. • source

Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

$71 billion the amount in assets CIT Group had when it filed today; it’s the fifth-largest bankruptcy in U.S. history
$64.9 billion the amount in debts the lender, which focuses on small businesses, has; it’s trying to cut $10 billion in debt source

Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

Decemberists no more Early this decade, it was a new tale of urban bohemia. Neighborhoods in cities across the country were starting to become hip, complete with flower shops, coffee huts, boutiques full of random crap you’d never buy, and so on and so forth. Still cool middle-age white people going to Whole Foods. And they were all listening to indie rock and growing neckbeards.
The economy of suck One neighborhood, Los Angeles’ Eagle Rock, is a good example of the downward trend. The recession, killing home prices nationwide, is also having an effect on the shops that hipsters descend upon while listening to Rilo Kiley on their iPhones and drinking their vegan mochas. Eagle Rock lost many of their cool shops recently due to economic turmoil.
How residents feelResidents are, admittedly, kind of sad about the loss, even if they’ve found it tough to actually shop there due to constricting wallet size. Eagle Rock resident Emily Cook, a screenwriter, lamented the loss of scene but has learned to live without it. “When we first moved here,” she said, “I wanted it to be cool. But that stuff doesn’t matter anymore.” source

Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

26 May 2011 12:32