Norway butter shortage threatens Christmas treats - Times LIVE
EXCERPT:
"The shortfall, expected to last into January, amounts to between 500 and 1,000 tonnes, said Tine, Norway's main dairy company, while online sellers have offered 500-gramme packs for up to 350 euros ($465).
The dire shortage poses a serious challenge for Norwegians who are trying to finish their traditional Christmas baking -- a task which usually requires them to make at least seven different kinds of biscuits.
The shortfall has been blamed on a rainy summer that cut into feed production and therefore dairy output, but also the ballooning popularity of a low-carbohydrate, fat-rich diet that has sent demand for butter soaring.
"Compared to 2010, demand has grown by as much as 30 percent," Tine spokesman Lars Galtung told AFP.
Last Friday, customs officers stopped a Russian at the Norwegian-Swedish border and seized 90 kilos (198 pounds) of butter stashed in his car.
Monday, December 12, 2011
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Long Lines For Free Holiday Food Vouchers « CBS Miami
EXCERPTS:
"LITTLE HAVANA (CBS4) – Hundreds of South Floridians lined up in Little Havana overnight for a chance to feed their families this holiday.**
As part of the Latin Chamber of Commerce’s annual holiday basket giveaway, representatives from the organization handed out food vouchers on Flagler Street between 14th and 15th Avenues in Little Havana.
Some people began to line up last Friday. Many of those who waited in line for hours were either unemployed or they live on a fixed income and can’t afford any extras.
“It’s very, very hard,” said Mosas Hernandez. “We need something free because right now, I lost my job, I need to pay my rent, so believe me it’s very hard.”
The line wrapped around the block outside the voucher distribution location. Concerned about safety, the City of Miami Police Department was in attendance to keep order and look after the sick and elderly.
Those who received a voucher Wednesday will have to return on December 14th and exchange it for bags of food. Each voucher can be redeemed for five bags of groceries worth $120. They are filled with pork, rice, beans, milk, bread and other delicious items which are often used in a traditional Noche Buena dinner.
This is the 26th year the Latin American Chamber of Commerce has given Christmas food away. It began with a holiday gift bag for just ten families. The organization now provides families with food bags, truckloads of food that are donated by several companies.
Perhaps no one symbolized the change in economic fortunes more than Angela Llamas who, with her friends and family, stood in line for more than 24 hours.
The Chamber finished giving away all 3,000 vouchers in two hours. Even so, the line of people continued to snake around the block leading organizers to conclude they could have given away twice as many vouchers this year, because the need is that great.
QUESTIONS:
Let's assume that you believe it's a good idea to help the poor.
1. Using economic analysis to support your ideas, do you think this food basket giveaway is a good way of achieving that objective?
2. Can you think of a plan that might be more effective at helping the poor?
Monday, November 21, 2011
Doctors Question Disability Decisions As Agency Moves To Speed Up Process - WSJ.com
EXCERPTS:
"Earlier this year, senior managers at the Social Security Administration in Baltimore, frustrated by a growing backlog of applications for federal disability benefits, called meetings with 140 of the agency's doctors.
The message was blunt: The number of people seeking benefits had soared. Doctors had to work faster to move cases. Instead of earning $90 an hour, as they had previously, they would receive about $80 per case—a pay cut for many cases which can take 60 to 90 minutes to review—unless the doctors worked faster. Most notably, it no longer mattered if doctors strayed far from their areas of expertise when taking a case.
"The implication there was that you really didn't have to be that careful and study the whole thing," said Rodrigo Toro, a neurologist who analyzed cases for the Social Security Administration for more than 10 years. Some doctors, including Dr. Toro, quit following the changes. Others were fired. In all, 45 of the 140 left within months, the agency said.
//
In February 2010, the inspector general, as part of a probe investigating complaints by a doctor, discovered a doctor in the Alabama disability determination office who approved between 80 and 100 decisions a day. Another Alabama doctor signed off on 30 cases an hour after performing only a "cursory review of each case." The investigation said several doctors complained of pressure from superiors to approve a higher number of applications to meet statistical goals.
//
The federal disability system is designed to help people who can no longer work. For many, it represents the social safety net of last resort. Successful applicants receive a monthly stipend and access to federal health-care programs, often for life.
QUESTIONS:
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Split Over ECB Reflects Europe's Divisions - WSJ.com
EXCERPTS:
"Established in 1998, the ECB [European Central Bank] was founded on a German principle that strictly separates central bankers from governments, a principle rooted in Germany's own history. In the early 1920s, its Reichsbank bought massive amounts of government bonds it paid for by printing money.
The result was hyperinflation, an episode that scars Germany's psyche as much as the Depression does in the U.S. The Reichsbank's successor, the Bundesbank, safeguarded Germany's postwar recovery by focusing on a single mandate to keep inflation low, a duty enshrined in the ECB's charter.
Its first president, Dutchman Wim Duisenberg, was so grounded in the tradition of central-bank independence that he was known to tell politicians "I hear you, but I don't listen."
///
Proponents of a broader ECB role say Europe's politicians lack the means to cope with a crisis of this severity even if they could overcome their differences. They contend the only way to forestall a collapse of the euro is for the central bank to declare that it will underpin the bond markets of all euro-zone governments.
Germany's worry is that such a move would spark a debilitating inflationary spiral. Germans' visceral rejection to printing money is so strong that endorsing such a course could amount to political suicide for Ms. Merkel and her coalition.
//
"They need to go into the market and say we have a wall of money here and no matter how much speculation there is, we are going to keep buying Italian bonds and any other euro bonds that are threatened," Irish Finance Minister Michael Noonan has said.
That would mark a dramatic departure from the central bank's charter, which restricts its role to maintaining price stability through monetary policy, the setting of interest rates.
The euro zone's architects purposely limited the ECB's purview to shield it from political influence. Independence, they believed, would instill confidence in the long-term viability of the common currency, convincing both investors and ordinary Europeans that the bank's power to create money wouldn't be used to remedy political folly.
By testing the limits of its charter, the ECB has opened itself to accusations that it has traded principle for expediency, inviting disaster. Within the ECB, opponents of further action argue that the moves have already put the central bank's reputation at risk.
//
Others warn that the bond purchases could invite reckless fiscal behavior by governments, a phenomenon often referred to as "moral hazard."
The credibility issue is central for skeptics of ECB bond buying. If the ECB were to give in to government demands for more aggressive action, the German public could lose confidence in the euro as a stable currency.
German economists contend that since the ECB prints the money to buy bonds, the extra funds it injects into financial markets when it makes bond purchases threaten to increase inflation. European inflation is currently about 3%, versus the ECB's 2% target.
//
Other big central banks, particularly the Fed, have interpreted their mandates more broadly to preserve financial stability. The Fed, which unlike the ECB also has a mandate to maximize employment, has purchased large amounts of Treasury bonds to keep long-term interest rates low and has bought mortgage-backed securities to help housing.
Thursday, November 17, 2011
The Surge in Money Growth: Meaningful or Meaningless? | Bob McTeer's Economic Policy Blog | NCPA.org
The Surge in Money Growth: Meaningful or Meaningless? | Bob McTeer's Economic Policy Blog | NCPA.org
Over the last few months, both M1 and M2 have increased significantly. Does that mean an increase in inflation is near? This short article by Bob McTeer, former president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, provides a useful discussion of this issue.
Over the last few months, both M1 and M2 have increased significantly. Does that mean an increase in inflation is near? This short article by Bob McTeer, former president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, provides a useful discussion of this issue.
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Monday, November 7, 2011
Saturday, November 5, 2011
Monday, October 31, 2011
Fla. pizza workers burned down rival store
EXCERPT:
LAKE CITY, Fla. (AP) - The battle for pizza supremacy has taken a wrong turn in Florida.
Two managers of a Domino's Pizza restaurant in Lake City, in north-central Florida, have been charged with burning down a rival Papa John's location. The motive? Police say one of the men admitted that he believed with his competitor out of the way, more pizza lovers would flock to his restaurant.
COMMENT: Firms in the same market always have an incentive to compete with each other for customers and profit. In a well-functioning market economy, there are laws which outlaw violent competition and police who punish anyone who breaks those laws. Without such laws, and police with sufficient power to enforce them, this kind of competition would be common. Thankfully, this kind of thing is rare.
LAKE CITY, Fla. (AP) - The battle for pizza supremacy has taken a wrong turn in Florida.
Two managers of a Domino's Pizza restaurant in Lake City, in north-central Florida, have been charged with burning down a rival Papa John's location. The motive? Police say one of the men admitted that he believed with his competitor out of the way, more pizza lovers would flock to his restaurant.
COMMENT: Firms in the same market always have an incentive to compete with each other for customers and profit. In a well-functioning market economy, there are laws which outlaw violent competition and police who punish anyone who breaks those laws. Without such laws, and police with sufficient power to enforce them, this kind of competition would be common. Thankfully, this kind of thing is rare.
Thursday, October 20, 2011
SF plan would offer tax break for hiring felons
EXCERPTS:
"San Francisco businesses that hire people with felony convictions would get a tax break, under legislation expected to be introduced today.
"Ex-felons are among the most challenged populations in getting work," said Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, who is crafting the plan.
Persuading an employer to hire a convicted felon, particularly in this economy when the unemployment rate is hovering just under 10 percent, is difficult, especially when there's a wide pool of job applicants without felony records.
But offering businesses a monetary incentive may get them to consider hiring someone with a criminal past, said Mirkarimi, who chairs the Board of Supervisors' Public Safety Committee and is a candidate for sheriff in the Nov. 8 election.
Lower tax burden
The goal is to shave about $10,000 off a business' companywide payroll tax burden for every new convict it hires full time. The tax relief for companies hiring part-time employees would be less.
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/10/17/BAT31LISSG.DTL#ixzz1bM3sDe7t
"San Francisco businesses that hire people with felony convictions would get a tax break, under legislation expected to be introduced today.
"Ex-felons are among the most challenged populations in getting work," said Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, who is crafting the plan.
Persuading an employer to hire a convicted felon, particularly in this economy when the unemployment rate is hovering just under 10 percent, is difficult, especially when there's a wide pool of job applicants without felony records.
But offering businesses a monetary incentive may get them to consider hiring someone with a criminal past, said Mirkarimi, who chairs the Board of Supervisors' Public Safety Committee and is a candidate for sheriff in the Nov. 8 election.
Lower tax burden
The goal is to shave about $10,000 off a business' companywide payroll tax burden for every new convict it hires full time. The tax relief for companies hiring part-time employees would be less.
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/10/17/BAT31LISSG.DTL#ixzz1bM3sDe7t
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Politics vs. Economics - Thomas Sowell
EXCERPTS:
"They say "all politics is local." But economic decisions impact the whole economy and reverberate internationally. That is why politicians' meddling with the economy creates so many disasters.
The time horizon of politics seldom reaches beyond the next election. But, in economics, when an oil company invests in oil explorations today, the oil they eventually find and process may not make its way to market and earn a profit until it is sold as gasoline a decade from now.
In short, the focus of politicians is extremely limited in both space and time -- and all the repercussions that lie beyond those limits carry little, if any, weight in political decisions.
Monday, October 17, 2011
Amity Shlaes: Three Policies That Gave Us the Jobs Economy - WSJ.com
This article gives you good historical perspective for thinking about what can be done to get the economy out of its current slump.
EXCERPT:
"There's the silver lining to our current cloud. It is that the economic mediocrity of the recent years constitutes someone's advantage. And that someone is young innovators. All this time, demand has once again been building. As soon as the economy feels reliable, people will go out and make the 2015 equivalent of the early PC."
EXCERPT:
"There's the silver lining to our current cloud. It is that the economic mediocrity of the recent years constitutes someone's advantage. And that someone is young innovators. All this time, demand has once again been building. As soon as the economy feels reliable, people will go out and make the 2015 equivalent of the early PC."
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Down with evil corporations !?
Someone posted this comment at Carpe Diem:
"The mostly young crowd packing into NYC to protest against capitalism is all over the news now. There is a certain irony to their declarations against “Big Corporations” henceforth referred to as (BC)
They arrived in their cars, (BC) in airplane(BC)s, and on busses(BC) They alert each other to gatherings over Twitter(BC) and the Internet(BC) using their IPhones(BC) and Ipads (BC)They stay tuned into the latest music(BC) with earphones(BC) plugged into their Ipods. (BC) They wear Nikes, (BC) Reeboks(BC) and Earth shoes(BC), Levis, (BC) Gap (BC)and Old Navy(BC) clothes and smoke cigarettes made by “Big tobacco”. (BC)
They hold signs printed on paper(BC) with markers (BC), beat drums(BC) and use megaphones(BC) to shout out their anti-business slogans. They use the toilets(BC) at McDonalds(BC) and eat food (BC) at any handy eatery(BC). When they use the bathroom they wipe with toilet paper(BC) while sitting on a toilet (BC) and washing their hands in a sink (BC) using soap. (BC)
In short, every single need, want or desire of their lives has been supplied every step of the way by Big Corporations. Were it not for Big corporations they would have had to have heard about the protest from smoke signals from fires lit by flints and burning wood cut with stone axes. They would be dressed in animal skins and would have walked barefooted on dirt paths to get to NYC. They would be doing their business behind trees and wiping with their bare hands. At night they‘d be snuggled up under a homespun blanket made from the fleece of their own sheep.
I’m going to go out on a limb and say that without Big Corporations no one would be there at all. Everyone would be too busy just trying to stay warm and fed.
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Transcript: George Stephanopoulos' ABC News / Yahoo! News Exclusive Interview With President Obama - ABC News
Transcript: George Stephanopoulos' ABC News / Yahoo! News Exclusive Interview With President Obama - ABC News
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: You might have a new issue on your plate over the weekend. Bank of America now is doing a $5 service fee for using your debit cards. Drawing-- a lot of outrage, a lot of questions. And basically the questions boil down to what Vikki Manko of Naperville, Illinois asks. "These are the types of things government should get involved in and put a stop to." Can you put a stop to that?
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well-- what we did was we put a stop through-- The Financial Reform Act of them charging fees-- for credit cards.
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: And the banks are saying--
PRESIDENT OBAMA: And so-- Well-- what-- what the banks are saying is-- that "Rather than take a little bit less of a profit. Rather than paying multimillion dollar bonuses. Let's treat our customers right." And this is exactly why we need this consumer finance-- protection bureau that we set up that is ready to go. And what we need is a confirmation of the person I've appointed, Rich Cordray treasurer of Ohio. Back in Ohio, Republicans and Democrats both think he's terrific and he's fair. But this is exactly why we need somebody who's sole job it is to prevent this kind of stuff from happening.
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Can you stop this service charge?
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, you can stop it because it-- if you-- if you say to the banks, "You don't have some inherent right just to-- you know, get a certain amount of profit. If your customers-- are being mistreated. That you have to treat them fairly and transparently." And-- and my hope is is that you're going to see a bunch of-- the banks, who say to themselves, "You know what? This is actually not good business practice." Banks can make money. They can succeed, the old-fashioned way, by earning it. By lending to small businesses. By lending to consumers. By making sure that-- you know, we are building the economy together. But-- you know, without the kinds of protections that we're starting to see the Republicans try to roll back-- we're going to continue to have these kinds of problems. And this is exactly-- the sort of stuff that folks are frustrated by. This, by the way, is an example of the-- the contrasting visions that we have. If-- if-- if-- the Republican Party believes that we should do nothing to curb abuses on Wall Street and roll back regulations put in place to prevent the next big financial crisis, well, I've got a big difference with them. And I think the American people are going to be on my side on that.
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: You might have a new issue on your plate over the weekend. Bank of America now is doing a $5 service fee for using your debit cards. Drawing-- a lot of outrage, a lot of questions. And basically the questions boil down to what Vikki Manko of Naperville, Illinois asks. "These are the types of things government should get involved in and put a stop to." Can you put a stop to that?
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well-- what we did was we put a stop through-- The Financial Reform Act of them charging fees-- for credit cards.
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: And the banks are saying--
PRESIDENT OBAMA: And so-- Well-- what-- what the banks are saying is-- that "Rather than take a little bit less of a profit. Rather than paying multimillion dollar bonuses. Let's treat our customers right." And this is exactly why we need this consumer finance-- protection bureau that we set up that is ready to go. And what we need is a confirmation of the person I've appointed, Rich Cordray treasurer of Ohio. Back in Ohio, Republicans and Democrats both think he's terrific and he's fair. But this is exactly why we need somebody who's sole job it is to prevent this kind of stuff from happening.
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Can you stop this service charge?
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, you can stop it because it-- if you-- if you say to the banks, "You don't have some inherent right just to-- you know, get a certain amount of profit. If your customers-- are being mistreated. That you have to treat them fairly and transparently." And-- and my hope is is that you're going to see a bunch of-- the banks, who say to themselves, "You know what? This is actually not good business practice." Banks can make money. They can succeed, the old-fashioned way, by earning it. By lending to small businesses. By lending to consumers. By making sure that-- you know, we are building the economy together. But-- you know, without the kinds of protections that we're starting to see the Republicans try to roll back-- we're going to continue to have these kinds of problems. And this is exactly-- the sort of stuff that folks are frustrated by. This, by the way, is an example of the-- the contrasting visions that we have. If-- if-- if-- the Republican Party believes that we should do nothing to curb abuses on Wall Street and roll back regulations put in place to prevent the next big financial crisis, well, I've got a big difference with them. And I think the American people are going to be on my side on that.
Friday, October 7, 2011
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Starbucks to Begin Collecting Donations to Stimulate U.S. Job Growth « CBS Seattle
Starbucks to Begin Collecting Donations to Stimulate U.S. Job Growth « CBS Seattle
EXCERPTS:
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — "Starbucks hopes customers will be willing to pay at least $5 more when they stop in for their morning cup of Joe.
Starting Nov. 1, Starbucks will begin collecting donations of $5 or more from customers to stimulate U.S. job growth through its “Jobs for USA” program. The Seattle-based coffee chain is collaborating with the Opportunity Finance Network, a nonprofit that works with nearly 200 community development financial institutions to provide loans to small businesses and community groups. Starbucks says 100 percent of the donations will go toward loans for firms and organizations that can add jobs or stem job losses.
Starbucks, which pioneered how Americans drink coffee, declined to estimate how much money it plans to raise, but millions of people visit its nearly 7,000 company-owned U.S. stores each day. Customers who give will get a red, white and blue wristband that says “Indivisible.”
EXCERPTS:
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — "Starbucks hopes customers will be willing to pay at least $5 more when they stop in for their morning cup of Joe.
Starting Nov. 1, Starbucks will begin collecting donations of $5 or more from customers to stimulate U.S. job growth through its “Jobs for USA” program. The Seattle-based coffee chain is collaborating with the Opportunity Finance Network, a nonprofit that works with nearly 200 community development financial institutions to provide loans to small businesses and community groups. Starbucks says 100 percent of the donations will go toward loans for firms and organizations that can add jobs or stem job losses.
Starbucks, which pioneered how Americans drink coffee, declined to estimate how much money it plans to raise, but millions of people visit its nearly 7,000 company-owned U.S. stores each day. Customers who give will get a red, white and blue wristband that says “Indivisible.”
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Would you join this protest?
Down With Wall Street, but Keep the Pizza Coming - WSJ.com
"Bre Lembitz, a 21-year-old sleeping in the park and working as a medic, said she is opposed to the way investors' appetites for high profits and ever-greater returns force corporations to cut back on salaries and benefits for workers.
"You have this super-charged profit motive," said Ms. Lembitz, a student at Clark University in Massachusetts who is majoring in international relations and economics. "You don't have the corporate accountability that you need to have."
QUESTIONS:
Does the desire of investors for high profits force companies to cut back on worker salaries and benefits? Should corporations be more accountable?
"Bre Lembitz, a 21-year-old sleeping in the park and working as a medic, said she is opposed to the way investors' appetites for high profits and ever-greater returns force corporations to cut back on salaries and benefits for workers.
"You have this super-charged profit motive," said Ms. Lembitz, a student at Clark University in Massachusetts who is majoring in international relations and economics. "You don't have the corporate accountability that you need to have."
QUESTIONS:
Does the desire of investors for high profits force companies to cut back on worker salaries and benefits? Should corporations be more accountable?
Friday, September 23, 2011
Manhattan Institute Video
The first 13 minutes of the video below provide an interesting evaluation of the government's actions during the depression of the 1930s, and of why it's relevant today.
Manhattan Institute Video
Manhattan Institute Video
Friday, September 16, 2011
UPS's Latest Efficiency Move: Ditch the Keys - WSJ.com
UPS's Latest Efficiency Move: Ditch the Keys - WSJ.com
EXCERPTS:
"LOUISVILLE, Ky.—United Parcel Service Inc., already designs its delivery routes to avoid left turns, so as not to waste time waiting for oncoming traffic. And the company requires its drivers to walk at a "brisk pace," which it defines as 2.5 paces a second.
But at an investor conference here, UPS executives said they hit upon another cost-saving strategy: take away the drivers' keys.
They said the company will save $70 million a year by going to a "keyless" system in which drivers will start their vehicle with a fob hooked to their belt.
Currently, UPS drivers are required to carry key rings on their ring finger to avoid wasting time searching for them. During the company's driver-training school, instructors yell out, "raise your hands!" Candidates caught without their keys lose points.
Still, wrangling with keys can eat up valuable seconds, UPS says. Once a driver stops, he or she has to take the keys out of the ignition, and then turn around and use them to unlock the bulkhead door to get to the packages.
Soon, drivers will wear a digital-remote fob on their belts and will be able to turn the engine off with a button that will unlock the bulkhead door at the same time.... That automatic door opening will save 1.75 seconds per stop, or 6.5 minutes per driver per day, while also reducing motion and fatigue, said David Abney, UPS's chief operating officer.
Mr. Abney acknowledged that the company is "obsessive...."
EXCERPTS:
"LOUISVILLE, Ky.—United Parcel Service Inc., already designs its delivery routes to avoid left turns, so as not to waste time waiting for oncoming traffic. And the company requires its drivers to walk at a "brisk pace," which it defines as 2.5 paces a second.
But at an investor conference here, UPS executives said they hit upon another cost-saving strategy: take away the drivers' keys.
They said the company will save $70 million a year by going to a "keyless" system in which drivers will start their vehicle with a fob hooked to their belt.
Currently, UPS drivers are required to carry key rings on their ring finger to avoid wasting time searching for them. During the company's driver-training school, instructors yell out, "raise your hands!" Candidates caught without their keys lose points.
Still, wrangling with keys can eat up valuable seconds, UPS says. Once a driver stops, he or she has to take the keys out of the ignition, and then turn around and use them to unlock the bulkhead door to get to the packages.
Soon, drivers will wear a digital-remote fob on their belts and will be able to turn the engine off with a button that will unlock the bulkhead door at the same time.... That automatic door opening will save 1.75 seconds per stop, or 6.5 minutes per driver per day, while also reducing motion and fatigue, said David Abney, UPS's chief operating officer.
Mr. Abney acknowledged that the company is "obsessive...."
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
RealClearPolitics - Why U.S. Health Care Leads the Way
RealClearPolitics - Why U.S. Health Care Leads the Way
EXCERPT:
"In [the vision that prevails widely among the intelligentsia], people can draw on the available resources only to the extent that the government considers appropriate, in the light of other claims on those resources. This treats what the people have produced as if it automatically belongs to the government -- and as if politicians and bureaucrats have both the right and the wisdom to override the personal decisions that the people want to make for themselves.
"This issue involves a difference between a world in which people can make their own decisions with their own money and a world in which decisions -- including life and death medical decisions -- are taken out of the hands of millions of people across the country and put into the hands of politicians and bureaucrats in Washington.
"One of the big claims for government-run medical systems is that they can "bring down the cost of medical care." But anyone can bring down the cost of anything by simply buying a smaller quantity or a lower quality.
EXCERPT:
"In [the vision that prevails widely among the intelligentsia], people can draw on the available resources only to the extent that the government considers appropriate, in the light of other claims on those resources. This treats what the people have produced as if it automatically belongs to the government -- and as if politicians and bureaucrats have both the right and the wisdom to override the personal decisions that the people want to make for themselves.
"This issue involves a difference between a world in which people can make their own decisions with their own money and a world in which decisions -- including life and death medical decisions -- are taken out of the hands of millions of people across the country and put into the hands of politicians and bureaucrats in Washington.
"One of the big claims for government-run medical systems is that they can "bring down the cost of medical care." But anyone can bring down the cost of anything by simply buying a smaller quantity or a lower quality.
Two Different Worlds - Thomas Sowell
RealClearPolitics - Two Different Worlds
EXCERPTS:
"Ideological clashes over particular laws, policies and programs often go far deeper. Those with opposing views of what is desirable for the future also tend to differ equally sharply as to what the reality of the present is. In other words, they envision two very different worlds.
***
"Judging businesses or their owners by how much wealth they give away -- rather than by how much wealth they create -- is putting the cart before the horse. Wealth is ultimately the only thing that can reduce poverty. The most dramatic reductions in poverty, in countries around the world, have come from increasing the amount of wealth, rather than from a redistribution of existing wealth.
"What kind of world do we want -- one in which everyone works to increase wealth to whatever extent they can, or a world in which everyone will be supported by either government handouts or private philanthropy, whether they work or don't work?
EXCERPTS:
"Ideological clashes over particular laws, policies and programs often go far deeper. Those with opposing views of what is desirable for the future also tend to differ equally sharply as to what the reality of the present is. In other words, they envision two very different worlds.
***
"Judging businesses or their owners by how much wealth they give away -- rather than by how much wealth they create -- is putting the cart before the horse. Wealth is ultimately the only thing that can reduce poverty. The most dramatic reductions in poverty, in countries around the world, have come from increasing the amount of wealth, rather than from a redistribution of existing wealth.
"What kind of world do we want -- one in which everyone works to increase wealth to whatever extent they can, or a world in which everyone will be supported by either government handouts or private philanthropy, whether they work or don't work?
Keynes and planning
Quotation of the Day…
This is an interesting quote I came across at Cafe Hayek:
… page 79 of James M. Buchanan’s and Richard E. Wagner’s vital 1977 book Democracy in Deficit:
"Perhaps it is best simply to say that [John Maynard] Keynes was not particularly concerned about institutions, as such. His emphasis was on results and not on rules or institutions through which such results might be reached. And if institutional barriers to what he considered rational policy planning should have worried him, Keynes would have been ready to set up a “national planning board” run by a committee of the wise."
This is an interesting quote I came across at Cafe Hayek:
… page 79 of James M. Buchanan’s and Richard E. Wagner’s vital 1977 book Democracy in Deficit:
"Perhaps it is best simply to say that [John Maynard] Keynes was not particularly concerned about institutions, as such. His emphasis was on results and not on rules or institutions through which such results might be reached. And if institutional barriers to what he considered rational policy planning should have worried him, Keynes would have been ready to set up a “national planning board” run by a committee of the wise."
Friday, September 9, 2011
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Why the Stimulus Failed - WSJ.com
Review & Outlook:Why the Stimulus Failed - WSJ.com
EXCERPTS:
"This suggests just how hard it is for Keynesian job creation to work in a modern, expertise-based economy," they write. The stimulus "was implemented at a time when the Keynesian model had every chance of succeeding on its own terms. The high level of unemployment and the rapid deadline for spending created both the supply of workers and the demand for workers. If the job market results are so lackluster in this setting, economists should expect even weaker stimulative results during more modest recessions."
EXCERPTS:
"This suggests just how hard it is for Keynesian job creation to work in a modern, expertise-based economy," they write. The stimulus "was implemented at a time when the Keynesian model had every chance of succeeding on its own terms. The high level of unemployment and the rapid deadline for spending created both the supply of workers and the demand for workers. If the job market results are so lackluster in this setting, economists should expect even weaker stimulative results during more modest recessions."
Saturday, September 3, 2011
Bernie Sanders' War on Chinese Bobbleheads! - YouTube
Bernie Sanders' War on Chinese Bobbleheads! - YouTube
"If a museum owned by the people of America cannot even have products manufactured in the United States by American workers, we've got some very, very serious problems." - Congressman Bernie Sanders
Do you agree with Sanders? Watch the video and then see what you think.
"If a museum owned by the people of America cannot even have products manufactured in the United States by American workers, we've got some very, very serious problems." - Congressman Bernie Sanders
Do you agree with Sanders? Watch the video and then see what you think.
The Importance of Positive Analysis: Luxury Tax on Yachts - Walter E. Williams - Townhall Conservative
Ignorance, Stupidity or Connivance? - Page 1 - Walter E. Williams - Townhall Conservative
In the 1990s, Congress imposed a 10 percent luxury tax on yachts, private airplanes and expensive automobiles. This article provides a good example of the consequences of not taking the time to do positive economic analysis before enacting a policy.
In the 1990s, Congress imposed a 10 percent luxury tax on yachts, private airplanes and expensive automobiles. This article provides a good example of the consequences of not taking the time to do positive economic analysis before enacting a policy.
Friday, September 2, 2011
One parking space: $100,000 - WSJ.com
In Crowded Downtowns, Parking Costs a Premium - WSJ.com
EXCERPTS:
"Helen and Bob Alkon paid $1.3 million for their condominium in downtown Boston two years ago. And while some apartments in the building have slipped in value since then, one of the Alkons' investments has paid off: The parking spot they purchased for $100,000 today sells for $125,000.
EXCERPTS:
"Helen and Bob Alkon paid $1.3 million for their condominium in downtown Boston two years ago. And while some apartments in the building have slipped in value since then, one of the Alkons' investments has paid off: The parking spot they purchased for $100,000 today sells for $125,000.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Beyond the Gold and Bond Bubbles - WSJ.com
David Malpass Beyond the Gold and Bond Bubbles - WSJ.com
EXCERPTS:
"Treasury bond yields have been at near-record lows and gold prices at record highs, attracting millions of investors into idle assets through coins, exchange-traded funds and even warehousing facilities. This reflects fear about inflation and the stability of the financial system and, for some, the coming breakdown of society under the weight of $3.6 trillion in annual Washington spending and transfer payments.
***
"Mr. Bernanke should directly confront the fear index imbedded in high gold prices and low bond yields. Gold at more than $1,800 per ounce is a loud public statement of no confidence in our central bank. It means people would rather buy gold than hire workers or start businesses—that they don't trust the central bank to maintain the value of their money.
Former Fed Chairman Paul Volcker thought of high gold prices as his enemy and repeatedly said so as a way to build confidence in the central bank. In the 1970s, high gold prices reflected Fed incompetence that had produced inflation, stagnation and malaise. Jimmy Carter named Mr. Volcker to replace G. William Miller as Fed chairman in 1979, a rare moment of Washington accountability. Gold then fell in the 1980s and '90s in what was called affectionately "The Great Moderation." Inflation and oil prices followed gold prices down, tax rates were cut, and jobs became plentiful. Foreign capital beat a path to America's door, the mirror image of the exodus of growth capital the Fed's weak dollar is fueling.
EXCERPTS:
"Treasury bond yields have been at near-record lows and gold prices at record highs, attracting millions of investors into idle assets through coins, exchange-traded funds and even warehousing facilities. This reflects fear about inflation and the stability of the financial system and, for some, the coming breakdown of society under the weight of $3.6 trillion in annual Washington spending and transfer payments.
***
"Mr. Bernanke should directly confront the fear index imbedded in high gold prices and low bond yields. Gold at more than $1,800 per ounce is a loud public statement of no confidence in our central bank. It means people would rather buy gold than hire workers or start businesses—that they don't trust the central bank to maintain the value of their money.
Former Fed Chairman Paul Volcker thought of high gold prices as his enemy and repeatedly said so as a way to build confidence in the central bank. In the 1970s, high gold prices reflected Fed incompetence that had produced inflation, stagnation and malaise. Jimmy Carter named Mr. Volcker to replace G. William Miller as Fed chairman in 1979, a rare moment of Washington accountability. Gold then fell in the 1980s and '90s in what was called affectionately "The Great Moderation." Inflation and oil prices followed gold prices down, tax rates were cut, and jobs became plentiful. Foreign capital beat a path to America's door, the mirror image of the exodus of growth capital the Fed's weak dollar is fueling.
Social Security: Is It a Ponzi Scheme? | Michael D. Tanner | Cato Institute: Commentary
Yes, It Is a Ponzi Scheme | Michael D. Tanner | Cato Institute: Commentary
This short article provides a useful overview of the Social Security System.
This short article provides a useful overview of the Social Security System.
Monday, August 29, 2011
Friday, August 26, 2011
Thursday, August 25, 2011
The Bond Bubble and the Case for Stocks - WSJ.com
Jeremy Siegel and Jeremy Schwartz: The Bond Bubble and the Case for Stocks - WSJ.com
Excerpts:
"One market that now makes no sense to us is the popular Treasury Inflation Protected Securities (TIPS), where recent yields should be enshrined in Ripley's "Believe It or Not!" The yield on the benchmark 10-year TIPS turned negative for the first time in history, meaning investors are now lending money to the government with the hope of receiving a sum 10 years from now that is worth less in purchasing power than the dollars they fork over today.
"This astounding situation can only be justified by extraordinary pessimism about the prospects for the U.S. economy. Economic theory predicts that the real yield on long-term TIPS should approximate the real growth in the economy. And when these securities were first floated in 1997, investors received a 3.4% yield, which was very close to the 3.6% average GDP growth over the previous 50 years. The average yield on the 10-year TIPS since it was floated has been 2.5%.
***
"Investors have flocked to inflation hedges like TIPS and gold out of fears about out-of-control government debt and deficits. The S&P downgrade of the U.S. credit rating heightened concern that the Fed would turn on the printing presses. But equities, like precious metals, are also real assets whose return has compensated investors for inflation. Per share dividends of the S&P 500 firms have grown at 5% per year over the last half-century, which handily beat the average rate of inflation of 4% during the period. In fact, dividend growth has beat inflation both during the low inflation periods of the 1960s, 1990s and 2000s, and the high inflation periods of the 1970s and early 1980s.
Excerpts:
"One market that now makes no sense to us is the popular Treasury Inflation Protected Securities (TIPS), where recent yields should be enshrined in Ripley's "Believe It or Not!" The yield on the benchmark 10-year TIPS turned negative for the first time in history, meaning investors are now lending money to the government with the hope of receiving a sum 10 years from now that is worth less in purchasing power than the dollars they fork over today.
"This astounding situation can only be justified by extraordinary pessimism about the prospects for the U.S. economy. Economic theory predicts that the real yield on long-term TIPS should approximate the real growth in the economy. And when these securities were first floated in 1997, investors received a 3.4% yield, which was very close to the 3.6% average GDP growth over the previous 50 years. The average yield on the 10-year TIPS since it was floated has been 2.5%.
***
"Investors have flocked to inflation hedges like TIPS and gold out of fears about out-of-control government debt and deficits. The S&P downgrade of the U.S. credit rating heightened concern that the Fed would turn on the printing presses. But equities, like precious metals, are also real assets whose return has compensated investors for inflation. Per share dividends of the S&P 500 firms have grown at 5% per year over the last half-century, which handily beat the average rate of inflation of 4% during the period. In fact, dividend growth has beat inflation both during the low inflation periods of the 1960s, 1990s and 2000s, and the high inflation periods of the 1970s and early 1980s.
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Instructions For External Proctors
WHAT IS NEEDED.
The exam will be taken online. The student will need a computer with an internet connection. The computer will need to have the Respondus Lockdown browser installed on it. (If the Lockdown browser needs to be installed on the computer it can be downloaded from http://www.respondus.com/lockdown/information.pl?ID=722313312 .
Installation takes only a few minutes but does require administrative rights to the computer and should be done before the day of the exam. The student can use their own computer or one that belongs to your institution.
To access the exam a password is required. The password for this exam is ____ [this will be supplied two days before the exam]. Give this password to the student once they are ready to begin the exam. (They can take the exam only once so they should not log on until they are ready to begin.)
DATE: The exam can be taken anytime between 7:30 AM ___ [exact exam dates will be sent two days before the exam].
WHEN THE STUDENT ARRIVES FOR THE EXAM. Although you may have known this student prior to this course you should look at their photo ID and verify that the person taking the exam is in fact the person who is registered for the course. Please copy the name on the student's ID onto a piece of paper, then include that name on the subject line of the email you send me once they have finished the exam.
Please remove all books, notes, and cell phones from the area where the student will be sitting. They are allowed to have two or three totally blank pieces of paper, a pencil or pen, and a calculator.
The student will access the exam by clicking the Respondus Lockdown icon on the desktop of the computer. The browser will ask you to select which server to use. Of the three options listed, choose “Moodle.” The browser will open on the NSU Moodle site. The student will enter their username and password, then go to the Econ 2000 page. In the middle column, below the picture of Adam Smith, and above “Welcome to Economics,” they will find “EXAM ONE.” Students are allowed up to 90 minutes for the exam but most students will finish in less than an hour.
DURING THE EXAM. Each student is to work alone under your supervision during the entire testing period. No “split” or “continued” testing sessions are allowed. Once the exam begins the student is to work in an uninterrupted manner until they have completed the exam.
When the student is ready to stop they must click “submit all and finish” at the bottom of the page. The exam cannot be graded if it is not submitted. Once the exam has been submitted the student should log off and close the Respondus browser.
If at any time you believe the testing procedure has been compromised you should terminate the exam and contact me as soon as possible.
AFTER THE EXAM. As soon as the student finishes the exam please send me an email confirming that the student did complete the exam in the specified manner. On the subject line of the email put the student's name as it appears on their ID.
Again, thank you for serving as a proctor for this exam.
Dr. Bob Jones
Economics
Economics
Northwestern State University of Louisiana
http://beconsistent.blogspot.com
http://beconsistent.blogspot.com
Friday, August 19, 2011
FDR's New Dea - | Jim Powell | Cato Institute: Commentary
FDR's New Deal, Obama's New New Deal and High Unemployment | Jim Powell | Cato Institute: Commentary
This article gives a good summary of policy changes under FDR's New Deal, and of the economic conditions that resulted.
This article gives a good summary of policy changes under FDR's New Deal, and of the economic conditions that resulted.
Good Things - Thomas Sowell
EXCERPTS:
"Life has many good things. The problem is that most of these good things can be gotten only by sacrificing other good things. We all recognize this in our daily lives. It is only in politics that this simple, common sense fact is routinely ignored.
In politics, there are not simply good things but some special Good Things -- with a capital G and capital T -- which are considered always better to have more of.
Many of the things advocated by environmental extremists, for example, are things that most of us might think of as good things. But, in politics, they become Good Things whose repercussions and costs are brushed aside as unworthy considerations.
Nobody wants to breathe dirty air or drink dirty water. But, if either becomes 98 percent pure, 99 percent pure or 99.9 percent pure, there is some point beyond which the costs skyrocket and the benefits become meager or non-existent.
*****
"Higher miles per gallon for cars is a Good Thing in politics, even if it leads to cars too lightly built to protect occupants when there is a crash. More students going to college is another Good Thing, even if lowering standards to get them admitted results in lower educational quality for others.
Too much of a Good Thing is bad.
"Life has many good things. The problem is that most of these good things can be gotten only by sacrificing other good things. We all recognize this in our daily lives. It is only in politics that this simple, common sense fact is routinely ignored.
In politics, there are not simply good things but some special Good Things -- with a capital G and capital T -- which are considered always better to have more of.
Many of the things advocated by environmental extremists, for example, are things that most of us might think of as good things. But, in politics, they become Good Things whose repercussions and costs are brushed aside as unworthy considerations.
Nobody wants to breathe dirty air or drink dirty water. But, if either becomes 98 percent pure, 99 percent pure or 99.9 percent pure, there is some point beyond which the costs skyrocket and the benefits become meager or non-existent.
*****
"Higher miles per gallon for cars is a Good Thing in politics, even if it leads to cars too lightly built to protect occupants when there is a crash. More students going to college is another Good Thing, even if lowering standards to get them admitted results in lower educational quality for others.
Too much of a Good Thing is bad.
Thursday, August 18, 2011
"I'll bring back $2 gas" - Aug. 18, 2011
EXCERPTS:
"President Michele Bachmann has a promise: $2 gas. 'Under President Bachmann you will see gasoline come down below $2 a gallon again,' Bachmann told a crowd Tuesday in South Carolina. 'That will happen.'
"Sure, politicians promise all kinds of things on the campaign trail. But Bachmann, a leading contender for the 2012 Republican nomination, is wading into truly tricky territory.
***
"It's certainly true that prices -- now about $3.50 a gallon on average -- have risen since President Obama took office. "The day that the president became president gasoline was $1.79 a gallon," Bachmann said. "Look what it is today."
"Of course, that's not the full story. When Obama took office, the country was mired in a terrible economic contraction. "That was in the 4th inning of the greatest recession of our lifetime," said Tom Kloza, chief oil analyst at the Oil Price Information Service. During recessions, demand for gasoline plummets as trucks pull off the road, companies cut back on travel and laid off workers drive fewer miles.
"President Michele Bachmann has a promise: $2 gas. 'Under President Bachmann you will see gasoline come down below $2 a gallon again,' Bachmann told a crowd Tuesday in South Carolina. 'That will happen.'
"Sure, politicians promise all kinds of things on the campaign trail. But Bachmann, a leading contender for the 2012 Republican nomination, is wading into truly tricky territory.
***
"It's certainly true that prices -- now about $3.50 a gallon on average -- have risen since President Obama took office. "The day that the president became president gasoline was $1.79 a gallon," Bachmann said. "Look what it is today."
"Of course, that's not the full story. When Obama took office, the country was mired in a terrible economic contraction. "That was in the 4th inning of the greatest recession of our lifetime," said Tom Kloza, chief oil analyst at the Oil Price Information Service. During recessions, demand for gasoline plummets as trucks pull off the road, companies cut back on travel and laid off workers drive fewer miles.
Monday, August 8, 2011
No Chance of Default, US Can Print Money: Greenspan - CNBC
EXCERPTS:
"The United States can pay any debt it has because we can always print money to do that. So there is zero probability of default" said Greenspan on NBC's Meet the Press. "What I think the S&P thing did was to hit a nerve that there's something basically bad going on, and it's hit the self-esteem of the United States, the psyche" said Greenspan."
"The United States can pay any debt it has because we can always print money to do that. So there is zero probability of default" said Greenspan on NBC's Meet the Press. "What I think the S&P thing did was to hit a nerve that there's something basically bad going on, and it's hit the self-esteem of the United States, the psyche" said Greenspan."
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Encouraging people to think versus attacking opposing views
This post at Cafehayek is a good example of demonizing those with whom you disagree, rather than encouraging your opponents to think. Joe Nocera is doing the demonizing. Russ Roberts points it out.
$1,500 shoes?
NBC's Mika Upset That "Wealthy" Are Able To Buy Luxury Goods | RealClearPolitics
This video provides interesting material for discussion.
This video provides interesting material for discussion.
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Pilgrim's Pride Swings to Loss, Closing Plant - WSJ.com
EXCERPTS:
"Pilgrim's Pride Corp. swung to a quarterly loss and set plans to shut a Texas chicken-processing plant, highlighting the problems facing U.S. food producers as they wrestle with high grain costs and a tough pricing environment.
The second-largest U.S. poultry producer by revenue lost $128 million in the second quarter and will shutter a plant in Dallas with 1,000 staff in an effort to curb the glut of chicken that has depressed prices.
"Our industry's business model is not sustainable at these [price] levels," said Pilgrim's Pride Chief Executive Bill Lovette on a conference call. The company will have 29 bird-processing plants after Dallas closes, and eight of those facilities are already idle.
The chicken industry has suffered compared with pork and beef producers, which have been lifted by strong exports, though the entire meat-producing sector has been stung by soaring feed costs. Chicken producers have had the toughest time passing on price increases to retailers and consumers.
Pilgrim's, which has 42,000 employees, was the largest casualty of a similar spike in animal-feed prices in 2008 that combined with wrong-way bets on derivatives contracts that left the company nursing a $1 billion full-year loss and pushed it into bankruptcy protection alongside a host of smaller producers
"Pilgrim's Pride Corp. swung to a quarterly loss and set plans to shut a Texas chicken-processing plant, highlighting the problems facing U.S. food producers as they wrestle with high grain costs and a tough pricing environment.
The second-largest U.S. poultry producer by revenue lost $128 million in the second quarter and will shutter a plant in Dallas with 1,000 staff in an effort to curb the glut of chicken that has depressed prices.
"Our industry's business model is not sustainable at these [price] levels," said Pilgrim's Pride Chief Executive Bill Lovette on a conference call. The company will have 29 bird-processing plants after Dallas closes, and eight of those facilities are already idle.
The chicken industry has suffered compared with pork and beef producers, which have been lifted by strong exports, though the entire meat-producing sector has been stung by soaring feed costs. Chicken producers have had the toughest time passing on price increases to retailers and consumers.
Pilgrim's, which has 42,000 employees, was the largest casualty of a similar spike in animal-feed prices in 2008 that combined with wrong-way bets on derivatives contracts that left the company nursing a $1 billion full-year loss and pushed it into bankruptcy protection alongside a host of smaller producers
New York City's Best Summer Job -Tanning Concierge at James Hotel - WSJ.com
EXCERPTS:
"By 11 a.m. on a recent sweltering Sunday, Harrison Anastasio had already collected the cellphone numbers of five bikini-clad women on the rooftop pool at the James New York Hotel.
"Don't forget to text me," one of the women whispered to the tousle-haired 17-year-old, flashing him a coy smile. Mr. Anastasio colored slightly beneath his Wayfarer sunglasses. But he wouldn't forget. Although it sounds like the setup for a 1980s sex comedy, it's actually his job.
Mr. Anastasio, a rising senior at Edward R. Murrow High School, is one of two attendants at the James's rooftop deck, where he's paid $15 an hour to supervise the four-foot-deep pool, serve water to guests and ready lounge chairs for optimal sun or shade. A certified lifeguard, he's also the pool's tanning concierge—a job the hotel created this summer in partnership with a sunscreen maker.
As concierge, Mr. Anastasio must ensure that pool patrons remember to turn over at designated intervals to evenly brown their front and back sides.
He politely introduces himself to guests when they arrive on the pool deck 18 stories above SoHo. They decide whether they'd prefer the teenager to gently tap them on the shoulder or send a text when it's time to turn over.
"Most people like to be texted. It's less invasive," Mr. Anastasio said. The text comes every 20 to 30 minutes and simply says, "Turn Over."
"By 11 a.m. on a recent sweltering Sunday, Harrison Anastasio had already collected the cellphone numbers of five bikini-clad women on the rooftop pool at the James New York Hotel.
"Don't forget to text me," one of the women whispered to the tousle-haired 17-year-old, flashing him a coy smile. Mr. Anastasio colored slightly beneath his Wayfarer sunglasses. But he wouldn't forget. Although it sounds like the setup for a 1980s sex comedy, it's actually his job.
Mr. Anastasio, a rising senior at Edward R. Murrow High School, is one of two attendants at the James's rooftop deck, where he's paid $15 an hour to supervise the four-foot-deep pool, serve water to guests and ready lounge chairs for optimal sun or shade. A certified lifeguard, he's also the pool's tanning concierge—a job the hotel created this summer in partnership with a sunscreen maker.
As concierge, Mr. Anastasio must ensure that pool patrons remember to turn over at designated intervals to evenly brown their front and back sides.
He politely introduces himself to guests when they arrive on the pool deck 18 stories above SoHo. They decide whether they'd prefer the teenager to gently tap them on the shoulder or send a text when it's time to turn over.
"Most people like to be texted. It's less invasive," Mr. Anastasio said. The text comes every 20 to 30 minutes and simply says, "Turn Over."
Freshly Sworn In, Peru President Raises Wages - WSJ.com
EXCERPTS:
"LIMA, Peru—Peru's new president, Ollanta Humala, took the oath of office Thursday, pledging to guarantee the "social inclusion" of the poor and immediately making good on campaign promises to raise the minimum wage and pensions.
The leftist president announced a two-stage 25% increase in the monthly minimum wage to 750 soles, or about $275, and unveiled pension increases for those older than 65.
While he repeated a campaign pledge that social benefits would be funded in part by higher taxes on mining companies, he didn't spell out what form these tax increases would take. The issue is expected to be the subject of intense negotiations between miners and the government.
"LIMA, Peru—Peru's new president, Ollanta Humala, took the oath of office Thursday, pledging to guarantee the "social inclusion" of the poor and immediately making good on campaign promises to raise the minimum wage and pensions.
The leftist president announced a two-stage 25% increase in the monthly minimum wage to 750 soles, or about $275, and unveiled pension increases for those older than 65.
While he repeated a campaign pledge that social benefits would be funded in part by higher taxes on mining companies, he didn't spell out what form these tax increases would take. The issue is expected to be the subject of intense negotiations between miners and the government.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Obama: 'I need a dance partner' on immigration reform - CNN.com
EXCERPT:
""The idea of doing things on my own is very tempting. I promise you, not just on immigration reform. But that's not how our system works. That's not how our democracy functions. That's not how our Constitution is written," Obama said at the National Council of La Raza's annual conference.
"Let's be honest, I need a dance partner here, and the floor is empty," he added, referring to the need for bipartisan congressional support to pass an immigration reform measure.
""The idea of doing things on my own is very tempting. I promise you, not just on immigration reform. But that's not how our system works. That's not how our democracy functions. That's not how our Constitution is written," Obama said at the National Council of La Raza's annual conference.
"Let's be honest, I need a dance partner here, and the floor is empty," he added, referring to the need for bipartisan congressional support to pass an immigration reform measure.
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Money Supply Jumps, but Economists Don’t See Inflation Threat - Real Time Economics - WSJ
EXCERPT:
"A surge in money supply measures reflect a mix of technical banking factors and investor unease, and isn’t a harbinger of an inflation surge, economists say.
While it wasn’t widely remarked upon when it was released last week, some in markets were taken aback by unexpectedly large increases in some of the broadest measures of money stock, as reported by the Federal Reserve.
Stone & McCarthy Research Associates flagged the second largest increase in the so-called M2 money stock measure — it captures cash and other highly liquid assets — on record for the July 4 week. Wrightson ICAP flagged an “explosion” taking place in M2, while Capital Economics said an internally created measure of money supply is growing at the fastest rate in two years.
What gives? Is the kindling of an inflation surge finally being lit? Or is something else afoot? Economists suggest the latter is most likely the case.
"A surge in money supply measures reflect a mix of technical banking factors and investor unease, and isn’t a harbinger of an inflation surge, economists say.
While it wasn’t widely remarked upon when it was released last week, some in markets were taken aback by unexpectedly large increases in some of the broadest measures of money stock, as reported by the Federal Reserve.
Stone & McCarthy Research Associates flagged the second largest increase in the so-called M2 money stock measure — it captures cash and other highly liquid assets — on record for the July 4 week. Wrightson ICAP flagged an “explosion” taking place in M2, while Capital Economics said an internally created measure of money supply is growing at the fastest rate in two years.
What gives? Is the kindling of an inflation surge finally being lit? Or is something else afoot? Economists suggest the latter is most likely the case.
Jobs in Wireless Industry Evaporate - WSJ.com
EXCERPTS:
"The U.S. wireless industry is booming as more consumers and businesses snap up smartphones, tablet computers and billions of wireless applications. But for the industry's workers, the story is less rosy.
In May, on the heels of a record year for industry revenue, employment at U.S. wireless carriers hit a 12-year low of 166,600, according to U.S. Labor Department figures released earlier this month. That's about 20,000 fewer jobs than when the recession ended in June 2009 and 2,000 fewer than a year ago.
The U.S. wireless industry is booming, but for the industry's workers, the story is less rosy.
While the industry's revenue has grown 28% since 2006, when wireless employment peaked at 207,000 workers, its mostly nonunion work force has shrunk about 20%.
The disconnect between employment and industry growth reflects the broader head winds lashing the U.S. job market, as consolidation, outsourcing and productivity gains from new technology and business methods combine to undermine job growth.
***
Those advances do show up, however, in skyrocketing productivity statistics. In 2009, the latest data available, the output per hour of wireless-carrier workers jumped 24.3%, more than in nearly any other service industry, according to a Labor Department report in May. Since 2002, output per hour in the industry has nearly tripled.
***
To be sure, the wireless boom is creating jobs in other industries and occupations, such as software development, publishing and media. Search giant Google Inc. has said it is generating $1 billion a year in mobile-related revenue and will hire more than 6,000 people this year, including many to work on mobile products. Start-ups such as Twitter Inc., Foursquare Labs Inc. and Flipboard Inc., meanwhile, continue to grow at a rapid clip.
"The U.S. wireless industry is booming as more consumers and businesses snap up smartphones, tablet computers and billions of wireless applications. But for the industry's workers, the story is less rosy.
In May, on the heels of a record year for industry revenue, employment at U.S. wireless carriers hit a 12-year low of 166,600, according to U.S. Labor Department figures released earlier this month. That's about 20,000 fewer jobs than when the recession ended in June 2009 and 2,000 fewer than a year ago.
The U.S. wireless industry is booming, but for the industry's workers, the story is less rosy.
While the industry's revenue has grown 28% since 2006, when wireless employment peaked at 207,000 workers, its mostly nonunion work force has shrunk about 20%.
The disconnect between employment and industry growth reflects the broader head winds lashing the U.S. job market, as consolidation, outsourcing and productivity gains from new technology and business methods combine to undermine job growth.
***
Those advances do show up, however, in skyrocketing productivity statistics. In 2009, the latest data available, the output per hour of wireless-carrier workers jumped 24.3%, more than in nearly any other service industry, according to a Labor Department report in May. Since 2002, output per hour in the industry has nearly tripled.
***
To be sure, the wireless boom is creating jobs in other industries and occupations, such as software development, publishing and media. Search giant Google Inc. has said it is generating $1 billion a year in mobile-related revenue and will hire more than 6,000 people this year, including many to work on mobile products. Start-ups such as Twitter Inc., Foursquare Labs Inc. and Flipboard Inc., meanwhile, continue to grow at a rapid clip.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Police in Ga. shut down girls' lemonade stand
EXCERPTS:
"Jul 15, 11:17 AM EDT
MIDWAY, Ga. (AP) -- Police in Georgia have shut down a lemonade stand run by three girls trying to save up for a trip to a water park, saying they didn't have a business license or the required permits.
Midway Police Chief Kelly Morningstar says police also didn't know how the lemonade was made, who made it or what was in it.
The girls had been operating for one day when Morningstar and another officer cruised by.
The girls needed a business license, peddler's permit and food permit to operate, even on residential property. The permits cost $50 a day or $180 per year.
One girl, 14-year-old Casity Dixon, says the three had to listen to police and shut down.
The girls are now doing chores and yard work to make money.
"Jul 15, 11:17 AM EDT
MIDWAY, Ga. (AP) -- Police in Georgia have shut down a lemonade stand run by three girls trying to save up for a trip to a water park, saying they didn't have a business license or the required permits.
Midway Police Chief Kelly Morningstar says police also didn't know how the lemonade was made, who made it or what was in it.
The girls had been operating for one day when Morningstar and another officer cruised by.
The girls needed a business license, peddler's permit and food permit to operate, even on residential property. The permits cost $50 a day or $180 per year.
One girl, 14-year-old Casity Dixon, says the three had to listen to police and shut down.
The girls are now doing chores and yard work to make money.
Thursday, July 14, 2011
With no debt deal, Obama would face tough choices Aug. 3 about what bills to pay - The Washington Post
By Zachary A. Goldfarb,
EXCERPTS:
What happens if President Obama and Congress don’t strike a debt deal?
On Aug. 3, the nation would find out, with Obama forced to make a set of extraordinarily difficult choices about what to pay or not pay. By then, the government’s savings account would be nearly empty and the president would be relying on daily tax revenue to pay the nation’s bills.
There wouldn’t be enough — in fact, there would be a $134 billion shortfall in August alone.
As Obama decided what to pay, he would choose among Social Security checks, salaries for members of the military and veterans, unemployment benefits, student loans, and many other government programs, according to administration officials and an independent analysis by a former senior Treasury Department official in the George H.W. Bush administration.
To protect the nation’s creditworthiness, Obama would have to balance those priorities with the imperative of making payments to investors in U.S. government bonds — ranging from domestic pension funds to the Chinese government.
“You can move the chess pieces around all you want,” said Jay Powell, a visiting scholar at the Bipartisan Policy Center and an author of the analysis. “You’re going to lose.”
For months, the president has been pressing Congress to raise the federal limit on borrowing, now at $14.3 trillion. Members of both parties have balked, saying they first want a plan to tame the growth of the debt.
On Wednesday, with negotiations over raising the debt ceiling hung up, Moody’s said it might downgrade the U.S. government’s top-of-the-line credit rating, which helps keep U.S. bonds the global gold standard, “given the rising possibility that the statutory debt limit will not be raised on a timely basis, leading to a default.”
***
Some skeptics in Congress and conservative economists say that Obama has overstated the risk of not raising the debt ceiling and that tax revenue could pay for up to 60 percent of government operations.
“You do not have to default and you don’t have to shut down the government if you choose not to,” said Peter Morici, an economist at the University of Maryland. If Congress raises the debt ceiling without a long-term plan for reducing the federal deficit, he added, “they’ll never solve the problem, and we’ll end up like Greece.”
Obama’s advisers have said that prioritizing some payments over others is impractical and would be chaotic. Money comes in and flows out at an inconsistent rate.
“You would have to make heinous choices about which bills you would pay,” White House press secretary Jay Carney said Wednesday.
***
According to the center’s analysis, the government would have to cut 44 percent of spending immediately. Through August, the government could afford Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, defense contracts, unemployment insurance and payments to bondholders.
But then it would have to eliminate all other federal spending, including pay for veterans, members of the armed services and civil servants, as well as funding for Pell grants, special-education programs, the federal courts, law enforcement, national nuclear programs and housing assistance.
After the debt ceiling was breached, there would be no delay in the tough decisions.
On Aug. 3, the Treasury is set to receive about $12 billion in tax revenue — mainly from people paying their taxes late — and is slated to spend $32 billion, including sending out more than 25 million Social Security and disability checks at a cost of $23 billion, according to Powell’s analysis.
Obama could decide to pay half of the Social Security checks and ignore other bills coming due that day, which include $500 million in federal salaries and $1.4 billion in payments to defense contractors.
Or he could decide not to make any Social Security payments and instead hoard tax revenues to pay investors in U.S. bonds. A failure to pay those investors would severely destabilize the financial system, analysts say.
***
More worrisome for government officials is the $100 billion in Treasury bonds that come due on Aug. 4 and must be paid off. Ordinarily, Treasury would pay off those bonds and issue new bonds.
But if the debt ceiling isn’t increased, Treasury could run into trouble “rolling over” this debt. Ratings agencies are threatening to downgrade U.S. bonds if the debt ceiling isn’t raised. If the bonds are downgraded, many investors — such as retirement funds — can’t buy them.
As a result, there could be far fewer buyers of Treasury bonds and the U.S. government would have to pay much higher interest rates.
Government officials and analysts say a spike in rates would dramatically increase the cost of funding the government and lead to far higher interest rates on mortgages, credit cards and other types of debt.
EXCERPTS:
What happens if President Obama and Congress don’t strike a debt deal?
On Aug. 3, the nation would find out, with Obama forced to make a set of extraordinarily difficult choices about what to pay or not pay. By then, the government’s savings account would be nearly empty and the president would be relying on daily tax revenue to pay the nation’s bills.
There wouldn’t be enough — in fact, there would be a $134 billion shortfall in August alone.
As Obama decided what to pay, he would choose among Social Security checks, salaries for members of the military and veterans, unemployment benefits, student loans, and many other government programs, according to administration officials and an independent analysis by a former senior Treasury Department official in the George H.W. Bush administration.
To protect the nation’s creditworthiness, Obama would have to balance those priorities with the imperative of making payments to investors in U.S. government bonds — ranging from domestic pension funds to the Chinese government.
“You can move the chess pieces around all you want,” said Jay Powell, a visiting scholar at the Bipartisan Policy Center and an author of the analysis. “You’re going to lose.”
For months, the president has been pressing Congress to raise the federal limit on borrowing, now at $14.3 trillion. Members of both parties have balked, saying they first want a plan to tame the growth of the debt.
On Wednesday, with negotiations over raising the debt ceiling hung up, Moody’s said it might downgrade the U.S. government’s top-of-the-line credit rating, which helps keep U.S. bonds the global gold standard, “given the rising possibility that the statutory debt limit will not be raised on a timely basis, leading to a default.”
***
Some skeptics in Congress and conservative economists say that Obama has overstated the risk of not raising the debt ceiling and that tax revenue could pay for up to 60 percent of government operations.
“You do not have to default and you don’t have to shut down the government if you choose not to,” said Peter Morici, an economist at the University of Maryland. If Congress raises the debt ceiling without a long-term plan for reducing the federal deficit, he added, “they’ll never solve the problem, and we’ll end up like Greece.”
Obama’s advisers have said that prioritizing some payments over others is impractical and would be chaotic. Money comes in and flows out at an inconsistent rate.
“You would have to make heinous choices about which bills you would pay,” White House press secretary Jay Carney said Wednesday.
***
According to the center’s analysis, the government would have to cut 44 percent of spending immediately. Through August, the government could afford Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, defense contracts, unemployment insurance and payments to bondholders.
But then it would have to eliminate all other federal spending, including pay for veterans, members of the armed services and civil servants, as well as funding for Pell grants, special-education programs, the federal courts, law enforcement, national nuclear programs and housing assistance.
After the debt ceiling was breached, there would be no delay in the tough decisions.
On Aug. 3, the Treasury is set to receive about $12 billion in tax revenue — mainly from people paying their taxes late — and is slated to spend $32 billion, including sending out more than 25 million Social Security and disability checks at a cost of $23 billion, according to Powell’s analysis.
Obama could decide to pay half of the Social Security checks and ignore other bills coming due that day, which include $500 million in federal salaries and $1.4 billion in payments to defense contractors.
Or he could decide not to make any Social Security payments and instead hoard tax revenues to pay investors in U.S. bonds. A failure to pay those investors would severely destabilize the financial system, analysts say.
***
More worrisome for government officials is the $100 billion in Treasury bonds that come due on Aug. 4 and must be paid off. Ordinarily, Treasury would pay off those bonds and issue new bonds.
But if the debt ceiling isn’t increased, Treasury could run into trouble “rolling over” this debt. Ratings agencies are threatening to downgrade U.S. bonds if the debt ceiling isn’t raised. If the bonds are downgraded, many investors — such as retirement funds — can’t buy them.
As a result, there could be far fewer buyers of Treasury bonds and the U.S. government would have to pay much higher interest rates.
Government officials and analysts say a spike in rates would dramatically increase the cost of funding the government and lead to far higher interest rates on mortgages, credit cards and other types of debt.
Hundreds scramble for Dallas County rental vouchers | wfaa.com Dallas - Fort Worth
EXCERPTS:
"DALLAS — Hundreds of people lined up Thursday morning to apply for Dallas County Section 8 housing vouchers.
The office at the Jesse Owens Memorial Complex wasn't supposed to open until 8 a.m., but some applicants started lining up at 10 o'clock Wednesday night.
Police kept people off school district property until the gates opened at 6 a.m. That resulted in a long string of cars lined up on the streets.
Doors were opened early.
Hundreds of people rushed the line, causing moments of unruliness. But authorities eventually gained control.
Seven people were treated by paramedics. None were taken to the hospital.
The federally-subsidized vouchers pay a portion of the rent, based on household income.
This is the first time in five years that the Dallas County waiting list for vouchers has been open.
Applicants who do get on the list could face a wait of up to two years before receiving assistance.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Restaurant Bans Young Kids - ABC News
EXCERPTS:
"Starting July 16, McDain's, a Pittsburgh-area restaurant, will ban children under the age of 6 from its dining area. Restaurant owner Mike Vuick said the policy came in response to complaints he'd received from older customers about kids causing a ruckus. In an email to his clientele, Vuick wrote, "We feel that McDain's is a not a place for young children … and many, many times they have disturbed other customers."
"A few weeks ago, Malaysia Airlines announced that it would ban infants from flying in the first-class cabin because other passengers had complained about squalling babies. And last February it was rumored that Virgin Atlantic and British Airways had been pressured to consider child-free zones and even child-free planes to appease business travelers who, according to a travel survey, listed unruly children as their No. 1 travel-related complaint.
"Are these bans even legal? Apparently yes. Federal law forbids discrimination on racial or religious grounds, but there is no blanket protection for children. For business owners like Vuick that means they can set the rules.
"Starting July 16, McDain's, a Pittsburgh-area restaurant, will ban children under the age of 6 from its dining area. Restaurant owner Mike Vuick said the policy came in response to complaints he'd received from older customers about kids causing a ruckus. In an email to his clientele, Vuick wrote, "We feel that McDain's is a not a place for young children … and many, many times they have disturbed other customers."
"A few weeks ago, Malaysia Airlines announced that it would ban infants from flying in the first-class cabin because other passengers had complained about squalling babies. And last February it was rumored that Virgin Atlantic and British Airways had been pressured to consider child-free zones and even child-free planes to appease business travelers who, according to a travel survey, listed unruly children as their No. 1 travel-related complaint.
"Are these bans even legal? Apparently yes. Federal law forbids discrimination on racial or religious grounds, but there is no blanket protection for children. For business owners like Vuick that means they can set the rules.
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Monday, July 4, 2011
Obama’s Economists: ‘Stimulus’ Has Cost $278,000 per Job | The Weekly Standard
EXCERPTS:
"The report was written by the White House’s Council of Economic Advisors, a group of three economists who were all handpicked by Obama, and it chronicles the alleged success of the “stimulus” in adding or saving jobs. The council reports that, using “mainstream estimates of economic multipliers for the effects of fiscal stimulus”... the “stimulus” has added or saved just under 2.4 million jobs — whether private or public — at a cost (to date) of $666 billion. That’s a cost to taxpayers of $278,000 per job.
"The report was written by the White House’s Council of Economic Advisors, a group of three economists who were all handpicked by Obama, and it chronicles the alleged success of the “stimulus” in adding or saving jobs. The council reports that, using “mainstream estimates of economic multipliers for the effects of fiscal stimulus”... the “stimulus” has added or saved just under 2.4 million jobs — whether private or public — at a cost (to date) of $666 billion. That’s a cost to taxpayers of $278,000 per job.
Friday, July 1, 2011
Price Gouging Laws Hurt Storm Victims: Newsroom: The Independent Institute
EXCERPT:
"How many people see natural disasters like the tornadoes in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and Joplin, Missouri, and say, “we should be working to impede the recovery and make life harder for storm victims”? Probably no one. How many people see prices rise after natural disasters like the tornadoes in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and Joplin, Missouri, and say, “we should prosecute ‘price gougers’!”? Probably a lot. And yet prosecuting price gougers makes life harder for storm victims."
"How many people see natural disasters like the tornadoes in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and Joplin, Missouri, and say, “we should be working to impede the recovery and make life harder for storm victims”? Probably no one. How many people see prices rise after natural disasters like the tornadoes in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and Joplin, Missouri, and say, “we should prosecute ‘price gougers’!”? Probably a lot. And yet prosecuting price gougers makes life harder for storm victims."
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
You Tube: If you care about improving people's lives....
"Economic Freedom and the Quality of Life is a short, informative video centered on the ideas of economic freedom and the societal benefits it produces. The video helps explain what economic freedom is and why it's key to improving society."
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Fatal Fatalism - NYTimes.com
Here's a good statement of the Keynesian view of recessions.
Excerpts:
"Our current economic discourse is pervaded by fatalism. Leave aside the people who insist that somehow Obama has destroyed capitalist incentives by passing Mitt Romney’s health care plan and threatening to raise tax rates to Clinton-era levels. Even among people who should be sensible, you hear many assertions that run something like this: historically, recovery from financial crisis is usually slow, so we have to accept a slow recovery this time around too. Actually, that’s more or less what Obama has been saying.
This fatalism is deeply destructive — because there’s no good reason we need to experience many years of high unemployment. What historical experience shows isn’t that there’s no answer to post-crisis slumps, it only shows that most governments have responded to such slumps with the same kind of fatalism and learned helplessness we’re showing now. (Hey, Greg, I have first dibs on that!)
We are not, after all, suffering from supply-side problems. We don’t have high unemployment because workers lack the necessary skills, or are stuck in the wrong industries or the wrong locations; the hypothesis that we’re mainly suffering structural unemployment has been repeatedly shot down by evidence. This is a demand-side slump; all we need to do is create more demand.
So why is this slump, like most slumps following financial crises, so protracted? Because the usual tools for pumping up demand have reached their limits. Normally we respond to demand-side slumps by cutting short-term nominal interest rates, which the Fed can move through open-market operations. But we now have severely depressed private demand thanks to the housing bust and the overhang of consumer debt, so even a zero rate isn’t low enough.
So what’s the right response? Should we just throw up our hands, and say that having 12 million or so adults who should be working out of work, and roughly $1 trillion per year of output we should be producing not getting produced, is just a fact of life? Or should we be using unconventional policies to deal with an abnormal situation?
The answer seems obvious. We should be using fiscal stimulus; we should be using unconventional monetary policy, including raising the inflation target; we should be pursuing aggressive measures to reduce mortgage debt. Not doing these things means accepting huge waste and hardship.
But, say the serious people, there are risks to doing any of these things. Well, life is full of risks. But it’s simply crazy to put a higher weight on the possibility that the invisible bond vigilantes might manifest themselves, or the inflation monster emerge from its secret cave, over the continuing reality of enormous human and economic damage from doing nothing.
The truth is that we have nothing to fear but fear itself — fear and complacency — the two things we have to fear are — amongst our fears ….
Anyway, seriously, the fatalism that has overtaken economic debate is a terrible thing. It is, indeed, the main enemy of prosperity.
Excerpts:
"Our current economic discourse is pervaded by fatalism. Leave aside the people who insist that somehow Obama has destroyed capitalist incentives by passing Mitt Romney’s health care plan and threatening to raise tax rates to Clinton-era levels. Even among people who should be sensible, you hear many assertions that run something like this: historically, recovery from financial crisis is usually slow, so we have to accept a slow recovery this time around too. Actually, that’s more or less what Obama has been saying.
This fatalism is deeply destructive — because there’s no good reason we need to experience many years of high unemployment. What historical experience shows isn’t that there’s no answer to post-crisis slumps, it only shows that most governments have responded to such slumps with the same kind of fatalism and learned helplessness we’re showing now. (Hey, Greg, I have first dibs on that!)
We are not, after all, suffering from supply-side problems. We don’t have high unemployment because workers lack the necessary skills, or are stuck in the wrong industries or the wrong locations; the hypothesis that we’re mainly suffering structural unemployment has been repeatedly shot down by evidence. This is a demand-side slump; all we need to do is create more demand.
So why is this slump, like most slumps following financial crises, so protracted? Because the usual tools for pumping up demand have reached their limits. Normally we respond to demand-side slumps by cutting short-term nominal interest rates, which the Fed can move through open-market operations. But we now have severely depressed private demand thanks to the housing bust and the overhang of consumer debt, so even a zero rate isn’t low enough.
So what’s the right response? Should we just throw up our hands, and say that having 12 million or so adults who should be working out of work, and roughly $1 trillion per year of output we should be producing not getting produced, is just a fact of life? Or should we be using unconventional policies to deal with an abnormal situation?
The answer seems obvious. We should be using fiscal stimulus; we should be using unconventional monetary policy, including raising the inflation target; we should be pursuing aggressive measures to reduce mortgage debt. Not doing these things means accepting huge waste and hardship.
But, say the serious people, there are risks to doing any of these things. Well, life is full of risks. But it’s simply crazy to put a higher weight on the possibility that the invisible bond vigilantes might manifest themselves, or the inflation monster emerge from its secret cave, over the continuing reality of enormous human and economic damage from doing nothing.
The truth is that we have nothing to fear but fear itself — fear and complacency — the two things we have to fear are — amongst our fears ….
Anyway, seriously, the fatalism that has overtaken economic debate is a terrible thing. It is, indeed, the main enemy of prosperity.
Friday, June 3, 2011
Teenager sells kidney for ipad2 - GlobalTimes
EXCERPTS:
"A teenager in Huaishan, Anhui Province has sold one of his kidneys to buy an iPad2 tablet computer, as reported by SZTV on June 1.
The 17-year-old man surnamed Zheng, a freshman in high school, got connected with a kidney-selling agent through the internet, who pledged to pay him 20,000 yuan ($3,084.45 ) for one of his kidneys.
On April 28 of this year, Zheng went to Chenzhou, Hunan Province to have his kidney removed under the supervision of three so-called middlemen, and received 22,000 yuan ($3,392.97). Then he returned home with a laptop and an iPhone.
Zheng's mother discovered her son's new electronic products and forced him to reveal how he came to afford them. Then she took Zheng to Chenzhou and reported the matter to local police. The three agents' telephones have not been answered since that time.
Chenzhou 198 Hospital, where Zheng had his surgery, has no qualifications for kidney transplantation, according to SZTV reporters.
The hospital has denied any connection with the kidney removal operation, and has said that its urology department is contracted to a businessman in Fujian.
"A teenager in Huaishan, Anhui Province has sold one of his kidneys to buy an iPad2 tablet computer, as reported by SZTV on June 1.
The 17-year-old man surnamed Zheng, a freshman in high school, got connected with a kidney-selling agent through the internet, who pledged to pay him 20,000 yuan ($3,084.45 ) for one of his kidneys.
On April 28 of this year, Zheng went to Chenzhou, Hunan Province to have his kidney removed under the supervision of three so-called middlemen, and received 22,000 yuan ($3,392.97). Then he returned home with a laptop and an iPhone.
Zheng's mother discovered her son's new electronic products and forced him to reveal how he came to afford them. Then she took Zheng to Chenzhou and reported the matter to local police. The three agents' telephones have not been answered since that time.
Chenzhou 198 Hospital, where Zheng had his surgery, has no qualifications for kidney transplantation, according to SZTV reporters.
The hospital has denied any connection with the kidney removal operation, and has said that its urology department is contracted to a businessman in Fujian.
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
As Natural Gas Prices Fall, the Search Turns to Oil - WSJ.com
EXCERPTS:
"The natural-gas industry touts its fuel as an attractive alternative to coal and oil, saying it's comparably clean, domestically abundant and cheap.
But that final selling point might not last if the industry succeeds in stirring demand even as it cuts back on drilling.
In the past few years, a glut of natural gas has driven down the price to half the 2008 average—a level where it costs a U.S. consumer $2.75 a day to meet a home's natural-gas needs, according to the American Gas Association. That's good news for consumers, but a recent study by consultancy Wood Mackenzie found that 40% of U.S. natural gas produced last year didn't meet break-even prices for producers.
Natural gas now costs roughly the same as its energy equivalent in coal and a quarter of its energy equivalent in oil. The gas industry is making some headway in capitalizing on its relative cheapness: President Barack Obama has endorsed incentives for trucks powered by natural gas, and power companies are considering replacing coal-fired plants with gas-burning ones.
Those steps would increase natural-gas consumption just as production growth is likely to slow. That's because companies now can make more money drilling for oil, whose price has soared last year and in recent months on unrest in Northern Africa and the Middle East.
Proven U.S. natural gas reserves hold about twice the amount of energy as could be generated by domestic oil reserves, according to a 2009 estimate by the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The nonprofit Potential Gas Committee last month increased its estimate of natural gas available for U.S. production to 2.1 trillion cubic feet. That amount represents a 42% increase in the past four years, and is enough gas to meet domestic needs for 100 years at current consumption rates.
Companies use the same type of rig to drill for oil or gas, and allocate equipment according to which fuel is more profitable to produce. The number of land rigs in the U.S. drilling for natural gas is down 8% from a year ago, while oilrigs are up 81%, according to oilfield-service company Baker Hughes, Inc. In April, companies reported more rigs drilling for oil than gas for the first time since 1995, underscoring how oil's profit margins have fattened.
"All of our drilling ideas compete with each other," Larry Nichols, chairman of Devon Energy Corp., said recently. This year, Devon, a major gas producer, is spending 90% of its nearly $5 billion budget on oil drilling. "You look at the ones where you can make money at current prices, and that's where the money gets allocated," he said.
"The natural-gas industry touts its fuel as an attractive alternative to coal and oil, saying it's comparably clean, domestically abundant and cheap.
But that final selling point might not last if the industry succeeds in stirring demand even as it cuts back on drilling.
In the past few years, a glut of natural gas has driven down the price to half the 2008 average—a level where it costs a U.S. consumer $2.75 a day to meet a home's natural-gas needs, according to the American Gas Association. That's good news for consumers, but a recent study by consultancy Wood Mackenzie found that 40% of U.S. natural gas produced last year didn't meet break-even prices for producers.
Natural gas now costs roughly the same as its energy equivalent in coal and a quarter of its energy equivalent in oil. The gas industry is making some headway in capitalizing on its relative cheapness: President Barack Obama has endorsed incentives for trucks powered by natural gas, and power companies are considering replacing coal-fired plants with gas-burning ones.
Those steps would increase natural-gas consumption just as production growth is likely to slow. That's because companies now can make more money drilling for oil, whose price has soared last year and in recent months on unrest in Northern Africa and the Middle East.
Proven U.S. natural gas reserves hold about twice the amount of energy as could be generated by domestic oil reserves, according to a 2009 estimate by the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The nonprofit Potential Gas Committee last month increased its estimate of natural gas available for U.S. production to 2.1 trillion cubic feet. That amount represents a 42% increase in the past four years, and is enough gas to meet domestic needs for 100 years at current consumption rates.
Companies use the same type of rig to drill for oil or gas, and allocate equipment according to which fuel is more profitable to produce. The number of land rigs in the U.S. drilling for natural gas is down 8% from a year ago, while oilrigs are up 81%, according to oilfield-service company Baker Hughes, Inc. In April, companies reported more rigs drilling for oil than gas for the first time since 1995, underscoring how oil's profit margins have fattened.
"All of our drilling ideas compete with each other," Larry Nichols, chairman of Devon Energy Corp., said recently. This year, Devon, a major gas producer, is spending 90% of its nearly $5 billion budget on oil drilling. "You look at the ones where you can make money at current prices, and that's where the money gets allocated," he said.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
In China, some new cities are ghost towns
EXCERPTS:
"In China's Inner Mongolia, Kangbashi district offers residents "new modern" living, with tree-lined streets, shiny apartment buildings, vast parklands, restaurants and even a motor racing track.
But seven years after construction workers broke ground on the arid plateau, most of the apartments appear empty and the wide streets are almost deserted -- earning Kangbashi the tag of "ghost city".
The new section of Ordos city on the edge of the Gobi desert was designed to accommodate about 300,000 people but residents say fewer than one-tenth of that number live in Kangbashi. Estate agents insist the number is much higher.
New districts like Kangbashi are springing up across China as the world's second-largest economy undergoes an unprecedented urbanisation process with hundreds of millions of people heading to fast-growing metropolitan areas.
Ordos is part of a nationwide building boom that has been fuelled by a massive credit binge, raising fears of a real estate bubble and a potential explosion in bad debts, especially among local government investment vehicles.
/
Near the southwestern city of Kunming, authorities started developing a new district for nearly one million people in 2003 but the area is reportedly still largely empty.
"These sorts of towns raise the question -- does the government have some amazing vision for filling these cities... or are they just great white elephants that are wasting public funds?" Rupert Hoogewerf, founder and compiler of the Hurun rich list, told AFP.
Public servant Qiao Xiufeng, who moved to Kangbashi three years ago after the Ordos government relocated its departments to the new district, says she likes the open space and relaxed lifestyle of the sparsely populated town.
"Everything is really good," Qiao told AFP as she strolled along a street lined with near-empty restaurants and shops selling cakes and bridal outfits.
"Life is easy and comfortable."
Kangbashi -- located 30 kilometres (20 miles) from Ordos' main district of Dongsheng -- boasts a potato-shaped history museum, a tilted library, expansive parks decorated with modern sculptures, cinemas, schools and a university.
/
Scores of cranes and half-finished high-rise concrete buildings are visible across the district and, despite the vast number of apparently vacant flats, more land is being cleared for construction.
In nearby Yijinghuoluoqi, another district getting a facelift, taxi driver Liu Zhiqing said the Ordos government paid him 300,000 yuan ($46,170) in compensation when his 200-square-metre (2,153-square-feet) house was knocked down to make way for a forest of high-rise apartment buildings.
Liu said he and his family will also receive two apartments when the construction is finished.
Resource-rich Ordos, whose population of 1.5 million has the highest GDP per capita in China at more than $20,500, built Kangbashi to cope with the city's growing population.
/
"Ordos is extremely unique in that it boasts rich resources and has the highest GDP per capita in China," said Lu, noting the region's huge natural resources and thriving cashmere industry helped the local economy expand by 19.2 percent last year -- nearly twice the national growth rate.
"In China's Inner Mongolia, Kangbashi district offers residents "new modern" living, with tree-lined streets, shiny apartment buildings, vast parklands, restaurants and even a motor racing track.
But seven years after construction workers broke ground on the arid plateau, most of the apartments appear empty and the wide streets are almost deserted -- earning Kangbashi the tag of "ghost city".
The new section of Ordos city on the edge of the Gobi desert was designed to accommodate about 300,000 people but residents say fewer than one-tenth of that number live in Kangbashi. Estate agents insist the number is much higher.
New districts like Kangbashi are springing up across China as the world's second-largest economy undergoes an unprecedented urbanisation process with hundreds of millions of people heading to fast-growing metropolitan areas.
Ordos is part of a nationwide building boom that has been fuelled by a massive credit binge, raising fears of a real estate bubble and a potential explosion in bad debts, especially among local government investment vehicles.
/
Near the southwestern city of Kunming, authorities started developing a new district for nearly one million people in 2003 but the area is reportedly still largely empty.
"These sorts of towns raise the question -- does the government have some amazing vision for filling these cities... or are they just great white elephants that are wasting public funds?" Rupert Hoogewerf, founder and compiler of the Hurun rich list, told AFP.
Public servant Qiao Xiufeng, who moved to Kangbashi three years ago after the Ordos government relocated its departments to the new district, says she likes the open space and relaxed lifestyle of the sparsely populated town.
"Everything is really good," Qiao told AFP as she strolled along a street lined with near-empty restaurants and shops selling cakes and bridal outfits.
"Life is easy and comfortable."
Kangbashi -- located 30 kilometres (20 miles) from Ordos' main district of Dongsheng -- boasts a potato-shaped history museum, a tilted library, expansive parks decorated with modern sculptures, cinemas, schools and a university.
/
Scores of cranes and half-finished high-rise concrete buildings are visible across the district and, despite the vast number of apparently vacant flats, more land is being cleared for construction.
In nearby Yijinghuoluoqi, another district getting a facelift, taxi driver Liu Zhiqing said the Ordos government paid him 300,000 yuan ($46,170) in compensation when his 200-square-metre (2,153-square-feet) house was knocked down to make way for a forest of high-rise apartment buildings.
Liu said he and his family will also receive two apartments when the construction is finished.
Resource-rich Ordos, whose population of 1.5 million has the highest GDP per capita in China at more than $20,500, built Kangbashi to cope with the city's growing population.
/
"Ordos is extremely unique in that it boasts rich resources and has the highest GDP per capita in China," said Lu, noting the region's huge natural resources and thriving cashmere industry helped the local economy expand by 19.2 percent last year -- nearly twice the national growth rate.
Monday, May 16, 2011
McDonald’s to shake up food ordering system
EXCERPTS:
"McDonald’s is to change the way customers order its meals in Europe, partly replacing cashiers and the use of banknotes at its 7,000 fast-food restaurants in the region with touchscreen terminals and swipe cards.
“Ordering food has not changed for 30 or 40 years,” said Steve Easterbrook, president of McDonald’s Europe, in an interview with the Financial Times.
The move is part of the fast-food chain’s efforts to woo cash-strapped customers by making its restaurants more convenient and convivial. It is refurbishing stores, and introducing longer opening hours and new menus.
/
Mr Easterbrook said that the changes would make life easier for consumers as well as improve efficiency, with average transactions three to four seconds shorter for each customer. McDonald’s European stores serve 2m customers a day.
/
But Joe Surkitz, 21, was less convinced. “I’m looking for work and if there’s more machines doing jobs I’ll find it harder. Plus you won’t get service with a smile.”
Mr Easterbrook said that the new technology would allow McDonald’s to harness more information about customers’ ordering habits. Supermarkets and other retailers have huge databases of information on customers’ shopping habits, which they gather from loyalty cards.
"McDonald’s is to change the way customers order its meals in Europe, partly replacing cashiers and the use of banknotes at its 7,000 fast-food restaurants in the region with touchscreen terminals and swipe cards.
“Ordering food has not changed for 30 or 40 years,” said Steve Easterbrook, president of McDonald’s Europe, in an interview with the Financial Times.
The move is part of the fast-food chain’s efforts to woo cash-strapped customers by making its restaurants more convenient and convivial. It is refurbishing stores, and introducing longer opening hours and new menus.
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Mr Easterbrook said that the changes would make life easier for consumers as well as improve efficiency, with average transactions three to four seconds shorter for each customer. McDonald’s European stores serve 2m customers a day.
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But Joe Surkitz, 21, was less convinced. “I’m looking for work and if there’s more machines doing jobs I’ll find it harder. Plus you won’t get service with a smile.”
Mr Easterbrook said that the new technology would allow McDonald’s to harness more information about customers’ ordering habits. Supermarkets and other retailers have huge databases of information on customers’ shopping habits, which they gather from loyalty cards.
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