$175,000 Mattress Sold as 'Investment' in Good Sleep

$175,000 Mattress Sold as 'Investment' in Good Sleep
EXCERPTS:

"British mattress manufacturer Savoir Beds this week is launching a limited edition "Royal Bed" with a $175,000 price tag at Kensington Palace in London. Savoir describes its mattress as "an investment" in your well being – presumably since "buying" a $175,000 mattress would just seem ridiculous.

"Ultimately, a "great night's sleep" is what it's all about, said Savoir Beds' managing director Alistair Hughes. "It's an investment that pays off every morning of your life."

"Each mattress will require more than 700 hours of labor. It will contain "masses and masses" of curled Latin American horse tail, "mountains" of pure Mongolian cashmere, and enough specially woven silk to be strung from New York to Miami and almost halfway back again (more than 1,600 miles worth).


"Only 60 of the beds will be made."

"The mattress is fully customizable in size and support – each side of the bed can be made with a different firmness to make both you and your significant other as comfortable as possible.

"Of course it's a massive amount of money and it will only appeal to the very lucky and very wealthy," Hughes acknowledged. But "if you're buying Gucci handbags, a suit from Saville Row or a Rolls Royce, you're looking for the best. And you spend a third of your life in bed."

"And consider this: the bed, mattress and box spring are guaranteed to last at least 25 years (although you'll have to replace the topper every 5-7 years for $5,000-$10,000).
If you divide $175,000 by 365 nights for 25 years, it comes out to less than $20 per night.
Sounds completely reasonable.

© 2013 CNBC.com

URL: http://www.cnbc.com/100563624

Natural disasters benefit the economy (and other myths) - FBN | TV | Cato Institute

Sallie James on myth of natural disasters stimulating economy on FBN | Media Highlights - TV | Cato Institute

Interesting discussion of several myths that are believed by many otherwise intelligent people.

Huge crowds line up for free gas trucked in by government; Public told to stay away, make room for first responders

Huge crowds line up for free gas trucked in by government; Public told to stay away, make room for first responders

EXCERPTS:

"More New Yorkers got power Saturday for the first time since Superstorm Sandy struck the region, but frustrations mounted over gasoline shortages as refueling sites turned into traffic jams of horn-honking confusion.

Gas rationing went into effect in northern New Jersey, while crowds lined up at free fuel distribution sites in New York's boroughs, where a limit of 10 gallons per person was imposed. New York officials then said emergency vehicles had the priority over the public.

"It's chaos, pandemonium out here," said Chris Damon, whose family was displaced from his home in the Queens neighborhood of Far Rockaway and are staying with relatives in Brooklyn. He circled the block for 3½ hours at the Brooklyn Armory, where the National Guard was directing traffic.
"It's ridiculous. No one knows what's going on," he said.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo had announced that the 5,000-gallon trucks from the Defense Department would set up the emergency mobile gas stations at five locations around the New York City metropolitan area.
"Do not panic. I know there is anxiety about fuel," he said.

The scene was more orderly in hard-hit Staten Island, where a line of cars stretched for two miles under the supervision of police and National Guard troops. Another 400 people were on foot, carrying gas cans.
As gas rationing went into effect at noon in northern New Jersey, police began enforcing rules to allow only motorists with odd-numbered license plates to refuel. Those with even-numbered plates must wait until Sunday.


Jessica Tisdale of Totowa waited in her Mercedes SUV for 40 minutes at a gas station in Jersey City, but didn't quite understand the rules and was ordered to pull away because of her even-numbered plate.
"Is it the number or the letter?" she asked around 12:10 p.m. "I don't think it's fair. I've been in the line since before noon. I don't think it's fair. There's no clarity."

The officer who waved her out of line threw up his hands and shrugged.

At an Exxon station in Wall, N.J., Kathryn Davidson was unaware of the start of rationing but beat the noon deadline despite a 45-minute wait in line and an even-numbered plate.

"How are people supposed to know?" said Davidson, 53, who said it reminded her of the 1970s, when a similar plan was in place.

"There were fistfights and everything. It got nasty," she said. "Everyone seems pretty pleasant as of right now."

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/department_of_defense_setting_up_XK9Cli2PXUEFWZC0d8abMM#ixzz2BCWFaiSh

Police: Wife Stages Shooting To Avoid Deployment « CBS Houston

Police: Wife Stages Shooting To Avoid Deployment « CBS Houston

EXCERPTS:

BOSSIER CITY, La. (AP) — Bossier City police say a woman trying to avoid an Air Force deployment had her husband shoot her before lying to investigators that an intruder was to blame.

Police say 25-year-old Judy Groomes was treated for wounds on both of her legs from one round from a handgun fired by her husband, 26-year-old Christopher Tyquan Groomes. Both are active military based at nearby Barksdale Air Force Base.

Groomes allegedly claimed an intruder shot her early Friday while her husband and two children slept. But police say she convinced her husband to shoot her to avoid military service.

QUESTION:

What is the opportunity cost of being healthy? For this woman it was being with her family, which she apparently considered to be a very high opportunity cost. This high opportunity cost changed her incentive to be healthy and consequently her behavior. That doesn't mean shooting yourself to avoid your commitments is morally acceptable, but it does make such behavior more understandable.

Nike to sell new LeBron James sneakers for $300 | Sports - Home

Nike to sell new LeBron James sneakers for $300 | Sports - Home

"Nike is selling LeBron James' newest sneaker for over $300. According the Wall Street Journal, LeBron's next shoe, the "LeBron X" will cost around $315. The shoe debuted at the 2012 Olympic gold-medal game between Spain and the United States.

This will be LeBron's 10th shoe release. His first shoe was released in 2003. It was called the Nike Zoom Generation and cost around $110. Nike told the Journal that it is passing along price increases because of the increased cost of materials like cotton.

To protect ethanol, Obama seeks to inflate meat prices | WashingtonExaminer.com

Examiner Editorial: To protect ethanol, Obama seeks to inflate meat prices | WashingtonExaminer.com

EXCERPTS:

"Campaigning in Missouri Valley, Iowa, yesterday, President Obama announced yet another government spending program -- this time designed to inflate meat prices in Midwest swing states. "Today the Department of Agriculture announced that it will buy up to $100 million worth of pork products, $50 million worth of chicken, and $20 million worth of lamb and farm-raised catfish," Obama explained to reporters in front of a drought-stricken cornfield.

"Prices are low, farmers and ranchers need help, so it makes sense," Obama explained. "It makes sense for farmers who get to sell more of their product, and it makes sense for taxpayers who will save money because we're getting food we would have bought anyway at a better price."

QUESTIONS:

1.  Who will benefit from the government purchasing more agricultural products (increasing the demand)?
2. Who will be hurt (bear the cost) by this plan?

Obama: Let's repeat auto industry success - POLITICO.com

Obama: Let's repeat auto industry success - POLITICO.com



PUEBLO, Colo. – President Obama, while villifying Mitt Romney for opposing the auto industry bailout, bragged about the success of his decision to provide government assistance and said he now wants to see every manufacturing industry come roaring back. “I said, I believe in American workers, I believe in this American industry, and now the American auto industry has come roaring back,” he said.

“Now I want to do the same thing with manufacturing jobs, not just in the auto industry, but in every industry. “I don’t want those jobs taking root in places like China, I want those jobs taking root in places like Pueblo,” Obama told a crowd gathered for a campaign rally at the Palace of Agriculture at the Colorado State Fairgrounds here.

QUESTIONS:

1. If the government tries to provide assistance to every industry, will there be any unintended consequences?
2. If every industry is supported by the government, who's going to bear the cost of providing this assistance?
3.  President Obama says he doesn't want manufacturing jobs to "take root" in China. If you agree, which jobs do you think should take root in China? If no jobs take root in China, and China doesn't produce anything, would that make people in the U.S. better off or worse off? (Before you answer, check your television to see where it was produced.)

Government-subsidized green light bulb carries costly price tag - The Washington Post

Government-subsidized green light bulb carries costly price tag - The Washington Post

The U.S. government last year announced a $10 million award, dubbed the “L Prize,” for any manufacturer that could create a “green” but affordable light bulb.
Energy Secretary Steven Chu said the prize would spur industry to offer the costly bulbs, known as LEDs, at prices “affordable for American families.” There was also a “Buy America” component. Portions of the bulb would have to be made in the United States.
Now the winning bulb is on the market.
The price is $50.
Retailers said the bulb, made by Philips, is likely to be too pricey to have broad appeal. Similar LED bulbs are less than half the cost.
“I don’t want to say it’s exorbitant, but if a customer is only looking at the price, they could come to that conclusion,” said Brad Paulsen, merchant for the light-bulb category at Home Depot, the largest U.S. seller of light bulbs. “This is a Cadillac product, and that’s why you have a premium on it.”
How the expensive bulb won a $10 million government prize meant to foster energy-efficient affordability is one of the curiosities that arise as the country undergoes a massive, mandated turnover from traditional incandescent lamps to more energy-
efficient ones.
Energy legislation signed by President George W. Bush in 2007 introduced a ban on inefficient incandescent light bulbs, covering traditional 100-watt bulbs this year. Sales of traditional 75-watt incandescents will be prohibited next year, and 60-watt incandescents will go after that.
When replacing a bulb, consumers must now go out and buy energy-efficient incandescent, compact fluorescent and LED (light-emitting diode) bulbs, in a compulsory transition that has prompted some conservatives to characterize the law as an unfair burden on consumers and an “issue of freedom,” as Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) put it.
The L Prize was meant to ease this transition by enticing manufacturers to create affordable bulbs to replace the most common type, the traditional 60-watt.
A Philips spokesman declined to talk in detail about the bulb or its price because the product has yet to be formally launched. It is expected to hit stores within weeks and is available online. But the spokesman said the L Prize bulb costs more because, as the contest required, it is even more energy-efficient, running on 10 watts instead of 12.5 watts. It is also brighter, renders colors better and lasts longer.
Still, the contest set price goals. According to the L Prize guidelines, manufacturers were “strong­ly encouraged to offer products at prices that prove cost-effective and attractive to buyers, and therefore more successful in the market.” The target retail price, including rebates from utilities, was to be $22 in the first year, $15 in the second year and $8 in the third year.
Energy Department officials defended the award, saying that they expect the cost of the L Prize bulbs to drop over time. “The L Prize competition played a critical role in driving manufacturing and engineering innovations in the U.S. lighting industry and helping to make the next generation of energy-saving LED lighting options more affordable for con­sumers,” said department spokes­woman Niketa Kumar.
Officials added that they are working with utilities to provide rebates for consumers. That could lower the price of the L Prize bulbs. But existing rebates, which max out around $10, are too small to take a big slice out of the $50 price tag. By comparison, the typical 60-watt bulb that it would replace, an old-fashioned energy hog, can cost as little as $1.
Some utilities are not offering anything yet. Pepco offers Maryland customers $10 incentive per bulb. In Virginia, Dominion Power has proposed to give consumers a discount of $1.41 per bulb.
“Are there many consumers who will say a $50 bulb is affordable? I don’t think so,” said one retailer familiar with the new bulbs, who like others. Many retailers said they were reluctant to speak on the record for fear of endangering their relationship with Philips, a major supplier.
Two other manufacturers, General Electric and Lighting Science Group, announced last year that they were developing entrants to the competition. But before they could submit, the prize was awarded and the competition closed. The contest also required that at least some of the manufacturing be done in the United States, where costs can be higher. The Philips bulb will be assembled in Wisconsin, and the chips will be made at a Philips plant in San Jose, the company said.
In many ways, however, the
L Prize may have been irrelevant. According to retailers, consumers are embracing LEDs, which were the focus of the prize, and CFLs, or compact fluorescent lights, faster than many in the industry expected. The new bulbs can cut energy costs by more than 75 percent.
CFLs already outsell incandescents in terms of dollars, Paulsen said. And he predicted that the percentage of LED bulbs sold would rise from 5 percent to 35 percent over the next three years. “The adoption wave has already begun,” Paulsen said.
In part, that’s because manufacturers are offering LED bulbs for far less than the L Prize bulb.
For example, at Home Depot, one can find LED bulbs to replace the 60-watt incandescent for much less than $50. Lighting Science Group, under the EcoSmart label, offers another for $23.97. It is assembled in Mexico. And another Philips LED bulb on sale costs $24.97. It was made in China.
“This is a very interesting time in light bulbs, believe it or not,” Paulsen said.

End College Sports Indentured Servitude: Pay "Student Athletes" | Doug Bandow | Cato Institute: Commentary

End College Sports Indentured Servitude: Pay "Student Athletes" | Doug Bandow | Cato Institute: Commentary

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?

Cash For Clunkers

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.”

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.

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.

What does it cost to be a governor?

EXCERPT:

"VIENNA (Reuters) – Serving as California governor cost Arnold Schwarzenegger at least $200 million, the bodybuilding star turned actor and politician told a newspaper in his native Austria, insisting 'it was more than worth it."

Counting expenses and lost income from acting in Hollywood films, "in all it is probably more than $200 million," he told Krone when asked how much his two terms in Sacramento had cost.

"But I'm not sorry. It was more than worth it," he said.

Spill Damage Claims Absent the Spill - WSJ.com

EXCERPTS:

"Not a drop of oil from the Gulf spill washed ashore at Tradewinds Island Resorts on Florida's St. Pete Beach, yet the company is seeking as much as $1 million in compensation for lost profits from the $20 billion fund set up by BP PLC.

The sprawling resort's proprietors say fear of soiled beaches scared away vacationers.

A fierce debate over the value of bad publicity is now roiling political and legal circles in Florida. Hoteliers and state officials say jitters over the spill have cost them billions of dollars in tourism revenue, even though the bulk of the state's Gulf Coast beaches haven't suffered direct hits from the Gulf oil spill.

Crowds Chase Scarce Housing Vouchers - WSJ.com

EXCERPTS:

"EAST POINT, Ga.—The weak economy has expanded the ranks of people chasing the limited number of federal housing vouchers, leading to a surge in applications nationwide and chaotic scenes here this week.

Sixty people were taken to hospitals Wednesday in this Atlanta suburb after a lengthy wait and an angry mob scene in a sweltering shopping-center parking lot. Those treated for heat exposure and injuries from scuffles were among 30,000 people who had lined up for a waiting list for just 455 vouchers to cover part of their rent.

Some camped out for nearly three days in temperatures that neared 100 degrees, including pregnant women, elderly in wheelchairs and people who drove down from New York City and Philadelphia, hoping to get on the waiting list in East Point for Housing Choice, or Section 8, vouchers.

***

Those who make it onto the lists often have to wait for eight to 10 years to receive a voucher, which is a guarantee that a local housing authority will pay a portion of the tenant's rent directly to the landlord. High unemployment and rising rents have made these vouchers even more of a precious commodity.

The vouchers are meant to give poor families more choices over where to live.....

Walmart CEO Pay: More in an Hour Than Workers Get All Year?

EXCERPTS:

"ABC News
Walmart CEO Pay: More in an Hour Than Workers Get All Year?
Walmart Executive-Worker Pay Gap Stirkes Chord in Chicago and Beyond
By ALICE GOMSTYN
ABC NEWS Business Unit

July 2, 2010 —

By Ed Smith's math, the CEO of Walmart earns more in an hour than his employees will earn in a year.

Smith, an alderman in Chicago, presented posters at a city council meeting showing that Walmart CEO Michael Duke's $35 million salary, when converted to an hourly wage, worked out to $16,826.92. By comparison, at a Walmart store planned for the Windy City's Pullman neighborhood, new employees to be paid $8.75 an hour would gross $13,650 a year.

Smith's numbers could be a bit off. Equilar, an executive compensation research firm, calculates that Duke earned just south of $20 million in 2009 and $28 million in 2008, not counting millions of dollars in potential performance awards. But the alderman argued that there's still a "sad" contrast between Duke's compensation and the wages of his employees.

"How can you go to bed at night and sleep knowing you make this kind of money and the people working for you can hardly buy a package of beans and rice?" he asked in an interview with ABCNews.com.

Walmart, meanwhile, said that its wages across the country are competitive in local markets and that on average, hourly employee pay -- which includes more experienced workers but not managers -- ranges from $10 to more than $12.

The retail giant made no apologies for Duke's salary.

"I don't think Mike Duke needs, as the CEO of a Fortune 1 company, needs me to defend his compensation package," said Walmart director of community affairs Steven Restivo, referring to Walmart's status as the largest company on the planet.

The debate over Walmart wages has been a thorny local issue in Chicago, where city aldermen on Wednesday reluctantly approved plans for a new Walmart store. It also speaks to continued concerns nationwide over the pay gap between top executives and their rank-and-file employees.

A study last fall by the Institute for Policy Studies, a liberal Washington D.C. research group, found that CEOs in the country's S&P 500 companies make, on average, 319 times more than the average American worker.

IPS associate fellow Sam Pizzigati said that in the 1970s, that ratio was 30 to 1.

"We've seen, over the past three decades, a tenfold-plus increase in the gap between top executives and average American workers," Pizzigati said. "That Chicago alderman is putting his finger on a very real problem in American economic life."

Why the Pay Gap Has Grown

Pizzigati said the reasons for the yawning gap are two-fold. Declining top-bracket tax rates over the last half-century, he said, took away a strong disincentive for company boards to keep a lid on CEO pay.

The top marginal tax rate, he said, dropped from 91 percent in the 1960s to 28 percent in 1980s. It stands at 35 percent today.

"If you look at historical record, executive pay really started exploding in early 1980s," he said. "That's when the top rate started precipitously falling."

On the worker side, Pizzigati said, wages have been hurt by the declining power of U.S. organized labor. When it represented more than one-third of the American workforce, unions could influence wages -- and force them higher -- throughout the labor market. With just seven percent of Americans represented by unions today, Pizzigati said, that's no longer the case.

Paul Hodgson, a senior research associate at the executive compensation watchdog group The Corporate Library, attributed the gap to another factor: the use of stock awards in CEO pay. Notwithstanding the recent financial crisis, stocks have seen tremendous gains since the 1980s and that, he said, has been reflected in CEO compensation.

As a result, he said, "CEO pay has been growing exponentially while everyone else's wages have been growing arithmetically."

Companies that shell out blockbuster salaries and benefits maintain that high compensation is necessary to attract the best talent to top positions.

In Chicago, in recent years the compensation issue has centered largely on so-called big box stores like Walmart. In 2006, the city's mayor vetoed a resolution by the city council in 2006 to raise minimum hourly pay by giant retailers in the city to $10 plus $3 worth of benefits.

Chicago Labor Leaders Wanted Higher Pay at Walmart

This week's approval of the new Walmart store came despite demands by labor organizers that Walmart, a non-union company, should pay at least $11 an hour to new employees. Walmart countered that the $8.75 it plans to pay -- which is 50 cents above Chicago's minimum wage -- is more than the starting hourly wages of unionized grocery store workers in the area.

An organizer for Local 881 United Food and Commercial Workers declined to comment on wages for union members, citing ongoing contract negotiations, but said that, overall, members receive better health insurance and retirement benefits than Walmart employees. (In its defense, Walmart said its health insurance plans offer "a wide range of options" and trumpeted its 401k and profit sharing plans.)

Smith said he ultimately decided to join his fellow aldermen in unanimously voting to allow the Pullman store because of the jobs the store is expected to create and its addition to the city's tax base.

He, too, would have liked to see the retailer pay at least $11 an hour to new employees, but added that he's glad Walmart's $8.75 starting pay is above minimum wage.

"As Kenny Rogers says, 'You gotta know when to hold them and know when to fold 'em,'" Smith said. "So that's what we did."

Copyright © 2010 ABC News Internet Ventures

BP Oil Spill: Against Gov. Bobby Jindal's Wishes, Crude-Sucking Barges Stopped by Coast Guard - ABC News

EXCERPT:

"Sixteen barges sat stationary today, although they were sucking up thousands of gallons of BP's oil as recently as Tuesday. Workers in hazmat suits and gas masks pumped the oil out of the Louisiana waters and into steel tanks. It was a homegrown idea that seemed to be effective at collecting the thick gunk.

"These barges work. You've seen them work. You've seen them suck oil out of the water," said Jindal.

So why stop now?

"The Coast Guard came and shut them down," Jindal said. "You got men on the barges in the oil, and they have been told by the Coast Guard, 'Cease and desist. Stop sucking up that oil.'"

A Coast Guard representative told ABC News today that it shares the same goal as the governor. "We are all in this together. The enemy is the oil," said Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Dan Lauer.

But the Coast Guard ordered the stoppage because of reasons that Jindal found frustrating. The Coast Guard needed to confirm that there were fire extinguishers and life vests on board, and then it had trouble contacting the people who built the barges.

***
After Jindal strenuously made his case, the barges finally got the go-ahead today to return to the Gulf and get back to work, after more than 24 hours of sitting idle.

QUESTIONS:

1. Do you think the Coast Guard official who ordered the barges to stop sucking up oil was comparing the benefits of his actions with their costs, or was he simply following the rules it was his job to enforce?
2. Did the Coast Guard official have much incentive to allow a rule to be broken simply because the benefits to society of breaking the rule exceeded the likely costs?
3. If the Coast Guard official had been a manager for a corporation that was going to bear the full costs of the spill, would he have been more or less likely to weigh benefits versus costs in making his decision?

Google sued for "faulty" map directions

EXCERPT:

"A California woman is suing Google after she was hit by a car while following directions provided by Google Maps on her cell phone, according to AOL News.... The directions did not tell her that there were no sidewalks along Deer Valley Drive, which, Rosenberg alleges, led to her being struck by traffic.

"As a direct and proximate cause of Defendant Google's careless, reckless and negligent providing of unsafe directions, Plaintiff Lauren Rosenberg was led onto a dangerous highway, and was thereby stricken by a motor vehicle, causing her to suffer severe permanent physical, emotional and mental injuries," according to the complaint filed in Park County district court.

Rosenberg is asking for Google to pay her medical expenses in addition to punitive damages and loss of earnings.

QUESTIONS:

Do you agree that Google should be required to help this woman? Explain why you agree or disagree.