Europeans on left and right ridicule U.S. money meltdown

"Greenspan was considered a master," Tremonti declared. "Now we must ask ourselves whether he is not, after [Osama] bin Laden, the man who hurt America the most. . . . It is clear that what is happening is a disease. It is not the failure of a bank, but the failure of a system. Until a few days ago, very few were willing to realize the intensity and the dramatic nature of the crisis."

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McCain unsure how many houses he owns

The correct answer is at least four, located in Arizona, California and Virginia, according to his staff. Newsweek estimated this summer that the couple owns at least seven properties.

Yeah. He can relate to me and my needs. He has no idea what the needs of the average American family are.

Rich people should not lead. They rarely can fathom budgets, economic difficulty, or fiscal responsibility.

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A big surprise on gas

But perception is not reality where gas prices are concerned. By June of this year, disposable income had risen by an average of $1,627 per person over last year's figures, according to the Department of Commerce, while the average person's real expenditures on gasoline increased by about $490. Our incomes are still outpacing gasoline price increases. The problem is that our incomes aren't outpacing the increase in gas prices lumped together with increases in everything else -- air conditioning, food, etc. Our homes, meanwhile, are losing value.

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Sex and Financial Risk Linked in Brain

Stanford psychologist Brian Knutson, a lead author of the study, says it's all about the power of emotion and arousal and our financial decisions. The trigger doesn't have to be sex - it could be chocolate or a winning lottery ticket.

"It didn't matter if the sexy woman didn't tell you anything about the odds of winning a roulette game," Knutson said. "What really matters is that the sexy woman is having an emotional impact. That bleeds over into your financial decisions."

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Dollars tough to sell

The U.S. dollar's value is dropping so fast against the euro that small
currency outlets in Amsterdam are turning away tourists seeking to sell
their dollars for local money while on vacation in the Netherlands.

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U.S. economy could fall casualty to wars

Although American military and Iraqi civilian casualties have declined in recent months, the rate of spending has shot up. A fully funded 2008 war budget will be 155 percent higher than 2004's, the CBO reports.

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Estimating all economic and social costs might push the U.S. war bill up toward $5 trillion by 2017, they say.

Their book already figures in the stay-or-leave debate over Iraq.

It was always about the money.

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3 CEOs made $460 million - House panel

House oversight committee prepares to investigate why executives at companies battered by the mortgage crisis were awarded big payouts.

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Economic Armageddon

The world's second richest man, Bill Gates, is also critical of the capitalist system that made him rich. "We have to find a way to make the aspects of capitalism that serve wealthier people serve poorer people as well," he told a recent World Economic Forum.

Gates is giving back by setting up the world's largest private foundation with a $34.6 billion US endowment for charitable projects around the world.

One he's investing in, according to globalresearch.ca, is a "doomsday seed bank" located on the Norwegian island of Spitsbergen, where 3 million different crop seeds from around the world will be stored in a mountain vault.

What does Gates know that we don't?

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Bank Of America Won't Let You Access Your Money

I think I'm getting somewhere but then a supervisor comes on and
explains to me that "Everyone in the United States that uses Bank of
America has a daily spending limit of 5000.00 no matter what."

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Current Account Balances

From the CIA.

Check out the list. All of it.

Fat People Cheaper to Treat, Study Says

Preventing obesity and smoking can save lives, but it doesn't save money, researchers reported Monday. It costs more to care for healthy people who live years longer, according to a Dutch study that counters the common perception that preventing obesity would save governments millions of dollars.

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The researchers found that from age 20 to 56, obese people racked up the most expensive health costs. But because both the smokers and the obese people died sooner than the healthy group, it cost less to treat them in the long run.

So, soon we'll hear "get fat, smoke more, die young".

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Thirtysomethings who depend on the Bank of Mum and Dad

An amazing 95 per cent of parents reckon they will be supporting their offspring well into adulthood, according to a report by saving specialists the Children's Mutual.

Many parents are neglecting their pensions, raiding their savings and even remortgaging to give children a helping hand.

They are also giving up holidays and other major purchases which they had planned as an indulgence once their children left home.

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Income-Inequality Gap Widens

The wealthiest 1% of Americans earned 21.2% of all income in 2005, according to new data from the Internal Revenue Service.

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Barbie Teaches Credit Cards 101: "You Never Run Out Of Money!"

Fashion Fever Shopping Boutique, the correctly named Barbie toy, features a built-in credit card swiper and a life-size credit card for young children to use when buying outfits for their dolls. According to the Amazon website, "Once the balance hits zero, it will reset so you can continue to shop."

WTF?

Who's brilliant fucking idea was this?

Check out the commercial below.



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Congress raises limit again as U.S. debt nears $10 trillion

According to the folks who follow this stuff closely, the national debt has been rising by an average of $1.36 billion per day since September of last year.

And each citizen now has a share of nearly $30,000.

But Congress has an easy solution to deal with the mounting red ink. Instead of fretting over it, members simply allow the government to borrow more money, much to the consternation of some critics.

And this will be the downfall of America.

Read more, but demand more financial responsibility from your representatives.

Senate panel okays $850 billion debt increase

The Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday approved an $850 billion increase in U.S. borrowing authority to $9.815 trillion in order to avoid a default as the government nears its credit limit of $8.965 trillion.

People this can't continue. Why have limits if those limits are just going to be increased?

This financial reckless behavior disgusts me.

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Doctors Offering No-Interest Loans to Patients

Zero-interest financing, a familiar sales incentive at car dealerships and furniture stores, has found its way to another big-ticket consumer market: doctors’ and dentists’ offices.

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Of course, going into debt to pay for medical procedures is nothing new for many people. And this type of financing is still only a fraction of the nation’s $900 billion market for consumer revolving credit.

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Bloody and Bloodier

You’re losing money right now. This very minute. You’re losing money if you own an apartment. You’re losing money if you own a country home. You’re losing money if you own a stock or bond mutual fund. You’re losing money if you have a pension plan. You’re probably losing money here or there, you’re probably losing money everywhere (except maybe from your savings account and wallet). But this is no Dr. Seuss story. It’s more of a John Steinbeck tale, and we are the victims, a new generation of Tom Joads, and it’s the damn bankermen who broke us. No, there won’t be a police officer to investigate, and the government, at least this federal government, won’t save us.

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Millionaires Run for the White House

The main candidates running for the US presidency in the November 2008 elections are members of the select group of millionaires, according to data published by the Election Commission on Tuesday.

This is why things will never change. Millionaires do not understand (or don't remember) how to budget money in order to just survive. They don't have to. Their budgeting needs are so far removed from the average person that it's like comparing apples and oranges.

So, if political leaders can't comprehend the budgeting needs of the masses, then how can we expect them to effectively manage the nation's budget? We can't. And they don't. They just keep borrowing more money from foreign countries, building up debt that can never, and I repeat, never, be repaid.

Thus, we do not need millionaires as our political leaders. We need government for the people, by the people.

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Paulson: US should boost debt limit

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson on Monday said the United States may be unable to pay its bills this fall unless Congress raises the government's borrowing authority, now capped at $8.965 trillion.

Now think about that.

The government may not be able to pay its bills unless it borrows more money.

There is no logic to the madness.

Financial responsibilty is really very simple: do not spend more than you bring in.

Never get out of debt here.