The Fed's Easy Money Plan is Complicating Things

The Federal Reserve tried stimulating the economy with an easy money policy; there are less restrictions and regulations on money and its supply. So basically they printed of a bunch of money to try help get the economy going again, however things are backfiring on them. By this "quantitative easing," they were hoping to help out the unemployment rate which is just a couple tenths away from being 10%. The Fed also went on a "bond buying spree" to encourage economic activity such as investing and spending. However, unemployment remains unchanged and interest rates are climbing up. The Fed decided then to "flood the system with money" but the possibility of significant inflation worries many. The area of the economy that absolutely needs to be fixed in order for everything else to go smoothly is the housing market. Bad mortgages have got people stuck in a rut.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40643129/ns/business-eye_on_the_economy/

To be brutally honest, I know I could never be an economist or a politician or just anyone in control of figuring out how to fix the economy. There are so many factors involved when trying to fix the economy as a whole that by just focusing on one thing, you hurt another. An example of this I noticed in the article was that by buying back so many bonds in order to reduce economic recovery time, it didn't do anything to help the unemployment rate. Furthermore, I agree with the article when it says that as long as the housing market remains in the dumps, the economy isn't going to do much better. It almost seems to me as if the Fed should just take a step back and try look at things in a different way because all these "old" ideas aren't helping us so much.

Unemployment Rates Keep Climbing

The unemployment rate has jumped up to 9.8% in November which means unemployment rates have stayed above 9% for the last seven months. Some economists were surprised that unemployment climbed so high because auto sales are on the rise as well as factory production. This should have meant many more people getting hired. Economists were hoping there would be 150,000 more jobs in November, however there were only 39,000. There is also a growing number of workers who have pretty much given up on the job market. It'll take about 200,000 + jobs to make a significant change in the unemployment rate.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40489052/ns/business-eye_on_the_economy/

When I first read through the article it was a little overwhelming with all the stastics and information but looking back at parts of it it makes a little more sense. Also, I saw on the news the exact same story as I just read about. Actually, this unemployment deal is getting to be even more huge and impacting so many people! It didn't seem real until one of our family friends lost his job. Luckily he got one in a couple weeks following, but a litle over a million people have pretty much given up on the job market. I was surprised how many jobs it's going to take to start recovering.I really hope the career I go into is still in demand by the time I'm looking for a job because it's such a shame to have so many able people without anything to do!

The Risks of Helping Out a Teenager

In the last 15 years, there has been a substantial increase in the number of prescriptions given out to teens and young adults that could also possibly be abused. Even though researchers are aware that just because there’s the possibility of the drugs being abused, it doesn’t always mean they will be. Nevertheless, they’re still looking at cutbacks. Also, they want the doctors to make sure that the benefits and risks of the prescribed drugs is made clear. The most common drugs were medications for pain, injury, and insomnia. Basically, some are feeling doctors are being too loose in giving out these prescriptions. It is believed it would be effective to educate the doctors about overuse of antibiotics.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40419864/ns/health-kids_and_parenting/

Doing this huge research project on the abuse of prescription drugs seems a little bit tedious to me. Although I did find the increase in doctor visits and prescribed medications interesting, I also thought that it was just some interesting information. The suggestion that there are cutbacks made on prescribing such medications to young adults is just absurd; if a patient needs the medicine, why would you deny them help out of suspicion and statistics. It would make me very angry if my doctor couldn’t give me some useful medication because he suspected I was just another statistic! Also, I’m sure doctors are smart enough to know the effects of drugs on people. Lastly, I think that they can make it as clear as they want to a patient that this drug is very bad if taken recreationally, but that definitely doesn’t mean they’re always going to listen. It’s a personal choice and following a statistic and acting from there seems pretty ridiculous.

Amber Alert!

 On Sunday, police in Morenci, Michigan were searching for three young boys who are said to be in grave danger. Their father, John Skelton, a 39-year old, is currently in a hospital for "mental health issues." The story is a rather odd and very sad one. Skelton was a long-haul truck driver. He also claimed to have an online relationship for a few years now with a woman by the name of Joann Taylor. Skelton was planning to hang himself in his home so he handed the kids over to her to bring to their mother (who is separated from Skelton) because he didn't want them around when he committed suicide. However, the boys have gone missing now and the police are mostly trying to figure out if the said Joann Taylor even exists. As of now, there is no proof of her existence and things are getting hectic. As of Friday, an Amber Alert was issued for the three boys.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40402307/ns/us_news-life/

I think this story is incredibly sad! Well really, who wouldn't? One big red flag that pops up in my mind about this is why the kids are staying with Skelton if he has "mental issues." Did no one know this before or something? Was he normal enough where having the three young boys stay with him didn't worry anyone? Then again, if he's separated from their mother, it doesn't necessarily mean they were married, she could have just gotten up and left one day. Which is also a very sad situation. It's so confusing though that he said he gave the kids to a lady who may not even exist. Well here's red flag number two: Joann Taylor is said to be an online girlfriend...this is very suspicious because how do we even know Joann was a woman? Or especially a nice one? "Joann" could be a friend of Skelton's or even someone he made up! My last red flag here is how he could have someone he's in a relationship with (even if it is an online one) take his kids to their mother because he wants to kill himself! If they'd been in a relationship for so long wouldn't she try stopping him or notifying police or someone?? I just feel like this could mean "Joann" is a little messed up in the head as well. All in all, I just want these boys to be found! And I'm really curious about what happens in regards to investigating Joann Taylor...

Andrew Skelton, age 9
(http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40402307/ns/us_news-life/)
Alexander Skelton, age 7
(http://www.ctpost.com/mediaManager/?controllerName=image&action=get&id=448761&width=628&height=471)
Tanner Skelton, age 5   
(http://www.ctpost.com/mediaManager/?controllerName=image&action=get&id=448759&width=628&height=471)

Airport Security: For your safety, now even more complicated!

A revolt is cooking among fliers angry with the new TSA scanners and extremely thorough body pat downs. The new TSA scanner is so in depth people are almost stipped  naked by the x-ray machine. Although these scans take about half a minute, some people are refusing to fly this Thanksgiving in order to show their disapproval. There are even a couple websites in the spirit: OptOutDay.com and WeWontFly.com. Up until now, Americans have generally been ok with the searches, but now things are getting more personal, more visible, and it's even causing some to miss their flights. One woman, Marcia Miller, won't take her daughter on a plane because she doesn't want her to be scarred by the security experience and even related it to emotional scars after being raped! This mentality is rather extreme compared to others. The majority of people are willing to undergo the security checks (that doesn't mean they're comfortable with it) but nevertheless there is still dispute over whether or not the procedures should be kept as they are.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40242420/ns/travel-news/

The article didn't describe just what the new TSA standards are so I went to their website to find out for myself. It was quite ridiculous because right after reading this article on people who are upset with the full body checks at the airport, I saw a quick glimpse of a headline saying 'Most people ok with TSA full-body scanners.' Everything just seemed so politically correct. I also feel this full "pat down" is ridiculous and I object to these new measures and seeing this websit just made me a little bit more angry. Maybe I'm just out of the loop but I don't know why the terrorist threats are extra high right now. When I flew to D.C. this summer I always saw signs saying the terrorist attack risk was high; so now is it extra high? They won't be able to pull this off for long, people are only going to get more and more angry and more and more people will refuse.


check out these pictures!

A Nightmarish Vacation

An unexpected engine fire onboard a Carnival cruise ship resulted in cutting out the power and leaving the vacationers and staff in the dark for three days, adrift at sea with very limited food supplies and at one point even, no toilets. It was definitely not the idea these people had in mind when they got aboard, expecting a relaxing and rejuvenating trip and ended up in an uncomfortable "adventure." Food lines were hours long and not everyone could get to the ninth floor without the working elevators. At last, they were escorted into San Diego where, needless to say, people were very thankful to see land.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40126918/ns/travel-cruise_travel/

Honestly, it sounds kinda fun to me, to have to live in such a different setting and situation where you make eating Pop Tarts necessary for lack of other food and finding your way among the dark cabins. However, I admit three days would get long and tiresome and, just like the passengers, I would want nothing more than to be on land. It would sure make for a good story though and I would feel pretty cool to say I've been on a broken cruise ship and "lost at sea!" It's lucky though that food was able to be delivered and the situation was manageable and survivable.

A Landmark in the Air

A French airliner landed early Sunday morning at the Baghdad International Airport marking a realization of new potentials for both Iraq's economy and France's and Iraq's business relationship. The flight was the first since the Gulf War that carried passengers (in this instance, French officials and journalists). The French airline hopes to make the trip regularly, although the price for tickets is rather high. Economy seats will cost about $2100 each and business class seats will cost about $3500 each. However, right now there isn't enough customer interest due to worries about the security of such a trip given the country's current struggle. In general though, the flight leaves many optimistic about the future.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39932326/ns/world_news-mideastn_africa/

Maybe it's just me, but it seems the news articles I've been reading lately have been rather optimistic. The fact that a European country has organized and successfully completed a flight directly into Iraq's capital is great news for everyone. This also means Iraq's economy is starting to look a little brighter. Just little steps at a time is what's going to have to happen and this is one of those steps! However, I don't blame people for being a little leery at flying into a country in such turmoil. I think that for now, the passengers are just going to be people with business things to take care of, like the officials and journalists etc. As things improve though, people are going to be more willing to purchase the tickets and hopefully then flights will be more regular and the benefits will grow.

French Minister of Foreign Trade Anne Marie Idrac

Crisis in the Housing Market

The unstable housing market is one of the main reasons the economy is having troubles getting back to steady ground. Foreclosures are the main concern and they have "soared to record highs." Ben Bernanke, the Federal Reserve Chairman recently said that bank regulators are looking into whether or not corners have been cut in regards to foreclosing homes. They're taking the issue of the possibility of bad foreclosures seriously and are looking into whether or not in may be due to problems in the system. They're also looking into the effects this may have on financial institutions and the real-estate market. Also, the cause of such a large foreclosing crisis is primarily due to people taking out loans on their homes they didn't understand and now owe more money than their house is worth.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39828590/ns/business-real_estate/

This issue seems like it's one that'll be very difficult to resolve. Like the article said, the housing market it the main reason we're struggling to get back to a steady economic ground. Foreclosures have crippled the stability of many families and if people are even deeper trouble than they thought, it's certainly not a good sign. However I'm not quite sure how these reports on the investigations of improper foreclosures will turn out and I really don't know if finding a lot of mistakes will help or hurt us. I do know that large mortgage and financial companies shouldn't have to be double-checked for suspicion of cutting corners. Cheating the system definitely won't help us get where we need to be!

Ben Bernanke (Fed Chairman)



(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreclosure)

Economy has Bright Spots Despite the Gloom

Right now, the economy isn't doing all that bad. The Dow Jones industrial average and the S&P 500 are both up more than 5% this year. All told they're both up 15% for the year but there are some stocks that are up by as much as 60-100%. The trend seems to be that industrial companies that make big construction equipment and luxury hotels and clothing stores are up the most which is supposedly expected after a recession. This is a time where people might hesitate on spending money but money managers are saying that this is the time to keep spending in the market. People with good jobs are starting to spend their money more freely again. All around the world there is a building trend and American countries are the ones supplying machinery etc. to the other countries, especially China. Also, spendings around Christmastime this year are expected to increase as well, displaying trends similar to that of 2006. One last thing though is that even though some of these companies are doing much better, they're still a ways off from their historical averages.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39712099/ns/business-stocks_and_economy/

Once again, I find myself reading an article about the good parts of the economy and the brighter side of it, which, is definitely not a bad thing in my book! I remember in another article I'd read that the company Caterpillar was doing quite well and it seems the trend of machinery companies such as that doing well in this economy continues. Also, one part of the article I didn't mention above was that the dollar is weaker but this may be a good thing because that makes other currencies stronger so they're able to buy more American products. I feel pretty optimistic about the economy but the tough part now is getting people to continue spending their money. And hidden underneath the rise of some companies is the fact that they're actually still lower than their averages in the past. Then again, getting the economy back to better health will be a process where we'll just have to work our way up little by little.

Stocks Go Up with Activity

Activity rose in the U.S. services sector last month which led to a rise in stocks. Generally, the whole world experience an uplift in the stock market. Japan had previously been having problems with maintaining a strong currency while prices were falling, but its central bank slashed its key interest rate almost to zero. Big news for the Mexican broadcaster Grupo Televisa when their shares rose 9.8% after it said it would invest in Univision Communications. Also, NASDAQ rose 2.3 % (54.42 points) and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.7% (184.33 points) while the NYSE had 5 stocks rise for every one that went down. Also, buyers gained more confidence when the S&P broke a key technical barrier. Lastly, with the help of the Fed the economy could be boosted along with more investing action.

I think this is incredibly great news! It's still a little weird to me, I can't believe that our economy is improving. It's so slow I don't know how true it is. But it's numbers like these that restore confidence in the U.S. economy! The article just seemed to be full of nothing but good news which is rare when it comes to articles on the stock market and such. It also gave me a few ideas for the stock market game we're playing in class. A few companies that did really well inlude DuPont and Caterpillar Inc. Also, a few companies I'd noticed real successful students had invested in were on a list of "Market Movers." These include the Ford Motor Co. and Wells Fargo & Co. Hopefully I can use this to my advantage! And I really hope that this great uptrend doesn't lead to an incredible downturn!

Index		Last	Change
I:DJI		10934.08	+182.81 +1.70%
I:COMP		2395.36	+50.84 +2.17%
SPX.X		1159.45	+22.42 +1.97%

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39515168/ns/business-stocks_and_economy/

Students or Servants?

At St. John's University in New York, there was once a dean whose name is Cecilia Chang. Also known as the V.P. for international relations and the former dean of the Institute of Asian Studies. However, notice the word 'former' in front of 'dean.' This is because she was caught for taking advantage of her students by making them run chores for her. The crazy thing is that these chores are everyday things such as taking her to the hair salon, driving her to the airport or even doing laundry! The students were threatened that if they didn't perform these tasks they would lose their financial aid. After 30 years working at St. John's, Chang may find herself in jail for 20 years if convicted of federal charges.


What a world we live in! It's crazy how people who you think would be "above it all" turn out to actually be way lower than we could have possibly imagined. Apparently, three of her "students" had recorded 122 days of service for her! What childish behavior from a person at such an elite postition! I don't care if you're an elementary teacher or a university professor or a dean, students are students, not servants. Also, how incredibly selfish of her to make them do such everyday things! I'm quite sure university students are plenty busy on their own time with taking care of themselves AND homework and whatnot, there is definitely no time to run extra errands for their deans! Her behavior is unexcusable and I hope the court doesn't let her get away with it.


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39453126/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/

Capital Punishment, Equal Rights between Men and Women, and Mental Retardation

In Virginia recently, Teresa Lews was executed by way of lethal injection. This is important because she's the first woman since 1912 to be executed in Virginia. In October of 2002, Lewis hired two men to kill her husband and stepson in order to receive $250,000 in insurance money. Another part of this case is the fact that Lewis was on the borderline of being mentally retarded which of course strikes a nerve for being even more cruel. An interesting statistic at the end of the article states that ever since the U.S. reinstated capital punishment, 1,200 have been put to death an only 11 of them have been women.

For me, capital punishment is one of few political issues I have a very strong opinion towards. My opinion is that there shouldn't be a death sentence, who gave these people the right to kill others? No matter how cruel or nasty they may be they're still human and I consider it murder. I believe death is something for the hands of God. Also, many believe that it's more expensive to keep people in prison; however, when I did a research paper on this in 9th grade I found out the exact opposite is true. Lethal injection etc. isn't free! Also, I think that by looking at the statistic provided at the end it's pretty obvious that there have been gender biases towards executing men. Or maybe this is just because they're naturally more aggressive and get themselves into more trouble? Either way it's quite interesting. Another part of the article talked about how Lewis had changed as a person and was preaching and singing hymns in prison. It's so sad that people, if deemed "awful enough," don't get a second chance! Capital punishment just seems to me to be an incredibly old-fashioned and barbaric way to handle prisoners.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39338256

It's Ok, He's Ok!

Gore Otteson, also known as the 'Lazarus tot,' is one lucky little boy who has been blessed with a second chance at life. One summer evening, while Amy, Gore's mother, was preparing her other children for bed, Gore found his way outside the family cabin and was no where in sight. Panicking, they searched for 25 minutes before finding him trapped facedown underneath a log in an irrigation ditch. His heart had stopped beating and Gore's grandpa began CPR until he was taken by helicopter to the Children's Hospital in Denver. Desperate for a miracle, his parents were willing for Gore to be a subject in an experimental treatment called therapeutic hypothermia where the body's temp is dropped to let the brain heal itself. 48 hours later he was back to his normal temperature and Gore was back to being himself and immediately asked for food! Unexplainably, his brain didn't suffer any damage! Needless to say, his family is very grateful to be celebrating his two year birthday with him a couple weeks later!

The crazy thing about this therapeutic hypothermia thing is that the idea originated from something Hippocrates did quite a long time ago. Hippocrates put his patients in snow in order to lower their body temperatures and successfully healed people that way. It just seems like such a simple concept to be so successful and save so many lives. It reminds me of when doctors use leeches to help reduce swelling; such a seemingly simple yet quite effective method of bringing people back to health. On the page I read this article on there is also a MSNBC video that I watched where I got to see the Ottesons all alive and doing well! Little Gore was running around the set just like a typical two year old would; he was getting into everything and particularly took interest in the TV monitors. Anyway, it was definitely nice to read about a news story that has a happy ending!

















http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/39215752/ns/today-today_people/

Fruits and Veggies!

A recent study done by a phone survey to hundreds of thousands of Americans shows that in an incredibly weight and diet conscious society, fruit and vegetable consumption has actually dropped. The percentage for people eating or drinking fruit at least twice a day has dropped not even a whole percent. Also, the national percentage for eating vegetables at least three times a day has stayed the same. Health officials are trying to promote healthy eating in order to stop the rise of obesity and diseases such as diabetes and heart disease. A new effort on the government's behalf to promote fruits and vegetables will hopefully show better numbers in another survey planned for 2011.

Considering how health and weight conscious America has become, I found it quite surprising that numbers hadn't really changed in the past ten years. It seems the nation has caught a little bug for eating right but apparently that doesn't include fruits and vegetables. I think it may be because people are relying on alternate foods for diets or perhaps just trying to get more exercise and not necessarily adding in the healthy food. I've also realized that when I'm online, especially sites like
Facebook or Hotmail, there are countless adds of a new diet plan or pill that hardly takes anything on your part in order to work. Pills have replaced the food? I don't know, maybe fruits and vegetables have just been forgotten since they've always been there and always been the same, no new and improved recipe to keep people buying! Which is sad and I really hope that the new campaigns remind people to eat more fruits and veggies rather than always going for the OJ or V8.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39096775/ns/health-diet_and_nutrition/