On Monday, February 7, a small fire broke out at the Smithsonian Institution. The fire was very quickly put out by Washington D.C. firefighters. Deferred upkeep at the Smithsonian Institution combines to equal over $ 2.5 billion, and the number is going up. They are lucky the damage wasn’t severe because this could have possibly cost a lot more than a personal loan for the city if loss was even worse. Source for this article – Small fire at Smithsonian Institution does little damage by MoneyBlogNewz. Smithsonian Institution fire The Washington D.C. fire department reported this morning that firefighters were called to the National Museum of Natural History. There was a spark that flew off of air conditioning equipment. This led to insulation catching fire. Firefighters were able to extinguish the fire easily, and harm to the Natural History museum was small. Traffic in and around the Natural History Museum was disrupted during the fire, as a plume of black smoke was visible in and around D.C. Upkeep at the Smithsonian The United States government pays for the majority of the Smithsonian Institution. Admission fees being added might be considered by the 2010 Deficit Commission. This would help costs go down a bit. There are not admission fees currently. You will find billions put into maintenance that isn’t getting done with the Smithsonian Institution instead. The upkeep that has not been done might be the reason why the air conditioning vent sparked a fire into the Smithsonian Institution. Prior fire at Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution has had fires before the small fire. The several museums have experienced many small fires. On January 24th, 1865 the Smithsonian Institute (just one building at the time) had a major fire that damaged the picture gallery, lecture room, philosophical laboratory, and first story of the building. In the 1865 fire and 2011 fire, nobody was hurt. The institute was closed when both happened. Information from Son of the South .sonofthesouth.net/leefoundation/civil-war/1865/february/smithsonian-fire.htm Yahoo News news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110207/ts_alt_afp/usfiremuseum Look out – Monday, Feb. 14, is obligatory romance day, aka Valentine’s Day. Do not worry; Valentine’s Day gift suggestions needn’t break your brain or your wallet. A thoughtful gift that claims you care, from flowers to sweet things and much more, could be a present that keeps on giving. If you have not already, start thinking about this now. Resource for this article – Valentine’s Day gift ideas, Proflowers codes and more by MoneyBlogNewz. Valentine’s Day chocolate presents Everybody can be okay with chocolate, except those with allergies. You can go to 1800Flowers.com and get a junior Cheesecake which is a double layered, heart shaped chocolate mousse and ganache cake for Valentine’s Day instead of getting chocolates from See’s. The cheesecake is something you can pay only $45 for, for Valentine’s Day. Then, two day shipping is only another $8 after that. Since the chocolate is so amazing, it’s worth it. Get to the heart with a home-made meal on Valentine’s Day You do not have to have money to do something romantic. If you are seeking to win over your significant other for less, a home-cooked dinner served by candlelight is sure to please. Try some stuffed chicken, lasagna or pasta with cheese and sauce. A solid white wine goes with chicken, while red wine tends to go better with beef dishes. You will find pre-cooked gourmet dishes sold many places if you are not very good in the kitchen. Just get it all ready in the microwave or oven. Suggestions for Valentine’s Day If you’re looking for more out-of-the-box Valentine’s Day present ideas, travel is always an exciting option. It may be nice just to take a weekend trip to a bed and breakfast if money is not there enough to get you on a trip to Paris. You are able to get flower arrangements for a quite low price from retailers like 1800Flowers and Proflowers. You are able to get codes for over $20 at RetailMeNot.com. There are things you are able to get to last longer than roses such as potted orchids. You are able to go to Home Depot or Lowe’s to get it. For about $20, your partner could have a reminder of you while you are off earning money to spend on him or her. Valentine’s Day verses Even if you are not a poet, sentiments of great writers can convey your feelings. You can just use somebody else like Shakespeare, Sonnet 116 especially, or Pablo Nuruda and e.e. cummings. Information from 11 Alive Atlanta 11alive.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=176465&catid=39 Long Island Press longislandpress.com/2011/02/08/valentines-day-poems/ Blog Spot izzhy.blogspot.com/2011/02/valentines-day-gift-ideas.html Guys like Valentine’s Day gifts, too youtube.com/watch?v=01NB7zyhod8 The Super Bowl always has huge viewership. The 2011 Super Bowl claimed over 47 percent of viewers. The Super Bowl commercials of 2011 were only some of the large news, regardless how controversial. The Super Bowl National Anthem 2011 was the shock error of the evening, instead of the Black Eyed Peas halftime show. Too bad there is not a payday loan large enough to reverse that mistake. Checking out the very best 2011 Super Bowl commercials The advertisements touched nerves in the 2011 Super Bowl. There was a user created contest which is where the Doritos Super Bowl commercial 2011 came from. Some have called it “sophomoric” though. youtube.com/watch?v=0kfLd52jF3Y The Darth Vader commercial is one of the best Super Bowl advertisements this year. Before the Super Bowl, the Volkswagen commercial had been released. Millions of audiences had already started talking about it. According to most viewer votes, the Darth Vader commercial was the big winner of the 2011 Super Bowl. youtube.com/watch?v=R55e-uHQna0 The most controversial Super Bowl commercial was the Groupon commercial. A huge political struggle is made fun of in the commercial. Those who were Groupon supporters may not be so happy with this one. youtube.com/watch?v=vXGYK1eP_wo&feature=player_embedded Botching the National Anthem 2011 by Aguilera When it comes to mess ups in the Super Bowl, the Christina Aguilera Super Bowl flub is definitely noticed. Some are saying that by repeating a line in the anthem Aguilera was “butchering” the anthem. Others point out that in a high-stress, live performance, blunders do occur. youtube.com/watch?v=WB61wXKROtw Putting the Black Eyed Peas in the 2011 halftime show The 2011 choice for Super Bowl halftime how was the Black Eyed Peas. A popular art group instead of a “classic” group like this hadn’t been chosen since the “wardrobe malfunction” that happened. The halftime show for the Black Eyed peas wasn’t flawless. There were mistakes made. It was clear that there were microphone mistakes. Sound techs were not prepared. The group is not really for live performance as much as it’s for recording anyway, others think. There wasn’t any energy coming from the Black Eyed Peas anyway, just lights. youtube.com/watch?v=IJZUxR_dQz4 Kids’ bedrooms are a hard redecorating concern. Parents can get asked to redesign their kids’ bedrooms many, many times. Redecorating a kids’ room does not mean having to spend thousands of dollars. Redecorating a room for a kid You will find a few things you need to ask before going to redecorate your kids’ bedrooms. Determining how fast your children will grow out of current phases is essential. Think about their ages. Make sure you know if you are able to change wall colors or make other changes when renting. What is the room’s challenge? It could be space, light, design or organization. List all of the changes you want to make and your child wants to make. Use big stuff to redecorate your children room It could kill a budget to get new furniture for a room or changing the structure. The average $100 spending budget may not cut it. Try some new paint. It can completely change the room for child. You really should get dual-purpose items. They might fit well in the room. You are able to use storage or organization shelves for a headboard. It’s easy enough. Try looking in consignment and second-hand stores for inexpensive however sturdy furniture. Buying one dresser for $50 might feel like a large investment, however it will last much longer than a $20 dresser that you will have to re-purchase in a few years. Permanent things shouldn’t be done The colors and décor in a room will be effected by Kids’ taste. However, this will regularly be changing. Rather than repainting a room, try going to your local sign shop to get custom stickers made. An interactive feel can be given to a room with a huge graphic sticker. It’s also cheaper than paint most of the time. You really should try putting up a dry-erase board or rolled cork in the room. It is pretty inexpensive also. Children can continually change their room by having a p lace where they can write, draw and express themselves. Ariana Huffington has turned a $1 million purchase and 6 years of work in the Huffington Post into a deal with AOL worth $315 million. AOL has been struggling to survive as the online world has passed it by. The Huffington Post deal is one of several recent acquisitions. Huffington will take over AOL’s entire stable of editorial content, which has been criticized for putting an emphasis on quantity over quality. It makes you wonder if AOL had to take out a personal loan to pay that price tag. AOL hopes Huffington reverses decline AOL may be able to rise once again with the Huffington Post/AOL deal. While the Huffington Post has been on the rise, AOL has turn into a fading figure in the shadow of Google and Facebook. Most of the AOL base either has passed away off or is realizing it is not necessary. That means most of the customer base is gone. There were 2,500 jobs lost in 2010 by AOL. Also, from 2009, 29 percent of ad revenue was lost. There was a 26 percent drop in fourth quarter earnings too. The Huffington Post should be able to help AOL become profitable again. Hopefully this happens by 2013 for AOL’s sake. Content material on AOL far better with Huffington’s help A $1 million investment was given to Ariana Huffington to start the Huffington Post as a liberal blog. Now you will find 200 individuals working for the Huffington Post. In 2010, it made $31 million in revenue. At the beginning, the Huffington Post got media from traditional outlets. That changed though. Journalists from the New York Times and Newsweek have been employed on to the Huffington though. The negative image that AOL has as a content farm is hopefully to disappear with the Huffington Post around. The AOL new Huffington Post Press Group would have Huffington as the president and editor in chief. That would mean things for instance TechCrunch, 5min Media and Thing Labs would be at her disposal. Huffington information Ariana Stassinopoulos was born in Athens, Greece and earned an MA in economics at Cambridge University in England. She married Michael Huffington, a San Francisco oil millionaire, whom she divorced in 1997. Arnold Schwarzenegger ended up winning in 2003 when Huffington ran as an independent candidate for governor of CA. In 2005, the Huffington Post was created by her. Now, every month you will find 26 million visitors. The AOL/Huffington Post transaction is expected to close this spring. Citations New York Times nytimes.com/2011/02/07/business/media/07aol.html?_r=1&hp Wall Street Journal online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704422204576130002551387710.html CNN Money money.cnn.com/2011/02/07/technology/aol_huffington_post.cnnw/ Scientology, the cult made famous by Tom Cruise and John Travolta, has drawn the interest of the FBI. The FBI investigation arose on its suspicion that the Church of Scientology is associated with human trafficking. Ex Church members have told tales of being locked up in forced labor camps and experiencing physical and mental abuse. Scientology’s desert re-education camp In 2009, the FBI human trafficking investigation of Scientology started. This was when Scientologists tried to quit and got interviewed by agents. Those considered apostates would get confined to a Scientology compound east of Los Angeles in the California desert. This was where many had hazing take place while pushed labor for hardly any pay occurred as well, in a story the St. Petersburg Times broke out two years ago. The New Yorker said on Feb. 7th the FBI investigation of Scientology was taking place. Screenwriter Paul Haggis revealed this. Haggis resigned from the Church of Scientology in 2009 due to the human trafficking practices detailed in the Times, along with Scientology’s public support of California’s Proposition 8, a law prohibiting same-sex marriage. Tom Cruise changed with Scientology labor It was shown in the Times and New Yorker that there have been escapees out of the Scientology desert compound. They would be forced to return back there though. Having children is something women in the compounds were told not to do. Then, they would get abortions that were forced on them. The money brought in by the Church was used by Church leader David Miscavige to live how he wanted, previous Scientologists explain. Workers got $50 a week in the compound as pay. Miscavige pushed a worker to customize motorcycles for Cruise. Thousands of dollars is normally what is paid for something like this. Cruise also had an SUV customized and an airplane hangar renovated with forced Scientology labor. Human trafficking with the scientology Human trafficking was denied by the Church of Scientology meaning the FBI was denied. A New Yorker article spoke with a spokesman. He said it was a “rehash of unfounded allegations.” However, signs of human trafficking listed on the FBI website match the experiences shared by Scientology defectors. A lot of physical and emotional abuse was seen by these individuals. They also controlled the food, schedule, money, speech, ID and travel documents of all those confined. Information from St. Petersburg Times tampabay.com/news/scientology/article1150248.ece New York Daily News nydailynews.com/news/national/2011/02/07/2011-02-07_FBI_probing_allegations_of_human_trafficking_and_enslavement_in_scientology_repo.html The New Yorker newyorker.com/reporting/2011/02/14/110214fa_fact_wright New York Post nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/cruise_church_labor_probed_lNckRxqOTLp5LvQAe3iGFI Las Vegas gambling establishments suffered a rare loss on Super Bowl wagering this year. The Green Bay Packers won convincingly. But their victory was a little too convincing for the casinos. When all the bettors are paid, Las Vegas bookies are looking at their worst beating in the Super Bowl in thirteen years. People lost and won money from the short term personal loans they took out for their wagering needs. Super Bowl was not so good news for gambling establishments in Vegas Las Vegas gambling establishments should have keep away from betting on the Super Bowl this time around. The books didn’t show it helping much. There are the 2 ½ point favorites. The gambling public was excited with the 31-25 victory shown by the Packers. Several factors show a huge loss for casinos. This is taking into consideration the numbers will not be released until Tuesday by casino officials. Most favored the Packers to win. The 3 point spread that was needed was received also. At least 2 $1 million bets were placed on the Packers. This was shown in reports. The Super Bowl over/under was set at 45.5 points and most of the public bet Packers/over in a game that totaled 56 points. At halftime, the Pittsburgh Steelers seemed to be coming back while down by 11. Nevertheless, the Steelers were preferred by 2 ½ points by Vegas. Much more not so good news for Vegas The Vegas sports book lost on the Super bowl because amateur gamblers tend to bet on the favorite and think the over/under is too low. Sports books hope the favorite wins, however don’t cover the spread in a low-scoring game. The favorites have to cover in the win though. If this does not occur, there’s a lost bet on them. The Packers won by six although they were preferred by 2 ½. That means that a huge payday came in to those who bet on the Green Bay Packers. To make matters worse for the Las Vegas sports book, it favored the Steelers by 2 1/2 in the second half. The Steelers were down 11 when the second half started. A wave of gamblers realized they could bet on the Steelers, 2 1/2-point underdogs before the game began, as 8 1/2-point underdogs in the second half. Pittsburgh helped those betters out also by losing by six. The house can lose too Every year, Super Bowl Sunday is the biggest betting day of the year. The Vegas Casinos are filled. But the Las Vegas sports book found itself getting hit by bets on each teams in Super Bowl XLV. There was $82.7 million bet in Vegas sports book in 2010. The Casinos collected $6.8 million. Bets for Vegas in 2011 for the Super Bowl are likely between $95 and $100 million. In 2008, the New York Giants upset the New England Patriots. This brought on a $2.6 million loss in Las Vegas. On all Super Bowls since 2000, the casinos have averaged a win. About $9.07 million is won each year. Citations Los Angeles Times latimes.com/sports/la-sp-super-bowl-vegas-20110207,0,2227070.story Business Insider businessinsider.com/super-bowl-vegas-sports-books-lost-money-2011-2 Las Vegas Review Journal lvrj.com/sports/packers-and-over-makes-it-big-day-for-betting-public-115485929.html In 2003, then Harvard pupil Zuckerberg scraped the names and pictures of co-eds from university servers in order to create a “hot or not” website called FaceMash. He was accused of various offenses that bordered on identity theft. That was 2003, but Wired reports that today, a couple of activists with an online dating website want Zuckerberg to learn something about data security. The social experiment/dating site Paolo Cirio and Alessandro Ludovico call Lovely Faces scraped 250,000 Facebook profiles for actual names, locations and head shots without Facebook’s permission, so a lawsuit might be waiting in the wings. Facebook already makes so much money that they probably won’t need personel loans to take this company to court. What lovely-Faces.com really does Lovely Faces takes user information off of Facebook and photos of males and females to be able to put them into categories for instance “easy going,” “smug,” and “sly” without any kind of permission. Cirio and Ludovico are worried about the legality of it all. This is because they used Facebook user’s actual names as well. Their claim, in accordance with Wired, is that Lovely Faces is not a business venture, but art which challenges the notion that an individual ought to feel comfortable with sharing personal information via online social press. “If we start to play with the concepts of identity theft and dating, we should be able to unveil how fragile a virtual identity given to a proprietary platform can be,” write the Lovely Faces founders on Face to Facebook. “And (we’ll see) how fragile enormous capitalization based on exploiting social systems can be.”
Social networks such as Facebook are being targeted by Cirio and Ludovico. The point is to point out cracks inherent in the system. They are hoping to make the networks crumble from over-hyped stock evaluations just like in the early 2000s when the bubble burst stopping many dot coms. The way Facebook responds to Lovely Faces There’s a violation of Facebook’s terms of service according to Barry Schnitt. He is the Director of Policy Communications at Facebook. Thus, Facebook is currently investigating Lovely-Faces.com before taking legal action. Facebook has sued others before, for instance the online protection research firm Skull Protection after it released 100 million Facebook user names and profile addresses. It is possible that Zuckerberg is up for another suit. Information from Face to Facebook face-to-facebook.net/theory.php New York Times bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/07/28/100-million-facebook-ids-compiled-online/ Wired wired.com/epicenter/2011/02/facebook-dating/ Dating on Facebook with Flyness: No illegal action required youtube.com/watch?v=1D51lBv1Hac Finding a reason to commemorate in February is not tough. Feb. 2 is a day of celebration around the world. In some traditions, it’s Candlemas or Imbolic – the midway point between winter solstice and vernal equinox. Many people mark early February as the day for a famous groundhog to make his visual appearance. It is getting close to the time to take out a pay day loan and plan your spring escape. How Candlemas started out The division of seasons is called the “wheel of the year.” Halfway between equinox and solstice is February 2 known as a “cross quarter” day. This day was set aside to prepare soil in agrarian society. It was so grain could be grown. Candles were needed to do work. This was because lots of the plowing occurred during the dark time of day. ”Candle mass” was used to symbolize renewal, purification and the new year dawning. Candlemas all over the world European countries have a different name for Candlemas. “Imbolic” is this name. The word comes from “Ol-melc,” meaning ewe’s milk, as the sheep started giving milk again after winter. In order to commemorate planting and harvest within the future, a goddess statue was washed and carried through the field. Jewish and Christian customs also recognize the day of celebration. Planting seeds and baking bread is the way to celebrate St. Brigid who was the Christian patron saint of grain. Also, 40 days after the birth of Jesus is celebrated is when Candlemas/Imbolic is recognized. This means Jewish Mary would have purified herself this day. The day is meant to plant, celebrate the next growing season, and purify. How Candlemas became Groundhog Day Humans would start, with animals too, to leave the house and work within the fields again during Imbolic or Candlemas. There were 18th century German settlers that brought over a tradition to go with Candlemas. On that day, if a groundhog saw its shadow, then that meant there would be six more weeks of winter ahead. Officially, the first day Punxsutawney Phil was forced out of his hole to predict the weather was February 2, 1887. But Punxsutawney Phil is not always right. He has a 39 percent success rate. February 2 is the day to appreciate light, warmth and spring whether you commemorate Candlemas, Imbolic, St. Brigid’s Day, Mary’s purification or you just watch Punxsutawney Phil come out of his hole. Articles cited School of the Seasons schooloftheseasons.com/candlemas.html The Telegraph telegraph.co.uk/topics/weather/8298417/The-history-of-Groundhog-Day.html In a court action filed on Tues, a French man is suing drug-maker GlaxoSmithKline. The plaintiff states the drug he was taking made major changes to his personality. The plaintiff allegedly was not informed of this possible change. Sex addition, gambling addiction, and cross-dressing are all cited as character changes this man faced. It’s hard to picture how large of a personal bank loan this man had to take out just to get this suit rolling. Article resource – 51-year-old French man claims Requip made him a sex addict by MoneyBlogNewz. Man says sex addiction occurred In French court, a court action was filed. About $610,000 in damages is being asked for from GlaxoSmithKline. It is claimed that a man’s character was completely changed while taking the drug Requip. This was done for Parkinson’s disease. The father of two states that he became a homosexual sex addict, started engaging in risky sexual behaviors, and became a compulsive gambler and a cross-dresser. He ended up getting into a position to be raped while also losing all the family money because of the drugs. The man also lost his job due to the high-risk actions he took. The hazards were supposedly never told to him. GlaxoSmithKline and his neurologist failed to mention them. Hazardous side effects of Requip Requip is a drug used to treat Parkinson’s Disease. The active ingredient in Requip is Ropinirole. It replaces the brain’s dopamine. Dopamine controls motivations, cognition, sexual gratification, attention, memory and even movement as it is the “reward” drug. Requip makes voluntary movement possible as Parkinson’s prevents it. There are a lot of Requip side effects to consider though as it controls the same chemical in the brain that controls all these other things. Side effects like gambling addiction and compulsive sexual behavior were added to the package for Requip in 2006. The only way to really use Requip How to proceed with Requip has been a mystery to several. Regulatory agencies haven’t figured out how to proceed yet. It has proven beneficial for some Parkinson’s patients. At the same time, the very real and sometimes difficult side effects of the drug can make it dangerous, as this French man found out the hard way. Citations Google News google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hOM-J-W_vQyhOMtzwgnRBGZSUZiw?docId=CNG.63bcff8f98980fff793ec95493293141.811 NCBI ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001026 Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dopamine Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dopamine In a single TX school room, swearing comes with new consequences. Though she pleads not guilty, one TX pupil has been charged $637. This is partially the charge for the misdemeanor violation and partially the charge for not showing up for court. The 17-year old senior was technically ticketed for disorderly conduct and abusive language. Swearing student has to pay $637 in a fine On Oct. 6, 2010, Victoria Mullins swore in front of a single of her teachers at North Mesquite High School within the Dallas area. The teacher reported to the school resource officer that Mullins had shouted “You trying to start !@*#?” within the school room. The officer issued a ticket for disorderly conduct and abusive language. The original violation was for $340, and Mullins pleaded not guilty. However, the 17-year- old did not show up to her court listening to. That added a collection fee, no-show penalty and arrest warrant fee onto her original ticket. The State of Texas may have the girl pay $637 total. Fine means working really Victoria Mullins is no longer fighting the misdemeanor ticket. She is going to repay her debt to the state doing work as a restaurant server instead. Tipped employees in Texas do not make very much. In fact, $2.13 is what she will be getting. Mullins could be taking home, on average, $1.82 an hour in take home wages after taxes. In order to repay her swearing, Mullins might have to work a minimum of 350 hrs. Mullins apologized for disturbing the class. Her excuse was that there is “a kid who’s really obnoxious, starts stuff with every person and always gets on my nerves was bothering me.” Do not forget the First Amendment A First Amendment case could very well by fought by Mullins. The argument is that Mullins was exercising her right to free speech. However, two mitigating factors mean that a First Amendment argument probably wouldn’t fly. First, Mullins was in a classroom, which is not considered a public space. Mullins was also being disruptive. Disruptive speech isn’t always protected under t he Amendment. Citations CBS News cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-20030152-504083.html The 2012 doomsday rumor mill now has a new entry, in the Planet Earth will supposedly have two suns in 2012. A massive star, Betelgeuse, is starting to die and will go supernova when it finally snuffs it. The star is too remote to know when it will go supernova, and the Earth is well out of the line of fire. Article resource – Do not expect Earth to have two suns in 2012 by Newsytype.com. Probability of Planet Earth having two suns The Daily Mail explains that there is a rumor that there can be 2 suns the Earth may have causing 24 hours of daylight for 2 weeks. The Orion constellation has a star in it. This star looks like a supernova might soon happen. The red supergiant star is one of the brightest within the night sky. It’s called Betelgeuse. A supernova might be happening within the near future which goes along with the 2012 year. This is what Brad Carter, an Australian astrophysicist at the University of southern Queensland, said. Betelgeuse getting into there If our sun were exchanged with Betelgeuse, it would take up so much room that Jupiter would be close to its surface. Due to the mass and energy, the star could not just disappear. This is just like other stars that have become supernovas instead. The core of a star in supernova collapses into itself, triggering a perpetual state of collapse as a result of enormous mass and gravity included, and becomes a black hole. However, because Betelgeuse is about 600 light years away, according to CBS, there is minimal chance much of its light could be seen from Earth when it goes supernova. 2012 being involved The Mayan Calendar ends in the year 2012, which has sparked discussion for some time now. Mayan scholars don’t think anything of it. Betelgeuse will not have anything to do with 2012 since a supernova 600 light years away won’t do anything. Articles cited Daily Mail on twin suns dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1349383/Earth-second-sun-year-supernova-turns-night-day.html?ITO=1490 CBS News cbsnews.com/stories/2011/01/21/tech/main7269888.shtml Hu Jintao’s visit with Obama is yet another opportunity for somebody to try to talk sense into China over its monetary policy. This can be a big issue, considering that China is an economic superpower, and the direction of its currency impacts other countries. Paul Krugman writes in a Jan. 21 op-ed that if China does not loosen up and make an effort to artificially suppress the yuan, the globe may feel the pains of yet another economic recession. China could be the next country to take out huge quick short term loans. Chasm one thing China will not see The yuan is one thing the Chinese government has been trying to maintain tight control over as inflation is one thing looked poorly upon. There was a NY Times piece written by Paul Krugman on Jan. 21. He said that U.S., also as other nations, has been facing higher unemployment based off this since a large trading surplus has been the result. If China continues to hold the yuan down, employment will continue to remain depressed and China will lapse into an inflation-prone economy. There is inflation so that an economic industry can undo currency manipulation. This is what Krugman points out. Wages and prices have been suppressed by China as the yuan is kept weak. While the Chinese government’s goal is apparently maintaining competitive advantage within the global industry, sector forces have forced China’s wages and prices up. Thus, at China’s current rate of inflation any manipulation it has done could be erased within a few years. China’s commanders do not want this Guarding exporters also as fighting the idea of high inflation is why the Chinese government is fighting. Krugman explains the world market is being fought. Current inflation rates are well above the interest rate China allows to accrue on bank deposits, 2.75 percent. The exploitation of the populace is what is occurring which will get worse with the prices going up, Krugman explains. China says that the United States and Federal Reserve have printed too much money which is the only reason why the yuan is going up. In China, you will find more restrictions on credit right now. The interest rates are rising too. Lots of outside money is getting into China. That means it’s much harder for China to enforce the credit so strictly. In order to have control of the economy, China has been using lots of price controls. Generally, these do not work which economists have discovered. There could be damage towards the globe economy if China won’t stop what it’s doing, says Krugman. Citations New York Times nytimes.com/2011/01/21/opinion/21krugman.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss China wants more U.S. investment opportunities youtube.com/watch?v=pbdz2UiW6es Though it is only Jan, desolate individuals have won big- twice. It is the year of success. The newest account is Harrington, a desolate man, wins ESPN fantasy football 2011. The $3,500 Best Buy gift card prize has been sold, and Harrington intends on using the money to discover a rental. This could be easier than trying to take out a payday advance to achieve this. Source of article – Nathan Harrington – Homeless man wins ESPN fantasy football 2011 by MoneyBlogNewz. The story of Harrington Thirty three year old Nathan Harrington lives in Salem, Mass. This is where he has his family. In 2009, Harrington was in a vehicular accident that caused serious nerve damage. He was unable to return to work at his marketing job. Then, Harrington was evicted from his home with his fiancée and three year old son. The management said rat extermination had to happen. Storage was the only place left to go. That’s where all their stuff went. ESPN fantasy football 2011 won by homeless man The Internet, computer access, or even a home was all things that Nathan Harrington and his family were not able to get. Nevertheless, the 2011 ESPN fantasy football competition was one he participated in. He would ask for time on the computer while at his father’s nursing home and go the library. He even made phone calls to friends, asking them to make changes to his roster when he couldn’t find a computer to use. By 0.8 points, his team won the Fantasy Football game as the Boston Beatdowns. Only 0.8 points had him winning. Homeless man’s future to change due to winning competition for ESPN 2011 Since he won the fantasy football contest, Nathan Harrington got a $3,500 Best Buy gift card. A buying spree at the electronics store wasn’t about to be what Harrington did. He did something better than that. A better apartment that does not have rat problems is where he is going to move. He had to sell his gift card to his mom for $2,500 to do this though. Many he will be able to get some kind of job that is really great because of the homeless man wins ESPN fantasy football 2011 headlines. Citations Good Men Project goodmenproject.com/newsroom/homeless-man-wins-espn-fantasy-footballs-top-prize/ Bloom Energy of CA has created an alternative energy source known as the Bloom Box. The Bloom Box is a self-contained source of power. So far its on-site application has been cost prohibitive for the mainstream. To solve that problem Bloom Energy has created the Bloom Electrons system to eliminate the Bloom Box’s upfront costs. This could help many individuals get Bloom Box without needing a cash advance to sign up. Post resource – Bloom Energy offers 10-year contract for cheap power off the grid by MoneyBlogNewz. The Bloom Electrons program The Bloom Box is something that Bloom Energy got into the clean power industry. Electricity could be produced with the “energy saver” Bloom Box. There’s a very low carbon footprint with it as well. Want to know the price of a Bloom Box? Over $700,000 is the cost. Large corporations like Google, eBay, FedEx and Bank of America use Bloom Energy due to the price. To increase demand for Bloom Boxes, Bloom Energy partnered with Credit Suisse and Silicon Valley Financial institution to create Bloom Electrons. Bloom Electrons is a financing company that offers 10-year contracts for electricity from on site Bloom Boxes at a fixed rate. Clean power to energy Bloom Electrons The way Bloom Electrons works is it helps businesses stop being on the grid and start using the Bloom Box. There aren’t any upfront costs to doing this. Companies that have already purchased Bloom Boxes up front expect to recoup the cost of the unit anywhere from three to six years after they’re installed. Companies can use Bloom Electrons to start saving 20 percent immediately with Bloom Energy. What is being paid in California is what could be saved. At present, Bloom Electrons only pencils out in CA. It is about 10 cents per kilowatt-hour within the U.S. for average electricity. About 14 cents per kilowatt-hour is what Bloom boxes do. This can be a different price. Then there are the federal clean power incentives and California subsidies to take into account. The price becomes 7 cents per kilowatt-hour due to it. Taking the Bloom Box worldwide In three to five years Bloom Energy plans to have the Bloom Box well enough done so that it can compete without the need for subsidies. The Bloom box production will have to go up first so the Bloom electrons program demand can be met. If you look back two years, Bloom Energy wasn’t very fast. About one Bloom Box a month was made. Currently it can ship one a day. If Bloom Energy can decrease the production price along with increasing production, it could eventually meet its goal of supplying clean energy to the creating world. Information from Business Week businessweek.com/technology/content/jan2011/tc20110120_212633.htm TechCrunch techcrunch.com/2011/01/20/bloom-launches-financing-service/ Reuters reuters.com/article/idUS9777404420110120 Deadly floods have covered northeastern Australia for the past month. The city of Brisbane has been especially hard hit, and the Brisbane floods have become worse. Floodwater has coated the Australian state of Queensland, as the rainy season has let loose a torrent on the northeast corner of the nation. The floods are not letting up within the slightest. The floods are the worst on record in over a century. There are likely to be mass sum of installment loans taken out to try and repair these damages. More Brisbane flooding being seen now The Telegraph reports that there are even worse floods in Australia being seen while more water is coming in Brisbane. Queensland is in the northeast part of Australia. In there is Brisbane. There was already a wet spring that was shown before the heavy rain that continued through the month of December. This is why the state of Queensland has been seeing flooding that is really bad. Brisbane, a city of over two million and the third largest city in Australia, has been paralyzed by recent flash flooding, which will continue throughout the week as the Brisbane river is still swelling with rainwater. Over 9,000 homes may end up awash with water, and power will be shut off in the city for safety. It is the worst flooding on record in over a century. La Nina and hurricanes pound Australia There is a reason why there were really heavy rains in Australia during spring which began in September. This is because it is a La Nina year. Flooding began in early December, which was made worse by the Christmas arrival of Hurricane Tasha. The tropical storm lashed Queensland with rain, swelling rivers and causing flash floods throughout the state in northeastern Australia. A state of emergency has been declared in one third of Queensland. The affected area is roughly the size of Texas. Problems with Brisbane There is floodwater seen all over the Lockyer Valley region. This is where the location of Brisbane is. The Brisbane river is swollen well beyond its banks, and high tides and constant rain mean the flooding isn’t likely to subside for some time. Flooding is set to continue in the third largest city in Australia, and recovery efforts could cost as much as $10 billion. Citations The Telegraph telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/australiaandthepacific/australia/8252699/Brisbane-braces-itself-for-worst-floods-in-more-than-a-century.html Timeline of Australia flooding on the Telegraph telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/australiaandthepacific/australia/8251906/Australian-floods-timeline.html Kid ‘N Play knew that pajama jammie jams were good, old school fun. For adults, only the best footed pajamas will do. At JumpinJammerz.com, the dream of fleece footed pajamas – even some with a drop seat – could be yours. Some people are even going as far as applying for payday loans to get their own pair of footed pajamas. Jumpin Jammerz making you feel better Your childhood can be found once again when you wear footed pajamas. This is why it is important to wear Jumpin Jammerz often. You will be rejecting “adulthood” with the Jumpin Jammerz fleece pajamas while also being very comfortable. It may not matter that much. Keeping warm is what is important. Choose your Jumpin Jammerz You can see all your choices if you just go to JumpinJamerz.com. You can get college footed pajamas, polar fleece, hooded footies, soft chenille, kids’ sizes and even silly blankets just like the Snuggie. There are also costumes available such as a rock star, a mouse, a giraffe, a tiger, a monkey and a frog. Then there is what can be called the ultimate in Jumpin Jammerz adventure, an old-fashioned throwback: drop seat footed pajamas. You only have to pay $49.95 for them! Speaking of bathroom humor, perhaps it’s no coincidence that the tag line for the clearance section at JumpinJammerz.com reads: “We are blowing out hundreds of footed pajamas!” Celebrities love Jumpin Jammerz JumpinJammerz.com has an “About Us” section on the website you can read. Here you will see that there are celebrities that use the product. Some of the names listed are Ellen DeGeneres, Joan Cusack and Dakota Fanning. Jumpin Jammerz were even included in the grab bags given to celebrities at the 2007 Oscars. Now there is more competition. The PajamaJeans and Forever Lazy will have to fight for the top spot. Any celebrity can join the Jumpin Jammerz Discount club. You have to have assets though. At JumpinJammerz.com you can get 5 percent off coupons for free when joining. For more info, contact Jumpin Jammerz at 888-884-5526 between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Mountain Standard Time, Monday through Friday. Citations Jumpin Jammerez jumpinjammerz.com/ Café Mom thestir.cafemom.com/beauty_style/114748/jumpin_jammerz_would_you_wear No Jumpin Jammerz were harmed in the making of this video youtube.com/watch?v=tUwahMIumxM A jury has handed down a determination in a loan servicing lawsuit. This is the first of several lawsuits. Loan servicer Compass/Silar has been ordered to pay millions in damages. The case was decided in court in Reno, Nev.. Mortgage investors banded together to bring this lawsuit. Mortgage holders will likely not see any of the money. That is one business that is going to need a huge personal loan to make up for damages. Article source – Loan servicers found guilty of gouging in Reno, Nevada by MoneyBlogNewz. About loan servicing The business of loan servicing is often something that is not seen very well. Mortgage business typically hides it too. First, the customer will get a mortgage from a bank or mortgage company. Then, the loan is managed by a loan servicing company that is hired. Investors that get mortgages as investments often will get a loan servicing company to do the job. The customer makes payments to the loan servicing company, and the servicer splits the cash out to pay the mortgage, the taxes and other costs of the mortgage. Many investors discovering a way to drag into court the loan servicing company A group of 50 mortgage investors prosecuted Silar/Compass, a loan servicer. Silar Advisors is a loan servicing company that was combined with Compass Partners. This combined Silar/Compass loan servicer made a deal with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to purchase the assets of IndyMac, which failed in 2009. The group of 50 investors is suing Silar/Compass in court in Reno as they won’t get any interest on the bad credit loans that the investors put money into back after Silar/Compass took money out of mortgage investments with their own costs. Charging fees as a loan servicing company The loan servicing costs incurred by Silar/Compass were determined by a jury to be improper. The mortgage investors were very excited to discover out that Silar/Compass stopped the fees and charges immediately. This was exciting for them. There were charges for unauthorized interest, late costs and loan origination fees. It is also alleged that these loan servicers may be holding up the mortgage refinancing process. The mortgage holder may approve the change to the mortgage. It will not happen though if the servicing company doesn’t think it should. Citations New York Times nytimes.com/2010/12/19/business/19gret.html If the hostile United States career climate has taught us anything, perhaps it is that one should not take opportunities for granted. A few twists and turns and things could have played out more like what happened to Ted Williams, a displaced Ohioan. Williams has been gracious despite adversity, and now things appear to be turning around. Williams, once displaced, is now a viral star on the verge of a big-time sports job with home included, writes The Sporting News. He’ll now move up from begging for cash to taking out personal loans; that is some jump. Previously displaced, Ted Williams is the tone of voice of the Cavs now When talking about Ted Williams, Boston Red Sox Hall of Recognition outfielder Ted “The Splendid Splinter” Williams is now who’s being referenced. Displaced Ted Williams said that each day is precious to him. Williams had drug and alcohol problems after having a progressive young life. This eventually led to the loss of his home and years of transient living. Ted Williams sold better than most with the “God-given” tone of voice that he has. The Columbus Dispatch newspaper had a reporter working. This reporter changed his life after running into Williams. The reported called Williams over because of his tone of voice. This led to a video interview that easily made its way to YouTube, where it went viral. Within 24 hrs, Williams’ radio voice had reached nearly 5 million viewers. The YouTube website to fame Williams was offered a full time job and a place to live after being displaced due to a Columbus Dispatch reporter and YouTube. After noticing the extraordinary video of Ted Williams, displaced Ohioan, a representative of the Cleveland Cavaliers NBA basketball team and Quicken Loans named Tracy (no last name given), was intrigued. In order to offer Ted Williams a full time career and a home mortgage, Tracy called WNCI 97.9 radio station. She asked if he would come to home of the Cavaliers, Quicken Loans Arena, and be a public address announcer. CNBC’s Darren Rovell confirmed the authenticity of the job offer via Twitter. All sorts of ‘Homeless DJ’ career proposals There were several job proposals that came in during Ted William’s appearance on WNCI. The Cleveland Cavaliers job was one of them. Several think Williams will accept the career offer from Tracy although it is currently unknown. Information from Sporting News sportingnews.com/nba/story/2011-01-05/ted-williams-homeless-man-with-golden-voice-offered-full-time-job-and-home-by-cl Washington Post voices.washingtonpost.com/blog-post/2011/01/golden-voiced_homeless_man_hea.html Ted Williams, homeless and gracious for his opportunity youtube.com/watch?v=uTysXITBCmk Christine O’Donnell, who made headlines as a candidate for the Senate in Delaware earlier this year, is making them again. A felony probe has been opened as part of a federal investigation of the O’Donnell campaign’s funds. Using campaign cash for personal reasons is the allegation that investigators are checking for validity.It would have been so much easier if she just took out her own personal bank loan for personal expenditures. Resource for this article – Feds target Christine O’Donnell in campaign finance investigation by MoneyBlogNewz. The research the O’Donnell campaign is experiencing After the Republican Tea Party favorite Christine O’Donnell’s U.S. Senate bid, there were some grievances filed about the campaign that is leading to a federal campaign finance investigation. Two FBI agents in Delaware and two federal prosecutors were reported to be working on the O’Donnell case. Her own party even filed a Federal Elections complain during the Delaware U.S. Senate Republican primary. This is something O’Donnell was already facing. Paid political ads and communications were what the Tea Party Express was working with her campaign doing. This is illegal. What O’Donnell is charged with Christine O’Donnell’s campaign raised a Delaware state record $7.3 million, however she was soundly defeated by Democrat Chris Coons, who now sits in V.P. Joe Biden’s previous U.S. Senate seat. The Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington accused her of spending funds on gas and rent which were intended to go to the campaign. Monetary damages may be what the FEC goes for. This would be something either O’Donnell or the campaign committee would have to handle. Fines or jail time can be what the Justice Department gives to her if she is considered to have violated federal elections law. O’Donnell a little bit short on money A previous aide to O’Donnell came out and said that she had been living off of campaign donations for years as “a complete fraud” during the Senate campaign. Before O’Donnell’s 2010 campaign garnered national attention, she had run for the Delaware U.S. Senate seat in obscurity twice before. Her financial history is interesting. This is even with all her failures. She was sued by Farleigh Dickinson University in 1994 for failing to pay $4,000 in tuition. She was also sued for mortgage default in 2008. Earlier this year, the IRS filed a lien against O’Donnell for more than $11,000 in unpaid federal income tax. Articles cited Delaware Online delawareonline.com/article/20101229/NEWS02/101229017/Feds-launch-criminal-probe-of-O-Donnell-campaign-money-use?loc=interstitialskip The Atlantic theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2010/12/ap-feds-open-criminal-probe-of-christine-odonnells-campaign-spending/68670/ The Hill thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/135387-odonnell-under-investigation-for-campaign-spending | |
