STOCK MARKET WATCH, Wednesday, April 13, 2011

[Pale Blue Dot]

Source: du

STOCK MARKET WATCH, Monday Wednesday, April 13, 2011

AT THE CLOSING BELL ON April 12, 2011

Dow 12,263.58 -117.53 (-0.96%)
Nasdaq 2,744.79 -26.72 (-0.97%)
S&P 500 1,314.16 -10.30 (-0.78%)
10-Yr Bond... 3.52 +0.03 (+0.86%)
30-Year Bond 4.60 +0.02 (+0.53%)

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Market Conditions During Trading Hours

Euro, Yen, Loonie, Silver and Gold

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Handy Links - Market Data and News:Economic Calendar    Marketwatch Data    Bloomberg Economic News    Yahoo! Finance    Google Finance    Bank Tracker    
Credit Union Tracker    Daily Job Cuts

Handy Links - Economic Blogs:
The Big Picture    Financial Sense    Calculated Risk    Naked Capitalism    Credit Writedowns
Brad DeLong      Bonddad    Atrios    goldmansachs666    The Stand-Up Economist

Handy Links - Government Issues:
LegitGov    Open Government    Earmark Database    USA spending.gov

Handy Links - Videos:
The Coming Collapse of the Middle Class    Charlie Rose talks with Roubini    Charlie Rose talks with Krugman
    William Black: This Economic Disaster    Bill Moyers with Kevin Drum and David Corn

Bush Administration Officials Convicted = 2
Names: David Safavian, James Fondren
Dishonorable Mention: former House majority leader, Tom DeLay

Bush Administration Officials Charged = 1
Name(s): Richard Lopez Razo

Financial Sector Officials Convicted since 1/20/09 = 11

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This thread contains opinions and observations. Individuals may post their experiences, inferences and opinions on this thread. However, it should not be construed as advice. It is unethical (and probably illegal) for financial recommendations to be given here.

Read more: du

[Pale Blue Dot]

1. Today's Report

Apr 13 07:00 MBA Mortgage Index 04/08 NA NA -2%
Apr 13 08:30 Retail Sales Mar 0.6% 0.5% 1.0%
Apr 13 08:30 Retail Sales ex-auto Mar 0.8% 0.7% 0.7%
Apr 13 10:00 Business Inventories Feb 0.8% 0.8% 0.9%
Apr 13 10:30 Crude Inventories 04/09 NA NA 1.952M
Apr 13 14:00 Fed's Beige Book Apr

Read more: http://www.briefing.com/Investor/Public/Calendars/EconomicCalendar.htm#ixzz1JOr0VzN0

[Pale Blue Dot]

4. Mortgage Applications Fall for Third Week

Applications for U.S. home mortgages fell last week to their lowest level since January as interest rates pushed higher, an industry group said on Wednesday.

The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage application activity, which includes both refinancing and home purchase demand, fell 6.7 percent in the week ended April 8.

It was the third week of declines in a row and applications were at their lowest level since the week of Jan. 21.

The MBA's seasonally adjusted index of refinancing applications slumped 7.7 percent, while the gauge of loan requests for home purchases dropped 4.7 percent.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/42566730

[Po_d Mainiac]

17. Read: Shit is too far underwater to even think about refi. n/t

[Johnny Harpo]

98. People That Don't Have Jobs...Can't Buy Houses....

they still don't get it.

[Pale Blue Dot]

26. Retail sales up 0.4%. Came in below expectations.

Last month revised up. It may be a wash.

[DemReadingDU]

49. Higher Gasoline Prices Fuel Retail Sales Increase

4/13/11
Consumers spent more in March, but most of the added money went to toward higher gas prices.

http://www.npr.org/2011/04/13/135373376/higher-gasoline-prices-fuel-retail-sales-increase

:eyes:

[Fuddnik]

82. Paid $3.79 this morning.

[DemReadingDU]

88. $3.81

:(

[Johnny Harpo]

99. $3.67 at 1:00 PM in NW Columbus, OH

[DemReadingDU]

101. I paid $3.64 Sunday afternoon in Springfield, Oh

Monday, the price shot to $3.86!

Then today, dropped to $3.81. The price never drops as much going down as it goes higher up.
:shrug:

[AnneD]

103. Gas goes for...

$3.65 to $3.81 here in the refinery town of Houston, Texas. I know a spot that was $3.59. They are routinely lower so I do my big fill ups there as it involves a slightly longer drive but on a fill up, it is worth it.

We just bought a newer Toyota for hubby (paid cash but we owe on the van). We share that car and keep the van for trips and business. It gets good mileage but the Toyota is better. He was given a moped so that has been pressed into service if I need the car and he needs to get to work. We live close to his job so it makes sense for him to use it occasionally.

Our gas use has gone down by using this mix of vehicles. We live close enough in that we don't use much. I combine trips and know routes well that I seldom make excess trips any more. I have noticed that traffic is lighter and there is not many people at shops or restaurants during the weekdays any more. And that is in a town where things are better than most.

[Pale Blue Dot]

2. Oil hovers above $106 as traders mull crude demand

SINGAPORE – Oil prices hovered near $106 a barrel Wednesday in Asia as traders mulled whether higher fuel costs will undermine crude demand enough to stymie a two-month rally.

Benchmark crude for May delivery was up 22 cents at $106.47 a barrel at midday Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract gave up $3.67, or 3 percent, to settle at $106.25 on Tuesday.

In London, Brent crude for May delivery was up 75 cents to $121.67 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

Key energy groups sent mixed signals to investors Tuesday about the impact a 33 percent surge in oil prices since mid-February has had on demand.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/oil_prices

[xchrom]

5. Libya all about oil, or central banking?

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/MD14Ak02.html

Several writers have noted the odd fact that the Libyan rebels took time out from their rebellion in March to create their own central bank - this before they even had a government. Robert Wenzel wrote in the Economic Policy Journal:

I have never before heard of a central bank being created in just a matter of weeks out of a popular uprising. This suggests we have a bit more than a rag tag bunch of rebels running around and that there are some pretty sophisticated influences.

Alex Newman wrote in the New American:

In a statement released last week, the rebels reported on the results of a meeting held on March 19. Among other things, the supposed rag-tag revolutionaries announced the "esignation of the Central Bank of Benghazi as a monetary authority competent in monetary policies in Libya and appointment of a Governor to the Central Bank of Libya, with a temporary headquarters in Benghazi."

Newman quoted CNBC senior editor John Carney, who asked, "Is this the first time a revolutionary group has created a central bank


while it is still in the midst of fighting the entrenched political power? It certainly seems to indicate how extraordinarily powerful central bankers have become in our era."

[xchrom]

9. Libya: Ceasefire or bust

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/MD14Ak01.html

The so-called Libya contact group - that euphemism defining the minute Western/Gulf emirates "coalition of the willing" - meets in Doha, Qatar, ahead of a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) ministerial meetings in Berlin, amid an atmosphere of downright farce.

Former Libyan foreign minister and current defector to Britain Moussa Koussa is a stalwart of the Qatar meeting, trying to


convince the "rebels" of the Interim National Council (INC) that the only possible solution for the moment implies Colonel Muammar Gaddafi remaining in power.

That also happens to be exactly what mediator Turkey is saying. No wonder the "rebels" and their sponsors - the dashing Arab liberator Anglo-French couple President Nicolas Sarkozy and Prime Minister David Cameron - are fuming, and puzzled.





politics, capital, and 'freedom' meet in libya. my comment.

[Demeter]

24. It Means This Was a Top-Down Revolution

The clueless grassroots were pre-empted and co-opted by some hot-to-trot would-be Crony Capitalists. Had the Capitalists been able to suborn the Army, it would have been a coup. But since Gaddafi came in by way of a coup, he slammed that door shut.

Maybe Chavez is right...partially. There are worse things than Gaddafi for the Libyans.

[xchrom]

33. i think you might have a very good point. nt

[Demeter]

37. And that's why the Nations (tm) are intervening

[Demeter]

41. The idea that 'brother leader' Gaddafi must be forced out in Libya has scant support beyond London,

The idea that 'brother leader' Gaddafi must be forced out in Libya has scant support beyond London, Washington and Benghazi...

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article27861.htm

It would be easy, but probably unwise, to dismiss out of hand the African Union's roadmap for peace in Libya. The main objection, from the point of view of the rebels and protagonists such as Britain, is that the proposals would leave Colonel Gaddafi and his sons in power, at least in the short term. This also holds true for the mooted Turkish peace plan. Gaddafi's political survival is certainly an unedifying prospect. But it is the price David Cameron and his allies may be forced to pay if they are to extricate themselves from the mess their ill-considered intervention has created.

The AU mission, comprising South Africa, Uganda, Mali, Mauritania and Congo-Brazzaville, is promoting a four-point plan, laid out this week in a communiqué from the organisation's Ethiopian headquarters. It stipulates an immediate ceasefire, the unimpeded delivery of humanitarian aid, protection for foreign nationals (including African migrant workers), and an inclusive national dialogue on political reform to meet "the legitimate aspirations of the Libyan people for democracy". On the face of it, this sounds reasonable enough. But in truth, the formula strongly favours the Gaddafi regime.

The Libyan opposition's transitional national council in Benghazi has made very clear that any outcome resulting in Gaddafi remaining in the country is unacceptable to them, but they lack the power to oust him. If the regime were to get away with a vague promise merely to talk about Libya's problems, it would undoubtedly represent a signal, possibly fatal defeat for the rebels. As matters stand, meanwhile, an immediate, unconditional ceasefire could foreshadow a potentially permanent partition – a result nobody is said to want.

The AU delegation's contradictory, evidently sympathetic approach to a man they call their "brother leader" is rooted in other considerations reaching far beyond what is simply best for Libya. For a start, South Africa's president, Jacob Zuma – and less secure fellow AU leaders – hardly welcome a renewed western military footprint in Africa. Having initially backed the UN action, Zuma has joined Uganda's president, Yoweri Museveni, and others in complaining that Nato is exceeding its brief. The idea that western countries can just get up and demand an African leader relinquish power is not something they wish to encourage....

MORE

[Demeter]

42. Gaddafi Figures Prominently on the Roadmap for Peace

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/apr/11/gaddafi-libya-roadmap-peace

"Whatever his faults, Gaddafi is a true nationalist. I prefer nationalists to puppets of foreign interests," Museveni said. Gaddafi had built up Libya's economy and infrastructure; and he was a moderate – "one of the few secular leaders in the Arab world". Western countries were guilty of double standards and should stop interfering in Libya, he went on. Why had repeated AU appeals for a UN no-fly zone in Somalia been ignored? Because Somalia had no oil. Libya's future must be decided by "internal forces" only. If the rebels could not prevail without outside help, then they did not deserve to win.

It's a fair bet Museveni's caustic opinions are widely shared not only in Africa but also by governments across the Middle East and the non-western world. They help explain why the AU mission in Libya will not produce a result that suits Britain and its allies. And they are also a clear indicator that the proposition that Gaddafi and his kin must, at all costs, be forced to relinquish power is very much a minority view, with scant support beyond London, Washington and Benghazi. With even France backsliding on its previous insistence on Gaddafi's departure, Cameron may have to accept the only way to end the war is to surrender its primary objective.

[Demeter]

68. A Corporate, Shock-Doctrine Coup Against a Nationalist Leader

If Gaddafi hadn't blown up that plane....wonder what his goal was, did he really do it, etc. etc....

[AnneD]

72. And the ....

blinders come off. Did you know that Kadafi (well Libya maybe)is one of the largest individual owner's of gold in the world.

Hmmmmmmm.

[xchrom]

74. i did. things that bump in the night. nt

[xchrom]

18. video link -- Mobius issues warning shot: Oil may climb to $200/bbl

http://www.moneycontrol.com/video/fii-view/mobius-issues-warning-shot-oil-may-climb-to-36200bbl_535906.html

[tclambert]

61. Time to lube my bicycle!

Got a squeak in the pedal bearings. If it can save me two tanks of gas, the bike will pay for itself and all the improvements I've made to it. (New tires and inner tubes, new brake pads, new seat, new handlebar grips, new lock, a helmet, a speedometer, and a jingle bell to warn the pedestrians I'm out of control and headed their way!)

[Pale Blue Dot]

3. Yen Weakens as Commodities, Stocks Snap Two-Day Drop; Treasuries Decline

Stocks rallied, with European equities rebounding from the biggest drop in four weeks, while the yen and Treasuries fell. U.S. index futures gained before JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) reports earnings, and commodities advanced.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose 0.7 percent at 6:50 a.m. in New York. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures increased 0.6 percent, indicating the gauge will break the longest-losing streak since November. The yen weakened against all 16 of its major peers, while China’s yuan climbed to a 17-year high versus the dollar. The yield on the five-year Treasury note jumped seven basis points. Cocoa and coffee led commodities higher.

U.S. retail sales probably climbed 0.5 percent in March, following a 1 percent advance a month earlier, economists said before a Commerce Department report today. China’s Economic Information Daily said banks’ reserve ratios may be increased by 50 basis points on either April 15 or April 22 as part of efforts to contain inflation.

“We’re taking a breath after the declines,” said Clemence Bounaix, who helps oversee about $1.45 billion at KBL Richelieu Gestion in Paris. “We’re expecting good macroeconomic results and that should be reflected in earnings.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-04-13/yen-snaps-four-day-advance-before-china-economic-data-asian-stocks-fall.html

[Demeter]

25. Build a house with paper

watch it melt in the rain.

[xchrom]

58. grain of salt here: Yen Falls as Risk Appetite Rebounds

http://www.thestreet.com/story/11081057/1/yen-falls-as-risk-appetite-rebounds.html

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- The dollar was rebounding against the Japanese yen in U.S. trading Wednesday after four consecutive days of losses.

The dollar was gaining 0.7% to JPY 84.187. PowerShares DB US Dollar Index Bullish(UUP_) was flat at $21.47.

The dollar's recovey against the yen and the yen's tumble occured as risk appetite returned to the markets. Asian stocks had advanced on optimism over the U.S. economic recovery and progress in the resumption of Japanese production and export activity post-earthquake.

European stocks were rebounding from their biggest one-day drop in a month Tuesday, led by banks, after JPMorgan Chase(JPM_) reported better-than-expected first-quarter earnings. Miners and energy stocks were also staging a recovery.

[xchrom]

6. J.P. Morgan profit up 70%, sets $15B buyback

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/jp-morgan-profit-up-70-sets-15b-buyback-2011-04-13?dist=beforebell

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. /quotes/comstock/13*!jpm/quotes/nls/jpm (JPM 47.15, +0.51, +1.09%) said Wednesday its first-quarter net income rose to $5.6 billion, or $1.28 a share, from $3.3 billion, or 74 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Revenue fell to $25.2 billion from $27.7 billion, in the year-ago period.

[xchrom]

7. Deals down under: Australia M&A on the rise

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/deals-down-under-australia-ma-on-the-rise-2011-04-12?dist=beforebell

SYDNEY (MarketWatch) — Australia has a number of cashed-up companies seriously exploring growth opportunities, and the country’s already busy merger-and-acquisition scene is likely about to get busier.

Globally, deal-making appears to be back in vogue 2-1/2 years after the global financial crisis limited access to funding and forced many companies into a period of housekeeping. Worldwide M&A volume in January-March climbed to $814.3 billion, up from $633.7 billion a year earlier.

But in Australia, where a variety of forces have blessed many of its top corporations with strong war chests, the rise of M&A is especially visible.

In the first quarter, for example, deals involving Australian entities totaled $18.8 billion, a 59% jump from the same period in 2010, according to Dealogic data.

[xchrom]

8. Failing Toward Success at Google

http://blogs.hbr.org/hbr/mcgrath/2011/04/failing-their-way-to-success-a.html

In the latest Harvard Business Review, I made the argument that failures can be useful in that they teach us where our assumptions are wrong, expose dead ends, and generally can give us something of an education. In highly uncertain environments, failures are both useful and unavoidable. It was interesting, therefore, to run across an analysis of Google's failed projects over time, together with a quote issued by the company regarding each failed venture. What is interesting is Google's philosophy of launching early and quickly, and their perhaps too-quick closure of some products. It is also interesting that founders of several hot startup companies (Foursquare and Twitter come to mind) cut their teeth and gained technical exposure by experimenting at Google.

I'm often asked by companies how many experiments are needed to find a good "hit rate" of successes. If Google is any indication, the ratio is pretty high. That being said, what company would not be pleased to have maintained dominance in search, toppled the Blackberry in market share for smart phones at neck-breaking speed, hosted millions of e-mail users with gmail, and helped millions of us find our way with Google maps?

So, the list of misses to accompany these hits?




there are a # of blog posts and articles on failure in the harvard business review that might be interesting to some.

[Demeter]

10. Japan nuclear accident on a par with Chernobyl

Japan has raised its assessment of the accident at the Fukushima nuclear power plant to the most serious level on a 7-step international scale, equivalent to the 1986 Chernobyl disaster.

Japan’s nuclear regulator increased its assessment on the International Atomic Energy Agency scale – from the previous level 5 – because of the impact that radiation leaking from the plant would have on human health and the environment. Japan had initially classified the incident as a level 4 before later raising it to level 5.

While the new assessment puts the Fukushima Daiichi incident on a
par with Chernobyl, the nuclear regulator said the amount of radioactive contamination that has escaped from the plant since it was damaged by Japan’s March 11 earthquake and tsunami was around one tenth of the radiation that escaped from the plant in the former Soviet Union.

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/2SRI11/BMVMI0/3CWTA/EWV0WM/LQ4G05/LE/t?a1=2011&a2=4&a3=11

YES, WELL CHERNOBYL HAS BEEN CONTAMINATING THE WORLD FOR 25 YEARS...

[xchrom]

13. BUT BUT BUT -- NOBODY DIED THERE!!!! FEARMONGERING -- IT'S SAFE!!!

:eyes: and people say i'm drama queen cause i'm not fond of a nuclear world.

[Demeter]

29. Japan's Nuclear Volcano Erupts By Mike Whitney

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article27872.htm

...Conditions at the stricken facility have steadily deteriorated and now the station is intermittently spewing lethal amounts of radiation into the atmosphere and around the world. A French nuclear group has warned that children and pregnant mothers should protect themselves from the fallout. According to Euractiv:

"The risks associated with iodine-131 contamination in Europe are no longer "negligible," according to CRIIRAD, a French research body on radioactivity. The NGO is advising pregnant women and infants against "risky behaviour," such as consuming fresh milk or vegetables with large leaves."

The group's warning underlines the dangers posed by the out-of-control facility which is causing unprecedented damage to earth, sea and sky. Fukushima is the nuclear death machine of which advocates of green technologies have warned for decades. But while the magnitude of the disaster grows larger by the day, the government's only response has been to expand the evacuation zone and try to shape news to avert a panic....

By raising the alert-rating to its highest level (7) regulators are conceding that a “major release of radioactive material with widespread health and environmental effects" is taking place. The situation is getting worse by the day. Japan's government will now insist on the "implementation of planned and extended countermeasures.” In other words, a red alert. The threat to water supplies, food sources, livestock and humans is no longer in doubt. The media's efforts to protect the nuclear industry by downplaying the scale of the catastrophe have been moderately successful, but the truth is gradually beginning to surface as more people look to alternate sources of information. The disaster has been as ruinous to the media's reputation as it has been to the environment.

MORE AT LINK

[Demeter]

34. Fukushima radiation taints US milk supplies at levels 300% higher than EPA maximums

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) continues to release new data showing that various milk and water supply samples from across the US are testing increasingly high for radioactive elements such as Iodine-131, Cesium-134, and Cesium-137, all of which are being emitted from the ongoing Fukushima Daiichia nuclear fallout. As of April 10, 2011, 23 US water supplies have tested positive for radioactive Iodine-131 (http://opendata.socrata.com/w/4ig7-...), and worst of all, milk samples from at least three US locations have tested positive for Iodine-131 at levels exceeding EPA maximum containment levels (MCL) (http://opendata.socrata.com/w/pkfj-...).

As far as the water supplies are concerned, it is important to note that the EPA is only testing for radioactive Iodine-131. There are no readings or data available for cesium, uranium, or plutonium -- all of which are being continuously emitted from Fukushima, as far as we know -- even though these elements are all much more deadly than Iodine-131. Even so, the following water supplies have thus far tested positive for Iodine-131, with the dates they were collected in parenthesis to the right:

Los Angeles, Calif. - 0.39 pCi/l (4/4/11)
Philadelphia (Baxter), Penn. - 0.46 pCi/l (4/4/11)
Philadelphia (Belmont), Penn. - 1.3 pCi/l (4/4/11)
Philadelphia (Queen), Penn. - 2.2 pCi/l (4/4/11)
Muscle Shoals, Al. - 0.16 pCi/l (3/31/11)
Niagara Falls, NY - 0.14 pCi/l (3/31/11)
Denver, Colo. - 0.17 pCi/l (3/31/11)
Detroit, Mich. - 0.28 pCi/l (3/31/11)
East Liverpool, Oh. - 0.42 pCi/l (3/30/11)
Trenton, NJ - 0.38 pCi/l (3/29/11)
Painesville, Oh. - 0.43 pCi/l (3/29/11)
Columbia, Penn. - 0.20 pCi/l (3/29/11)
Oak Ridge (4442), Tenn. - 0.28 pCi/l (3/29/11)
Oak Ridge (772), Tenn. - 0.20 pCi/l (3/29/11)
Oak Ridge (360), Tenn. - 0.18 pCi/l (3/29/11)
Helena, Mont. - 0.18 pCi/l (3/28/11)
Waretown, NJ - 0.38 pCi/l (3/28/11)
Cincinnati, Oh. - 0.13 pCi/l (3/28/11)
Pittsburgh, Penn. - 0.36 pCi/l (3/28/11)
Oak Ridge (371), Tenn. - 0.63 pCi/l (3/28/11)
Chattanooga, Tenn. - 1.6 pCi/l (3/28/11)
Boise, Id. - 0.2 pCi/l (3/28/11)
Richland, Wash. - 0.23 pCi/l (3/28/11)

Again, these figures do not include the other radioactive elements being spread by Fukushima, so there is no telling what the actual cumulative radiation levels really were in these samples. The figures were also taken two weeks ago, and were only just recently reported. If current samples were taken at even more cities, and if the tests conducted included the many other radioactive elements besides Iodine-131, actual contamination levels would likely be frighteningly higher....MORE AT LINK


Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/032048_radiation_milk.html#ixzz1JPMRGGSC

[Demeter]

35. GOT MILK?

Why is this milk contamination significant? Milk, of course, typically represents the overall condition of the food chain because cows consume grass and are exposed to the same elements as food crops and water supplies. In other words, when cows' milk starts testing positive for high levels of radioactive elements, this is indicative of radioactive contamination of the entire food supply.

And even with the milk samples, the EPA insanely says not to worry as its 3.0 pCi/l threshold is allegedly only for long-term exposure. But the sad fact of the matter is that the Fukushima situation is already a long-term situation. Not only does it appear that the Fukushima reactor cores are continuing to melt, since conditions at the plant have not gotten any better since the earthquake and tsunami, but many of the radioactive elements that have already been released in previous weeks have long half lives, and have spread halfway around the world.

The other problem with the EPA's empty reassurances that radiation levels are too low to have a negative impact on humans is the fact that the agency does not even have an accurate grasp on the actual aggregate exposure to radiation from all sources (water, food, air, rain, etc.). When you combine perpetual exposure from multiple sources with just the figures that have already been released, there is a very real threat of serious harm as a result of exposure.

The EPA and other government agencies are constantly comparing Fukushima radiation to background and airplane radiation in an attempt to minimize the severity of exposure, even though these are two completely different kinds of radiation exposure.

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/032048_radiation_milk.html#ixzz1JPN3RFUZ

[xchrom]

11. trying to include market info from india -- because we're all 'globalized' now.

http://indiaearnings.moneycontrol.com/sub_india/compnews.php?autono=535940

Infosys Technologies

Infosys Technologies is expected to beat its earlier revenue guidance for the fourth quarter (January-March), which is usually a weak quarter for most tech companies, and guide to an 18-20% revenue growth in dollar terms in 2011-12 (April-March).

Analysts say higher discretionary spending and improved demand environment will lead to strong earnings growth for Infosys and other software services providers in 2011-12.

“Discretionary spending has increased and the demand environment is also good. I-T budgets are 2-3% higher this year and many companies are looking at more outsourcing, which augurs well for Infosys and its peers,” Srishti Anand of Angel Broking said.

The technology bellwether has forecast fourth quarter revenue of USD 1.60-62 billion, up 23.5-24.8% from a year ago, while rupee revenue is seen in the Rs 7,517-7,230 crore range, up 20.4-21.6%

[xchrom]

16. Bank Of India Q3 NII up at Rs 1986 cr -- this is a video regarding earnings at BoI.

http://indiaearnings.moneycontrol.com/sub_india/compnews.php?autono=515234

Bank Of India has announced its third quarter results. The company's Q3 net profit was up at Rs 653 crore versus Rs 405 crore.

[xchrom]

19. Residential property prices to dip as buyers stay away

http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/residential-property-prices-to-dip-as-buyers-stay-away_536071.html

Weighed down by a piling up inventory as customers stay away, property prices in India's key markets are slated to decline, while in other cities the trend is likely to be divergent.

Apart from the fall in affordability of customers, due to a rise in property prices and interest rates, the other reason is developers' fund requirement to complete the ongoing projects.

"There would be correction in residential prices of up to 5% in NCR (National Capital Region), and Mumbai could see correction of up to 20%, while prices in southern cities of Chennai and Bangalore are expected to be steady...," Pravin Malkani, president, Patel Realty India Ltd, told Reuters.

Patel Realty is a unit of Patel Engineering.

He sees the correction in Mumbai and Delhi setting in 4-12 months. "Prices in Hyderabad would depend on the political situation, while it is steady at the moment," Malkani said.

[Demeter]

12. US lacks credibility on debt, says IMF

The US lacks a “credible strategy” to stabilise its mounting public debt posing a small but significant risk of a new global economic crisis, says the International Monetary Fund.

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/NA70KK/BMVD5W/52KB7/8AGG5T/ZBNEW1/ZH/t?a1=2011&a2=4&a3=13

LOOK WHO'S TALKING!

[xchrom]

15. i say pot calling kettle black. nt

[Tansy_Gold]

59. I thought the pot and the kettle were one and the same. n/t

[xchrom]

62. ...

:spray:

[Demeter]

14. US groups win partial victory on derivatives

Large US companies fighting to escape expensive rules on derivatives trading have won a partial victory, after regulators put forward plans to hit hedge funds and to spare non-financial companies

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/ZE9K33/ZBUCMJ/JQU4J/A766WG/HDZ6T5/HK/t?a1=2011&a2=4&a3=13

[xchrom]

20. 10 Things You Need To Know Before The Opening Bell

http://www.businessinsider.com/10-things-april-13-2011-4

* Asian indices were up in overnight trading with the Nikkei up 0.90%. Major European indices are in the green and U.S. futures indicate a positive open.

* UK headline unemployment fell to 7.8% for the three month period December 2010 to February 2011. Youth unemployment however went up to 20.4%. Don't miss: Niall Ferguson's new presentation on the fall of the west >

* Retail sales data will be released at 8:30 AM ET. The consensus is for slower 0.5% growth in March. Follow the release at Money Game >


Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/10-things-april-13-2011-4#ixzz1JPDRGFc5

[Demeter]

21. And Now, for the Kill By David Michael Green

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article27870.htm

...When Dwight Eisenhower came to the presidency in 1953, it was the first time in an entire generation that a Republican had held the office. Prior to that time, the GOP had led the country into unparalleled economic destruction, refused to do anything about the nightmare they’d created, lost five presidential elections running, and sat on the sidelines while Democratic presidents guided the US through a few slightly consequential events like the Great Depression, World War II and the beginning of the Cold War...What’s important here is what could have happened, but didn’t. The character of American government had changed radically – the most in the country’s history – during the two decades since Herbert Hoover had been in office. It was now much bigger in size, it did a lot more things than it used to do, and the federal government had usurped responsibility for policy domains formerly primarily in the hands of the states. Most importantly, the ethos underscoring the relationship between the American people and their government had completely changed. In the past, that relationship had been one characterized chiefly by libertarianism, on the one hand, and oligarchical corruption on the other. With the New Deal, the government was for the first time in the business of serving the public interest and providing Americans a much-needed social safety net. In short, the American welfare state was born.

These changes had been completely contrary to the politics of the Republican Party, and especially to the politics of the plutocrats in American society (for whom the GOP had long prior become an interest-serving vehicle). They saw Roosevelt as a “traitor to his class”, and they hated him so much they couldn’t even spit out his name. They actually referred to him as “that man”.

All of this is relevant and significant because the GOP had a choice to make in 1953. With their hands on the levers of power for the first time in a long time, they could have undone the New Deal. Some in the party wanted to do so. But by that time both Ike and the bulk of his party had left behind the Neanderthal tendencies of the pre-FDR days and had moved to the center-right. Eisenhower famously discussed his position – and that of others in the GOP – in a 1954 letter to his brother: “Should any political party attempt to abolish Social Security, unemployment insurance, and eliminate labor laws and farm programs, you would not hear of that party again in our political history. There is a tiny splinter group, of course, that believes you can do these things. Among them are H. L. Hunt (you possibly know his background), a few other Texas oil millionaires, and an occasional politician or business man from other areas. Their number is negligible and they are stupid....”

........................THIRTY YEARS LATER................


Meanwhile, the current condition of the United States is fantastical, the stuff of legend, the kind of absurdity that no one would find credible enough to buy were it presented as a work of fiction. We have genuine crises, but we ignore them. Instead we squabble about non-issues, while the ship of state rapidly sinks. And who is squabbling? The far left versus the far right? The reds against the blacks? We should be so lucky. No, it’s this faction of political whores carrying water for the oligarchy versus that almost identical faction of political whores carrying water for the oligarchy. Meanwhile, the only seemingly assured ticket to electoral success in our political system on any given day is to have enacted failed policy ideas the day before. And, most bizarre of all, no one will seek to reward the depredations of the political class more rapidly than those who are its victims. Wonderland would seem to Alice quite the paragon of rationality by comparison.

[xchrom]

23. +1 brazillion. nt

[Tansy_Gold]

91. make that 2 brazillion n/t

[xchrom]

22. from the silly criminal activity file: Unilever, P&G Fined $457 Million by EU for Detergent Cartel

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-04-13/unilever-p-g-fined-457-million-by-eu-after-washing-powder-cartel-probe.html

Unilever and Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) agreed to pay 315.2 million euros ($457.3 million) in fines to end a European Union probe into price fixing of laundry detergent.

P&G, the maker of Ariel washing powder, was fined 211.2 million euros and Unilever will pay 104 million euros for agreeing with Henkel KGaA, the German maker of Persil, to fix prices of the detergent in eight countries over a three-year period, the European Commission said in an e-mailed statement today.

Henkel wasn’t fined because it was the first company to supply evidence to regulators. Antitrust agencies across Europe have been investigating cosmetics and detergent manufacturers for agreements to fix or increase prices. The commission said it reduced fines on the other two companies because they cooperated in the probe and agreed to settle the charges.

“Henkel, Procter & Gamble and Unilever engaged in their anti-competitive practices at their own initiative and at their own risk,” Joaquin Almunia, the EU’s competition chief, said today. Almunia said the companies agreed not to reduce prices when they shrank the size of packaging for laundry detergent and then also agreed to increase prices.




my thought: there isn't much these big companies won't do to give themselves an advantage.

[xchrom]

27. Plaintiff says he had 2003 partnership with Facebook's Zuckerberg

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-facebook-emails-20110413,0,4462198.story

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg was keenly aware of the competitive threat he faced from two fellow Harvard students who were developing their own social network, according to emails a New York businessman claims he received from Zuckerberg in 2003.

Paul Ceglia's civil suit in federal court in New York includes a series of emails that he says he exchanged with Zuckerberg in which the two negotiated the terms of a partnership and discussed the development of a website called "The Face Book."

One exchange suggested that Zuckerberg was anxious to head off a rival effort from Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss before it could launch.

"I have recently met with a couple of upperclassmen here at Harvard that are planning to launch a site very similar to ours. If we don't make a move soon, I think we will lose the advantage we would have if we release before them. I've stalled them for the time being," Ceglia alleges Zuckerberg wrote.

[xchrom]

28. Move to disincorporate Vernon could drive businesses away

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-vernon-business-20110413,0,147225.story

Reporting from Sacramento and Los Angeles—

Basque merchant John Leonis helped establish the city of Vernon 106 years ago to cater exclusively to business, figuring that people wouldn't want to put up with the stench and bustle of slaughterhouses, factories and meatpacking plants.

For a century, it's worked pretty much the way Leonis planned it. Today the manufacturing hub on the southeast edge of Los Angeles boasts 1,800 companies and 55,000 workers — and an official population of 96, the lowest of any city in California.

But the days may be numbered for the city built for business. Saying the lack of citizenry has fostered decades of corruption and insider dealings, the state Legislature is considering a bill to revoke Vernon's city charter and put it under the jurisdiction of Los Angeles County.

The move follows a criminal indictment of the city's former administrator last year (he has pleaded not guilty), and the indictments of two other longtime city officials in 2006; one was convicted and the other has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial.

[Demeter]

30. Sounds like the Wave of the Future, To Me

Wonder what the state legislature REALLY wants.

[xchrom]

32. more there than meets the eye -- that's for sure. nt

[xchrom]

31. Silicon Valley entrepreneur wants to bring back paper postcards

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2011/04/silicon-valley-entrepreneur-wants-to-bring-back-paper-postcards.html

Paper isn't exactly cool in the digital world. So why is one of its accomplished young entrepreneurs betting his new company on pulp?

PostagramMatt Brezina, co-founder of email management service Xobni, is putting his own spin on the postcard, that rectangular piece of heavy paper that can transport memories and souvenirs into your mailbox (the real deal in the physical world, not the one on your desktop).

[xchrom]

36. Small-business optimism fades as sales stay weak

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/money_co/2011/04/small-business-optimism-nfib-index-declines-in-march-inflation.html

Optimism among U.S. small businesses dropped in March as company owners turned more dour about the economic outlook, a new report shows.

Many firms continued to complain about weak sales despite the overall economy’s growth. Even so, many also say they plan to raise prices -- a potential warning sign about inflation trends.

Nfib The National Federation of Independent Business said its optimism index (charted, at left) slid to 91.9 in March after reaching a post-recession high of 94.5 in February. Economists polled by Bloomberg News had expected the index to rise to 95.0 last month.

The NFIB survey has been one of the most disappointing economic indicators since the recession officially ended in mid-2009. The optimism index, which peaked at 107.7 in November 2004, has rebounded from a low of 81.0 in March 2009 but remains mired at levels consistent with recession conditions.

[DemReadingDU]

38. Inside the Post-Crash Wall Street Mind

Seven articles at this link, snippets of just 3 articles below
http://nymag.com/news/business/wallstreet/


4/10/11 The Wall Street Mind: Triumphant…
To the victors belong the spoils, right?
by John Heilmann

At the end of March, Neil Barofsky, on his final day as the special inspector general of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), published a scathing indictment of the program over which he’d served as watchdog since its inception in that awful, apocalyptic autumn of 2008. On the op-ed page of the New York Times, Barofsky argued that TARP had “failed to meet some of its most important goals”: protecting home values, easing the foreclosure crisis, alleviating the credit crunch—helping Main Street, in other words. Indeed, only when it came to aiding Wall Street had TARP worked like a charm. “Billions of dollars in taxpayer money allowed institutions that were on the brink of collapse not only to survive but even to flourish,” he wrote. “These banks now enjoy record profits and the seemingly permanent competitive advantage that accompanies being deemed ‘too big to fail.’ ”
more...
http://nymag.com/news/business/wallstreet/john-heilemann-2011-4/


4/10/11 The Wall Street Mind: Anxious...
Now they’re getting paid … But where will the next big paydays come from?
by John Gapper

Two and a half years after the crash, Wall Street ought to be feeling pleased with itself. It lost billions of dollars, devastating the world’s economy in the process, the federal government had to put up $700 billion of taxpayers’ money to prevent an even worse disaster, and otherwise reasonable politicians began using epithets like “fat cats” and “robber barons” for the first time in decades. And yet now the financiers are firmly back in business. Bonuses are flowing again—JPMorgan Chase CEO ­Jamie Dimon got a 51 percent raise in 2010, to $23 million—and Bernie Madoff is the only chief executive to end up in jail. It’s almost as if nothing had happened.

“No one has laid a glove on them,” says Janet Tavakoli, a derivatives expert. “There was massive fraud, and nothing was done. If you are a banker, you are slapping high fives at the moment.” Michael Mayo, an analyst at Crédit Lyonnais Securities, adds, “Wall Street is back, to a far greater degree than many people, including me, would have expected during the crash. Investment banks are alive and kicking.”
more...
http://nymag.com/news/business/wallstreet/john-gapper-2011-4/

4/10/11 The Wall Street Mind: Oblivious
At Davos, the Champagne is flowing again—a rain dance to keep the money flowing their way.
by Felix Salmon

Wall Street is run by multimillionaires—billionaires, sometimes—with very privileged and comfortable lives. The only thing that could conceivably threaten their well-being would be a crisis so big and so global as to make September 2008 look like a mere precursor to the main event. So you’d think that they would be doing everything in their power to minimize the chances of such a thing happening and to lock in their eye-popping gains.

Instead, they seem to be happy just talking about it. “The level of conversation about the problems is as intense now as it’s ever been,” one banker told me. “We’re just midway through dealing with something that’s very serious indeed: We’ve all learned a lesson.” But it’s not much of a lesson.
more...
http://nymag.com/news/business/wallstreet/felix-salmon-2011-4/

[Demeter]

43. THEY HAVE LEARNED TO CHEAT, THAT'S ALL

[Demeter]

39. We Ain’t Got Time To Bleed. By Jesse Ventura

You control our world. You’ve poisoned the air we breathe, contaminated the water we drink, and copyrighted the food we eat. We fight in your wars, die for your causes, and sacrifice our freedoms to protect you. You’ve liquidated our savings, destroyed our middle class, and used our tax dollars to bailout your unending greed. We are slaves to your corporations, zombies to your airwaves, servants to your decadence. You’ve stolen our elections, assassinated our leaders, and abolished our basic rights as human beings. You own our property, shipped away our jobs, and shredded our unions. You’ve profited off of disaster, destabilized our currencies, and raised our cost of living. You’ve monopolized our freedom, stripped away our education, and have almost extinguished our flame. We are hit… we are bleeding… but we ain’t got time to bleed. We will bring the giants to their knees and you will witness our revolution!

Sincerely,

The Serfs.
http://weaintgottimetobleed.com/

[lovuian]

110. it really is a nightmare

hope the people will wake up

[xchrom]

40. some good news: Safeway, Vons top Greenpeace list for seafood sustainability

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/greenspace/2011/04/safeway-fish.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+GreenspaceEnvironmentBlog+%28Greenspace%29

One of the nation's largest supermarket chains has claimed the top spot in the Greenpeace seafood sustainability report, released Tuesday. Safeway, which operates more than 1,700 stores under various names, including Vons, was praised for discontinuing sales of "red-list," or unsustainably caught, species, including orange roughy.

"Safeway broke new ground with this new report," said Casson Trenor, senior markets campaigner for Greenpeace.

Fishingboat Safeway's move into first place from its fourth-place ranking last year was due in part to the company's involvement in fishery improvement projects to rebuild fish stocks. Most significant, it's made a public statement calling on the governments that control fisheries in the Antarctic Ross Sea to designate it as a marine reserve.

The environmental activist group used four criteria to determine seafood retailer rankings in its fifth Carting Away the Oceans report: seafood purchasing policy, participation in political or conservation initiatives, transparency about what is being sold at the point of sale and how many types of red-list fish a retailer sells.

[Demeter]

44. U.S. Spends 141% More on Health Care By Mark Whitehouse

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article27865.htm

FOR MASSIVELY INFERIOR RESULTS....

[Demeter]

45. Iceland Wont Pay For Bankers Sins By Al-Jazeera

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article27857.htm

VIDEO AND TRANSCRIPT

[Demeter]

46. Idaho Republicans ‘run amok’, sue taxpayers for $100K

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/04/09/idaho-republicans-run-amok-sue-taxpayers-for-100k/

Washington's Spokesman-Review, Republicans in the Idaho state legislature rushed a bill through in the final days of the legislative session to pay the Idaho Republican Party $100,000 in attorney's fees and legal costs for a primary election lawsuit that it brought against the state and won. 81% of the Republicans in the Legislature are also members of the Idaho Republican Party. The Republicans additionally made a special effort to ensure that no matter what the outcome of the lawsuit, the cost would be paid by taxpayers.

[xchrom]

47. The Hardest Working Countries In The World

http://www.businessinsider.com/the-hardest-working-countries-in-the-world-2011-4

Everyone likes to think they work harder than everyone else, but the latest OECD data may surprise some Europeans and Americans who expected to be at the top of the world's hard work list.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/the-hardest-working-countries-in-the-world-2011-4#ixzz1JPRhJN8q

[Demeter]

50. I'm more interested in the "best-working countries"

Those that maximize the happiness, minimize the environmental degradation...and improve the human species.

[xchrom]

52. i'm with you. we could all be enjoying a better world

if more people thought like you.

[Demeter]

48. Wishing a Fair Day to All

Whatever GI bug it was, it's stopped bugging me, and the Kid is back to normal, too, finally. How she could have a 24 hr. bug for two weeks is beyond me. She obviously couldn't get better until she infected me.

It's frosting in the mornings, and going up to the 50's and even 60's in the sunlight. I guess I can put the boots away.

[xchrom]

53. a fair day to you too!

:hi:

[xchrom]

51. make of this what you will: John Boehner Is Secretly Talking To Wall Street To See How Freaked Out

http://www.businessinsider.com/john-boehner-wall-street-debt-limit-2011-4

John Boehner Is Secretly Talking To Wall Street To See How Freaked Out They Are Over The Debt Limit

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/john-boehner-wall-street-debt-limit-2011-4#ixzz1JPSHza4A


Fascinating nugget in POLITICO's Morning Money today.

Apparently John Boehner has been reaching out to Wall Street, trying to get a sense of when financial markets will get spooked by GOP hesitance in raising the debt ceiling.

[DemReadingDU]

55. and to make sure his wealthy constituents

get out of the market with gains, not losses

[Demeter]

69. Meaning He's for Sale, and They DON'T Own Him, Yet?

What a loser.

[Fuddnik]

54. Re-post from late yesterday.

Update: I was up half the night digging up documents and faxing them to the lead attorney. When I talk to him today, I'm going to have him look into their delaying posting payments for several days. I had no problem when I had them for my checking, but when I switched my direct deposits to a credit union this month, my mortgage payments were delayed 4 days, accruing more interest, and less payment going to the principal.

The big tell, was when I made a Chase credit card payment a day later, and it posted 2 days ahead of the mortgage payment.

So, I joined the class action suit. Fuck this bank. They're going to be hearing a lot from me on my blog, and other places!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


I spent a good time last night, and all day today fighting and arguing with Wells Fargo over a forced place flood insurance policy, and why my mortgage payment, although early the entire payment went for interest.

Wachovia was actually a pleasure to do business with until they were bought by WF. So after fighting with these pirates all day, I sat down and googled "class action lawsuits against Wells Fargo".

Lookie what I found. I'm waiting for the lawyer to return my call.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nichols Kaster Files Nationwide Class Action Against Wells Fargo for Allegedly Requiring Excessive Flood Insurance and Taking Kickbacks for Force-Placed Insurance
The lawsuit alleges that Wells Fargo purchased excessive flood insurance for Morris, accepted a commission for purchasing this unnecessary insurance, and then charged Morris for the favor.


Pittsburgh, PA (PRWEB) April 11, 2011

On April 7, 2011, Plaintiff Desiree Morris filed a class action lawsuit against Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. and Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, Inc., in U.S. District Court in the Western District of Pennsylvania. The lawsuit alleges that Wells Fargo purchased excessive flood insurance for Morris, accepted a commission for purchasing this unnecessary insurance, and then charged Morris for the favor. “Not only did Wells Fargo illegally buy the insurance, it took a commission for doing so,” said Plaintiff’s attorney Kai Richter.

According to the Complaint, Wells Fargo unlawfully required Morris to carry flood insurance in an amount nearly $100,000 greater than her loan balance, contrary to the terms of her mortgage agreement and federal law (which only requires borrowers to obtain flood insurance in an amount sufficient to cover their principal balance, where they live in a designated flood zone). Although Morris already carried flood insurance sufficient to cover her principal balance, the lawsuit alleges that Wells Fargo purchased a second policy for Morris’ property out of her escrow account, without her consent, at her expense. The lawsuit further alleges that Wells Fargo admittedly purchased this “force-placed” coverage through an affiliate insurance agency (Wells Fargo Insurance, Inc.), and reaped kickbacks, commissions, or other compensation for Wells Fargo and its affiliate insurance agency in the process.

In her class action Complaint, Morris seeks relief on behalf of herself and other borrowers across the country who have been similarly affected by Wells Fargo’s alleged conduct. Based on this alleged conduct, Plaintiff’s Complaint asserts that Wells Fargo violated the Truth and Lending Act (TILA), Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA), and Pennsylvania Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law (PAUTP-CPL). In addition, the Complaint alleges that Wells Fargo breached its contracts with borrowers and breached its fiduciary duties to borrowers in connection with the handling of escrow funds.

“In today’s economic environment, many homeowners are struggling to make their mortgage payments, and it is wrong for Wells Fargo to add to their burden by demanding excessive amounts of flood insurance that exceed Wells Fargo’s interest in their property, exceed federal requirements, and exceed the amount of insurance that borrowers agreed to carry when they originated their loans,” said Richter. “It is particularly egregious that Wells Fargo is accepting commissions or other compensation in connection with force-placed coverage,” continued Richter.

The case is entitled Morris v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., et al., No. 2:11-cv-00474-DSC (W.D.Pa.). Plaintiff is represented by Kai Richter, Paul Lukas, Michelle Drake, Rebekah Bailey, and Charles Frohman from Nichols Kaster, PLLP. Nichols Kaster has offices in Minneapolis, Minnesota and San Francisco, California, and is currently pursuing similar cases against JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. and Bank of America, N.A. Additional information is located at http://www.nka.com or may be obtained by calling Nichols Kaster, PLLP toll free at [phone].

###

------------------------------------------------------

OK, he just called me back. I'm faxing everything to them this evening.

[xchrom]

56. we're with you!

:applause:

[DemReadingDU]

57. Can others join the class action suit?

Until I read your posting yesterday, I wasn't aware of any class action lawsuit. So are you aware of any time constraints for joining? Not for me, as our mortgage is paid off, but for others. Or is this just for those living in Florida who have flood insurance?

[Fuddnik]

63. This attorney is in Pittsburgh. They just filed it.

I'm supposed to talk to him again later today, and I'll ask him if he needs some more exposure, via websites, my blog and website.

The first case was in PA. So, I guess it's going nationwide.

I also noticed another thing I want them to look into. I made my mortgage payments through their online checking, and it was always posted that day. Now that I switched some of my accounts to the CU, theh're delaying it several days, accruing more interest. I'm going to have the attorney look into that too.

But, right now, I'm off to close my Wells checking.

[tclambert]

60. Michelle Bachmann on The Today Show complained it's unfair the top 1% pays 40% of the taxes.

I refer you to Demeter's sig line, "If the top 1% get 99% of the income and wealth, they should pay 99% of the taxes."

Apparently, Demeter and Michelle Bachmann are not in complete agreement on the fairness of taxes. Bachmann implies she thinks it's fair for the top 1% to only pay 1%. In Bachmann's defense, I will only say that the info I have (http://www.taxfoundation.org/news/show/250.html) says she's pretty close on the 40% figure. In 2008, it was 38%. Republicans want to say this is unfair because the top 1% only makes 20% of the Adjusted Gross Income (AGI).

They're having fun with statistics, of course. There are 5,000 pages of loopholes in the tax code for rich people, hardly any for the poor. That allows them to manipulate AGI in many ways. For one, that is just income. Wealth is an entirely different matter. Poor people have basically no wealth--no property, no investments to speak of. Rich folk have lots, and if their investments increase in value, that increase in wealth is hidden, not considered income unless they sell it and have to claim the profit as capital gains.

The real problem, though, is that the top 1% average $1.2 million in AGI, the bottom 50% average about $15,350. The breakpoint between lower 50% and upper 50% is $33,048. From studies on what it costs to live, the lower 50% can't afford the basics. On $1.2 million a year, the top 1% can afford basics, plus luxuries, plus all the taxes. If their share of the tax burden went up 2.7% to 40.7%, the lower 50% could be given a 100% exemption from income taxes.

Rich people should not talk about fairness. The average top 1%-er makes 78 times what the average lower 50%-er makes. Do they really work 78 times harder? Are they 78 times smarter? Are they 78 times more virtuous? Hell, a lot of rich people made their money the old fashioned way--they inherited it. Their parents or grandparents may have worked kinda hard, come up with (or stolen) a pretty good idea, and made a fortune. But what makes it fair for the idle rich to make 36 times what the 50th percentile makes?

Actually, I think Demeter's sig line is wrong. The comparison should be between income surpassing the basic necessities. That "basic necessities of life exemption" zeroes out the income of many average people. Why should we ask people struggling to live to pay any taxes? If the top 1% gets 99%, they should pay 100% of the taxes. That would require a tax RATE of 61%, leaving them 39% of $1.2M, or $468,000 after taxes to live on.

If you made the top 5% pay all the income taxes, they would have to pay a tax rate of 35.3%. The poorest of the top 5% would have over $100,000 income remaining after taxes. 26.8% tax rate would do if the top 10% paid all the income taxes.

[Demeter]

70. Baseline Income Was a Nixon Idea

too bad he walked on the dark side.

[jtuck004]

73. She's right - it's not enough.

The top 1% pays only 40% of the taxes, yet they own over 43% of _all_ private wealth, and pay LESS as a percentage of their income
than others.

Maybe they should be paying 43%.

http://sociology.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/power/wealth.html

[DoBotherMe]

64. K&R

kicked yesterday's SMW in error. Dana ; )

[Pale Blue Dot]

65. Inflation Actually Near 10% Using Older Measure

After former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker was appointed in 1979, the consumer price index surged into the double digits, causing the now revered Fed Chief to double the benchmark interest rate in order to break the back of inflation. Using the methodology in place at that time puts the CPI back near those levels.

Since 1980, the Bureau of Labor Statistics has changed the way it calculates the CPI in order to account for the substitution of products, improvements in quality (i.e. iPad 2 costing the same as original iPad) and other things. Backing out more methods implemented in 1990 by the BLS still puts inflation at a 5.5 percent rate and getting worse, according to the calculations by the newsletter’s web site, Shadowstats.com.

“Near-term circumstances generally have continued to deteriorate,” said John Williams, creator of the site, in a new note out Tuesday. “Though not yet commonly recognized, there is both an intensifying double-dip recession and a rapidly escalating inflation problem. Until such time as financial-market expectations catch up with underlying reality, reporting generally will continue to show higher-than-expected inflation and weaker-than-expected economic results in the month and months ahead.”

http://www.cnbc.com/id/42551209

[xchrom]

66. +1

[Demeter]

94. But Who's Counting?

[AnneD]

67. I was RIF'ed this morning......

Now the story goes that they are combining schools and the other Nurse has priority (more seniority). I have not gotten all the details yet and have a meeting with my union rep later this week.

I am not hitting the panic button yet because: I am a Nurse-I deal with real crisis day in and day out. All the details are not known-hell the state hasn't passed a final spending bill so I think HISD is preemptive in it's measures. They may not have calculated the years of my seniority correctly-not using the years before my break in service and that would change it greatly. I am a Nurse with experience. I will find a better job with more money.

Not looking for sympathy or leads, just support and understanding. It will be a trying time until I get more information and a little more certainty.

[Demeter]

71. We are here for you with a listening ear

Vent away.

[xchrom]

75. well please let us know what is happening. nt

[Pale Blue Dot]

77. Good luck, Anne.

We're here for you.

[AnneD]

79. Thanks you guys....

I remember fretting about Roland and pming him ever so often. You guys are great here. I will have a check until August I think, although they may give me a lump sum in May.

This is how screwed up they are. They say they are renovating the school the are going to close. I think that is a smoke screen. I think they want to close the elementary and this school and sell the land. It is a huge chunk of property in the last part of Houston where there are large undeveloped tracts of land. But that is just me talking.

The Nurse they have has 38 years but she splits 2 schools, an elem and a middle. If they close and combine-they will need 2 Nurses and she just might retire. I know I would. That is way to much work for one Nurse.

It gets more interesting.

[DemReadingDU]

84. At least you have some income for several months

and you are a good nurse with lots of empathy for the students. Something will turn up for you.
:hug:

[InkAddict]

83. I was RIF'd last Friday

Finally outsourced after being reduced to pushing the print button and/or the fax button while watching the errors roll by as I stuff copies of the mistakes into charts (although purportedly proofread twice) as the docs expedite delivery of their dictation without review. Talk about asking for trouble! I so wish I could warn patients away from here. Health care is sooooo...broken.

[DemReadingDU]

85. Oh my

Two people have recently been rif'd, perhaps more who read the SMW.
Recovery?
Bah Humbug.

:hug:

[AnneD]

86. Health care never seems broken until......

the wrong limb get amputated or the wrong med or dose is given. Then they usually blame the Nurse and fire her rather than call the Doc on the carpet. Meh, it is the nature of modern health care in the US. So much for reform.

Edited to add...I feel for you or anyone else looking for a job in this climate. Hope you have some resources.

[Demeter]

95. You have a sisterhood/brotherhood here for you

[Demeter]

76. Oh NO! My Onion Horoscope!

Aries: The rest of the year will seem to fly right by, along with a few hundred others, after you're frozen in a giant block of ice.

[AnneD]

78. Mine...

Virgo: You and a man with no arms will be stuck in an elevator together for three and a half hours, but it'll only take you eight minutes to piss him off with insensitive questions about ass-wiping.

Well. I am a Nurse and I am looking for a job. It was the salary questions that pissed him off. :spray:

[Demeter]

81. I didn't even look at the others

just went for my woolies.

[DemReadingDU]

87. January horoscope

Capricorn - You'll discover a brilliant legal loophole that will both get rid of that annoying guy at work and force the Department of Justice to serve you any meal you want.
http://www.theonion.com/articles/your-horoscopes-week-of-april-12-2011,19978/


Hm, we are in the process of filing a lawsuit against our village!

[AnneD]

90. Three hots and a cot......

or maybe you hit the Lawsuit Lottery. The new retirement options.

[InkAddict]

92. I just knew there was a reason for holding on to that old-style

medical equipment for measuring fevers and BP.

[xchrom]

89. yikes -- you and i share aries. nt

[Demeter]

80. Obama's "bad negotiating" is actually shrewd negotiating By Glenn Greenwald

http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/2011/04/13/obama/index.html

In December, President Obama signed legislation to extend hundreds of billions of dollars in Bush tax cuts, benefiting the wealthiest Americans. Last week, Obama agreed to billions of dollars in cuts that will impose the greatest burden on the poorest Americans. And now, virtually everyone in Washington believes, the President is about to embark on a path that will ultimately lead to some type of reductions in Social Security, Medicare and/or Medicaid benefits under the banner of "reform." Tax cuts for the rich -- budget cuts for the poor -- "reform" of the Democratic Party's signature safety net programs -- a continuation of Bush/Cheney Terrorism policies and a new Middle East war launched without Congressional approval. That's quite a legacy combination for a Democratic President.




...What amazes me most is the brazen claims of presidential impotence necessary to excuse all of this. Atrios has written for weeks about the "can't do" spirit that has overtaken the country generally, but that mindset pervades how the President's supporters depict both him and the powers of his office: no bad outcomes are ever his fault because he's just powerless in the face of circumstance. That claim is being made now by pointing to a GOP Congress, but the same claim was made when there was a Democratic Congress as well: recall the disagreements I had with his most loyal supporters in 2009 and 2010 over their claims that he was basically powerless even to influence his own party's policy-making in Congress...Obama's most loyal supporters often mock the notion that a President's greatest power is his "bully pulpit," but there's no question that this is true. Reagan was able to transform how Americans perceived numerous political issues because he relentlessly argued for his ideological and especially economic world-view: a rising tide lifts all boats, government is not the solution but is the problem, etc. -- a whole slew of platitudes and slogans that convinced Americans that conservative economic policy was optimal despite how much it undermined their own economic interests. Reagan was "transformational" because he changed conventional wisdom and those premises continue to pervade our political discourse.

When has Obama ever done any of that? When does he offer stirring, impassioned defenses of the Democrats' vision on anything, or attempt to transform (rather than dutifully follow) how Americans think about anything? It's not that he lacks the ability to do that. Americans responded to him as an inspirational figure and his skills of oratory are as effective as any politician in our lifetime. It's that he evinces no interest in it. He doesn't try because those aren't his goals. It's not that he or the office of the Presidency are powerless to engender other outcomes; it's that he doesn't use the power he has to achieve them because, quite obviously, achieving them is not his priority or even desire.

Whether in economic policy, national security, civil liberties, or the permanent consortium of corporate power that runs Washington, Obama, above all else, is content to be (one could even say eager to be) guardian of the status quo. And the forces of the status quo want tax cuts for the rich, serious cuts in government spending that don't benefit them (social programs and progressive regulatory schemes), and entitlement "reform" -- so that's what Obama will do. He won't advocate, and will actually oppose, steps as extreme as the ones Paul Ryan is proposing: that's how he will retain his "centrist" political identity and keep the fear levels high among his voting base. He'll pay lip service to some Democratic economic dogma and defend some financially inconsequential culture war positions: that's how he will signal to the base that he's still on their side. But the direction will be the same as the GOP desires and, most importantly, how the most powerful economic factions demand: not because he can't figure out how to change that dynamic, but because that's what benefits him and thus what he wants...Ironically, Obama is turning out to be "transformational" in his own way -- by taking what was once the defining GOP approach to numerous policy areas and converting them into Democratic ones, and thus ensconcing them in the invulnerable protective shield of "bipartisan consensus." As Digby put it: "Reagan was a hard-core ideologue who didn't just tweak some processes but radically changed the prevailing conventional wisdom. Unfortunately, Obama is actually extending the Reagan consensus, even as he pursues his own agenda of creating a Grand Bargain that will bring peace among the dueling parties (a dubious goal in itself.)" That has been one of the most consequential outcomes of the first two years of his presidency in terms of Terrorism and civil liberties, and is now being consecrated in the realm of economic policy as well.

[Tansy_Gold]

93. I don't fucking think so. Better off hiring Kevin Kline

I took this little bit off the yahoo/AP news page, as one of the things Obama proposed in his speech:


The creation of a committee chaired by Vice President Joe Biden and including members of both parties and houses of Congress, to begin meeting next month in order to "agree on a legislative framework for comprehensive deficit reduction"


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NX3en_Te7K8

edited to add this one, too

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uoRHwIMYlbc&NR=1

[Demeter]

96. Dave for President

better than HAL any day of the week...

[DemReadingDU]

97. Good movie

:)

[Tansy_Gold]

100. the point being

There's a lot of just plain BULLSHIT in the federal budget. "Dave" managed to pull out one item, one $47,000,000 item of BULLSHIT and put it in context.

That's what Biden and his "committee" ought to do, but you know fucking damn well it won't happen.

"Maintaining the status quo" was I think the phrase used in Greenwald's comment. We have to break that cycle. And I don't think Obama has the spine to do it. He's too fucking comfortable with the status quo. It's been very very good to him.

Unfortunately, it's not been so good to a lot of other people.




TG

[DemReadingDU]

102. No one is going to do much of anything

Oh, a few tweaks here and there so that it looks like they are doing something, and arguing about that. But I think they are all waiting for some trigger event, and that's when they will clamp down. They just need something to blame...

the meltdown in Japan
escalation of war
revolutionary protests in a big oil country
an act of mother nature - major earthquake, hurricane or flood in a major industrial country
financial bailout of another big country
failure of a major global bank
something else?

[AnneD]

104. And a partridge in a pear tree....

:shrug:

[Tansy_Gold]

105. My money is on. . . . . . .

(pun intended). . . . .

a big drop in the stock market. I mean, why wait for a natural disaster over which you have no control when you've got one you can manipulate e x a c t l y the was you want it? Especially since the previous one worked out so very very very well for them. . . . .



TG, bitterly cynical

[Demeter]

106. That would be goring their owwn ox, though

The little people have nothing left in the market.

[Tansy_Gold]

107. IMHO

the market is completely hollow. Most of the money has been pulled out -- after most of it was put in by us, of course -- and now it's just a matter of running the prices/values up to make the crash more catastrophic.

But what do I know?

[Festivito]

108. Debt: 04/11/2011 14,267,760,539,191.89 (UP 2,377,405,172.36) (Mon, UP a little.)

(Still under the old debt limit of 14.294-trillion dollars by 26-billion dollars. Good day.)
Fed up with Fedex. Well, they're not so bad at all.
(Debt under Obama seems to jump up big then drop slowly maybe up a little and down a little for days--repeat.)
= Held by the Public + Intragovernmental(FICA)
= 9,652,587,224,970.63 + 4,615,173,314,221.26
UP 390,366,211.15 + UP 1,987,038,961.21

Source: Debt to the penny:
http://www.treasurydirect.gov/NP/BPDLogin?application=np

THINKING IN BILLIONS: Think 3 or 4 dollars per billion in a 312-Million person America.
If every American, man, woman and child puts in $3.21 THAT'S 1B$, and $3,207.51 makes 1T$.
A family of three: Mom, Dad, Child: $9.62, ABOUT TEN BUCKS for a 1B$ federal program.
I hope that is clear. However, I'd suggest using $3 per 1B$ to underestimate it.
Use $4 per 1B$ to overestimate the cost when thinking: Is the federal program worth it?
Aid to Dependant Children: 2B$/yr =$8/yr(a movie a year) Family of 3: $24/yr(an hour of bowling)

PERSONALIZED DEBT:
Every 12 seconds we net gain another American, so at the end of the workday of the report, there should be 311,768,192 people in America.
http://www.census.gov/population/www/popclockus.html ON 10/04/2010 04:37 -> 310,403,677
Currently, each of these Americans owe $45,764..
A family of three owes $137,292.01. (And that is IN ADDITION to their mortgage.)

ANALYSIS:
There were 20 reports in the last 30 to 31 days.
The average for the last 20 reports is 5,170,008,895.65.
The average for the last 30 days would be 3,446,672,597.10.
The average for the last 31 days would be 3,335,489,610.10.
There were 252 reports in 365 days of FY2007 averaging 1.99B$ per report, 1.37B$/day.
There were 253 reports in 366 days of FY2008 averaging 4.02B$ per report, 2.78B$/day.
There were 75 reports in 112 days of GWB's part of FY2009 averaging 8.03B$ per report, 5.38B$/day.
There were 174 reports in 253 days of Obama's part of FY2009 averaging 7.33B$ per report, 5.07B$/day so far.
There were 249 reports in 365 days of FY2009 averaging 7.57B$ per report, 5.16B$/day.
There were 251 reports in 365 days of FY2010 averaging 6.58B$ per report, 4.53B$/day.
There were 131 reports in 193 days of FY2011 averaging 5.39B$ per report, 3.66B$/day.
Above line should be okay

PROJECTION:
There are 650 days remaining in this Obama 1st term.
By that time the debt could be between 15.2 and 17.6T$.
It could be higher. It could be lower.

HISTORICAL:
President's term begins and ends on Jan 20.
(Guess who might want to hide the Reagan Bush years. Jan 20 data is missing before 1993.)
01/20/1993 _4,188,092,107,183.60 WJC Inaugural
01/22/2001 _5,728,195,796,181.57 WJC (UP 1,540,103,688,997.97)
01/20/2009 10,626,877,048,913.08 GWB (UP 4,898,681,252,731.43)
04/11/2011 14,267,760,539,191.89 BHO (UP 3,640,883,490,278.81 so far since Obama took office.)

FISCAL YEAR DEBT CHANGE, Sep 30 prior year to Sep 30 named year:
(One "* " for each 40B$ reached)
FY1994 +0,281,261,026,873.94 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1995 +0,281,232,990,696.07 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1996 +0,250,828,038,426.34 ------------* * * * * * WJC
FY1997 +0,188,335,072,261.61 ------------* * * * WJC
FY1998 +0,113,046,997,500.28 ------------* * WJC
FY1999 +0,130,077,892,735.81 ------------* * * WJC
FY2000 +0,017,907,308,253.43 ------------WJC
FY2001 +0,133,285,202,313.20 ------------* * * C&B
01-WJC +0,053,598,528,417.78 ------------* WJC 31% of FY, 40% of FY-Debt
01-GWB +0,079,686,673,895.42 ------------* GWB 69% of FY, 60% of FY-Debt
FY2002 +0,420,772,553,397.10 ------------* * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2003 +0,554,995,097,146.46 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2004 +0,595,821,633,586.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2005 +0,553,656,965,393.18 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2006 +0,574,264,237,491.73 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2007 +0,500,679,473,047.25 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2008 +1,017,071,524,649.92 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2009 +1,885,104,106,599.30 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * B&O
09GWB +0,602,152,152,000.60 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB 31% of FY, 32% of FY-Debt
09-BHO +1,282,951,954,598.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO 69% of FY, 68% of FY-Debt
FY2010 +1,651,794,027,380.00 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO
FY2011 +0,706,137,508,300.10 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO
Endof11 +1,335,441,401,707.45 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO

LAST FIFTEEN REPORTS OF ADDITIONS TO PUBLIC DEBT(NOT FICA):
03/18/2011 +000,616,236,061.23 ------------********
03/21/2011 -000,100,873,734.64 --- Mon
03/22/2011 +000,366,066,174.28 ------------********
03/23/2011 -000,063,255,741.95 ----
03/24/2011 -015,763,143,549.40 -
03/25/2011 -000,034,574,737.25 ----
03/28/2011 +000,227,402,237.21 ------------******** Mon
03/29/2011 +000,181,007,415.32 ------------********
03/30/2011 +000,670,089,469.30 ------------********
04/04/2011 +000,336,873,927.41 ------------******** Mon
04/05/2011 -000,031,815,631.67 ----
04/06/2011 -000,011,756,275.73 ----
04/07/2011 +002,235,163,853.48 ------------*********
04/08/2011 +000,001,314,747.36 ------------******
04/11/2011 +000,390,366,211.15 ------------******** Mon

-10,980,899,573.90 Total of 15 above reports.

Heavy borrowing seems to start after 09/18/2008 while Bush was in power JUST BEFORE fiscal year end.
Bush admin borrowed $962,245,245,654.01 in those last 124 days in office crossing two fiscal years.
$360,093,093,653.42 in last 12 days of FY2008, and $602,152,152,000.59 in subsequent 112 days before leaving office.

For a prettier and more explanatory view of our nation's debt:
http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock
http://www.usdebtclock.org/
DUer primer on National debt

(Debt to the penny keeps changing. Stuff is missing. Best to keep our own history.) LAST REPORT:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=4810542&mesg_id=4810596

[Festivito]

109. Debt: 04/12/2011 14,272,993,603,617.44 (UP 5,233,064,425.55) (Tue, UP a little.)

(Still under the old debt limit of 14.294-trillion dollars by 21-billion dollars. Good day.)
I'm so tired.
(Debt under Obama seems to jump up big then drop slowly maybe up a little and down a little for days--repeat.)
= Held by the Public + Intragovernmental(FICA)
= 9,652,592,140,320.38 + 4,620,401,463,297.06
UP 4,915,349.75 + UP 5,228,149,075.80

Source: Debt to the penny:
http://www.treasurydirect.gov/NP/BPDLogin?application=np

THINKING IN BILLIONS: Think 3 or 4 dollars per billion in a 312-Million person America.
If every American, man, woman and child puts in $3.21 THAT'S 1B$, and $3,207.44 makes 1T$.
A family of three: Mom, Dad, Child: $9.62, ABOUT TEN BUCKS for a 1B$ federal program.
I hope that is clear. However, I'd suggest using $3 per 1B$ to underestimate it.
Use $4 per 1B$ to overestimate the cost when thinking: Is the federal program worth it?
Aid to Dependant Children: 2B$/yr =$8/yr(a movie a year) Family of 3: $24/yr(an hour of bowling)

PERSONALIZED DEBT:
Every 12 seconds we net gain another American, so at the end of the workday of the report, there should be 311,775,392 people in America.
http://www.census.gov/population/www/popclockus.html ON 10/04/2010 04:37 -> 310,403,677
Currently, each of these Americans owe $45,779.73.
A family of three owes $137,339.19. (And that is IN ADDITION to their mortgage.)

ANALYSIS:
There were 21 reports in the last 30 to 32 days.
The average for the last 21 reports is 5,173,011,539.93.
The average for the last 30 days would be 3,621,108,077.95.
The average for the last 32 days would be 3,394,788,823.08.
There were 252 reports in 365 days of FY2007 averaging 1.99B$ per report, 1.37B$/day.
There were 253 reports in 366 days of FY2008 averaging 4.02B$ per report, 2.78B$/day.
There were 75 reports in 112 days of GWB's part of FY2009 averaging 8.03B$ per report, 5.38B$/day.
There were 174 reports in 253 days of Obama's part of FY2009 averaging 7.33B$ per report, 5.07B$/day so far.
There were 249 reports in 365 days of FY2009 averaging 7.57B$ per report, 5.16B$/day.
There were 251 reports in 365 days of FY2010 averaging 6.58B$ per report, 4.53B$/day.
There were 132 reports in 194 days of FY2011 averaging 5.39B$ per report, 3.67B$/day.
Above line should be okay

PROJECTION:
There are 649 days remaining in this Obama 1st term.
By that time the debt could be between 15.2 and 17.6T$.
It could be higher. It could be lower.

HISTORICAL:
President's term begins and ends on Jan 20.
(Guess who might want to hide the Reagan Bush years. Jan 20 data is missing before 1993.)
01/20/1993 _4,188,092,107,183.60 WJC Inaugural
01/22/2001 _5,728,195,796,181.57 WJC (UP 1,540,103,688,997.97)
01/20/2009 10,626,877,048,913.08 GWB (UP 4,898,681,252,731.43)
04/12/2011 14,272,993,603,617.44 BHO (UP 3,646,116,554,704.36 so far since Obama took office.)

FISCAL YEAR DEBT CHANGE, Sep 30 prior year to Sep 30 named year:
(One "* " for each 40B$ reached)
FY1994 +0,281,261,026,873.94 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1995 +0,281,232,990,696.07 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1996 +0,250,828,038,426.34 ------------* * * * * * WJC
FY1997 +0,188,335,072,261.61 ------------* * * * WJC
FY1998 +0,113,046,997,500.28 ------------* * WJC
FY1999 +0,130,077,892,735.81 ------------* * * WJC
FY2000 +0,017,907,308,253.43 ------------WJC
FY2001 +0,133,285,202,313.20 ------------* * * C&B
01-WJC +0,053,598,528,417.78 ------------* WJC 31% of FY, 40% of FY-Debt
01-GWB +0,079,686,673,895.42 ------------* GWB 69% of FY, 60% of FY-Debt
FY2002 +0,420,772,553,397.10 ------------* * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2003 +0,554,995,097,146.46 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2004 +0,595,821,633,586.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2005 +0,553,656,965,393.18 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2006 +0,574,264,237,491.73 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2007 +0,500,679,473,047.25 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2008 +1,017,071,524,649.92 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2009 +1,885,104,106,599.30 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * B&O
09GWB +0,602,152,152,000.60 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB 31% of FY, 32% of FY-Debt
09-BHO +1,282,951,954,598.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO 69% of FY, 68% of FY-Debt
FY2010 +1,651,794,027,380.00 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO
FY2011 +0,711,370,572,725.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO
Endof11 +1,338,403,397,138.56 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO

LAST FIFTEEN REPORTS OF ADDITIONS TO PUBLIC DEBT(NOT FICA):
03/21/2011 -000,100,873,734.64 --- Mon
03/22/2011 +000,366,066,174.28 ------------********
03/23/2011 -000,063,255,741.95 ----
03/24/2011 -015,763,143,549.40 -
03/25/2011 -000,034,574,737.25 ----
03/28/2011 +000,227,402,237.21 ------------******** Mon
03/29/2011 +000,181,007,415.32 ------------********
03/30/2011 +000,670,089,469.30 ------------********
04/04/2011 +000,336,873,927.41 ------------******** Mon
04/05/2011 -000,031,815,631.67 ----
04/06/2011 -000,011,756,275.73 ----
04/07/2011 +002,235,163,853.48 ------------*********
04/08/2011 +000,001,314,747.36 ------------******
04/11/2011 +000,390,366,211.15 ------------******** Mon
04/12/2011 +000,004,915,349.75 ------------******

-11,592,220,285.38 Total of 15 above reports.

Heavy borrowing seems to start after 09/18/2008 while Bush was in power JUST BEFORE fiscal year end.
Bush admin borrowed $962,245,245,654.01 in those last 124 days in office crossing two fiscal years.
$360,093,093,653.42 in last 12 days of FY2008, and $602,152,152,000.59 in subsequent 112 days before leaving office.

For a prettier and more explanatory view of our nation's debt:
http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock
http://www.usdebtclock.org/
DUer primer on National debt

(Debt to the penny keeps changing. Stuff is missing. Best to keep our own history.) LAST REPORT:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=4812033&mesg_id=4813214

[Capn Sunshine]

111. Meanwhile, in the Markets today

which used to be the purpose of this thread, the market is up aginst some heavy resistance technically, and has tried all week to break through various technical levels to no avail. There was a spate of buying by some big S&P Indexers, who think that now that the President has charted a course that does not head directly into the rocks we might live to trade another day. There's little to no concern among the traders that the Tea Party will actually halt the debt payments and melt down the entire global financial system, because that would be suicidal for them. In other news, once again centered around technicals, OIL futures are putting in the beginnings of a classic top formation, which only needs a couple of days to confirm (we're 2/3 of the way into it). Goldman got out clean and sold all their oil futures holdings on Monday, and anyone long the Oils IMO is just holding a stick of lit dynamite. Things in the end finished up a tiny bit thanks to all the funds getting long, but there's really a pretty hard ceiling that we have to break through to get any higher.

Oh and in case anyone cares:
DOW 12270.99 up 7.41 +0.06%

S&P 1314.41 up 0.25 +0.02%

NAS 2761.52 up 16.73+0.61% <<<<<<<remember rotation? Out of financials , into tech? It's still going on.