Ethanol Subsidies are Good for Cutting

January 1, 2011 1 Comment

Except for being good for the pockets of farmers in Iowa, ethanol is bad for gas motors, consumers and taxpayers. Also, politicians who seek votes in the corn belt, including Mr. Obama, continue to support this  irrational subsidy for ethanol.

It is now conceivable that the myth of ethanol as the salvation for America’s energy problem is coming to an end. And maybe we always should have known it would wind up in italics, underlined, with the real facts of the damage ethanol can do to gas-powered motors laid out for all to see in a court of law.

via End the Ethanol Insanity: Ed Wallace – BusinessWeek.

Filed under Economy

Children and Poverty

December 28, 2010 Leave a comment

As one of the wealthiest countries on the planet, we are grossly negligent about our children living in poverty.  I have no idea the number of children living in the poverty in Coral Gables.  Is anyone concerned about poverty in Coral Gables–I have certainly never heard a word about this issue from our town fathers and mothers.

According to the National Center for Children in Poverty, 42 percent of American children live in low-income homes and about a fifth live in poverty. It gets worse. The number of children living in poverty has risen 33 percent since 2000. For perspective, the child population of the country over all increased by only about 3 percent over that time. And, according to a 2007 Unicef report on child poverty, the U.S. ranked last among 24 wealthy countries.

This is a national disgrace.

via Suffer the Little Children – NYTimes.com.

Filed under Coral Gables, Economy, Poverty

Consumers Cutting Credit Card Use

December 15, 2010 Leave a comment

Evidently, consumers are not taking on more debt and they are using cash rather than their credit cards.  This is not a good sign for business in Coral Gables and Miami.  Another reason for the city of Coral Gables to be just as conservatives as its taxpayers and consumers in managing their money. This is also bad news for big (too big to fail) banks.

Only 16.3 percent of consumers polled used credit cards over the Black Friday weekend this year, down from 30.9 percent last year and an all-time low, according to a survey by America’s Research Group and UBS.

Filed under Business and Commerce, Coral Gables, Economy

What They Got on the Tax Deal?

December 15, 2010 Leave a comment

I recommend the following post.  The analysis indicates that the Republicans got $246 billion of benefits and Obama and Co. got $106 billion.  Also, note that the payroll tax cuts mainly benefit middle and high income groups.  The poor are left out of this package.

Moderate GOP Stimulus: Re-examining the Who Got What Tax Deal Chart. « Rortybomb.

Filed under Economy

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