The New York Times – October 22, 2009

WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve announced Thursday that it would crack down on pay packages that encouraged bankers to take excessive risks, but officials acknowledged that the plan might not reduce the biggest paychecks on Wall Street.

Brendan Smialowski for The New York Times

The Federal Reserve chairman, Ben S. Bernanke, said some banks had “misaligned incentives.”

Multimedia

Video

Obama on Pay Limits at Banks (CNBC)

Video

Feinberg on Pay Cuts at Big Banks (CNBC)

Document Reader: Plan to Curb Banker Pay

Related

Pay Czar Doubts Cuts Will Make Bankers Leave (October 23, 2009)

Talking Business: Pay Cuts, but Little Headway in What Matters Most (October 23, 2009)

Times Topics: Executive Pay

The Fallout From Big Pay Cuts

While unlikely by itself to end the practice of lavish compensation, the Fed’s plan is one of the most far-reaching responses yet to last year’s financial crisis. It will subject executives, traders, deal makers and other employees of the biggest banks to regulatory scrutiny of their compensation and represent another increase in government intervention in the marketplace.

The announcement was choreographed to coincide with the decision by the Obama administration this week to cut the pay of many high earners at the seven companies that received the most taxpayer help. Both decisions were announced amid growing public outrage over large pay packages at many of those companies.

“Compensation practices at some banking organizations have led to misaligned incentives and excessive risk-taking, contributing to bank losses and financial instability,” said Ben S. Bernanke, the Fed chairman. “The Federal Reserve is working to ensure that compensation packages appropriately tie rewards to longer-term performance and do not create undue risk for the firm or the financial system.”

In one sense, the announcements by the Fed and the Treasury are a sharp departure from the hands-off approach to regulation that had dominated this city for decades. The abiding principle of both announcements was the same — companies that make a lot of money over a sustained period will be allowed to reward their executives handsomely, while those who put the economy, the financial system, shareholders and the taxpayer at risk may not.

But the effectiveness of the new policies — and whether they will curtail irresponsible business decisions designed to inflate bonuses — will ultimately be dictated by how the new rules are enforced. Even in Washington, there was skepticism about whether the government would be able to keep ahead of practices that have allowed top executives and others to reap huge financial rewards while their banking companies turned in poor or unsustainable performances.

The principles proposed by the Fed for the nation’s 28 largest banking companies are less strict than those from some European leaders and some members of Congress. They do not impose caps on pay or prohibit multimillion-dollar packages. One senior official predicted that they would do nothing to curtail the lucrative pay at firms like Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, both regulated by the Fed since becoming bank holding companies last year during the financial crisis.

Instead of pay limits, the Fed rules are intended to discourage pay packages that may encourage risky practices. The government wants to encourage pay packages that reward executives for long-term performance.

Officials acknowledged that it could be months before they would be able to tell whether the Fed’s changes would have the intended effect. Bank examiners will have to be trained on the ties between compensation and risk management. Moreover, compensation consultants have been adept at finding ways to get around pay restrictions.

The officials emphasized that the plan was not intended to make pay packages more socially equitable but was part of a broader effort by the Fed to shore up the stability of the banking system. That effort has included tighter supervision of lending and trading practices and higher requirements for capital held as a cushion against losses.

Even as the Fed was unveiling its plan, Kenneth R. Feinberg, the Treasury official in charge of overseeing pay practices at the companies that received the biggest government bailouts, was providing details about his decision to curb the compensation of the 25 top employees of each of those firms.

At those companies — which include Citigroup, Bank of America, the American International Group, General Motors and Chrysler — future bonus payments will be awarded only after senior executives set corporate performance goals in consultation with Treasury. The bonuses will have to be in the form of restricted stock that cannot be sold until the company repays the government. Executive perks of more than $25,000 for country clubs or corporate cars will need approval from Washington.

But, bowing to concerns that too heavy a hand could lead to a mass exodus of executives, both the Treasury and Fed policies will permit top earners to reap millions of dollars.

Mr. Feinberg said that all the companies had made unacceptable requests. In most cases, he restricted the cash salary to $500,000 and imposed new restraints on stock grants and bonuses tied to company performance over several years.

“I found that the numbers that were submitted by the companies were almost without exception to have been not in the public interest,” Mr. Feinberg said. “They were both too high and the wrong mix of stock and cash.”

Mr. Feinberg said he had made one significant exception to his policy of slashing compensation — for three senior executives at A.I.G. who had signed contracts long before his appointment for multimillion-dollar bonuses. And if Citigroup and Bank of America manage to heal, 22 of the top 34 earners could each wind up making more than $5 million over the next year.

The Fed’s plan, which will take effect some time after a 30-day comment period, will create a two-tier system of supervising pay, using different approaches for the nation’s 28 biggest institutions and the thousands of smaller banks, which would be subjected to a review with their regular bank examinations.

The money center bank holding companies, like JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, would have to present their compensation plans to bank regulators, who would then evaluate whether pay incentives properly balance goals of short-term growth and long-term stability. Bank regulators could demand changes, and would monitor pay practices as part of their regular examinations.

The plan would apply to senior executives and others, like loan officers and traders, whose individual or collective decisions could expose the firm to significant losses.

But the review, including discussions between regulators and the companies, would remain confidential, making it difficult for outsiders to glean any changes prompted by regulators

At Citigroup’s investment banking offices, traders shrugged off the pay rules imposed by Mr. Feinberg as affecting only a handful of the company’s 275,000 employees.

Eugene A. Ludwig, a former Comptroller of the Currency who runs a consulting firm that specializes in regulatory issues, said banking regulators had been reluctant to look at pay practices, thinking it is the province of management. Now, it is rising to the top of their agenda.

“That will change behavior,” he said.

I should probably wait more than a month before going back to check our progress. Because for all the money rushing out, it doesn’t feel like it’s going down a bit!

Right now, we’re at 389,117.17

Last month it was 391,582.87.

2465.70 down in a month. I guess it’s progress. Possibly I should add that this month, instead of 71.04 for our snowball, it was 551.04. (Which, ahem, might have been a little over optimistic this month. So give me props and … tell me I screwed up a little too.)

We also had our 4 year old’s birthday party, complete with a homemade dinosaur cake. I was going to post a photo, but the head fell off. There’s a reason I’m not a professional cake decorator. I still find it hard to budget for birthdays, and got into a whole argument with my husband, who went out shopping with the list, but spent almost all the money in the envelope. That was for groceries and the party (I combined two envelopes). But it was for groceries for the REST of the MONTH. He says he just got the stuff on the list, but I say you have to keep in mind the total amount and decide where to cut back as you shop. You can’t always have everything on the list. Especially if you ever shop at BJs. They kill me every time.  I think the bulk pricing can make things cheaper, but sometimes you just spend all your money there.

So, we’re pinching pennies big time here for the next 11 days or so.  Of course we have tons of stuff in our pantry, and the cars have gas, so it’s really a matter of making it through without spending extra. I’m not entirely sure we’ll make it. I’m always playing catchup from the last month, so I take away from things that are budgeted (because we need them, so my plan was GOOD to budget for them). Not sure where to take away from this month, there’s nothing left to cut.

Still, I got my social security statement on Friday, and I earned more last year than I’d actually ever earned in my life (and 5 months of last year I was working part-time). And my current pay stubs tell me that I’ve already earned more this year than last. So where does all that money GO?

Today is a very long awaited day for us.  My husband is receiving the second portion of his retention package!  So about a year ago, while his company was undergoing some changes, he was offered a monetary package for staying with the company another year.  We said sure, why not?  He got the first part of his package after staying 6 months, and today he received the 2nd half of his package. Each half was approximately $8k.

What did we do with the first package?  Well, if I break it down this is what happened to package #1.

• Trip to South America
• A nice piece of jewelry
• A down payment on a leased luxury car

I know.  What on earth were we thinking??  That was us back then.  Present day us is *hopefully* smarter than that.

I was looking forward to this second check because I wanted to get started in being avid savers again.  So what am I going to do with the money?  I’m dumping it all into ING to increase the size of our emergency fund.  That will hopefully put me at around $15k.    Having learned the hard way what not to do with retention packages/bonuses, I now know what the best things to do with bonuses would be.

1. Pay off non-mortgage debt.  Depending on what the interest rates are on your loans (and during these times they are most likely higher savings rates), I would pay off the highest rate loan you have first.
2. Contribute to your retirement accounts. Hopefully you are contributing the maximum into your 401k.  If not, get on it NOW.  The next best thing you can do is contribute to your Roth IRA accounts.  Max it out if you can.  Remember if you make over $166,000 as a married couple you are not eligible to contribute.  So if you are making under $166,000, make sure you contribute as much as you can especially if you expect to rise above the $166,000 cut off anytime soon.
3. Build your emergency fund. I don’t care if the economists say we are out of the recession now.  You can still lose your job, you can still get sick, you can still get in an accident and you can still lose a loved one.  Be prepared.
4. Invest. Now is a great time to invest.  If all your other areas (meaning retirement, emergency fund, etc.) have been getting enough attention, look into some stocks.  Now is a great time.
5. Charity. I’m a strong believer in karma.  If you are doing well right now, it’s a good idea to give back.

What I have learned NOT to do with my bonus:

• spend it on materialistic goods that don’t really offer much value (ie. luxury car, jewelry)
• spend it before I receive it (yes this is how we were able to plan the South America trip.  We anticipated the funding for it and went ahead on the trip before we got the money).
• spend every penny of it.

I think its a good idea to spend a little bit of your bonus just to celebrate or to reward yourself.  What I did with our last retention package was NOT smart.  This time around, I plan on saving most of it but have no problem going out to dinner with the husband for a nice quiet celebration.  We will of course be enjoying wine beforehand!

If you're cash-strapped, the simple act of walking into your boss's office and getting a raise could be just the thing you need to boost your finances in this shaky economy.

A Facebook fan who saw me giving career advice on the Tyra Banks Show had a question about whether to leave a well-liked job simply to earn more money elsewhere. My answer, simply put, is: NO. Here’s my advice for that person and others contemplating making a job or career switch solely to snag a higher paycheck.

If you’re working in a “dream job” in the career you planned for, I wouldn’t suggest job-hunting as your first course of action in order to become more financially stable. Plus, you’ve indicated that you’ve looked around at other jobs and don’t want to try any of them. Since you went to college for your current job, and are working in your chosen career, the best strategy is to try to maximize your pay and financial incentives at your present employer. You say the pay is “low” — and indeed your $23,900 a year paycheck falls below the average annual salary of $31,824, according to Sept. 2009 Labor Department statistics. So why not request a raise?

Get a raise by constantly documenting your work accomplishments to demonstrate your performance and what you offer to the organization. In other words, do not just walk into to your boss and say, “I want a raise,” or “I think deserve a raise.” Your boss won’t care that you’ve been doing good work, or that you’ve come to work every day on time. That’s not good enough. That’s a basic minimum level of expected performance. You have to show—in numerical terms—how you benefit the organization. If you saved the company X amount of dollars, if you created a new program that has generated a certain amount of income for the business, if you have been instrumental in training, if you have done hiring, if you have been a sales superstar or a technology whiz, whatever it is that you have done, document that. Then go ask for – and get – the raise you’re due.

Alternatively, why not try to get other fringe benefits and perks from your employer that could be valuable? I’m thinking of extra vacation days, a year-end bonus, or perhaps some freebies — like your employer paying for a host on things on your behalf: ranging from gym memberships to financially planning services to any student loans you may have. It doesn’t hurt to ask. The worst that can happen is that your employer says “No.” And then you’re in the same position. Ditto for asking for a raise.

You can read more about this on a related article I wrote titled, “How to Negotiate for a Raise – Even in a Bad Economy” by following this link – http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/2256855/how_to_negotiate_for_a_raise_even_in.html?cat=31

Does it seem sometimes like payments grow arms and legs and start running away from you- hiding and dodging you? Well they don’t. There’s always someone behind the curtain, and sometimes you need to pull it back and ask the question politely “Where’s my money?”

A little advice on how to deal with losers who lie & cheat their way out of paying you on time. Enjoy!

Every affiliate marketer is always looking for the successful market that gives the biggest paycheck. Sometimes they think it is a magic formula that is readily available for them. Actually, it is more complicated than that. It is just good marketing practices that have been proven over years of hard work and dedication.
There are tactics that have worked before with online marketing and is continuing to work in the online affiliate marketing world of today. With these top three marketing tips, you will be able to able to increase your sales and survive in the affiliate marketing online.

What are these three tactics?

1. Using unique web pages to promote each separate product you are marketing. Do not lump all of it together just to save some money on web hosting. It is best to have a site focusing on each and every product and nothing more.

Always include product reviews on the website so visitors will have an initial understanding on what the product can do to those who buys them. Also include testimonials from users who have already tried the product. Be sure that these customers are more than willing to allow you to use their names and photos on the site of the specific product you are marketing.

You can also write articles highlighting the uses of the product and include them on the website as an additional page. Make the pages attractive compelling and include calls to act on the information. Each headline should attract the readers to try and read more, even contact you. Highlight your special points. This will help your readers to learn what the page is about and will want to find out more.

2. Offer free reports to your readers. If possible position them at the very top side of your page so it they simply cannot be missed. Try to create autoresponder messages that will be mailed to those who input their personal information into your sign up box. According to research, a sale is closed usually on the seventh contact with a prospect.

Only two things can possibly happen with the web page alone: closed sale or the prospect leaving the page and never return again. By placing useful information into their inboxes at certain specified period, you will remind them of the product they thought they want later and will find out that the sale is closed. Be sure that the content is directed toward specific reasons to buy the product. Do not make it sound like a sales pitch.

Focus on important points like how your product can make life and things easier and more enjoyable. Include compelling subject lines in the email. As much as possible, avoid using the word “free” because there are still older spam filters that dumps those kind of contents into the junk before even anyone reading them first. Convince those who signed up for your free reports that they will be missing something big if they do not avail of your products and services.

3. Get the kind of traffic that is targeted to your product. Just think, if the person who visited your website has no interest whatsoever in what you are offering, they will be among those who move on and never come back. Write articles for publication in e-zines and e-reports. This way you can locate publications that is focusing on your target customers and what you have put up might just grab their interest.

Try to write a minimum of 2 articles per week, with at least 300-600 words in length. By continuously writing and maintaining these articles you can generate as many as 100 targeted readers to your site in a day.
Always remember that only 1 out of 100 people are likely to buy your product or get your services. If you can generate as much as 1,000 targeted hits for your website in a day, that means you can made 10 sales based on the average statistic.

The tactics given above does not really sound very difficult to do, if you think about it. It just requires a little time and an action plan on your part.

Try to use these tips for several affiliate marketing programs. You can end maintaining a good source of income and surviving in this business that not all marketers can do.
Besides, think of the huge paychecks you will be receiving…

By Mike Whitney

The slight rebound in housing looks a lot different when one considers how much the Fed is meddling in the market. Fed chair Ben Bernanke has purchased $240 billion in US Treasuries to keep long-term interest rates artificially low while–at the same time–buying $740 billion in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgage-backed securities (MBS) to provide the financing for new home buyers. It’s the double-whammy; and that’s not all. Bernanke plans to continue buying agency MBS (monetization) until he reaches $1.45 trillion, which will make Uncle Sam the biggest player in the housing market by far. How’s that for central planning?

Ironically, the funds for Bernanke’s housing market rescue plan were never approved by Congress, which means that the Fed committed nearly-$2 trillion with “no down” payment. That makes the Fed’s Treasury buyback program the biggest subprime loan of all time. 

   The fact is, all the recent gains in home sales are all the result of direct government intervention. If interest rates were allowed to rise (as the would naturally) or if  Congress withdrew its $8,000 first-time home-buyer subsidy, or if FHA tightened its loosey-goosey financing (which requires just 3.5% down payment and low FICO scores, the same as subprime!) home prices and sales would continue to drop at a 10 to 15 percent year-over-year rate. Housing has stopped plummeting for one reason alone; the Fed bought the market.

  The same rule applies to the stock market, where the Fed’s quantitative easing (QE) and liquidity injections have sparked a 6-month bear market rally sending equities to the moon. It’s all Fed intervention. A recent report by Egan-Jones Ratings And Analytics traces the Fed’s lavish liquidity handouts pointing out the precise sectors of the market that have been most effected:

  “Massive monetary stimulus is good for asset prices (stocks, bonds, houses, commodities) in a weak pricing environment and soft economy. The Federal Reserve has doubled its balance sheet from $1 Trillion to $2 Trillion effectively adding $1 Trillion to our economy. In addition, the Fed has through an alphabet soup of facilities i.e. Term Auction credit, Asset Backed Commercial Paper Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility, Term Asset Backed Securities Loan Facility, Primary Dealer and other Broker Dealer Credit, Other Credit Extensions, Term Facility, Maiden Lane LLC one, two and three, Money Market Investor Facility, added approximately $3 Trillion in loans and over $5.5 Trillion in guarantees of private investments. While these latter funds are technically loans, they get renewed regularly.

So where has all the money gone? The chart below shows the rise in the stock market causing the valuation to be somewhat extended in our view – some liquidity found a home here. Large rises in just the last month in small cap stocks, plus 17%; most shorted stocks, plus 17%; stocks with the lowest analyst rating out performing those with the highest rating by 380 basis points, all suggest some speculation……
Commodities have had a nice rebound from their lows with copper hitting new highs. High yield bonds have out performed investment rated bonds as investors are willing to bet on a faster recovery and start to reach for yield.
These are indications of excess liquidity finding outlets.” ( “Fundamentally…Disconnected”  Egan-Jones Ratings And Analytics, hat tip zero hedge.com)

Let’s summarize: The Fed is goosing the stock market and subsidizing the housing market. Bernanke has slashed interest rates to zero percent, underwritten the entire financial system with $12.8 trillion in loans and guarantees, and flooded the financial system with liquidity. The Fed has  also doubled its balance sheet to $2.08 trillion which is the equivalent of dropping the Fed Funds rate to -1 percent.  As Mark Gongloff of the Wall Street Journal opines, “The Fed is essentially paying people to borrow money.”

Indeed, the Fed has done its level-best to keep the market from correcting, but isn’t it a bit of a stretch to call it a “recovery”?

In truth,  Bernanke is in a pitch-battle with deflation and the outcome is still uncertain. Deflation has spread to every sector of the economy; retail, travel, luxury items, autos, building supplies, home furnishings, electronics. No business has been spared. The C.P.I. inflation-gauge has slipped into negative territory and is now at -2.1 percent. Prices are headed down and spending is falling fast. Unemployment is soaring, wages are dropping, and the average work-week has been sliced to just 33 hrs. And, as we noted, housing prices have flattened out, but only because of unprecedented government intervention into the market. Otherwise, real estate would still be stretched out on a marble slab.

  Most people think it should be easy to beat deflation. They think all the Fed has to do is flip a switch and print more money. But there’s more to it than that, especially when trillions of dollars in credit suddenly vanishes in a poof of smoke. That’s what happened last September when Lehman Bros imploded and reduced the financial system to rubble. Global stock markets crashed, interbank lending collapsed, capital flows stopped, and payrolls and inventories were slashed. The gigantic credit-purge thrust the economy into deflation, a condition which persists to this day.

 Economist Irving Fisher tackled the problem of deflation 76 years ago  in his masterpiece “Debt-Deflation Theory of the Great Depression”. Fisher showed how over-indebtedness eventually triggers a chain of events beginning with debt liquidation and ending in distress selling, huge capital losses, and violent economic contraction; the same challenge that Bernanke faces today.

Irving Fisher:

“Unless some counteracting cause comes along to prevent the fall in the price level, such a depression as that of 1929-33 tends to continue, going deeper, in a vicious spiral, for many years. There is then no tendency of the boat to stop tipping until it has capsized….

On the other hand, it is always economically possible to stop or prevent such a depression simply by reflating the price level up to the average level at which outstanding debts were contracted by existing debtors and assumed by existing creditors, and then maintaining that level unchanged.” (Irving Fisher)

Clearly,  Bernanke is following Fisher’s advice and doing everything in his power  to reflate asset prices and avoid a bigger crash. But it’s still too soon to tell whether his strategy will work. We’re still in the early innings of a humongous system wide credit-implosion event.  
 
 The term “deflation” relates to a drop in the general price level, something not seen in the United States since the Great Depression. As economist John Bellamy Foster points out,  deflation squeezes corporate profits even if costs and productivity remain the same.  When profits fall, heavy layoffs and wage reductions ensue.  

John Bellamy Foster:  “But the real fear of deflation has to do with the enormously bloated financial structure and the huge debt load of the economy…  In a deflationary economy,  debt has to be paid back with bigger dollars (worth more over time).  This then creates a debt-deflation spiral, enormously accelerating financial meltdown.  As Fisher put it, “deflation caused by the debt reacts on the debt.  Each dollar of debt still unpaid becomes a bigger dollar, and if the over-indebtedness with which we started was great enough, the liquidation of debt cannot keep up with the fall of prices which it causes.”  Stated differently, quoting from The Great Financial Crisis (p. 116), “prices fall as debtors sell assets to pay their debts, and as prices fall the remaining debts must be repaid in dollars more valuable than the ones borrowed, causing more defaults, leading to yet lower prices, and thus a deflationary spiral.” (Interview of John Bellamy Foster on the Great Financial Crisis, Monthly Review) http://www.monthlyreview.org/mrzine/foster270209.html

It is this “deflationary spiral” that Bernanke is trying to avoid at all cost, even if he destroys the currency in the process. (Which he appears to be doing) Despite the Fed chairman’s steely resolve, the economy has continued its historic nosedive. Consumer spending is falling and households are limiting themselves to the bare essentials. (US households lost $14 trillion in wealth in the last year alone.) Families everywhere are paring back their credit, paying down their debts and rebuilding their nest eggs with what’s left from their skimpy paychecks. Unfortunately, what’s good for the family balance sheet is poison for the economy.

From Bloomberg News: “U.S. consumer credit plunged more than five times as much as forecast in July as banks maintained more restrictive lending terms and job losses made households reluctant to borrow.

Consumer credit fell by a record $21.6 billion, or 10 percent at an annual rate, to $2.5 trillion, according to a Federal Reserve report released today in Washington. Credit dropped by $15.5 billion in June, more than previously estimated. Credit fell for a sixth month, the longest series of declines since 1991. (Bloomberg)

US households and consumers have never been as strapped as they are today. They’re dealing with recession the only way they can, by pulling back and hunkering down. That will make it even harder for Bernanke to resuscitate the economy. There’s simply no way to force people to borrow when they’re not interested.  

Bernanke’s deflation-fighting strategy needs to be revamped. The country doesn’t need another credit bubble. The surge in delinquencies, defaults and personal bankruptcies all suggest that the era of easy money and lax lending standards is over. Why not “hang it up” for good. The Fed should be focused on rebuilding the economy from the ground up, paying particular attention to aggregate demand. Demand is what keeps the mighty GDP-flywheel in motion. Wall Street likes to stimulate demand through credit expansion and bubblenomics so they can skim fat bonuses on the front end and then bail out before stocks crash. But this perennial “boom and bust” cycle get’s old for ordinary working people, who just want a little stability and a paycheck that keeps pace with inflation. The best way to avoid “demand shock”–which is at the heart of every recession–is through wage growth and full employment. It’s that simple. When workers get better pay, they buy more more stuff and the economy thrives. Everybody wins!

By Henry Makow

More than ever, women have a sense of frustration and betrayal because their “leaders” sold them on careers and “being independent.”

A new poll of nearly 4000 working women conducted by Women’s Day and AOL, found that a stunning 57% dream of quitting their jobs to stay home with their kids and 63% viewed their work as “just a paycheck.”

Two-thirds said they would “change what they do in a heartbeat.” Four-fifth would NOT want their daughters to follow in their footsteps. Nevertheless two-thirds are worried about losing their jobs and would work longer hours just to keep them. (Talk about a wage slave.)

In 1950, less than 30% of the workforce were women. Today that number approaches 50%. In 1956, 35% of all women worked. Today 60% or 72 million do. If the 1956 level had been maintained, 30 million American women would not be working today.

In spite of the obvious dissatisfaction of female working stiffs, their cultural caretakers are loath to admit that feminism was a trap. Their jobs depend on it. (More on this below) “Everyone hates to work,” they rationalize.

My mother had a business importing watchstraps in the 1950’s. My father asked her to give it up and concentrate on being a homemaker. He was able to support a young family on the salary of an engineer. My family reaped the benefit of a full-time mom.

The central banking cartel, led by the Rockefeller Foundation, decided to double the labor force (lowering wages) and break up the family by convincing women they ought to have careers and sex instead of husbands and children. Feminism was the vehicle for this social engineering backed by propaganda disguised as “women’s lib.” Gender division is part of a pattern of Illuminati subversion, which also includes inciting race, class, religious and national divisions.

Their goal in attacking marriage/family is to remove us from the sources of our humanity and identity. Men and women were willing to sacrifice. They were willing to play roles which were noble and in tune with human nature. Now people are divorced from these roles and are lost. The bankers can control us better this way.

Occasionally a truly independent woman discovers these truths and is able to convey them. Recently Katie Rolphie wrote of the hedonistic pleasure of motherhood…the all-consuming love that threatens “everything you are and care about” — which, in Roiphe’s case, is her writing career. Suddenly, she doesn’t want to go back to work; being with her newborn feels far more important and rewarding. “Taking care of the baby — physical, draining, exhilarating — is more like farming: following the rhythms of the earth, getting up at dawn, watching the corn flush in the sunrise. It is not at all like writing.”

SUBVERSION FROM THE TOP-THE NEW TEMPLATE

Wednesday, an article in the Huffington Post explained how the Fed has taken over the field of Economics. As a result there are few independent voices capable of criticizing the Fed (i.e. the central bankers) and avoiding the credit catastrophe of last Fall. As you read the first few paragraphs, understand that this is a template for what has happened in every sector of society, every profession, every organization, including government, media and education. This is how they sold feminism. They control the money. They control everything through the people they buy off. This is the model of our enslavement.

“The Federal Reserve, through its extensive network of consultants, visiting scholars, alumni and staff economists, so thoroughly dominates the field of economics that real criticism of the central bank has become a career liability for members of the profession, an investigation by the Huffington Post has found.

This dominance helps explain how, even after the Fed failed to foresee the greatest economic collapse since the Great Depression, the central bank has largely escaped criticism from academic economists. In the Fed’s thrall, the economists missed it, too.

“The Fed has a lock on the economics world,” says Joshua Rosner, a Wall Street analyst who correctly called the meltdown. “There is no room for other views, which I guess is why economists got it so wrong.”

One critical way the Fed exerts control on academic economists is through its relationships with the field’s gatekeepers. For instance, at the Journal of Monetary Economics, a must-publish venue for rising economists, more than half of the editorial board members are currently on the Fed payroll — and the rest have been in the past.”

CONCLUSION

It’s remarkable that this article appeared. As the oppression administered by the central bankers increases, more of their dupes will get wise. Their ranks will be swelled by millions of women (and men) deprived of their natural role and birthright. There will be a great division in society between the central bankers with their legions of lackeys, and humanity as a whole.

Feminism is one of countless hoaxes by Illuminati central bankers designed to enslave humanity by creating wars, plagues, and depressions while generally degrading and demoralizing mankind. The world wars, the cold war, 9-11, the war on terror were all engineered by them. They belong to a satanic cult, the Sabbateans, and their influence is now pervasive and overwhelming. We need to wake up before it is too late.

For in-depth commentary on how John Paul Mitchell feels about this article, working women, and the economy, please visit and read , “Before I Lose All The Women’s Votes.“

(Source: Henry Makow)

Terry Goddard continues to make a mockery of Arizona state laws

Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard and State Representative Kyrsten Sinema continue to make a mockery of Arizona’s laws according to Arizona Republican Party Chairman Randy Pullen. Reacting to a news conference in which the Chairman announced that the AZGOP was requesting Attorney General Goddard to investigate possible “resign-to-run” violations, the Attorney General and Kyrsten Sinema persisted with their dismissive attitude towards Arizona’s “resign to run” law by characterizing the request as a “frivolous political stunt” and “typographical error.”

Chairman Pullen yesterday requested Attorney General Goddard to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate his announcement of his intention to run for Governor of Arizona at a monthly meeting of the Grand Democrats in May and Kyrsten Sinema’s public declaration in December of 2008 on her Facebook account.

“The reactions of Attorney General Goddard and Kyrsten Sinema are certainly not surprising, as neither want to give up their public paychecks,” said Chairman Randy Pullen. “Calling for an investigation into possible violations of Arizona’s ‘resign to run’ law by two of the state’s leading Democrats is certainly not frivolous. Thumbing their nose at the very statues they write or enforce shows either ambivalence or ignorance. Either way, it is a serious problem.”

“I find it troubling that a spokesperson for the top law enforcement official in the state and aspiring governor would characterize an official complaint of wrong doing as frivolous! I had hoped and expected for a more professional approach to these serious charges.”

“People making a mistake and promptly correcting it is certainly understandable, but for Ms. Sinema to characterize her Facebook announcement as a ‘typographical error’ is ludicrous,” continued the Chairman. “She clearly made the statement she was running for Senate in 2010 in December of last year, and after 6 months deleted it only after an Internet blogger took her to task. The only thing left for her to do is to file her nominating papers and buy yard signs. She obviously needs to resign and focus on her announced campaign for Senate.”

“It is a shame that these two Democrats are still displaying this cavalier attitude towards these charges,” said the Chairman. “Rather than making excuses, Mr. Goddard should immediately name a special prosecutor and get to the bottom of this. If he and Kyrsten Sinema expect Arizonans to abide by the laws they enact and are responsible for enforcing, so should they, even if they feel the laws are frivolous and don’t apply to them.”

Commentary: As a candidate for Arizona Governor in the 2010 election, I will call out Terry Goddard if he refuses to give up his Attorney General position with candidate committee paperwork filed with the Secretary of State. Even our current Attorney General and a long-time politician must abide by the laws of the state.

(Source: AZGOP)

Ah, the glory days.

When men were boys, women were girls, and fun was endless. Before work consumed our daily lives, and paychecks werent our sole source of motivation. Back when grass stains were testaments of hard work, and a clean outfit meant you werent giving it your all.

Source:
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/235683-top-11-things-we-remember-about-peewee-sports

Well, can you believe it? It is Friday again. Time is certainly flying. And payday again today…although I have no idea where the money goes. I added my paycheck into my account…wow, I have that much money? YOOHOO!! Then I started paying bills…and by the time I was done I went WTF? How am I supposed to live on that until August 31st? Well, it isn’t quite that bad but I can tell you that the lenders with their hands out came out ahead of me. Guess, that’s life.

I should have enough left over to buy groceries, gas, my neice’s birthday present, my nephew’s UNbirthday present, and I was able to start Christmas shopping. What more can I ask for? Guess I’m doing okay but never ceases to amaze me how quickly the money comes…and goes.

So, last night I did go to the gym and run. Got in 3 miles but was a little slower than usual. Started having some pain in my left foot and leg. I wasn’t alarmed.  I’ve had this before and I knew exactly what it meant…time for new running shoes. DANG!! And I hadn’t factored that into the budget. Of course, the last pair I bought was in March so you would think I would have been prepared.  I wasn’t but I sucked it up today and got them…had to use plastic (which sucks) but gotta have them. It will make a HUGE difference in how well I run and how I feel during/after my runs.  And I can pay them off in a few weeks so it will be okay.

Still bites that I didn’t prepare for this expense.  So I marked my calendar for the 3-month mark (Nov. 15th) and will try to be better prepared. Of course, they told me today at Sears (where I was having a flat fixed) that I will need new tires very soon so that may eat up shoe money and then some.  But we’ll see.  I’ll figure it out as I go.  Wish I could get paid for writing my blog…lol.

I did sign up for another run today. The Ray Tanner Foundation Home Run in Columbia. It will be on Saturday, October 17th and is a 12k. Kind of excited to see how I do with that. But downtown Columbia can be quite hilly so probably need to factor that into my training so I’m prepared. And I found out that there is a Half-Marathon/Marathon in Charleston in January.  It is new and sounded pretty cool .  They’re serving shrimp and grits at the finish line.  I’ve added the half-marathon to my calendar for now but not sure I can fit it in but will see how I progress over the next few months. 

Overall, I think we’ve had a successful week. I stayed on course with my plans for the week. Will have my long run tomorrow (5-6 miles) and should have about 15 miles for the week. And my blog turned 2-weeks old this week. And wonder of wonders, I’ve posted a post all but one day (a Sunday) but have put an update on my Ponder This (Daily Thought) page every day without fail.  This is a huge improvement over my last blog…which had two posts in about six months.  But it didn’t really have a point or readers.  This one at least has a purpose and is way cooler because I can have different pages…

And the best news is that I think I actually have a few readers. I had over 100 views yesterday. Now, reality is that I probably have two or three friends that are checking my blog every few minutes…anticipating the next words of wisdom to flow from my fingertips… but still I got excited when I saw that I had 109 views yesterday.  And I’ve gotten a few comments from people I don’t know…other than by reading their blogs.  So, this is turning into a pretty cool experience.  I’m learning from it and enjoying it.  I hope you are too.

And if you are reading the blog, please leave a note.  Would love to hear from you.  Hope you are looking forward to the weekend.  And no matter what you do…have FUN!!  Remember, this is not a dress rehearsal.  This is the only ride you get…ENJOY it!!  Until next time…I’m enjoying the Ride!!  Be safe, be well, be happy!!

The unemployment rate dropped for the first time in 15 months, during July.

This is a strong signal that the worst recession since World War II is finally ending! A total of 247,000 jobs were lost in July compared to the 443,000 jobs that disappeared in June. The unemployment rate for July declined to 9.4 percent from 9.5 percent in June.

When the economy is healthy, employers need to add a net total of around 125,000 jobs a month just to keep the unemployment rate stable. Economists say it might take until 2013 to drive down the unemployment rate to 5 percent. The job cuts made in July were the fewest since August 2008.

The new figures were better than many analysts were expecting, and they signaled improvements to an economy that has been clobbered by the recession. Analysts had been forecasting that job losses would amount to around 320,000 and that the unemployment rate would tick up to 9.6 percent.

Stocks surged after the report was released. In midmorning trading, the Dow Jones industrial average jumped 152 points, or 1.6 percent, and other stock averages also gained more than 1 percent.

The Fed recently observed that the economy is finally showing signs of stabilizing in some regions of the country — especially in parts of the Northeast and Midwest — bolstering hopes of a broader-based recovery this year.

Source: The Atlanta Journal Constitution

Inspector Charles Sampson allows one of the summer youth to assist in the price check.

Recently, the communications team was given the opportunity to step outside of the office and see what the folks over in Weights and Measures do on a daily basis. We loaded up the cars and drove to the newly renovated section of Columbia Heights. There, we went to Target and did a price-check. Price-checking is necessary because it ensures that customers are not being ripped off. The point is to pick up 85 random items and make sure that the figures in the computer correspond with the sales tickets/stickers that the consumer sees. It’s easy to be ripped off these days because not many people take the time to make sure that the receipt and the price tag have the same value.

Another thing that causes people to be cheated out of their money is total trust in computers. Inspector Charles Sampson said, “People tend to forget that OTHER people program computers, therefore there are bound to be mistakes.” DCRA only handles overages meaning that the companies only get reprimanded if they advertise that their products are cheaper than what they really are. Luckily for Target, when we made our visit, there were no discrepancies because fines can go up to $100 PER (wrongly priced) item.

After leaving Target we met up with another inspector, Lawrence Taylor, at Giant to see how they test scales. Mr. Taylor goes to the stores with his own weights to make sure that the scale is not faulty in its reading. After moving the weights to each quarter of the scale Mr. Taylor marks the scale with either a green sticker (certified) or a red sticker (uncertified). Removal of the sticker by anyone other than an inspector or someone working on the scale can result in a $500 fine.

Inspections such as these were thought to be unnecessary by some around the time that computers became more widely used, but it’s always important to have a real person monitoring the computers. Inspector Sampson says “it’s very rare that a store won’t have any errors.” DCRA definitely does a good service to the people of the District by making sure that they aren’t being taking advantage when they go shopping.

Summer youth, Kenneth Allen and Duane Bumbray assisted in the inspections.

–Darion Parker

Some people enjoy bringing $10 or so every single day to pick up, order, or take out a lunch. Partially because the food is good, or maybe they’re just too lazy to make their own lunch at home.  As growing teens and young adults, our bodies deserve a nutritional meal more often.  It isn’t like you have to make a Caesar salad with light dressing and gourmet croutons early in the morning, but there are surely alternatives to the meals we limit ourselves to.

So, what is a good lunch to bring to work? Well, there are plenty of yummy, healthier options that can easily be made right at home. Take, for example, the classic peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  You can use different types of flavors and breads, or you could make a nice deli sandwich or sub; just meat, lettuce, bread, and whichever cheeses and spreads you would prefer. You can also make salads, leftover dinners, or even bring in a frozen entree.

Grocery stores and supermarkets are filled with options. It just depends on how creative and involved you want to become when making your lunch. Youth employee Sardera Thorne says that she usually brings in leftovers that she cooks herself.  When asked what her ideal lunch would be, she said, “Soup.” Everyone has their own preferences.  Jazmine Singletary, another youth employee, likes both going out to eat and bringing in a lunch. When she has brought them in, she says she eats “frozen dinners and what her mother makes,” but she really prefers going out to buy lunch during the day. Her ideal meal would be chicken.

Looking at it from another prospective, my mother, DCRA Employee Cheryl Randall-Thomas, says she “prefers bringing in lunch because I don’t like how much it ends up costing,” which makes a lot of sense in today’s economy. She stated that “When you bring lunch, you know exactly what you’re eating (wholesome, not greasy, good amounts of food, etc.)” Her ideal lunch would be soup and salad, and she usually makes the lunch herself. Mrs. Randall-Thomas believes it is better to bring in a lunch from home because she has noticed that you can get more out of bought groceries over a week’s span than one day’s meal however, she still enjoys a hot prepared meal every once in a while.  Another Summer Youth employee, Jeremy Bennett, says that he usually goes out to eat somewhere everyday. His ideal lunch would be Chinese food. “As far as finances go, it would be better to bring lunch,” Bennett says about whether or not bringing in lunch is better than buying a lunch. It all just depends on how you are feeling a particular day, or even how your personal finances are measuring up.

Also, choose foods that won’t drag your day down or stuff you. It’s better to eat a single heave or main item with snacks on the side than a few heavy items or all snacks. There are also plenty of options for drinks to bring – sodas, juice, coffee, etc. After asking the opinions of some of the other summer youth employees, it seemed as if bringing lunch is the best way to go. Once you realize how much better bringing in lunch is, you’ll begin thinking of more meal ideas, and someone else may even envy your lunch!

-Lesley Thomas

The summer youth have been working hard! Just recently they were given

Van Crawford

their first paychecks of about $30 for their attendance at the orientation into the summer program. The thought of money being given to the youth for their work pleased many of them. With the sensational feeling of being paid, many youth have thought of many different ways to start spending their money.

For most of the youth, their first thoughts were to use their debit cards on their lunch. The enjoyment of being able to buy anything for yourself, and especially something that you need or really want, has given these workers a great incentive to keep working. Although, with the limited amount of money in the first paycheck, the youth had to be careful not to get crazy with their spending.

Some youth say that they would rather just put their money aside and save it. Youth supervisor, Dajah Blackwell, has made the decision to save her money. She says she would much rather spend her money when she’ll need it when she goes back to school, at Virginia State University. On the flip side, splurging has definitely become popular with the recent paycheck. Summer youth, Darion Parker, has used his money for transportation purposes, food, and anything else he can afford. Summer Youth, Kristin Cousins, has a different outlook on the use of her money. She has given some money away, to help fund a trip to King’s Dominion with her school.

When it comes to money, there are no rules or guidelines on how to best use it, the best advice is just to use common sense. Since there are so many possibilities on what to do with money, confusion arises on what to buy; and just as the old cliché says, “The more money, the more problems.” The summer youth have definitely worked hard for it though. They are already anticipating their next payday; some are even already planning their next purchase.

–Van Crawford

Payday loans are a horrible way to obtain cash in hand.

If you’ve never taken out a payday loan, great. Please never do. If you have, please don’t ever do it again. If you absolutely need to borrow a small amount of cash, turn to your friends, family or employer, but don’t get a payday loan.

What is a Payday loan?
Payday loans are short-term loans made by financial “institutions” designed to tide people over until they get their next paycheck.

Say a cash-strapped person needs money for gas, a utility bill, car repair, to help cover rent or some emergency or other reason before their next paycheck comes in from their employer. To make ends meet until payday, they go to a “payday lender” who verifies that the borrower has a legitimate job with regular pay, and that they have a bank checking account. The customer then gets an immediate $300 or $500 cash “loan” in exchange for writing a post-dated check for that amount, or authorizing a one-time automatic withdrawal. But instead of getting that full amount in cash, the payday lender will deduct its fees from the amount borrowed, typically between $45 to $55. So, on a $300 loan, the borrower actually receives $255.

Fees rival that of loan sharks
The payday lenders fee, or interest, amounts to about 400% per year, some annualize to nearly 800%. These rates are worse than what most loan sharks charge. If the borrowers check then bounces, or they go back to the payday lender to ask for an extension of their loan, they pay another $45 fee (not to mention an insufficient funds fee to their bank if the payday lender had attempted to cash the check). In the end, some borrowers wind up paying more in fees than the total amount they borrowed. For example, if they get stuck in this vicious cycle they could end up paying $500 in interest for a $300 loan, while still owing the original $300 in principal.

Every year payday lending costs Americans $4.2 billion in “excessive fees,” according to the Center for Responsible Lending.

Congress, states seeks rate caps
Congress, through a bill introduced in the House and the Senate, is attempting to pass legislation that would put a 36 percent cap on annual interest rates for consumer credit. The cap would save $5 billion in abusive fees stripped from working families at no cost to taxpayers. While waiting for federal legislation, 15 states and the District of Columbia has already outlawed triple digit interest rates.

Why borrowers obtain payday loans
Payday loan borrowers resort to these loans for various reasons, but very few do so because it is the only option available to them, according to a February 2009 survey by the Center for American Progress. In the survey, borrowers cite convenience and emergencies as the largest reasons.

Source: Center for American Progress, Feb. 2009 study

The FDIC has stated that providing high-cost, short-time credit on a recurring basis to customers with long-term credit needs is not responsible lending.”

Payday loan industry is a $40 billion business made up of 23,000 lenders, such as Check Into Cash.

$40 billion industry
The payday lending industry has about 23,000 lenders, such as Check ‘n Go, Advance America, Cash America and Check Into Cash, where a typical borrower takes out between eight to 12 loans each year.

Payday loan borrowers have little financial wealth

People who withdraw a payday loan tend to have a lower income, net worth and asset level than people who do not withdraw payday loans. These borrowers also are less likely to be a homeowner or a self-identified saver and were more likely to have previously been delinquent on a loan or have had a loan application denied.

Because payday loans are practically synonymous with high fees, hovering around 400 percent, the use of these types of loans may impede the wealth achievement for many borrowers who already have less wealth to begin with.

So please heed my advice: Don’t do business with payday lenders and subject yourself to their shenanigans.

Zero Debt: The Ultimate Guide to Financial Freedom

For more financial advice, get a copy of my bookZero Debt: The Ultimate Guide to Financial Freedom.

The Summer youth are pretty pleased about getting their first paycheck recently. The check was for about two days pay. This should give us all motivation to keep working hard. With each payday, the youth employees will understand how nice it feels to earn a reward or compensation for the work they do. But, with that, everyone needs to be aware of the importance of not spending it all as quickly as it comes. So, spend your money wisely and keep note that the money comes from the work you display on the job.

Many people find that the more money you have, the more they are tempted to spend. Being a teenager, it’s easy to spend and spend when there is a good amount to take from, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it is a good idea to go that far. There are still lessons that we as teens and young adults have to learn about proper spending. You would be in a much better position if you have money saved to always fall back on. There are plenty of other tips and techniques on how to spend your pay wisely because people know how important it is and how smart it is to be careful and save your money. As Summer Youth employees, we are on the pathway to the real business world. So, practicing good spending habits now will help a lot in how we handle our money in the future.

TIPS TO HIGHLIGHT:

• Remember to save – don’t spend it all in one day
• Be aware of how much you have
• It may be a good idea to keep your receipts from what you spend (especially if using debit cards)
• When going to an ATM, be aware of your surroundings, of how much it is charging you, and choose an easy PIN number for only you to remember
• It is smart to have a little bit of cash on you always just in case, so if you know you’re down to your last bit, save it. More money will come on your next paycheck!

–Lesley Thomas

This year the summer youth program coordinators took a new approach with paying summer youth. Every two weeks, youth will receive their earnings on debit cards. Using debit cards allows the youth the opportunity to spend money in more places. What is a debit card? A debit card provides an alternative payment method to cash when making purchases. Some people refer to debit cards as check cards because they work the same as checks. The money is withdrawn directly from the bank account.

How do you use a debit card? A debit card is used inside businesses or at an atm. Debit cards can be used with a PIN number or can also be used with only a signature while making purchases. Debit cards can be used typically in the same businesses that accept credit cards. When using your debit card while making purchases, present your card to a qualified merchant or provider. They will swipe your card to pay for your belongings.  Debit cards have become extremely important and convenient.  They cut down on spending extra time at ATM’s or writing checks.

Using a debit card requires one to be responsible and to keep track of how much money has been spent. It is important that you check your account to be aware of how much money has been spent and how much is remaining in your account.  It is also a good idea to write down each transaction so that you have a written record of your purchases.  Also, pay close attention when your card is being swiped so you can be sure that you are not overcharged.

For extra tips on how to use your debit card check out these websites:

• Kiplinger’s “Money Smart Kids”
• Money Talks

–Dajah Blackwell

People, who said they were former Bank of America employees, alleged that their supervisors drove them to burden consumers with needless debt and fees, to fatten the bank’s earnings and the paychecks of senior executives, and threatened to retaliate if they complained.

Some complained their salaries had been too low and that they had to hit quotas.

Source:
http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSTRE55T5E420090630?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews&rpc=69