Category Archives: Business/Economics

Business/Economics, U.S.

Exceptional Failed State: U.S. job losses & store closings 09 August 2013. Democracy NOW! going down? Utility bills too high for corporations! Pets suffer! New York hit hard! Investors killing more jobs!

Incomplete list of announced closings and layoffs:

California: What housing market recovery? In Fresno, roofing materials maker, GAF Materials Corporation, laid off six people.  In Chatsworth, Too Big to Jail JP Morgan Chase laying off 300 employees!  It’s part of the bank’s plan to layoff 15-thousand people across the country!  The evil bank officials admitted that the home mortgage disaster has reached a point where it’s not worth it for banks to continue stealing people’s homes, so they’ll take it out on their employees.  In San Diego, video game company Trion World closing.  They’re consolidating ops to their HQ in Redwood City.  The company has laid off dozens and dozens of employees since last December. Company officials said the layoffs were necessary to make lenders/investors happy!

Connecticut: The bad economy hitting even lawyers that make money from lawsuits.  A major law firm, Day Pitney, laying off as many as 40 employees.

Florida: Law firm, Boyd & Jenerette, closing their Miami office.  The office was in operations for only two years, and had lost 14 attorneys during that time.

Georgia: In Cornelia, 31 years old Gusben’s restaurant closed. The co-owner Jeff Hames said “I’d like to have more time off, spend more time with family.”

Illinois:  Navistar International laying off 140 contract employees! The semi-truck maker has already laid off hundreds of people.  Company officials gave a conflicting explanation, saying they were not “doing more with less” but then admitted they are pushing to increase “employee effectiveness”.  In Hinsdale, Italian restaurant Firenze closed.  The owners are switching to carry out only.

Michigan: The entertainment riverboat operation, Chesaning Showboat, now bankrupt.  According to the Chapter 7 filing, the company’s debt far exceeds its worth.

Minnesota: In Minneapolis, the 105 years old Falls Hardware shut down.  The owner said he was trying to sell the store so he could retire, but nobody wanted to buy it.

Missouri: Electronic transmitter maker, Process Controls International, now bankrupt.  Chapter 11 documents show the company owes as much as $10 million USD, yet has maybe $1 million in assets.  Last year the company was sued by another electronics company that alleges Process Controls stole one of their designs.

New Hampshire: In Nashua, the Main Street Bakery closed after less than one year of ops.  The owners blamed the bad economy.

New York: In Mahopac, non-profit NYSARC shut down its Putnam County Chapter Preschool Program, 47 employees laid off.  NYSARC is considered the largest non-profit helping disabled people.  The official WARN blamed “economic” reasons.  In NYC, WBAI radio announced massive layoffs.  All their news staff and most talk show hosts were let go, 75% of employees! WBAI is the birthplace of Pacifica Radio’s Democracy NOW!  WBAI is struggling to pay the rent for its transmitter atop the Empire State building.  Skin cancer treatment company, MELA Sciences, laying off 25% of employees after losing $7.4 million in its 2nd quarter of 2013.  In its 2nd quarter 2012 they lost $5.5 million.  In Soho, Cafe Cafe closed.  The restaurant had a 20 year lease, but the greedy property owner ended it four years early (read the small print on those lease contracts).  In Albany, Phillips Hardware closed. The family owners are shifting their money making to real estate acquisition.

North Carolina: Bus maker, DesignLine USA, laid off about 250 employees!  The troubled company ceased ops because they could not find any U.S. bank to give them loans for daily operations.  The company originated in the British empire country of New Zealand.

Ohio: Bankrupt aluminum smelter, Ormet, laying off 200+ employees at their Hannibal factory! The company cannot pay their utility bills, and has been asking for financial help.  Another 700 employees could lose their jobs!

Pennsylvania: In Elizabeth Township, the 38 years old Fallen Timber Animal Shelter shut down. Operators said they were financially forced to consolidate ops.

Virginia: In Middletown, the Wayside Theatre (note British empire spelling) closed after more than 50 years of playacting.  Despite raising tens of thousand of dollars in donations the board of directors said financial problems were overpowering.  What is suspicious is that the last fund raising efforts raised enough money for a year of ops, but the board of directors shut the live action theater down just a few months later.  A major sponsor of the theater, Royal Oak Computers, says they cannot get an explanation from the theater’s board of directors.  Perhaps the Board of Directors were the best actors in the theater company?  In Virginia Beach, California based boat and fishing store West Marine is consolidating retail ops. 34 employees affected. Company officials said it’s part of their plans to shut down smaller stores across the U.S.

The U.S. Department of Labor (DoL) doesn’t count the hundreds of layoffs involving less than 50 people each, in its mass layoff reports. It also doesn’t count all the little ‘mom & pop’ businesses that shut down.

Business/Economics, Idaho, U.S.

More Economic Decline: Idaho’s Coldwater Creek up for sale! Looking for “Strategic Alternatives”! 30% drop in stock prices! Loses $22 million!

22 October 2013 (12:28 UTC-07 Tango)/17 Dhu’l-Hijja 1434/30 Mehr 1391/18 Ren-Xu (9th month) 4711

Failing women’s clothing retailer, Coldwater Creek, is now finally up for sale as part of the company’s efforts to explore strategic alternatives.  Company officials clarified that just ’cause Coldwater Creek is up for sale doesn’t mean it will be sold.  The Board of Directors are just trying to make their greedy and impatient investors happy: “As a result of an increasingly challenging retail environment, we are continuing to take the necessary steps towards improving our financial position as well as our long-term prospects as a more competitive and successful company. In that regard, we will continue to concentrate on maximizing shareholder value…..”-Jill Dean, President & CEO

Apparently the announcement was not good enough for said investors, as the very next day the price of Coldwater Creek stocks dropped by 30%!  (on 15 October stocks were trading for 88 cents)

In September, Coldwater Creek reported yet another quarterly crash in sales.  A net loss of $22.1 million USD!  Compare that to the same time last year, when they lost $18.8 million.

The company shouldn’t be put up for sale, it should be put out of its misery!

 

 

Business/Economics, Technology, U.S.

Exceptional Failed State: More proof Obama Care website is False Flag op to steal your data & money! “Navigator” has warrant for her arrest!

21 October 2013 (13:56 UTC-07 Tango)/16 Dhu’l-Hijja 1434/29 Mehr 1391/17 Ren-Xu (9th month) 4711

“Don’t believe all the status and error messages that you see on the screen.”–Ben Simo, software tester quoted by Consumer Reports

In Kansas, it turns out that one of the Obama Care navigators (person who’s supposed to help people get through the healthcare.gov mess) is a wanted woman, by police!  The Obama Care navigator is wanted for arrest over an unpaid $5-thousand plus hospital bill (this also proves that in some states you can go to prison for not paying your debts).  She also has a past civil charge for using bad checks. State health care officials said her arrest warrant never showed up on the background check.

Kansas State Senator, Mary Pilcher-Cook, has also accused the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services of making your medical and financial data available to anybody: “…..has failed to protect the security and privacy of Kansas citizens in the consumer outreach programs that use navigators or assisters. This work involves access to sensitive financial and health information and it is critical Kansas citizens be protected from fraud and identity theft.”  

“You’ve just told everybody where the gold is and you’ve left it unsecured. So it will come as no shock that this will be stolen.”-Morgan Wright, security analyst

“You have no reasonable expectation of privacy regarding any communication or data transiting or stored on this information system.”–hidden script on Terms & Conditions page of healthcare.gov

In Minnesota, an Obama Care employee ‘accidentally’ sent the personal data of more than 2-thousand people to an insurance agent.  The honest insurance agent reported it: “The more I thought about it, the more troubled I was. What if this had fallen into the wrong hands? It’s scary. If this is happening now, how can clients of MNsure be confident their data is safe?”-Jim Koester

Business/Economics, Idaho, U.S.

Exceptional Failed State: U.S. job losses & store closings 08 August 2013. Evil banks give up on stealing people’s homes, turn to laying off their own employees! More proof the layoffs will continue for years to come! More proof Obama Care is trying to kill you!

Incomplete list of announced closings and layoffs:

AOL (American On [Off ?] Line) announced more layoffs, this time as many as 500 Patch Editors!

The biggest dairy producer in the United States, Texas based Dean Foods, announced they are closing as many as 12 dairies by mid 2014.  They blame increased competition and declining sales, but that sounds far fetched for a company accused of being a monopoly!   Dean Foods also operations in Belgium, France, United Kingdom and Netherlands.  Dean Foods was taken over by Suiza Foods (the original Suiza Dairy is in Puerto Rico).  Suiza then changed their name to Dean Foods and began taking over dairies throughout the United States.  In 2010 the attorney generals of Wisconsin and Michigan charged Dean Foods with creating a monopoly.  In 2011 a law suit accused Dean Foods of falsifying ingredients on Horizon milk labeled as organic.  In 2012, it was revealed that Dean Foods was behind a California proposition that would have allowed companies to avoid disclosing to consumers if their food products contained GMO ingredients.  Reports say Dean Foods owns operations in the following U.S. states: Alabama, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, North Dakota, South Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin.  Suiza/Dean Foods’ biggest client is Walmart.

Colorado: Legal drug pusher, Array Biopharma, laid off about 50 people.  It’s because a deal with Amgen, to market their new drug to treat type 2 diabetes, fell through.  Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains closed two health centers.  Officials blame it on ten years of no public funding.

Florida: The Florida Virtual School laid off 802 online teachers!!!  It’s blamed on a 32% decline in student enrollment, compared to last year.  I’ve asked this before; where are all the students going? (leaving the country?)

Indiana: Purdue University laid off seven faculty members at its Calumet campus.  12 teachers were forced to retire early.  Four assistant professors have been warned that this school year is their last year of employment.  Two assistant professors were told that they will be laid off in 2015.  School officials blamed a crash in students signing up for core classes, which is a sign that people are realizing that higher education does not result in finding good paying jobs that can help them payoff their student loans.

Missouri: In Affton, Red Racks Thrift Store closed down.  The owner would not respond to questions from local news media.

New York: In DeWitt, the privately funded Manlius Pebble Hill school laid off 12 employees.  According to reports, school officials intentionally decided to reduce student enrollment by 40, thus justifying the layoffs.

North Carolina: WakeMed closed down two nursing homes. 99 jobs lost.  Another 14 jobs are being outsourced.  Company officials stated they’ve always relied on Medicare payments, never making a profit, but now Obama Care is the straw that’s breaking their back: “We have always lost money in the tens of millions, and it has gotten worse over time, these other financial cuts to the healthcare environment and the healthcare reimbursement structure right now, we can no longer afford to sustain those kinds of losses.”-Elaine Rohlik

Ohio: FirstEnergy laid off 250 people!  The electric power company is also reducing health care benefits to employees.  The company is changing its retirement program for employees.  Company officials blame it on increasing government environmental regulations, and declining revenues.

Oregon: In Coos Bay, a couple of weeks after Sears Holdings announced they will close the Kmart, local news media revealed the store was averaging $4 million USD in sales every year.  At the end of July, greedy Sears Holdings officials had stated they were closing the store because it was not making enough money!

Pennsylvania: In Upper Saint Clair, Too Big to Jail Bank of America laid off 209 employees!  The evil bank officials admitted that the home mortgage disaster has reached a point where it’s not worth it for banks to continue stealing people’s homes!

South Carolina: Too Big to Jail JP Morgan Chase laying off 450 people between now and mid 2014.  The evil bank officials admitted that the home mortgage disaster has reached a point where it’s not worth it for banks to continue stealing people’s homes!

Tennessee: In Nashville, public relations company, Katcher Vaughn & Bailey, ceased to exist.  The problem was that most of their clients are in the failing health care industry.

The U.S. Department of Labor (DoL) doesn’t count the hundreds of layoffs involving less than 50 people each, in its mass layoff reports. It also doesn’t count all the little ‘mom & pop’ businesses that shut down.

Business/Economics, U.S.

Obama regime bold face liars: U.S. debt skyrockets by $328-billion despite what Obama said! You now owe $17-trillion!

18 October 2013 (12:24 UTC-07 Tango)/13 Dhu’l-Hijja 1434/26 Mehr 1391/14 Ren-Xu (9th month) 4711

“…raising the debt ceiling, which has been done over a hundred times, does not increase our debt…”-Barack Obama, September 2013

The government funding deal passed by the corrupt U.S. Congress and signed by the Obama regime, has resulted in an overnight skyrocket of U.S. taxpayer debt!

The U.S. Department of Treasury revealed today that the funding deal has increased U.S. debt by $328 billion USD.  Today, taxpayers now owe bond holders a record $17-trillion!!!

The largest holder of U.S. debt is the federal government, believe it or not.  What this means is that the federales have the taxpayers by the financial balls!  Which explains why they have no problem jacking up the debt limit, on you!

Business/Economics, U.S.

Financial Martial Law U.S.A.: BofA joins JP Morgan Chase in limiting access to your account! Citibank layoffs 1-thousand despite profits! Wells Fargo lays off 5-thousand plus!

18 October 2013 (12:10 UTC-07 Tango)/13 Dhu’l-Hijja 1434/26 Mehr 1391/14 Ren-Xu (9th month) 4711

“If you don’t have your money in your pocket it ain’t yours, Jack!”-Gerald Celente, investor and financial adviser who had his Certificates of Deposits raped by major banks, telling people to get their money out of the banks now!  Infowars interview 18 October 2013

Celente, who has a good forecasting track record, predicts total U.S. bank failure by the middle of 2014.

Wall Street Journal reported that despite reporting surprise profits, Bank of America is about to implement a plan that will affect their customer’s checking accounts and access to their cash through ATMs. There are very little details, but BofA officials claim they are trying to help out their customers because their plan would prevent customers from incurring overdraft fees!  Basically your check writing and ATM withdrawals will be limited (more than what it already is).

This is revenge on the part of BofA, who paid a $410 million USD fine for their part in a conspiracy by Too Big to Jail banks, found guilty of charging exorbitant fees.

Back in September, Citibank announced they were laying off 700 employees, before Xmas! It’s part of their larger plan to layoff 1-thousand people!  Just two days ago Citibank reported a $3.23 billion profit!  However, greedy elitist investment analysts called it “disappointing” because they were expecting even more profits!

Wells Fargo has notified 5300 employees they will be laid off! 925 of those jobs are in California!  Bank officials blame it on a 42% drop in home loans, compared to last year!  What was that about the housing market recovery?

Maybe Celente is right?

Exceptional Failed State: Too Big to Jail JP Morgan Chase denies yet confirms martial law on your bank account! Is it really because the bank is broke?

Business/Economics, U.S.

Exceptional Failed State: Too Big to Jail JP Morgan Chase denies yet confirms martial law on your bank account! Is it really because the bank is broke?

17 October 2013 (14:17 UTC-07 Tango)/12 Dhu’l-Hijja 1434/25 Mehr 1391/13 Ren-Xu (9th month) 4711

Officials with JP Morgan Chase are denying they are imposing “capital controls” by blocking international money transfers and limiting the amount of money you can have in your account.  But they did confirm they are “derisking” certain accounts!

Could the Too Big to Jail international bank be doing this as a result of $1-billion USD in fines imposed by United States and United Kingdom?  That’s because of their $6-billion loss in the London Whale investment scheme.  Is JP Morgan Chase broke?

For more evidence that JP Morgan Chase is broke, Marketwatch is now calling it the biggest single job killer in the U.S.  The Too Big to Fail bank is laying off at least 19-thousand employees!

Some “exepctionism”!

Business/Economics, Idaho, U.S.

Major health care organization says Obama Care is False Flag op! Millions to be denied health care in Red States! Idaho throws 91% of poor adults to the curb!

17 October 2013 (23:01 UTC-07 Tango 16 October 2013)/12 Dhu’l-Hijja 1434/25 Mehr 1391/13 Ren-Xu (9th month) 4711

“……over five million poor uninsured adults have incomes above Medicaid eligibility levels but below poverty and may fall into a ‘coverage gap’ of earning too much to qualify for Medicaid but not enough to qualify for Marketplace premium tax credits.”-The Coverage Gap: Uninsured Poor Adults in States that Do Not Expand Medicaid, Kaiser Family Foundation

The Kaiser Family Foundation is warning that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (aka Obama Care) will not provide health insurance for about 5.2 million low income adults!

That’s because Obama Care relies on states to expand Medicaid coverage to Obama Care standards, but they don’t have to because of a 2012 Supreme Court ruling.  The result is that people like me, single adults with low incomes but no dependents, will still fall into the coverage gap.

26 states are refusing to expand Medicaid: Alabama, Alaska, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Wisconsin, Wyoming and Virginia.

Note that most of those states are considered Red states.

In the Red state of Idaho, the Kaiser study estimates that 60% of “low income” adults will not be covered, and 91% of “poor” adults will not be covered!

The Kaiser study concluded: “…with many states opting not to implement the Medicaid expansion, millions of adults will remain outside the reach of the ACA and continue to have limited, if any, option for health coverage: most do not have access to employer-based coverage through a job, few can afford coverage on their own, and most are currently ineligible for public coverage in their state…..It is unlikely that people who fall into the coverage gap will be able to afford Marketplace coverage: The national average premium for a 40-year-old individual purchasing coverage through the Marketplace is $270 per month for a silver plan and $224 per month for a bronze plan, which equates to about half of income for those at the lower income range of people in the gap….people in the coverage gap are ineligible for cost-sharing subsidies for Marketplace plans and may face additional out-of-pocket costs up to $6,350 a year if they were to purchase Marketplace coverage.”

They’re talking about people like me.  Obama Care is supposed to help me how?

 

Business/Economics, U.S.

Exceptional Failed State: Food Stamp shut down coming in November? 47 million Americans to starve?

17 October 2013 (22:06 UTC-07 Tango 16 October 2013)/12 Dhu’l-Hijja 1434/25 Mehr 1391/13 Ren-Xu (9th month) 4711

“…..in accordance with the FNS Contingency Plan issued October 1, 2013…….

……we are directing States to hold their November issuance files and delay transmission to State electronic benefit transfer (EBT [debit card]) vendors until further notice.”-U.S. Department of Agriculture letter dated 11 October 2013, revealed by Fox 13 news in Utah

Yeah, ‘mericans are exceptional, like frogs in a boiling pot!

Business/Economics, Idaho, U.S.

More Economic Decline: East Idaho shopping malls to close down? Pine Ridge quietly put up to be auctioned off in November! Merry Xmas!

17 October 2013 (18:21 UTC-07 Tango 16 October 2013)/12 Dhu’l-Hijja 1434/25 Mehr 1391/13 Ren-Xu (9th month) 4711

Reports that the Pine Ridge Mall in Chubbuck, Idaho, could soon be dead!  That’s if nobody bids on it.  A quietly announced auction, on Auction.com, for the entire mall is set for 05 November.

Illinois based General Growth Properties is refusing comment, but that’s because they are no longer the official owner.  Last year GGP turned the property over to its spinoff, Howard Hughes Corporation.  Texas based Howard Hughes seems to be the executioner for GGP, getting rid of money losing properties.

Some reports say Howard Hughes has taken over improperly valued GGP malls. The starting bid for the failed Pine Ridge Mall is a paltry $3 million USD!

If you’ve been following my economic reports out of the Chubbuck/Pocatello area, you know I used to work for mall owner GGP, and JPrice before that.

Auction.com talks up the mall, claiming it’s at 80% tenant capacity!  I find that hard to believe, because it was at 80% when I worked there, and that’s before losing two anchor stores!  Just check out my pics of the empty Sears!

Local TV news reports talked up the mall by naming anchor stores Sears and ShopKo.   I used to work property management there, and ShopKo is operating under a different contract, as if they are not part of the mall.  When I worked there ShopKo was responsible for all their own building maintenance, including parking lot trash pick up, landscaping and snow and ice removal during winter.

The newest anchor store is Herbergers, which is taking up residence in the old two story ZCMI then May Company then Dillards anchor location, yet it’s only a single story operation.

Also, there is conflicting info given by Auction.com and GGP.  Auction.com states there are 50 “unit” spaces at the mall, yet GGP’s website says 77 “Retail Stores”.

In 2009 GGP went bankrupt.  By 2010, 96 GGP malls emerged from chapter 11 bankruptcy, and according to bankruptcy news reports that included the Pine Ridge Mall.  However, in 2012 GGP got a a total of $7 billion in “property-level financings” to float dozens of its malls, according to GGP’s website.  Independent reports say the Pine Ridge Mall in Chubbuck, as well as the Grand Teton Mall in Idaho Falls, were included in that list of mortgage bailout refi loans (although I didn’t see them listed on the GGP site).

This year GGP reported in its 4th quarter report for 2012 that it “…disposed of approximately 3.2 million square feet of gross leasable area for $213 million.”, but they did not specify which properties were sold.

For the 3rd quarter 2012 GGP “…disposed of assets comprising approximately 2.7 million square feet of gross leasable area for $219.3 million.”

In the 2nd quarter 2012 GGP sold off their Foothills Mall in Colorado.

In 1st quarter 2012, 30 malls were transferred to Rouse Properties.  They also sold three properties for a total of $26.6 million.

“During 2011, GGP sold, or transferred to the mortgage holder, whole or partial interests in approximately 11.5 million square feet of gross leasable area for $879.7 million including property level debt of $752.1 million.”-GGP 4th quarter report for 2011

In 2011 it was also revealed that GGP had sold, or was selling off, most of its properties in Utah.

Here’s more of my reports:

A History Lesson in Economic Decline:

Idaho Sears closing down, without official notice?

Don’t forget to add the Sears stores bought by GGP to the closing list. 

GGP owns most of the malls in Idaho.

Mormon Mitt Romney……Destroyed jobs in Chubbuck, Idaho.