Category Archives: U.S.

Business/Economics, U.S.

What Economic Recovery? Corporate America screws us over, again, ZERO jobs created in August 2011!!!

“The last time the government reported exactly zero jobs added in a month was in February 1945.”-CNN

“We expected a weak report, and what we got was even weaker…” and  “It’s still a skunk and it still stinks.”-Patrick O’Keefe, economic researcher at J.H. Cohn

The United States Department of Labor says Corporate America has let the country down again, zero jobs created in the month of August!!!

President Obama said his advisers expect the official unemployment rate to stay well above 6% until 2017!!!

When you factor out the 45,000 striking Verizon workers, and the temporarily laid off 22,000 state workers in Minnesota, the jobs creation numbers for August are a piddly 23,000.  Remember, most economists say at least 150,000 new jobs MUST be created every month, and that is not happening.  A more recent study by the Economic Policy Institute says 400,000 new jobs must be created every month!!!

This crappy August jobs report surprised the hell out of many economists.  CNN asked 22 economist what they thought the jobs creation number for August would be.  They thought at least 75,000 new jobs would be created, not ZERO!!!

It’s time they start calling this possible double dip recession what it really is, a depression!  I guess if  you look at it optimistically, the job numbers could have been worse, they could have gone negative!  So much for being optimistic!

 

Business/Economics, International, U.S.

Global Economic War: China slashes U.S. Agriculture imports

“A seasonal drop in exports to China was expected…But the magnitude of the fall has been greater than anticipated.”-U.S. Department of Agriculture

According to a September 1 report by Agrimoney, China has slashed its purchasing of U.S. farm products.  Not by a little, by a whole lot.

Up until three months ago China was spending a monthly average of $2.5 billion, yes, $2.5 billion per month.  But starting three months ago China slashed it to $800 million per month.

Historically the United States has been the biggest supplier of farm products to China, but, if current sales continue the U.S. will end the year tied with Canada.

U.S.

United Police States of America: Cop arrested after raping a woman while on duty, stay out of Philadelphia!

August 31, a Philadelphia police officer was charged with raping a woman after offering her a lift, while he was on duty.

Instead of driving her to her destination he allegedly raped her in the back of the police car, then dropped her off at a bus station.  The woman reported the crime the next morning.

The officer had been working as a Philly cop for 4 years.  He is the third Philly cop to be arrested within the past two weeks!!!

Business/Economics, International, U.S.

Global Economic War: Argentina thrashes the U.S. as Corn supplier to Columbia, Canada to take over as main wheat supplier

According to a report by Agrimoney, Argentina has replaced the U.S. as the main supplier of corn to Colombia, and probably in the near future Canada will do the same with wheat.

U.S. corn exports to Columbia have crashed: In 2007 the U.S. supplied 96% of Columbia’s corn.  In 2010, the United States supplied a meesley 19%!!!

But don’t blame Argentina for crashing U.S. farm exports, Canada is about to kick the United States of America’s ass as well.

Columbia and Canada signed a free trade agreement on August 15.  Within ten days of the deal wheat buyers in Columbia ordered 125,000 tons of Canadian wheat!!!

On top of that, Nutresa, Columbia’s biggest cookie and pasta maker announced that their main source of wheat will now be Canada!!! 

 

International, U.S.

War Crimes: European Union now admits to helping the United States commit war crimes

“In attempting to combat crimes attributed to terrorists, countless further crimes have been committed in the course of the U.S.-led ‘global war on terror’. Many of those crimes have been carefully and deliberately covered up.”-Thomas Hammarberg, Council of Europe’s Rights Commissioner

Europe’s Rights Commissioner Thomas Hammarberg, said Europe is “deeply complicit” in Washington’s counter terrorism methods, which include torture and other human rights violations.

 

Business/Economics, U.S.

What Economic Recovery? Corporate America says ‘If you’re unemployed don’t bother applying’, some States pass laws making it illegal for Corporate America to discriminate aginst the unemployed

“But we have seen instances in which employers are explicitly saying we don’t want to take a look at folks who’ve been unemployed. Well, that makes absolutely no sense, and I know there’s legislation that I’m supportive of that says you cannot discriminate against folks because they’ve been unemployed, particularly when you’ve seen so many folks who, through no fault of their own, ended up being laid off because of the difficulty of this recession.”-Barack Obama, President of the United States

What irony, Corporate America are deliberately discriminating against unemployed people.  Many want adds state “Must be currently employed”!

How’s that going to turn around the economy?  More proof the economic depression/recession is the fault of Corporate America!

A couple of months ago the National Employment Law Project found 150 online job adds that specifically discriminated against unemployed people.  Those discriminatory employers included Universities!

Some states, like New Jersey, are fighting back by making it illegal to require job applicants to be already employed.  The U.S. Congress is considering a bill that would do the same: Fair Employment Opportunity Act 2011, HR 2501.

Even Monster.com is being sued for posting help wanted adds that require current employment.  Monster.com says they’re just the messenger.

Technology, U.S.

Medical Incompetence: Hospital injects children with high doses of radiation, on purpose

A hospital in Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan, admitted that children had been injected with too much radiation.

Since 1999, at least 84 kids were injected with high doses of radioactive technetium.  The isotope is used to help examine internal organs.

The doses were in excess of the limit set by the Japanese Society of Nuclear Medicine.  One boy was given 20 times the limit.

Radiological technicians admitted they intentionally gave the children the higher doses, because they were afraid the kids wouldn’t sit still long enough to get a good image of their internal organs!!!

Business/Economics, International, U.S.

Global Economic War: British TESCO admits defeat, pulls out of Japan, the U.S. is next

“Having made considerable efforts in Japan, we have concluded we cannot build a sufficiently scaleable business. We have decided to sell our operations there and focus on our larger businesses in the region.”-Philip Clarke, TESCO

After eight years and 250 million pounds (U.S.$404.9 million), British retailer TESCO is quitting Japan.

The Japanese retail market proved to be too tough o’nut to crack.  TESCO has been successful almost everywhere else, especially other Asian countries.

Retail analysts say Japan’s retail culture is radically different than the U.S. or Europe: “The retail market is fragmented and there are many strong regional players, often family-owned. Convenience stores dominate, particularly in the city centers, and a culture of ‘immediacy’ supports large numbers of vending machines.”-Gavin Rothwell, retail analysts IGD

Another factor against foreign companies doing business in Japan is extremely high operating costs, and extremely demanding consumers.

However, TESCO is also losing money, big time, through its U.S. venture, Fresh & Easy.  The U.S. start up is based in Los Angeles, California.

TESCO’s Fresh & Easy operation has 176 stores in California, Nevada and Arizona.  Last year they lost $301 million, far more than what TESCO lost in Japan.

They’re spending even more money to remodel their Fresh & Easy stores, but if sales don’t pick up within the next two years, TESCO will pull out of the United States as well.

 

 

 

 

Business/Economics, U.S.

What Economic Recovery? U.S. Postal Service will default, begs to stop Saturday delivery

USPS announced they will default on the upcoming Federal Employees Retirement System payment (this after Congress essentially stole $75 billion from the Postal Service, supposedly to pay the FERS last year!).

Also, postal officials are now begging the U.S. Congress to approve the ending of Saturday delivery.  USPS officials also want to use retirement money to run daily operations.

Officials also say they will unveil a plan on September 15,  which could save up to $3 billion per year.

The United States Postal Service does not make money off taxpayers, they are solely funded by the postage they charge (prices are controlled by Congress, not the USPS), and other products they sell.  The cuts being made to the USPS will have no affect on U.S. government debt.

 

International, U.S.

What Global Warming? Typhoon Talas not Normal, showing signs of a cold weather storm!

Typhoon Talas is expected to hit Japan on August 2, but its path is hard to predict because it’s not your normal hurricane.

The U.S. Navy/Air Force Joint Typhoon Warning Center is saying that Talas is not a normal typhoon: “The upper-level analysis continues to reveal an unusual upper-level pattern with an upper low over the center and anticyclonic flow around the periphery.”

What’s not normal about that, is that anti-cyclonic storms normally form around high pressure systems.  Talas is showing low pressure.  Also, anti-cyclonic storms are associated with cold weather and often cause massive snowfall, it’s summer time in Japan.  (Can you say The Day After Tomorrow?)

Some predictions say the typhoon will drive up the middle of Honshu and Hokkaido, other predictions say it’ll keep driving north into the Sea of Japan.