Alabama: In Trussville, ObamaCare administrators have cut off funding for the Golden Living Center, forcing it to shutdown after New Year’s Day, at least 111 jobs lost! In Opelika, cafe The Overall Company shutdown, word is that a temporary coffee shop will take its place while the building is being re-purposed.
Arizona: After 42 years the Harkins Camelview 5 movie theater in Scottsdale shutting down next week. The Fashion Square 7 movie theater already shutdown. Both owned by the same company who swears they will build an even bigger “luxury” movie theater to replace the two old theaters.
California: San Francisco’s iconic Magnolia Gastropub and Brewery now chapter 11 bankrupt busted. The dip noodle administrators blame it on their expansion creating the Magnolia Dogpatch & Smokestack BBQ restaurant. Gee if only individuals could file bankruptcy on the grounds of being stupid. In Santa Rosa, after 23 years the privately run animal shelter and children’s summer camp McDonald Ranch shutting down because evil A-hole city administrators revoked their license to operate. The owners are looking for homes for everything from guinea pigs to horses. They’re now forced to sell the property.
Florida: In Longwood, VIP Petcare issued a WARN saying 12 people will be laid off by the end of January 2016.
Georgia: Macy’s shutting down their North DeKalb Mall store by the end of January 2016.
Idaho: Switzerland based drugs maker Novartis paid $390-million USD to settle U.S. charges of kickbacks to pharmacies that pushed Novartis’ drugs into Medicaid and Medicare patients. This is just a slap on the wrist as the money has to be split between at least 40 states. For The Gem State a piddly $52-thousand will come from that pot. By the way, this isn’t the first time Novarits got caught being a criminal in Idaho, back in 2010 they paid the state $350-thousand for basically the same thing, bribing healthcare providers for pushing their drugs! Idaho ‘lawmakers’ continue to rape taxpayers, and again it involves lawsuits but this time the tax payments came from an little known fund. The Legislative Legal Defense Fund has shelled out more than $275-thousand over the past three years to hire private attorneys to fight cases involving sage grouse and ObamaCare.

Kansas: Spain based renewable ethanol refiner Abengoa suddenly shutdown their Hugoton operations, laying off 50 people without warning. Abengoa is now bankrupt busted, considered the biggest bankruptcy in Spain’s history!

Michigan: Detroit Medical Center eliminating at least 125 jobs! Administrators blame ObamaCare for forcing them to “achieve efficiencies across our system”. They laid of 127 people last year. Kent City Community Schools shutdown their elementary school, blaming water service problems. In Grand Rapids, Montello Meat Market shutting down their two years old Downtown location. No reason given. After 14 years Monte’s Lounge shutdown, the property is being re-purposed. Farm industry company GSI Manufacturing announced they will shutdown their Calhoun County factory in March 2016, the new owners are moving operations to Illinois, 70 jobs lost. In Howell, after at least 90 years (surviving The Great Depression and numerous recessions) clothier Swann’s shutting down as soon as the inventory is gone: “There’s more going out than coming in, and you can’t run a business if you can’t make a profit.”-Pam Shaw, owner

New Jersey: In Edison, Cosmetic Essence issues a WARN saying 1-hundred people will become unemployed by the end of January 2016! It’s all thanks to their “technology innovations” at their distribution center.
New York: More proof the internet is not immune to shutdowns, NYC based free music site Songza being shutdown in January 2016 by its new owner Google Play. In Pleasantville, after 41 years mom-n-pop Try and Buy toy store shutting down on Xmas Eve: “Our sales are down to 2005 levels and our costs are at 2015 levels.”-Barry Schwartz, co-owner
North Carolina: The Golden Peanut and Tree Nuts shelling factory shutting down by February 2016, at least 81 jobs lost. The owner, Archer Daniel Midlands, blames the suck-ass economy (“market conditions”).
Oregon: In Portland, after two years Levant restaurant shutting down after the Gregorian New Year’s.
Pennsylvania: Food service contractor Sodexo issued a WARN saying 72 people in Wilkes-Barre will become jobless by July 2016. In Duryea, Nanny Rose Day Care shutdown without warning. News reports say parents had to suddenly leave work to pick up their kids. However, local news media discovered that parents had filed a complaint with state regulators saying the day care op was not feeding their children. Employees said they were straight up threatened by an attorney: “The phone just rang and they stood there with the phone, and that was a lawyer, and they said that if we say anything this is going to go further. I was shaking. I really was. I’m just shaking.”-employee I won’t name
Texas: In Fort Worth, Trinity Bicycles shutdown without warning. News media discovered the popular shop had been shutdown the week before the U.S. Thanksgiving. The owner is refusing to comment. Giant corporation General Electric is demanding local taxpayers kickback some money for the GE Manufacturing Solutions train factory in Fort Worth, under the Triple Freeport Exemption which burdens those who do pay taxes! The vacant ACH Child & Family Services property is now for sale. California based cookware and furniture seller Williams Sonoma shutting down their Arlington upholstered furniture factory in January 2016, 85 jobs lost. Rush Overland shutting down their Abilene factory, blaming the oil industry, 50 jobs lost after Xmas. British empire Canada based oil company Flint Energy shutting down ops in Kilgore and Victoria after Xmas, 86 jobs lost.
Vermont: In Burlington, after 23 years Bella Boutique shutdown, the owner said she’s pursuing a different business venture.

Washington DC: After only one year Native Foods Cafe shutdown both their DC locations, administrators refused to say why. Maybe it’s ’cause they’re ‘vegan’.
West Virginia: In South Charleston, Saint John Heart and Hand Day Care shutdown blaming “government regulations and the economy”.
04 December 2015: “THIS CONSTRUCTION HERE JUST SLAUGHTERED US…!” “…WE HAVE NOT MADE ONE PENNY OF PROFIT…”
WARN=Worker Adjustment & Retraining Notification
Former employees who receive severance are not counted as unemployed
The U.S. Department of Labor (DoL) no longer issues mass layoff reports: “On March 1, 2013, President Obama ordered into effect the across-the- board spending cuts (commonly referred to as sequestration) required by the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act, as amended. Under the order, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) must cut its current budget by more than $30 million, 5 percent of the current 2013 appropriation, by September 30, 2013. In order to help achieve these savings and protect core programs, the BLS will eliminate two programs, including Mass Layoff Statistics, and all ‘measuring green jobs’ products. This news release is the final publication of monthly mass layoff survey data.”



The U.S. Census Bureau also reports an increase in poverty in the State nicknamed The Gem State! 





For proof the state government has failed with its SNAP (food stamps) allocations, fuel station Stinker Stores donated $20-thousand USD to the Idaho FoodBank, along with $50-thousand from customers of Stinker Stores. The League of Women Voters of Idaho is demanding a reduction in state sales tax. They’ve launched a ballot initiative to drop it by 1%, from 6% to 5%. Gee, when I first moved to Idaho in the late 1990s it was 5%. I remember when the state ‘elected’ lawmakers told us the increase to 6% was “temporary”, then suddenly it became permanent. In Idaho Falls, the Guns and Gear store reports increased training of individuals for the state concealed carry license: 









Test score rankings of home educated Idahoans versus traditional schools (yeah, the ones in blue are the homeschooled results). Homeschooling is one reason why taxpayer funded public schools are losing students. According to Idaho Coalition of Home Educators there’s an estimated 7-thousand kids being educated at home, in a state with a total official population of 1.5-million. The reason the number of homeschool kids is an ‘estimate’ is that The Gem State does not have any laws regarding the tracking or even state testing of home educated kids.
In related news (and something I wish happened when my kids were attending School District 25), a local judge has ruled that West Ada School Board violated the Constitution of Idaho by charging fees. In fact the ruling reveals just about all Idaho public schools are violating the state Constitution: “So we’re hoping that moms and dads will ask these questions about ‘Why are you charging fees when they’re unconstitutional?'”-Russell Joki, West Ada School Board member who actually agrees with the court ruling (don’t forget that 

