Tag Archives: ows

Business/Economics, Idaho

U.S. Job Losses & Store Closings, 13 – 15 December 2014: “There’s been a decline…” Two Great Depression survivors killed off by this ‘recovery’!

Incomplete list of publicly announced layoffs & shutdowns:

California: MFS (Massachusetts Financial services) issued several WARNs saying they are eliminating jobs across the Golden State, at least 200 jobs lost by February 2015!  Uniform and food service contractor Aramark issued several WARNs saying they are shutting down ops across the Golden State, at least 570 jobs lost!  Pleasanton Safeway headquarters will layoff at least 26 people by 13 February 2015, due to the takeover by Cerberus owned Albertsons.

Florida: Just one day after warning of layoffs in California, Orlando based iconic SeaWorld revealed it has already eliminated 311 jobs at all 11 of its sealife amusement parks!

Idaho: In Post Falls, office furniture maker Kimbal International issued a WARN saying they will shutdown beginning in February 2015, at least 251 jobs lost!

Illinois: In Chicago, anti-2nd Amendment Pepsi laid off an undisclosed number of North America Nutrition (Gatorade, Quaker, Tropicana) employees. Pepsi also extended its cost cutting plan (originally to end in 2014) to 2019, saying the economy is so bad it now needs to cut $8-billion USD in expenses!  In Springfield, after 114 years (surviving the Great deflationary Depression and numerous recessions) LaBonte’s Luggage & Gifts shutdown: “Luggage is highly competitive, and the trend with younger people is buying online, especially with many luggage manufacturers having their own websites selling directly to the customer.”-Art Silver, owner

Indiana: What automotive industry recovery? Truck maker Navistar International announced they’re shutting down their Indianapolis foundry by the summer of 2015, at least 180 jobs lost!  Company administrators say the suck-ass economy is forcing them to get their parts from a cheap-o-contractor instead of making them in their own foundry!  Greedy stockholders love the idea!

Maine: In Bangor, after 142 years (surviving the Great deflationary Depression and numerous recessions) Bacon Printing Company shutdown.  Company administrators said the final straws were increasing utility costs and building maintenance costs.

Massachusetts: Non-profit Masonic Health System warned of layoffs at its Overlook Life Care Community, and as a result of its sale of its failed Overlook Health Care operation.

Michigan: In Monroe, after 17 years the Dollar & Up store shutdown, the owner blaming the lack of ‘recovery’: “There’s been a decline in spending. People used to buy on impulse, and when the economy went down, people started to be more careful on what they bought.”-Amir Ameen

New York: For profit Utica School of Commerce stopping almost all classes at its Oneonta campus in Spring 2015! At least nine jobs lost due to DSS. Clinton Community College warned of layoffs due to DSS  (what I call Disappearing Student Syndrome).  NYC based bratty & bankrupt teenage girl’s clothing chain store dELiA*s announced they will shutdown all 92 stores!

Tennessee: The Toys R Us located near Knoxville Center Mall announced it will shutdown in January 2015, at least 28 jobs lost.

11-12-december-2014: “Everybody wants to know, ‘Is there anything we can do?’ and there is nothing.”

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 shutdown. It doesn’t count people who get a severance for being laid off.

Business/Economics

Death of dELiA*s

30 January 2015 (14:44 UTC-07 Tango)/09 Rabi ‘ath-Thani 1436/10 Bahman 1393/11 Yi-Chou (12th month) 4712

New York City based bratty & bankrupt teenage girl’s clothing chain store dELiA*s is dead!

Store shutdown list:
2000 Riverchase Galleria Hoover AL 35244
3030 Plaza Bonita Rd National City CA 91950
1151 Galleria Blvd Roseville CA 95678
194 Buckland Hills Drive Manchester CT 06040
1201 Boston Post Rd Milford CT 06460
150 Christiana Mall Newark DE 19702
23106 Fashion Drive Estero FL 33928
2368 East Sunrise Blvd Ft. Lauderdale FL 33304
10300 Southside Boulevard Jacksonville FL 32256
8201 South Tamiami Trail North Sarasota FL 34238
5701 Sunset Drive South Miami FL 33143
10300 West Forest Hill Blvd Wellington FL 33414
2112 North Point Circle Alpharetta GA 30022
3333 Buford Drive Buford GA 30519
400 Ernest Barrett Parkway Kennesaw GA 30144
101 Jordan Creek Parkway West Des Moines IA 50266
2428 Fox Valley Center Aurora IL 60504
627 East Boughton Road Bolingbrook IL 60440
205A Yorktown Mall Lombard IL 60148
5 Woodfield Shopping Center Schaumburg IL 60173
122 Hawthorn Center Vernon Hills IL 60061
14511 Clay Terrace Blvd Carmel IN 46032
49 West Maryland St. Indianapolis IN 46204
1975 Southlake Mall Merrillville IN 46410
6401 Bluebonnet Blvd Baton Rouge LA 70836
250 Granite Street Braintree MA 02184
75 Middlesex Turnpike Burlington MA 01803
50 Holyoke St. Holyoke MA 01041
1245 Worcester Street Natick MA 01760
999 S. Washington Street North Attleboro MA 02760
210 Andover Street Peabody MA 01960
1516 Annapolis Mall Annapolis MD 21401
10300 Little Patuxent Parkway Columbia MD 21044
825 Dulaney Valley Rd Towson MD 21204
663 Stillwater Avenue Bangor ME 04401
364 Maine Mall Road South Portland ME 04106
17420 Hall Road Clinton Township MI 48038
3700 Rivertown Pkwy S.W. Grandville MI 49418
27666 Novi Road Novi MI 48377
270 North Garden Bloomington MN 55425
43 Chesterfield Mall Chesterfield MO 63017
2092 Independence Center Independence MO 64057
7101 NW 86th Terrace Kansas City MO 64153
6801 Northlake Mall Drive Charlotte NC 28216
3320 Silas Creek Parkway Winston-Salem NC 27103
310 Daniel Webster Highway Nashua NH 03060
99 Rockingham Park Blvd Salem NH 03079
400 Commons Way Bridgewater NJ 08807
1750 Deptford Center Rd. Deptford NJ 08096
100 Menlo Park Road Edison NJ 08837
112 Eisenhower Parkway Livingston NJ 07039
4403 Black Horse Pike Mays Landing NJ 08330
1 Garden State Paramus NJ 07652
301 Mt. Hope Ave Rockaway NJ 07866
2165 Willowbrook Mall Wayne NJ 07470
1 Crossgates Mall Road Albany NY 12203
1 Walden Galleria Cheektowaga NY 14225
630 Old Country Rd Garden City NY 11530
450 Smith Haven Mall Lake Grove NY 11755
261 Miracle Mile Drive Rochester NY 14623
2655 Richmond Ave Staten Island NY 10314
125 Westchester Ave White Plains NY 10601
1734 Military Road Niagara Falls NY 14304
2740 Palisades Center Drive West Nyack NY 10994
26300 Cedar Road Beachwood OH 44122
81 Chestnut St. Beavercreek OH 45440
1500 Polaris Parkway Columbus OH 43240
136 Easton Town Center Columbus OH 43219
428 South Park Center Strongsville OH 44136
160 N. Gulph Road King of Prussia PA 19406
130 Montgomery Mall North Wales PA 19454
100 Robinson Center Drive Pittsburgh PA 15205
250 Lehigh Valley Mall Whitehall PA 18052
127 Providence Place Providence RI 02903
2000 Coastal Grand Circle Myrtle Beach SC 29577
4670 Merchants Park Circle Collierville TN 38017
7600 Kingston Pike Knoxville TN 37919
2760 N. Germantown Parkway Memphis TN 38133
2615 Medical Center Parkway Murfreesboro TN 37129
3811 S. Cooper Street Arlington TX 76015
11200 Lakeline Mall Drive Cedar Park TX 78613
8687 North Central Expressway Dallas TX 75225
490 Cedar Sage Drive Garland TX 75040
1700 Cottonwood Creek Highland Village TX 75077
2200 South 10th Street McAllen TX 78503
6121 W. Park Blvd Plano TX 75093
331 Grand Avenue East Southlake TX 76092
11800 West Broad St. Richmond VA 23233
2561 McMenamin St Hampton VA 23666
4301 W. Wisconsin Ave Appleton WI 54913
5770 North Bayshore Drive Glendale WI 53217
2015 Charleston Town Center Charleston WV 25312

Business/Economics

Sears & Kmart closing update, 30 January 2015: More signs the Blythe kmart is shutting down! Kmart threatened with takeover by city with 3rd highest tax rate! Ireland’s Primark taking over? As I’ve reported in the past, Sears to make money renting out property.

In Florida, the city described as having the 3rd highest local tax rates in the county, Miami Shores, is about to annex the property where a Kmart sits.  Attorney’s for Sears Holdings tried to stop the annexation and now warn the Kmart could be shutdown.  However, the taxpayers of Miami Shores said a pending shutdown of the Kmart is the main reason they’re annexing the property: “…to have that Kmart property become part of Miami Shores would be extremely valuable to our piece of mind in terms of what happens to that property if Kmart is not there in two to six months, and allowing the Shores to have some say over what happens with that property is extremely important to the people who are in that isolated section.”-Jenna Rinehart Rassi, lives near the property

Yesterday I wrote how Sears Holdings denied rumors that the Blythe, California, Kmart was shutting down. However, the local Blythe news sources have just pointed out that the shelves in the store are near empty and there is no effort to re-stock them. The editors of the PaloVerdeTimes said nobody at the kmart or Sears Holdings will explain the lack of merchandise in the store. Apparently the Kmart is the only ‘big box’ retailer within a 45 miles radius.

In Pennsylvania a Sears store is abandoning its upper level to the Ireland based clothing store Primark.  Sears Holdings has revealed at least seven other deals involving the leasing of Sears locations to Primark: “Today, the company announced that the Willow Grove Park Mall in Willow Grove, Pennsylvania, is one of these seven mall-based Sears stores locations included in the lease agreements. The company previously announced that the lease agreement included Sears stores at King of Prussia Mall in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, and Staten Island Mall in Staten Island, New York…….    The four remaining specific locations and projected store openings will be announced at a later time. All of the space is expected to be delivered to Primark over the next six to 10 months. “

In Maine, Sears Holdings has leased their abandoned Sears AutoCenter to VIP Tires & Service.

update, 29 January 2015: 122 Californians to be unemployed!

Here’s the updated list of U.S. Sears/Kmart store closings that I’ve been compiling since the end of 2011:

Arizona: Scottsdale Sears/Great Indoors, Chandler Sears/Great Indoors.

Alabama: Gadsden Kmart (50 jobs lost), Mobile Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Auburn Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Anniston Kmart (no word yet on how many jobs lost), Birmingham Eastwood Kmart (70 jobs lost), Decatur Mall Sears (91 jobs lost), Fort Payne Kmart, Northport Kmart (68 jobs lost), Dothan Sears (68 jobs lost), Huntsville Kmart (73 jobs lost).

California: El Monte Sears (at least 40 jobs lost. Damien Arrula, El Monte’s economic development director, said the store manager had lied about what was going on: “The general manager of the store had just indicated to me that they were remodeling.”), two San Diego Sears (more than 80 jobs lost), Pleasant Hill Kmart (more than 50 jobs lost), Torrance Kmart, Fairfield Kmart (63 jobs lost), Lampert owned OSH taken over by Lowe’s home improvement in bankruptcy court, at least 17 of 99 stores to be closed down (935 jobs lost!), Rancho Cordova Kmart (97 jobs lost), San Clemente Kmart/Sears/Kmart on Camino de Estrella (58 jobs lost), placed on an official hit list in 2011 the Oceanside Kmart on College Boulevard finally being shut down, Banning Kmart (91 jobs lost) recently revealed that Sears Holdings is still paying rent on the abandoned property, Laguna Hills Mall Sears, San Diego Mid-City Kmart (73 jobs lost), Hemet Kmart (77 jobs lost), Oakland Sears repair center (75 jobs lost), San Mateo Kmart (82 jobs lost to an apartment building connected to public transportation), Hesperia Kmart building sold at a loss to a vulture capitalist REIT, no word on if the Kmart will be shutdown. Customers complain that the Kmart employees have a bad attitude, gee I wonder why? Yuba City Kmart (63 jobs lost), Rocklin Kmart (at least 63 jobs lost, the store had just posted “Now Hiring” signs), San Leandro Kmart (102 jobs lost), San Jose Mercury News says the El Centro Kmart to shutdown in January, the website Foursquare says the Covina Kmart is now shutdown (other sources say it will shutdown in December), Cupertino Sears and Auto Center (number of employees affected not made public, no WARN filed), somebody posted on yelp* that the Diamond Bar Kmart was shutting down in December (confirmed by Armijo Newspapers), Westfield Topanga Sears (122 jobs lost), it looks like the Blythe Kmart is being slowly shutdown despite denial by Sears Holdings.

Colorado: Broomfield Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Glenwood Springs Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Lone Tree Sears/Great Indoors, Longmont Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Pueblos’ South Side Kmart (52 jobs lost), Denver Kmart (number of jobs lost have not been made public at this time, but could be at least 40), Colorado Springs Kmart at Powers and Palmer Park boulevards (57 jobs lost), Fort Collins Sears (67 jobs lost), Denver-Cherry Creek North Sears store & Auto Center (66 jobs lost).

Connecticut: Waterbury Big Kmart, Torrington Kmart (73 jobs lost), Enfield Sears Optical (no word on jobs lost).

Delaware: Dover Kmart (at least 72 jobs lost, some reports said 100), Seaford Sears (30 jobs lost), Claymont Kmart (87 jobs lost).

Florida: Fernandina Beach Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Callaway Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Orange City Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Deland Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Stuart Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), West Palm Beach Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Port St. Lucie Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Crystal River Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), New Smyrna Beach Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Saint Augustine Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Pompano Beach Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Jacksonville Kmart on 5751 Beach Boulevard (71 jobs lost), second Kmart in Jacksonville on 4645 Blanding Boulevard (83 jobs lost), Ocoee Sears (102 jobs lost), Pensacola Kmart on Airport Boulevard closed in 2011, Pensacola Kmart on Mobile Highway closed in February 2013 (69 jobs lost), Pensacola Kmart on East 9 Mile Road will close in May (73 jobs lost), Hialeah Kmart (67 jobs lost), Bonita Springs Kmart (67 jobs lost), Mount Dora Kmart (100 jobs lost), Lake Mary Kmart, Panama City Beach Kmart (54 jobs lost), Winter Park Kmart (100 jobs lost), Niceville Kmart (59 jobs lost), Winter Haven Kmart (92 jobs lost), Palm Bay Kmart, Oakland Park Kmart (112 jobs lost), Clearwater Sears Auto Center (21 jobs lost), Zephyrhills Kmart (70 jobs lost), Winter Springs Kmart (69 jobs lost), Naples Kmart (72 jobs lost), New Port Richey Kmart (58 jobs lost), ‘redevelopment’ of Aventura Sears & Auto Center into an “open-air village” (unknown how many jobs affected), recently revealed Kmart on Northeast 108 Street being annexed by Miami Shores, Sears Holdings threatens to shutdown Kmart as a result of higher local taxes.

Georgia: Macon Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Buford Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Douglasville Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Atlanta Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Columbus Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Jonesboro Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Cartersville Kmart (74 jobs lost), Hiram Kmart (53 jobs lost), Marietta-East Cobb Kmart, Warner Robins Kmart (77 jobs lost), Coweta County Kmart distribution center (164 jobs lost).

Guam: Sears Hometown Store.

Hawaii: Honolulu Sears (owned by GGP, 372 jobs lost! GGP spending $573-million chopping it up into smaller store spaces), Kauai Sears (41 jobs lost), Iwilei-Honolulu Kmart for lease (no confirmation of store closing).

Idaho: Lewiston Sears (at least 60 jobs lost), Rexburg Kmart (63 jobs lost), Chubbuck Pine Ridge Mall Sears shutdown by the end of October/beginning of November 2014 (the remaining 28 jobs lost). Across the street, in Pocatello, the property where the Kmart is located has a “pad site available” sign, posted ever since the Kmart bankruptcy. The Kmart building takes up most of the ‘pad’. Latest news from inside sources say Sears Holdings will not comment on any plans to expand the small amount of Craftsman products already being sold at the Kmart, or shift the Kenmore products line, from the closing Chubbuck Sears to the Pocatello Kmart. In fact all plans for the Pokey Kmart are in a ‘holding pattern’.

Illinois: Alton Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Melrose Park Sears parts and repair center (50 jobs lost), Zion Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Oak Lawn Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), McHenry Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Peru Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Lombard Sears/Great Indoors (at least 40 jobs lost), Fairview Heights Kmart (81 jobs lost), Freeport Kmart (45 jobs lost), Pontiac Kmart (more than 47 jobs lost), Homer Glen Kmart (82 jobs lost), Streator Kmart (45 jobs lost), Lombard Kmart (70 jobs lost), Naperville Kmart (98 jobs lost), Calumet Sears (164 jobs lost), two Sears stores in Grand Crossing area of Chicago (247 jobs lost!), Mount Vernon Sears (68 jobs lost), Moline Sears (at least 60 jobs lost), Homewood Kmart (185 jobs lost), Belvidere Kmart (91 jobs lost?) revealed is now a perpetual closing sale Kmart At A Discount store, Champaign’s Market Place Mall Sears (56 jobs lost), Sterling Kmart (60 jobs lost), Montgomery Kmart (81 jobs lost), Mattoon Sears (more than 40 jobs lost), Chicago Sears on North State Street (160 jobs lost), Chicago Sears Craftsman Experience store, Galesburg Sears (46 jobs lost), White Lake Township Kmart (42 jobs lost), Orland Park Sears Appliance, Collinsville Kmart (84 jobs lost), Crystal Lake Kmart (at least 77 jobs lost), Danville Sears store & Auto Center (63 jobs lost), Forsyth Sears store & Auto Center (45 jobs lost), Peoria Kmart (73 jobs lost), Forest Park Kmart (107 jobs lost), Chicago Sears on North and Harlem avenues, supposedly it’s being replaced (most likely at taxpayer expense) with a new building and it will become a Sears-Mariano’s store, Bloomington Kmart (79 jobs lost), Hoffman Estates Headquarters 100 jobs eliminated, another 15 corporate jobs eliminated elsewhere! 58 Chicago area stores up for lease or sale. By the way, Illinois elected officials gave Sears Holdings/Hoffman Estates a $150 million USD tax break to keep their headquarters in the state. The tax break was not tied to any promise not to close stores.

Indiana: Anderson Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Saint John Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Indianapolis Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Richmond Sears (49 jobs lost), South Anthony Kmart (70 jobs lost), Fort Wayne Kmart on South Anthony Boulevard (70 jobs lost), FairOaks Mall Kmart, Logansport Sears (43 jobs lost), Muncie Kmart (59 jobs lost), Fort Wayne Kmart on Coliseum Boulevard North (69 jobs lost), Decatur Kmart (49 jobs lost), Indianapolis Kmart on Madison Avenue (131 jobs lost), Indianapolis Kmart on Washington Street (139 jobs lost), Bedford Kmart (62 jobs lost), Indianapolis (Evansville) Sears & Auto Center at Washington Square Mall (91 jobs lost), Greenwood Kmart (78 jobs lost), Plymouth Kmart (“approximately” 68 jobs lost).

Iowa: Cedar Rapids Kmart on 16th Ave (at least 40 jobs lost), Davenport Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Burlington Kmart (50 jobs lost), Coralville Sears (94 jobs lost, this is a store sold to GGP earlier in the year), Cedar Rapids Kmart on Collins Road NE (56 jobs lost), Mason City Kmart (50 jobs lost), Clive Kmart (at least 49 jobs lost), Ames Kmart (44 jobs lost), Fort Dodge Sears (no job loss numbers made public, yet. The Auto Center was secretly shutdown in September).

Kansas: Lawrence Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Merriam Kmart-then Sears-then Kmart (jobs lost unknown), Wichita Sears store & Auto Center (103 jobs lost), Manhattan Sears & Auto Center (number of jobs lost were never revealed).

Kentucky: Middlesboro Sears (in September 2012 the Sears store re-opened under independent ownership, official grand re-opening scheduled for November), Winchester Kmart (back in May, Rankin Paynter bought out what was left of the inventory and gave it to charity), Hazard Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Lexington Fayette Mall Sears (114 jobs lost!), Newport Kmart (81 jobs lost), Cannonsburg Sears and Sears Auto Center (no employee info given), Louisville Dixie Highway Kmart/Sears/Kmart, Madisonville Kmart (39 jobs lost), Owensboro Sears store & Auto Center (52 jobs lost).

Louisiana: Slidell Sears (77 job lost), Gretna Kmart (94 jobs lost), Metairie Kmart secretly sold off, no word if it will be shutdown.

Maine: Lewiston Sears (60 to 70 jobs lost), Presque Isle Aroostook Centre Mall Sears (63 jobs lost), recently revealed Aroostook Centre Mall Sears Auto Center leased out to VIP Tires & Service.

Maryland: Ellicott Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Gaithersburg Sears/Great Indoors, Landover Sears rebuild & call center (115 jobs lost), Baltimore Kmart on Wabash Avenue (107 jobs lost).

Massachusetts: North Reading Sears Hardware store closed, lease not renewed, Milford Kmart (80 jobs lost), Kingston Kmart (73 jobs lost).

Michigan: Novi Sears/Great Indoors, Brighton Sears Grand/Essentials, Harper Woods Sears Full line, Monroe Sears Full line, Adrian Sears Full line, Washington Township Kmart, Chesterfield Kmart, Woodhaven Kmart, Saginaw Kmart on Bay Road, Flint Kmart on Dort Highway (46 jobs lost), Gaylord Kmart (48 jobs lost), Sterling Kmart (58 jobs lost), Bloomfield Township Kmart and Sears, Bad Axe Kmart (61 jobs lost), Ypsilanti Township Kmart (83 jobs lost), Petoskey Kmart (45 jobs lost), Saint John’s Kmart (48 jobs lost), White Lake Township “Store of the Future” Kmart (42 jobs lost), Grand Blanc Kmart (49 jobs lost), Lapeer Kmart (56 jobs lost), Southgate Kmart (155 jobs lost), Detroit’s Telegraph Road Kmart (115 jobs lost), Waterford Township Sears (no word on how many jobs lost), Rochester Hills Kmart (77 jobs lost), ‘perfect Kmart town’ of Port Huron Kmart (188 jobs lost), Flint Kmart on Miller Road (81 jobs lost), Burton Kmart (85 jobs lost), Madison Heights Kmart (179 jobs lost), it’s now obvious the last remaining Saginaw Kmart will remain shutdown after its roof collapsed during a snowstorm back in January 2014, Ann Arbor Kmart (59 jobs lost), Iron Mountain Kmart (54 jobs lost), Bangor Township Sears aka Bay City Mall Sears, the Auto Center was already secretly shutdown some time ago (at least 47 jobs lost), Big Rapids Kmart (about 50 jobs lost).

Minnesota: Willmar Kmart, Duluth Kmart, New Hope Kmart, White Bear Lake Kmart, Bemidji Kmart, Monticello Kmart, GGP owned Sears Auto Center in the Apache Mall closed (10 jobs lost), the entire Sears store in the Apache Mall being sold off, Fergus Falls Kmart (40 jobs lost), Fergus Falls Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Alexandria Kmart (46 jobs lost), Grand Rapids Kmart (61 jobs lost), Seritage is selling off three Sears Auto Centers in Minnetonka, Brooklyn Center and Saint Paul, Marshall Kmart (57 jobs lost), Oakdale Kmart (77 hourly wage employees losing their jobs, unknown how many salaried employees will become unemployed), Winona Kmart (67 jobs lost), Minneapolis city officials trying to shutdown profit making Nicollet Avenue Kmart, to make way for a new road. Anoka Kmart (47 jobs lost), Blaine Kmart (60 jobs lost), Burnsville Kmart (62 jobs lost), Waite Park Kmart (57 jobs lost), Northeast Minneapolis Sears Hometown & Outlet store now for sale, Coon Rapids Sears Hometown & Outlet store now for sale.

Mississippi: Jackson Sears Full line, McComb Sears Full line, Columbus Sears Full line, Gautier Sears (71 jobs lost), Waveland Gulfport Kmart (32 jobs lost), Pass Road Gulfport Kmart (52 jobs lost), Pascagoula Sears at the Singing River Mall, Olive Branch distribution center (unknown how many jobs lost).

Missouri: Lee’s Summit Sears Grand/Essentials, Saint Louis Sears Full line, High Ridge Kmart (59 jobs lost), Ellisville Kmart (55 jobs lost), Springfield Kmart on South Campbell Avenue (60 jobs lost), South Belt Kmart (64 jobs lost), Florissant Kmart (100 jobs lost).

Montana: Missoula Kmart (50 jobs lost), Great Falls Kmart (closed “until further notice” due to fire, 63 jobs on hold), Great Falls Sears store & Auto Center (65 jobs lost) due to great sales (ironically) the shutdown date has been moved from 07 December 2014 to 23 November, Bozeman Kmart (37 jobs lost).

Nebraska: Grand Island Kmart (55 jobs lost), Omaha Kmart near West Maple Road (50 jobs lost).

Nevada: Sparks Kmart distribution center (100 jobs lost).

New Hampshire: Nashau Sears Grand/Essentials, Keene Sears Grand/Essentials, Portsmouth Kmart (30 jobs lost), Claremont Kmart (59 jobs lost).

New Jersey: Lawnside Kmart (about 80 jobs lost), Howell Kmart (57 jobs lost), Berlin Kmart, Dover Kmart (92 jobs lost), Randolf Kmart (91 jobs lost), Paramus Kmart (74 jobs lost).

New Mexico: Las Cruces Kmart (58 jobs lost), Albuquerque Kmart on Central SW (80 jobs lost), Rio Rancho Kmart (59 jobs lost).

New York: Lindenhurst Sears Hardware, North Babylon Sears Hardware, Hauppauge Sears Hardware, Depew (Lancaster?) Kmart (68 jobs lost), Colonie Kmart (72 jobs lost), Fulton Kmart (51 jobs lost), Clifton Park Kmart (74 jobs lost), Latham Kmart (61 jobs lost), East Greenbush-Rensselaer Kmart (70 jobs lost), Tonawanda Sears Appliance and Hardware, Bronx Sears (91 jobs lost), BBN reader reported that the Ithaca Sears and Auto Center shutdown and one month later it’s been officially confirmed (at least 37 jobs lost), DeWitt Kmart (92 jobs lost), Auburn Sears (51 jobs lost), Massena Sears and Auto Center (51 jobs lost), recently revealed Staten Island Mall Sears leased out to Ireland’s Primark.

North Carolina: Cary Kmart (71 jobs lost), High Point Sears, Moorehead Sears, Rocky Mount Sears, Statesville Sears, Durham Kmart (79 jobs lost), Asheville Kmart (53 jobs lost), West Smithfield Kmart (59 jobs lost), Winston-Salem Kmart (69 jobs lost), Hendersonville Kmart (58 jobs lost), South Ashville Kmart on Hendersonville Road, Raleigh Kmart (88 jobs lost), Garner Kmart, Cleveland County mall Sears (56 jobs lost), Charlotte Kmart (89 jobs lost), Conover Kmart (74 jobs lost), Raleigh Kmart on Capital Boulevard (53 jobs lost), High Point Kmart (71 jobs lost), Boone Kmart (41 jobs lost), Greensboro Kmart (96 jobs lost), Gastonia Sears store & Auto Center (65 jobs lost), Kinston Kmart (64 jobs lost), Cary Sears (66 jobs lost), Greensboro Kmart distribution center (130 jobs lost).

North Dakota: Jamestown Kmart (45 jobs lost), Dickinson Kmart (41 jobs lost, despite a “Now Hiring” sign on the front of the store).

Ohio: Chagrin Falls Kmart, Springfield Kmart, two Toledo Kmarts, Medina Kmart, Columbus Kmart, Columbus Sears/Great Indoors, Zanesville Sears (67 jobs lost), Trotwood Kmart (71 jobs lost), Austintown Sears auto parts and service on Interstate Boulevard, London Kmart (no word on number of jobs lost), Trotwood Sears (67 jobs lost), Westlake Kmart/Sears (at least 57 jobs lost), Xenia Kmart (at least 57 jobs lost), Norwalk Kmart (52 jobs lost), Blue Ash Kmart (77 jobs lost), Northwood Sears at Woodville Mall (36 jobs lost), Conneaut Kmart (43 jobs lost), Anderson Township Kmart (71 jobs lost), Brooklyn Kmart (200 jobs lost), Columbus Lockbourne Industrial Parkway Sears distribution center (200 jobs lost), also in Columbus, Sears Product Rebuild-Call Center (112 jobs lost), Marion Sears Auto Center (at least nine jobs lost), Springfield Kmart #3767 (68 jobs lost), Fairborn Kmart (66 jobs lost), Solon Sears & Auto Center (at least 53 jobs lost). Also, Van Wert Sears franchise bought out by Kirk Berryman, owner of Computer & Networking Technologies (CNT), who plans on moving the store to a new location.

Oklahoma: Oklahoma City Sears (98 jobs lost, GGP owned, GGP wants a $2 million sales tax rebate, claiming it’s needed to offset capital investments needed to bring the space up to the standards for potential new tenants), Shawnee Sears (31 jobs lost), Sand Springs Kmart (52 jobs lost), Muskogee Sears (60 jobs lost), Enid Sears and Auto Center (at least 38 jobs lost).

Oregon: Roseburg Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Tualatin Kmart Center (new property owner from California is tearing everything down for new shopping center, so far no indication the Kmart will be part of the new shopping center), Milwaukie Kmart (61 jobs lost), Coos Bay Kmart (25 jobs lost), Bend Sears (48 jobs lost), Klamath Falls Kmart (64 jobs lost), Albany Kmart (64 jobs lost), Portland Sears Homes Services (no notice), Albany Sears (57 jobs lost), in October a BBN reader warned that Oregon City Kmart was being quietly shutdown, confirmed on 06 November 2014 by Sears Holdings (70 jobs lost).

Pennsylvania: Upper Darby Sears Full line, Pottstown Sears Full line, Pittsburgh Kmart, Wilkins Sears, Warminster Kmart (85 jobs lost), Shippensburg Kmart (46 jobs lost), Moon Kmart (143 jobs lost), Bethlehem Township Kmart (62 jobs lost), Philadelphia Gallery Mall Kmart (120 jobs lost), Philadelphia Kmart on Orthodox Street and Castor Avenue (169 jobs lost), Levittown/Middle Township Kmart (87 jobs lost), Waynesboro Kmart (43 jobs lost), Sanatoga-Lower Pottsgrove Kmart (65 jobs lost, the store was also advertising for new hires!), West Mifflin Sears store & Auto Center (88 jobs lost), Rochester Kmart (78 jobs lost), Frazer (Pittsburg Mills Mall) Sears and Auto Center (97 jobs lost), Bloomsburg Sears (57 jobs lost), Frackville Sears and Auto Center (84 jobs lost), North Cornwall Township Sears (51 jobs lost), King of Prussia Sears and Auto Center (no word on number of jobs lost), Lebanon Sears (51 jobs lost), Scotland Chambersburg Mall Sears and Auto Center (62 jobs lost), recently revealed the upper level of the Willow Grove Mall Sears store to be leased by Primark, recently revealed King of Prussia Sears store leased out to clothing retailer Primark.

Puerto Rico: Vega Baja Kmart (# of jobs lost not reported).

South Carolina: Sumter Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Orangeburg Sears (57 jobs lost), Columbia Kmart on Fort Jackson Boulevard in 2012, Columbia Kmart on Bush River Road in 2009, Columbia Kmart on St Andrews Road (66 jobs lost), Irmo Kmart (no info on how many jobs lost), both Greenville Kmarts (140 jobs lost between the two), Mount Pleasant Kmart (43 jobs lost), Harbison Sears & Sears Auto Center in the Columbiana Centre mall (97 jobs lost), Aiken Sears & Sears Auto Center (at least 54 jobs lost), Inlet Square Mall Kmart (50 jobs lost), West Ashely Kmart (69 jobs lost), Myrtle Beach Kmart (59 jobs lost), Easley Kmart (62 jobs lost).

Tennessee: Antioch Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Cleveland Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Oak Ridge Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Hendersonville Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Morristown Sears (about 70 jobs lost), Clinton South Kmart, Franklin Cool Springs Galleria Sears (92 jobs lost), Memphis Hickory Ridge mall Sears (job loss data not revealed), 48 years old Nashville Kmart on Nolensville Pike to close by January 2014 (57 jobs lost), Franklin Kmart (33 jobs lost), Dickson Kmart (65 jobs lost), talks in progress to end lease for Bellevue (Nashville) Center Mall Sears.

Texas: Two Sears parts and repair centers closing in The Woodlands (117 jobs lost), rebuild center in Garland (58 jobs lost), Farmers Branch Sears/Great Indoors, Houston Sears Great/Indoors, Dallas Sears home appliance parts distribution center (77 jobs lost).

Utah: Murray Sears (for some reason Mormon controlled news media in Utah never reported the closure, but they reported that the building was demolished), Orem Kmart (no details reported), Woods Cross Kmart (54 jobs lost).

Vermont: Rutland Sears store & Auto Center (65 jobs lost).

Virginia: Norfolk Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Midlothian Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Richmond Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Lynchburg Sears (84 jobs lost), Fairfax Kmart (no word on how many jobs lost), Christiansburg Sears (59 jobs lost), Norfolk Kmart on East Little Creek Road (77 jobs lost), Manassas Kmart (71 jobs lost), Stafford Sears Hometown, Newport News-Denbigh Kmart (at least 50 jobs lost), Wise Kmart (58 jobs lost), Harrisonburg Kmart (79 jobs lost), Wincester Kmart (91 jobs lost), Dale City Kmart (69 jobs lost), Chesapeake Sears and Auto Center (82 jobs lost), Front Royal Kmart (88 jobs lost).

Washington: Walla Walla Sears Full line (in August 2012, it was reported that an independent owner of Sears Hometown stores will open a store in Walla Walla), Lacey Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Kelso Sears (47 jobs lost), Lakewood Kmart (59 jobs lost), Bellingham Sears (92 jobs lost), Seattle Kmart (85 jobs lost), East Wenatchee Sears (59 jobs lost), Puyallup Kmart (51 jobs lost), Oak Harbor Kmart (68 jobs lost), Sodo Sears and Sears Auto Center (79 jobs lost), Everett Kmart (65 jobs lost), Marysville Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost).

West Virginia: Oak Hill Kmart (59 jobs lost), Morgantown Kmart (100 jobs lost), Bluefield Sears store & Auto Center (64 jobs lost).

Wisconsin: West Baraboo Sears (at least 40 jobs lost, local village officials say the store generated 3% of local tax collections), Rice Lake Kmart (about 71 jobs lost), Brookfield Kmart (56 jobs lost), Racine’s Regency Mall Sears (52 jobs lost), Fort Atkinson Kmart (51 jobs lost), Greenfield Kmart (107 jobs lost), Portage Kmart (78 jobs lost) and Hales Corner (129 jobs lost), Chippewa Falls Kmart (79 jobs lost), Menomonie Kmart (at least 50 jobs lost), Ashwaubenon Kmart recently revealed now owned by Green Bay Packers, will be torn down (80 jobs lost), Shawano Kmart (55 jobs lost), Fond du Lac Sears (42 jobs lost), Glendale Sears store & Auto Center (86 jobs lost), Janesville Kmart (70 jobs lost), Glendale Sears Rebuild center (67 jobs lost), Sheboygan Sears & Auto Center (at least 31 jobs lost), Eau Claire Kmart (93 jobs lost), Plymouth Kmart (59 jobs lost before Xmas), Sheboygan Sears Rebuild Center (30 jobs lost).

On top of that, Sears Holdings sold stores to General Growth Properties (GGP), of which it has been reported that most of those stores will be closed.

Here’s the list of 11 Sears stores now owned by GGP:

Iowa: Coral Ridge Mall (it’s official the Sears is closing, see above), and Mall of the Bluffs

Texas: The Woodlands Mall (this does not involve the two repair centers being closed by Sears)

Florida: West Oaks Mall

Utah: Fashion Place, and Provo Towne Centre (note the evil British empire way of spelling town & center. Due to a favorable lease agreement the GGP owned Provo Sears will continue to stay open under Sears Holdings management)

Oklahoma: Quail Springs Mall (it’s official, the Sears closed, see above)

Hawaii: Ala Moana Center (closed, see above)

Washington: Bellis Fair Mall (Bellingham store, see above)

Minnesota: Apache Mall (see update above, GGP will close Sears store by 2014)

Illinois: Market Place Shopping Center (see update above, GGP closing store)

Business/Economics

U.S. Job Losses & Store Closings, 11 – 12 December 2014: “Everybody wants to know, ‘Is there anything we can do?’ and there is nothing.” Obamacare kills off bus service? Halliburton kills 1-thousand jobs!

Incomplete list of publicly announced layoffs & shutdowns:

Alabama: Sweden based rubber factory Hexpol AP issued a WARN saying it will shutdown its ‘mixing’ ops in January 2015, at least 61 jobs lost.

California: In Cypress, Tuesday Morning merchandiser shutdown, blaming location; a bigger shopping plaza was built in front of the Tuesday Morning location!  In Clovis, security camera maker Pelco by Schneider Electric laid off about 45 employees.  Reports that iconic San Jose based internet selling venue ebay is killing off 3-thousand jobs beginning right after Xmas: “There will be changes; there will be significant changes.”-Devin Wenig, current ebay president

In San Diego, iconic SeaWorld issued a WARN saying 108 people will be laid off by February 2015! In Rancho Mirage, Acqua Pazza California Bistro at The River shutdown due to not renewing the lease. Jerry Keller, co-owner, pointed out how risky the restaurant business is saying “It’s been a great 10 years and when you think that 90% of restaurants here close in two years, that’s a pretty good run.”   In Santa Rosa, after nearly 40 years Arrigoni’s Deli & Cafe shutdown.

Florida: The Suwannee Valley Transit Authority warned of massive layoffs due to Obama Care!  Bus administrators stated that a large amount of their revenue was coming from Medicaid, but that’s being cut off as Obama Care is forcing many passengers to use different transportation services!

Michigan: Rochester Community Schools warned of layoffs after an unexpected crash in student enrollment. Administrators say the district lost 154 students, more than was expected! They blame it on the area’s major employer Chrysler.  Battle Creek based iconic cereal maker Kellogg was forced by union members to admit they are shutting down two major cereal making factories. It’s blamed on crashing cereal sales. However, company administrators refuse to say which factories will die.  Troy based coupon book publisher Entertainment Publications eliminated an undisclosed number of employees.  Employees told local news sources that the layoffs were “signifigant”, at least 50% of employees were laid off!  In Monroe, the Gap Outlet clothing store announced it will shutdown in January 2015.

Minnesota: Video game maker NativeX laid off 12 employees at its Sartell HQ.

Missouri: In Kansas City, AT&T announced the elimination of 29 jobs.  It’s part of the larger 270 jobs being culled at AT&T ops in Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma and Arkansas!

New Jersey: After 61 years Boro Hardware shutdown, the owner blamed property speculators: “In the words of The Godfather, they made me an offer I could not refuse.”-Steve Epstein

New York: Amalgamated Bank issued a WARN saying they’re shutting down Branch 24, 26, 28, 29, 30 and 31 between March and April 2015.  In North Syracuse, Seneca Data Distributors Issued a WARN saying they’re shutting down their warehouse in March 2015, at least 65 jobs lost.  They are joining the exodus from New York and moving to Arizona.  Switzerland based legal drugs pusher Novartis announced it is shutting down its Suffern ops.  News reports out of New Jersey say 525 people will become jobless as a result (222 of which live in New Jersey)!

Ohio: Iconic White Castle burger joint shutting down all five restaurants in Cleveland and Akron! To top it off, they’re being shutdown on Xmas eve! Administrators of the family owned burger joint says the economy is so bad in Cleveland and Akron that they can’t afford to continue operating in those cities.

Oregon: The Evergreen Vintage Aircraft museum now chapter 11 bankrupt busted.  The museum is home to the iconic Spruce Goose.

Pennsylvania: After 69 years Shehadi Appliance shutdown. The owners are pissed because their prices were in line with ‘big box’ stores, but it didn’t matter: “You can see the surprise in people when they say ‘Wow, you are the same price as Lowe’s.’ Then they walk out the door and go to Lowe’s!”-Richard Roman, co-owner

South Carolina: After more than 20 years Hot Wheels Skating Center shutdown, because the new property owners want to tear it down!  The skate rink manager Terri Halter said “Everybody wants to know, ‘Is there anything we can do?’ and there is nothing. My mom’s taking it really hard. She’s seen probably three generations of children. It’s rough, especially when you’re that committed to children. You don’t want to leave them without a place of security and fun.”

Tennessee: Union University laid off five staff employees, blaming it on a drop of 270 students from 2013 to 2014!

Texas: Across the state, it’s been revealed that 14 charter schools will be shutdown next school year! State administrators claim the schools are not meeting financial or academic standards, however, some school administrators have presented documents challenging the state’s claims.  Infamous fracking company Halliburton announced it will kill off 1-thousand oil jobs around the World!  Ignorant main stream news media blamed crashing oil prices, but guess what?  It’s really because of the Obama regime imposed sanctions on Russia, and turmoil in west Africa.

West Virginia: What housing market recovery?  Flooring maker Unilin announced that 47 employees at its Holden factory will become jobless after Xmas, blaming “declining market conditions”.

09-10-december-2014: “…too saturated with everyone trying to split a dollar.”

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 shutdown. It doesn’t count people who get a severance for being laid off.

 

International

What do ya know, Iran! Obama orders secret deployment of A-10 squadron! Israel cuts power to West Bank! 14 years old Palestinian girl has more ‘balls’ than most ‘men’!

30 January 2015 (21:24 UTC-07 Tango 29 January 2015)/09 Rabi ‘ath-Thani 1436/10 Bahman 1393/11 Yi-Chou (12th month) 4712

The Obama regime ordered the deployment of 1-thousand 1-hundred USAF airmen and dozens of A-10C attack aircraft from Davis Monthan AFB in Arizona, to an undisclosed location! The deployment will take place in March and involves the 354th Fighter Squadron, 563rd Rescue Group and the 55th Electronic Combat Group: “All these deployments are not necessarily related, but they’re all leaving at about the same time.”-Lieutenant Erin Ranaweera, Davis Monthan AFB spokeswoman

The awesome A-10 is the last of Idaho's Air National Guard air assets.

The awesome A-10C Thunderbolt 2 (aka Warthog). Pic taken by author at Pocatello Airport, Idaho, in 2012.

Click here for more of my pics of the A-10C

Related: Obama regime to steal all of Idaho Air National Guard’s air assets! 

In the past 24 hours the U.S. led coalition conducted at least six airstrikes against Syria, and 12 in Iraq.  The U.S. Department of Defense says they bombed Kobani five times, despite the fact that Kurds liberated the city from Islamic State days ago!  The U.S. DoD says they bombed the Iraqi cities of Al Asad, Ar Rutbah, Mosul, Sinjar and Tal Afar.

Syria reports that Islamic State-al-Qaeda insurgents hit a church and a mosque in the suburb of Harasta with rockets, at least two people were wounded.  Also, three people were wounded after Islamic State-al-Qaeda insurgents shelled the Damascus International Fairground.   In  Idleb City, a Islamic State-al-Qaeda car bomb exploded near the al-Wahda al-Arabiya School, no reports of casualties.

The U.S.-U.K.-Saudi-Israeli created Islamic State claims responsibility for a multiple attacks on Egyptian police that left at least 27 people dead in Suez City.

The new Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud has fired pro-Islamic State-al-Qaeda Prince Bandar bin Sultan from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s National Security Council!   Probably because Iran backed the successful Shia Mujahideen liberation of Yemen from Saudi-U.S. control.

Israel has ordered that electrical power to West Bank (Palestine) be turned off for at least one hour everyday “until the Palestinian Authority begins to settle its debts.”  The irony is that it is Israel who totally controls the economy of Palestine.

IDF (Israeli Defense Force) began destroying Palestinian homes in the Khirbet al-Ras area of West Bank.  In Al Quds (Jerusalem) IDF raided several homes and shops, kidnapping at least three people.

A 14 years old female Mujahideen from Ramallah (West Bank), who has more ‘balls’ than most 14 years old boys in the United States, was sentenced to two months in prison and fined $15-hundred USD for attacking IDF soldiers with rocks!!!!

war for liberation of Jerusalem is on, biyatch!

International

What do ya know, Iran! U.S. imposes new sanctions! Gaza trains up 17-thousand new troops! Iranian leaders say war for liberation of Jerusalem is on, biyatch!

29 January 2015 (12:01 UTC-07 Tango)/08 Rabi ‘ath-Thani 1436/09 Bahman 1393/10 Yi-Chou (12th month) 4712

Israeli news sources say people in northern Israel are reporting the sounds of explosions.  The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) are investigating.

“Certainly, freedom of Haifa and Tel Aviv is much easier for us than the 33-day and 22-day wars….The Zionist army….is much weaker in defense than offence; the Zionist army has so far failed 4 times in its invasions, and it will certainly have more humiliating defeats and failures in defense…..Martyrdom of Allahdadi meant an order to set the holy Quds [Jerusalem] free and a permission for giving a proper response to the Zionist regime. His martyrdom again proved that the Takfiris are the military wing of the Zionist regime and displayed the U.S. asymmetric warfare against the Islamic Ummah.”-Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Naqdi, Iran’s Basij (volunteer) Force

In Gaza (Palestine), Hamas has revealed it has conducted a one week crash course training up 17-thousand males between the ages of 16 and 21: “The training course focused on preparing the teenagers and the young men on how to defend themselves and their people and to be the future soldiers who will fight for Jerusalem, the refugees, the prisoners and the West Bank.”-Khalil al-Hayya

Al-Waqt news reports that Islamic State is getting high tech weapons made only in United States, their latest shipment was the biggest yet: “These weapons were given to the ISIL inside Syria and only kilometers away from the Turkish border.”-unnamed source quoted by Al-Waqt

In Pakistan, a captured Islamic State recruiter told police he was being paid with money routed through the United States.  He was getting $600 USD for every Pakistani that he recruited to go fight against the government of Syria.

The U.S. Senate Banking Committee has approved new sanctions against Iran, despite that fact that nuclear power negotiations are still ongoing: “The timing may be an issue, but I think, if the essence of the legislation is brought up at the right time, it would have broad bipartisan support, which I think is essential at the end of the day to send the world and to send Iran the messages that we have sent in the past so that as they calibrate their decision making they understand that we are very closely unified in our goal.”-Robert Menendez

“I believe that the other side should understand this reality that if it wants to reach an agreement with Iran, it won’t be possible through keeping pressure, as Iranians don’t strike agreements under pressure!”-Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iranian Foreign Minister

Lebanon’s Hezbollah Mujahideen say yesterday’s attack on an IDF convoy in Syrian territory killed 15 IDF soldiers.  The IDF says four of the wounded have been released from the hospital.

The IDF discharged 43 male and female reservists for refusing to serve.  In Israel military service is mandatory.  There are some exceptions like being a pacifist, but these reservists aren’t pacifists they actually accuse their government of being a terrorist organization!    The reservists sent the Israeli government a letter, which was made public in September 2014, stating that Israeli actions against Palestinians are basically war crimes.

The full of shit, I mean Fair and Balanced Fox News reported that Iran was publishing assassination plots against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.  Fox News says the plots were published by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp (IRGC) and Fars News Agency.  I checked Fars and found no such publication.  I have yet to find it on the IRGC website basirat.ir.

Israeli news source Haaretz revealed the possible real reason for the sudden racketing up of Israeli war mongering: In November 2013, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signed a secrecy order banning the publication of the results of oil arbitration between Israel and the National Iranian Oil Company.

Leviathan anyone?

IDF assassinate UN observer!

Business/Economics

U.S. Job Losses & Store Closings, 09 – 10 December 2014: “…too saturated with everyone trying to split a dollar.” World’s biggest chip maker kills off 600 jobs! More clothing store shutdowns! More Obamacare job destruction!

Incomplete list of publicly announced layoffs & shutdowns:

Arkansas: Noranda Aluminum announced laid off at least 38 people, blaming crashing demand.  Back in September the company laid off 200 people in Missouri, blaming utility rates and crashing demand for their product.

California: The World’s largest maker of computer chips, San Diego based Qualcomm, issued several WARNs saying they will render 289 people across southern California jobless, as well as 600 people around the World by February 2015!  Company administrators say they must get the hell outta the chip business, it’s that bad!  Too Big to Jail Bank of America warned of February 2015 layoffs at its Los Angeles operations.  The Hacienda Hotel issued a WARN saying they are shutting down their El Segundo hotel in February 2015, at least 96 jobs lost.   Switzerland based legal drugs pusher F. Hoffmann-La Roche (aka Roche) has taken over InterMune for $8.3-billion USD.  The now former CEO of InterMune walked away with a $36-million severance package, while 170 employees in Brisbane are being laid off in February 2015!  “Cloud solutions for government” Granicus issued a WARN saying they will shutdown their San Francisco office in April 2015, at least 47 jobs lost.  In Petaluma, SPG Solar shutdown, at least 10 jobs lost.  In Santa Clara, Toppan Photomasks issued a WARN saying they’re shutting down in March 2015, at least 75 jobs lost.  In Foothill Ranch, Genesis Healthcare issued a WARN saying 71 people will be rendered jobless in February 2015.  In Herlong, taxsucking government contractor Bowhead Support issued a WARN saying they’re shutting down in February 2015, at least 119 jobs lost!  In Berkeley, after 42 years the Taiwan Restaurant shutdown, the owners blame the new landlord who wants to tear everything down and put up a new building.

Florida: In Palatka, waste management company Alorica issued a WARN saying they will layoff 96 people in February 2015.

Illinois:  In Mount Prospect, the owners of Randhurst Village shopping center forced the three years old The Billy Goat Tavern to shutdown. Basically the shopping center owners found a new tenant who’s willing to pay more in rent.

Michigan: What automotive industry recovery?   In Lansing, GM (General Motors) revealed that 450 people at its Grand River Assembly Plant could become jobless in early 2015! It’s blamed on crashing sales of upscale Cadillacs.  In Wyandotte, the Axe-n-Ladder Deli shutdown, the owner blamed a sudden increase in competition: “After we opened, six restaurants opened up. Lunch isn’t a destination place. You eat lunch where you’re at, and it just got too saturated with everyone trying to split a dollar.”-Ted Copley

Montana: The state’s Department of Livestock warned of layoffs and unpaid furloughs due to increased spending on brucellosis testing on cows, and increased employee insurance and retirement funding mandated by Obama Care! To make things worse, state administrators have actually cut overall funding for the Department of Livestock.

New Jersey: Switzerland based legal drugs pusher Novartis announced it will lay off 200 people in The Garden State by February 2015!  Obama Care is forcing them to “…position our U.S. General Medicines business for long-term success.”

New York: Clothing store the Gap announced it will shutdown their Salmon Run Mall store in January 2015.  In Syracuse, after 50 years MQ Camera shutdown.

North Carolina: Maker of robotic drugs making systems, Parata Systems, announced they will render 110 people jobless!  Administrators say Obama Care is forcing them “…to better align with the larger health care market and position us for future growth and new opportunities.”

Ohio: The city of Cleveland announced it will render employees jobless, not fill vacant positions and increase fees charged to the public! City administrators revealed that local tax-fee revenues crashed by $2.5-million per year!  In Kettering, the once iconic but now dying Eastman Kodak laid off 15 people.

Pennsylvania: NYC based bratty teenage girl’s clothing chain store dELiA*s sold off their Hanover distribution center, 120 jobs lost!

Vermont: In Burlington, after five years Das Bierhaus German restaurant shutdown: “Renewal time had come and, as the dust of negotiations and exploring other options settled, I was fortunate enough to have been presented with an offer I could not refuse.”-Nick Karabelas, owner

05-08-december-2014: the suck-ass economy is going to kick yours!

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 shutdown. It doesn’t count people who get a severance for being laid off.

Business/Economics

Sears & Kmart closing update, 29 January 2015: Junky 3D printed jewelry now sold by Sears? GGP is now up to $392-million on Sears that it killed! 122 Californians to be unemployed!

In Montana, the taxpayers of Bozeman asked their city administrators about using the now vacant Kmart for a new police state operation.  Here’s what an architect who helped designed the new taxpayer raped, I mean funded, $24-million USD law enforcement center said about the former Kmart building: “You can’t turn a sow’s ear into a purse.”-Bill Hanson

In Hawaii, an update on the fools at GGP (Genral Growth Properties).  If you’ve been following my Sears & Kmart updates from the beginning you’d know that GGP bought the massive Sears store at its   Ala Moana Center mall, then shut it down.  To date GGP has spent $391.5-million expanding and remodeling the massive Sears into dozens of smaller shops.   GGP administrators now say they expect to spend almost $600-million by the time the project is done.  They think they’ll get a 10% return on their investment, that is if they can lease out all the spaces.

An Ohio based 3D printing company, 3DLT, announced it has signed a contract to provide Sears with jewelry and even home ‘furnishings’.  Apparently some of those items will be sold under the Craftsman and DieHard brands.

A 50 years old California Sears shutting down in May.  The store is so big is has at least 122 employees!   A California Kmart in Blythe is rumored to shutdown, but local news say administrators at Sears Holdings called the rumor “…a bad rumor. The Kmart store in Blythe will continue to remain open to the public.”  Famous last words?

update, 27 January 2015: track record of destruction?

Here’s the updated list of U.S. Sears/Kmart store closings that I’ve been compiling since the end of 2011:

Arizona: Scottsdale Sears/Great Indoors, Chandler Sears/Great Indoors.

Alabama: Gadsden Kmart (50 jobs lost), Mobile Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Auburn Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Anniston Kmart (no word yet on how many jobs lost), Birmingham Eastwood Kmart (70 jobs lost), Decatur Mall Sears (91 jobs lost), Fort Payne Kmart, Northport Kmart (68 jobs lost), Dothan Sears (68 jobs lost), Huntsville Kmart (73 jobs lost).

California: El Monte Sears (at least 40 jobs lost. Damien Arrula, El Monte’s economic development director, said the store manager had lied about what was going on: “The general manager of the store had just indicated to me that they were remodeling.”), two San Diego Sears (more than 80 jobs lost), Pleasant Hill Kmart (more than 50 jobs lost), Torrance Kmart, Fairfield Kmart (63 jobs lost), Lampert owned OSH taken over by Lowe’s home improvement in bankruptcy court, at least 17 of 99 stores to be closed down (935 jobs lost!), Rancho Cordova Kmart (97 jobs lost), San Clemente Kmart/Sears/Kmart on Camino de Estrella (58 jobs lost), placed on an official hit list in 2011 the Oceanside Kmart on College Boulevard finally being shut down, Banning Kmart (91 jobs lost) recently revealed that Sears Holdings is still paying rent on the abandoned property, Laguna Hills Mall Sears, San Diego Mid-City Kmart (73 jobs lost), Hemet Kmart (77 jobs lost), Oakland Sears repair center (75 jobs lost), San Mateo Kmart (82 jobs lost to an apartment building connected to public transportation), Hesperia Kmart building sold at a loss to a vulture capitalist REIT, no word on if the Kmart will be shutdown. Customers complain that the Kmart employees have a bad attitude, gee I wonder why? Yuba City Kmart (63 jobs lost), Rocklin Kmart (at least 63 jobs lost, the store had just posted “Now Hiring” signs), San Leandro Kmart (102 jobs lost), San Jose Mercury News says the El Centro Kmart to shutdown in January, the website Foursquare says the Covina Kmart is now shutdown (other sources say it will shutdown in December), Cupertino Sears and Auto Center (number of employees affected not made public, no WARN filed), somebody posted on yelp* that the Diamond Bar Kmart was shutting down in December (confirmed by Armijo Newspapers), recently revealed Westfield Topanga Sears (122 jobs lost).

Colorado: Broomfield Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Glenwood Springs Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Lone Tree Sears/Great Indoors, Longmont Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Pueblos’ South Side Kmart (52 jobs lost), Denver Kmart (number of jobs lost have not been made public at this time, but could be at least 40), Colorado Springs Kmart at Powers and Palmer Park boulevards (57 jobs lost), Fort Collins Sears (67 jobs lost), Denver-Cherry Creek North Sears store & Auto Center (66 jobs lost).

Connecticut: Waterbury Big Kmart, Torrington Kmart (73 jobs lost), Enfield Sears Optical (no word on jobs lost).

Delaware: Dover Kmart (at least 72 jobs lost, some reports said 100), Seaford Sears (30 jobs lost), Claymont Kmart (87 jobs lost).

Florida: Fernandina Beach Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Callaway Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Orange City Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Deland Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Stuart Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), West Palm Beach Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Port St. Lucie Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Crystal River Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), New Smyrna Beach Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Saint Augustine Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Pompano Beach Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Jacksonville Kmart on 5751 Beach Boulevard (71 jobs lost), second Kmart in Jacksonville on 4645 Blanding Boulevard (83 jobs lost), Ocoee Sears (102 jobs lost), Pensacola Kmart on Airport Boulevard closed in 2011, Pensacola Kmart on Mobile Highway closed in February 2013 (69 jobs lost), Pensacola Kmart on East 9 Mile Road will close in May (73 jobs lost), Hialeah Kmart (67 jobs lost), Bonita Springs Kmart (67 jobs lost), Mount Dora Kmart (100 jobs lost), Lake Mary Kmart, Panama City Beach Kmart (54 jobs lost), Winter Park Kmart (100 jobs lost), Niceville Kmart (59 jobs lost), Winter Haven Kmart (92 jobs lost), Palm Bay Kmart, Oakland Park Kmart (112 jobs lost), Clearwater Sears Auto Center (21 jobs lost), Zephyrhills Kmart (70 jobs lost), Winter Springs Kmart (69 jobs lost), Naples Kmart (72 jobs lost), New Port Richey Kmart (58 jobs lost), ‘redevelopment’ of Aventura Sears & Auto Center into an “open-air village” (unknown how many jobs affected).

Georgia: Macon Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Buford Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Douglasville Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Atlanta Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Columbus Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Jonesboro Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Cartersville Kmart (74 jobs lost), Hiram Kmart (53 jobs lost), Marietta-East Cobb Kmart, Warner Robins Kmart (77 jobs lost), Coweta County Kmart distribution center (164 jobs lost).

Guam: Sears Hometown Store.

Hawaii: Honolulu Sears (owned by GGP, 372 jobs lost! GGP spending $573-million chopping it up into smaller store spaces), Kauai Sears (41 jobs lost), Iwilei-Honolulu Kmart for lease (no confirmation of store closing).

Idaho: Lewiston Sears (at least 60 jobs lost), Rexburg Kmart (63 jobs lost), Chubbuck Pine Ridge Mall Sears shutdown by the end of October/beginning of November 2014 (the remaining 28 jobs lost). Across the street, in Pocatello, the property where the Kmart is located has a “pad site available” sign, posted ever since the Kmart bankruptcy. The Kmart building takes up most of the ‘pad’. Latest news from inside sources say Sears Holdings will not comment on any plans to expand the small amount of Craftsman products already being sold at the Kmart, or shift the Kenmore products line, from the closing Chubbuck Sears to the Pocatello Kmart. In fact all plans for the Pokey Kmart are in a ‘holding pattern’.

Illinois: Alton Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Melrose Park Sears parts and repair center (50 jobs lost), Zion Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Oak Lawn Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), McHenry Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Peru Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Lombard Sears/Great Indoors (at least 40 jobs lost), Fairview Heights Kmart (81 jobs lost), Freeport Kmart (45 jobs lost), Pontiac Kmart (more than 47 jobs lost), Homer Glen Kmart (82 jobs lost), Streator Kmart (45 jobs lost), Lombard Kmart (70 jobs lost), Naperville Kmart (98 jobs lost), Calumet Sears (164 jobs lost), two Sears stores in Grand Crossing area of Chicago (247 jobs lost!), Mount Vernon Sears (68 jobs lost), Moline Sears (at least 60 jobs lost), Homewood Kmart (185 jobs lost), Belvidere Kmart (91 jobs lost?) revealed is now a perpetual closing sale Kmart At A Discount store, Champaign’s Market Place Mall Sears (56 jobs lost), Sterling Kmart (60 jobs lost), Montgomery Kmart (81 jobs lost), Mattoon Sears (more than 40 jobs lost), Chicago Sears on North State Street (160 jobs lost), Chicago Sears Craftsman Experience store, Galesburg Sears (46 jobs lost), White Lake Township Kmart (42 jobs lost), Orland Park Sears Appliance, Collinsville Kmart (84 jobs lost), Crystal Lake Kmart (at least 77 jobs lost), Danville Sears store & Auto Center (63 jobs lost), Forsyth Sears store & Auto Center (45 jobs lost), Peoria Kmart (73 jobs lost), Forest Park Kmart (107 jobs lost), Chicago Sears on North and Harlem avenues, supposedly it’s being replaced (most likely at taxpayer expense) with a new building and it will become a Sears-Mariano’s store, Bloomington Kmart (79 jobs lost), Hoffman Estates Headquarters 100 jobs eliminated, another 15 corporate jobs eliminated elsewhere! 58 Chicago area stores up for lease or sale. By the way, Illinois elected officials gave Sears Holdings/Hoffman Estates a $150 million USD tax break to keep their headquarters in the state. The tax break was not tied to any promise not to close stores.

Indiana: Anderson Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Saint John Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Indianapolis Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Richmond Sears (49 jobs lost), South Anthony Kmart (70 jobs lost), Fort Wayne Kmart on South Anthony Boulevard (70 jobs lost), FairOaks Mall Kmart, Logansport Sears (43 jobs lost), Muncie Kmart (59 jobs lost), Fort Wayne Kmart on Coliseum Boulevard North (69 jobs lost), Decatur Kmart (49 jobs lost), Indianapolis Kmart on Madison Avenue (131 jobs lost), Indianapolis Kmart on Washington Street (139 jobs lost), Bedford Kmart (62 jobs lost), Indianapolis (Evansville) Sears & Auto Center at Washington Square Mall (91 jobs lost), Greenwood Kmart (78 jobs lost),  Plymouth Kmart (“approximately” 68 jobs lost).

Iowa: Cedar Rapids Kmart on 16th Ave (at least 40 jobs lost), Davenport Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Burlington Kmart (50 jobs lost), Coralville Sears (94 jobs lost, this is a store sold to GGP earlier in the year), Cedar Rapids Kmart on Collins Road NE (56 jobs lost), Mason City Kmart (50 jobs lost), Clive Kmart (at least 49 jobs lost), Ames Kmart (44 jobs lost), Fort Dodge Sears (no job loss numbers made public, yet. The Auto Center was secretly shutdown in September).

Kansas: Lawrence Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Merriam Kmart-then Sears-then Kmart (jobs lost unknown), Wichita Sears store & Auto Center (103 jobs lost), Manhattan Sears & Auto Center (number of jobs lost were never revealed).

Kentucky: Middlesboro Sears (in September 2012 the Sears store re-opened under independent ownership, official grand re-opening scheduled for November), Winchester Kmart (back in May, Rankin Paynter bought out what was left of the inventory and gave it to charity), Hazard Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Lexington Fayette Mall Sears (114 jobs lost!), Newport Kmart (81 jobs lost), Cannonsburg Sears and Sears Auto Center (no employee info given), Louisville Dixie Highway Kmart/Sears/Kmart, Madisonville Kmart (39 jobs lost), Owensboro Sears store & Auto Center (52 jobs lost).

Louisiana: Slidell Sears (77 job lost), Gretna Kmart (94 jobs lost), Metairie Kmart secretly sold off, no word if it will be shutdown.

Maine: Lewiston Sears (60 to 70 jobs lost), Presque Isle Aroostook Centre Mall Sears (63 jobs lost).

Maryland: Ellicott Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Gaithersburg Sears/Great Indoors, Landover Sears rebuild & call center (115 jobs lost), Baltimore Kmart on Wabash Avenue (107 jobs lost).

Massachusetts: North Reading Sears Hardware store closed, lease not renewed, Milford Kmart (80 jobs lost), Kingston Kmart (73 jobs lost).

Michigan: Novi Sears/Great Indoors, Brighton Sears Grand/Essentials, Harper Woods Sears Full line, Monroe Sears Full line, Adrian Sears Full line, Washington Township Kmart, Chesterfield Kmart, Woodhaven Kmart, Saginaw Kmart on Bay Road, Flint Kmart on Dort Highway (46 jobs lost), Gaylord Kmart (48 jobs lost), Sterling Kmart (58 jobs lost), Bloomfield Township Kmart and Sears, Bad Axe Kmart (61 jobs lost), Ypsilanti Township Kmart (83 jobs lost), Petoskey Kmart (45 jobs lost), Saint John’s Kmart (48 jobs lost), White Lake Township “Store of the Future” Kmart (42 jobs lost), Grand Blanc Kmart (49 jobs lost), Lapeer Kmart (56 jobs lost), Southgate Kmart (155 jobs lost), Detroit’s Telegraph Road Kmart (115 jobs lost), Waterford Township Sears (no word on how many jobs lost), Rochester Hills Kmart (77 jobs lost), ‘perfect Kmart town’ of Port Huron Kmart (188 jobs lost), Flint Kmart on Miller Road (81 jobs lost), Burton Kmart (85 jobs lost), Madison Heights Kmart (179 jobs lost), it’s now obvious the last remaining Saginaw Kmart will remain shutdown after its roof collapsed during a snowstorm back in January 2014, Ann Arbor Kmart (59 jobs lost), Iron Mountain Kmart (54 jobs lost), Bangor Township Sears aka Bay City Mall Sears, the Auto Center was already secretly shutdown some time ago (at least 47 jobs lost), Big Rapids Kmart (about 50 jobs lost).

Minnesota: Willmar Kmart, Duluth Kmart, New Hope Kmart, White Bear Lake Kmart, Bemidji Kmart, Monticello Kmart, GGP owned Sears Auto Center in the Apache Mall closed (10 jobs lost), the entire Sears store in the Apache Mall being sold off, Fergus Falls Kmart (40 jobs lost), Fergus Falls Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Alexandria Kmart (46 jobs lost), Grand Rapids Kmart (61 jobs lost), Seritage is selling off three Sears Auto Centers in Minnetonka, Brooklyn Center and Saint Paul, Marshall Kmart (57 jobs lost), Oakdale Kmart (77 hourly wage employees losing their jobs, unknown how many salaried employees will become unemployed), Winona Kmart (67 jobs lost), Minneapolis city officials trying to shutdown profit making Nicollet Avenue Kmart, to make way for a new road. Anoka Kmart (47 jobs lost), Blaine Kmart (60 jobs lost), Burnsville Kmart (62 jobs lost), Waite Park Kmart (57 jobs lost), Northeast Minneapolis Sears Hometown & Outlet store now for sale, Coon Rapids Sears Hometown & Outlet store now for sale.

Mississippi: Jackson Sears Full line, McComb Sears Full line, Columbus Sears Full line, Gautier Sears (71 jobs lost), Waveland Gulfport Kmart (32 jobs lost), Pass Road Gulfport Kmart (52 jobs lost), Pascagoula Sears at the Singing River Mall, Olive Branch distribution center (unknown how many jobs lost).

Missouri: Lee’s Summit Sears Grand/Essentials, Saint Louis Sears Full line, High Ridge Kmart (59 jobs lost), Ellisville Kmart (55 jobs lost), Springfield Kmart on South Campbell Avenue (60 jobs lost), South Belt Kmart (64 jobs lost), Florissant Kmart (100 jobs lost).

Montana: Missoula Kmart (50 jobs lost), Great Falls Kmart (closed “until further notice” due to fire, 63 jobs on hold), Great Falls Sears store & Auto Center (65 jobs lost) due to great sales (ironically) the shutdown date has been moved from 07 December 2014 to 23 November, Bozeman Kmart (37 jobs lost).

Nebraska: Grand Island Kmart (55 jobs lost), Omaha Kmart near West Maple Road (50 jobs lost).

Nevada: Sparks Kmart distribution center (100 jobs lost).

New Hampshire: Nashau Sears Grand/Essentials, Keene Sears Grand/Essentials, Portsmouth Kmart (30 jobs lost), Claremont Kmart (59 jobs lost).

New Jersey: Lawnside Kmart (about 80 jobs lost), Howell Kmart (57 jobs lost), Berlin Kmart, Dover Kmart (92 jobs lost), Randolf Kmart (91 jobs lost), Paramus Kmart (74 jobs lost).

New Mexico: Las Cruces Kmart (58 jobs lost), Albuquerque Kmart on Central SW (80 jobs lost), Rio Rancho Kmart (59 jobs lost).

New York: Depew (Lancaster?) Kmart (68 jobs lost), Colonie Kmart (72 jobs lost), Fulton Kmart (51 jobs lost), Clifton Park Kmart (74 jobs lost), Latham Kmart (61 jobs lost), East Greenbush-Rensselaer Kmart (70 jobs lost), Tonawanda Sears Appliance and Hardware, Bronx Sears (91 jobs lost), BBN reader reported that the Ithaca Sears and Auto Center shutdown and one month later it’s been officially confirmed (at least 37 jobs lost), DeWitt Kmart (92 jobs lost), Auburn Sears (51 jobs lost), Massena Sears and Auto Center (51 jobs lost).

North Carolina: Cary Kmart (71 jobs lost), High Point Sears, Moorehead Sears, Rocky Mount Sears, Statesville Sears, Durham Kmart (79 jobs lost), Asheville Kmart (53 jobs lost), West Smithfield Kmart (59 jobs lost), Winston-Salem Kmart (69 jobs lost), Hendersonville Kmart (58 jobs lost), South Ashville Kmart on Hendersonville Road, Raleigh Kmart (88 jobs lost), Garner Kmart, Cleveland County mall Sears (56 jobs lost), Charlotte Kmart (89 jobs lost), Conover Kmart (74 jobs lost), Raleigh Kmart on Capital Boulevard (53 jobs lost), High Point Kmart (71 jobs lost), Boone Kmart (41 jobs lost), Greensboro Kmart (96 jobs lost), Gastonia Sears store & Auto Center (65 jobs lost), Kinston Kmart (64 jobs lost), Cary Sears (66 jobs lost), Greensboro Kmart distribution center (130 jobs lost).

North Dakota: Jamestown Kmart (45 jobs lost), Dickinson Kmart (41 jobs lost, despite a “Now Hiring” sign on the front of the store).

Ohio: Chagrin Falls Kmart, Springfield Kmart, two Toledo Kmarts, Medina Kmart, Columbus Kmart, Columbus Sears/Great Indoors, Zanesville Sears (67 jobs lost), Trotwood Kmart (71 jobs lost), Austintown Sears auto parts and service on Interstate Boulevard, London Kmart (no word on number of jobs lost), Trotwood Sears (67 jobs lost), Westlake Kmart/Sears (at least 57 jobs lost), Xenia Kmart (at least 57 jobs lost), Norwalk Kmart (52 jobs lost), Blue Ash Kmart (77 jobs lost), Northwood Sears at Woodville Mall (36 jobs lost), Conneaut Kmart (43 jobs lost), Anderson Township Kmart (71 jobs lost), Brooklyn Kmart (200 jobs lost), Columbus Lockbourne Industrial Parkway Sears distribution center (200 jobs lost), also in Columbus, Sears Product Rebuild-Call Center (112 jobs lost), Marion Sears Auto Center (at least nine jobs lost), Springfield Kmart #3767 (68 jobs lost), Fairborn Kmart (66 jobs lost), Solon Sears & Auto Center (at least 53 jobs lost). Also, Van Wert Sears franchise bought out by Kirk Berryman, owner of Computer & Networking Technologies (CNT), who plans on moving the store to a new location.

Oklahoma: Oklahoma City Sears (98 jobs lost, GGP owned, GGP wants a $2 million sales tax rebate, claiming it’s needed to offset capital investments needed to bring the space up to the standards for potential new tenants), Shawnee Sears (31 jobs lost), Sand Springs Kmart (52 jobs lost), Muskogee Sears (60 jobs lost), Enid Sears and Auto Center (at least 38 jobs lost).

Oregon: Roseburg Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Tualatin Kmart Center (new property owner from California is tearing everything down for new shopping center, so far no indication the Kmart will be part of the new shopping center), Milwaukie Kmart (61 jobs lost), Coos Bay Kmart (25 jobs lost), Bend Sears (48 jobs lost), Klamath Falls Kmart (64 jobs lost), Albany Kmart (64 jobs lost), Portland Sears Homes Services (no notice), Albany Sears (57 jobs lost), in October a BBN reader warned that Oregon City Kmart was being quietly shutdown, confirmed on 06 November 2014 by Sears Holdings (70 jobs lost).

Pennsylvania: Upper Darby Sears Full line, Pottstown Sears Full line, Pittsburgh Kmart, Wilkins Sears, Warminster Kmart (85 jobs lost), Shippensburg Kmart (46 jobs lost), Moon Kmart (143 jobs lost), Bethlehem Township Kmart (62 jobs lost), Philadelphia Gallery Mall Kmart (120 jobs lost), Philadelphia Kmart on Orthodox Street and Castor Avenue (169 jobs lost), Levittown/Middle Township Kmart (87 jobs lost), Waynesboro Kmart (43 jobs lost), Sanatoga-Lower Pottsgrove Kmart (65 jobs lost, the store was also advertising for new hires!), West Mifflin Sears store & Auto Center (88 jobs lost), Rochester Kmart (78 jobs lost), Frazer (Pittsburg Mills Mall) Sears and Auto Center (97 jobs lost), Bloomsburg Sears (57 jobs lost), Frackville Sears and Auto Center (84 jobs lost), North Cornwall Township Sears (51 jobs lost), King of Prussia Sears and Auto Center (no word on number of jobs lost), Lebanon Sears (51 jobs lost), Scotland Chambersburg Mall Sears and Auto Center (62 jobs lost).

Puerto Rico: Vega Baja Kmart (# of jobs lost not reported).

South Carolina: Sumter Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Orangeburg Sears (57 jobs lost), Columbia Kmart on Fort Jackson Boulevard in 2012, Columbia Kmart on Bush River Road in 2009, Columbia Kmart on St Andrews Road (66 jobs lost), Irmo Kmart (no info on how many jobs lost), both Greenville Kmarts (140 jobs lost between the two), Mount Pleasant Kmart (43 jobs lost), Harbison Sears & Sears Auto Center in the Columbiana Centre mall (97 jobs lost), Aiken Sears & Sears Auto Center (at least 54 jobs lost), Inlet Square Mall Kmart (50 jobs lost), West Ashely Kmart (69 jobs lost), Myrtle Beach Kmart (59 jobs lost), Easley Kmart (62 jobs lost).

Tennessee: Antioch Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Cleveland Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Oak Ridge Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Hendersonville Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Morristown Sears (about 70 jobs lost), Clinton South Kmart, Franklin Cool Springs Galleria Sears (92 jobs lost), Memphis Hickory Ridge mall Sears (job loss data not revealed), 48 years old Nashville Kmart on Nolensville Pike to close by January 2014 (57 jobs lost), Franklin Kmart (33 jobs lost), Dickson Kmart (65 jobs lost), talks in progress to end lease for Bellevue (Nashville) Center Mall Sears.

Texas: Two Sears parts and repair centers closing in The Woodlands (117 jobs lost), rebuild center in Garland (58 jobs lost), Farmers Branch Sears/Great Indoors, Houston Sears Great/Indoors, Dallas Sears home appliance parts distribution center (77 jobs lost).

Utah: Murray Sears (for some reason Mormon controlled news media in Utah never reported the closure, but they reported that the building was demolished), Orem Kmart (no details reported), Woods Cross Kmart (54 jobs lost).

Vermont: Rutland Sears store & Auto Center (65 jobs lost).

Virginia: Norfolk Sears (at least 40 jobs lost), Midlothian Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Richmond Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Lynchburg Sears (84 jobs lost), Fairfax Kmart (no word on how many jobs lost), Christiansburg Sears (59 jobs lost), Norfolk Kmart on East Little Creek Road (77 jobs lost), Manassas Kmart (71 jobs lost), Stafford Sears Hometown, Newport News-Denbigh Kmart (at least 50 jobs lost), Wise Kmart (58 jobs lost), Harrisonburg Kmart (79 jobs lost), Wincester Kmart (91 jobs lost), Dale City Kmart (69 jobs lost), Chesapeake Sears and Auto Center (82 jobs lost), Front Royal Kmart (88 jobs lost).

Washington: Walla Walla Sears Full line (in August 2012, it was reported that an independent owner of Sears Hometown stores will open a store in Walla Walla), Lacey Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost), Kelso Sears (47 jobs lost), Lakewood Kmart (59 jobs lost), Bellingham Sears (92 jobs lost), Seattle Kmart (85 jobs lost), East Wenatchee Sears (59 jobs lost), Puyallup Kmart (51 jobs lost), Oak Harbor Kmart (68 jobs lost), Sodo Sears and Sears Auto Center (79 jobs lost), Everett Kmart (65 jobs lost), Marysville Kmart (at least 40 jobs lost).

West Virginia: Oak Hill Kmart (59 jobs lost), Morgantown Kmart (100 jobs lost), Bluefield Sears store & Auto Center (64 jobs lost).

Wisconsin: West Baraboo Sears (at least 40 jobs lost, local village officials say the store generated 3% of local tax collections), Rice Lake Kmart (about 71 jobs lost), Brookfield Kmart (56 jobs lost), Racine’s Regency Mall Sears (52 jobs lost), Fort Atkinson Kmart (51 jobs lost), Greenfield Kmart (107 jobs lost), Portage Kmart (78 jobs lost) and Hales Corner (129 jobs lost), Chippewa Falls Kmart (79 jobs lost), Menomonie Kmart (at least 50 jobs lost), Ashwaubenon Kmart recently revealed now owned by Green Bay Packers, will be torn down (80 jobs lost), Shawano Kmart (55 jobs lost), Fond du Lac Sears (42 jobs lost), Glendale Sears store & Auto Center (86 jobs lost), Janesville Kmart (70 jobs lost), Glendale Sears Rebuild center (67 jobs lost), Sheboygan Sears & Auto Center (at least 31 jobs lost), Eau Claire Kmart (93 jobs lost), Plymouth Kmart (59 jobs lost before Xmas), Sheboygan Sears Rebuild Center (30 jobs lost).

On top of that, Sears Holdings sold stores to General Growth Properties (GGP), of which it has been reported that most of those stores will be closed.

Here’s the list of 11 Sears stores now owned by GGP:

Iowa: Coral Ridge Mall (it’s official the Sears is closing, see above), and Mall of the Bluffs

Texas: The Woodlands Mall (this does not involve the two repair centers being closed by Sears)

Florida: West Oaks Mall

Utah: Fashion Place, and Provo Towne Centre (note the evil British empire way of spelling town & center. Due to a favorable lease agreement the GGP owned Provo Sears will continue to stay open under Sears Holdings management)

Oklahoma: Quail Springs Mall (it’s official, the Sears closed, see above)

Hawaii: Ala Moana Center (closed, see above)

Washington: Bellis Fair Mall (Bellingham store, see above)

Minnesota: Apache Mall (see update above, GGP will close Sears store by 2014)

Illinois: Market Place Shopping Center (see update above, GGP closing store)

Business/Economics, Idaho

U.S. Job Losses & Store Closings, 05 – 08 December 2014: More girly clothing store deaths! More proof the suck-ass economy is going to kick yours!

Incomplete list of publicly announced layoffs & shutdowns:

British empire’s British Petroleum (BP) said that crashing oil prices are causing them to “accelerate” their already massive planned layoffs.  Those layoffs have been in the works ever since BP’s Gulf of Mexico oil disaster.

Gannett owned USA Today announced it is ending publication of its USA Weekend edition, eliminating at least 30 jobs.  Back in September USA Today laid off 70 people.

California:  In Beverly Hills, 3D movie tech company RealD announced it must cut $16-million in expenses and warned jobs will be lost.  After eight years award winning restaurant Hatfield’s shutdown. No explanation, but the owners swore they’d be back with a new restaurant.  In Ontario, corporate spy agency IntelliSource issued a WARN saying the will shutdown by February 2015, at least 312 jobs lost!  In Santa Monica, La Sandia restaurant issued a WARN saying they will shutdown in February 2015, at least 74 jobs lost.  Also in Santa Monica, Zengo restaurant issued a WARN saying they will shutdown in February 2015, at least 74 jobs lost.  Freedom Communications revealed (in a late issued WARN) how many people it laid off after halting publication of its LA Register; 88.  Earlier reports said only 20 people were let go.

Georgia: Atlanta based iconic Coca Cola announced it is cutting $100-million AUD from its Australian ops in 2015, killing off at least 250 jobs in the Land Down Under! Coca Cola already killed off at least 157 Australian jobs for 2014!  Procter & Gamble warned it will shutdown its Augusta factory by 2016, at least 190 jobs lost (40 employees, 150 contractors)!  Between 2012 and 2013 Procter & Gamble eliminated 160 jobs at the same factory!  Company administrators say the rapidly changing U.S. economy means they must radically change their supply system across the U.S.

Idaho: Administrators with “the nation’s largest supplier of building materials for home building” ProBuild announced they’re shutting down their Sandpoint ops due to crashing sales.

Illinois: God refused to stop ‘his’ Benedictine University from ending its undergraduate program and killing as many as 100 jobs!   In Oregon city, after four years Jackass BBQ shutdown with little notice, the owner is pissed about the lack of any economic recovery, he’s now forced to auction off his personal tools: “Business is slow here in Oregon…Most people from Dixon do not drive here anymore….We will have lots of Craftsman tools and toolboxes, antiques, household items and furniture. We have a welder and oxygen acetylene cutting torches, along with several steel industrial work benches.”-Andy Riegel

Kentucky: Patriot Coal announced more coal mine shutdowns, this time two mines will be shutdown by January 2015, at least 670 jobs lost!

Mississippi: In Jackson County, bankrupt Mississippi Phosphates announced they’re halting diammonium phosphate production, at least 172 jobs lost!

New York:  NYC based bratty teenage girl’s clothing chain store dELiA*s now chapter 11 bankrupt busted and liquidating.  The company has been for sale for a long time now, but obviously nobody wants to buy it in this suck-ass economy.  Company administrators admitted sales are so bad they haven’t made a profit in five years!  In Ithaca, after more than 40 years Manos Diner shutdown. The news was revealed by an employee.  In Saratoga county, the company about to takeover Maplewood Manor nursing home, Zenith Healthcare, revealed they plan on eliminating 97 jobs and move other employees to part time only.

Texas: God refused to stop ‘his’ Southern Methodist University (home of the George W. Bush Presidential Library) from cutting programs and killing jobs. The Christian university has spent tens of millions on new dorm buildings despite DSS (what I call Disappearing Student Syndrome).

Wisconsin: Non-profit WPS Health Insurance (aka Wisconsin Physicians Service Insurance Corporation) laid off 20 IT (information technology) workers. The company laid off 250 people in 2013! Administrators blame their military Tricare (formerly known as CHAMPUS, Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Uniformed Services) and Medicare contracts, as well as blaming Obama Care: “The reality is the competition for these government contracts, along with health care reform, is requiring everyone to look for more efficiencies.”– Ellen Foley

03-04-december-2014: Iconic business that survived 2 major U.S. depressions gets killed off by current “recovery”!

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 shutdown. It doesn’t count people who get a severance for being laid off.

International

What do ya know, Iran! Israel now in open warfare with Iran, Syria and Lebanon! IDF assassinate UN observer!

29 January 2015 (19:24 UTC-07 Tango 28 January 2015)/08 Rabi ‘ath-Thani 1436/09 Bahman 1393/10 Yi-Chou (12th month) 4712

“Iran controls four Arab capitals. They control, effectively control Iraq, large parts of Iraq. They control Syria through Assad. They control Lebanon through Hezbollah. They control Gaza in their support of Hamas and Islamic Jihad, and they’re now going to control Yemen, and they’re doing all of this without a nuclear weapon!”-Ron Dermer, Israeli ambassador to the United States, PBS Newshour interview 28 January 2015

28 January 2015: Lebanon’s Hezbollah Qunaitra Martyrs unit kills two Israeli Defense Force (IDF) personnel, saying it’s retaliation for Israel’s massive attack on Hezbollah and Iranian forces who were supporting Syrian government forces against the U.S.-U.K.-Saudi-Israeli created Islamic State.  Today’s attack by Hezbollah was made against an IDF convoy operating outside recognized Israeli territory (Syrian controlled Golan Heights).  Eight IDF soldiers were wounded. The IDF confirmed a sergeant and a captain were killed.  In another battle the Spanish government is now blaming the IDF for killing a Spanish United Nations observer.  The IDF claims they were returning artillery fire when the Spanish captain was killed, but the government of Spain says bull-shit on that: “It was because of this escalation of violence, and it came from the Israeli side!”– Roman Oyarzun Marchesi, Spanish ambassador to the United Nations

Witnesses say IDF artillery strikes impacted several villages in southern Lebanon.

27 January 2015: The IDF launches three airstrikes against Syrian government forces, who are fighting against the U.S.-U.K.-Saudi-Israeli created Islamic State.  Apparently the airstrikes were in the same area that the IDF attacked the week before.

A Turkish news source (Hurriyet Daily) reported that the Obama regime awarded a Turkish general with the Legion of Merit for recent actions in Syria.  Turkish Land Forces Commander General Hulusi Akar was given the medal by U.S. Army General Raymond Odierno.

26 January 2015: Syrian president Bashar al-Assad said it’s clear Israel is supporting Islamic State-al-Qaeda: “Whenever we make advances in some place, they (the Israelis) attack in order to undermine the army. It’s very clear. That’s why some in Syria joke, ‘How can you say that al-Qaeda doesn’t have an air force? They have the Israeli air force!'”-interview with U.S. magazine Foreign Affairs

Assad also blamed NATO member Turkey: “…Logistically, and about terrorist financing from Saudi Arabia and Qatar, but through Turkey…..He’s [Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan] very fanatical, and that’s why he still supports ISIS. He is personally responsible for what happened. There  will be no problem defeating them [Islamic State]. Even today we don’t have a problem militarily. The problem is that they still have this continuous supply, mainly from Turkey.”

A Turkish news source (Turkish Weekly) revealed that Islamic State has bought 2-thousand stolen cars over the past two years.  Those cars were shipped from around the World and then through NATO member Turkey.  Anybody remember the story about the U.S. plumber who discovered his stolen Ford “Mark-1 Plumbing” truck was being used by Islamic State?

In Yemen, the U.S. embassy in Sana’a shutdown as Iranian backed Shia Houthi Mujahideen took control of the country: “The U.S. Embassy will be closed to the public until further notice….Due to the recent resignation of the Yemeni president, prime minister, and cabinet, and the ongoing security concerns, the U.S. Embassy in Sana’a is unable to provide routine consular services and will have very limited ability to assist with emergency cases involving U.S. citizens.”-U.S. Department of State

Also in Yemen, a U.S. drone fired four missiles in an area between Marib and Shabwa provinces, killing three people.  (That’s pretty wasteful; four, million dollar missiles to kill three people?)

25 January 2015:“This action [Israeli attack against Hezbollah and Iranian forces in Syria] was the reflection of numerous defeats that both Americans and Israelis have suffered in their current strategies. We will certainly consider a special retaliation [against Israel] for this issue. This is part of a new reality that will gradually unravel.”-Brigadier General Hossein Salami, Iranian Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), explaining to Al-Alam TV why Iran will now expand the battle front against Israel

21 January 2015: In the United States, U.S. House Speaker John Boner, I mean Boehner, broke political protocols and invited the Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Nut-job-yahoo, I mean Netanyahu, to give a speech to the Congress, without consulting with the Office of the President.  Boehner admitted he wants Netanyahu to drum up U.S. support for war against Iran.

20 January 2015:  The IDF deploys U.S. taxpayer funded Iron Dome anti-aircraft missile systems along the border with Lebanon.

In Sana’a, Yemen, Iranian backed Shia Houthi Mujahideen succeeded in capturing the Presidential Palace, officially toppling the U.S.-Saudi-Israeli backed puppet government.  Yemen is considered the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s ‘backyard’.  Not only did the Iranian backed Mujahideen kick the asses of the government forces, but they’re kicking the asses of the U.S.-U.K.-Saudi-Israeli backed al-Qaeda in Yemen Takfiris as well!

18 January 2015: An IDF airstrike targets Hezbollah and Iranian forces inside Quneitra, Syria, killing at least six people including Iran’s IRGC Brigadier General Mohammad Ali Allahdadi.

It was revealed that a female terrorist wanted for recent attacks in France, was ‘allowed’ to escape through Turkey into Syria: “Boumeddiene entered Syria as thousands of foreign fighters and activists have before her – she flew into Istanbul and either drove or caught a bus on the 1000-plus kilometre journey to south-eastern Turkey. Her mobile phone was last tracked near the town of Akcakale, security officials confirmed.”

16 January 2014: The Obama regime is deploying more than 400 military personnel to train up anti-Iran and anti-Syria insurgents.  Department of Defense administrators claim they will train up to 5-thousand 4-hundred insurgents per year to continue the bloody war in Syria, and to take the war to Iran.    The Obama regime will base the U.S. training personnel in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and in fellow NATO member Turkey.  However, sources say the U.S. Army’s 1st Infantry Division and the 82nd Airborne Division’s 3rd Brigade Combat Team are already in Iraq, part of a 3-thousand troop deployment ordered by Obama: “Training in Iraq has begun in areas including Taji, north of Baghdad, and al-Asad Air Base, in western Iraq.”