government

Borrowers, lenders, and others--beware trusting the government

Posted May 28, 2009 - 07:10 by Philip Brewer

Personal Finance

Having a prosperous country (as opposed to having merely a prosperous elite) depends fundamentally on the rule of law. The system can work adequately well with various sets of rules, as long as they're known in advance and fairly applied. During hard times, though, there's a strong temptation to ignore the rules in a search for a less-bad result. Both borrowers and lenders need to watch out.

full story 9 comments

What can you do if you cannot afford to pay your taxes

Posted April 15, 2009 - 13:18 by Xin Lu

Personal Finance, Taxes, Credit Cards

Have your taxes done today

Today is April 15th, also known as the dreaded Tax Day in America. Due to the recession many people may find that they do not have enough money in the bank to pay what they owe. Instead of marching in the various "tea parties" happening today, this is what you can do if you find that you do not have enough money to pay Uncle Sam.

full story 7 comments

Will these car buying incentives get you to buy a new car?

Posted March 31, 2009 - 21:37 by Xin Lu

Personal Finance, Taxes, Consumer Affairs, Cars and Transportation

This week President Obama rolled out an initiative for the failing American automakers to restructure. The plan proposes several consumer incentives to jumpstart auto sales. Here are some details on the financial incentives you can expect if you buy a new car this year.

full story 45 comments

Where Did Your iPod Come From? The Story of Stuff

Posted March 9, 2009 - 23:46 by Nora Dunn

Lifestyle, Green Living, Consumer Affairs

The Story of Stuff

Do you know the difference between planned and perceived obsolescence?
Do you know why high heels are fashionable with chunky heels one year, and thin heels the next year?
Why is breast milk the “food” highest in toxic contaminants?
And do you know why in the wake of September 11th, George Bush told us all to go shopping?
These questions and many, many others are answered in The Story of Stuff, a 20-minute documentary about the life cycle of products and services, explaining everything about…well…stuff.

full story 13 comments

Need a job? Apply to become a Census enumerator

Posted January 22, 2009 - 14:10 by Xin Lu

Personal Finance, Making Extra Cash

The Census Bureau produces an important set of demographics data about the United States every ten years. The 2010 Census is coming up soon and the Bureau is hiring thousands of temporary workers to help with data gathering. The recruitment starts now.

full story 6 comments

Do we really need help with getting more debt?

Posted November 25, 2008 - 15:17 by Xin Lu

Personal Finance, Credit Cards, Consumer Affairs

Credit Cards

Today a new rescue program called the Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF) was announced by the Treasury and Federal Reserve to support owners of securities backed by credit card debt, student loans, auto loans, and loans approved by the Small Business Administration. Supposedly this initiative will free up consumer credit, but the question is, are we really in need of more debt right now?

full story 21 comments

When will the bailouts stop? A summary of 2008 stimulus packages and bailouts in the United States

Posted October 20, 2008 - 13:48 by Xin Lu

Taxes, Consumer Affairs

2008 will probably go down in history as the year of bailouts, crashes, and meltdowns. Here is a quick run down of all the laws and bills congress pushed through with lightning speed in this election year. With two months left in the year, we may see some more bailouts and stimulus packages to come.

full story 14 comments

Download the 451-page bailout proposal

Posted October 1, 2008 - 11:08 by Paul Michael

Personal Finance, Credit Cards, Consumer Affairs

tired of reading

Well folks, I hope you have plenty of time on your hands. The initial 3-page document that Bush and Paulson put forward has grown somewhat. It's hardly surprising, considering how much of a broad sweep the initial bailout plan was. However, you have to wonder how many people out there have the time, patience and understanding to read a 451-page economic document. But, if you want, you can download it right here.

full story 5 comments

Root cause of the financial crisis

Posted September 23, 2008 - 10:21 by Philip Brewer

Real Estate and Housing

Several times recently, Treasury Secretary Paulson (and many others) have claimed that the "root cause" of the current financial crisis is "the housing correction." This is completely wrong--and unless policy makers realize that it's completely wrong, they're not likely to make the right policy decisions.

full story 80 comments

Shadow Government Statistics - Is the government manipulating numbers to make the economy look better than it really is?

Posted September 22, 2008 - 18:36 by Xin Lu

Personal Finance, Consumer Affairs

About a year ago I wrote an article about the Consumer Price Index that made some friends say that I am a conspiracy theorist, but apparently I am not alone in believing that the government reports statistics that are far from reality. John Williams is an Oakland based economist who has been running the website Shadow Government Statistics for more than five years, and he reports an alternate set of statistics based on his research. He believes that the government has been painting a rosy picture of the economy for many years, and his set of numbers are quite alarming if you believe it.

full story 25 comments

Have more to say? Join the discussions at Wise Bread's Finance and Frugality Forums.

Finance Blogs - Blog Top Sites