TGIF

Well, we have seen one of the top 3 declines in a week on the Dow.  This rollercoaster does seem close to stopping.  The market isn't the only thing falling this week.  Everyone keep your head up and your eyes open.

Old NASA satellite to tumble to Earth on Friday

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- While North America appears to be off the hook, scientists are scrambling to pinpoint exactly where and when a dead NASA climate satellite will plummet back to Earth on Friday.

The 6-ton, bus-sized satellite is expected to break into more than a hundred pieces as it plunges through the atmosphere, most of it burning up.

But if you're hoping for a glimpse, the odds are slim. Most sightings occur by chance because the re-entry path can't be predicted early enough to alert people, said Canadian Ted Molczan, who tracks satellites for a hobby.

In all his years of monitoring, Molczan has witnessed only one tumble back to Earth - the 2004 return of a Russian communications satellite.

It "looked like a brilliant star with a long glowing tail," he said in an email.

The best guess so far is that the 20-year-old Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite will hit sometime Friday afternoon or early evening, Eastern time. The latest calculations indicate it will not be over the United States, Canada and Mexico during that time.

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I hope we get this job market turned around.  I don't want to have my kids living with until when they are 30.

Call it the recession's lost generation

In record-setting numbers, young adults struggling to find work are shunning long-distance moves to live with Mom and Dad, delaying marriage and buying fewer homes, often raising kids out of wedlock. They suffer from the highest unemployment since World War II and risk living in poverty more than others — nearly 1 in 5.

New 2010 census data released Thursday show the wrenching impact of a recession that officially ended in mid-2009. It highlights the missed opportunities and dim prospects for a generation of mostly 20-somethings and 30-somethings coming of age in a prolonged slump with high unemployment.

"We have a monster jobs problem, and young people are the biggest losers," said Andrew Sum, an economist and director of the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University. He noted that for recent college grads now getting by with waitressing, bartending and odd jobs, they will have to compete with new graduates for entry-level career positions when the job market eventually does improve.

"Their really high levels of underemployment and unemployment will haunt young people for at least another decade," Sum said.
Richard Freeman, an economist at Harvard University, added, "These people will be scarred, and they will be called the 'lost generation' — in that their careers would not be the same way if we had avoided this economic disaster."

Beyond the economy's impact, the new figures also show a rebound in the foreign-born population to 40 million, or 12.9 percent, the highest share since 1920. The 1.4 million increase from 2009 was the biggest since the mid-decade housing boom and could fuel debate in this election season about U.S. immigration strategy.

Most immigrants continue to be low-skilled workers from Latin America, with growing numbers from Asia also arriving on the bet that U.S. jobs await. An estimated 11.2 million immigrants are here illegally.

Seniors 65 and older tended to return to or stay put in their jobs, accounting for the few U.S. employment gains in recent months. About 1 in 6 older Americans is now in the labor force — the highest level since the 1960s, before more generous Social Security and Medicare benefits made it more attractive to retire.

Nationwide, employment among young adults 16-29 stood at 55.3 percent, down from 67.3 percent in 2000 and the lowest since the end of World War II. Young males who lacked a college degree — typically black and Hispanic — were most likely to lose jobs due to reduced demand for blue-collar jobs in construction, manufacturing and transportation during the downturn. Among teens, employment was less than 30 percent.

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This is awful.  This place had been open for almost 400 years,

1740's Tavern Becomes Victim of Recession

Since 1740, the Marlborough Tavern has been a fixture of this small town southeast of Hartford, but it will close this weekend.

The establishment, which has operated off and on as a tavern and restaurant, has been a host to presidents and even the French army during the Revolutionary War, but Saturday will be the tavern's last day until a new owner is found.

Jim Bradley took over the restaurant in 1985 with three friends. The building had been vacant since the previous owner closed the place in 1979. After a rough start, "the whole thing took off," Bradley said.

For nearly two decades, the Marlborough Tavern prospered near the center of town off Route 2. When gas prices spiked several summers ago, business took a big hit.

"It fell right off a cliff. It went down from June 2008 to July 2008," Bradley recalled.

He and a co-owner put money into the business to keep it afloat for the last three years, but with business down nearly a third, it became too much.

Bradley said losing food after Tropical Storm Irene disrupted his cash flow too much that he needed to shut the tavern's doors.

"Emotionally, it takes a toll after awhile when you realize you've been swimming hard against the tide," Bradley said.

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This falls under the "over-regulation' category.  Last I check the Constitution, it says you have freedom in America to practice your religion.

OC Couple Threatened With $500-Per-Meeting Fines For Home Bible Study

An Orange County couple has been ordered to stop holding a Bible study in their home on the grounds that the meeting violates a city ordinance as a “church” and not as a private gathering.

Homeowners Chuck and Stephanie Fromm, of San Juan Capistrano, were fined $300 earlier this month for holding what city officials called “a regular gathering of more than three people”.

That type of meeting would require a conditional use permit as defined by the city, according to Pacific Justice Institute (PJI), the couple’s legal representation.

The Fromms also reportedly face subsequent fines of $500 per meeting for any further “religious gatherings” in their home, according to PJI.

“We’re just gathering and enjoying each other’s company and fellowship. And we enjoy studying God’s word.” Stephanie Fromm told CBS2.

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As most of you know, I'm a big fan of Peter Schiff.  His book, Crashproof 2.0 is brilliant.  Here was his interview yesterday on CNBC.



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Clinton even thinks that Obama is confusing.  I never thought these words would come out of my mouth, but with the group we have running for President, bring the Ole Arkansas Governor back.

Not really, but he was way better than the bozos running right now.

Bill Clinton: Obama's Approach To The Deficit Is "A Little Confusing"

Fmr. President Bill Clinton in an interview with Newsmax (relevant part near 8-minute mark in the video): “In the speech that the president gave to Congress, he didn’t propose any new taxes. The speech was $250 billion in tax cuts, $250 billion in spending over a period of two to three years. It focused mostly on a rather innovative set of payroll tax cuts and incentives to hire people.

“I personally don’t believe we ought to be raising taxes or cutting spending until we get this economy off the ground. If we cut government spending, which I normally would be very inclined to do when the deficit’s this big, with interest rates already near zero you can’t get the benefits out of it.

“So what I’d like to see them do is come up with a bipartisan approach, starting with the payroll tax cuts because they have the biggest return."



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