Help The Middle ClassNews and Information For The Heart Of America
Gates And Obama Suggest Early ‘Troop Withdrawal’ From Afghanistan A Possibility (AP/Yahoo)
U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates raised the possibility Wednesday that some of the U.S. forces involved in the Afghanistan surge could leave the country before President Barack Obama’s announced July 2011 date to begin withdrawal.
Without giving specifics, Gates said, “It would have to be conditions-based.”
Gates made the remarks during a visit to a dust-blown training [...]
RECESSION NOT OVER YET! – Home Sales Fall To A Record Low In January (CNN)
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Sales of new homes plunged in January to the lowest level on record, government figures showed Wednesday.
The seasonally adjusted annual rate of new home sales plummeted 11.2% to 309,000 last month, compared with a revised rate of 348,000 in December, the Census Bureau said. That’s a decline 6.1% from January 2009.
It [...]
WAR UPDATE: U.S. Death Toll in Afghanistan Hits 1,000 (Yahoo! News & AFP)
KABUL (AFP) – A bomb strapped to a bicycle exploded near a busy bus terminal in Afghanistan, killing eight people Tuesday as the death toll of US troops in the Afghan war surpassed the grim milestone of 1,000.
The attack took place in Lashkar Gah, capital of Helmand province where a massive US-led military offensive [...]
NOT SO FAST MR. OBAMA: New Jobless Claims Surge Unexpectedly, Producer Prices Up, Wall Street Opens Weak (Reuters/Yahoo! News)
The number of U.S. workers filing new applications for unemployment insurance unexpectedly surged last week, while producer prices increased sharply in January, raising potential hurdles for the economic recovery.
Initial claims for state unemployment benefits increased 31,000 to 473,000, the Labor Department said on Thursday. That compared to market expectations for 430,000.
Another report from the department [...]
Suburban Homeless Is Becoming a Reality For American Families (Huffington Post)
ROOSEVELT, N.Y. — Homelessness in rural and suburban America is straining shelters this winter as the economy founders and joblessness hovers near double digits – a “perfect storm of foreclosures, unemployment and a shortage of affordable housing,” in one official’s eyes.
“We are seeing many families that never before sought government help,” said Greg Blass, commissioner [...]
THE 10 Most Overlooked Tax Deductions
Through deductions, American wage earners have the chance to pocket more income, rather than hand over their hard-earned cash to the government. For those who keep good records, deductions can mean more money – and less for the IRS. You probably know the most common deductions, such as deductions for property taxes and charitable donations, [...]
TAXES 101: Simple And Overlooked Deductions For College Expenses (Kiplinger.com)
I’ve received dozens of follow-up questions since I wrote about the American Opportunity Credit in my column Get a Bigger Tax Break for College Expenses. Here are some more answers.
Does graduate school count toward the American Opportunity Credit?
No. The American Opportunity Credit applies only to the first four years of postsecondary education, so graduate school [...]
8 Ways to Cut Insurance Costs for Teen Drivers (Kiplinger.com)
My 16-year-old son is about to get his license, and I’m afraid of what that might do to our auto-insurance rates. How can we lower insurance costs?
You’re right to be worried — your auto-insurance premiums are likely to skyrocket when your teenage son starts driving. But a few key moves can help you cut costs [...]
STATE OF THE UNION PREVIEW: Obama Proposes Economic Help For Middle Class (Washington Post)
1. Expanding the child-care tax credit:
The child-care tax credit now starts at 35 percent of child-care costs for the poorest families and drops to 20 percent of costs for families earning $43,000 or more. The proposal calls for a credit of 35 percent of child-care costs for all families earning as much as $85,000, with [...]
Poll: 84% of Americans Think Economy Still In Recession (CNN Money/Yahoo!)
Economists are in broad agreement that the Great Recession is over. The American public strongly disagrees.
In a poll of more than 1,000 Americans conducted late last week by CNN/Opinion Research Corporation, 84% of those surveyed believe that the economy is still in recession.
That’s a slight improvement from the 87% who believed there was still a [...]
