Help The Middle ClassNews and Information For The Heart Of America
Foreclosures Up 5 Percent. Obama Mortgage Relief Not Reaching Enough Families
The number of households caught up in the foreclosure crisis rose more than 5 percent from summer to fall as a federal effort to assist struggling borrowers was overwhelmed by a flood of defaults among people who lost their jobs.
The foreclosure crisis affected nearly 938,000 properties in the July-September quarter, compared with about 890,000 in [...]
Still On The Job, But At Half The Pay
The dark blue captain’s hat, with its golden oak-leaf clusters, sits atop a bookcase in Bryan Lawlor’s home, out of reach of the children. The uniform their father wears still displays the four stripes of a commercial airline captain, but the hat stays home. The rules forbid that extra display of authority, now that Mr. [...]
Special Report: More Than 1M Preemies Die In First Month Annually
More than 1 million babies born prematurely die each year before they are a month old, the March of Dimes said Sunday in the first comprehensive global report on premature births.
The organization suggested the situation could worsen if the rate of premature births increases.
Each year, 12.9 million infants — or nearly 10 percent of the [...]
OPINION / MAN IN THE MIDDLE: THE ‘BIG EGO’ HITS COPENHAGEN & DAVID LETTERMAN – BIG TROUBLE AT SULLIVAN THEATRE
President Ego Hits the Wall In Copenhagen.
This is not about being gleeful that he failed. Nor will this have a devastating effect on his presidency; it is just another example of the much bigger problem that looms within the White House and the hubris of POTUS himself. This is about a man with an uncontrollable [...]
Chrysler: Stalling In The Fast Lane – Gov’t Bailout Can’t Help Failed Business Plan – CNN Special Report
Three months after coming through a federally-financed bankruptcy, the new Chrysler Group still faces serious trouble with no quick solution in sight.
The carmaker may have been given a sleek and shiny new balance sheet, but the products on the showroom floor are the same stale cars and trucks from before and there’s not much new [...]
43 U.S. Troops Have Died in Afghanistan Since Gen. McChrystal Called for Reinforcements
Another American died in Afghanistan on Wednesday, the final day of September–and exactly one month after the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan sent a confidential war assessment to the Obama administration, warning that more forces are needed–soon.
The as-yet-unnamed American serviceman who died on Wednesday was caught in a suicide attack in Khost Province, in eastern [...]
F.D.I.C. Moves to Replenish Bank Fund
Acknowledging that they greatly underestimated the problems plaguing the nation’s banking system, federal officials proposed a plan on Tuesday to replenish the fund that protects bank depositors.
They also announced that the fund, which began the year with more than $34 billion on hand but has been battered by bank collapses, would fall into deficit this [...]
Associated Press Analysis: Obama Presidency At Pivotal Moment
When President Barack Obama said the United Nations had reached “a pivotal moment,” he could just as well have been referring to his own presidency.
Both on the world stage and at home, Obama keeps asking for more, politely but firmly. But he’s still had no signature win, not the kind that would set off a [...]
UNREST IN PITTSBURGH: Tear Gas Greets Protesters At G20
As the two-day Group of 20 summit brought leaders of the world’s industrialized nations here Thursday, the police were out in force, patrolling on bicycles, foot and horseback, by river and by air.
In the afternoon, protesters trying to march toward the convention center where the summit is being held encountered roaming squads of police officers [...]
Obama Retreats From His Original Position In Middle East Peace Talks
President Obama, who has met immovable resistance from Israel over his demand for a full freeze on settlements in the West Bank, is largely setting that issue aside as a first step toward restarting Middle East peace talks.
Rather, Mr. Obama, unable to extract that concession from Israel or other confidence-building moves from Arab states, seems [...]
