Warren Buffett

The Sage of Omaha predicts a bleak economic forecast.  In a letter to shareholders he writes, "The economy will be in shambles throughout 2009-- and for that matter, probably well beyond." His company, Berkshire Hathaway barely broke even in the fourth quarter.    

Day 159

For the Rohingya people and to the human quest to find a place to call "home".

Rohingya People

The Rohingya people, an ethnic Muslim minority in Burma, have been fleeing persecution and poverty  in waves.  The Association of Southeast Asian Nations are meeting to discuss the flood of refugees into neighboring countries.  The Thai government has threatened deportation of any illegal immigrants who are caught.  According to the article, the Rohingya people are willing to go anywhere they will be accepted.  

Day 158

Bangladesh Rifles

Bangladesh Rifles, a military group used for boarder patrol begin day two of a revolt over pay disputes.  Army tanks have been deployed into Dhaka.  At least 10 have been confirmed dead.

Day 157

Leon Panetta

CIA director Leon Panetta states that President Obama will only release alleged terrorists to countries that have good human rights records.  Gitmo, anyone?

Day 156

Rebuilding Gaza

On the heels of Secretary of State Clinton's March visit to Israel and the West Bank, an undisclosed U.S. official states that the Obama Administration will give an estimated $900 million in aid to rebuild the Gaza Strip.  

It pains me to think of how different the world would be if we(universal we) directed money into instruments of construction rather than destruction.  

Day 155

Binyam Mohamed

Binyam Mohamed, four year prisoner of Guantanamo Bay, returned to the UK today.  Here's a quote from the article:

"Before this ordeal, torture was an abstract word to me. I could never have imagined that I would be its victim. It is still difficult for me to believe that I was abducted, hauled from one country to the next, and tortured in medieval ways – all orchestrated by the United States government."

What have we done? How was this allowed to happen? I am truly ashamed. 

Day 154

Day 153

Treasury Bonds

Secretary of State Clinton tours China to urge China to invest in US Treasury Bonds.  

"China is the biggest foreign holder of U.S. debt, which helped finance the spending binge the United States went on before the current economic crisis. Some experts have expressed concern that China's substantial holding of U.S. debt gives it increased leverage in dealings with Washington because any halt in Chinese purchases would make it more difficult to finance the government bailout and stimulus packages."

Climate Change

Here is an uplifting article on climate change.  The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (a UN agency) predicts a doubling of carbon levels could raise average temperature anywhere from 2 to 4.5 degrees C.  According to the article, the low estimate would be "bad" and the high estimate would be "catastrophic".  The article emphasizes the definitive irreversibility of the global warming trend.  

Day 152

Citi Stock Falls

From Reuters:

"U.S. stocks tumbled on Friday, depressing the Dow to levels last seen more than six years ago as investors worried a financial sector rescue might involve nationalization of major banks, wiping out shareholders."

Also in the article:  Citi shares down 18% and B of A shares down 15%.

Day 151

China AIDS & HIV

I was a little surprised to read this article on AIDS and China this morning.  Looks like the number one infectious disease is AIDS, toping tuberculosis and rabies. In 2008, an estimated 7,000 people died as a result of contracting AIDS in the first nine months and the UN estimates over 700,000 people are living with HIV

Day 150

Gimme Gimme More

Big Three Automakers, GM and Chrysler beg for more money to stay afloat.  GM might need as much as $30 billion on top of the $13.4 billion it received from government funds.  The company also plans to cut 47,000 jobs.  Chrysler asked for $5 billion more (it already received $4 billion) and will cut 3,000 jobs.  

We've dug ourselves into a hole.  The real losses are yet to be seen.

Day 149

Strange and Tragic

Connecticut woman Charla Nash was mauled by a 200 lb. chimp named Travis after being given the anti-anxiety drug, Xanax.  Travis was shot dead by Conn. police and Nash is hospitalized for her injuries.  Nash went to Sandra Herold's home to help calm the agitated chimp.  Police speculate that Nash was attacked because she was wearing her hair differently and was not recognized by the animal.  

Day 148

Day 147

Term limits have been abolished in Venezuela with a 54% vote.  

Peanut Corp of America

More peanut woes.  A plant in Plainview, Texas has been shut down.  Thus far 9 people have died and over 600 sickened from salmonella found in products PCA peanuts.  The FDA has a searchable database of over 2000 contaminated products.

I've been wondering how salmonella can get into peanut butter and found this article.  

Hugo Chavez

Today the Venezuelean people are voting on whether to lift term limits to allow Hugo Chavez to stay in his leadership position.  He states that he is in need of more time to "fully transform Venezuela into a socialist state."  With dropping oil prices, the country is facing a looming recession.  According to the article, it is the fourth largest supplier of crude oil to the U.S. and receives 93% of its revenue from its precious commodity.  

Day 146

VD.....

.....Valentine's Day, not venereal disease.  Today is the holest of Hallmark holidays- the ultimate holiday designed to make significant others spend money on flowers, chocolate, and trinkets to prove their love and affection.  My fondest Valentine's Day memories are from elementary school when everyone gave out those cheesy trading card sized valentine's cards and smarties candies. It was the ultimate in the socialization of love. So, here is my attempt at beaming out a ray of virtual affection. Will you be my Valentine?

Day 145

Tensions are running high in India and Pakistan.  Criminal cases were filed for 8 suspects on Thursday.  It marked the first time Pakistan admitted that the Mumbai attacks were partially planned on its soil.  

Day 144

Economic Stimulus Bill

A deal has been made on the economic stimulus bill.  To win 3 crucial Republican votes, the bill was pared down to $789 billion by cutting some education and health programs.  The House and Senate are set for a vote as early as Friday for a final signature from President Obama on Monday.  There is a nice list of bill provisions in the referenced article above.  Here are just a few:

• $46 billion for transportation projects
• $4 billion for public housing improvements
• $6.4 billion for clean and drinking water projects
• $7 billion to bring broadband internet service to underserved areas
• $50 billion for energy projects focused primarily on efficiency and renewable energy

Day 143

I made the text too small today. It reads, "zvakapresser"- a Shona word to express a the condition of oppression and living a hard life.  Life in Zimbabwe is definitely zvakapresser. I wish good luck to Morgan Tsvangirai.  May he bring the change Zim so desperately needs. 

New Prime Minister for Zimbabwe

Opposition party leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, was sworn in as Prime Minister today.  I never thought this day would come.  Robert Mugabe, the old despotic mule, has been trying to maintain absolute power for almost three decades.  Actions at the swearing in ceremony show that he plans on making Tsvangirai's job very difficult.  If any country needs a complete overhaul in government, it is Zimbabwe.  At this point, looks like nothing is going to change until Mugabe disappears.

Day 142

Bailout for French Auto Makers

The French are next in line to weigh the possibility of giving aid to auto manufacturers.  The loans are raising concerns from other European Union countries.  The European Commission is requesting clarification of the bailout plan to avoid any legal worries.  Slovakia has come out to voice concerns of protectionism and Germany in regard to distortion of competition law.   

Day 141

Madrid Car Bomb

A car bomb that exploded in Madrid is suspected to be planted by the Basque separatist group, Euskadi Ta Askatasuna (ETA).  No one was injured or killed.  Yesterday, the Spanish Civil Court barred two political parties, suspected of having connections with the ETA, from running in local elections on March 1.

Day 140

From TARP to BARF

Newly inducted Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has the very tough job of revamping the Trouble Asset Relief Program (TARP).   Geithner and Obama announced plans to limit executive pay to $500,000/year to companies receiving "exceptional assistance"- hooray for that, but I wish I knew what "exceptional assistance" actually entailed.  

The article also mentions the Bad Asset Repository Fund, lovingly called BARF by critics, essentially a separate bank to divert bad assets from bank balance sheets.  Fascinating.  

Day 139

Wildfires and Floods

Mother Nature brings floods to Northern Australia and wildfires to the Southeastern region. Record high temperatures reached 115 F/46 C- undeniably hot.  Rain accumulation reached 14 inches.  

Day 138

Another one unfinished.  I've been spending the bulk of my days preparing for my thesis show. The show opens in one short month.  Time for some shameless self-promotion.

Unemployment for January

Unemployment figures for January were published today.  598,000 jobs.  It is the highest number of jobs lost since the fall 1992.  Council of Economic Advisors Chairperson, Christina Romer, stated in a news release, "If we fail to act, we are likely to lose millions more jobs."  The Obama administration continues to push the economic stimulus package.  

Day 137

Deutsche Bank

Revenue for Germany's Deutsche Bank is reported to have risen "significantly" in January.  Earnings, totaling 2.8 billion Euros, are seen as a sign that the company will emerge from the financial crisis.  According to the article, DB does not plan to tap into the 480 billion Euro Bank Rescue Fund.  

Day 136

Funemployment

According to payroll company ADP, private sector jobs were cut by 522,000 in January.  The December figure was 693,000.  

Grand Slam!

Wow, I finished this one.  Just this morning I genuinely thought I wouldn't even stitch one today.

Time to Breathe

I came across this article after I finished with my class this afternoon.  Denny's Restaurant was giving away free Grand Slam breakfasts this morning.  I have many fond memories of Denny's- sunday breakfast with my family as a kid, a bite to eat after football games in high school, and late night study sessions during college.  Unfortunately there are no Denny's in Boston- a sad, sad fact I lament every time I want to order a Moons Over My Hammy.  

Not Enough Time

I must admit, I am tempted to skip today and not work on a handkerchief.  You would think by now I would have a better handle on my time management skills.  Sad to say, but my priority today is cannot be this project.  

Day 134

Punxsutawney Phil vs Mahmoud Abbas

Happy Groundhog's Day! According to the sage rodent, there will be six more weeks of Winter- all this because the little guy saw his own shadow.  

On the heavier side of the news, Hamas and the Palestinian Liberation Organization are involved in a power struggle of sorts. PLO leader Mahmoud Abbas has called for the recognization of the primacy of his organization as a condition for dialogue with Israel. In turn, Hamas has accused Abbas of siding with Israel....and the struggle continues. 

Earned Income Credit

I've finally received all the necessary forms to complete my taxes.  I'm going to try to file early this year to get my refund as soon as possible. Today's article was about the Earned Income Credit that is available to people that don't make a lot of money.  Many people that are eligable for the credit miss out on collecting the money simply because they don't file a tax return.  

Day 132