Sunday, December 25, 2011
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Tis the Season for a Woeful Economy... fa-la-la-la-la... la-la la la....
3rd Quarter growth weak due to cut in inventories.
The U.S. economy grew more slowly than previously estimated in the third quarter... Gross domestic product grew at a 2.0 percent annual rate in the July-September quarter, the Commerce Department said in its second estimate on Tuesday, down from the previously reported 2.5 percent...The government revised third-quarter output to account for an $8.5 billion drop in business inventories, the first decline since the fourth quarter of 2009.
The November unemployment rate drops to 8.6%. Reeeeally???
There are three elements that U-6 tracks that the official U-3 does not – “discouraged” workers (which is not nearly the same as the “want a job but haven’t looked lately” number mentioned above), those who hadn’t searched for work in the last 4 weeks because of reasons other than the job market (both not seasonally adjusted, and together being the number of those marginally attached to the workforce), and those employed part-time because of economic reasons.
The number of “discouraged” workers rose from October’s 967,000 to 1,096,000 in November, though the BLS does note that November 2011′s number is less than November 2010′s 1,282,000.
So, what about those questionable unemployment numbers.
The civilian participation rate in the workforce dropped 0.2% to 64.0% last month, barely above the 30-year low of 63.9% achieved in July of this year. The reason that both the topline and U-6 numbers declined is that both are based on the base number of workers, actual and potential, in the labor force that have plummeted in the last two years. The dramatic reduction in this number is what allowed a gain of only 120,000 jobs — which only covers the population growth in a month — drop unemployment by 0.4%.
In other words, the drop isn’t an indication of hope — it’s an indication of despair.
The "400,000 benchmark" myth explained.
A different look at the economy in relation to past recessions and their subsequent recoveries.
Retail sales for November aren't so hot (so much for Black Friday saving the day).
Retail sales grew at their slowest pace in five months in November, tempering expectations for a strong holiday shopping season.
Retail sales increased a weaker-than-expected 0.2 percent after gaining 0.6 percent in October, a Commerce Department reportshowed on Tuesday...
Some of the weakness in the November retail sales might be because stores discounted heavily to attract customers, said Millan Mulraine, a macro strategist at TD Securities in New York."It's fairly disappointing given that all the evidence was pointing to fairly strong gains during the month," said Mulraine.
Oh, yeah... and that 2.0% growth for the 3rd quarter I posted just a few inches above in this post? Ahem... it's actually been revised downward to 1.8%.
Meanwhile, S&P warns all 17 Euro nations that they could be downgraded if things don't improve there.
Fitch ups the timeframe of a possible downgrade of France.
Fitch also warns of a possible downgrade of the U.S. rating (something S&P already did this summer).
Friday, December 16, 2011
All Things Perry...
I made it known last month that my fairly consistent first choice for the (R) candidate for president is Rick Perry (of those who officially threw their hats in the ring). Over the last six months we've all seen the booms and busts of quite a few candidates and potential candidates.
Non-candidates:
Palin
Huckabee
Daniels
Barbour
McDonnell
Pence
Thune
Bloomberg
Jindal
Rubio
Ryan
Christie
Trump
Official candidates:
Pawlenty
McCotter
Bachmann
Perry
Cain
Gingrich
Romney (who never seems to be able to get above 25% - no surprise here)
And the remaining existing crazies, light weights or long shots:
Paul
Johnson
Huntsman
Santorum
Perry has been making a strong and steady comeback. Below is a list of more links, stories, interviews, debate updates and campaign ads.
The Cornerstone Speech in late October (in full, not in distorted snippets and soundbites).
Gator at RedState's 11/10 post on Perry.
Erick at RedState's 11/14 post on Perry.
Ken Blackwell's 11/13 post on Perry at TownHall.
Analysis of Perry's government reform speech, and the actual speech here.
Perry's take-down of the President.
His criticism of the botched "Fast & Furious" debacle and of AG Eric Holder.
Full 3-hour video of the Thanksgiving Family Forum with the candidates (Romney and Huntsman declined to attend).
Perry's ad that ran on during the Leno/Tonight Show broadcast on December 1.
Erick at RedState analyzes the comeback of Perry in his 12/4 post.
Perry's ad in Iowa on faith. More here.
His fight against "political correctness" here.
And Capt. Ed's post on Perry's big push in that state (via HotAir), and about Perry hitting the road in Iowa.
Perry talks about his back surgery in July, and it's effect on the early part of his campaign.
Ben Howe at RedState talks about "the Perry I know" which also has an 11-minute clip of Perry talking to veterans.
The Huckabee Forum and Perry suggests term limits for Supreme Court Justices.
Yet another new ad in Iowa here ("Momentum").
Clip of Perry at the last debate on 12/15.
Erick's analysis of that debate here.
And, finally, Perry's newest ad focusing back on the economy.
*WHEW*
That gives you all plenty of stuff to read, watch and listen.
BTW... Perry's Official Website.
Busy Busy Busy...
I know I've been away from posting lately. Life takes over sometimes. Been busy with house hunting in this crazy housing market, and my wife & I are currently in the middle of a potential purchase of a short sale property. Updates to come. Also, the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday seasons takes time away from blogging, as well. But I have been following the news and have plenty of links to come.
Friday, November 11, 2011
Rick Perry Interviews...
John Hawkins (of RWN) recently did an interview with Republican presidential candidate Rick Perry. Here is the link to the text of the interview. The topic is illegal immigration.
More about the economic plan via Ed Morrisey (of HotAir) via a conference call.
Forbes Magazine analyzes the flat tax plan and it's effect on health care.
Steve Forbes predicts Perry to win the nomination.
Fox News contributor Kevin McCullough predicted the same last summer. He still believes it to be true now.
Gator at RedState posts more on Perry.
Thursday, November 03, 2011
Romney...
Among many, many, many reasons why I will never vote for Romney (even if he should win the Republican nomination, and no matter who his running mate ends up being)... THIS is why I would either vote 3rd Party or not cast a vote at all for President in Nov 2012:
(via Ace and Hot Air)
Sorry, Mitt. I've had enough of slick, polished, squishy, flip-floppers.Mitt Romney was firm and direct with the abortion rights advocates sitting in his office nine years ago, assuring the group that if elected Massachusetts governor, he would protect the state’s abortion laws.
Then, as the meeting drew to a close, the businessman offered an intriguing suggestion — that he would rise to national prominence in the Republican Party as a victor in a liberal state and could use his influence to soften the GOP’s hard-line opposition to abortion.
He would be a “good voice in the party” for their cause, and his moderation on the issue would be “widely written about,” he said, according to detailed notes taken by an officer of the group, NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts.
“You need someone like me in Washington,” several participants recalled Romney saying that day in September 2002, an apparent reference to his future ambitions.
Romney made similar assurances to activists for gay rights and the environment, according to people familiar with the discussions, both as a candidate for governor and then in the early days of his term.
I have not been impressed with the field. Of those who are running:
Perry first (has the fewest negatives for me, though not perfect... then again, who is?).
Cain second (although he's beginning to fade for me).
Maybe even Gingrich (given what he did with Contract For America from 1994 thru the rest of the 90s, but gosh he has a lot of baggage).
Santorum can't win, but he knows his stuff.
Bachman, Huntsman, Johnson and Ron Paul all are jokes.
Let's have some fun with the #OWS protesters...
James O'Keefe up first.
Army vet and trial lawyer Kurt Schlichter is up next.
Oh, and by the way... how many of those OWS protestors are actually part of the 1% they're protesting against??? Detailed arrest records tell it all.
And this pic cracks me up 'cause it's sooooo right on the money (literally as well as figuratively):
hehehehe
For regular and detailed updates & reports about the #OWS fiasco, just go to Gateway Pundit.
Thursday Thrills...
So the markets got restless after Greece decided to have a referendum vote AFTER they got the bailout okay'ed by the Eurozone heads (and details of the bailout unveiled that it's not that great of a bailout anyway).
Well, the Eurozone heads then said, "you're not getting any of the bailout money until AFTER the December 4 vote."
Greece, then, decides NOT to go ahead with the referendum vote, with their prime minister saying:
"Elections as a solution, today and at this moment, would mean a much greater danger of bankruptcy and of course exit from the euro."There you have it! Elections are a BAD thing!
*WOW*
Unemployment numbers aren't really that much better for last month.
The Fed keeps things steady, but lower their forecasts for 2011 through 2013.
Officials now expect the [U.S.] economy to grow by a tepid 2.5 percent to 2.9 percent next year, down from the rosier 3.3 percent to 3.7 percent they were expecting in June, with inflation muted over the forecast horizon.
They see the unemployment rate going no lower than 8.5 percent to 8.7 percent by the end of 2012, up from the more sanguine 7.8 percent to 8.2 percent range envisioned in June.
National average for 30-year mortgage interest rates fell back down to 4% (just off of it's all-time low of 3.94% one month ago).
Tuesday, November 01, 2011
Debit Fees to Disappear...
Chase, Citi and others have changed their minds about charging fees to their customers for using their debit cards to access their own money.
JPMorgan Chase has decided it will not charge customers who use their debit cards for purchases, joining a growing list of banks that will not follow the lead of financial giant Bank of America, which announced a $5 monthly fee last month.
JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, U.S. Bank, PNC Financial, and Key Bank have confirmed they are not planning to charge customers debit card fees when they make purchases.
JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the country by total assets, began testing a $3 fee in parts of Wisconsin and Georgia in February. However, the bank decided it won't roll out the fee to the rest of the country, as first reported by the Wall Street Journal.
A person familiar with Chase confirmed with ABC News that it is not planning to charge debit card fees due to customer preferences.
Bank of America then stated that there were going to "revamp" their plan to charge $5/month to customers:
Bank of America Corp, after receiving heavy public criticism for a planned $5-per-month debit card fee, is likely to give customers more ways to avoid the fee, a person familiar with the bank's plans said Friday.
The second-biggest U.S. bank is reworking its plans as rivals Wells Fargo & Co and JP Morgan Chase & Co have decided not to charge monthly fees, ending test programs in certain states.
Bank of America is likely to allow many customers to sidestep the fee by taking measures such as maintaining minimum balances, having paychecks direct deposited, or using Bank of America credit cards, the person said.
Under earlier plans, customers might have needed balances totaling $20,000 across all their Bank of America accounts to skip the fee.
Then, today, BofA said this:
Bank of America is nixing its plans to charge a $5 debit card fee.
That's 1 for the little guy, 0 for the banks.
What Goes Up... Must Come Down...
The stock markets have been in volatile flux for months. It dropped down to steep lows in the summer, then worked it's way back, then dropped right back down again. Last week, the markets got all giddy after the "wonderful" Euro deal and saw the Dow peak to approx. 12300 (the other markets also when ga-ga).
Thennnnnnn reality kicked in.
And the Dow right now is at 11655.
No surprise from me.
Friday, October 28, 2011
Charting Two Months of Housing Woahs...
Starting in late August there was this news report:
Sales of new homes fell for the third straight month in July, a sign that housing remains a drag on the economy. If the current pace continues, 2011 would be the worst year for new-home sales on records dating back at least half a century.
Sales fell nearly 1 percent in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 298,000, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. That's less than half the 700,000 that economists say represent a healthy market.
Last year, 323,000 homes were sold — the worst year on records that go back to 1963.
While new homes represent less than one-fifth of the housing market, they have an outsize impact on the economy. Each home built creates an average of three jobs and $90,000 in taxes, according to the National Association of Home Builders.
High unemployment, larger required down payments and tougher lending standards are preventing many people from buying homes.
The following day, this report came out about mortgage apps:
Home mortgage applications for purchases fell to a nearly 15-year low last week as resurgent worries about the strength of the economy kept buyers at bay, an industry group said on Wednesday.
The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage application activity, which includes both refinancing and home purchase demand, fell 2.4 percent in the week ended August 19.
The seasonally adjusted gauge of loan requests for home purchases tumbled 5.7 percent to its lowest level since December 1996, the MBA said. Refinance demand also sagged as interest rates rose, with the refinance index slipping 1.7 percent.
Mortgage rates then did this the day after that:
Fixed mortgage rates edged up this week from their lowest levels in decades. But few have been able to capitalize on them.
The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage rose to 4.22 percent, Freddie Mac said Thursday. That's up from 4.15 percent last week, the lowest level on records dating to 1971.
The average rate on the 15-year fixed mortgage, a popular refinancing option, rose to 3.44 percent. Last week it fell to 3.36 percent.
At that point in time, the local area had this report:
When September rolled around, this news came in:About half of all residential real estate sales in Ventura County this spring involved properties in some stage of foreclosure, according to data released Thursday by RealtyTrac Inc.
RealtyTrac, a foreclosure listing service, said 50.1 percent of the 1,349 Ventura County home sales in the second quarter were foreclosure-related, with an average price discount of 24.7 percent. Nationally, only 31.3 percent of sales involved foreclosure-related properties, but the price discount was larger — 32.1 percent.
Builders broke ground on fewer homes in August, a reminder that the housing market remains depressed.
The Commerce Department said Tuesday that builders began work on a seasonally adjusted 571,000 homes last month, a 5 percent decline from July. That's less than half the 1.2 million that economists say is consistent with healthy housing markets.
Single-family homes, which represent roughly two-thirds of home construction, fell 1.4 percent. Apartment building plunged 12.4 percent. Building permits, a gauge of future construction, rose 3.2 percent.
Hurricane Irene also slowed construction in the Northeast.
Overall, homebuilding fell to its lowest levels in 50 years in 2009, when builders began work on just 554,000 homes. Last year was not much better.
Consumer confidence remained weak in September:
...depressed consumer and business sentiment is holding back recovery. The Conference Board, an industry group, said its index of consumer attitudes was little changed at 45.4 this month from 45.2 in August. Economists had expected a rise to 46.0.
"Consumers appear to have lost some hope in this recovery and may cause them to retrench spending, which could augur poorly for the recovery," said Millan Mulraine, a senior macro strategist at TD Securities in New York.
Details of the confidence report were mixed. More Americans plan to buy houses over the next six months, but fewer intend to purchase cars and other big-ticket items.
The steep stock market sell-off, political bickering in Washington over budget policy and the worsening debt crisis in Europe all have eroded confidence, viewed as a key gauge of consumer health.
Consumer spending data on Friday will shed more light whether the decline in equities -- with the Standard & Poor's 500 index down 13 percent since late July -- caused households to hunker down. Consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity, slowed sharply in the second quarter.
August home sales numbers rolled in next:
Sales and prices of new single-family U.S. homes fell in August despite historically low mortgage rates, underscoring the difficulties policymakers face in efforts to boost the moribund housing sector.
A stagnant job market and a big overhang of unsold existing homes have combined to keep new home sales on the rocks even as mortgage rates returned to lows not seen since at least the early 1970s.
New home sales slipped 2.3 percent last month to a 295,000 annual rate, a six-month low, the Commerce Department said on Monday. That was in line with analysts' forecasts and did little to allay fears the United States could slip back into recession.
The median sales price also moved lower from the previous month and was 7.7 percent below year-ago levels.
Fixed mortgage rates have fallen to historic new lows for a fourth straight week and are likely to fall further.
The average on a 30-year fixed mortgage fell to 4.01 percent from 4.09 percent this week, Freddie Mac said Thursday. That's the lowest rate since the mortgage buyer began keeping records in 1971. The last time long-term rates were lower was in 1951, when most long-term home loans lasted just 20 or 25 years.
The average on a 15-year fixed mortgage, a popular refinancing option, ticked down to 3.28 percent. Economists say that's the lowest rate ever for the loan.
Then they did this!!!:
It then fluctuated and went to this:Mortgage rates have never been cheaper, with the 30-year rate falling below 4% for the first time in history.
The interest rate on a 30-year fixed-rate loan fell to 3.94% this week, the lowest rate since mortgage giant Freddie Mac began tracking it. Meanwhile, the average for a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage also hit a record, falling to 3.26%.
The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage was nearly unchanged for a second straight week after rising from a record low.
Freddie Mac said Thursday that the rate on the 30-year loan fell to 4.10 percent from 4.11 percent last week. Three weeks ago, it dropped to 3.94 percent. The National Bureau of Economic Research says that's the lowest rate ever.
The average rate on the 15-year fixed mortgage was unchanged at 3.38 percent. Three weeks ago, it hit a record low of 3.26 percent.
Low rates have done little to jolt the struggling housing market. Sales remain depressed, and home prices are still dropping in many markets.
High unemployment and declining wages have made it harder for many people to qualify for loans. Most of those who can afford to refinance already have.
The number of Americans who bought previously occupied homes fell in September and is on pace to match last year's dismal figures — the worst in 13 years.
Analysis of the situation says...:
Today's record-low mortgage rates are out of reach for millions of U.S. homeowners who would benefit from them most.
One in four homeowners with a mortgage — 11 million people — owe more than their home is worth. These "underwater" borrowers have virtually no shot at refinancing.
Their plight is a drag on the housing market and the broader economy.
The Obama administration is hoping at least 1 million of these borrowers will take advantage of its refinancing program under more lenient rules unveiled Monday. Homeowners who are current on their payments will be eligible to refinance no matter how much their home's value has dropped.
Still, it's unclear how many borrowers will benefit. Lenders will remain under no obligation to refinance a mortgage they hold.
A growing number of these people are missing mortgage payments and falling into foreclosure. And the higher rates they're locked into limit how much they can contribute to a weak economy. If they were able to refinance at today's rates, it could boost consumer spending by tens of billions of dollars, economists say.
Underwater homeowners are paying an average 30-year fixed mortgage rate of 5.7 percent, according to an analysis of mortgage data by CoreLogic and The Associated Press. That compares with today's average rate of 4.11 percent on a 30-year fixed mortgage. For a homeowner with a $250,000 mortgage, the lower rate would save more than $200 a month.
The One announced a new program to "help" those in the mortgage/housing crunch.
Via Hot Air, here's some analysis of this "wonderful" program by The One:
This plan is for current borrowers who want to get a lower monthly payment through a lower mortgage rate. Yes, it’s the first plan that “rewards positive behavior,” says Florida attorney and mortgage expert Shari Olefson, but it doesn’t do anything for the now 6 million plus borrowers who are either behind on their mortgage payments or already in the foreclosure process. It also does nothing about all those foreclosed properties sitting on the books of Fannie, Freddie, the FHA and the big banks that still need to be sold and right now can only be sold at below-market prices. This plan does nothing to stop the bleeding in home prices.
Another analysis here.
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Economy 101...
How the economy entered a recession again at the end of August:
“Since 1948, every time the four-quarter change has fallen below 2 percent, the economy has entered a recession. It’s hard to argue against an indicator with such a long history of accuracy.”
The Feds then "pondered" an intervention.
Everybody, let's do the "twist":
The Federal Reserve said Wednesday it will shuffle $400 billion of its portfolio to try to drive down long-term interest rates and get the economy going. But economists doubted it would do much good, the stock market sold off, and the Fed itself was unusually divided over the strategy.
Lowering interest rates makes it cheaper for people and companies to borrow money and spend it throughout the economy, which has slowed sharply more than two years after the Great Recession. Consumer spending makes up most of the nation's economic activity.
But rates are already at historic lows. Americans, still feeling insecure about the future, might not be willing to take on more debt, even at lower rates. Others see no reason to jump into the housing market when prices are still falling. Others can't get credit.
"Frankly, I don't see it having any meaningful impact on the economy," said Bernard Baumohl, chief global economist with the Economic Outlook Group. "What the Fed did today was a distraction."
Come on, baby... let's do the "twist" (a mixed impact for consumers).
...and it goes like this ("Twist" Q&A).
Let's twist the knife a bit more:
The U.S. economy is on a "knife edge" between growth and contraction, and if it were a dashboard, it would be flashing "watch out, danger ahead on all gauges," Dallas Federal Reserve Bank's top economist said on Tuesday.
"The economy is moving along at stall speed," Dallas Fed research director Harvey Rosenblum told a forum sponsored by the greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce. "Unless we start moving a little bit faster, we are at a tipping point where things may not go the right way."
The U.S. jobs engine has lost momentum and could be set for further "backtracking," Meanwhile, he said, there is also a "credible" risk of rising inflation.
"We are in the midst of the Second Great Contraction," Rosenblum said, demonstrating the economy's predicament with a picture of a place on the Appalachian Trail known as "Knife's Edge."
"This patient is still not ready to get out of the hospital, there are still tubes connected to the patient, and the patient is still not responding well to all the medicine."
The grim assessment of the economic outlook came a week after a majority of the Fed's policy-setting panel backed further monetary policy easing to help support a faltering U.S. recovery.
VP Joe Biden puts the blame of the economy square on The One and his administration. Thanks, Joe!!!
Senator Dick Dubin (D) blames fellow democrats for not passing The One's so-called "Jobs" bill (really just another bogus "stimulus" package).
The S&P downgrades Italy.
Fears about the world economy continue to drag markets.
And it's possible that the U.S.'s credit rating may soon get knocked down a peg again - this time by Moody's and/or Fitch. (This was already done by S&P in August.)
By August 30, the consumer confidence hit it's lowest level in two years:
Consumers' confidence in August dropped almost 15 points to the lowest level since April 2009 as worries about the economy fueled the wildest stock market swings since the financial meltdown in 2008.
At a time when Americans are increasingly worried about a weak job market, higher costs for food and clothing and recent stock market turmoil, the falling confidence numbers raise new concerns about their willingness to spend and jumpstart the economy. That's particularly important since consumer spending accounts for 70 percent of U.S. economic activity.
"Consumer confidence deteriorated sharply in August, as consumers grew significantly more pessimistic about the short-term outlook," said Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center in a statement.
The Conference Board said Tuesday that its Consumer Confidence Index fell to 44.5, down from a revised 59.2 in July. The number was the lowest level since April 2009 when the reading was 40.8. It also is far below the 53.3 that analysts had expected. A reading above 90 indicates the economy is on solid footing; above 100 signals strong growth.
Americans say they feel worse about the economy than they have since the depths of the Great Recession.
Consumer confidence fell in October to the lowest since March 2009, a research group said Tuesday — an ominous sign for the economy as families begin to prepare their budgets for holiday shopping season.
The declining mood reflects the big hit that the stock market took in late summer — down almost 20 percent in one month — as well as frustration with an economic recovery that doesn't really feel like one.
The Conference Board, a private research group, said its index of consumer sentiment came in at 39.8, down about six points from September and seven shy of what economists were expecting.
The reading is still well above where the index stood two and a half years ago, at 26.9. But it's not even within shouting distance of 90, what it takes to signal that the economy is on solid footing.
Peachy!
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Where the heck am I? LOL
I'm here. Been busy with life. Will update soon.
I have been tracking news stories and links, and will be posting in the coming days.
:-)
Monday, October 03, 2011
Markets Down to 13-month Low...
Two months of gains from the previous lows of the year have now been wiped out.
Dow closed at 10655, Nasdaq closed at 2335, S&P closed at 1099.
News link here.
Summary here:
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Gibson Guitars in the Obama Admin's Crosshairs...
MAJOR UPDATE BELOW!!!
(via Gateway Pundit)
The Holder Justice Department raided Gibson Guitar facilities in Nashville and Memphis this week because the company is using unfinished wood from India and this violates Indian law… Not American law.
(again via Gateway Pundit)
Juszkiewiz said the government suggested that the company’s use of unfinished wood from India is illegal, not because of U.S. law, but because of the Justice Department’s interpretation of a law in India. The Holder Justice Department raided at least two Gibson manufacturing plants this week forcing hundreds of workers off their jobs. Juszkiewiz says the company lost a million dollars this week.
Finally, Henry Juszkiewicz told Dana, “The Obama Justice Department wants us to just shut our doors and go away.” He says he will continue to fight for the Gibson company and its workers.
Federal agents swooped in on Gibson Guitar Wednesday, raiding factories and offices in Memphis and Nashville, seizing several pallets of wood, electronic files and guitars. The Feds are keeping mum, but in a statement yesterday Gibson's chairman and CEO, Henry Juszkiewicz, defended his company's manufacturing policies, accusing the Justice Department of bullying the company. "The wood the government seized Wednesday is from a Forest Stewardship Council certified supplier," he said, suggesting the Feds are using the aggressive enforcement of overly broad laws to make the company cry uncle.
It isn't the first time that agents of the Fish and Wildlife Service have come knocking at the storied maker of such iconic instruments as the Les Paul electric guitar, the J-160E acoustic-electric John Lennon played, and essential jazz-boxes such as Charlie Christian's ES-150. In 2009 the Feds seized several guitars and pallets of wood from a Gibson factory, and both sides have been wrangling over the goods in a case with the delightful name "United States of America v. Ebony Wood in Various Forms."
WSJ concludes:
Last year, Dick Boak, director of artist relations for C.F. Martin & Co., complained to Mother Nature News about the difficulty of getting elite guitarists to switch to instruments made from sustainable materials. "Surprisingly, musicians, who represent some of the most savvy, ecologically minded people around, are resistant to anything about changing the tone of their guitars," he said.
You could mark that up to hypocrisy—artsy do-gooders only too eager to tell others what kind of light bulbs they have to buy won't make sacrifices when it comes to their own passions. Then again, maybe it isn't hypocrisy to recognize that art makes claims significant enough to compete with environmentalists' agendas.
Well, more info has come to light (via HotAir):
Commenters yesterday wondered whether Gibson Guitar CEO Henry Juszkiewicz is a Republican donor. Yep, he is. It also turns out that Chris Martin IV, the CEO of Gibson competitor, C.F. Martin and Company, is a long-time donor to Democrats. C.F. Martin uses the same “questionable” Indian rosewood in its guitars, but has the federal government raided a C.F. Martin factory? Didn’t think so. Juszkiewicz said yesterday he feels like this is a personal attack. Could it be because it is?...It’s also worth noting that the U.S. is a “trivial” importer of rosewood from India and Madagascar. According to Hinderaker, 95 percent of it goes to China. So, the whole “it’s for the trees” argument doesn’t really hold up.
Even MORE interesting info is THIS:
But if it turns out that the Indian rosewood in question is illegal contraband in the eyes of Obama’s DOJ, then Michelle Obama is just as guilty of trafficking in it as Gibson. In 2009, Michelle Obama gave [French First Lady] Carla Bruni-Sarkozy a Gibson guitar with a fretboard made of the material...According to a list of the gift’s specs at Gibson.com, the fretboard was made from a “choice piece of Indian rosewood.”
Hypocrisy, thy name is Obammy!
Hahahahahhahaha...
UPDATE:
The Obama Administration wrote in a plea document to Gibson Guitars, "Your problems would go away if you used Madagascar labor instead of ours." In other words, don't use American workers, use foreign workers to manufacture your guitars. (!!!)
UPDATE:
The Obama Administration wrote in a plea document to Gibson Guitars, "Your problems would go away if you used Madagascar labor instead of ours." In other words, don't use American workers, use foreign workers to manufacture your guitars. (!!!)
Another point of interest is that Tennessee is a "right to work" state, and Pennsylvania is not. Just like the Boeing issue in which the O-Administration is pressuring Boeing to move their new plant in South Carolina (another "right to work" state) to Washington state (not a "right to work" state).
What's a "right to work" state?:
Right-to-work laws are statutes enforced in twenty-two U.S states, mostly in the southern or western U.S., allowed under provisions of the Taft-Hartley Act, which prohibit agreements between labor unions and employers that make membership, payment of union dues, or fees a condition of employment, either before or after hiring, thus requiring the workplace to be an open shop.Prior to the passage of the Taft-Hartley Act by Congress over President Harry S Truman's veto in 1947, unions and employers covered by the National Labor Relations Act could lawfully agree to a closed shop, in which employees at unionized workplaces must be members of the union as a condition of employment. Under the law in effect before the Taft-Hartley amendments, an employee who ceased being a member of the union for whatever reason, from failure to pay dues to expulsion from the union as an internal disciplinary punishment, could also be fired even if the employee did not violate any of the employer's rules.
The Taft-Hartley Act outlawed the closed shop. The union shop rule, which required all new employees to join the union after a minimum period after their hire, is also illegal. As such, it is illegal for any employer to force an employee to join a union.
A similar arrangement to the union shop is the agency shop, under which employees must pay the equivalent of union dues, but need not formally join such union.
Section 14(b) of the Taft-Hartley Act goes further and authorizes individual states (but not local governments, such as cities or counties) to outlaw the union shop and agency shop for employees working in their jurisdictions. Under the open shop rule, an employee cannot be compelled to join or pay the equivalent of dues to a union, nor can the employee be fired if he joins the union. In other words, the employee has the right to work, regardless of whether or not he is a member or financial contributor to such a union.
The Federal Government operates under open shop rules nationwide, though many of its employees are represented by unions.
Which states are "right to work" states?
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