Recently, UPMC announced plans to close its Braddock Hospital. The hospital staff and the community oppose the idea, and are fighting to keep the hospital open. UPMC is just one glaring example of the many nonprofits that are losing their focus and are hurting our communities. It's fashionable for nonprofits to think that they should operate like businesses. That's fine, to an extent, but it often goes too far.
Continue . . . .
The Hollow American Economy
A Clarion Call For Leadership
...converting the United States from an exporting, value and wealth creating nation, to one careening recklessly toward bankruptcy. The purpose is to dispel some of the rationalizations for this unhealthy transformation of our economy; and it is to put both data and common sense on the table so reasonable people can engage in the critical discussion of how best to get our economy back on track. ...
As the BLS said, “an increasing share of jobs was in high-paying jobs and required college training; but most jobs that were filled paid below-average wages and did not require a college education.” They are stating the obvious. There is a finite need for doctors, lawyers and professors....
Without people making things and creating value, there is no money for the financial sector to play with....
The number of jobs in true value creation activities is a much more accurate measure of the long term health of the country....
There is no manufacturing voice in our government at a time when we so desperately need one.
We need a full airing in America on this very critical matter. Champions must step forward to lead an effort to honestly explore how best to stop the continuing collapse of American manufacturing.Tell the globalization experts to stay at home. They have had their say. Instead ask people like Doc Hall from Indiana University who formed the Association for Manufacturing Excellence to explain the current state of manufacturing and how we got here. He is a walking encyclopedia of the last thirty years of successes and failures. Call in Brian Maskell to explain how government mandated accounting rules are eroding manufacturing, and how the privately held companies are doing accounting in a radically different way, and managing their companies much more effectively as a result. Have Jeffery Liker explain to you the real reasons for Toyota’s manufacturing tap dance over General Motors.
Our business heroes are the thousands of American men and women in who roll up their sleeves and compete toe to toe every day with the best in the world, and win – .... These people are committed to theircommunities and the people with whom they work. They – not the clever financiers – are our businessheroes; and they are the key to turning our economy around and getting us back on the track we were once on. But they cannot do so without the support of the country, and we are rapidly running out of time.
http://www.bill-waddell.com/images/CLARION_CALL_MASTER.pdf
Senior Faculty Fellow at the Yale School of Management; Author, "It Could Happen Here"
...Earlier this week, we announced a new service, The Cost Savings Guy. For the past six months, I have been leading the development of this initiative, which I passionately believe has the potential to change the fortunes of the millions of small businesses and nonprofits that are struggling to stay afloat. ...
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bruce-judson/can-the-free-market-save_b_356998.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59AxxLc9WSw
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Closing tax loopholes, scaling back on tax breaks and liberal write-offs, and generally expecting big business to contribute to this nation's economic recovery by sharing more of their profits with the American people rather than top management all fall under the heading of "the right thing to do."
However, I sincerely hope the Obama Team has a plan for fighting back when big business instead raises consumer costs to make up for the "losses' these business will incur as a result of these policy changes. We all know that instead of sharing in the pain they will continue to find ways to covertly line their proverbial pockets while publicly proclaiming, "See, the president's economic policies are not working. They are serving only to increase costs to you, the consumer. What a shame..."
How successfull the Obama Team is in exposing and counteracting big business half-truths and deceptive tactics is the key to it all: the economic recovery, the power of the grassroots movement, the ability of the democratic party to lead this country and, ultimately, President Obama's re-election.
..... Contact: http://Alex.Karoub@gmail.com
We have made historic headway by together pointing our nation in the right directions. After decades, we have America focused on the issues of fundamental importance. Now, each of us acting in concert can together move our country to lead the world to the fruitfulness of moral goodness. I have no doubts about my abilities and the abilities of fellow Americans to work smart and hard to achieve these goals.Barack Obama has the visions, leadership, and integrity for us to correct and redirect our country to once again lead the world for the fruitions of good. Let's closely listen, learn, and move forward based on that which we know deep inside is good and which we can validate with our hearts. I hope that those who had but a few reasons to support Obama, look further into the other issues more deeply. I found the more I explored, studied, and listened to Obama the more I found us in agreement. The couple of issues that I did not have depth of knowledge of, quickly became obvious in need. This was unusual for me since I have always refused to be any kind of a follower, and still am not. I find Obama to be a deep thinker who is articulate and inspirational; and, of most fundamental importance, Obama makes excellent moral sense.Hopefully, our country has learned lessons from the past of mistakenly following leadership blindly, as was done with Nixon and Bush. There are leaders who are simply in it for themselves and will cater to individuals or groups in order to grab for their own benefit. Corrupt and bad leaders hide at all levels. This is especially true in city government as well as county and state government. The corrupt deals of politicians need to be exposed, and those responsible need to be weeded out in the coming local elections. Others need to be investigated by law enforcement and be prosecuted for illegal dealings; for deals they often make for their hidden personal agendas. Let’s look at the bad experiences of the past as bitter medicines, let’s eliminate the need for such bad medicine in the future. Let us use what we know is good to go forward.I believe we have chosen wisely, not by greed and not by misguided retaliatory anger. I believe this time our country has chosen with open eyes, with each of us listening and examining our choice of leadership closely, driven and validated by our hearts.I hope we can continue to make our efforts even more inclusive (in many more ways than I touch on here). Far right republicans will be stubborn to change, but we will need to include them to change if we are to succeed. Sure a few more will leave our country, but that is not the American way. No, we really don't need their false fronts of power, money, insider knowledge, or other trappings that they have taught many to 'respect?'. Let's recruit as many as we can, that's the American way, evolving and changing together as one nation. Try to be understanding as we move forward; by better understanding each as individuals and people with various desires and needs we will find ways to reach out with friendship and have them join our causes of good.Be on the lookout, and root out bad leadership in government and business. Do not be intimidated by those who use the false fronts of power and give a false sense of security in order to lead. Be extra leery of those who say or imply ‘Trust me’; those who give a sense that they somehow omnipotently know better. No longer will Americans be dazzled by phony displays of brilliance or baffled by baloney. There are government aristocrats and business leaders who still believe in the old adage of: “If you can’t dazzle them with brilliance, then baffle em with bullshit”. We can embrace complexity by demanding true, fundamental, and understandable explanations. We can root out falsehoods by not accepting double speak. We as Americans know how to grow ourselves by first believing in ourselves. Don’t be a follower. Don’t be a follower of followers.However, when we find leaders who are good; a leader that thinks, speaks, and acts from their heart; one that is honest, has integrity, and leads by sincere examples; then we need to in a big way, join them, support them, and promote their causes of good. From much research, investigation, and scrutiny, I believe Barack Obama is such a person. I hope we search for and find many more who are similar, who we can add to service at all levels of government. We need to add/replace leaders in business with ones that have honesty, integrity, and show quality in leadership. We need more people in leadership roles who are moral, like Barack Obama.Remember, we are not fighting a battle, we are the artisans and sculptors of the future for ourselves and generations to come. Rarely do societies have opportunities to make such dramatic moves forward as we now have in this opportunity of today. Take pride and practice in being inclusive as we stride forward. In moving forward, create opportunity not only for yourself, but also for all. Hope is a wonderful thing to behold; but without opportunity, hope can become but a dream never achievable. We can, will, and must, create opportunity.In the coming year I hope that we do not lose our spiritedness, but instead continue to build and make headway. I hope we all continue our campaign for change in government and business. We will succeed in moving forward once again, it will take much effort and good oversight on the part of each of us. We will make great strides in the months and years ahead in order to achieve the fruitions of good. Let's keep our enthusiasm progressing through these coming toughest of times. Let us use the light of goodness and love to motivate us with historic momentum.I have chosen Barack Obama because he best represents my deepest beliefs in America. Please take time to read the issues that Barack Obama has published on this website. Also, give your attention to see how he leads us to move our nation forward in the time ahead. Most importantly, be part of America's great future, participate in the greatness that together we will make. Participate!We will each and all flourish, if we think, speak, and act, by using the love in our hearts.
Your reply is welcome. Contact: Alex.Karoub@gmail.com
Jobless Hit with Bank Fees on Unemployment Benefits By CHRISTOPHER LEONARD, AP Business Writer
For hundreds of thousands of workers losing their jobs during the recession, there's a new twist to their financial pain: Even as they're collecting unemployment benefits, they're paying bank fees just to get access to their money.
Thirty states have struck such deals with banks that include Citigroup Inc., Bank of America Corp., JP Morgan Chase and US Bancorp, an Associated Press review of the agreements found. All the programs carry fees, and in several states the unemployed have no choice but to use the debit cards. Some banks even charge overdraft fees of up to $20 — even though they could decline charges for more than what's on the card.
"It's a racket. It's a scam," said Rachel Davis, a 38-year-old dental technician from St. Louis who was laid off in October. Davis was given a MasterCard issued through Central Bank of Jefferson City and recently paid $6 to make two $40 withdrawals.
The banks say their programs offer convenience. They also provide at least one way to tap the money at no charge, such as using a single free withdrawal to get all the cash at once from a bank teller. But the banks benefit from human nature, as people end up treating the cards like all the other plastic in their wallets.
The fees are raising questions from lawmakers who just recently voted to infuse banks with taxpayer money to keep them afloat.
Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., a member of the House Financial Services Committee, said the situation points to "yet another example of how we need to regulate the ways in which banks charge overdraft and other fees."
"Banks, particularly ones that have received federal help, should not be imposing endless fees and charges on the unemployed in this time of economic crisis," said Maloney, who has written a bill to require that consumers be notified at the point of sale if they're about to incur overdraft fees.
Some banks, depending on the agreement negotiated with each state, also make money on the interest they earn after the state deposits the money and before it's spent. The banks and credit card companies also get roughly 1 to 3 percent off the top of each transaction made with the cards.
Neither banks nor credit card companies will say how much money they are making off the programs, or what proportion of the revenue comes from user versus merchant fees or interest. It's difficult to estimate the profits because they depend on how often recipients use their cards and where they use them.
But the potential is clear.
In Missouri, for instance, 94,883 people claimed unemployment benefits through debit cards from Central Bank. Analysts say a recipient uses a card an average of six to 10 times a month. If each cardholder makes three withdrawals at an out-of-network ATM, at a fee of $1.75, the bank would collect nearly $500,000. If half of the cardholders also dial customer service three times in any given week (the first time is free; after that, it's 25 cents a call), the bank's revenue would jump to more than $521,000. That would yield $6.3 million a year.
Rachel Storch, a Democratic state representative, received a wave of complaints about the fees from autoworkers laid off from a suburban St. Louis Chrysler plant. She recently urged Gov. Jay Nixon to review the state's contract with Central Bank with an eye toward reducing the fees."I think the contract is unfair and potentially illegal to unemployment recipients," she said.Central Bank did not return two messages seeking comment.
Glenn Campbell, a spokesman for Rep. Russ Carnahan, D-Mo., said the congressman would support a review of the debit card programs nationwide.
Another 10 states — including the unemployment hot spots of California, Florida and South Carolina — are considering such programs or have signed contracts. The remainder still use traditional checks or direct deposit.
With the national unemployment rate now at 7.6 percent, the market for bank-issued unemployment cards is booming. In 2003, states paid only $4 million of unemployment insurance through debit cards. By 2007, it had ballooned to $2.8 billion, and by 2010 it will likely rise to $10.5 billion, according to a study conducted by Mercator Advisory Group, a financial industry consulting firm.
The economic stimulus plan signed by President Barack Obama this week will increase federal unemployment benefits by $40 billion this year. Subsequently, there will be more money from which banks can collect fees. The U.S. Department of Labor allows the fees as long as states create a way for recipients to get their money for free, spokeswoman Suzy Bohnert said."Beyond that, the individual decides how to manage his drawdowns using the debit card," she said in an e-mail.
A typical contract looks like the agreement between Citigroup and the state of Kansas, which took effect in November. The state expects to save $300,000 a year by wiring payments to Citigroup instead of printing and mailing checks.
Citigroup's bill to the state: zero. The bank collects its revenue from fees paid by merchants and the unemployed.
"If you use your card the right way, you're not going to pay fees at all," said Paul Simpson, Citigroup's global head of public sector, health care and wholesale cards.
But that's not always practical.
Arthur Santa-Maria, a laid-off engineer who lives just outside Albuquerque, N.M., said he didn't pay any fees the first time he was laid off, for several months in 2007. His unemployment benefits were paid by paper checks. He found a new job last year but was laid off again last fall.
This time, he was issued a Bank of America debit card — a "prepaid" card in industry lingo — but he was surprised to learn he had to pay fees to get his money. He asked the bank to waive them. It said no. That's when Santa-Maria called back to ask how to check his account online. He logged on and saw that the call cost him a half dollar. To avoid more fees, Santa-Maria found a Bank of America ATM at a strip mall and withdrew $80 at no charge. When he got back to his car, he decided to take out the rest of his money — $250 — and deposit it in his bank account.Afterward, Santa-Maria logged on to his account and saw a charge of $1.50 for two withdrawals in one day.
"They're trying to use my money to make money," Santa-Maria said. "I just see banks trying to make that 50 cents or a buck and a half when I should be given the service for free."New Mexico authorities bargained with Bank of America to get lower fees for unemployment recipients, said Carrie Moritomo, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Workforce Solutions. The state saves up to $1.5 million annually by switching from checks to debit cards.
Bank of America spokeswoman Britney Sheehan pointed out that the fees charged in New Mexico are similar to those charged in the 29 other states with unemployment debit cards. The bank believes "the fee schedule is reasonable and consistent with similar programs," she said.Banks could issue unemployment debit cards with no fees for cardholders, but that would likely mean that states would have to pay more of the administrative costs, said Mark Harrington, director of marketing for Citigroup's prepaid card services. If a state demanded no cardholder fees and could pay the difference, Citigroup might enter such a contract.
"We would be open to that," Harrington said. "We're not looking to structure any programs where we would lose money, but we're definitely flexible."
Simpson noted that the cards can save money for jobless workers who have no bank accounts. In the past, these people had to use corner check-cashing shops that charged fees as high as 2 percent, or $6 for a $300 check. Now, they can swipe their cards at McDonald's, Wal-Mart or elsewhere for free.
Kenna Gortler, a laid-off paper mill worker in Oregon, said her union is advising members to avoid the debit cards and sign up to get their benefits through direct deposit. More than 300 of her fellow workers have lost their jobs at the mill in the last three months, and horror stories about ATM fees and overdraft charges are starting to filter back to others who are just now signing up for their benefits.
"It's discouraging," Gortler said. "People have limited funds and they don't need to be giving money to the banks. They need to be keeping that money to feed their families and pay bills."
source: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/bank_fees_jobless_benefits
Jobless Benefit Fees: http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/president/gGxhrn
"Many people took out loans they were never going to be able to afford,never! That means somebody knew from day one they were never going tobe able to pay back the loans." The bankers approved these loans and used the money to pay themselves bonuses and payed our government representatives to look the other way…that’s where we are…any suggestions for getting us out of the mess are welcome…but if you just want to play the blame game…where does that get us?
Read what was spammed on the comments section of my blog:
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Buy a home, car or get a huge irs tax refund just for being you! Do what you have to do to get yours! EVERYONE ELSE DID!!
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Oy vey!!
What an Era we're livin' in, isn't it? History is about to be made! The inauguration day was a wonderful day! Go, Barack! A day I never thought I'd see in my lifetime.
But while we're excited about this new era, unfortunately we've seen record numbers of people losing jobs (600,000 people in November, and a projected 500,000 people in December). And now to date, our country has lost over 3 million jobs since 2007. This is also something I never thought I'd see in my lifetime. People are losing their homes, the car and banking industry are in a huge crisis, businesses are losing money in just about every industry, people who ARE working are struggling to pay their bills as the price of everyday living keeps going up. Gasoline had gone down, but seems to be on the rise, again.
So here we are....in a time of great excitement and of great challenge. While this may appear to be a challenging time for a lot of people, the flip side of challenge is spelled OPPORTUNITY.
With so many people losing their jobs, I predict that this will be a great time for small businesses and people who want to start their own business, create multiple streams of income, side and new hustles....whatever you want to call it....make money!
But you have to be ready. Create a Business Plan. Learn new skills. Look at your existing skills and how you can transfer it to viable businesses or jobs. Embrace New and Social Media. And most of all, learn how to Collaborate and Partner with people, entities, and companies that have the skills that you're weak in. You can't do it all. And believe me....you don't want to......There are only 24 hours in each day. So learn how to partner with people who can do what you can't do, better than you can.
Don't get me wrong. Everybody shouldn't partner with each other. Be selective. When you find the right person or company, set up a contract and put stuff in writing so that you stay in your lanes and are accountable for your tasks and for your actions. And most of all, make sure you know how much you each get paid and how.
If people don't learn how to partner, collaborate across the board (much like we're doing here at my.barackobama.com)....and I do mean across the board....everything from families learning how to get along, live together, and share expenses.....to business professionals learning how to work together who NEVER would have partnered in the past....we'll make it easier on ourselves when we learn how to work together. From a business and personal perspective, 50% of something is better than 100% of nothing.
So let's learn from our wonderful President Obama and the Barack Obama Administration. All different cultures, races, and people from economic backgrounds worked together and rallied around Barack to help him win and make history. And You can win in this economy, too.
Welcome to the new normal. Let's do this! Yes, we can!
Peace and Love! Stay Tuned and Stay Blessed!
Debra
Debra Dixon Light of Gold PR http://www.lightofgoldpr.com
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The objective of this blog, is to establish a forum for our community and enable collaborative interdisciplinary thought and discussion as to how we can all help make it a better place.
Focus areas:
1) Energy Independence: This matter is so strategic that it affects everything we deal with... the price of just about everything. We are being held at bay by the Oil Producing states due to our reluctance stemming from 1979 to change our sources of energy and go the easy way of dependency upon foreign resources thereby choosing the easy way out.....which of course never works.
2) Opportunity via innovation: New ideas for doing old things in a more cost effective and efficient manner, taking into account our impacts on our earth and neighboring ecosystems.
3) Social Consciousness: Striving to bring a social consciousness to "Entities" which are not real human beings such as Government, Corporations, Non-Profits, Institutions, and Utilities, as well as to People since a lot of people just don't really care about anyone else but themselves.
4) Education: Part of the reason we have become so dependent on foreign source labor is because we have left our educational system go "to the dogs". We don't improve education by spending more money on buildings and administrative programs, we do so by building up MINDS via good quality CONTENT, CURRICULUM, EXPERIENCES AND TEAMPLAY. We have a great defecit of US Scientist, Mathematicians, Engineers, and Technical experts and have resorted to outsourcing this to workers who only lease us their time and then take their knowledge and experience back to their countries.
5) Jobs: We can't wait around for the Big Companies to figure out how they're going to move. Small & Medium size companies have the flexibility and mobility to get things done and to approach new technologies and solutions with speed and efficiency. Let's share in opportunities where we can all invest our time and talents to make this a better place.
If I make a deal with someone, we both sign an agreement and any amendments to the contract need to be agreed upon by both parties in writing. If the terms of the arrangement change and are agreed upon, the stakeholders sign and the changes are enacted. Why is this not the case with my creditors? It seems that every few months, often even more frequently, I open my credit card statements and find the small print pamphlets with descriptions of the changes to our agreements. These changes are never in my favor. They almost always contain an increase to a fee, and often times an interest rate increase. I usually find myself thinking “That’s not what I signed up for!” The really disheartening part of it all is that if I don’t like the changes to the agreement, I need to contact them within a certain time frame, usually in writing, and “Opt Out”.
It seems to me that any party to an agreement would need consent from all other engaged parties in order to alter any such agreement. Offering someone a revised contract that has no added value to them and requiring that they decline the amendment to disagree is inherently devious. Does it not make sense then that creditors should be required to operate under the assumption that their clients would act in their own best interest when faced with a financial decision? Why would anyone in their right mind want any of the changes proposed in these types of amended agreements? I realize these companies are in the business to make a profit. Why can’t these new terms be implemented in new agreements and not to all the clients that have an existing agreement? Why not require creditors to offer these new terms along with some sort of added incentive, such as a lower interest rate for a limited period of time, after which the new terms go into force? Either way, it is my belief that the “Opt-Out” requirement behind these agreement amendments is unethical and should not be legal.
Thank you for reading…
Joe Faliti
President Barack Obama sits with Google Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Eric Schmidt during meeting with business leaders to discuss the economy, Wednesday,Jan. 28, 2009, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington. Seated at rear, from left are: Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change Carol Browner; White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, senior adviser Valerie Jarrett; and chief economic adviser Larry Summers. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
Google CEO Eric Schmidt Discusses President Obama's Business Sit Down
Wednesday, January 28, 2009 | Late today President Obama's economic recovery package cleared the House of Representatives. Now, the hope is that it will be signed into law before Presidents' Day holiday. To build support for that plan, President Obama summoned business leaders to the White House where he told them the nation demands swift and bold action to create jobs. Google's Eric Schmidt was one of the CEO's meeting with Obama today. Darren Gersh spoke with Schmidt shortly after that session and began by asking him for his take on the Obama meeting.
ERIC SCHMIDT, CHAIRMAN & CEO, GOOGLE: This is a president in a hurry. This is a president who wants to make things happen very, very quickly. He's been around for a week. He's calling people saying what do you think? What do you want to get done? In this particular group, he was interested in what the actual business situation and it's not good and that was the report that we gave to the president.
DARREN GERSH, NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT CORRESPONDENT: It's interesting because he used the word sober to talk about the tone in the meeting. My take away from that was that the message you guys gave him was that this recession is gathering momentum, that the downturn is accelerating. Is that correct? Is that what you were telling him?
SCHMIDT: There's a whole bunch of people who see their businesses getting worse or worried about it getting worse and they're getting ready to deal with that. There's a feeling that the government needs to act quickly. And if it doesn't act quickly, it will get worse. We don't really know. It's certainly not getting better.
GERSH: In terms of the government acting quickly though, there is a big stimulus plan going. Some people say it's too small. It looks like a lot of that money won't get spent until towards the fall and maybe a little lop-over into the next fiscal year which starts in October for the Federal government. Is that too slow? Were people concerned about that?
SCHMIDT: From the CEO perspective, anything that slows things down is a problem. The stimulus package is a two-year cycle. Everything is supposed to get done within two years. Obviously within that two-year period the earlier the better. A lot of the money though goes, remember, the state and local governments which can spend it very quickly and also for unemployment and so forth which is stimulative.
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