Economics

"It was the holy grail of investors. The Black-Scholes equation, brainchild of economists Fischer Black and Myron Scholes, provided a rational way to price a financial contract when it still had time to run. It was like buying or selling a bet on a horse, halfway through the race. It opened up a new world of ever more complex investments, blossoming into a gigantic global industry. But when the sub-prime mortgage market turned sour, the darling of the financial markets became the Black Hole equation, sucking money out of the universe in an unending stream." - imabonehead from Bookmarklet

(desire for $) + (lack of conscience) = worldwide economic collapse - Spidra Webster

Good thing they are not blaming the model for what happened in the market. - سيما كيا Sima kia

"According to two crisis consultants and a management professor at Northwestern’s Kellogg School, Apple has moved too slowly to address the labor problems in its supply change." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"Their opposition to the measures was mostly centered on the negative effect they would have on the business community in Arizona." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"today’s complex world requires corporations to be more than persons. We need them to be citizens, in the broadest, most far-reaching sense of the word." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"Despite the claims of the MPAA and other supporters of SOPA and PIPA, file-sharing does not negatively impact box office sales in the U.S., according to a new study conducted by economists from Wellesley College and the University of Minnesota." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"LinkedIn is connecting with investors. The dominant professional networking site was one of the few bright spots Friday on Wall Street. Its shares skyrocketed nearly 18% to $89.96 in the single biggest one-day jump since its initial public stock offering in May. LinkedIn’s stock has doubled in value since the IPO. The jet fuel powering the professional networking site: its fourth-quarter earnings, released Thursday. Revenue more than doubled from the previous year to nearly $168 million. The Mountain View, Calif., company earned $6.9 million, surpassing analysts’ expectations. And it forecast higher in 2012. LinkedIn expects its revenue to rise as much as 65% this year to $860 million." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"A new report prepared for Maryland lawmakers highlights the positive impact of immigration on the state. The University of Maryland released the report by the Commission to Study the Impact of Immigrants in Maryland on Thursday." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will unveil proposals aimed at stabilizing money-market funds in the event of another financial panic, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter. The SEC looks to minimize any losses for shareholders of the money funds, which invest in short-term debt instruments. At least three of five SEC commissioners would need to approve the proposals to submit them for public comment, the newspaper said." - imabonehead from Bookmarklet

"Critics of the law, speaking in a telephone conference with reporters, said they had sent letters to Mercedes-Benz parent Daimler AG, Honda and Hyundai seeking meetings to discuss the law, parts of which have been put on hold by federal courts. The president of the Washington-based Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights said opponents want the automotive companies to help them fight to overturn the law, which already has resulted in the brief detention of foreign employees from Mercedes and Honda." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"The U.S. economy added 243,000 jobs in January, more than in December even as the impact of temporary holiday hiring came out of the measure, and the best reading in several years. Unemployment was down again, to 8.3%. Friday morning’s figure from the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics was well ahead of estimates calling for job gains to slow to somewhere around 140,000. Private sector payrolls jumped 257,000, more than expected and well above the 170,000 the figure from the monthly employment survey from Automatic Data Processing released Wednesday." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"Alabama's crackdown on undocumented immigrants, widely seen as the toughest in the United States, has cost the state's economy up to $10.8 billion, according to a new study." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

Republicons find that whole cause/effect thing troublesome but my fav is the scum sucking racist farmers who voted Republican favor big border fences without "realizing" their slavre labor illegals were not going to be around to pick crops for no money. Tough shit. Pay decent wages you'll have all the chores done. Of course its gonna cost much much more than you paid your slave laborers - WarLord

"Governor Rick Snyder says modifying the nation’s green card system could help create more jobs in Michigan and the U.S. Testifying Tuesday in front of a U.S. House Committee, Snyder said he realizes immigration is a complex issue, but he feels there should be opportunities in our country for immigrants with advanced degrees in engineering and other fields. Snyder is asking federal government to develop a special green card for immigrants who have earned doctorates or other high-end degrees, contending that this would allow the U.S. to grow that talent and jobs along with it." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"To obtain an EB-5 visa, which can lead to a green card, a prospective immigrant has to invest at least $1 million and create jobs in the U.S. But in cities that, like Oakland, have a jobless rate at least 150% of the national average, only a $500,000 investment is required. The EB-5 visa program has been used to fund hundreds of projects across the country, including a $168 million Marriott Hotel as part of the new L.A. Live entertainment complex, and a beef-processing plant valued at more than $50 million in South Dakota. Mr. Henderson says his first Oakland project to be funded by foreign investors is a call center, CallSocket LLC, which will be housed in the Tribune Tower and create about 300 jobs when it opens in March. The regional center plans to create 2,000 jobs in Oakland in the next two years." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"Bloomingdale’s Chief Executive Officer Michael Gould is a fan of President Barack Obama’s efforts to speed up tourist visas for Chinese and Brazilian shoppers. Doing so would create an “immediate” surge in retail sales as foreign shoppers clamor for Marc Jacobs and Kate Spade designs, Gould said in a telephone interview Jan. 27. The department store chain is preparing for a potential boom by tailoring merchandise assortments to Brazilian and Chinese tastes and advertising outside of the U.S. for the first time." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

They're already doing this at Mall of America in MN where Bloomies wants to close teh store #CEOaremorons - WarLord

"Faced with a shortage of hired hands, Kansas ranchers and farmers are appealing to their state’s secretary of agriculture for a solution. And he says he has one: hiring illegal immigrants. It’s an idea that’s unorthodox enough to turn heads but practical enough to justify a series of meetings with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security — a meeting which Kansas Agriculture Secretary Dale Rodman told the Topeka Capital-Journal he has attended." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

*grrr* *agrees with WL* - Prosey BUTTONS!

"the crackdown has cost Georgia farmers millions of dollars in lost crops and other financial damage. Farmers have said that the new law has scared away field hands, including many illegal immigrants, who harvest labor-intensive crops." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"Apple, the computer giant whose sleek products have become a mainstay of modern life, is dealing with a public relations disaster and the threat of calls for a boycott of its iPhones and iPads. The company's public image took a dive after revelations about working conditions in the factories of some of its network of Chinese suppliers." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"Yes, AT&T customers, you read that correctly. Because AT&T can't get more spectrum, and because it pursued an ill-advised and destructive method for pursuing more spectrum, it has to raise your prices. Do you feel that on your face? That's AT&T spitting on it. By that point in that call, and I must point out that I was only about 10 minutes in, I felt like banging my head against the wall because it would have been less painful. Customers should not pay for your mistakes, AT&T, nor should they pay for ineffective politicians who care more about about disagreeing than they do about getting something done." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"According to app store analytics researcher Distimo, developers who put their iPhone and iPad apps on sale in Apple's App Store see a significant jump in revenue, as do Android developers using the Android Market." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"The president's state of the union address Tuesday night focused mainly on the economy and jobs. But he also renewed the call for comprehensive immigration reform." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"An Android developer by the name of Koushik Dutta is building an alternative Android app store which will house the apps that have been banned from Google’s official Android Market. These will include the custom ROMs (customized versions of the Android OS), classic gaming emulators pulled due to copyright complaints, unofficial tethering apps removed at the behest of mobile operators, Visual Voicemail apps, one-click rooting apps, and more." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"Speaking Friday at a business community luncheon hosted by the Detroit Regional Chamber, Snyder said he will "stand up" as a spokesperson for federal legislation that would encourage highly-educated engineers and entrepreneurs to stay in the United States after college." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"Sales of previously owned U.S. homes rose in December to the highest level since January 2011, adding to evidence residential real estate was stabilizing heading into the new year." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"A group of investors has filed a class-auction lawsuit against Netflix and several of its executives, alleging that the film and TV subscription service purposely misled the plantiffs about its earnings prospects ahead before the company’s stock took a deep dive in the second half of 2011." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"Buoyed by strong crude prices, drilling for oil and gas in Western Canada hit a five-year high for the season as producers put in motion their winter action plans. The number of rigs in the ground last week reached an 83 per cent utilization rate, a level for the beginning of January not seen since the heady days of 2006 when service companies were frantically trying to capture high natural gas and oil prices." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"Obama plan would replace the Commerce Department Obama elevates the Small Business Administration to a Cabinet-level agency Plan could save $3 billion by cutting 2,000 jobs through attrition" - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"The U.S. International Trade Commission ruled that Motorola's Droid smartphones do not violate three Apple patents, dealing a blow to Apple's legal offensive against the Android smartphone ecosystem." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"Africans are asking whether China is making their lunch or eating it." - Amira from Bookmarklet

"Companies from General Electric Co. to yogurt producer Chobani are adding U.S. workers, accelerating a rebound in hiring, as chief executive officers prepare for greater demand in a strengthening economic recovery." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet

"In conjunction the Mozilla Foundation and the Open Source Democracy Foundation, Public Knowledge this week launched a new website called WhatIsMyCap.org aimed at simplifying wireless usage caps and overages." - LANjackal from Bookmarklet