April 2nd, 2009  Comment On This Post
 Some interesting articles from Clark Howard’s website:
There are some new signs emerging about just how badly retail is suffering through the economic downturn.
First, Moody’s Investors Service downgraded the debt of Macy’s and J.C. Penney to junk-grade status. That means there are questions about whether their bonds will ever be paid off. It’s a sure sign of financial instability in these veteran retailers. Read the full story.
The funeral industry requests a bailout!
On April 1, Clark saw a Washington Post article that he thought for sure was a put-on.
In our continuing saga of bailouts, the funeral industry is now asking for its own bailout. “We recognized that there may be a situation where a lot of folks who were displaced or unemployed might need some help in paying for their funerals,” a lobbyist for the National Funeral Directors Association said in the report. “We had some preliminary discussions about providing some stimulus payments to the states [for funerals.]“ Read the full story.
Money market fund guarantee extended through Sept. ‘09
Savers can breathe a temporary sigh of relief now that government coverage on money market funds has been extended through Sept. 18, 2009.
Money-market funds have long been considered just about the safest place to stash cash. During the nearly 30 years of their existence, no one had ever lost a single penny in a money market fund. Read the full story.
April 2nd, 2009 Comment On This Post
Some interesting articles to read:
What songs do you think Barack Obama loaded on the iPod that he gave to the Queen of England? How embarrassing is this, folks?
Obama has decided that controlled bankruptcy would be the best course of action for General Motors. Controlled? Yeah .. controlled so that the unions don’t lose their power.
All charges have been dropped against Senator Ted Stevens. This is a black eye for the Bush Justice Department.
Nancy Pelosi is excited for the House to pass Obama’s budget today and launch into a new era of government dependence. By the way .. did you see what Nancy Pelosi did when she introduced Brad Pitt to some crowed in Washington? DON’T WATCH THIS!
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer says that he doesn’t know where Obama gained legal authority to oversee a restructuring of General Motors and Chrysler. The rest of the story is that Hoyer isn’t protesting Obama’s move .. he just doesn’t know where the authority came from.
General Petraeus says that Israel may choose to attack Iran in order to prevent it from developing a nuclear bomb. A country with guts. Used to be us.
Diane Feinstein and Chuck Schumer are working together to revive the cash for clunkers proposal to trade in older cars for fuel-efficient models.
The Social Security system is bogged down with disability claims. It can take years to get a hearing. And you want these people to be in charge of your healthcare?
Well here’s a real (non) shocker .. the Treasury won’t release details of the bank bailout.
You can say one thing about Slobbering Barney Frank: the guy sure is entertaining.
In the wake of this economic crisis are abandoned boats that are too expensive for people to maintain.
All articles were obtained from boortz.com
March 15th, 2009 Comment On This Post
 Some really great articles by John Stossel:
Jail For Selling Medical Marijuana
If the voters in your state say it’s OK to do something, is it?
Apparently not.
Charlie Lynch learned that the hard way, when federal authorities raided his home and small business in southern California in March 2007.
“I hear the banging of my front door,” Lynch recalled. “I opened the door and about 10 to 15 agents with shields, bullet-proof vests, guns, masks, they came barreling in.”
Drug Enforcement Administration agents seized 30 pounds of marijuana from Lynch’s business. The action wasn’t a surprise to San Luis Obispo County Sheriff Pat Hedges, who had been investigating Lynch for about a year.
What tipped the sheriff off to Lynch’s operation? It may have been the ribbon-cutting ceremony that Lynch held when he started selling marijuana. Read the full story.
The Middle Class Is Doing Just Fine, Thank you
There’s no doubt that the current recession is taking a heavy toll. Last month, the number of unemployed reached 12.5 million, an increase of 851,000 since December.
Is the middle class truly having a hard time, or is it better off than before?
President Obama has said that “the middle class is struggling.” Turn on the TV, and you’ll hear people like cable news host Lou Dobbs say, “Our middle class may be on the verge of collapse.”
Social commentator and best-selling author Barbara Ehrenreich agrees. “It used to be that you could expect to get a job after college, rise in that job, maybe switch jobs at some point and then retire with a generous pension,” she said. “Now, it’s a very bumpy road with many gaps in between.”
In her book “Nickel and Dimed,” Ehrenreich went undercover to work as a nursing home aide, a Wal-Mart associate and took on other low-wage jobs to see if she could make ends meet. Read the full story.
Billions of Tax Dollars Being Spent on Roads, That’s Bull!
It’s part of the stimulus plan. The government has announced it’s going to spend billions of your dollars on building new roads, and fixing old ones. They say they’ll do it efficiently. I say, bull.
Some people call the traffic jam on the way to work … driving into hell.
Joseph Woo of Atlanta told us he has the most miserable commute in America.
The Texas Transportation Institute, a research division of Texas A&M, says Atlanta is America’s second-most-congested city.
“You plan your day around traffic,” Woo said. “Because you never know if there’s going to be traffic or not. You have to leave an hour and 15 minutes in advance. This is why I don’t drink coffee. If I drank coffee, my head would probably explode!” Read the full story.
Taxpayer Money to Fund Border Wall
Some people from other countries want to come to the United States to kill us. Some want to freeload off us or sell us illegal things. Most just want to work here. So what should be done about all that?
It’s the Border Patrol’s responsibility to secure the U.S. border from illegal immigrants, but the border is long, and Border Patrol agents can’t be everywhere.
Reason TV recently visited the Mexican border and spoke to Robert Crooks, who leads the Mountain Minutemen, a vigilante group that tries to keep illegals from entering America.
“The Border Patrol agents are overworked, undermanned, unappreciated,” Crooks said. “I’m that added eyes and ears that the Border Patrol don’t have.” Read the full story.
Pre-K for Every Kid ‘a Waste of Money
It used to be that the first day of kindergarten was the first day of school. But now there’s a new movement: Universal pre-K. Every child in America should have a chance to start school before kindergarten. Isn’t that a wonderful idea?
Universal pre-K was one of President Obama’s campaign promises, and most Americans agree with him. Sixty-seven percent of Americans think the government should pay for every child to go to preschool, according to a June 2008 poll by Peter D. Hart Research Associates/American Viewpoint.
It all sounds so good. However, Mia Levi, a parent who owns six preschools in California, is not convinced.
“Of course it sounds good. All they hear about is a little sweet preschool program, and it’s for the little children, and how can you say no to little children?” she said. “But this whole thing is a scam. It’s like some kind of spin they want everybody to believe.” Read the full story.
Stimulus Bull? Why Bail Out Anyone At All?
Think we’re in an economic crisis?
Politicians are eager to remind us that we are.
It’s frightening just to turn on the television. You can’t change the channel without hearing a politician use the word “crisis” or “catastrophe.”
“A failure to act, and act now, will turn a crisis into a catastrophe,” President Obama said on Feb. 4th.
“We have an economic crisis, the worst since the Great Depression,” Vice President Joe Biden said of the situation at the House Democratic Issues Conference on February 6th.
Indeed, the situation is bad. The stock market has continued to fall and unemployment has reached 8.1 percent. But what should a country do about that? The political class says we need “stimulus.”
And so stimulus we got, along with bailouts and rescues adding up to billions and trillions of your dollars. Everything that has been spent and promised to be spent will wind up costing each taxpayer around $16,000.
March 6th, 2009 Comment On This Post
 Understanding the federal homeowner bailout may be confusing so here is some information for you:
There are two scenarios under which the “Making Home Affordable” program could possibly work for you. The first is if you’re behind on your mortgage, and the second is if you’re current.
Let’s examine the first scenario. If you can not afford payments and can not refinance for whatever reason, you will have the opportunity to have your loan temporarily reduced to 31% of your monthly income. This applies to homes valued at up to $759,750 in most areas of the country. Your interest rate may drop to as low as 2% for the next 5 years!
Under the second scenario, those who are current on a mortgage held by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac will also be allowed to refinance — as long as they’re not more than 5% upside down in their home. (Note: This does not include a second mortgage). The new loan you’ll get will likely be re-written to an interest rate of around 5.125%.
To determine if you’re loan is held by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, simply follow our web links or call them directly. Contact Fannie at 1-800-7-FANNIE and Freddie at 1-800-FREDDIE from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET. Start with Fannie Mae — they’re the larger of the two.
And you may also be eligible for assistance even if your loan is not with Fannie or Freddie. That’s up to your individual lender, so get in touch with them to find out if you qualify.
March 4th, 2009 Comment On This Post
 General Motors Corporation (GM) is a U.S.-based automobile manufacturer, founded in 1908 and headquartered in Detroit, Michigan. GM is the world’s second largest automaker. It manufactures its vehicles in 34 countries around the globe, and sells and services vehicles in 140 countries. The company employs approximately 252,000 people. The company sells cars under the Chevrolet, Buick, Saab, GMC, Pontiac, Cadillac, Hummer, and Saturn, Opel, Vauxhall, Isuzu, Holden, and Daewoo brands. The company also has nearly 7,000 auto dealers in the U.S.
In addition, General Motors holds a 49% share in GMAC Financial Services. GMAC was previously a wholly-owned subsidiary of GM, until 2006 when it sold a majority share to Cerberus Capital Management for $14 billion.
General Motors has received $14.3 billion in Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) funds. This includes an $864 million loan, and stock exchanges of $4 billion on December 31, 2008, $5.4 billion on January 21, 2009, and $4 billion on February 17, 2009.
The company’s restructuring plan, which was required as a condition of the receipt of federal bailout dollars, indicates that General Motors will need as much as $16.6 billion additional federal dollars to return the company to solvency.
Information was obtained from Taxpayers for Common Sense.
March 4th, 2009 Comment On This Post
After reporting a $61.7 billion quarterly loss – the biggest single quarter loss ever – in early March AIG asked for and was granted an additional $30 billion from the federal government. The following day Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke expressed his anger at the way the company had exploited loopholes to get into its current financial situation. According to Bernanke, “A.I.G. exploited a huge gap in the regulatory system. There was no oversight of the financial products division. This was a hedge fund, basically, that was attached to a large and stable insurance company.” And this quasi-hedge fund, Mr. Bernanke went on, to nobody’s surprise, made irresponsible bets and took huge losses.
American International Group, Inc. (AIG) is a holding company which, through its subsidiaries, is engaged in a range of insurance and insurance-related activities in the United States and abroad. AIG’s primary activities include both General Insurance and Life Insurance & Retirement Services operations. Other significant activities include Financial Services and Asset Management. AIG’s major product and service groupings are General Insurance, Life Insurance & Retirement Services, Financial Services and Asset Management. Through these operating segments, AIG provides insurance, financial and investment products and services to both businesses and individuals in more than 130 countries and jurisdictions. In September 2008, AIG sold its 50% stake in London City airport. In December 2008, AIG’s United States life insurance companies sold its residential mortgage-backed securities portfolio to Maiden Lane II LLC. The company was founded in 1967 and is based in New York, New York. According to Fortune 500’s annual list, AIG was the 13th largest of all corporations in America in 2008, and was the 2nd largest among property and casualty insurance companies that year.
In late November 2008, AIG announced its participation in the Treasury Department’s Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP). Under the program AIG received $40 billion from Treasury in exchange for preferred stock and warrants. Only Bank of America and Citigroup have received more money from TARP.
A recent analysis by the group tasked with overseeing the use of TARP funds, the Congressional Oversight Panel (COP), concludes that AIG received much more in federal government support than the initial $40 billion infusion. According to the report (.pdf – table, p. 7), the government received AIG assets worth only $14.8 billion – a 63 percent subsidy based on the government’s $40 billion payment to the company. Separately, AIG received $110 billion in support from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
Recently the company withdrew as a member of the U.S. Climate Action Partnership, a group pushing for implementation of a cap and trade system to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Critics said the company should not be using taxpayer money to advocate public policy. The company also will let expire its sponsorship of British soccer powerhouse Manchester United. Under the deal, AIG reportedly paid about $19 million per season to have its logo on the team’s jersey.
?Financial Documents
2008-11-25 AIG 8K
AIG Solution Agreement
2008-09-30 AIG 10Q
AIG Proxy
2007 AIG Annual Report
2007 AIG 10K
?Federal contracts
USAspending.gov (last accessed 02/10/2009)
?Lobbying reports (if any)
Third Quarter 2008
AIG | Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld | Angus & Nickerson | DC Navigators | DLA Piper | The Nickles Group | Ogilvy Government Relations | Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal
?Political Contributions
Center for Responsive Politics (last accessed 02/10/2009)
?Related Articles
March 3, 2009 Bernanke Says Insurer AIG Operated Like a Hedge Fund (Bloomberg)
March 3, 2009 AIG’s Black Box (Wall Street Journal)
March 3, 2009 Fed Chief Says Insurance Giant Acted Irresponsibly (NY Times)
March 2, 2009 A.I.G. Reports Loss of $61.7 Billion as U.S. Gives More Aid (NY Times)
February 10, 2009 Selling AIG to Scarce Buyers Is Mission Impossible for Reynolds, (Bloomberg)
February 9, 2009 AIG Received Added Subsidy in TARP Spending, Panel Says (TradingMarkets.com)
February 9, 2009 AIG Consumer Lender Rating Downgraded to Junk by S&P (Update2) (Bloomberg)
February 6, 2009 AIG and Citi deals gave Treasury least value (Reuters)
February 6, 2009 AIG Withdraws From US Climate Action Partnership (CNNMoney.com)
February 6, 2009 Dim future outlook for American International Group, Inc. (NYSE:AIG) (hotStocked.com)
February 5, 2009 AIG unit took added risks in sideline business: report (Reuters)
January 21, 2009 AIG ends soccer sponsorship (CNNMoney.com)
Information was obtained from Taxpayers for Common Sense.
February 26th, 2009 Comment On This Post
 Some interesting articles from Clark Howard’s website:
Ponzi schemes infiltrate the commodities trading market
RIP-OFF ALERT: There’s a new warning from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission about an infiltration of Ponzi schemes that they’re now seeing. Read the full story.
Cost to rent vs. buy a home is key metric for housing recovery
CLARKONOMICS: There’s frightful news about housing everywhere you turn. Existing home sales have dropped to a 12-year low. Meanwhile, almost half of all homes sold across America in January were foreclosures. That’s a startling statistic. Read the full story.
More customer no service to come from zombie banks
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has been testifying about the bank bailout and the threat of galloping inflation. He’s also been denying any further nationalization of our financial institutions. Read the full story.
Free Credit reports, no strings attached. Websites/phone numbers mentioned:
Quizzle.com - Get your FREE credit score online ( Note: This is not your official FICO score)
CreditKarma.com - Get your FREE credit score online ( Note: This is not your official FICO score)
Credit.com - Get your FREE credit score online ( Note: This is not your official FICO score)
February 22nd, 2009 1 Comment »
The First Bancorp, Inc., is the bank-holding company for The First, N.A., with headquarters in Damariscotta, Maine. The First Bancorp, Inc., was known formerly as First National Lincoln Corporation. First Bancorp operates 14 offices in coastal Maine. In early January First Bancorp began participating in the Treasury Department’s Capital Purchase Program. Under the program the company received (pdf) $25 million from Treasury in exchange for preferred stock and warrants.
?Financial Documents
2009-01-09 The First Bancorp 8K
2008-09-30 The First Bancorp 10Q
2007 The First Bancorp Annual Report
2007 The First Bancorp 10K
?Federal contracts
No federal contracts located.
?Lobbying reports (if any)
Third Quarter 2008
No lobbying documents located.
?Political Contributions
No political contributions located.
?Related Articles
January 21, 2009 The First Bancorp Reports Record Results for 2008, Up 7.5% Over 2007 (Yahoo Finance)
December 29, 2008 The First Bancorp Shareholders Approve Preferred Stock Issuance for U.S. Treasury Investment (Yahoo Finance)
December 4, 2008 First Bancorp To Receive $25 Million Under Treasury Program (TradingMarkets.com)
Information was obtained from Taxpayers for Common Sense.
February 6th, 2009 Comment On This Post
Some interesting articles to read:
If you chose one article to read, make it this one. “Why ‘Stimulus’ Will Mean Inflation.”
Barbara Boxer and Lindsey Graham got into a heated debate yesterday over bipartisan ship on this stimulus bill. Graham says, “If this is the change you can believe in, then America’s best days are behind her.” Sadly, he’s right.
Another bailout. Now US auto parts suppliers want $20.5 billion in taxpayer money.
Firms that have already received bailout money will not be required to submit to executive salary caps. Look for the exodus of executive talent.
Some news from the Supreme Court .. Ruth Bader Ginsburg has pancreatic cancer.
Yesterday I told you about Obama’s Labor secretary nominee Hilda Solis .. it also turns out that her husband was having tax issues, but now those have been settled. He owed these back taxes for over ten years … then paid them when his wife made it to the big time.
Another “stimulus” .. wireless and Internet services want their part of the economic stimulus so they can provide high-speed Internet access to rural and poor neighborhoods.
Judd Gregg is expected to be confirmed as Obama’s secretary of commerce .. and yet the administration won’t let the guy be in charge of the 2010 census.
Today Obama is going to name the members of his Economic Recovery Advisory Board. Sadly, Karl Marx isn’t available.
Here’s some news for you. Companies that received bailout money spent over $114 million on lobbying and campaign contributions last year.
Democrats are upset with Dick Cheney because he says that closing Gitmo and ending waterboarding could lead to another 9-11 scale attack. Yeah .. the truth is always painful, right?
House Democrats say that they are ready and eager to introduce the card check bill for consideration. That’s according to George Miller. My guess? It’s going nowhere. It was easy for Democrats to support this monstrosity when they knew it wouldn’t pass. Look for excuses now.
Russia and Iran are up to no good .. Russia is planning to start up a nuclear reactor in Iran by the end of the year.
Obama wants to make sure that your microwave isn’t using too much electricity. He has instructed the Energy Department to set rules for home appliances by August. Are home inspections for errant microwaves next?
The Atlanta Journal Constitution, really has a hang up over athletes. Here’s yet another headline: “Athlete was robbed, killed to help pay rent.” Not a person … an athlete. A God.
How about getting paid $93,803 to do absolutely nothing. Only government …
I hope that New York City did not spend any taxpayer money to investigate why New York smelled like maple syrup from time to time. I’m not holding my breath.
A state senator in Maine wants to prohibit smoking on beaches in state parks.
It’s one thing to hold a conference on this global warming scam .. it’s another to hold it when it is negative six degrees outside.
An update on the WWII veteran who froze to death when the power in his home was shut off .. turns out that the man left his entire estate to the local hospital.
Here’s a mugshot that is unfortunately not safe for work. You probably know where we are going with this …
February 5th, 2009 Comment On This Post
 Barack Obama has decided that it’s a good idea to put a $500,000 salary cap on executive’s who work for the bailout banks.
This is just the beginning people.
Obama said, “In order to restore our financial system, we’ve got to restore trust. And in order to restore trust, we’ve got to make certain that taxpayer funds are not subsidizing excessive compensation packages on Wall Street.” So there you go. We have a figure to judge who is receiving excessive compensation, according to the government. Check out this article from the UK, Obama’s bank error: It is boards that should determine pay not governments.
Let’s say that congress passes this law which caps executive compensation at $500,000 a year for any company receiving bailout funds. Now these companies are in trouble. They have shareholders and employees who are looking to corporate leadership to save their jobs and their investments by turning their companies around and putting them on a path to profitability. The chief executives of these companies are going to have to be experienced and knowledgeable innovators. They will be making decisions that are difficult to the extreme. People with these executive skills are in high demand. There are headhunting firms out there who earn hundreds of thousands of dollars from just one company find just the right person with the right combination of experience and executive talent to lead. People with this talent don’t go cheap … and they certainly don’t go for $500,000 a year.
|
Subscribe
Twitter
