economy

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Bail-out or Build-out, Part 2

As the Presidential race nears the finish line— with the candidates and voters both gasping for air amidst the ubiquitous onslaught of commercials on everything from lawn signs to Saturday Night Live—there are no shortages of "new and improved" proposals for dealing with the current financial mess. Well, if politicians can constantly add to their repertoires, so can we.
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When Politics Kill

When Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed me to serve as the Secretary of the California Environmental Protection Agency in 2003, my first challenge came not from the smoggy skies of Los Angeles or the pesticide-laden drainage from irrigated fields near Fresno, but from a small town in Missouri. Well, actually it came from the tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions made to Missouri Senator Christopher "Kit" Bond by Briggs & Stratton in exchange for the lives of about 1200 Americans.
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The next shoe to fall

Much pain has been experienced in the American and world economy due to the collapse of sub-prime mortgages. This slow motion car wreck has resulted in: massive commercial and investment bank write-downs, the beginning of a series of bank closings, destabilized the two largest mortgage guarantors, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, resulting in an explicit Federal guarantee for them
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Be the change

In March 2008, I went to Mumbai with a congressional delegation led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. We went in search of an answer of how to fashion an international agreement on climate change from today's Indian leaders. But I didn't find the answer from today's Indian politicians; I found it from long-gone Indian revolutionary, Mahatma Gandhi.
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Where the Next Big Real Estate Opportunities Are

In these recessionary times, it is easy to be depressed....and there is good reason given how poorly this economy has been managed and the many fundamental financial imbalances (private and public debt, declining dollar, declining confidence in the US economy and financial system here and abroad, massive unfunded liabilities, trade and budget deficits, etc, etc.). Whether the US dollar remains the global reserve currency and US Treasury bonds the lowest risk, hence lowest cost, global asset are both in doubt.
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When Water is Clear, So Are the Profits

It’s ironic that the images of flooding in the mid-west are accompanied by stories about government agencies pleading with people in those hard-hit areas to conserve water, because the floods have contaminated drinking water supplies. The recent salmonella poisoning of over 300 people in the US from tainted tomatoes can also be traced to polluted water used for irrigation (add to that the e-coli outbreaks from tainted irrigation water used on spinach and other row crops in the past 2 years).
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And Then There Were Two

Yes, it finally happened. We’re down to two in the race. The others have dropped out, the final holdout brushed aside and the main event begins. Of course I’m talking about the NBA finals. Great east-west rivalry with two teams that have very different DNA and game plans. Sounds a bit like the Presidential race, but whatever your “home team,” let me offer some advice to the next President no matter whose jersey he wears.
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A Level Playing Field

Everyone hates their taxes being spent on subsidies — unless it’s to subsidize their own industry. It’s time for an honest debate about the role of subsidies in a 21st Century economy and, at least, a restructuring to a more level playing field.

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