Business Making Money

A reader writes:

The idea that this recession is over is a myth. A little more than two years ago, I left a pretty well-paying corporate job behind because it was making me miserable. I enrolled at the University of Wales, earned a Masters Degree, and returned home. Since then, I've held two jobs. The first, which I started a year ago, was a temp job doing pretty much what I'd been doing before I left, albeit for less money – but I took it because I needed money to start paying down my college loans. That job dried up in April.

After five months of being jobless (and unqualified for unemployment, since I hadn't held a permanent position), I recently started as an instructor at a junior college about fifty miles from where I live. It's a part-time job, and it doesn't pay much, but at least it's work. My financial situation is still in the toilet, but at least now I can see the top of the bowl. Thankfully, my parents have allowed me to stay at their house during this time, which has alleviated much of my financial burden. Unfortunately, that may not remain an option for very long.

My dad, who immigrated here from Ireland in the mid-'70s, is a butcher by trade, but, with my mom's help, he has run his own sausage-making business since I was born. A few years ago, he finally had enough clients to give up butchering and stake out his own claim as a wholesaler. He has about four or five times as many customers now as he did then, but their week-to-week orders are down, meaning he's having trouble making ends meet.

This morning, my dad, who will turn 63 next May and has problems walking thanks to some asshole who plowed into his car five years ago, told me that he's been applying for jobs as a courier or delivery man – the only things outside of butchering for which he's really qualified, since his only educational background is in some GED courses he took in the '70s. Meanwhile, to try to make ends meet, my mom, who turns 55 next week, has been desperately seeking her own second job. Because, aside from my dad's business, she hasn't held a full-time job since I was a baby, she is understandably filled with an immense amount of self-doubt. Three times this week, I've heard her quietly sobbing in front of the computer as she scours different websites, growing ever-more frustrated with the hoops through which many companies make candidates jump.

After the accident I mentioned, my dad's insurance company dropped them as clients. They have a different insurer now, but the premiums are astronomical – through no fault of their own, only through the fault of the afore-mentioned asshole. My little brother, who's finishing up his last year in college, has a crazy amount of food allergies, so they are completely paranoid about losing the health insurance for his sake. Had I the money, I'd help them out myself; but I barely have enough to meet my loan payments. Then this, which my mom just told me a few hours ago: For the first time in their lives, my folks are worried they're going to miss a mortgage payment because they simply don't have the money in the bank to pay it.

My parents aren't like those irresponsible people at which pseudo-libertarians point – the type who got in over their heads and now expect society's or the government's support. My dad worked for twenty years to build his business to a point at which it could be his last job; his hope was to sell the business in a few years in order to retire. But he's not even close to that; in fact, it seems like he's further away than ever. My parents have never been late on any bills. They work hard, pay their taxes, and are active members in the community. They've done everything that they were supposed to do. Similarly, I've done what I was supposed to do: gone to school, worked hard, gotten a good education, and decided to give back by teaching at a JC attended heavily by minorities. And yet, we're still drowning.

The recession isn't over; it's killing us. What's worse is that it appears to me that the American Dream isn't just, as punk rocker Ben Weasel put it, "an ugly fucking lie." The American Dream is nonexistent. When I see those who contribute nothing to society getting further and further ahead while my parents, whom I have seen work their asses off my whole life, drift further and further behind, I find that belief in the American Dream is like a belief in Santa Claus – a story told to kids to keep them in line.

A sole proprietorship is a one-person business that, unlike corporations and limited liability companies (LLCs), doesn't even have to be registered with the state in order to exist. There were more than 22.6 million sole proprietorships in the U.S. in 2008, according to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). And even though this type of business is easy to set up, it's also easy to ignore local registration requirements, business licenses, and paying taxes on your income.

"It's by far the most common type of business, the easiest to set up, and the one that most businesses end up starting as," says Jerry Osteryoung, director of outreach at the Jim Moran Institute at Florida State University's College of Business. "You can always migrate up to an LLC or a corporation, but when first starting a business you need to make sure it's easy to start."

The following guide explains how to set up a sole proprietorship, its financial structure, and the potential drawbacks of starting one.

Dig Deeper: Sole Proprietorships Defined

 

Setting Up a Sole Proprietorship

Once you have an idea for a sole proprietorship, whether it means selling a product or providing a service, make the decision to run your activity like a business. "Be prepared to devote time, use business methods, and get set up properly so you can make more money, minimize taxes, and avoid potential problems," says Barbara Weltman, a tax and business attorney and author of such books as J.K. Lasser's Small Business Taxes (Wiley 2010).

Become a business. To be a sole proprietorship, you do not have to take any formal or legal steps at the federal, state, or local level, Weltman says. "As long as you are the only owner, you automatically become a sole proprietorship by conducting business," she adds.

Depending upon the city or municipality where you set up shop, you may need to register your business or obtain business and/or occupancy licenses. Osteryoung suggests contacting the nearest government-sponsored Small Business Development Center (SBDC). The Small Business Administration maintains an SBDC locator. They can usually provide you with step-by-step instructions on how to set up a sole proprietorship in compliance with all local laws and regulations.

One key component to starting a business is writing a business plan. The plan serves as a roadmap so you know the order in which to implement actions necessary to start and grow the business, Weltman says. It's also useful in making you focus on various aspects of the business, such as obtaining start-up capital and deciding whether or not you will be selling through the Web.

Choose a name. A name can describe in one or a few words what the business is all about. Think carefully in choosing a name when you start up a sole proprietorship and then protect it.

"You have to make sure the name isn't being used by anyone else," Osteryoung says.

• Pick a domain name. If you plan to create a website, as most businesses should, be sure that you select a domain name -- hopefully one that is the same as your business name, Weltman says. Even if you don't set up a website immediately, reserve the name by registering your site. Check availability of the name you want to use through Register.com.


• Register your name. If you operate the business under your name, as do many freelance writers and business consultants, you can skip this step. However, if you operate under a fictitious name, you should register it -- you're required to and it prevents someone else from using the same name in your area, Weltman says. "For example, if Jane Jones runs a dog walking business under the name Pampered Puppies, she should file with her local government that she is 'doing business as' (DBA) this fictitious name," she adds. "Check with your local government -- often the county -- to make sure the name is not already being used by another business."


• Trademark your name. "While not mandatory, it's often a good idea to gain legal protection for a business name so that no one else can use it," Weltman says. This is important if your name becomes a brand. Learn about trademark protection through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Dig Deeper: Choosing a Form for Your Business

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Fox <b>News</b> Remains Far Ahead Of Cable <b>News</b> Competition During Pre <b>...</b>

Fox News Channel finished #4 in prime time on all of cable (total viewers) last week - the week before their ratings are likely to increase even further thanks to the miner rescue coverage. Here's a look at the rest of cable news:

This Week in Credit Card <b>News</b> - MoneyBuilder - making sense of <b>...</b>

Discover Says US Antitrust Settlement Won't Help Consumers Discover says US consumers may not benefit from an antitrust settlement that lets merchants offer rewards and incentives to people who pay with lower-cost credit cards.

Fox <b>News</b> Gets Best Ratings Since Election Night 2008 With Miner <b>...</b>

Fox News' Day 2 miner rescue coverage (the final rescue from 8:15-9pmET) propelled the network to its best ratings since Election Night 2008. Fox News also beat broadcast networks FOX and NBC during that time period in total viewers.

benchcraft company portland or

A reader writes:

The idea that this recession is over is a myth. A little more than two years ago, I left a pretty well-paying corporate job behind because it was making me miserable. I enrolled at the University of Wales, earned a Masters Degree, and returned home. Since then, I've held two jobs. The first, which I started a year ago, was a temp job doing pretty much what I'd been doing before I left, albeit for less money – but I took it because I needed money to start paying down my college loans. That job dried up in April.

After five months of being jobless (and unqualified for unemployment, since I hadn't held a permanent position), I recently started as an instructor at a junior college about fifty miles from where I live. It's a part-time job, and it doesn't pay much, but at least it's work. My financial situation is still in the toilet, but at least now I can see the top of the bowl. Thankfully, my parents have allowed me to stay at their house during this time, which has alleviated much of my financial burden. Unfortunately, that may not remain an option for very long.

My dad, who immigrated here from Ireland in the mid-'70s, is a butcher by trade, but, with my mom's help, he has run his own sausage-making business since I was born. A few years ago, he finally had enough clients to give up butchering and stake out his own claim as a wholesaler. He has about four or five times as many customers now as he did then, but their week-to-week orders are down, meaning he's having trouble making ends meet.

This morning, my dad, who will turn 63 next May and has problems walking thanks to some asshole who plowed into his car five years ago, told me that he's been applying for jobs as a courier or delivery man – the only things outside of butchering for which he's really qualified, since his only educational background is in some GED courses he took in the '70s. Meanwhile, to try to make ends meet, my mom, who turns 55 next week, has been desperately seeking her own second job. Because, aside from my dad's business, she hasn't held a full-time job since I was a baby, she is understandably filled with an immense amount of self-doubt. Three times this week, I've heard her quietly sobbing in front of the computer as she scours different websites, growing ever-more frustrated with the hoops through which many companies make candidates jump.

After the accident I mentioned, my dad's insurance company dropped them as clients. They have a different insurer now, but the premiums are astronomical – through no fault of their own, only through the fault of the afore-mentioned asshole. My little brother, who's finishing up his last year in college, has a crazy amount of food allergies, so they are completely paranoid about losing the health insurance for his sake. Had I the money, I'd help them out myself; but I barely have enough to meet my loan payments. Then this, which my mom just told me a few hours ago: For the first time in their lives, my folks are worried they're going to miss a mortgage payment because they simply don't have the money in the bank to pay it.

My parents aren't like those irresponsible people at which pseudo-libertarians point – the type who got in over their heads and now expect society's or the government's support. My dad worked for twenty years to build his business to a point at which it could be his last job; his hope was to sell the business in a few years in order to retire. But he's not even close to that; in fact, it seems like he's further away than ever. My parents have never been late on any bills. They work hard, pay their taxes, and are active members in the community. They've done everything that they were supposed to do. Similarly, I've done what I was supposed to do: gone to school, worked hard, gotten a good education, and decided to give back by teaching at a JC attended heavily by minorities. And yet, we're still drowning.

The recession isn't over; it's killing us. What's worse is that it appears to me that the American Dream isn't just, as punk rocker Ben Weasel put it, "an ugly fucking lie." The American Dream is nonexistent. When I see those who contribute nothing to society getting further and further ahead while my parents, whom I have seen work their asses off my whole life, drift further and further behind, I find that belief in the American Dream is like a belief in Santa Claus – a story told to kids to keep them in line.

A sole proprietorship is a one-person business that, unlike corporations and limited liability companies (LLCs), doesn't even have to be registered with the state in order to exist. There were more than 22.6 million sole proprietorships in the U.S. in 2008, according to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). And even though this type of business is easy to set up, it's also easy to ignore local registration requirements, business licenses, and paying taxes on your income.

"It's by far the most common type of business, the easiest to set up, and the one that most businesses end up starting as," says Jerry Osteryoung, director of outreach at the Jim Moran Institute at Florida State University's College of Business. "You can always migrate up to an LLC or a corporation, but when first starting a business you need to make sure it's easy to start."

The following guide explains how to set up a sole proprietorship, its financial structure, and the potential drawbacks of starting one.

Dig Deeper: Sole Proprietorships Defined

 

Setting Up a Sole Proprietorship

Once you have an idea for a sole proprietorship, whether it means selling a product or providing a service, make the decision to run your activity like a business. "Be prepared to devote time, use business methods, and get set up properly so you can make more money, minimize taxes, and avoid potential problems," says Barbara Weltman, a tax and business attorney and author of such books as J.K. Lasser's Small Business Taxes (Wiley 2010).

Become a business. To be a sole proprietorship, you do not have to take any formal or legal steps at the federal, state, or local level, Weltman says. "As long as you are the only owner, you automatically become a sole proprietorship by conducting business," she adds.

Depending upon the city or municipality where you set up shop, you may need to register your business or obtain business and/or occupancy licenses. Osteryoung suggests contacting the nearest government-sponsored Small Business Development Center (SBDC). The Small Business Administration maintains an SBDC locator. They can usually provide you with step-by-step instructions on how to set up a sole proprietorship in compliance with all local laws and regulations.

One key component to starting a business is writing a business plan. The plan serves as a roadmap so you know the order in which to implement actions necessary to start and grow the business, Weltman says. It's also useful in making you focus on various aspects of the business, such as obtaining start-up capital and deciding whether or not you will be selling through the Web.

Choose a name. A name can describe in one or a few words what the business is all about. Think carefully in choosing a name when you start up a sole proprietorship and then protect it.

"You have to make sure the name isn't being used by anyone else," Osteryoung says.

• Pick a domain name. If you plan to create a website, as most businesses should, be sure that you select a domain name -- hopefully one that is the same as your business name, Weltman says. Even if you don't set up a website immediately, reserve the name by registering your site. Check availability of the name you want to use through Register.com.


• Register your name. If you operate the business under your name, as do many freelance writers and business consultants, you can skip this step. However, if you operate under a fictitious name, you should register it -- you're required to and it prevents someone else from using the same name in your area, Weltman says. "For example, if Jane Jones runs a dog walking business under the name Pampered Puppies, she should file with her local government that she is 'doing business as' (DBA) this fictitious name," she adds. "Check with your local government -- often the county -- to make sure the name is not already being used by another business."


• Trademark your name. "While not mandatory, it's often a good idea to gain legal protection for a business name so that no one else can use it," Weltman says. This is important if your name becomes a brand. Learn about trademark protection through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Dig Deeper: Choosing a Form for Your Business

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Fox <b>News</b> Remains Far Ahead Of Cable <b>News</b> Competition During Pre <b>...</b>

Fox News Channel finished #4 in prime time on all of cable (total viewers) last week - the week before their ratings are likely to increase even further thanks to the miner rescue coverage. Here's a look at the rest of cable news:

This Week in Credit Card <b>News</b> - MoneyBuilder - making sense of <b>...</b>

Discover Says US Antitrust Settlement Won't Help Consumers Discover says US consumers may not benefit from an antitrust settlement that lets merchants offer rewards and incentives to people who pay with lower-cost credit cards.

Fox <b>News</b> Gets Best Ratings Since Election Night 2008 With Miner <b>...</b>

Fox News' Day 2 miner rescue coverage (the final rescue from 8:15-9pmET) propelled the network to its best ratings since Election Night 2008. Fox News also beat broadcast networks FOX and NBC during that time period in total viewers.

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Fox <b>News</b> Remains Far Ahead Of Cable <b>News</b> Competition During Pre <b>...</b>

Fox News Channel finished #4 in prime time on all of cable (total viewers) last week - the week before their ratings are likely to increase even further thanks to the miner rescue coverage. Here's a look at the rest of cable news:

This Week in Credit Card <b>News</b> - MoneyBuilder - making sense of <b>...</b>

Discover Says US Antitrust Settlement Won't Help Consumers Discover says US consumers may not benefit from an antitrust settlement that lets merchants offer rewards and incentives to people who pay with lower-cost credit cards.

Fox <b>News</b> Gets Best Ratings Since Election Night 2008 With Miner <b>...</b>

Fox News' Day 2 miner rescue coverage (the final rescue from 8:15-9pmET) propelled the network to its best ratings since Election Night 2008. Fox News also beat broadcast networks FOX and NBC during that time period in total viewers.

benchcraft company scam

A reader writes:

The idea that this recession is over is a myth. A little more than two years ago, I left a pretty well-paying corporate job behind because it was making me miserable. I enrolled at the University of Wales, earned a Masters Degree, and returned home. Since then, I've held two jobs. The first, which I started a year ago, was a temp job doing pretty much what I'd been doing before I left, albeit for less money – but I took it because I needed money to start paying down my college loans. That job dried up in April.

After five months of being jobless (and unqualified for unemployment, since I hadn't held a permanent position), I recently started as an instructor at a junior college about fifty miles from where I live. It's a part-time job, and it doesn't pay much, but at least it's work. My financial situation is still in the toilet, but at least now I can see the top of the bowl. Thankfully, my parents have allowed me to stay at their house during this time, which has alleviated much of my financial burden. Unfortunately, that may not remain an option for very long.

My dad, who immigrated here from Ireland in the mid-'70s, is a butcher by trade, but, with my mom's help, he has run his own sausage-making business since I was born. A few years ago, he finally had enough clients to give up butchering and stake out his own claim as a wholesaler. He has about four or five times as many customers now as he did then, but their week-to-week orders are down, meaning he's having trouble making ends meet.

This morning, my dad, who will turn 63 next May and has problems walking thanks to some asshole who plowed into his car five years ago, told me that he's been applying for jobs as a courier or delivery man – the only things outside of butchering for which he's really qualified, since his only educational background is in some GED courses he took in the '70s. Meanwhile, to try to make ends meet, my mom, who turns 55 next week, has been desperately seeking her own second job. Because, aside from my dad's business, she hasn't held a full-time job since I was a baby, she is understandably filled with an immense amount of self-doubt. Three times this week, I've heard her quietly sobbing in front of the computer as she scours different websites, growing ever-more frustrated with the hoops through which many companies make candidates jump.

After the accident I mentioned, my dad's insurance company dropped them as clients. They have a different insurer now, but the premiums are astronomical – through no fault of their own, only through the fault of the afore-mentioned asshole. My little brother, who's finishing up his last year in college, has a crazy amount of food allergies, so they are completely paranoid about losing the health insurance for his sake. Had I the money, I'd help them out myself; but I barely have enough to meet my loan payments. Then this, which my mom just told me a few hours ago: For the first time in their lives, my folks are worried they're going to miss a mortgage payment because they simply don't have the money in the bank to pay it.

My parents aren't like those irresponsible people at which pseudo-libertarians point – the type who got in over their heads and now expect society's or the government's support. My dad worked for twenty years to build his business to a point at which it could be his last job; his hope was to sell the business in a few years in order to retire. But he's not even close to that; in fact, it seems like he's further away than ever. My parents have never been late on any bills. They work hard, pay their taxes, and are active members in the community. They've done everything that they were supposed to do. Similarly, I've done what I was supposed to do: gone to school, worked hard, gotten a good education, and decided to give back by teaching at a JC attended heavily by minorities. And yet, we're still drowning.

The recession isn't over; it's killing us. What's worse is that it appears to me that the American Dream isn't just, as punk rocker Ben Weasel put it, "an ugly fucking lie." The American Dream is nonexistent. When I see those who contribute nothing to society getting further and further ahead while my parents, whom I have seen work their asses off my whole life, drift further and further behind, I find that belief in the American Dream is like a belief in Santa Claus – a story told to kids to keep them in line.

A sole proprietorship is a one-person business that, unlike corporations and limited liability companies (LLCs), doesn't even have to be registered with the state in order to exist. There were more than 22.6 million sole proprietorships in the U.S. in 2008, according to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). And even though this type of business is easy to set up, it's also easy to ignore local registration requirements, business licenses, and paying taxes on your income.

"It's by far the most common type of business, the easiest to set up, and the one that most businesses end up starting as," says Jerry Osteryoung, director of outreach at the Jim Moran Institute at Florida State University's College of Business. "You can always migrate up to an LLC or a corporation, but when first starting a business you need to make sure it's easy to start."

The following guide explains how to set up a sole proprietorship, its financial structure, and the potential drawbacks of starting one.

Dig Deeper: Sole Proprietorships Defined

 

Setting Up a Sole Proprietorship

Once you have an idea for a sole proprietorship, whether it means selling a product or providing a service, make the decision to run your activity like a business. "Be prepared to devote time, use business methods, and get set up properly so you can make more money, minimize taxes, and avoid potential problems," says Barbara Weltman, a tax and business attorney and author of such books as J.K. Lasser's Small Business Taxes (Wiley 2010).

Become a business. To be a sole proprietorship, you do not have to take any formal or legal steps at the federal, state, or local level, Weltman says. "As long as you are the only owner, you automatically become a sole proprietorship by conducting business," she adds.

Depending upon the city or municipality where you set up shop, you may need to register your business or obtain business and/or occupancy licenses. Osteryoung suggests contacting the nearest government-sponsored Small Business Development Center (SBDC). The Small Business Administration maintains an SBDC locator. They can usually provide you with step-by-step instructions on how to set up a sole proprietorship in compliance with all local laws and regulations.

One key component to starting a business is writing a business plan. The plan serves as a roadmap so you know the order in which to implement actions necessary to start and grow the business, Weltman says. It's also useful in making you focus on various aspects of the business, such as obtaining start-up capital and deciding whether or not you will be selling through the Web.

Choose a name. A name can describe in one or a few words what the business is all about. Think carefully in choosing a name when you start up a sole proprietorship and then protect it.

"You have to make sure the name isn't being used by anyone else," Osteryoung says.

• Pick a domain name. If you plan to create a website, as most businesses should, be sure that you select a domain name -- hopefully one that is the same as your business name, Weltman says. Even if you don't set up a website immediately, reserve the name by registering your site. Check availability of the name you want to use through Register.com.


• Register your name. If you operate the business under your name, as do many freelance writers and business consultants, you can skip this step. However, if you operate under a fictitious name, you should register it -- you're required to and it prevents someone else from using the same name in your area, Weltman says. "For example, if Jane Jones runs a dog walking business under the name Pampered Puppies, she should file with her local government that she is 'doing business as' (DBA) this fictitious name," she adds. "Check with your local government -- often the county -- to make sure the name is not already being used by another business."


• Trademark your name. "While not mandatory, it's often a good idea to gain legal protection for a business name so that no one else can use it," Weltman says. This is important if your name becomes a brand. Learn about trademark protection through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Dig Deeper: Choosing a Form for Your Business

bench craft company reviews

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Fox <b>News</b> Remains Far Ahead Of Cable <b>News</b> Competition During Pre <b>...</b>

Fox News Channel finished #4 in prime time on all of cable (total viewers) last week - the week before their ratings are likely to increase even further thanks to the miner rescue coverage. Here's a look at the rest of cable news:

This Week in Credit Card <b>News</b> - MoneyBuilder - making sense of <b>...</b>

Discover Says US Antitrust Settlement Won't Help Consumers Discover says US consumers may not benefit from an antitrust settlement that lets merchants offer rewards and incentives to people who pay with lower-cost credit cards.

Fox <b>News</b> Gets Best Ratings Since Election Night 2008 With Miner <b>...</b>

Fox News' Day 2 miner rescue coverage (the final rescue from 8:15-9pmET) propelled the network to its best ratings since Election Night 2008. Fox News also beat broadcast networks FOX and NBC during that time period in total viewers.

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Fox <b>News</b> Remains Far Ahead Of Cable <b>News</b> Competition During Pre <b>...</b>

Fox News Channel finished #4 in prime time on all of cable (total viewers) last week - the week before their ratings are likely to increase even further thanks to the miner rescue coverage. Here's a look at the rest of cable news:

This Week in Credit Card <b>News</b> - MoneyBuilder - making sense of <b>...</b>

Discover Says US Antitrust Settlement Won't Help Consumers Discover says US consumers may not benefit from an antitrust settlement that lets merchants offer rewards and incentives to people who pay with lower-cost credit cards.

Fox <b>News</b> Gets Best Ratings Since Election Night 2008 With Miner <b>...</b>

Fox News' Day 2 miner rescue coverage (the final rescue from 8:15-9pmET) propelled the network to its best ratings since Election Night 2008. Fox News also beat broadcast networks FOX and NBC during that time period in total viewers.

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Fox <b>News</b> Remains Far Ahead Of Cable <b>News</b> Competition During Pre <b>...</b>

Fox News Channel finished #4 in prime time on all of cable (total viewers) last week - the week before their ratings are likely to increase even further thanks to the miner rescue coverage. Here's a look at the rest of cable news:

This Week in Credit Card <b>News</b> - MoneyBuilder - making sense of <b>...</b>

Discover Says US Antitrust Settlement Won't Help Consumers Discover says US consumers may not benefit from an antitrust settlement that lets merchants offer rewards and incentives to people who pay with lower-cost credit cards.

Fox <b>News</b> Gets Best Ratings Since Election Night 2008 With Miner <b>...</b>

Fox News' Day 2 miner rescue coverage (the final rescue from 8:15-9pmET) propelled the network to its best ratings since Election Night 2008. Fox News also beat broadcast networks FOX and NBC during that time period in total viewers.

bench craft company reviews

Fox <b>News</b> Remains Far Ahead Of Cable <b>News</b> Competition During Pre <b>...</b>

Fox News Channel finished #4 in prime time on all of cable (total viewers) last week - the week before their ratings are likely to increase even further thanks to the miner rescue coverage. Here's a look at the rest of cable news:

This Week in Credit Card <b>News</b> - MoneyBuilder - making sense of <b>...</b>

Discover Says US Antitrust Settlement Won't Help Consumers Discover says US consumers may not benefit from an antitrust settlement that lets merchants offer rewards and incentives to people who pay with lower-cost credit cards.

Fox <b>News</b> Gets Best Ratings Since Election Night 2008 With Miner <b>...</b>

Fox News' Day 2 miner rescue coverage (the final rescue from 8:15-9pmET) propelled the network to its best ratings since Election Night 2008. Fox News also beat broadcast networks FOX and NBC during that time period in total viewers.

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Fox <b>News</b> Remains Far Ahead Of Cable <b>News</b> Competition During Pre <b>...</b>

Fox News Channel finished #4 in prime time on all of cable (total viewers) last week - the week before their ratings are likely to increase even further thanks to the miner rescue coverage. Here's a look at the rest of cable news:

This Week in Credit Card <b>News</b> - MoneyBuilder - making sense of <b>...</b>

Discover Says US Antitrust Settlement Won't Help Consumers Discover says US consumers may not benefit from an antitrust settlement that lets merchants offer rewards and incentives to people who pay with lower-cost credit cards.

Fox <b>News</b> Gets Best Ratings Since Election Night 2008 With Miner <b>...</b>

Fox News' Day 2 miner rescue coverage (the final rescue from 8:15-9pmET) propelled the network to its best ratings since Election Night 2008. Fox News also beat broadcast networks FOX and NBC during that time period in total viewers.

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Making money online myths abound. Myths about earning money online include that of making big money. For any man or woman who is making money on the Internet or has a money making business from home, you certainly know what these myths are.

I earn money online (making money writing), and I also have a money making business from home that's offline (freelance editorial work), and quite frankly, I'm a little fed up with myths that surround men and women who are making money online from a home based business.

Myth # 1

Men and women who work from home earn big money. Where did this work myth come from anyways? Though many money making opportunities and money making scams claim to be home-based, this doesn't mean that stay-at-home money making ideas translate into big money. Just the opposite may be true, when you consider that the home-based office often lacks the tools necessary to carry out big business. Many work at home men, women and moms must invest 10-12 hours a day in their business just to pay basic bills.

Myth # 2

Men and women who work from home have lots of free time. Yeah, right. Maybe you've heard those money making secrets radio ads in which some fluffy voiced woman claims she makes $5,000 a month working only nine hours a week. She's a paid voice-over reading a script. These radio ad people speak beautifully: no stammering, tripping over words or other speech mishaps that a real interviewee would exhibit. That's how you can tell they're fake.

Myth # 3

Men and women who work from home feel socially cut off from the community and isolated. This is so untrue. In fact, a person at a regular job may feel isolated, working in a cubicle with no windows. Any time the home-based workers wishes for human contact, they can step outside and walk down the street and start conversation with the first person they see. Or they can head for the gym or park in the middle of the day.

Myth # 4

Men and women who work from home are lonely. The home-based worker has more freedom to take a break and socialize, than a person who's trapped inside a building in a traditional office job, or a person who's in a car, van or truck all day making deliveries or performing services.

Myth # 5

Men and women who work from home miss out on intellectual stimulation. I am more intellectually stimulated making money writing from home than I was listening to the mindless drivel of co-workers at the Denver Post where I used to work.


big seminar 14

Fox <b>News</b> Remains Far Ahead Of Cable <b>News</b> Competition During Pre <b>...</b>

Fox News Channel finished #4 in prime time on all of cable (total viewers) last week - the week before their ratings are likely to increase even further thanks to the miner rescue coverage. Here's a look at the rest of cable news:

This Week in Credit Card <b>News</b> - MoneyBuilder - making sense of <b>...</b>

Discover Says US Antitrust Settlement Won't Help Consumers Discover says US consumers may not benefit from an antitrust settlement that lets merchants offer rewards and incentives to people who pay with lower-cost credit cards.

Fox <b>News</b> Gets Best Ratings Since Election Night 2008 With Miner <b>...</b>

Fox News' Day 2 miner rescue coverage (the final rescue from 8:15-9pmET) propelled the network to its best ratings since Election Night 2008. Fox News also beat broadcast networks FOX and NBC during that time period in total viewers.

big seminar 14

Fox <b>News</b> Remains Far Ahead Of Cable <b>News</b> Competition During Pre <b>...</b>

Fox News Channel finished #4 in prime time on all of cable (total viewers) last week - the week before their ratings are likely to increase even further thanks to the miner rescue coverage. Here's a look at the rest of cable news:

This Week in Credit Card <b>News</b> - MoneyBuilder - making sense of <b>...</b>

Discover Says US Antitrust Settlement Won't Help Consumers Discover says US consumers may not benefit from an antitrust settlement that lets merchants offer rewards and incentives to people who pay with lower-cost credit cards.

Fox <b>News</b> Gets Best Ratings Since Election Night 2008 With Miner <b>...</b>

Fox News' Day 2 miner rescue coverage (the final rescue from 8:15-9pmET) propelled the network to its best ratings since Election Night 2008. Fox News also beat broadcast networks FOX and NBC during that time period in total viewers.

big seminar 14

Making Money Online Easy

If Apple gets its way, the next big wave of content to hit iTunes might be magazine and newspaper subscriptions.

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Apple is trying to convince publishers to offer newspaper and magazine subscriptions for the iPad through Apple’s own portal./> id="more-386602">/> Even before the iPad was launched, rumors of this sort of arrangement were already underway. Many of the Western world’s biggest publishers, including Time Inc., Hearst and Condé Nast, released iPad-optimized magazines or newspapers to coincide with the product’s release.

However, magazines have been limited to single issue sales. Some apps notify a user when a new issue is available, but at $4 or $5 an issue, most users are unlikely to forego a print or online subscription for iPad content.

The big holdup with bringing subscriptions to the iPad has reportedly revolved around user data and, of course, money. Publishers often use their subscriber database to better target customers and to entice advertisers. Apple reportedly doesn’t want to give publishers such easy access to customer information.

Additionally, Apple would likely want to take a 30% revenue cut off any subscriptions sold within iTunes, the same as it does for apps, music, books and video files now.

Both of these points are contentious with publishers, who have acquiesced by selling issues individually or are trying to either build apps that are really just portals to subscriber-only websites (à la The Wall Street Journal) or apps like Zinio that are PDF portals of sorts on their own.

Of course, the big promise with the iPad has been that it is an opportunity for publishers to redefine magazine or newspaper content by making it more engaging and interactive rather than just being a facsimile of the print edition.

Publishers who are looking at ways to combat declining print sales may be able to use Apple’s 160-million strong iTunes customer base to help boost sales. That might be worth a trade-off of control and profit.

For Apple, having unique arrangements with publishers to offer compelling subscription content that is auto-delivered to iOS devices could be a big differentiating factor between the iPad and future competing devices.

Apple’s foray into the world of e-books remains small, especially when compared to market giant Amazon.comclass="blippr-nobr">Amazon.com, but the iPad has the ability and the form factor to provide a much more compelling experience for subscription content.

We’ve reached out to several publishers for comment on this story and have not heard back. We’ll keep following this story for future developments.

In the meantime, let us know what you think of iPad-tailored subscriptions for newspapers and magazines. Do you currently read print publications? Would you be more or less likely to subscribe to a tablet-friendly digital version?

For more Apple coverage:

class="f-el">class="cov-twit">Follow Mashable Appleclass="s-el">class="cov-rss">Subscribe to the Apple channelclass="f-el">class="cov-fb">Become a Fan on Facebookclass="s-el">class="cov-apple">Download our free apps for iPhone and iPad

by Susana Polo | 4:09 pm, September 12th, 2010

There have been many effects of Eve Online’s decision to deal a large blow to the black market for their in-game currency by essentially making it purchasable for real money.  The one that we like the most, however, is that it is now really easy to quantify actions in Eve Online to people who don’t play the game.  Case in point:

In-game business machinations have lead to a player known as Bad Bobby walking away from a gutted in-game corporation with items worth $45,000.  And it was all game legal.

The plan was to set up an in-game business that turned a profit by selling copies of blueprints for Titan class starships.  90% of the profits would go to the shareholders who had bankrolled the founding of the company in the first place.  The location of the originals would be kept secret, but their ownership would be controlled by five trustees, ensuring that they could not be taken without all trustees in agreement.  Bad Bobby was a founding member of the company, Titans4U, and one of the trustees.

From Massively:

All of this security hinged on the fact that Bobby would not have access to over 50% of the company’s shares and so couldn’t vote to unlock the blueprints on his own. For over a year, this system worked amicably. In the background, however, Bobby was slowly scheming to get his hands on more shares.

To complete the scam, Bobby initiated a vote to create more shares under the guise of adding more trustees… the vote passed and more shares were created.

The other trustees presumably expected Bobby to hand over the shares when the new trustees were appointed. Instead, Bobby, with access to 50% of the shares, called for a vote to place the blueprints in his ownership at a time when only three of the other four trustees could log on to veto his request, stealing the blueprints.

According to Massively, the virtual goods were worth 850 billion Interstellar Kredits, which can be translated into a value of $45,000 US dollars, which can purchase 214 years of game time.

And yes, Eve Online is at heart an economic simulator as well as a space tactics simulator.  The game’s curators permit in-game thievery, smuggling, elaborate cons, pirates, market manipulation, bounty-hunting, corporate espionage, and racketeering; they simply warn their players to be aware of the risks and careful with their in-game possessions.  Bobby’s actions were all within the rules of the game.  The only thing he has sacrificed is his in-game reputation.

Monday&#39;s <b>news</b>: Saturday&#39;s opener can&#39;t get here soon enough! - On <b>...</b>

At long last, we've got some honest-to-goodness competitive NHL hockey to look forward to this week as the 2010-11 season opens Thursday evening.

Arrowheadlines: Chiefs <b>News</b> 10/4 - Arrowhead Pride

However, there aren't many real stories because of the bye. I'd expect the hype to start soon. We're just a few days from the undefeated Chiefs playing the "struggling" Colts. Here's your Kansas City Chiefs news.

Microsoft officially announces Mattrick promotion | <b>News</b>

Microsoft has officially announced the promotion of Don Mattrick to president of the Interactive Entertainment division,...

eric seiger eric seiger

If Apple gets its way, the next big wave of content to hit iTunes might be magazine and newspaper subscriptions.

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Apple is trying to convince publishers to offer newspaper and magazine subscriptions for the iPad through Apple’s own portal./> id="more-386602">/> Even before the iPad was launched, rumors of this sort of arrangement were already underway. Many of the Western world’s biggest publishers, including Time Inc., Hearst and Condé Nast, released iPad-optimized magazines or newspapers to coincide with the product’s release.

However, magazines have been limited to single issue sales. Some apps notify a user when a new issue is available, but at $4 or $5 an issue, most users are unlikely to forego a print or online subscription for iPad content.

The big holdup with bringing subscriptions to the iPad has reportedly revolved around user data and, of course, money. Publishers often use their subscriber database to better target customers and to entice advertisers. Apple reportedly doesn’t want to give publishers such easy access to customer information.

Additionally, Apple would likely want to take a 30% revenue cut off any subscriptions sold within iTunes, the same as it does for apps, music, books and video files now.

Both of these points are contentious with publishers, who have acquiesced by selling issues individually or are trying to either build apps that are really just portals to subscriber-only websites (à la The Wall Street Journal) or apps like Zinio that are PDF portals of sorts on their own.

Of course, the big promise with the iPad has been that it is an opportunity for publishers to redefine magazine or newspaper content by making it more engaging and interactive rather than just being a facsimile of the print edition.

Publishers who are looking at ways to combat declining print sales may be able to use Apple’s 160-million strong iTunes customer base to help boost sales. That might be worth a trade-off of control and profit.

For Apple, having unique arrangements with publishers to offer compelling subscription content that is auto-delivered to iOS devices could be a big differentiating factor between the iPad and future competing devices.

Apple’s foray into the world of e-books remains small, especially when compared to market giant Amazon.comclass="blippr-nobr">Amazon.com, but the iPad has the ability and the form factor to provide a much more compelling experience for subscription content.

We’ve reached out to several publishers for comment on this story and have not heard back. We’ll keep following this story for future developments.

In the meantime, let us know what you think of iPad-tailored subscriptions for newspapers and magazines. Do you currently read print publications? Would you be more or less likely to subscribe to a tablet-friendly digital version?

For more Apple coverage:

class="f-el">class="cov-twit">Follow Mashable Appleclass="s-el">class="cov-rss">Subscribe to the Apple channelclass="f-el">class="cov-fb">Become a Fan on Facebookclass="s-el">class="cov-apple">Download our free apps for iPhone and iPad

by Susana Polo | 4:09 pm, September 12th, 2010

There have been many effects of Eve Online’s decision to deal a large blow to the black market for their in-game currency by essentially making it purchasable for real money.  The one that we like the most, however, is that it is now really easy to quantify actions in Eve Online to people who don’t play the game.  Case in point:

In-game business machinations have lead to a player known as Bad Bobby walking away from a gutted in-game corporation with items worth $45,000.  And it was all game legal.

The plan was to set up an in-game business that turned a profit by selling copies of blueprints for Titan class starships.  90% of the profits would go to the shareholders who had bankrolled the founding of the company in the first place.  The location of the originals would be kept secret, but their ownership would be controlled by five trustees, ensuring that they could not be taken without all trustees in agreement.  Bad Bobby was a founding member of the company, Titans4U, and one of the trustees.

From Massively:

All of this security hinged on the fact that Bobby would not have access to over 50% of the company’s shares and so couldn’t vote to unlock the blueprints on his own. For over a year, this system worked amicably. In the background, however, Bobby was slowly scheming to get his hands on more shares.

To complete the scam, Bobby initiated a vote to create more shares under the guise of adding more trustees… the vote passed and more shares were created.

The other trustees presumably expected Bobby to hand over the shares when the new trustees were appointed. Instead, Bobby, with access to 50% of the shares, called for a vote to place the blueprints in his ownership at a time when only three of the other four trustees could log on to veto his request, stealing the blueprints.

According to Massively, the virtual goods were worth 850 billion Interstellar Kredits, which can be translated into a value of $45,000 US dollars, which can purchase 214 years of game time.

And yes, Eve Online is at heart an economic simulator as well as a space tactics simulator.  The game’s curators permit in-game thievery, smuggling, elaborate cons, pirates, market manipulation, bounty-hunting, corporate espionage, and racketeering; they simply warn their players to be aware of the risks and careful with their in-game possessions.  Bobby’s actions were all within the rules of the game.  The only thing he has sacrificed is his in-game reputation.

Monday&#39;s <b>news</b>: Saturday&#39;s opener can&#39;t get here soon enough! - On <b>...</b>

At long last, we've got some honest-to-goodness competitive NHL hockey to look forward to this week as the 2010-11 season opens Thursday evening.

Arrowheadlines: Chiefs <b>News</b> 10/4 - Arrowhead Pride

However, there aren't many real stories because of the bye. I'd expect the hype to start soon. We're just a few days from the undefeated Chiefs playing the "struggling" Colts. Here's your Kansas City Chiefs news.

Microsoft officially announces Mattrick promotion | <b>News</b>

Microsoft has officially announced the promotion of Don Mattrick to president of the Interactive Entertainment division,...

eric seiger eric seiger

Who's Making Money

Bob Harras worked for Jim Lee after leaving Marvel (never doing the contributing work that was promised to the press) from New Jersey before working as group editor for DC Comics collected editions and editor of DC’s new Who’s Who series.

Some see his rapid promotion to Editor-In-Chief as a poisoned chalice now. That DC Entertainment is in serious, uncertain flux. So why not have a safe hand on the tiller who isn’t going to crack under any and all pressure. He’s been an editor-in-chief with a variety of bosses either punching and pushing for more and more profits to pay of debt brought on buy buying the company while making incredibly offensive personal remarks to him. Compared to that, DC is a breeze. Put it this way, members of senior DC management will never tell him that he should kill family members who turned out to be gay.

But is that an underestimation of Bob’s abilities? Remember much of the negativity aimed his way by fans over the likes of Spider-Clones, Onslaughts, Heroes Reborn and Hulk reboots was as a direct result of demand from Marvel executives on high that would eventually bring much of the market to its knees and push Marvel into bankruptcy.

But Bob’s time as an X-title editor saw him recruit Marc Silvestri from King Conan to Uncanny X-Men. He recruited Jim Lee from Punisher War Journal to Uncanny X-Men then X-Men. He recruited Rob Liefeld from Hawk And Dove to New Mutants, then X-Force. He recruited Whilce Portacio from Strikeforce Morituri to Uncanny X-Men. He turned a line of comics that sold a hundred thousand per issue into one that sold millions an issue. And then found a way to transfer that to much of the rest of the line as well. He made more money for Marvel Comics through the sales of their comics than any other editor at the company .

Then when the company as a whole headed into bankruptcy, he did as much as he could, as editor-in-chief to keep the company afloat and return record amounts from the the publishing company, even as the bosses sank it further and further into debt. This eventually cannibalised the readers, destroyed the speculation and colllectable market and diluted the franchises.

He was mocked by Joe Quesada for recommending the likes of Howard Mackie of Scott Lobdell to write Ultimate Spider-Man for Bill Jemas, only for Joe Quesada to suggest Brian Bendis – a move that may have made Quesada’s career. But at the time Bendis was the risky choice, Mackie the safe one.

Right now, with the poor morale and institutionalised fear at the company, a safe pair of hands is what’s needed. Harras should fit right in – what is Final Crisis and Blackest Night but Onslaught and Spider Clones all over again?

And I wouldn’t be surprised if that safe pair of hands finds some gold in them there hills in the form of the next Jim Lee. the next Whilce Portacio, the next Rob Liefeld. Or possibly all the old ones.

I have learned of a number of DC freelancers who have approached Marvel, believing that Bob Harass disliked either their work or, well, them. And while DC editors Eddie Berganza and Ian Sattler may be unsure of their new boss (especially since it seems they believed they were in the running for his position), Michael Marts and Matt Idelson are especially pleased, they have stayed on good terms with Bob since they left Marvel.

And of course, Bob is now editor-in-chief of Vertigo, a new twist. Now, it was his predecessor Tom DeFalco who is attributed to have said that Sleepwalker was Sandman done right, but there does seem to be a clash if sensibilities here… and a further eroding of the autonomy of Vertigo and dilution of Karen Berger’s influence within the company.

But I tell you what. It must be a good time to be be Fabian Niceza. And Scott Lobdell. And, say, what is Howard Mackie up to these days?

One of the great things about flying first class is that you often get to meet some interesting people. During the early eighties, I found myself on a flight from Los Angles to New York sitting next to an unknown, aspiring, young director named Oliver Stone, who was on his way to pitch a new film idea to potential investors.

Over six hours I enjoyed one of the most interesting conversations of my career, covering jungle combat in Vietnam, the ins and outs of movie making, and the harsh realities of Hollywood style accounting. The movie he was pitching turned out to be the 1987 industry cult classic, Wall Street.

The film sparked one of the greatest guessing games of all time, with everyone attempting to identify the real people behind the fictional characters. The villain, Gordon Gekko, was easy. That was Ivan Boesky, a risk arbitrageur who became the target of one of the first high profile insider trading case. Other links with reality were more obscure, and many real life traders on the floor of the NYSE simply played themselves as extras.

In the sequel, it is much easier to play who’s who, thanks to the financial crash that seems like was happening only yesterday. Gordon Gekko, released from federal prison, this time turns into legendary hedge fund manager John Paulson, whose character turns $100 million into $1.2 billion in a matter of months through buying up cheap credit default swaps on subprime debt. Hank Paulson and Tim Geithner are easy to pick out in a crucial meeting at the New York Fed. The chairman of “Keller Zabel” (Bear Stearns), one “Louis Zabel” (Ace Greenberg), throws himself in front of a train on the Lexington line. Well, this is fiction, after all. The $2 dollar/share sale price gave it all away.

Many people played themselves. The whole CNBC crowd was there, their descriptions of the crash so realistic that I thought it might be archival footage. So were Warren Buffet, Nouriel Roubini, Jim Chanos, and other notables. In fact, Chanos managed to get Stone to change the original script, switching the bad guy role from a hedge fund to Goldman Sachs (GS), known as “Churchill Schwartz,” as it should be. They are easily identified as the Wall Street firm that took out a big short in housing debt just before the crash.

Shia Labeouf does an outstanding job playing Jake Moore, an aggressive, razor sharp, earnest young investment banker. I have known so many like him over the years, both working for me and at competitors, that his performance really rung true. Michael Douglas, who has aged dramatically, seemed to be simply replaying the same role that he has in countless earlier films. To understand their characters, several actors opened up online trading accounts and did quite well in the market, with Shia alone reportedly booking some $20,000 in profits.

There are a few minor flaws in the film. It could have used more editing. There is a mention of “50% leverage” of subprime debt, when the correct figure was 50 times. The Chinese government investor doesn’t act like a real person from the People’s Republic, but as an American with a bad accent. No one has yet figures out the true meaning of Eli Wallach’s repeated bird calls.

In this incredibly target rich environment, Stone seems to take aim at so many enemies, That even an insider myself got confused. However, these are trivial complaints. If you want to have a hoot, go see the film, but expect to provide a simultaneous translation about all of the different instruments and strategies if you bring any non financial types with you.

Not wanting to spoil the ending, I’ll say no more, except that you can buy the original wall Street movie from Amazon by clicking here at http://www.amazon.com/Wall-Street-Charlie-Sheen/dp/B00003CXDB/ref=sr_1_2?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1285432060&sr=1-2

And thanks to Oliver’s advice, I never got involved in financially backing a film project, despite countless invitations to do. It was the best trade I never did.

To see the data, charts, and graphs that support this research piece, as well as more iconoclastic and out-of-consensus analysis, please visit me at www.madhedgefundtrader.com . There, you will find the conventional wisdom mercilessly flailed and tortured daily, and my last two years of research reports available for free. You can also listen to me on Hedge Fund Radio by clicking on “This Week on Hedge Fund Radio” in the upper right corner of my home page.

Small Business <b>News</b>: The White Paper Overview

Pundits still say they are a great way to develop credibility for your business easy to distribute in their popular current PDF format and also, if done right,

Catherine Herridge - Fox <b>News</b> | Gender Discrimination | Age | Mediaite

The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a complaint yesterday against Fox News for a gender and age discrimination case dating back to 2007. The FNC correspondent, Catherine Herridge, is still an employee with the company, ...

ScribbleLive plans to reinvent the <b>news</b> article | VentureBeat

Anthony is VentureBeat's assistant editor, as well as its reporter on media, advertising, and social networks. Before joining VentureBeat in ...

bench craft company rip off
bench craft company rip off

Small Business <b>News</b>: The White Paper Overview

Pundits still say they are a great way to develop credibility for your business easy to distribute in their popular current PDF format and also, if done right,

Catherine Herridge - Fox <b>News</b> | Gender Discrimination | Age | Mediaite

The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a complaint yesterday against Fox News for a gender and age discrimination case dating back to 2007. The FNC correspondent, Catherine Herridge, is still an employee with the company, ...

ScribbleLive plans to reinvent the <b>news</b> article | VentureBeat

Anthony is VentureBeat's assistant editor, as well as its reporter on media, advertising, and social networks. Before joining VentureBeat in ...

bench craft company rip off bench craft company rip off

Bob Harras worked for Jim Lee after leaving Marvel (never doing the contributing work that was promised to the press) from New Jersey before working as group editor for DC Comics collected editions and editor of DC’s new Who’s Who series.

Some see his rapid promotion to Editor-In-Chief as a poisoned chalice now. That DC Entertainment is in serious, uncertain flux. So why not have a safe hand on the tiller who isn’t going to crack under any and all pressure. He’s been an editor-in-chief with a variety of bosses either punching and pushing for more and more profits to pay of debt brought on buy buying the company while making incredibly offensive personal remarks to him. Compared to that, DC is a breeze. Put it this way, members of senior DC management will never tell him that he should kill family members who turned out to be gay.

But is that an underestimation of Bob’s abilities? Remember much of the negativity aimed his way by fans over the likes of Spider-Clones, Onslaughts, Heroes Reborn and Hulk reboots was as a direct result of demand from Marvel executives on high that would eventually bring much of the market to its knees and push Marvel into bankruptcy.

But Bob’s time as an X-title editor saw him recruit Marc Silvestri from King Conan to Uncanny X-Men. He recruited Jim Lee from Punisher War Journal to Uncanny X-Men then X-Men. He recruited Rob Liefeld from Hawk And Dove to New Mutants, then X-Force. He recruited Whilce Portacio from Strikeforce Morituri to Uncanny X-Men. He turned a line of comics that sold a hundred thousand per issue into one that sold millions an issue. And then found a way to transfer that to much of the rest of the line as well. He made more money for Marvel Comics through the sales of their comics than any other editor at the company .

Then when the company as a whole headed into bankruptcy, he did as much as he could, as editor-in-chief to keep the company afloat and return record amounts from the the publishing company, even as the bosses sank it further and further into debt. This eventually cannibalised the readers, destroyed the speculation and colllectable market and diluted the franchises.

He was mocked by Joe Quesada for recommending the likes of Howard Mackie of Scott Lobdell to write Ultimate Spider-Man for Bill Jemas, only for Joe Quesada to suggest Brian Bendis – a move that may have made Quesada’s career. But at the time Bendis was the risky choice, Mackie the safe one.

Right now, with the poor morale and institutionalised fear at the company, a safe pair of hands is what’s needed. Harras should fit right in – what is Final Crisis and Blackest Night but Onslaught and Spider Clones all over again?

And I wouldn’t be surprised if that safe pair of hands finds some gold in them there hills in the form of the next Jim Lee. the next Whilce Portacio, the next Rob Liefeld. Or possibly all the old ones.

I have learned of a number of DC freelancers who have approached Marvel, believing that Bob Harass disliked either their work or, well, them. And while DC editors Eddie Berganza and Ian Sattler may be unsure of their new boss (especially since it seems they believed they were in the running for his position), Michael Marts and Matt Idelson are especially pleased, they have stayed on good terms with Bob since they left Marvel.

And of course, Bob is now editor-in-chief of Vertigo, a new twist. Now, it was his predecessor Tom DeFalco who is attributed to have said that Sleepwalker was Sandman done right, but there does seem to be a clash if sensibilities here… and a further eroding of the autonomy of Vertigo and dilution of Karen Berger’s influence within the company.

But I tell you what. It must be a good time to be be Fabian Niceza. And Scott Lobdell. And, say, what is Howard Mackie up to these days?

One of the great things about flying first class is that you often get to meet some interesting people. During the early eighties, I found myself on a flight from Los Angles to New York sitting next to an unknown, aspiring, young director named Oliver Stone, who was on his way to pitch a new film idea to potential investors.

Over six hours I enjoyed one of the most interesting conversations of my career, covering jungle combat in Vietnam, the ins and outs of movie making, and the harsh realities of Hollywood style accounting. The movie he was pitching turned out to be the 1987 industry cult classic, Wall Street.

The film sparked one of the greatest guessing games of all time, with everyone attempting to identify the real people behind the fictional characters. The villain, Gordon Gekko, was easy. That was Ivan Boesky, a risk arbitrageur who became the target of one of the first high profile insider trading case. Other links with reality were more obscure, and many real life traders on the floor of the NYSE simply played themselves as extras.

In the sequel, it is much easier to play who’s who, thanks to the financial crash that seems like was happening only yesterday. Gordon Gekko, released from federal prison, this time turns into legendary hedge fund manager John Paulson, whose character turns $100 million into $1.2 billion in a matter of months through buying up cheap credit default swaps on subprime debt. Hank Paulson and Tim Geithner are easy to pick out in a crucial meeting at the New York Fed. The chairman of “Keller Zabel” (Bear Stearns), one “Louis Zabel” (Ace Greenberg), throws himself in front of a train on the Lexington line. Well, this is fiction, after all. The $2 dollar/share sale price gave it all away.

Many people played themselves. The whole CNBC crowd was there, their descriptions of the crash so realistic that I thought it might be archival footage. So were Warren Buffet, Nouriel Roubini, Jim Chanos, and other notables. In fact, Chanos managed to get Stone to change the original script, switching the bad guy role from a hedge fund to Goldman Sachs (GS), known as “Churchill Schwartz,” as it should be. They are easily identified as the Wall Street firm that took out a big short in housing debt just before the crash.

Shia Labeouf does an outstanding job playing Jake Moore, an aggressive, razor sharp, earnest young investment banker. I have known so many like him over the years, both working for me and at competitors, that his performance really rung true. Michael Douglas, who has aged dramatically, seemed to be simply replaying the same role that he has in countless earlier films. To understand their characters, several actors opened up online trading accounts and did quite well in the market, with Shia alone reportedly booking some $20,000 in profits.

There are a few minor flaws in the film. It could have used more editing. There is a mention of “50% leverage” of subprime debt, when the correct figure was 50 times. The Chinese government investor doesn’t act like a real person from the People’s Republic, but as an American with a bad accent. No one has yet figures out the true meaning of Eli Wallach’s repeated bird calls.

In this incredibly target rich environment, Stone seems to take aim at so many enemies, That even an insider myself got confused. However, these are trivial complaints. If you want to have a hoot, go see the film, but expect to provide a simultaneous translation about all of the different instruments and strategies if you bring any non financial types with you.

Not wanting to spoil the ending, I’ll say no more, except that you can buy the original wall Street movie from Amazon by clicking here at http://www.amazon.com/Wall-Street-Charlie-Sheen/dp/B00003CXDB/ref=sr_1_2?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1285432060&sr=1-2

And thanks to Oliver’s advice, I never got involved in financially backing a film project, despite countless invitations to do. It was the best trade I never did.

To see the data, charts, and graphs that support this research piece, as well as more iconoclastic and out-of-consensus analysis, please visit me at www.madhedgefundtrader.com . There, you will find the conventional wisdom mercilessly flailed and tortured daily, and my last two years of research reports available for free. You can also listen to me on Hedge Fund Radio by clicking on “This Week on Hedge Fund Radio” in the upper right corner of my home page.

bench craft company rip off

Small Business <b>News</b>: The White Paper Overview

Pundits still say they are a great way to develop credibility for your business easy to distribute in their popular current PDF format and also, if done right,

Catherine Herridge - Fox <b>News</b> | Gender Discrimination | Age | Mediaite

The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a complaint yesterday against Fox News for a gender and age discrimination case dating back to 2007. The FNC correspondent, Catherine Herridge, is still an employee with the company, ...

ScribbleLive plans to reinvent the <b>news</b> article | VentureBeat

Anthony is VentureBeat's assistant editor, as well as its reporter on media, advertising, and social networks. Before joining VentureBeat in ...

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Small Business <b>News</b>: The White Paper Overview

Pundits still say they are a great way to develop credibility for your business easy to distribute in their popular current PDF format and also, if done right,

Catherine Herridge - Fox <b>News</b> | Gender Discrimination | Age | Mediaite

The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a complaint yesterday against Fox News for a gender and age discrimination case dating back to 2007. The FNC correspondent, Catherine Herridge, is still an employee with the company, ...

ScribbleLive plans to reinvent the <b>news</b> article | VentureBeat

Anthony is VentureBeat's assistant editor, as well as its reporter on media, advertising, and social networks. Before joining VentureBeat in ...

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Small Business <b>News</b>: The White Paper Overview

Pundits still say they are a great way to develop credibility for your business easy to distribute in their popular current PDF format and also, if done right,

Catherine Herridge - Fox <b>News</b> | Gender Discrimination | Age | Mediaite

The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a complaint yesterday against Fox News for a gender and age discrimination case dating back to 2007. The FNC correspondent, Catherine Herridge, is still an employee with the company, ...

ScribbleLive plans to reinvent the <b>news</b> article | VentureBeat

Anthony is VentureBeat's assistant editor, as well as its reporter on media, advertising, and social networks. Before joining VentureBeat in ...

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When you attend an event like this weekend’s BlogCon, hosted by Freedom Works, you get to meet people from all around the country. As you trade stories from your local and state communities, it’s fascinating to find out details on issues that get only passing mention in national politics. Races, redistricting, policies, and more that will be decided this year on election day. For me, one thing that caught my attention was Proposition 23 in California.

California is in crisis. It’s in more than one crisis, actually. Just search the blogs for the words California and crisis and a wealth of woes are on display. There are over 2.2. million unemployed statewide, they’re over $20 billion in debt, and have a foreclosure rate that leads the country.

With California in depression, the ridiculous “global warming plan” of AB 32 has got to go. It’s a job-killing, energy price inflating burden. That’s why Prop 23 is so important, and why Carly Fiorina supports it: It would suspend AB 32.



The so-called climate change law will drive California’s energy markets back to 2001. Rolling blackouts and Enron anyone? I doubt anyone is nostalgic. A cap and trade carbon trading ponzi scheme is exactly what Californians don’t need.

Prop 23 can’t end California’s litany of woes. But it is one more thing that voters there can do on November 2nd to, at least, put disaster on hold. Voting for Republicans at the state and national level is another.

If there was one takeaway from being at events like RightOnline and Blogcon in the last few weeks, it is that online activism gives us a unique way to look at the national picture, to see the implications of state decisions on a national scale. There is so much about our nation being decided this fall. And the date is approaching faster than you think. From Delaware to Ohio to California, we are voting on candidates and issues. And some, as in the case of California, will have national implications. I hope our California readers remember this and vote yes on Prop 23 this November. To put Californians back to work, to prevent soaring energy costs statewide, and to show the nation that, even in California, green dreams shouldn’t trump the American dream.

Folks, check this out!

 

 

http://www.usagold.com/goldtrail/archives/another1.html

ANOTHER ( THOUGHTS! ) ID#60253:

All: I ask you, why did the world go off the gold standard in the early 70s? You have an answer, yes? For all the problems this created, could the countries not just revalue gold upward, to say $300 ( back then ) ? What was the real reason the world entered a period of "freely traded" "managed gold"? "

This question has more impact on the gold market of today than it did then! In days past, it was held as good knowledge that the US stopped gold backing to protect the dollar and keep gold from leaving to other shores.

But, in the same time frame, all central banks did sell gold to all persons, even the US. All treasuries held gold and dollars as reserves. To what end did the world financial system gain with the dollar off gold backing, and then allowed to "dirty float" against all currencies? Would the world not have been better off to find gold revalued to, say $300 and then begin a "dirty float"? Noone would have lost, and the inflation would have , at best, not have been worse!

Truly, I tell the reason for this action. The US oil companies knew that the cheap reserves were found. The governments knew this also. The only low cost oil reserves in the world at this time were in the Middle East, and their cost to find and produce was very low. It was known, that, in time, ALL oil would come from this land. As much higher US dollar prices were needed to allow exploration and production of other reserves, worldwide. But, how to get crude prices, up, when the Gulf States were OK to pump and produce in exchange for "gold backed dollars"? I will not name the gentlemen that brought this thinking to the surface in that era, but it was discussed. It was known that oil liked gold. It was known that "local oil" would be used up without higher prices. What if, the US dollar was taken off the gold standard, and gold was managed "upward" to say, $208 per ounce? The dynamics of the market would force oil to rise and allow for much needed capital to search for the higher priced oil that was known to exist! The producers would find shelter in gold even as the price of oil was increased in terms of a now "non gold dollar"! Price inflation would rise, but gold and oil would also increase. The dollar would continue to be used as the only payment for oil, and in doing so replace gold as the backing for this "reserve currency". All would be fair.

The war in 1973 and the Iran problem did make markets "overshoot", but all did work to the correct end. The result was "a needed higher price for a commodity that was, as reserves, in much over supply by the wrong countries"! It was known that the public would never have accepted this "proposition" as fair. To this end, we have come.

U.S. Sues Fox <b>News</b> Over Discrimination Claim -- Daily Intel

Federal lawyers are suing the Fox News Network over allegations that it retaliated against a female reporter after she claimed she was receiving unequal pay and job conditions due to her gender and age. Reporter Catherine Herridge filed ...

Movie <b>News</b> Quick Hits: Michael Caine Spins &#39;Inception&#39;s&#39; Ending <b>...</b>

Still losing sleep pondering the ending of this summer's smash hit 'Inception'? Can't decide whether it's a dream or reality? Have insomnia over t.

Rupert Murdoch, Owner of Fox <b>News</b>, Argues for Immigration Reform <b>...</b>

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and media mogul Rupert Murdoch headlined a Judiciary subcommittee hearing today on the role of immigration in strengthening America's economy. The Note, authored by ABC News' Rick Klein, ...

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U.S. Sues Fox <b>News</b> Over Discrimination Claim -- Daily Intel

Federal lawyers are suing the Fox News Network over allegations that it retaliated against a female reporter after she claimed she was receiving unequal pay and job conditions due to her gender and age. Reporter Catherine Herridge filed ...

Movie <b>News</b> Quick Hits: Michael Caine Spins &#39;Inception&#39;s&#39; Ending <b>...</b>

Still losing sleep pondering the ending of this summer's smash hit 'Inception'? Can't decide whether it's a dream or reality? Have insomnia over t.

Rupert Murdoch, Owner of Fox <b>News</b>, Argues for Immigration Reform <b>...</b>

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and media mogul Rupert Murdoch headlined a Judiciary subcommittee hearing today on the role of immigration in strengthening America's economy. The Note, authored by ABC News' Rick Klein, ...

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When you attend an event like this weekend’s BlogCon, hosted by Freedom Works, you get to meet people from all around the country. As you trade stories from your local and state communities, it’s fascinating to find out details on issues that get only passing mention in national politics. Races, redistricting, policies, and more that will be decided this year on election day. For me, one thing that caught my attention was Proposition 23 in California.

California is in crisis. It’s in more than one crisis, actually. Just search the blogs for the words California and crisis and a wealth of woes are on display. There are over 2.2. million unemployed statewide, they’re over $20 billion in debt, and have a foreclosure rate that leads the country.

With California in depression, the ridiculous “global warming plan” of AB 32 has got to go. It’s a job-killing, energy price inflating burden. That’s why Prop 23 is so important, and why Carly Fiorina supports it: It would suspend AB 32.



The so-called climate change law will drive California’s energy markets back to 2001. Rolling blackouts and Enron anyone? I doubt anyone is nostalgic. A cap and trade carbon trading ponzi scheme is exactly what Californians don’t need.

Prop 23 can’t end California’s litany of woes. But it is one more thing that voters there can do on November 2nd to, at least, put disaster on hold. Voting for Republicans at the state and national level is another.

If there was one takeaway from being at events like RightOnline and Blogcon in the last few weeks, it is that online activism gives us a unique way to look at the national picture, to see the implications of state decisions on a national scale. There is so much about our nation being decided this fall. And the date is approaching faster than you think. From Delaware to Ohio to California, we are voting on candidates and issues. And some, as in the case of California, will have national implications. I hope our California readers remember this and vote yes on Prop 23 this November. To put Californians back to work, to prevent soaring energy costs statewide, and to show the nation that, even in California, green dreams shouldn’t trump the American dream.

Folks, check this out!

 

 

http://www.usagold.com/goldtrail/archives/another1.html

ANOTHER ( THOUGHTS! ) ID#60253:

All: I ask you, why did the world go off the gold standard in the early 70s? You have an answer, yes? For all the problems this created, could the countries not just revalue gold upward, to say $300 ( back then ) ? What was the real reason the world entered a period of "freely traded" "managed gold"? "

This question has more impact on the gold market of today than it did then! In days past, it was held as good knowledge that the US stopped gold backing to protect the dollar and keep gold from leaving to other shores.

But, in the same time frame, all central banks did sell gold to all persons, even the US. All treasuries held gold and dollars as reserves. To what end did the world financial system gain with the dollar off gold backing, and then allowed to "dirty float" against all currencies? Would the world not have been better off to find gold revalued to, say $300 and then begin a "dirty float"? Noone would have lost, and the inflation would have , at best, not have been worse!

Truly, I tell the reason for this action. The US oil companies knew that the cheap reserves were found. The governments knew this also. The only low cost oil reserves in the world at this time were in the Middle East, and their cost to find and produce was very low. It was known, that, in time, ALL oil would come from this land. As much higher US dollar prices were needed to allow exploration and production of other reserves, worldwide. But, how to get crude prices, up, when the Gulf States were OK to pump and produce in exchange for "gold backed dollars"? I will not name the gentlemen that brought this thinking to the surface in that era, but it was discussed. It was known that oil liked gold. It was known that "local oil" would be used up without higher prices. What if, the US dollar was taken off the gold standard, and gold was managed "upward" to say, $208 per ounce? The dynamics of the market would force oil to rise and allow for much needed capital to search for the higher priced oil that was known to exist! The producers would find shelter in gold even as the price of oil was increased in terms of a now "non gold dollar"! Price inflation would rise, but gold and oil would also increase. The dollar would continue to be used as the only payment for oil, and in doing so replace gold as the backing for this "reserve currency". All would be fair.

The war in 1973 and the Iran problem did make markets "overshoot", but all did work to the correct end. The result was "a needed higher price for a commodity that was, as reserves, in much over supply by the wrong countries"! It was known that the public would never have accepted this "proposition" as fair. To this end, we have come.

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U.S. Sues Fox <b>News</b> Over Discrimination Claim -- Daily Intel

Federal lawyers are suing the Fox News Network over allegations that it retaliated against a female reporter after she claimed she was receiving unequal pay and job conditions due to her gender and age. Reporter Catherine Herridge filed ...

Movie <b>News</b> Quick Hits: Michael Caine Spins &#39;Inception&#39;s&#39; Ending <b>...</b>

Still losing sleep pondering the ending of this summer's smash hit 'Inception'? Can't decide whether it's a dream or reality? Have insomnia over t.

Rupert Murdoch, Owner of Fox <b>News</b>, Argues for Immigration Reform <b>...</b>

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and media mogul Rupert Murdoch headlined a Judiciary subcommittee hearing today on the role of immigration in strengthening America's economy. The Note, authored by ABC News' Rick Klein, ...

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U.S. Sues Fox <b>News</b> Over Discrimination Claim -- Daily Intel

Federal lawyers are suing the Fox News Network over allegations that it retaliated against a female reporter after she claimed she was receiving unequal pay and job conditions due to her gender and age. Reporter Catherine Herridge filed ...

Movie <b>News</b> Quick Hits: Michael Caine Spins &#39;Inception&#39;s&#39; Ending <b>...</b>

Still losing sleep pondering the ending of this summer's smash hit 'Inception'? Can't decide whether it's a dream or reality? Have insomnia over t.

Rupert Murdoch, Owner of Fox <b>News</b>, Argues for Immigration Reform <b>...</b>

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and media mogul Rupert Murdoch headlined a Judiciary subcommittee hearing today on the role of immigration in strengthening America's economy. The Note, authored by ABC News' Rick Klein, ...

bench craft company rip off bench craft company rip off

U.S. Sues Fox <b>News</b> Over Discrimination Claim -- Daily Intel

Federal lawyers are suing the Fox News Network over allegations that it retaliated against a female reporter after she claimed she was receiving unequal pay and job conditions due to her gender and age. Reporter Catherine Herridge filed ...

Movie <b>News</b> Quick Hits: Michael Caine Spins &#39;Inception&#39;s&#39; Ending <b>...</b>

Still losing sleep pondering the ending of this summer's smash hit 'Inception'? Can't decide whether it's a dream or reality? Have insomnia over t.

Rupert Murdoch, Owner of Fox <b>News</b>, Argues for Immigration Reform <b>...</b>

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and media mogul Rupert Murdoch headlined a Judiciary subcommittee hearing today on the role of immigration in strengthening America's economy. The Note, authored by ABC News' Rick Klein, ...

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