I’m unsure of what Mr. Bernanke’s idea of ‘likely over’ is after reading this article. All signs clearly point to a continued downward trend in our economy, because all the figures used in this article are padded due to “cash for clunkers” sales. Without this added short-term boost, how will the economy fair in the future months…?

(All emphasis is my own personal emphasis to point out the numbers I just mentioned.)

Bernanke: Recession ‘Likely Over’

Fed Chief Doesn’t Expect Many New Jobs to Appear Soon; Retail Sales Climb 2.7%

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Tuesday that the recession was “very likely over,” as consumers showed some of the first tangible signs of spending again.

Mr. Bernanke, who had become cautiously more upbeat in recent weeks amid signs of third-quarter growth, said for the first time that forecasters agree “at this point that we are in a recovery.”

The rebound, he added, would likely be so moderate it wouldn’t produce many jobs.

“Even though from a technical perspective the recession is very likely over at this point, it is still going to feel like a very weak economy for some time as many people still find their job security and their employment status is not what they wish it was,” he said. Read the full story

Debtors Revolt Starts Now!
www.debtorsrevoltnow.com

Well, I guess this site is now under construction.
Bear with us, we will have information and a functional website soon….

Four simple steps to take now:

1. Pull your money from the big corporate banks and find a local community bank or credit union for conducting your banking business.

2. Don’t use credit cards unless you are able to pay the balance in full every month.

3. Downsize and simplify your life to reduce stress and cost.

4. Don’t be passive. Demand fairness from your creditors.

Other things to consider:

Frequent local mom and pop enterprises instead of the big box stores. This will circulate your hard-earned dollars in your own community instead of shipping them off to parts unknown. Read the full story

You can find the court documents here.

An update from Bloomberg.com

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aQSMj84TPttg

Judge Sets Sept. 30 Deadline for Fed to Appeal Disclosure Order

By Mark Pittman Read the full story

So the Fed is now claiming the “real unemployment” to be at 16%, and this comes just weeks after claiming the economy was in a state of “recovery”. This makes one wonder if the “real unemployment” rate is actually even higher than the 16% they are now claiming. The figure was at 9.4% until the Fed released the news yesterday of 16% unemployment. There are also claims that this figure could continue to climb through 2011. Read the full story

A step in the right direction, if I do say so myself. I’ve never been able to understand why the Federal Reserve is allowed to control our economy through shadowy operations hidden from the public. This is one small step, and hopefully Ron Paul’s push to audit the Fed can gain some steam with this news…

http://www.reuters.com/article/ousiv/idUSTRE57O03P20090825

Federal Reserve loses suit demanding transparency

NEW YORK (Reuters) – A federal judge on Monday ruled against an effort by the U.S. Federal Reserve to block disclosure of companies that participated in and securities covered by a series of emergency funding programs as the global credit crisis began to intensify Read the full story

Interesting changes. Take a look at these two articles:

http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSTRE57I5M120090819

Consumers to benefit as credit card law debuts

NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. consumers will see on Thursday the first signs of the biggest overhaul of the credit card industry in at least two decades, as companies will be forced to provide customers with more time to pay their bills and be required to give more warning of contractual changes.

From August 20, credit card issuers will have to give clients at least 21 calendar days to pay monthly bills and will have to warn consumers 45 days in advance of major changes in conditions, under provisions of a law signed in May by President Barack Obama.

Now, credit card issuers have to mail bills at least 14 days in advance and provide a 15-day notice of changes in terms.

Consumers will also be able to reject the changes set by credit cards, and arrange a plan to cancel the debt and close the credit card account.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jFSaTEsa1OQkR-u3KaYOw94tWwfgD9A66T480

New credit card rules may reveal unwelcome details

NEW YORK — The rules your credit card company operates by will start getting much clearer on Thursday. But just because you’ll know what they’re up to doesn’t mean you’re going to like what you learn.

Regulations aimed at reining in practices like unexpected interest rate increases and credit limit cuts start with two rules. Consumers will now be given advance warning of any major changes to the terms of their accounts, and get more time to pay their balance after receiving a bill.

These small changes come ahead of more sweeping regulations that will take effect starting in February. Those touch on matters ranging from mandating reviews every six months of accounts that have had rate hikes to limiting the credit that can be offered to students.

Card companies have been gearing up for the new landscape for months, mailing consumers a spate of warnings about fee and interest rate changes. If the notices already sent are any indication, consumers may not be happy about much of the new information they receive.

Citi, for example, is in the process of informing some cardholders that it will institute an annual fee, about $30, on certain accounts.

And American Express Co. recently sent out notice it will eliminate over-the-limit fees on its consumer credit cards in October. They were dropped in response to a provision in that law that, starting in February, requires card companies to offer a way for customers to agree to pay each time a transaction triggers such a fee.

But the good news from Amex stopped there.

This video gives a step-by-step run down of what happens to the clunkers being bought by automotive dealers. Can’t really say I can agree with destroying all these cars.

Two parties can’t agree on what to do about the economy

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) – America’s two political parties don’t agree on much, but there’s one thing they do concur on: Even one job lost is one job too many.

After the Labor Department reported on Friday that the economy lost 247,000 jobs in July, the fewest in nearly a year, partisans rushed to deplore the state of the economy. See full story on the jobs report. They praised their own efforts, and condemned those of the other side.

“The worst may be behind us,” President Barack Obama said. The economy is moving in the right direction, with job losses only half as bad as when he took office. “We are turning this economy around,” Obama said.

“We are not in recovery yet, but we are starting to create the stability necessary to get us there and we will not be satisfied until we see robust monthly job growth,” said Labor Secretary Hilda Solis. “These figures are a reminder that we still have a lot of work to do on behalf of America’s workers.”

Twelve million Americans have benefited from the increase in unemployment benefits that was included in the stimulus bill, Solis said. Chronic unemployment has surged to record levels in this recession, with more than a third of 14.5 million employed Americans having been without work for more than six months.

Alarmed by the bad economy and struggles of a number of the league’s 30 teams, NBA owners continued to paint a bleak financial picture Tuesday in Manhattan when they opened labor negotiations with players on a new contract.

Ten owners, including the Knicks’ James Dolan, used the 3-1/2-hour meeting to potentially lay the groundwork for major changes in the current system that pays players 57% of basketball-related income. Read the full story

Banks Paid $32.6 Billion in Bonuses Amid U.S. Bailout

By Karen Freifeld

July 30 (Bloomberg) — Citigroup Inc., Merrill Lynch & Co. and seven other U.S. banks paid $32.6 billion in bonuses in 2008 while receiving $175 billion in taxpayer funds, according to a report by New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo. Read the full story