When Good Gut Bacteria Get Sick

From Harvard Medical School

When Good Gut Bacteria Get Sick
Computational algorithms provide insight into how gut microbiota respond to infection over time  

By MARJORIE MONTEMAYOR-QUELLENBERG
July 11, 2014

Being sick due to an infection can make us feel lousy. But what must the ecosystem of bacteria, or microbiota, colonizing our guts be going through when hit with infection? A study from HMS researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) has utilized unique computational models to show how infection can affect bacteria that naturally live in our intestines.

The findings may ultimately help clinicians to better treat and prevent gastrointestinal infection and inflammation through a better understanding of the major alterations that occur when foreign bacteria disrupt the gut microbiota.

“Our gut contains ten-times more bacterial cells than there are human cells in our body,” said Lynn Bry, HMS associate professor of pathology and director of the BWH Center for Clinical and Translational Metagenomics, senior study author. “The behavior of these complex bacterial ecosystems when under attack by infection can have a big impact on our health.”

Co-first author on the study Georg Gerber, HMS instructor in pathology and co-director of the BWH, developed novel computer algorithms to analyze the different stages of infection when a pathogen known as Citrobacter rodentium, which causes disease in mice similar to food-poisoning in humans, was introduced into the guts of mice.

Read more from Harvard Medical School >>

Greenspan Says Stocks to See ‘Significant Correction’

From Bloomberg

Greenspan Says Stocks to See ‘Significant Correction’
By Christopher Condon  Jul 30, 2014

Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said equity markets will see a decline at some point after surging for the past several years.

“The stock market has recovered so sharply for so long, you have to assume somewhere along the line we will get a significant correction,” Greenspan, 88, said today in an interview on Bloomberg Television’s “In the Loop” with Betty Liu. “Where that is, I do not know.”

While Greenspan said he didn’t think equities were “grossly overpriced,” his comments come amid growing concern that interest rates near record lows are creating asset-price bubbles. Fed Chair Janet Yellen said in July 16 congressional testimony that while she saw signs of high valuations in some markets, prices overall -- including for U.S. stocks -- weren’t out of line with historical norms.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index has gained 17 percent in the past year and almost tripled since March 9, 2009, its low point during the financial crisis. The benchmark index fell 0.1 percent to 1,967.88 in New York at 10:51 a.m.

Forty-seven percent of financial professionals said the equity market is close to unsustainable levels while 14 percent already saw an asset-price bubble, according to the quarterly Bloomberg Global Poll conducted July 15-16.

Greenspan said he measures stock valuations by looking at their rate of return over sovereign debt yields.

‘Exceptionally High’

“I would say that’s closer to normal after being exceptionally high, and that means we are not yet in a stressful position,” Greenspan said. He served as chairman of the Fed for more than 18 years, stepping down in 2006.

Read more from Bloomberg >>

Robert Kiyosaki’s 10 Keys to Financial Freedom

From Addicted2Success

Robert Kiyosaki’s 10 Keys to Financial Freedom
By Joel Brown on November 14, 2013

Financial freedom is one of the most desired wishes anyone has, and it is so for a good reason. You can never expect when there will be a financial crisis, sweeping away all your wealth and income sources. As a result, educating yourself about the importance of financial freedom, as well as the means to achieve it is very essential.

Robert Kiyosaki, an eight-grade dropout entrepreneur and investor, is one of the most popular financial literary activist and commentators living today. His book “Rich Dad Poor Dad” is rated as one of the best personal finance books of all time, and in it he details many ways to achieve financial freedom.


Here are Robert Kiyosaki’s 10 Keys to Financial Freedom:

1. Accept Full Responsibility
Every choice you make has its own consequences, some of which may cause damage to your wealth irreversibly. Hence, you must accept complete responsibility to secure your financial future. Understand that every decision and choice you make today will impact your life tomorrow. Therefore, it is essential that you evaluate all your financial decisions, purchases and expenses within the context of your long-term financial objectives.

2. Control Your Spending
We live in a consumer-driven world where we are compelled to spend continuously. Your spending habits are one of the main reasons why you won’t be able to secure your financial future easily. Track your every expense and think twice before making any purchase. It will be hard to do so at first, especially if you are prone to uncontrollable spending, but once you learn how to manage your expenses, then moving towards achieving your financial freedom will be a cakewalk.

3. Having a Budget is Crucial
Creating a budget and living within its limitations is crucial for achieving financial freedom in your life. A budget gives you the input you need to manage your income and control your expenses. In short, a budget gives you a sense of accountability. If you want to secure your personal finances, then a budget will provide you with tools to achieve just that.

4. Pay Yourself First
One of the key fundamental practices to achieve financial freedom is to work for yourself, rather than work for a bank or a credit card company. Learn to pay yourself first before you pay someone else. By doing this you achieve two things: you make yourself richer, and you stop getting poorer.

Only when you save money today can you invest it tomorrow, ensuring your financial freedom in the process.

5. Never Have Any Debt

Read more from Addicted2Success >>

101 Robert Kiyosaki Quotes That WILL Inspire You

Use these Kiyosaki inspirational quotes as guides - remember inspiration is not permanent. After the inspirations expire, you have to find your own inner being to motivate yourself into action.


From Addicted2Success


101 Robert Kiyosaki Quotes That WILL Inspire You
By Joel Brown on May 24, 2014

The famous “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” author has written some of the world’s top financial books. He has shared the stage with some of the world’s most influential entrepreneurs and has changed the way that we look at acquiring wealth.

I was fortunate enough to sit front stage at Robert’s event in Australia and soak in as much inspiring information that my mind would allow me that day. I was blown away by the advice he would share and was moved to make a massive change in the way that I made money and invested.

I would love to share with you today; 101 inspiring quotes by Robert Kiyosaki that will transform the way that you think about creating wealth in your life.


“In the real world, the smartest people are people who make mistakes and learn. In school, the smartest people don’t make mistakes.” - Robert Kiyosaki

“It’s not what you say out of your mouth that determines your life,it’s what you whisper to yourself that has the most power!” – Robert Kiyosaki

“It’s more important to grow your income than cut your expenses. It’s more important to grow your spirit that cut your dreams.” - Robert Kiyosaki

Get more of these quotes from Addicted2Success >>

14 Of The Best Vegetables Infographic

From NutribulletBlog

These 14 vegetables are packed with all sorts of nutrients that your body needs: fiber, protein, calcium, iron, magnesium, you name it! Incorporate them into your diet today and don’t forget to check back in with this infographic to pinpoint the sources of goodness you’re putting into your body.

Mobile ads now account for 57% of Facebook’s revenue

As Facebook's earnings report shows - mobile advertising has become an important revenue stream for this social media giant. Mobile advertising will lead to more mobile-tailing. Consumers are increasingly making more of their purchases online through their hand-held devices. Will you be a beneficiary or an onlooker of this impending tsunami of online spending? Shop.com is ready!


From Internet Retailer

July 23, 2014, 4:59 PM

Mobile ads now account for 57% of Facebook’s revenue
BY STEFANY ZAROBAN, Associate Director of Research

Mobile advertising revenue reached $1.66 billion during the second quarter, up more than 150% from Q2 last year.

Facebook’s efforts to attract advertisers and capitalize on consumers’ shift to mobile socializing seem to be paying off. The social network is now bringing in 62% of its ad revenue from mobile advertising, versus 41% this time last year, Facebook announced in its second quarter earnings release today.

That amounts to roughly $1.66 billion in mobile ad revenue during the quarter, a 151.5% increase compared with $0.66 billion a year ago. “We had a good second quarter,” CEO Mark Zuckerberg told analysts on a conference call today. “Our momentum was especially strong on mobile.”

Facebook executives also pointed to its efforts to make ads more relevant to users during the quarter, in addition to tweaks to the newsfeeds aimed at reducing users’ exposure to irrelevant or poor quality content.

“Our goal is to make ads as interesting as your friends’ content on Facebook,” Zuckerberg told analysts.

For the quarter ended June 30, 2014, Facebook reported:

• $2.910 billion in total revenue during the quarter, a 60.5% increase from $1.813 billion in the same quarter of 2013.
• $2.68 billion in advertising revenue, a 67.5% increase compared with $1.60 billion last year.
• Mobile advertising revenue represented approximately 62% of all ad revenue during the quarter, up from 41%. That would indicate mobile ad revenue was approximately $1.66 billion during the quarter, a 151.5% increase compared with $0.66 billion a year ago.
• Revenue by user location is broken down as follows:                                                                                U.S. and Canadian users comprised 44.9% of total revenue during the quarter versus 46.8% in the      same quarter of the prior year. U.S. and Canadian users drove $1.308 billion in revenue, up                54.2% from $848 million.

               European users drove $824 million in revenue, up 63.2% from $505 million. The region comprised                28.3% of revenue in Q2 compared with 27.9% last year.

              Users in Asia drove $431 million in revenue, up 74.5% from $247 million. That’s approximately                   14.8% of Facebook’s total revenue versus 13.6%.

Read more from Internet Retailer >>

A Day in the Life: Debbie Gauthier

From MarketAmericaBlog

A Day in the Life: Debbie Gauthier
July 23, 2014

No two UnFranchise® Owners are alike, and neither are their daily lives! If you’ve ever wondered how other UnFranchise Owners spend their time, when they build their business, or which activities they enjoy in their free time, you’re in luck! Today, we’re sharing what a day in the life of Debbie Gauthier is like. Read on to find out how Debbie spends her days building her business and enjoying life as an entrepreneur.

I guess you could say I have somewhat of a morning routine, but in reality every day is a different adventure and none are ever quite the same! I typically wake up between 5-6am, and after my workout I start the day out with my Isotonix® cocktail and go through my emails. The rest of day is always a mix of business-related activities and doing things I enjoy; I am so fortunate to have so much flexibility on an everyday basis! Every day is mixed between networking events, coffee appointments, clients at my salon, showing the plan, TLS® coaching, meeting with doctors about nutraMetrix™, and Motives® overviews. My day is so different than a typical 9-5 work schedule; I’m constantly meeting new people, building relationships, and doing what I love.

Having such a flexible schedule means I set my own agenda and need to be disciplined about how I spend my time. I make sure to maintain a balance between work and personal life, and believe that time-management an essential component in building an UnFranchise Business. My schedule is a combination of appointments, phone calls, doing result-producing activities with business partners, and a little “me time.” Me time is usually working out, spending quality time with my family and closest friends, relaxing at a nice dinner, sitting on the beach or even boating on a beautiful sunny day.

Read more from MarketAmericaBlog >>

The Best 401(k)s: Retire at 60 From Conoco With $3.8 Million; Facebook Last

If you are fortunate enough to land a job at ConocoPhillips or about 90 other companies that  have excellent 401(k) plans, congratulation! For those of us not that fortunate, a Plan B is your ticket to complete time and financial freedom.


From Bloomberg

The Best 401(k)s: Retire at 60 From Conoco With $3.8 Million; Facebook Last
By Margaret Collins and Carol Hymowitz  Jul 22, 2014

A first-of-its-kind ranking of 401(k) plans at the 250 biggest companies in the U.S. found that ConocoPhillips and Abbott Laboratories are among those that provide the most lucrative retirement benefits. Among the least generous are Facebook Inc., Amazon.com Inc. and Whole Foods Market Inc. The natural-foods grocer offers a maximum contribution of $152 annually.

ConocoPhillips, a Houston oil and natural gas producer, topped the Bloomberg News rankings of the largest public companies’ 401(k) plans, largely due to a matching formula that contributes 9 percent of annual salaries for employees who save as little as 1 percent of their pay.

Facebook finished last in the Bloomberg rankings, which were based on 2012 data, the latest available for all companies. The Menlo Park, California-based social media company didn’t offer any match at the time. It started making contributions in April to its 401(k) plan.

The rankings allow employees, for the first time, to see how their own 401(k) compares to others on such criteria as company match, investment options, and time to vest. For example, more than 40 percent of companies allow workers to vest immediately, enabling them to take company contributions with them if they leave. Retailers Home Depot Inc. and Amazon.com make employees wait three years, and software maker Oracle Corp., four.

One finding rings out clearly: when generously conceived, a 401(k) plan can put workers on the track for a comfortable and secure retirement. After 13 years working in three states for ConocoPhillips, 35-year-old Daniel Baker is feeling confident about his eventual retirement even though he’s at an age when many workers have just begun to focus on their 401(k) plans.

Mental Peace

“My wife and I have peace of mind,” said Baker, who works in the company’s treasury department. “We’re well on our way.”

ConocoPhillips was among about 90 companies that gave additional retirement funds to employees, regardless of whether or how much the workers themselves contributed. Tobacco company Philip Morris International Inc., runner-up in the rankings, paid not only a 5 percent match but also an extra 15 percent of employees’ compensation.

“A robust retirement package for our U.S. personnel is essential to ensuring that we can attract, motivate and retain the best global talent,” said Corey Henry, a spokesman for New York-based Philip Morris.

Read more from Bloomberg >>

7 Things Remarkably Happy People Do Often

From  Inc.

7 Things Remarkably Happy People Do Often

Happiness can be a choice -- especially when you take the right actions.

BY JEFF HADEN  @JEFF_HADEN

Happiness: everyone wants it, yet relatively few seem to get enough of it, especially those in their early forties. (I'm no psychologist, but that's probably about when many of us start thinking, "Wait; is this all there is?")

Good news and bad news: unfortunately, approximately 50 percent of your happiness, your "happiness set-point," is determined by personality traits that are largely hereditary. Half of how happy you feel is basically outside your control.

Bummer.

But, that means 50 percent of your level of happiness is totally within your control: relationships, health, career, etc. So even if you're genetically disposed to be somewhat gloomy, you can still do things to make yourself a lot happier.

Like this:

1. Make good friends.

It's easy to focus on building a professional network of partners, customers, employees, connections, etc, because there is (hopefully) a payoff.

But there's a definite payoff to making real (not just professional or social media) friends. Increasing your number of friends correlates to higher subjective well being; doubling your number of friends is like increasing your income by 50 percent in terms of how happy you feel.

And if that's not enough, people who don't have strong social relationships are 50 percent less likely to survive at any given time than those who do. (That's a scary thought for loners like me.)

Make friends outside of work. Make friends at work. Make friends everywhere.

Make real friends. You'll live a longer, happier life.

2. Actively express thankfulness.

According to one study, couples that expressed gratitude in their interactions with each other resulted in increases in relationship connection and satisfaction the next day--both for the person expressing thankfulness and (no big surprise) for the person receiving it. (In fact, the authors of the study said gratitude was like a "booster shot" for relationships.)

Of course the same is true at work. Express gratitude for employee's hard work and you both feel better about yourselves.

Another easy method is to write down a few things you are grateful for every night. One study showed people who wrote down 5 things they were thankful for once a week were 25 percent happier after ten weeks; in effect they dramatically increased their happiness set-point.

Happy people focus on what they have, not on what they don't have. It's motivating to want more in your career, relationships, bank account, etc. but thinking about what you already have, and expressing gratitude for it, will make you a lot happier.

And will remind you that even if you still have huge dreams you have already accomplished a lot--and should feel genuinely proud.

3. Actively pursue your goals.

Goals you don't pursue aren't goals, they're dreams, and dreams only make you happy when you're dreaming.

Pursuing goals, though, does make you happy. According to David Niven, author of 100 Simple Secrets of the Best Half of Life, "People who could identify a goal they were pursuing (my italics) were 19% more likely to feel satisfied with their lives and 26 percent more likely to feel positive about themselves."

So be grateful for what you have... then actively try to achieve more. If you're pursuing a huge goal, make sure that every time you take a small step closer to achieving it you pat yourself on the back.

But don't compare where you are now to where you someday hope to be. Compare where you are now to where you were a few days ago. Then you'll get dozens of bite-sized chunks of fulfillment--and a never-ending supply of things to be thankful for.

4. Do what you excel at as often as you can.

Read more from Inc. >>

Big jump in number of millennials living with parents reported

From Los Angeles Times

Big jump in number of millennials living with parents reported

By WALTER HAMILTON 

More Americans than ever live in multigenerational households, and the number of millennials who live with their parents is rising sharply, according to a study released Thursday.

A record 57 million Americans, or 18.1% of the population, lived in multigenerational arrangements in 2012, according to the Pew Research Center. That's more than double the 28 million people who lived in such households in 1980, the center said.

A multigenerational family is defined as one with two or more generations of adults living together.

The sluggish job market and other factors have propelled the rise in millennials living in their childhood bedrooms.

About 23.6% of people age 25 to 34 live with their parents, grandparents or both, according to Pew. That’s up from 18.7% in 2007, just prior to the global financial crisis, and from 11% in 1980.

For the first time, a larger share of young people live in multigenerational arrangements than of Americans 85 and older.

Historically, large numbers of the elderly live with and are cared for by their own children. The share of people in the older age group living in multigenerational households rose between 2000 and 2012 to 22.7%, but the percentage of millennials living with their parents jumped even more.

The number of multigenerational families soared during the recession. It has continued to rise since then, although at a slower pace.

Social Security To Go Bust By 2030: CBO

Wikipedia: The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) is a federal agency within the legislative branch of the United States government that provides budget and economic information to Congress.[1] The CBO was created as a nonpartisan agency by the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974.

For the CBO, a non-partisan agency to report this, is alarming. If Social Security is a part of your retirement plan - you better think hard and start looking for a Plan B!

From Investor's Business Daily

Social Security To Go Bust By 2030: CBO

By JED GRAHAM, INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY | 07/15/2014 02:08 PM ET

The $2.8 trillion Social Security Trust Fund is on track to be totally spent by 2030, the Congressional Budget Office said Tuesday.

That's one year earlier than projected in 2013 and a decade earlier than the CBO estimated as recently as 2011.

The CBO delivered the warning in a gloomy long-term budget outlook that shows federal debt reaching 106% of GDP in 25 years, up from 74% now.

The rising debt would come despite revenue rising by 1.8 percent as share of GDP (from 17.6% to 19.4%)from 2014 to 2039 and despite spending other than health entitlements, Social Security and debt service shrinking by 2.5% of GDP (9.3% to 6.8%).

The challenge: Health care spending will rise by 3.1 percent of GDP (4.9% to 8%) and Social Security 1.4 points of GDP (4.9% to 6.3%), which will in turn push interest on the debt up to 4.7% of GDP from 1.3%.

Social Security's cliff, now just 16 years away, is one that Washington would be crazy to approach. At that point, incoming revenue would be enough to pay less than 75% of scheduled benefits for all beneficiaries, whether just reaching retirement or 100 years old.

Up until the point of exhaustion, the trust fund provides legal authority — though no resources — for the government to pay all benefits despite Social Security's burgeoning cash-flow deficit, which the CBO expects to reach $320 billion in 2024 alone.

The rapid deterioration in Social Security's finances has a number of contributing factors. The drawn-out recovery from the deep recession and the extended period of low interest rates have sapped revenue and lowered the interest that Treasury pays to the trust fund based on program surpluses from 1984 to 2009.

Read More At Investor's Business Daily >>

Alibaba values itself at $130 billion

From Internet Retailer


Alibaba values itself at $130 billion

BY DON DAVIS | Editor in Chief | July 14, 2014

But its actual value is likely to be much higher when it goes public, an analyst says.

China’s largest e-commerce company has raised its own estimate of its value to $130 billion in advance of its highly anticipated IPO. But Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. likely will be valued at well above that figure when it goes public in the New York Stock Exchange in the coming months, an analyst says.

Alibaba filed a document with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday that raised its estimate of the fair market value of a share in the company to $56 from its previous estimate of $50. Based on Alibaba’s statement that there were 2,327,539,776 ordinary shares outstanding as of March 31 that would raise the value of the company to just over $130 billion from $116 billion.

But that $56 figure is probably conservative, and looks at the value of Alibaba based on past performance, not future prospects, says R.J. Hottovy, an analyst at stock research firm Morningstar Inc. who last month estimated that Alibaba would be worth $220 billion when it goes public in the next few months.

“You’ll probably see the markets reward them with a much higher valuation” than the $130 billion figure, Hottovy says today. “We remain pretty comfortable with our estimates.”

At $130 billion, Alibaba would have a stock market value twice that of eBay Inc. At Morningstar’s $220 billion estimate, the Chinese company would be worth more thanAmazon.com Inc.(Alibaba versus Amazon http://www.internetretailer.com/2013/11/22/comparing-e-commerce-giants-alibaba-and-amazon) ($163 billion) and Facebook Inc. ($174 billion.)

Alibaba claims that its e-commerce platforms make it “the largest online and mobile commerce company in the world in terms of gross merchandise volume,” which is the value of goods sold on its web sites. Purchases on its three Chinese e-commerce sites totaled $270 billion in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2014, giving Alibaba more than an 80% market share in online retail sales in China. During that fiscal year, Alibaba says, 255 million buyers and 8 million sellers transacted on Alibaba sites.

Read more from Internet Retailer >>

The World is Changing

Are You Looking For Motivation?

Motivational speakers are much sought after. And they come with a price....some are pricier than others.

But realistically, how many can you attend? How many times do you need to be motivated? How many Tony Robbins seminars do you need to attend before you truly become motivated? Or Earl Nightingale's books you need to read?

We all know that motivation is not permanent. So, what can we do to remain upbeat and motivated?

Highly successful people are goal oriented. They lead a purposeful life, are mission driven and they dream big. Armed with a mission, they drive themselves to fulfill their goals and dreams. Therein lies their motivations!

So follow their leads.....set goals, dream big and make every effort to reach them. Each step you take only brings you a step closer to your goals and dreams!

Here is a quote from Earl Nightingale to remember:

"Why do men with goals succeed in life and men without them fail? If you really understand this, it will alter your life immediately."

Charts hinting at a big move for gold

From Yahoo Finance

Charts hinting at a big move for gold

By Jeff Macke
July 9, 2014 7:59 AM
Yahoo Finance

If gold and gold miners were celebrities it would be time for them to look for a new PR team. Despite outperforming stocks in 2014 the group still carries the taint of the bubble that burst in 2012. With the popular SPDR Gold ETF (GLD) showing strong volume and the Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF (GDX) moving higher on Tuesday despite a brutal market for stocks it may be time for some traders to reconsider the barbaric metal as an alternative to suddenly suspect equities.

Jonathan Krinsky, the chief technician of MKM Partners says gold and the miners are just getting going to the upside despite a slight pullback in the early stages of July.

“A couple weeks ago we saw a pretty big breakout on the GLD. It was on the heaviest volume we’ve seen in about a year. Most of those gains have held so that tells you there are active buyers. As long as we consolidate around this range I think gold is headed higher.”



Beyond the action in the GLD Krinsky is encouraged by the price action in silver and the aforementioned miners. The miners are typically a higher beta version of gold itself so when gold is headed lower the miners get smoked but when the metal rallies the companies in the business of production see huge increases. From that perspective it’s all systems go with the miners having doubled the gains of the GLD in 2014.

Read more from Yahoo Finance >>

Marijuana isn't harmless, top health official says

From CBSNEWS

Marijuana isn't harmless, top health official says
"During adolescence, there is a tremendous amount of neuroplasticity. Regular use of marijuana is likely to have an adverse effect on the way the human brain gets connected and organized."

By DENNIS THOMPSON | HEALTHDAY | June 5, 2014

States joining the march toward marijuana legalization need to take a step back and consider the drug's adverse effects on health, the U.S. drug "czar" argues in a new paper.

Marijuana is potentially addictive, proven to contribute to fatal motor-vehicle crashes, and can disrupt the brain function and learning of young users, says Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the U.S. National Institute on Drug Abuse.

Legalizing pot will lead to the sort of nationwide health problems now attributed to alcohol and tobacco, said Volkow, lead author of a review article in the June 5 New England Journal of Medicine.

Tobacco and alcohol have a far greater impact on health in the United States than illicit drugs, as their legal status make them more widely available for use, she noted.

"By making marijuana legal, you have more widespread use and many more health implications," Volkow said. "We don't need a third legal drug. We already have enough problems with the two we have."

The pro-marijuana advocacy group NORML agrees that pot "is not a harmless substance," Deputy Director Paul Armentano said.

"But its potential risks to the individual and to society do not warrant its present schedule I illicit status under federal law, a classification that improperly argues that the plant lacks any accepted therapeutic value and that its risks equal those of heroin," Armentano said.

Volkow is making her argument as the political winds continue to shift toward pot legalization.

Last week, the Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives voted in favor of preventing the federal government from interfering with states that allow marijuana use for medical reasons. Medical marijuana is legal in nearly half the states.

Read more from CBSNEWS >>

Goldman's Top Economist Just Made The Call We've Been Waiting 5 Years To Hear

From Business Insider

Goldman's Top Economist Just Made The Call We've Been Waiting 5 Years To Hear

JOE WEISENTHAL | JUN. 9, 2014

Goldman's top economist, Jan Hatzius, just said the words we've been wanting to hear for five years.

He believes the economy is now growing at an above-trend pace.

Goldman's own proprietary current activity indicator (CAI) is showing its fastest growth since the crisis, and though he acknowledges that some of the strong May activity is the result of a snapback from a tough winter, he says that even without that snapback we're still growing at a strong rate.

Here's his statement:

Despite the 1% drop in real GDP in the first quarter, we believe that the US economy is now growing at an above-trend pace. The best way to see this is via our current activity indicator (CAI), which grew at an annualized rate of 3.4% in May, similar to the average of the prior two months. Although an estimated ½ percentage point of this sequential growth is due to a bounceback from the weather distortions of the first quarter, even the year-on-year CAI now stands at 2.7%, the fastest pace of the expansion so far and above our estimate of potential growth of 2%-2½%. In our view, the CAI is a far more reliable indicator of economic activity than real GDP because it is more timely, more broadly based, less noisy, and less subject to revision.

Read more from Business Insider >>

Why I'm Not Buying the Retirement Gloom

Are you one of those who will un-retire? Is this the way to ride into the sunset?
If you are, the article below would interest you - in other words, you are not alone!

From NextAvenue

Why I'm Not Buying the Retirement Gloom
In the emerging Unretirement movement, you are your best investment

By Chris Farrell | June 13, 2014

Chris Farrell is senior economics contributor for American Public Media's Marketplace and author of the forthcoming Unretirement: How Baby Boomers Are Changing the Way We Think About Work, Community, and The Good Life.

Gray wave. Age wave. Geezer tsunami. (Pick your favorite — or most hated — euphemism.) Catchphrases like these capture the realization that we’re living longer and that older Americans make up a growing share of the population. As economist Laurence Kotlikoff and columnist Scott Burns say in The Coming Generational Storm: “The aging of America isn’t a temporary event. We are well into a change that is permanent, irreversible, and very long term.”

Living longer should be a trend worth celebrating. But many people believe that America’s boomers can’t afford retirement, let alone a decent retirement. They fear that aging boomers are inevitably hurtling toward a lower standard of living.

And here’s their evidence: We’ve just been through the worst downturn since the 1930s, decimating jobs and pensions. Retirement savings are slim. Surveys show that boomers aren’t spending much time planning for retirement. The prediction that the swelling tab for Social Security and other old-age entitlements will push the U.S. government and economy into a Greece-like collapse seems almost routine.

The Unretirement Movement

Don’t buy into the retirement gloom. I’m not.

Here’s why: The signs of a grassroots push to reinvent the last third of life are unmistakable. Call it the “Unretirement” movement — and it is a movement.

Read more from NextAvenue >>

The Power Profiles: Joleen Guidi

From thepowerprofiles.com

Joleen Guidi
National Supervising Coordinator

"Happiness is a state of being."

My decision to be a part of Market America has changed my life and the life of my family. In the last eight years, many changes have taken place within me and in my life.

By following the system that Market America has developed for everyone’s success, my husband and I are in the best financial standing of our lives. Market America’s UnFranchise® system has given us options. My husband was able to fire his boss of 20 years! We are planning on wintering in Florida. Of course, we will be expanding our business with Market America there.

Where else and in what other business can a person travel, relocate seasonally, have total control of time and complete control of one’s finances? Money doesn’t buy happiness, but it buys plane tickets. (My children live out of state. I can fly to see them and fly them home to see us — that’s happiness!) Happiness is a state of being. We have become financially free, free of the restrictions of working for someone else, free to live our own dreams.

18 Signs That The Global Economic Crisis Is Accelerating As We Enter The Last Half Of 2014

From TheEconomicCollapse


18 Signs That The Global Economic Crisis Is Accelerating As We Enter The Last Half Of 2014
 By Michael Snyder, on June 30th, 2014

A lot of people that I talk to these days want to know "when things are going to start happening".  Well, there are certainly some perilous times on the horizon, but all you have to do is open up your eyes and look to see the global economic crisis unfolding.  As you will see below, even central bankers are issuing frightening warnings about "dangerous new asset bubbles" and even the World Bank is declaring that "now is the time to prepare" for the next crisis.  Most Americans tend to only care about what is happening in the United States, but the truth is that serious economic trouble is erupting in South America, all across Europe and in Asian powerhouses such as China and Japan.  And the endless conflicts in the Middle East could erupt into a major regional war at just about any time.  We live in a world that is becoming increasingly unstable, and people need to understand that the period of relative stability that we are enjoying right now is extremely vulnerable and will not last long.  The following are 18 signs that the global economic crisis is accelerating as we enter the last half of 2014...

#1 The Bank for International Settlements has issued a new report which warns that "dangerous new asset bubbles" are forming which could potentially lead to another major financial crisis.  Do the central bankers know something that we don't, or are they just trying to place the blame on someone else for the giant mess that they have created?

#2 Argentina has missed a $539 million debt payment and is on the verge of its second major debt default in 13 years.

#3 Bulgaria is desperately trying to calm down a massive run on the banks that threatens to spiral out of control.

#4 Last month, household loans in the eurozone declined at the fastest rate ever recorded.  Why are European banks holding on to their money so tightly right now?

#5 The number of unemployed jobseekers in France has just soared to another brand new record high.

#6 Economies all over Europe are either showing no growth or are shrinking.  Just check out what a recent Forbes article had to say about the matter...

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Goodbye, Malls of America

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From Bloomberg View

Goodbye, Malls of America 
"Online shopping is a force few standard retailers have managed to overcome. Since 1999, when Web sales were insignificant, e-commerce has soared. Sales in 2014's first quarter topped $71 billion, an annual rate of almost $300 billion a year, equal to more than 6 percent of total U.S. retail spending."

JUL 2, 2014 12:36 PM EDT
By James Greiff

Last week, Slate published photos of empty, decaying shopping malls from a new book, "Autopsy of America.'' The images are arresting, and the timing couldn't be better. Abandoned malls are hot: The Dead Malls Enthusiasts Facebook group boasts almost 14,000 members; a Google search of "dead malls" produces 5.7 million results; and the desolate interiors of these unused retailing meccas keep making cameos in thrillers and horror films.

The images point to some fundamental changes in suburban America and the retailing experience, though urbanists who hope that failing malls will aid downtown revitalization may be disappointed. The reality, as one might expect, is more complex.

Here are a few things to consider:

A Dying Breed: What some writers used to call the malling of America is done. Try to find anyone breaking ground for a new regional shopping mall, those hulking structures with 100-plus stores surrounded by vast asphalt parking lots. Since 1990, when 16 million-square-feet of mall space opened, building has tailed off, and 2007 was the first year in more than four decades when no large malls opened in the U.S. Only one has opened since then, in 2012.

Bad News for City Centers: Advocates of what is sometimes called "new urbanism" suggest that the demise of malls will plant the seeds of an urban renaissance. For example, Ellen Dunham-Jones, a professor of urban design at Georgia Tech, in an article titled "Economic Sustainability in the Post-Industrial Landscape,'' writes:

Read more from Bloomberg View >>

4 signs the stock market is overheating

From CNN Money

4 signs the stock market is overheating
By Jesse Solomon  @JesseSolomonCNN July 1, 2014

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)
The markets are in a state of ecstasy, but investors may be underestimating lurking danger.
CNNMoney took a look at a slew of recent data on stock valuations and corporate sentiment, and while the prospects for global economic growth remain robust, savvy investors need to stay vigilant.

Here are the most four worrying signs for the markets right now:

1. Addiction to the Fed stimulus: Simply put, the financial markets are hooked on easy money, and that has caused them to ignore real economic and geopolitical vulnerabilities, according to an annual report released Sunday by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), an organization of of central banks.

While the Federal Reserve and other central banks are widely credited with shoring up the financial system after the crisis by keeping interest rates low and driving investment into stocks, investors may have gotten ahead of themselves."It is hard to avoid the sense of a puzzling disconnect between the markets' buoyancy and underlying economic developments globally," the report said.

The BIS noted that investors aggressive search for yield has driven them into riskier European and emerging market bonds, as well as lower rated corporate debt. That has left them exposed to a host of problems should interest rates rise quickly or economic conditions deteriorate.

"Countries could at some point find themselves in a debt trap: seeking to stimulate the economy through low interest rates encourages even more debt, ultimately adding to the problem it is meant to solve," asserted the BIS.

2. Stocks are downright expensive: According to a popular metric of market valuation, stocks are trading at lofty levels previously experienced leading up market crashes. According to the Shiller PE Ratio, which tracks inflation-adjusted earnings over the past 10 years, the S&P 500 is currently trading at over 26 times earnings. The long-term average, going back more than 130 years, is 16.5.

The Shiller price-to-earnings ratio rose above 25 for the first time in 1901, then again in 1929. At the height of the tech stock craze in 2000, the ratio hit a record peak of 44 before the market collapsed. It was back above 25 in 2003 and stayed around that level until 2007 -- shortly before the so-called Great Recession.

Read more from CNN Money >>

Central Bank Analysts Say Stocks Are In 'Euphoric' Territory And We're Screwed When The Recession Hits

From Yahoo Finance

Central Bank Analysts Say Stocks Are In 'Euphoric' Territory And We're Screwed When The Recession Hits
Business Insider By Jim Edwards
June 30, 2014

The Bank for International Settlements — the Swiss-based financial institution that acts as a counterparty to national central banks — has declared that stock markets are in a "euphoric" state and has urged central banks globally to begin tightening interest-rate policies now while economies are growing rather than wait for another recession, when it will be too late.

Those are scary words coming from a set of economists whose job it is to monitor how capable central banks are of responding to economic conditions with flexible monetary policy.

The subtext (and not so subtext) of BIS's annual report is that, because many central banks have reduced interest rates to zero — the U.S. and Japan included — they are without weapons to boost the economy should another crisis hit. You can't go lower than zero, basically.

These words from the BIS ought to terrify anyone who thought central banks were unprepared for the last recession in 2007, when U.S. interest rates were "high" at about 5.3%:

Financial markets are euphoric, but progress in strengthening banks’ balance sheets has been uneven and private debt keeps growing. Macroeconomic policy has little room for manoeuvre to deal with any untoward surprises that might be sprung, including a normal recession.

And that crisis looks set to arrive any day now because stocks are at a peak. Bloomberg underlined the point at the weekend:

One thing making people nervous about stocks these days is the fact the U.S. market has gone more than two years without a correction, or a 10 percent drop.

It just doesn’t feel right. Sort of like going two years without changing a car’s oil, or two days without brushing your teeth, or two paragraphs into a column without a good metaphor.

The last major dip for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index (SPX) was an 11 percent drop from its intraday high on April 2, 2012, through its low on June 4, 2012. This year, the closest it’s come was a 6.1 percent slide from the middle of January to early February and a 4.4 percent decline in April.

On top of that, the M&A market hit new records this year. The Financial Times reports:

Read more from Yahoo Finance >>