new home sales drop as winter chills demand

The bitter winter chilled demand for newly built homes, causing new home sales to sink like a stone. The housing industry, as if it hasn’t been clobbered enough, had a 17 % drop in new home sales in February. A more conservative climate among loan providers is being credited as part of the obstructive conditions. Resource for this article – Bitter winter chills demand and new home sales plummet by MoneyBlogNewz.

Lowering new house starts

Reuters reports the slowing demand, foreclosure difficulties and cold weather has brought on a huge decrease in construction and sale of new homes in the past few months.

In February, there was a 27 percent decrease in new housing starts. There was a decrease in the annual rate of sales of new homes from 300,000 to 250,000. From January to February, there was a 16.9 percent decrease in new home sales. Since February 2010, new home sales decreased by 28 percent.

The delay in construction probably did have to do with winder conditions. Still, the decrease in existing home sales was likely as a result of weak demand. Nobody wants homes while banks have to lend to make it take place. Banks may be unwilling to write personal loans for these homes.

A normal market could help, says economist

The NAR website showed that chief economist for the National Association of Realtors, Lawrence Yun, said that if "mortgage credit conditions would return to normal," the sales would go up which is the problem with "unnecessarily tight credit" and lenders.

Ron Phipps, president of the NAR, echoed Yun by saying that though interest rates for mortgages were certainly lower than many short term loans, lamenting that "credit remains a challenge.". When the credit prices stay low, it is hard to justify a new home payment. The median price for new homes was at $202,100 in Feb. while existing homes were at $156,100.

Glut of foreclosures

There are lots of foreclosed homes on the housing market. It appears to be something the rich do not mind. Cash sales made up 33 percent of all home sales in February, and 39 percent of all homes sold were distressed properties, according to Bloomberg.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has also been pessimistic about housing, being quoted recently as saying that mortgages were "difficult to obtain" and that "there's no demand for construction," in a recent appearance before Congress.

Purchasing a house is only something few will be able to do. This is for any person with credit or cash to do so. There is some trying to become homeowners that do not have these things. They might not be able to do so. The struggle in the housing market will continue. This will take place until credit can be repaired.

Citations

Reuters

reuters.com/article/2011/03/23/us-usa-economy-housing-idUSTRE72F3XG20110323?pageNumber=1

Bloomberg

bloomberg.com/news/2011-03-21/u-s-february-existing-home-sales-fall-to-4-88-million-rate.html

National Association of Realtors

realtor.org/press_room/news_releases/2011/03/feb_decline

Make sure no tax break goes overlooked

The complicated U.S. tax code makes it easy to overlook valuable tax deductions. Most taxpayers think they pay too much in taxes. However most of them might be making things worse by overlooking tax deductions. Chances are you’ve unnoticed tax write-offs that are easier to discover and take advantage of that you might believe. Article resource – A summary of many commonly overlooked tax deductions by MoneyBlogNewz.

Tax break values

About 46 million United States taxpayers who choose to itemize their tax deductions prevent almost $1 trillion dollars from falling into the hands of the government. Another $700 billion is lost by the government with standard deductions. About 85 million individuals choose the standard deduction. Most people who use standard write-offs are probably cheating themselves out of money that’s there for the taking in the U.S. tax code. Even those who take advantage of tax deductions for instance interest paid on mortgages and student loans, real estate property taxes and state sales taxes might be giving the government additional money.

Job expenditures in tax deductions

With the United States job industry as bad as it has been lately, one of the most typically overlooked tax deductions is job hunting expenditures. For job hunters with total itemized write-offs greater than 2 percent of adjusted gross income, job hunting expenditures could be deducted. However, the job search must be in the very same industry as the taxpayer’s previous position. First-time job hunters can’t deduct job hunting expenditures, but if they move more than 50 miles to take that first job, moving expenditures can be deducted, including 14.5 cents per mile. When going back to school for a career change, working class individuals can make a deduction too. Only $2,500 of college tuition is in the tax credit though. When getting a tax deduction, the amount of taxable income goes down. A tax credit lowers the amount paid in taxes. There is a threshold of income for everyone getting a tax credit. This tuition tax credit is only accessible if a couple fil! ing jointly makes less than $80,000 or a single taxpayer makes less than $80,000.

Many deductions to consider

You will find tax deductions that get overlooked. This contains deductions for home and family. As more Americans take care of their elderly parents, they become eligible for a substantial tax break. When paying over 7.5 percent of adjusted gross income for this person, they might be able to get a dependent parent deduction. In fact, over half of the parent's financial support comes from them. U.S. automakers have been offering lots of incentives, and for those who purchased a new vehicle in 2010 and earned $135,000 or less, the sales tax could be deducted, even without itemizing deductions. Taxpayers that made energy efficient improvements in their home can get green energy tax credits up to $1,500. The Making Work Pay tax credit was accessible too. The 2010 tax year is the last chance to take advantage of the Making Work Pay tax credit. A Schedule M along with the 1040 form will mean singles can take $400 and married couples can take $800 off of their taxes with the! tax credit, which some employers do on their own.

Articles cited

MSN Money

articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Taxes/CutYourTaxes/the-19-most-overlooked-tax-deductions.aspx?page=2

U.S. News and World Report

news.yahoo.com/s/usnews/20110217/ts_usnews/10hiddentaxdeductionsexposed

ABC News

abcnews.go.com/Business/irs-taxes-2010-tax-credits-deductions-save-money/story?id=12908788&page=2

Costs and benefits of monetary reform legislation

Over the past few years, Congress has passed a slew of monetary reform laws. The CARD Act, for instance, was passed along with some other bills to get financial institutions and other financial service businesses to be just a little fairer in their dealings with customers. The effects have been as meant in some ways, but there will be consequences.

Legislation on credit card reform looked at

There was a random poll of people with charge cards by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. MSN states that this was done to see what impact the Charge card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act had. The Bureau found the charge card law was really working. The CARD Act caused a decrease in the number of individuals that reported an increase in rates of interest. It went down to 2 percent from the 15 percent before the act was in place. About 57 percent of respondents said the law benefits them in one way or another.

Banks answer back

The rules that are passed into law will not help large banks the majority of the time. They have to discover other ways to make money and get around it. The free checking that most banks used to offer has disappeared with the financial reform. Free checking has disappeared at large financial institutions such as Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase and Wells Fargo. CNN reports that there was a cap of $50 to $100 in debit transactions that may be initiated at large financial institutions. An "interchange fee" is charged by the financial institution to complete any kind of transaction with debit cards. A 12 cent cap is something the Fed is considering on this. Right now, 44 cents is the average. Somehow financial institutions would have to make up that loss if that were to take place. Right now the interchange fees make large financial institutions billions of dollars.

Not listening to much from credit unions

All of the rage from large banks has left some financial institutions out. The credit unions have not said much. The new regulation on banking and credit doesn't impact credit unions very much. This is because they aren't there to keep a big paycheck going for CEOs and shareholders; they’re there to service the consumer. Credit unions are nonprofit organizations with less risk than banks. That means the rates of interest on automobile loans, unsecured loans and charge cards are all very low comparatively.

Articles cited

MSN

money.msn.com/credit-cards/has-credit-card-reform-worked-creditcardscom.aspx

CNN

money.cnn.com/2011/03/10/pf/debit_cards_limit/index.htm

Four things to remember whenever you rent space

The rental market is becoming huge. When you have additional space in your home, or even an extra living area, you can make money by leasing that area out. You need to do a few simple things before renting out your space. These simple moves will help protect both your money and your sanity. Source for this article – The four basics of renting out your space by MoneyBlogNewz.

1 – Think about the local market

Before you try to rent out area, do your research. Get the newspaper to watch for places similar to yours, check Craigslist and online services too. Make an appointment with a few landlords and take a look at spaces comparable to what you are renting out. Set a price for renting after deciding how much money you should bring in.

2 – Research the law

There are landlord/tenant laws in every state and sometimes individual cities. Make sure you understand the laws, even if it’s only for one room as part of your house. Most areas have at least one landlord association that offers information on the fundamentals of the law. The landlord/tenant law gives all the information needed. This includes how much notice before entering a space is required when it’s rented out while also stating what a rental demands.

3-What about credit scores?

There aren't always individuals that have good credit. Sometimes credit is an issue. As a landlord, you need to think about whether you would like to check the credit of your potential renters. A credit history indicates the history of a person’s finances and bill-paying. Running a credit history on a potential renter, however, will cost you between $75 and $100. You do not have to check credit to be able to rent out, however you need to be reasonably confident that your renters can afford what you are charging. Checking references and employment history is the best way to gauge an applicant’s ability to pay.

4-Take a look at the documents with deposits and leases

Documents are a necessity when it comes to leasing. Get the paperwork in place to do this. The paperwork is necessary for documentation, proof of residency, and protection of you both. You can find standard rental agreements for state online or through landlord’s associations; read through the agreement carefully and make edits as you see necessary. Being the renter's friend doesn't mean anything. Make sure you nevertheless get a deposit. It can cost a lot to clean up after a renter leaves which a deposit is good to help with, especially if something goes wrong.

Make sure that the price of your place is right when considering the renter's finances and documents, even if it’s just one single room. Doing the work can pay off very quickly; this is what renting can do for you.

Unemployment declined in Feb. jobs report

Joblessness has dropped since the end of January, in accordance with the newly issued February jobs report, though by a modest percentage. The rate of joblessness declined .01 % to 8.9 % over Feb.. This is the 3rd month in a row in which unemployment has declined. Article source – February jobs report shows decline in unemployment by MoneyBlogNewz.

Much more jobs being added

There was a small increase in Feb. in the number of jobs according to the Department of Labor's February jobs statement. CNN reports that from January to February, the unemployment went down to 8.9 % from 9 percent, a 0.1 percent decrease. From January, 192,000 jobs were included to the sector which is amazing. The Los Angeles Times reports that about 63,000 jobs were added in Jan, although weather could be part of this reason. The Labor Department revised December and Jan work reports to say that 50,000 brand new jobs were not reported in there.

Third month showing increased employment

This is the third consecutive month that the joblessness rate has gone down. The pace of unemployment has waxed and waned for the past several years, and there have been declines noted all along the way, however the joblessness rate dropped nearly an entire percentage point from Dec. to February, marking significant progress. There were only 368,000 unemployment claims. That is a three year low. More than 9 million people are claiming unemployment benefits, in accordance with Forbes. In 2011, a 3.5 to 4 % growth in the economy was expected by the Federal Reserve. That could change because of the rising gas prices though.

Issues seen with government spending cuts

CBS states that cutting the federal spending budget is a goal that several Republicans have in mind although economists are worried that could hurt the unemployment rate some much more. Mark Zandi, the chief economist for Moody’s Analytics, forecasted that the House Republican plan to cut $61 billion from the federal spending budget could result in more than 700,000 individuals losing their jobs. This projection was mirrored fairly closely by Goldman Sachs. You should remember that Zandi claimed that the stimulus spending would allow unemployment to stay under 8 % while being one of the most supportive people of the stimulus packages.

Citations

CNN

cnn.com/2011/03/04/news/economy/february_jobs_report/

Los Angeles Times

latimesblogs.latimes.com/money_co/2011/03/february-unemployment-jobs-economy-recovery-obama.html

Forbes

blogs.forbes.com/heatherstruck/2011/03/04/jobs-report-at-high-end-of-expectations-unemployment-drops-to-8-9/

CBS News

cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20037435-503544.html

Where have all the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau funds gone?

Here’s news that won’t shock anyone: Elizabeth Warren and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau do not rank high among the favorite things of House Republicans, writes the Huffington Post. Dodd-Frank Act opponents Majority Whip Eric Cantor, Rep. Michele Bachmann and House Financial Services Chair Spencer Bachus have already voted to cut the Federal Reserve-funded budget of the CFPB from $ 143 million to $ 80 million. If the trend continues, the CFPB – which is scheduled to open on July 21, 2011 – could be the only federal financial institution regulator in the United States subject to political budget cuts.

Help comes from CFPB

The way that banking has hurt U.S. families is something that has been studied by Harvard Law Prof. Elizabeth Warren who helped co-author the book "Two-Income Trap." It seems the middle class is slowly dropping down to the poor classes. In order to make up for lost salaries and to pay bills, these families have to borrow. Using the Federal Register, unifying the following seven federal agencies is the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s goal:

• The Federal Reserve Board of Governors is one
• Also involved is the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
• Federal Trade Commissioned
• The National Credit Union Administration is one of these
• Do not forget about the Officer of the Comptroller of Currency
• Office of Thrift Supervision
• The seventh is the Department of Housing and Urban Development

The primary objective of these agencies has never been customer protection before. The personal bankruptcies could be helped by the CFPB that will help the middle class.

"The numbers are sobering," Warren said at a Feb. 23 Chicago lecture. "Since the late 1970s, (personal) bankruptcy filings have doubled and doubled again. Women have been hit particularly hard. Over the course of 20 years, the number of women filing bankruptcy petitions increased by 662 percent. By the early 2000s, a woman was more likely to file for bankruptcy than to graduate from college."

Support the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

In accordance with the Customer Federation of The United States, the CFPB will play a major role in making sure that customers aren’t abused by such things as subprime charge cards, which bear high rates and fees; financial institution overdraft loans, which have astronomical interest rates; military loan businesses that attempt to operate outside the boundaries of federal regulation requiring a cap of 36 percent Annual Percentage Rate; and the most unscrupulous payday advance loan outlets, where fees can become excessive.

What is being done with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is something that consumers should be paying attention to, states John Wasik who writes for Reuters.

"I believe everyone with a credit card, bank loan or savings account needs to back Warren now," writes Wasik. "Contact your senators and congressmen and urge them to leave the bureau's funding alone, which is tied directly to the budget of the Federal Reserve."

Citations

Consumer Federation of America

consumerfed.org/pdfs/PR-CFA-CFPB-6-months.pdf

Federal Register

edocket.access.gpo.gov/2010/pdf/2010-23487.pdf

Huffington Post

huffingtonpost.com/ed-mierzwinski/iin-the-public-interesti_b_829659.html

Reuters

blogs.reuters.com/prism-money/2011/02/28/why-elizabeth-warren-needs-your-help-to-police-the-banks/

‘I’m not here to support criminal schemes,’ said Rep. Maxine Waters

youtube.com/watch?v=TUVxcNxULyU

Microfinance icon and Nobel Laureate Yunus fired from Grameen Bank

The central Bank of Bangladesh and the Bangladeshi government have compelled the sacking of Yunus, the microfinance pioneer, from his position as head of Grameen Bank. Yunus, the original head of Grameen Bank, is well known for his work in the realm of microfinance, lending small loans to the poor to help them start companies. The Bangladeshi government is thought to doing this to silence dissent, as Yunus has been openly critical of the government.

Trying to get Nobel Prize winner out

NPR states that Muhammad Yunus was forced from his placement by the Bangladeshi government. Yunus, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006, was ordered out of his position as managing director of Grameen Bank by Bangladesh Bank, the central Bank for the nation of Bangladesh. Yunus didn’t follow a rule, claims Bangladesh Bank. This rule calls for that at age 60, Bank directors must retire. Grameen Bank was founded in 1983 under a different law which exempt Yunus form this. That is why he is 70 and nevertheless working there. After he turned 60, he was given in 2000 an indefinite term of office as Grameen Bank managing director. Yunus is nevertheless in the job while Grameen is battling this.

Government will not let go of it

For years Yunus and the Bangladeshi government have been combating. Corruption is in the government, according to Yunus claims. Grammeen is "sucking the blood from the poor," though, the government claims, with its small loans made. There was a time that Muhammad Yunus tried to get his own political party started. This failed in 2007 though. Officials have been looking at the operations of Grameen Bank to root out any possible malfeasance for months, after allegations were made of an improper funds transfer, according to the NY Times. Grameen allegedly transferred more than $100 million in donations from the Norwegian government to a Grameen affiliate without alerting the Norwegian government, but all the funds were redeposited.

Key figure in fight against poverty

Several know and love Yunus and Grameen Bank. This is due to the microfinance loans used to battle poverty in the world by the Bank. Industries are started by poor people getting loans from Grameen Bank. These are mostly women. A business and income could possibly be started be a really poor woman attempting to make clothing with a microloan so she can be fabric and a sewing machine. Women make up 97 percent of Grameen’s borrowers, in accordance with USA Today, and the Bank has more than $10 billion in loans. The 2006 Nobel Peace Prize award was given to Yunus and Grameen Bank due to help with poverty conditions. Bangladesh did much better after these loans were made. Many microlenders in other nations have been found to be corrupt in practices doing things such as using violence to collect payments causing criticism for the microcredit model while others suggest getting the poor into debt is a bad cycle to start.

Articles cited

USA Today

usatoday.com/money/world/2011-03-02-bangladesh-yunus_N.htm?loc=interstitialskip

New York Times

nytimes.com/2011/03/03/world/asia/03yunus.html

NPR

npr.org/2011/03/02/134190697/bangladesh-forces-microcredit-pioneer-from-bank

Collective bargaining bill passed by Wisconsin Assembly

The Wisconsin Assembly has approved the questionable bill decreasing collective bargaining rights of state workers who are union members. The bill nevertheless has to go to the Wisconsin state U.S. Senate, as the Assembly is only the lower house. Before the bill can go to Gov. Scott Walker, it has to pass the Wisconsin U.S. Senate.

Members of Wisconsin State U.S. Senate not enough for bill to pass

Collective bargaining privileges are going to be taken away from the state unionized staff with the Wisconsin Assembly SB11 bill that has passed. There isn’t enough Wisconsin U.S. Senate present to vote on the bill though. MSNBC states that this will mean the bill can be stuck not going anywhere. You will find only 19 Senate members present to vote on the bill right now. In order to vote, there has to be 20 Senate there at the very least. The Wisconsin U.S. Senate is missing 14 Democrats who have decided to flee the capital in protest of the bill. Until the Senators come back, there can't be voting on any legislation.

Bill passing was an issue for Democrats

The questionable bill was approved in a manner that Wisconsin Democrats view as dishonest. Wisconsin Assembly Republicans voted for a roll call vote after killing the debate after there were 60 hrs of debate with Democrats filibustering with additional amendments for the bill. Bloomberg explains that 28 people did not even get a chance to vote in how easily it occurred. Democrats didn't even realize what was taking place. Since the U.S. Senate Democrats are in Urbana, Ill., right now, the Wisconsin state troopers sent to their homes to get them for the vote did not work.

No cooperation from the governor

Gov. Scott Walker, recently the subject of a prank call in which he made controversial statements to a man he thought was campaign donor Koch, has declined to work with unions at all in resolving the Wisconsin state spending budget woes. In the bill, it is required that union workers absorb more of the health care plans and pension costs. This was something unions agreed to do. Walker doesn't want unions to have collective bargaining rights though, which the unions want. Police and firefighter unions could be the only ones in Wisconsin that keep the collective bargaining privileges.

Articles cited

MSNBC

msnbc.msn.com/id/41774667/ns/politics-more_politics

Bloomberg

bloomberg.com/news/2011-02-25/wisconsin-assembly-passes-bill-curbing-unions-collective-bargaining-power.html

FDA recalls 500 medications; inexpensive can mean unsafe manufacturing

Medicines meant to treat coughs, colds, and allergies are generally considered risk-free. The FDA, however, has recalled over 500 of these medicines. In announcing this recall, the Food and Drug Administration made a point that the safety of some of these drugs is in question. Some were not tested at all, others were grandfathered into the industry. There is a trade-off to manufacturing medicines in emerging markets. This recall highlights that security trade. Article source – FDA recalls 500 medicines; low cost can mean unsafe manufacturing by MoneyBlogNewz.

Cold and allergy medicines targeted

The FDA targets more than 500 prescription cold, allergy and cough medicines in its latest recall. These drugs are from a variety of suppliers and use untested combinations of cough suppressants and decongestants. The FDA could not get production information from some of these companies since the medications were so old. Other medications were simply marketed and sold without Food and Drug Administration approval. Some of the medicines are marketed for babies and kids; the FDA doesn’t recommend cold medication for everyone younger than 2.

What it costs to create a prescription medicine

It can cost lots of money to manufacture prescription medicine. Sometimes different nations are used to create the compound and turn it into pills. The compound is just shipped off. Sometimes chemical information is just handed to a manufacturing plant to do all the work. These can take place in different countries too. The cost of a medicine is cut from 20 to 50 percent when manufacturing in India or China. Especially for generic medications, this helps cut the cost to consumers by even more. A failure rate between 4 and 10 percent is clear in these markets though. In the U.S., the market for medications is at $287 billion. That means billions are spent on defective medicines each year.

Government spending includes senior citizen medication

As of Jan. 1 this year, the federal government is starting up programs that help cover even more of senior citizen’s prescription drug cost. The cost of prescription medications costs the government millions and drug businesses millions to get out there. The investment might not be worth it for many. One study released in 1999, however, found that $1 spent on prescription medications saves about $4 in hospital care, on average. There are certainly a lot of troubles with prescription medications. As long as they’re working and risk-free though, it might be a really good investment to make.

Information from

National Center for Policy Analysis

ncpa.org/pub/st230

CNN

articles.cnn.com/2009-03-19/health/ep.prescription.drug.costs_1_prescription-drugs-elderly-patients-coumadin?_s=PM:HEALTH

Heartland

heartland.org/healthpolicy-news.org/article/29447/Study_Drugs_from_Emerging_Markets_Have_High_Failure_Rates.html

FDA

fda.gov/Drugs/GuidanceComplianceRegulatoryInformation/EnforcementActivitiesbyFDA/SelectedEnforcementActionsonUnapprovedDrugs/ucm245106.htm

New minority to qualify for new scholarship

”Non-Hispanic white” individuals, according to the Census, will soon be the minority in the United States. A group of students in TX calling itself the Former Majority Association for Equality is responding to this by offering scholarships. Candidates who have a 3.0 GPA and are at least one-quarter Caucasian can apply for the scholarship. Article resource – Texas white men scholarship offers $500 to Caucasian students by MoneyBlogNewz.

Former Majority Association for Equality starts

The Former Majority Association was started by TX State University student Colby Bohannon. After serving in Iraq, Bohannon decided to go to school. He needed a little bit of additional money to do this. He started the association because he noticed most scholarships were offered to any person that wasn't Caucasian or was a woman.

$500 TX white males scholarship

The small scholarships offered by the FMAE can be claimed by anybody with 25 percent non-Hispanic white heritage with a 3.0 grade point average. A statement was made on the FMAE website. It states the group “has no political aspirations, financial agenda or radical social philosophies whatsoever.” The group wanted to make the distribution of scholarships more even. This integrated getting white men scholarships. Schools accept the $500 white men scholarship easily. It is just like any other.

America changing

The FMAE scholarship, like other “white men scholarships” offered before it, seeks to highlight the belief that white males are not truly a majority in the United States any longer. About 48.6 percent of U.S. births are non-white while women are about 55 percent of the population, the recent Census stated. Some think that scholarships based on race or gender need to just disappear due to this while others suggest that current statistics should be matched with them.

Articles cited

Census

census.gov/prod/2003pubs/p20-544.pdf

Wall Street Journal

online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704312104575298512006681060.html

Reuters

reuters.com/article/2011/02/26/us-texas-scholarships-idUSTRE71P25M20110226

FMAFE

fmafe.org/About_F.M.A.html

Sheen claims he has Adonis DNA

Charlie Sheen’s "Today Show," "Good Morning America" and "Alex Jones Show" shows have confirmed that the former "Two and a Half Men" star’s self image stays at god-like amounts, in spite of a media culture that seems (mostly) less than amazed, reports the National Post. Within other bizarre claims, Sheen recently implied that he has “tiger blood and Adonis DNA.”

Saying help on ‘Good Morning America’ to Charlie Sheen

Many people would be devastated by narcotic abuse, unemployment, automobiles falling into canyons, brawls, prostitutes and 9-11 conspiracies going around. Sheen can manage it really well though considering he thinks he is an Adonis. He said he was on a narcotic on "Good Morning America":

"It’s called Charlie Sheen. It’s not available. If you try it once, you will die. Your face will melt off and your children will weep over your exploded body."

Sheen interviewed by ‘Alex Jones’

In accordance with Sheen, he has Adonis DNA meaning, until his power naps "like an F-18," he can handle anything. This is one thing he told Alex Jones on the radio show. In accordance with CBS, "Two and a Half Men" is stuck in deep sleep because on “The Jones Show” Charlie Sheen chucked what some consider an anti-Semitic remark at Chuck Lorre, the creator, writer and executive producer of the show. The production crew of "Two and a Half Men" hav lost their jobs due to Sheen's carelessness. He says that he cares about them.

The rock, the drugs, the poetry

Sheen, the male who told Alex Jones he is a "rock star from Mars," has no use for AA and narcotic rehab, in accordance with the NY Times. He told "Today" that it was simply a matter of "unlearning 22 years of fiction," which flies in the face of conventional wisdom espoused by addictive medicine specialists like Dr. Drew Pinsky, who has said on numerous occasions that Sheen is in severe denial.

Sheen isn't really failing narcotic tests, he told the "today Show." It’s really just the "poetry at his fingertips," he claims. On relapsing, he said:

"I just don't do it. (That’s) written for normal people who don't have tiger blood and Adonis DNA."

Articles cited

National Post

arts.nationalpost.com/2011/02/28/the-best-quotes-from-charlie-sheens-today-show-abc-appearances/

New York Times

mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/28/charlie-sheen-says-hell-sue-cbs/

Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adonis

Charlie Sheen on ‘The Alex Jones Show’ for the conspiracy-minded

youtube.com/watch?v=QGdshc0AtOE

New Small Business Administration lending program to begin February 28 with large limitations

The SBA has released the rules for a New financing program. The program is intended to offer help to companies facing foreclosure of their buildings. The limitations on the loans, however, are cutting out most companies that could benefit.

Financing program for SBA is New

This year, in Jan, businesses have been waiting for lending program rules. This can only come from the Small business administration. The rules have been something the SBA has worked on since 2010 when the program passed in Congress. On Thursday, Feb. 24, the rules were officially announced. Underwater mortgages could be covered by the loans that businesses with mortgages can get. These will be due in the next 24 months. However, the owner of the business could be required to put 10 percent of the loan amount on the line in money or equity of another property.

Concerns about limitations of SBA program

The Small Business Administration lending program is intended to help businesses on the brink of foreclosure. It wouldn't really work though with all the rules set up that might end up cutting lots of companies out. Any businesses that do not have the down payment cash accessible, that cannot pay the extra 1 percent fee or that already have short-term Small Business Administration mortgage loans are not allowed to get the loans. Probably the most help can be going to companies that are close to shutting down however may still work with the rules, the SBA states.

Getting a small company loan started

Keeping smaller businesses open is a very hard thing to do. This is because it’s hard to get a payday advance to the companies as they’re typically too small. Businesses aren't all going to work out either. Sometimes they are just bad and fail miserably. Sorting out which companies in Irving, TX or Anywhere, USA, have a chance of succeeding is the first challenge. Ensuring the government doesn’t loan $15 billion to businesses that can’t repay it is also tough. Hopefully, businesses that need help and will work can get the help with the SBA program.

Citations

LA Times

articles.latimes.com/2011/feb/18/business/la-fi-sba-loans-20110218