Last time we checked, the unemployment rate fell to 7.7%, the lowest jobless rate since December of 2008. And now, first time jobless claims are also falling.
First-time jobless claims fell by 10,000 to 332,000 in the week ended March 9, the fewest since mid January, according to data today from the Labor Department in Washington. The median forecast of 49 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for an increase to 350,000. The four-week average declined to a five- year low.
Managers are maintaining staffing levels as consumers sustain spending even after a two percentage-point increase in the payroll tax at the start of the year reduced paychecks. Nonetheless, there remains a risk that the recent pickup in employment will be cut short as federal budget cutbacks prompt companies and government agencies to trim payrolls.
“The rate of job destruction is pretty low,” said Scott Brown, chief economist at Raymond James & Associates in St. Petersburg, Florida, who projected the number of claims would drop to 338,000. “The labor market is in continued-recovery mode, though there is still a lot of ground to make up.”
The economy is improving, in spite of all the road blocks Washington politicians are putting up.
Make sure to rinse and drain the beans, if you are using canned beans.
Ingredients: 1 (15 ounce) can of black beans, thoroughly rinsed, and drained (or 1 1/2 cup of freshly cooked black beans) 1 1/2 cups frozen corn, defrosted (or fresh corn, parboiled, drained and cooled) 1/2 cup chopped green onions or shallots 2 fresh jalapeño peppers, seeded and minced, or 1 whole pickled jalapeño pepper, minced (not seeded) 3 fresh plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped 1 avocado, peeled, seeded, and cut into chunks 1/2 cup fresh chopped cilantro 1/4 cup fresh chopped basil 2 Tbsp lime juice (about the amount of juice from one lime) 1 Tbsp olive oil 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of sugar (to taste) Salt and pepper to taste
Directions: 1 In a large bowl, combine the beans, corn, onions, jalapeno chile peppers, tomatoes, avocado, cilantro, basil, lime juice and olive oil. 2 Add sugar and salt and pepper to taste. (The sugar will help balance the acidity from the tomatoes and lime juice.) Chill before serving.
If Mitt Romney had only kept his big mouth shut, then none of this would have happened. He thought he was in his comfort zone among his millionaire friends, and he felt safe. And that was fine. Scott Prouty, the man who taped Romney’s infamous 47% statement, did not intend to make news when he took his camera and began recording the Republican president nominee. No, Scott just wanted to take a picture with Romney after the event was over.
But some things Romney said to his millionaire friends rubbed Scott the wrong way. He wasn’t sure what he wanted to do with the recording. He went back and forth in his mind for a couple of weeks trying to figure out his next move.
Romney’s words however, kept ringing in his head. That 47% claim and Romney’s story about travelling to China to buy a factory that employed what we would call, slave labor. Prouty explained these two factors helped him make the decision to share his video.
“I knew where he came from” Prouty said, when asked about his initial feeling to Romney’s 47% comment. “The day-in day-out struggles of everyday Americans, that guy [Romney] has no idea and I don’t think he’ll ever have an idea.”
Prouty explained how he lost sleep for two weeks before deciding that he needed to release the tape so that “as many people hear [Romney’s] words.” He explained how he contacted James Carter through YouTube and Twitter, because of some research that Carter had done for a David Corn story on Mother Jones.
“I wanted the conversation,” Prouty said, explaining that fame was not his intention. “I wanted Mitt Romney’s words to be the absolute center of attention.” David Corn of Mother Jones put out a partial recording showing the 47% comment and the rest of the media picked up on it.
Romney opened his mouth again. Back in September Romney was forced to respond to a reporter’s question about his 47% claim. Romney called the piece a “snippet” suggesting that if the full content of the tape was heard, then his statement would make more sense to the rest of America. Prouty said that hearing Romney’s lame excuse prompted him to release the rest of the tape in its entirety to Mother Jones. “He asked for the full content” Prouty said, “so we I told David Corn to release the tape.”
Prouty, who is an Independent, said he voted for President Obama in the November election and is “proud to call him my president.” And hearing President Obama referenced the 47% in the second Presidential debate was the pinnacle.
“It was the last line of the debate and I think I was sitting at the edge of my couch waiting. I watched the first debate and there was no mention of it. There was certainly a cheer erupted in the room at the time. I was thrilled that he hit him with it when he did. It was well done.”
Then yet again, Romney opened his mouth earlier this month in an interview with Fox News and continued blaming President Obama. That was the moment that Scott Prouty decided to come forward and tell his story. Asked why come forward now, Prouty answered that Romney still doesn’t get it. And in his response, Prouty offered some advise for the Republican Presidential loser;
I think the guy needs to respect the will of the voters. The election wasn’t even that close. I think he needs to take personal responsibility for his campaign, take personal responsibility for the words he said. And move forward. A good start would be to go back to some of those towns that Bain Capitol shipped jobs, you know, closed down plants. If he went back to Freeport Illinois, maybe start a business. Hire some people. Create a product. Build something in America. Do something other than vulture capitalism. Do something for America other than making another million dollars for himself. I would have a lot of respect for him if he went forward that way.
PALM HARBOR, Fla. — Fifty-three weeks after he relinquished the No. 1 ranking in the world for the first time in more than five years, Tiger Woods dropped to his lowest point since his early days as a professional.
Because of injuries, he had barely played in 2011, was a controversial captain’s pick of Fred Couples for the U.S. Presidents Cup team, competed in just one tournament following a missed cut at the PGA Championship, and produced a mediocre tie for 30th at the Frys.com Open.
Woods was ranked 58th in the world.
It was easily explained away: He had missed so many tournaments, his ranking was bound to slip. He hadn’t won in more than two years, the points from all of those 2009 victories disappearing.
Almost exactly 16 months later, Woods is a strong No. 2 and in position to surpass Rory McIlroy for the top spot, depending on the results of the next several weeks. Woods has won five times in the past year on the PGA Tour, more than anybody in that span, and matched McIlroy’s worldwide victory total during that period.
McIlroy won money titles on both the PGA Tour and European Tour last year and also captured a major championship. Undoubtedly, Woods’ ability to claim a major in 2013 and snap a five-year drought in the game’s biggest tournaments will be closely watched as the rest of this season unfolds.
Fresh from her hip surgery a month ago, Lady Gaga is now moving around in style – with a wheelchair made just for her with leather seating and 14 karats worth of gold.
“It was made all over the United States; my assistant had to run around everywhere,” Ken Borochov, the designer of the stand-out set of wheels told The Daily Beast. Ken admits that he has never met Gaga, but believes that he will “when the time is right.”
Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio Of Buenos Aires, has been elected to be the 266th pope of the Catholic Church, taking the name Pope Francis.
Francisco appeared on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica at Wednesday more than an hour after white smoke was released from the Sistine Chapel chimney at 2:05 EDT (7:05 p.m. CET) to signal that a new pope had been selected. Speaking from the balcony, he gave his first address as pope, the traditional Urbi et Orbi (to the “City and the World”), as crowds waved, cried and cheered for the new leader of the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics.
He prayed for the church, the papacy and for his predecessor, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI.
Francis, a Jesuit priest, was elected to the papacy after two days of conclave meetings with a total of five ballots cast. Voting in the conclave, which began Tuesday afternoon, is confidential and cardinals were sworn to secrecy, but Francis received at least 77 votes, which is the minimum two-thirds required to become pope. There were 115 cardinals eligible to vote in the conclave. All were under 80 before Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI’s retirement, as required by Vatican rules. In 2005, when Benedict was elected, it took two days and four votes to elect him.
And twitter goes wild as white smoke is seen coming from the chimney on the Sistine Chapel. The 1.2 billion Catholics are rejoicing.
There’s a new Catholic pope, signals the white smoke coming from the chimney atop the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican.
The 266th pope of the worldwide Catholic Church will be revealed shortly when he takes to the balcony in front of St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican Square.
Thousands, including seminarians studying in Rome from Michigan and other clerics with Michigan-based roots, have crowded Vatican square.
In February, Pope Benedict XVI stunned Catholics all over the world by announcing plans to resign his post as leader of the Roman Catholic Church. The historic resignation, which officially took place on Feb. 28, made Benedict the first living pope to vacate his office in 600 years.
Update: Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Buenos Aires will be next pope
So, the Emperor Michael Bloomberg….Ahem, Excuse me, Mayor Michael Bloomberg has developed a habit of wanting to ban…well, most anything his arrogance can come up with it. He recently sent New Yorkers in a tizzy when he wanted to crack down on those over-sized 32 oz drinks. Maybe he felt they were in direct competition of his over-sized ego?
One will never know.
He has vehemently expressed that banning these 32 oz drinks will help fight obesity. Oh, really? How exactly does this help fight obesity considering the fact I can just run to my local grocery store and buy a 2 liter in a rebellious state of mind?? Or did he miss the part where many fast food places and restaurants provide free unlimited refills on beverages so that you can drink yourself into a sugary stupor??
If you were truly interested in fighting obesity, how about developing some real plans that could actually work.
For example, our youth is the largest it’s ever been due to the ever increasingly dependence upon video games to fulfill their recreational needs. So, why not try implementing mandatory recess time and Physical Education class in order to help keep our kids active and start a mental trend towards a healthier state of mind and body?
Did you know that too many of New York’s public schools have NO recess or as little as 10 minutes time to run around, play, and burn away some calories? Or that qualified Phys. Ed. teachers are being pulled out of the gym to go teach Social Studies?? Yes, this is really happening in the NY public school system.
Or maybe we can spend some of our taxes on creating more accessible recreational centers that offer plentiful exercise equipment at affordable prices. New York has some, but not quite enough.
Fortunately, someone has finally put Bloomberg at a halt. A New York judge has seen right through this Big Gulp facade and has labeled Bloomberg’s banning desire as arbitrary and capricious and put an end to this silly 32 oz drink ban.
But don’t worry folks, Emperor Bloomberg is going to appeal this judgement and waste more time and money on this frivolous matter instead of dealing with bigger issues that comes with running a major metropolitan city. You know, small things like: crime, economy, hunger and homelessness, and the ever crippling real estate issue.
Bloomberg went so far as to say,
“Anytime you adopt a groundbreaking policy, special interests will sue. That’s America.”
Only in Bloomberg’s world is banning a 32 oz drink a groundbreaking policy.
I just hope the rest of America is paying attention to what’s going on in New York because if the mayor decides to run for Presidency in 2016, we should all be worried at the great lengths and tax payers’ dollars he will spend just to get his way.
For us New Yorkers, we have quickly learned that the tale is indeed true —
This Pepsi video has gone viral. It features Jeff Gordon, a professional NASCAR driver, dressed in a disguise and acting like a regular Joe looking to buy a car. He wanders over to the very powerful Chevy Camero, where he is met by an eager car salesman, looking to make the sale.
And then the fun begins when the salesman suggested a test drive. Not knowing he was dealing with a Superstar driver, laid the foundation for a viral video.
As the enlivening energy of the Spring Season approaches, we as well as our loved ones and….. not so loved ones will be under the subtle influences of the season’s energetic and enlivening urgings. The Wall Streeters will be affected as will the Occupiers.The Tea Partiers and Gun Enthusiasts as well as the Progressives and Freedom Fighters, everyone in the mental and spiritual wilderness of North America will be under the effects of our nearest Star.
The return to strength of the life affirming effects of our Sun will bless the Oligarchs and the Neo-Cons, the Liberals and the Plutocrats, the Fox Newsers and the MSNBC heads alike, including those of us like Yours truly who appreciates the fact that the left wing and the right wing are simply extensions of the same dirty, dirty bird.
All will be touched by the same planetary rhythm shift.
As the Sun of the Solar system shares light, so shall the ‘Son of Man’. The earths elements, minerals, water and atmospheric ingredients are ours, literally. The physical composition of the planet upon which we reside is our material composition. She is our mother. Physically speaking she is the macrocosm to our microcosm.
As our planet makes her way around the Sun, the 23 degree tilt of the earths axis allows us to experience varying degrees of warmth and cold throughout our calendar year which are our seasons. So there is a time to plant, a time to pick what we’ve planted, a time to sew and a time to reap what you have sown…. these are immutable laws easily observable in the cycles of time.
To make it plain, what goes around comes around.
Once again it’s the time of year for the abundance of life that the spring season brings, as our planet awakens from the hibernation of Winter and life bursts from the earth, so does a new energy and life burst forth from us.
The jewel in this for She/He that cares to observe, is this… The new energy found in the new season is youthful, it is impulsive and childlike. If the more experienced and centered life and energy does not stabilize and guide the youthful, inexperienced new life, then the new energy can lead us to trouble.
‘The ‘Son of Man’ reminds us to seek peace in stillness until the new level of energy is incorporated into our conscious awareness. A new season is also dawning in a bigger arena… the the human consciousness. The thirst for justice and equality is beginning to make its presence felt in the hearts and minds of the people of the world. There are signs all over the world that the human psyche has had its fill of the cold, one sided and unjust rule of the uber-wealthy with all her tricks and lies.
A new energy is engulfing the earth. So to the youth who will inevitably lead the way into a new day, let the lessons of Spring time be learned and be incorporated in your battle plans. You are facing an old, experienced, cunning and wise beast. The new energy of a new day MUST be expressed with consciousness. To She/He who has an ear, let them hear.
Mother nature got it covered. Everything your body may ever need, Mother nature has it. And for those who still can’t figure out what to eat, Mother nature makes it simple by making the food resemble the body part it benefits.
Check it out!
1.Carrots for the Eyes:
Slice a carrot in half crosswise and it’s easy to see that the veggie resembles an eye—look closely and you’ll even notice a pattern of radiating lines that mimic the pupil and iris. And the old wives’ tale is true: Munching on carrots will actually promote healthy eyes. “Carrots are filled with vitamins and antioxidants, like beta-carotene, that decrease the chance of macular degeneration, the leading cause of vision loss in older people,” says Sasson Moulavi, MD, medical director of Smart for Life Weight Management Centers in Boca Raton, Florida. Photos by iStockphoto
2. Walnuts for the Brain
The folds and wrinkles of a walnut bring to mind another human organ: the brain. The shape of the nut even approximates the body part, looking like it has left and right hemispheres. And it’s no surprise walnuts are nicknamed “brain food”—according to Lisa Avellino, dietitian for Focus28 Diet, “they have a very high content of omega-3 fatty acids, which help support brain function.” Photos by iStockphoto
3. Avocado for the Uterus
The lightbulb shape of an avocado looks like a uterus, and it supports reproductive health as well. “Avocados are a good source of folic acid,” says Elizabeth Somer, registered dietician and author of Eat Your Way to Happiness. “Folate has been found to reduce the risk for cervical dysplasia, which is a precancerous condition.” Photos by iStockphoto and Shutterstock
4. Clams for the Testicles
Studies have offered evidence that clams, which bear a resemblance to testicles, are actually good for the male sex organs. “Research from the Netherlands has suggested that supplementing your diet with folic acid and zinc—both of which clams are high in––can have a significant effect on improving semen quality in men,” says Dr. Moulavi. Photos by Shutterstock and 3D Clinic
5. Grapefruit for the Breast
The similarity between round citrus fruits––like lemons and grapefruit––and breasts may be more than coincidental. “Grapefruit contains substances called limonoids, which have been shown to inhibit the development of cancer in lab animals and in human breast cells,” says Dr. Moulavi. Photos by iStockphoto and 3D4Medical.com
6. Tomato for the Heart
Slice open a tomato and you’ll notice the red veggie has multiple chambers that resemble the structure of a heart. “Studies have found that because of the lycopene in tomatoes, there is a reduced risk for heart disease in men and women who eat them,” says Somer. And, she adds, if you mix them with a little fat, like olive oil or avocado, it will boost your body’s lycopene absorption nearly tenfold. Photos by iStockphoto and 3D Clinic
7. Red wine for the Blood
Red wine, which is rich in antioxidants and polyphenols, including powerful resveratrol, looks like blood. “When you drink it, you’re really loading up on the healthy stuff that protects against destructive things in the blood, like LDL cholesterol, which can cause heart disease,” says Somer. “There’s also a blood-thinning compound in red wine, so it reduces blood clots, which are associated with stroke and heart disease.” Photos by iStockphoto
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