US considers tapping oil reserves

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/168789.html

In the United States, high gas prices at the pump have made President Barack Obama's administration consider tapping into the nation's oil reserves to prevent an economic slowdown.

Experts say the administration's move will only be made in cases of extreme emergency such as scarcity and it will not affect every day high fuel prices at the pump, a Press TV correspondent in Washington reported on Tuesday.

Despite the current unrest in oil-rich countries in the Middle East and North Africa, which has somewhat affected the volatility of the oil market, energy analysts believe that the surge in gas prices has already taken place in the United States and prices may climb even higher.

“The problem is we simply consume much more oil than we produce at home. And in terms of gasoline, a huge proportion -- almost seventy percent -- is imported. So, this is the real dilemma we have. We cannot do anything to change this overnight,” says Charles Ebinger, the director of the Energy Security Initiative at the Brookings Institute.

American drivers do not seem to be getting used to the high gas prices, which have affected everything from private to public transit for more than two years now.

“I think it is ridiculous. One week, it is $2.30 or $3.38, and it goes up. I mean it has gone up for at least 40 cents since last week,” a commuter to Washington told the Press TV correspondent.

The United States last took oil from its reserves in 2005 in the weeks following Hurricane Katrina -- one of the deadliest disasters in the nation, which claimed at least 1,836 lives.

Libya -- the most oil-rich African nation among other states like Gabon and Equatorial Guinea -- has, since mid-February, witnessed nationwide popular anti-government protests, demanding the ouster of its decades-long ruler Muammar Gaddafi.

Some Middle Eastern oil-rich Arab countries have also seen their people taking to the streets in protest against their ruling governments.

In Yemen, anti-government demonstrations demanding the ouster of President Ali Abdullah Saleh have taken place since February 20, with at least 25 people dead.

Bahrain has also hosted protests against King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, who has ruled the Persian Gulf nation for about two centuries.

A popular movement has also taken place in Saudi Arabia, demanding democratic and political reforms in the monarchy of King Abdullah bin Abdul-Aziz.

Feds waste billions on overlapping programs

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/168096.html

A new report by the auditing arm of Congress, the General Accountability Office Finds several billion taxpayer dollars are being wasted on redundancy in at least 82 federal programs….

According to the GAO, US taxpayers are being cheated out of billions because Congress allows duplicaton of federal programs….

At this hearing of the House Government Oversight Committee, witnesses told lawmakers they are to blame for voting money to different government agencies That carry out the same programs…

In addition to duplication, on the revenue side The GAO report says 53 billion dollars are being lost to tax subsidies for large oil companies, and that the government fails to collect nearly 300 billion dollars in taxes its owed….

Exchange between Congressma n Kucinich and Tax lady from Taxpayers for Common Sense

Ask Citizens against government Waste, and they'll tell ya that at a time when the US government is reeling from trillions in debt, its taking no steps to consolidate similar programs because of government agency bureaucratic turf battles and congressmen who create programs to please constituents even if it repeats programs

Already in existence…

Taxpayers are not surprised to hear their government wastes money but half a trillion dollars on failing programs the average taxpaying American pays for twice, and uncollected tax revenue lost to the Treasury ?

Members of the committee promised to propose new legislation to consolidate and Cut double paying for essentially the same government programs, but seasoned Capitol Hill observers say they don't expect all the talk to result in actual reductions

In wasteful spending, given they say the history of how the bureaucracy protects its own and somehow manages to grow larger each year.

Oil hits new high over Libya revolution

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/166755.html

The revolution in Libya and concerns over supply disruptions in the country have pushed crude prices to a two-year high of over 100 dollars a barrel.

Brent crude rose above $111 per barrel on Wednesday, while light, sweet crude for April delivery briefly touched $100 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The price hike comes as the Libyan government has lost control to pro-democracy protesters in many cities in the east, where much of its oil producing capacity and port operations lie.

The Libyan crisis is threatening the livelihood of foreign companies with vested interests in the North African nation.

Foreign oil companies, namely ENI of Italy, Spain's Repsol, French energy giant Total, Norwegian Statoil and the oil subsidiary of Germany's chemical group BASF, have halted much of their energy production in Libya and moved personnel out of the country.

Libya has proven oil reserves of 44 billion barrels, the largest in Africa, according to the International Energy Agency and exports most of its crude and gas production to Europe.

But Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi said in a defiant speech on Tuesday that he would not step down and threatened tougher action against protesters.

This has raised concerns that long-lasting supply disruptions or even permanent damage would happen to the OPEC member's oil industry.

Libyan revolt prompts oil price surge

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/166446.html

Recent violent political uprisings in the Middle East and North Africa and concerns over disruptions in the oil supply have pushed world crude prices to their highest levels in two years.

The Libyan revolution and political turmoil in other oil producing countries triggered a surge in Brent crude prices in London, boosting the value of a barrel of oil to above $107 on Tuesday.

Son of Libyan ruler Colonel Muammar Qaddafi, Seif al-Islam, has warned of an ensuing civil war in the country, adding that it may jeopardize Libya's vast oil resources.

Meanwhile, local tribes in the north African country took control of headquarters of an oil company in Ubari city in southwestern Libya on Monday.

Libya exports 1.1 million barrels of oil per day. It was the world's 12th largest oil exporter in 2009 and has proven oil reserves of 44 billion barrels, the largest in Africa, according to the International Energy Agency.

The British Petroleum (BP) has also suspended its exploration programs in the volatile country. Shell, Marathon Oil and other producers have begun relocating employees to safer areas until tensions alleviate in the country.

The Libyan regime has resorted to employing indiscriminate machine gun fire in its brutal crackdown on mass protests as the prospect of its downfall has gained further momentum by intensifying revolt against the four-decade-old rule of Qaddafi.

In response to rising prices, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries is already pumping the most amount of oil since approving production cuts in December 2008

Gallup: US unemployment worsens

Gallup shows US unemployment is rising, not falling

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/165926.html

A Gallup survey indicates that employment rate in the United States is not rising, thus damping hopes that the country's high levels of unemployment will reduce anytime soon.

The influential private organization's survey shows the unemployment rate rose to 10 percent in mid February from 9.8 percent at the end of January, Xinhua news agency reported on Friday.

The rise in the under-employment rate was largely the result of a sharp increase in the number of people working part-time but seeking full-time employment, the study found.

The US unemployment rate stands near last year's level of 19.8 percent.

Dennis Jacobe, chief economist at Gallup, said the surge in under-employment is "troubling," as current conditions in the job market have barely improved compared to how they were this time a year ago.

"This is not much to show for a year in which many macro-economic indicators showed improvement," Jacobe was quoted as saying.

Economists say creating jobs is a key to jumpstarting the crisis-hit US economy.

"The fact [is] that the true unemployment rate in the United States, as [economist] Paul Craig Roberts has pointed out, is actually somewhere around 21 percent; not the 9 percent that has been advertised," former US Senate candidate Mark Dankof told Press TV.

Three years into the economic crisis, most economists still expect a painfully high unemployment rate of about 21% throughout 2011.

World Bank: Food prices near dangerous levels

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/165804.html

The World Bank says the global hike in food prices have reached dangerous levels, pushing some 44 million more people into poverty in just over six months.

"Global food prices are rising to dangerous levels and threaten tens of millions of poor people around the world," AFP quoted World Bank chief Robert Zoellick as saying in a recent statement.

"The price hike is already pushing millions of people into poverty, and putting stress on the most vulnerable, who spend more than half of their income on food," he went on to say.

According to the latest edition of the bank's Food Price Watch, prices rose by 15 percent between October 2010 and January 2011.

According to reports, 100 million people became prone to extreme poverty in the 2008 food crisis. The World Bank defines “extreme poverty” as living on less than $1.25 a day.

The bank's food-price index rose 15 percent between October and January, led by wheat, sugar and edible oil. The level is only three percent below the 2008 peak, when surging costs sparked riots in more than a dozen countries.

Corn has surged 86 percent in the past year, and wheat is up 69 percent after drought and floods damaged crops from Russia to Argentina. The Food and Agriculture Organization's World Food Price Index reached a record high in January for a second consecutive month

Inflation on the rise in America

Prices of US consumer goods undergo a hike.

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/165793.html

The US Labor Department has reported a price hike on all consumer goods in America, outstripping lower inflation rates that had been forecasted by economists.

The January figures show a 0.4-percent increase that has affected prices of everything from vegetables to unleaded fuel, AFP reports.

While gasoline prices have leaped over 13 percent in the past 12 months, grocery prices rose by just over two percent, a trend that has increasingly worried experts.

"Rising oil prices have been driving gasoline higher for some time, and now we are also seeing rising food costs filter through to the consumer," says Nigel Gault, an economist with IHS Global Insight.

"The January... figures point to what I believe is the beginning of a substantial uptrend in core inflation," says Stephen Stanley another expert with Pierpont Securities.

The inflation hits American consumers hard since it comes at a time when their real earnings have declined during the last three months.

US officials, however, have dismissed the rise in prices of common consumer goods as an “aberration.”

US Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke has focused on low "core inflation," which strips out volatile food and energy prices, as a sign that demand remains weak due to persisting high unemployment.

In an effort to stimulate the American economy, the Fed is pumping USD 600 billion into the economy and has kept ultra-low interest rates on hold.

US cities face deepening fiscal problems

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/161010.html


America's cities are in crisis. Never before has there been so little taxpayer money to pay for emergency services. Trash collection , street maintenance, also on the chopping bloc. In one of America's most dangerous cities, Camden New Jersey, 168 police, half the force, just sacked, turning in their equipment and badges because the city is broke.

The financial distress in city governments is being felt from one end of the country to the other, lay -offs of public workers, belt tightening cut to schools, city services slashed to the bone, city mayors asking unions to allow salary reductions for public employees to prevent more pink slips. Against that backdrop, dozens of city mayors meeting here in Washington looking to Obama and the feds to rescue them from financial disaster….

Ask the mayors here and they'll all tell you they're grappling with an unprecedented shortfall in city operating revenue that has them desperately seeking a solution that often includes reducing essential city services….

To try and raise and save money, mayors are pushing their city councils to raise taxes, increase city licensing fees, close libraries, cut childcare, and now laying off police and firemen….

Mayors are scheduled to meet Obama on Friday with their beggars bowl at the ready but many said with a shrug, they don't expect the federal government or Congress to save them.

Fox News: US must take Iraq, Kuwait oil

Fox News talk show host Sean Hannity said the US has every right to take Iraqi and Kuwaiti oil.

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/160892.html


Following a significant hike in oil prices, an angry Fox News host has exclaimed that the United States has every right to take the oil from Iraq and Kuwait.

On his Friday show, the Great American Panel, Sean Hannity, said that Iraq and Kuwait should "pay for their own liberation" by the United States.

"I say why isn't Iraq paying us back with oil, and paying every American family and their soldiers that lost loved ones or have injured soldiers - and why didn't they pay for their own liberation?" Hannity asked.

He added that the United States has every right to go into Kuwait and Iraq and "take all their oil."

Hannity's controversial comments follow a recent hike in global oil prices and a continuing financial crisis in the US.

However, responding to Hannity's remarks, political and military analyst Michael Burns said that the United States "may go bankrupt" even before it leaves oil-rich Iraq and Kuwait.

"We are occupying those countries. We are there for the long term and … we are not going anywhere. But I guarantee that we'll go bankrupt before leaving those countries. That's for sure," Burns told Press TV on Tuesday.

In 1991, the US military drove Iraqi troops out of Kuwait after executed Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein invaded the country and annexed it to Iraq.

Twelve years later, US troops invaded the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, and toppled Saddam to bring what they called "liberation" and "democracy" to the Arab nation.

This is while, since the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, more than 1,300,000 Iraqi civilians are estimated to have been killed and some 4.7 million Iraqis have been displaced.

The devastating war has also left 4,435 US troops dead and more than 31,827 others injured.

No insurance for 129 million Americans

In this file photo, volunteer medical staff, are seen offering free medical services to those without health insurance at a special event in Los Angeles in 2009.

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/160692.html

As many as 129 million Americans under the age of 65 have medical problems while they lack medical insurance, a new study has discovered.

According to the study by the Health and Human Services Department, these people are either rejected by insurance companies or have to pay more for coverage.

This is while their ailments range from cancer to chronic illnesses such as heart disease, asthma and high blood pressure.

The report released on Tuesday, comes just before the House of Representatives plans to begin debating a Republican bill that would repeal US President Barack Obama's healthcare reform law.

In an effort to convince the public of the advantages of the law, the secretary of health and human services said repealing the legislation would leave one-fifth to one-half of non-elderly people unprotected.

Republicans, however, immediately disparaged the analysis as "public relations."

The $940-billion scheme, which aims to overhaul the US health-care system, was signed into law in March, following months of tense debate.

The law which would take effect in 2014 contains insurance protection for people with pre-existing medical conditions.

It also contains a controversial "individual mandate" provision, which makes it economically feasible for insurers to comply with consumer protections in the legislation.

A federal court in the US state of Virginia dealt a heavy blow to the hard-won bill last month, after ruling this key part of the new law as "unconstitutional."

Most experts now believe that the fate of the reform bill will likely be eventually determined by the US Supreme Court.

US homelessness on the rise: Report

A report by the National Alliance to End Homelessness says family homelessness grew by 4 percent from 2008 to 2009.

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/160712.html


The recession continues to take its toll on Americans, making more people homeless across the United States, a recent report by the National Alliance to End Homelessness says.

The report released on Monday indicates that the overall US homeless population grew by 3 percent in 2009 compared to 2008. Family homelessness, meanwhile, rose by 4 percent from 2008 to 2009.

The study names unemployment, foreclosures, lack of income and high housing costs as the reason behind the sharp increase.

The findings also indicate that the US states of California, Florida and Nevada are at the highest risk of increased homelessness in the future.

This comes against the backdrop of a housing crisis that is weighing down on the world's number one economy.

Meanwhile, figures show that poverty is also on the increase in America, specifically in rural areas across the country.

According to a January 2010 report by the Census Bureau, 47.8 million Americans live in poverty -- that is the highest number since 50 years ago.

US debt hits all-time record $14 trillion

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/160352.html


US government debt has ballooned to an all-time record of more than $14 trillion, which is $45,300 for each and every US citizen if divided equally.

The US Congress must now decide whether to lift the debt limit or cut spending, although some political analysts say the real debt level is much higher than the announced figure, a Press TV correspondent reported from Washington.

US President Barack Obama has urged Congress to pass a bill allowing an increase of the debt limit to help protect the US economy.

However, the Republicans say there is too much money being spent on various programs.

After the Republicans won the majority of seats in the House of Representatives in the November election, they announced that one of their major objectives would be to cut spending.

The Democrats want the debt ceiling to be raised because they say the government programs are necessary.

They contend that in the period when the US is coming out of recession, cutting some of these spending initiatives would significantly slow down economic growth.

With the Republicans in control of the House and the Democrats in control of the Senate, political analysts predict some levels of concessions over the issue.

In 2006, when Obama was a senator, Republicans wanted to raise the national debt ceiling.

At that time, Obama argued that it was a sign of “leadership's failure” that the debt ceiling was being raised and was a sign that the US government could not pay its own bills and was dependent on financial assistance from foreign countries to finance former President George W. Bush's reckless fiscal policies.

Most experts say the debt ceiling cannot be raised until Democrats and Republicans reach an agreement on lowering federal deficit spending, reallocating funding for various programs, and making other spending cuts.

California economic recovery unlikely in 2011

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/160065.html


California's economy is the eighth largest in the world, eclipsing even large countries like Russia.

But decades of mismanagement have allowed the state to sink to a budget deficit of 25 billion dollars.

That's the largest deficit in the U.S. and is more than the entire budget of most states. Throughout the economic recession, California has been among the worst performing states.

It's unemployment rate has been consistently higher than the rest of the nation and now has the lowest credit rating in the United States. For California residents, this rapid decline has been difficult to live through. Jim Panetta says it's nearly impossible to get a job in the state.

Panetta says as a resident, it's frustrating for him to see so much attention paid to politics instead of toward the people.

Economists are hopeful that a change in leadership might help
California obtain some recovery.

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger left office this month, after failing to achieve any significant improvement in the economy.
Economists say Schwarzenegger just didn't have the political
experience to get the job done. But residents are doubtful that a new governor will bring new hope to the state.

California's new governor, Jerry Brown, released a new budget proposal this week but economists say it's to soon to say whether it will have any major impact on the state's massive deficit.

'US bank rules undermine UN'

Iran's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Mohammad Khazaei

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/160083.html


Iran's permanent representative to the United Nations says the United States has jeopardized its position as the world body's “host country” by closing over 100 diplomatic bank accounts.

“The blocking of ambassador's [bank] accounts pose an existential threat to the United Nations,” said Mohammad Khazaei Thursday, quoted by IRNA.

“The responsibility lies with the host country to fulfill its duties regarding this problem, otherwise the US government's credibility and suitability as host [to the UN] would more than ever become questionable,” Khazaei added.

The Iranian diplomat made the remark in the wake of a decision by several banks in the US to close the accounts of many diplomatic missions at the UN, causing the ambassadors inconvenience and difficulty in finding new banking services.

As Washington toughens its reign over the banking and financial institutes in the country, JPMorgan Chase & Co., which holds many UN diplomatic accounts, decided to shut them down without any reason.

Khazaei said the problem not only threatens the operation of UN missions but the functioning and existence of the United Nations, because a number of countries could no longer financially contribute to the UN and the world body's peacekeeping missions.

Khazaee added that he had suggested to the world body that the United Nations Federal Credit Union (UNFCU) be authorized to provide banking services to diplomatic missions. He also suggested that the United Nations take its money out of Chase "and place it in a bank that is willing to carry accounts for diplomatic missions.”

Meanwhile, other UN ambassadors also voiced their criticism about the US decision for further monitoring of financial transactions and demanded that the decision be withdrawn.

"Banks are acting on a commercial basis ... so they have to calculate every penny they spend…If you keep asking them to present reports about monitoring and others, then this is one factor they have to take into consideration - and it is a private enterprise," AP quoted Egyptian ambassador to the UN Maged Abdelaziz as saying.

"We can't find yet another bank. We shopped around," Abdelaziz said, adding that banks told his mission "they don't have space."

Crisis looms over NHS as cuts bite

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/160010.html


The UK National Health Service (NHS) has plunged into a crisis after trusts slashed more than 3,000 jobs in the past week as part of the coalition government's crackdown on vital services.

Thousands of jobs at the health sector are to be cut to pave the way for the NHS to make some £20 billion "efficiency savings" by 2015, the daily Morning Star reported.

A report by campaign group Health Emergency has revealed that as many as 3,000 jobs have so far been axed by trusts, and King's College hospital in London is the latest to alert staff to impending redundancies.

The confirmed redundancies include 444 at Calderdale and Huddersfield Trust, 1,000 at United Lincolnshire, 350 at Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh, 705 at the University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay, 350 at Northern Lincolnshire and Goole, and 450 at Coventry and Warwickshire.

Patients Association chief executive Katherine Murphy complained that the "astonishingly brutal" cuts to NHS services go way beyond redundancies.

Meanwhile, the Royal College of Nursing has stressed that cutting NHS jobs will endanger lives as nurses will have less time to care for patients.

"When major London reaching hospitals are talking openly about dire financial prospects and the axing of jobs you know that the NHS is locked into a genuine crisis”, said Health Emergency chairman Geoff Martin.

"Thousands of NHS jobs have already been axed and there is much worse to come”, said Martin.

"This cuts bombshell nails the lie that the NHS has been insulated from the Con-Dem cuts and proves without any doubt that 2011 will be a year of savage attacks on our health-care services", he added.

GMB union national officer for health Sharon Holder accused the government of telling the public one thing and doing another.

"No matter what the government is telling staff about protecting the NHS the reality is that the health service is suffering as a direct result of its so-called 'efficiency savings'," she said.

"Cutting staff will endanger patients and it proves that the NHS is not protected by the government's spending plans after all", added Sharon Holder.

US home foreclosures hit 2.9 million: Report

A total of 1.05 million homes were seized last year

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/159965.html


A recent real estate report reveals that 2.9 million homes went into foreclosure during 2010 in the US, while banks seized over one million homes.

RealtyTrac Real Estate data firm reported that a total of 1.05 million homes were seized during the past year, outnumbering the 2009 record of 980,000 homes.

The statistics also showed that 2.9 million houses went into foreclosure in 2010.

RealtyTrac has predicted that the number of US homes to be foreclosed in 2011 will increase by 20 percent.

In 2010, the three states of Nevada, Arizona and Florida had the highest foreclosure rates with 9 percent, 8 percent, and 5.5 percent respectively.

The three states have joined one another in challenging lenders' loan documentation and management processes.

"Total properties receiving foreclosure filings would have easily exceeded three million in 2010, had it not been for the fourth quarter drop in foreclosure activity -- triggered primarily by the continuing controversy surrounding foreclosure documentation and procedures that prompted many major lenders to temporarily halt some foreclosure proceedings," RealtyTrac chief executive James Saccacio said in a statement.

The chief executive predicted that an estimated 250,000 foreclosures held up in the fourth quarter would restart in early 2011.

Oil prices hike in Asian markets

Prices of Brent crude oil touched its highest level in 27 months due to production shutdowns and increasing global energy demand

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/159928.html


Oil prices have climbed in Asian trade markets for a fourth consecutive day with the Brent crude oil reaching its highest level in 27 months.

The price of New York's light sweet crude for February delivery reached $92.08 per barrel after gaining 22 cents during Wednesday's trading.

Analysts believe that the persisting hike in oil prices is attributed to a sharp decline in the US crude stockpiles.

The US crude stockpiles sank by over two million barrels last week with rising demand for oil amid unusually cold climate across the United States as many states were hit by severe blizzards and heavy snow storms over the past weeks.

Meanwhile, the price of Brent crude oil touched its highest level in 27 months due to production shutdowns and increasing global energy demand.

Brent reached $98.80, its highest level since April 2009, before trimming gains and eventually closing at $98.12, up 51 cents.

The rise came after two Norwegian oil fields were shut down on Tuesday due to a gas leak. However, they reopened soon after trading ended.

Alaskan oil production also continued to be hit by a pipeline leak. US light crude reached $91.86 after witnessing a 75-cent rise.

The leak in Alaska caused the US state's main Trans-Alaska Pipeline to shut down.

However, output through the pipeline was resumed at two thirds of its usual level on Wednesday.

“Brent was now expected to hit $100 a barrel,” said Commerzbank oil analyst Carsten Fritsch, quoted by BBC.

“It seems only a matter of time, if sentiment remains positive and more disruptions on the supply side come in,” he added.

The Trans-Alaska Pipeline is important because it carries almost 12% of US crude output. It is due to become fully operational later this week.

US state considers alternative to dollar

The state of Virginia has outlined plans to provide an alternative to the dollar should the Federal Reserve’s policies lead to a crisis in the currency. (file photo)

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/159905.html


The Commonwealth of Virginia is planning to file a bill under which it would begin minting its own gold and silver coins as an alternative currency to the US dollar.

Virginia's Republican Delegate Bob Marshall, from Prince William County, was to ask the General Assembly to consider the idea on Wednesday when it convenes for its annual legislative session, The Washington Post reported.

It is a companion bill to a proposal Marshall has already filed to establish a study committee to examine alternative currencies to that distributed by the Federal Reserve System "in the event of a major breakdown of the Federal Reserve System."

The currency alternative bill intends to inject competition into the national economy of the US and oblige the federal government to change its monetary policy, which is believed to be leading to hyperinflation, Marshall said.

"Many widely recognized experts predict the inevitable destruction of the Federal Reserve System's currency through hyperinflation in the foreseeable future," the bill says.

"State legislatures have to get a little more creative and savvy to counter the buffoonery that's been plaguing Washington," Marshall noted.

"We want to provide competition and some restraint on the profligates that have been running the Federal Reserve and the people in Congress who don't know the word 'no'," he stated.

Marshall's critique reflects that of the populist, libertarian Tea Party movement of the US, some members of which have called for an end to the Federal Reserve System.

Job openings in US continue to decrease

It's hard enough finding a job in the US right now.

And according to the US Labor Department it just got a bit tougher. Open positions fell for the third time in four months.

The number of available positions fell to 80-thousand--reducing the overall number to 3 and a quarter million job vacancies. It would seem that there are still plenty of spots open, but less than before, which means fewer opportunities for Americans to find work.

Jacob Kirkegaard says the numbers are indicative of an anemic US job market. Consumers in a post-holiday market are exhibiting a record slowdown in spending.

Job openings dropped nearly two and half percent in November from just more than 3 million in the prior month. According to the labor department, that's the most since October 2008. Americans are fearful that the trend could get worse.

According to this week's estimates there were 15 million people unemployed in November. That's nearly 5 people competing for each job opening. To put things in perspective, when the recession began in 2007 there were less than 2 people competing for a job opening.

However, there has been some encouraging news that showed the unemployment rate dipped to 9.4 percent, the lowest since May 2009--still a far cry from a recovery.

Despite glimmers of hope and spin from the White House, the US economy still languishes and hardship continues for millions of Americans who will have to compete harder to fill an open position.

'US economy to decline for ten years'

Harvard University Professor Martin Feldstein

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/159420.html


Several prominent economists have portrayed a grim outlook for the ailing economy in the US, saying the recovery remains a long way off even more than a decade.

Speaking at an annual convention on the US economy, leading thinkers in the economic sphere stated that the dire situation will drag on in 2011 and it would take even ten years for the country to regain its economic prowess, Reuters reported on Sunday.

Experts have taken a less sanguine view towards Federal Reserve's economic plan early in November to inject a 600-billion-dollar stimulus to spur the country's sluggish economic recovery.

As government stimulus measures dry up, the United States might, in the short run, face serious setbacks in terms of economic recovery, while, over the long haul, the country will perforce lose its place to China as the world's largest economy.

The world acclaimed Professor Martin Feldstein from Harvard University painted a bleak picture for the US economy, arguing that growth from government spending will be drying up in 2011.

"There's really not much help coming from fiscal policy in the year ahead," said Feldstein, adding that the existing dire situations of state and local government are widely expected to play havoc with plans to regain growth.

Feldstein, who also served as chief economic advisor under the presidency of Ronald Reagan, further referred to household worries, decline in home values and the ballooning national debt -- now standing at record high of over $14 trillion -- as the primary causes of the slugging growth in the years to come.

"People are worried, so there's a strong reason for precautionary saving," he noted.