Main Street

The Change We Need

Robert L. Borosage | Posted 12.03.2008 | Business

Read More: Economic Recovery, Stimulus Plan, George Bush, Education, Economy, Economic Crisis, Tax Cuts, Obama Administration, Main Street, Pell Grants, Barack Obama, Business News
Robert L. Borosage

A big time recovery plan for Main Street focused on the investments we need is one key element of the change we need. And one that President Obama surely supports.

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Water: A Business Philosophy for Success in Hard Times

Peter Schwartz | Posted 12.02.2008 | Business

Read More: Cash Flow, Main Street, Small Business, Liquidity, Wall Street, Water, Recession, Business News
Peter Schwartz

Wall Street's troubles have not only filtered down to Main Street. They have crushed Main Street. With cash flow and credit lines drier than...

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Obama Needs an FDR-Style Public Works Program

Mike Papantonio | Posted 11.19.2008 | Business

Read More: Auto Industry, Henry Paulson, Economic Policy, Barack Obama, Bailout, Mike Papantonio, Economy, Regulation, Recession, Main Street, Business News
Mike Papantonio

There is a fraternity-like mentality that exists among corporate CEOs. There is an illusory standard of what "moral" or "legitimate" actually means in decision making for that elite crowd.

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Economist Shiller: Let's Pay Wall Street to Teach Main Street How to Lose Money like Pros

Charles H. Green | Posted 11.11.2008 | Business

Read More: Main Street, U.S. Economy, Wall Street Crisis, Wall Street, Money, Economy, Business News
Charles H. Green

For a Yale economist to play "blame the consumer" is incredible enough, but to use that argument ostensibly in support of "bridging the wealth gap" is disingenuous at the least.

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Thank You, Wal-Mart, For A Cheap Christmas

Al Norman | Posted 11.09.2008 | Business

Read More: Betty Crocker Potatoes, Barbie Princess, Main Street, Cheap Xmas, Gm, Wal-Mart, Grinch, Business News
Al Norman

Wal-Mart's PR team thought that helping "Main Street" sounded good -- even though businesses on Main Street will tell you that Wal-Mart is the Grinch who stole their Christmas.

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Why Do We Hate the Poor?

Alden Loury | Posted 11.04.2008 | Chicago

Read More: John McCain, Poverty, Middle Class, Sarah Palin, Main Street, Joe Biden, 2008 Election, Barack Obama, Poverty Debate, Joe the Plumber, Inequality, Chicago News
Alden Loury

John McCain fell in love with Joe the Plumber and proclaimed that we were all like Joe. But no one has stood up so prominently for the millions of Americans who would gladly switch places with Joe.

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The Old Order Falls

Max Fraad Wolff | Posted 10.27.2008 | Business

Read More: Social Instability, Change, Unemployment, Hope, Economy, Crisis, Wall Street, Main Street, Financial Crisis, Business News
Max Fraad Wolff

Unquestioned faith in the old order produces shock and panic as one pillar after another crumbles and falls. So it is with cursedly interesting times.

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A Very Interesting Bus Ride

Frank A. Weil | Posted 10.22.2008 | Business

Read More: Economy, Bailout, 401k, How This Happened, Presidential Election, Understanding the Financial Crisis, Floyd Norris, Wall Street, Why the Bailout Was Necessary, Main Street, Business News
Frank A. Weil

Let's hope more people will think about today's situation in togetherness terms, not we versus them, because that state of mind cannot solve the problems we all share today.

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McCain-Palin's Phony Love Affair With Main Street

Jack Rothman | Posted 10.21.2008 | Home

Read More: Mccain Middle Class Voters, John McCain, Wall Street Crisis, Palin Main Street, Barack Obama, Sarah Palin, Deregulation, Election 2008, Campaign 2008, Wall Street, Main Street, Republicans, Home News
Jack Rothman

The Republicans have always opposed regulation of business that protects the "little people" against greed-ridden and corrupt practices of insatiable corporate elites.

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Please Stop With The Main Street-Versus-Wall Street Rhetoric

Lionel Beehner | Posted 10.13.2008 | Politics

Read More: Financial Crisis, Wall Street Crisis, Financial Meltdown, Wall Street, Main Street, Politics News
Lionel Beehner

The problem with this turn of phrase, besides dumbing down our discourse or sounding cliché, is that it assumes a good-versus-evil duality to the financial problem at hand.

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Back from the Brink: Report from Inside the World Bank Meeting

Sarah van Gelder | Posted 10.13.2008 | Business

Read More: Paulson, John Cavanagh, George Soros, Green Jobs, Wall Street Crisis, Wall Street, David Korten, World Bank, Main Street, Financial Crisis, Henry Paulson, Bailout, Economy, Business News
Sarah van Gelder

The World Bank and IMF held their annual meeting in Washington, DC, this weekend, and of course the global economic meltdown was on everyone's minds.

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The Banking Scandal: Repeating the Same Mistakes and Expecting Different Results

Reese Schonfeld | Posted 10.08.2008 | Business

Read More: Bailout, Economy, Congress, Regulation, Regulators, Insure Bank Deposits, President, Office of Management and Budget, Main Street, Fdic, Savings and Loan, Jimmy Carter, Omb, Insurance, 250, 000, Assets, Banking Scandal, 700 Billion, Business News
Reese Schonfeld

The President and Congress have finally allowed us to allocate $700 billion to a policy, about whose success they are, at least reasonably, doubtful. They should enact new regulations.

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So... Now What?

Andy Stern | Posted 10.03.2008 | Politics

Read More: $700 Billion Bailout, Wall Street Bailout, Wall Street, Bailout, Economy, Barack Obama, Seiu, Main Street, Obama Administration, Politics News
Andy Stern

Let's face it: the Bailout Bill doesn't get to the heart of what's wrong with our economy. Neither you, nor I, nor many of those who voted for it believe that this bill will solve the pressing issues American families face.

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At the Intersection of Wall Street and Main Street

Brett Ashley McKenzie | Posted 10.02.2008 | Business

Read More: White House, Main Street, Credit Crisis, Senate, Bailout, Wall Street, Economy, Business News
Brett Ashley McKenzie

Few people can afford to treat themselves to an occasional red velvet cupcake or a ham and cheese croissant when a gallon of milk can as much as $4.

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Anger in the Streets

Jim Randel | Posted 10.01.2008 | Business

Read More: Main Street, Hillary Clinton, Wall Street Crisis, Bailout, Wall Street, George W. Bush, Business News
Jim Randel

As to the anger toward Wall Street, I certainly understand it. As to anger toward those who are in housing trouble, I have a different point of view.

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Republican "Workout" Is A Cop Out

Ron Grande | Posted 09.30.2008 | Home

Read More: Washington, Main Street, House Republicans, Ideology, Ideological, Workout, Paulson, Wall Street Crisis, Credit, Bailout, Wall Street, Securities, Crisis, Financial, Republicans, Free Market, Political, Home News
Ron Grande

The House Republicans will be to blame for any calamities that may yet be in store for our economy. Their objection to the modified Paulson Plan was not ideological, it was political.

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A Vote Of No Confidence

Marc Rickenbach | Posted 09.30.2008 | Home

Read More: Congressional Elections, Main Street, House Republicans Bailout, John McCain 2008, Bailout, Wall Street, House Republicans, Home News
Marc Rickenbach

For Republican Congress people, voting on the bailout was a simple calculation: "The safer the seat, the closer to yes," a departure from McCain's "Country First" mantra and an embrace of the usual "Campaign First."

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Wall Street May Be Sick, But We're Dying

Kris DiGiovanni | Posted 09.30.2008 | Home

Read More: Wall Street vs Main Street, Main Street, Consumer Spending, Bailout, Wall Street, Economy, Home News
Kris DiGiovanni

I'm not an economist, so I'm having a hard time determining what is actually true, and what is just partisan propaganda. But what I don't hear in all this rhetoric is how either of these scenarios directly affects me -- the average American.

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How To Fix The Mortgage Mess 101

Peter Dreier | Posted 09.30.2008 | Home

Read More: American Banking Association, Industry Lobbying, Bankruptcy, National Home Builders Association, Main Street, Homeowners, Bankruptcy Relief, Bush, Acorn, Wall Street, Center for Responsible Lending, Bail Out, Foreclosure, Consumers, Consumer Union, Consumer Protection, Mortgage, Home News
Peter Dreier

Helping homeowners directly is a lot cheaper, more direct, and more cost-effective than handing banks $700 billion. It focuses on consumers, not lenders. It stimulates demand rather than rewarding greed.

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U.S. is Great, But Its Government System Stinks

Diane Francis | Posted 09.29.2008 | Politics

Read More: Taxes, Wall Street Crisis, Debt Crisis, Wall Street, Washington, Parliamentary Systems, Financial Crisis, Main Street, Canada, Campaign Finance Reform, Economy, Politics News
Diane Francis

The economic crisis will pass but America's biggest crisis is the fact that Washington is an 18th Century American political system operating in the 21st.

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Bailout Confuson -- All Over The Web (Salient Links)

Stephen C. Rose | Posted 09.29.2008 | Politics

Read More: John McCain, Hank Paulson, Speculation, Economy, Web, Media, Links, Main Street, Blogs, News Sites, Bailout, Barack Obama, Financial Crisis, Huffington Post, Wall Street, Hank Paulson Plan, Politics News
Stephen C. Rose

By Stephen C. Rose Each morning I dutifully post links from sites I value for their news sense or opinion pertinence. Today the general theme is bai...

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Main Street's Agenda: Give Workers the Tools to Lead and Sustain a Recovery

Thomas Kochan | Posted 09.29.2008 | Politics

Read More: Main Street, Economic Recovery, Barack Obama, History Lesson, Workers, Economic Bailout Deal, Bailout Deal, Obama Policy, Politics News

Main Street America is sending a clear message to Washington these days: Don't direct all your help to Wall Street. Give us the tools we need to dig ourselves out of our own economic crisis.

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McCain Stops At Senate En Route To White House

The Washington Post | Posted 09.25.2008 | Politics

Read More: White House, John McCain, Wall Street Crisis, Economy, $700 Billion Bailout, Capital Hill, Bailout, Main Street, Politics News

Sen. John McCain returned to Washington on Thursday after declaring that he has suspended his campaign, but he appeared largely detached from the flur...

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Nancy Pelosi Doesn't Need a Timeout to Fix the Economy

ZP Heller | Posted 09.25.2008 | Politics

Read More: Cenk Uygur, Brave New Foundation, Depression, Meltdown, Nancy Pelosi, Economy, Meet the Bloggers, 2008 Election, Recession, Main Street, Roberto Lovato, Mortgages, Henry Paulson, Barack Obama, Bailout, Robert Greenwald, Matthew Yglesias, Banks, Financial Crisis, Washington George Bush, Wall Street, John McCain, Rick Davis, Phil Gramm, Politics News
ZP Heller

Pelosi has made a difference in negotiating this bailout while still managing to speak directly with the public (imagine that!).

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Give Us a Bailout that Helps Everyone

Gerald McEntee | Posted 09.25.2008 | Business

Read More: Wall Street Bailout, Wall Street Crisis, George W. Bush, Main Street, Mccain, Foreclosure, Henry Paulson Wall Street, Executive Compensation, Business News
Gerald McEntee

Bush and McCain have turned a blind eye to those who are struggling to keep their homes. Back then they were talking about "market correction." Only now are they talking about government intervention.

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