Free Republic

For a rapidly growing share of older Americans, traditional ideas about life in retirement are being upended by a dismal reality: bankruptcy. The signs of potential trouble — vanishing pensions, soaring medical expenses, inadequate savings — have been building for years. Now, new research sheds light on the scope of the problem: The rate of people 65 and older filing for bankruptcy is three times what it was in 1991, the study found, and the same group accounts for a far greater share of all filers. Driving the surge, the study suggests, is a three-decade shift of financial risk from...

Collapse: One of “Democratic” presidential contender Bernie Sanders’ biggest campaign promises in 2016 was “Medicare for all” — the unofficial name of his universal healthcare plan. Like all avowed socialists, big ideas are based not on any realistic ability to pay for them, but rather on the notion that in order to get the big ideas passed, you’ve got to bribe voters with other peoples’ money so they’ll support you. Well, Bernie got jobbed out of the Democratic Party nomination by a corrupt DNC and an equally corrupt rival, Hillary Clinton, and the rest is history. Too bad the Medicare-for-all...

Other People’s Money: The Left-wing establishment press has found a new Democratic darling — avowed socialist Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, whose running for Congress in New York City — but to be honest, the party has been trending that way for years. The evidence can be found in the way blue states have been run — into the ground, financially speaking. Several of them are facing massive debt thanks to mostly over-promised pensions approved by Democrats that have drained state bank accounts and are set to saddle taxpayers living in them with hundreds of billions of dollars in new taxes.

Now 64 and enjoying a second career as host of “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee,” Jerry Seinfeld breathes such rarefied air that guests on his show — who have included Dave Chappelle, Tina Fey and then-President Barack Obama — invariably state some version of this sentiment: “Jerry, why are you here, talking to the likes of me, when you could just be home sitting on your pile of money?” And Seinfeld shrugs and laughs as if to say, “Yes, that is true.” So it’s sobering to read the deep and detailed civil complaint filed by producer-director-writer Christian Charles, who has...

Jerry Storch, a former CEO of bankrupt Toys R Us, is reportedly considering reviving the toy retailer and has been working with investors and bankers to stitch his plan together. Bloomberg reported Monday afternoon that Storch has been working with Credit Suisse Group as a financial advisor, based on the news outlet's conversations with people familiar with the situation. Talks have also included Fairfax Financial Holdings, the investment firm that acquired the Canadian unit of Toys R Us, those sources told Bloomberg. Storch declined CNBC's request for comment. Toys R Us, Credit Suisse and Fairfax didn't immediately respond to CNBC's...

Summary The 2018 "official" U.S. debt figure of $34 trillion is 120% of GDP and projected to double as a percent of GDP within the next 20 years. It's big.If we add "off-the-books" net obligations like Social Security and Medicare, our all-in debt, or so-called "fiscal gap", rises to $110 trillion, or 390% of GDP. It's scary.Raising taxes and reducing benefits won't restore solvency. Something is going to break, and it won't be pretty. We're broke and no one seems to care. We're all aware that this country owes a lot of money, but no one cares because we're leading...

Maryland's stepped-up efforts to collect unpaid tolls are raking in millions of dollars for the state - outpacing the growth in toll revenue itself. State lawmakers and consumer protection groups say the crackdown - which includes referring thousands of delinquent accounts to collections - is punitive and predatory and is pushing Marylanders into debt - and in some cases bankruptcy. Transportation officials say they are only enforcing tolls motorists should be paying anyway - a major shift from years past when the state allowed scofflaws to run up hefty amounts in unpaid tolls and fines without consequences. "Certainly, we want...

Some names on the list of The Weinstein Company creditors are not unexpected, given the film company’s business dealings over the years: Quentin Tarantino, Kevin Smith, Dame Judi Dench. But some of the thousands of names on the 394-page list of people owed money by the bankrupt company jump off the page, among them David Bowie, Michael Bay, Malia Obama, Boris Becker, Ryan Coogler, Daniel Radcliffe, Robert De Niro and Darlene Love. Other creditors are less boldfaced but still eye-catching, including the film and television academies, the New York Fire Department and the Los Angeles Police Department. Another mentioned is...

(Reuters) - U.S. weapons manufacturer Remington Outdoor Co Inc FREDM.UL said on Thursday it had emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy with less debt and more stable financing that may help it ride out a slowing market for firearms. **SNIP** Under the reorganization plan, inked two days before the Feb. 14 Parkland shooting, creditors including JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) and Franklin Advisors will take ownership stakes in the company in exchange for forgiving more than $775 million of debt. Remington also received a $193 million new lending package funded by seven banks, including Bank of America Corp (BAC.N).

Arizona has increased the bankruptcy exemption for firearms to two thousand dollars. Previously, only one gun was allowed as part of a basket of items that were limited to a total of one thousand dollars. From  12news.com: But people filing for bankruptcy also have a choice to make. Under current Arizona law, they can keep only one shotgun, one rifle or one pistol. The Republican-controlled Legislature wants to change that. The Senate is one step away from passing a bill allowing bankruptcy filers to keep up to $2,000 worth of weapons - any kind of weapon. The exemption expands...

Storied guitar maker Gibson Brands Inc. filed for bankruptcy protection Tuesday as the company has struggled with its debt load after a series of acquisitions. The company, which filed for chapter 11 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware, said it will continue to operate during the proceedings as it focuses on reorganizing around its core businesses. Gibson plans to wind down its Gibson’s Innovations business, which is largely outside of the U.S. The Nashville-based maker of Gibson Les Paul guitars has been struggling with debt it took on to finance acquisitions of home-entertainment and audio-equipment makers years ago. Among businesses...

Harvey. Illinois is in the midst of a financial crisis that represents the tip of the iceberg ... The city of 25,000 in the far northwest suburbs of Chicago is suffering from high unemployment (22%). An astonishing 32% of the population lives below the poverty level. This is a deadly mixture that has caused catastrophic shortfalls in revenue, leading to a crisis in funding pensions for the city's retired workers. Since state law prohibits municipal bankruptcy, Harvey has been forced into a situation Illinois has never seen. In February, the state began to garnish Harvey's revenue to fund its pension...

Elizabeth Zemba of Mt. Pleasant, a daily Pennsylvania Turnpike traveler, turned to art and creativity to express frustration with the highway's ever-rising tolls. She created an Internet meme. A photo of a turnpike tollbooth is overlaid with the logo: "Pennsylvania Turnpike re-inventing highway robbery since 2009." For many, annual turnpike toll increases simply have become too much to bear. Two weeks ago, a coalition of truckers and motorists advocates filed a class action suit against the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission, PennDOT and Gov. Tom Wolf, seeking to recoup "excessive fees" that went to underwrite projects other than the operation of the...

Just a few days ago, shareholders of Tesla approved an almost comical pay package for their cult leader CEO Elon Musk that could potentially put $50 BILLION in his pocket over the next decade. Let’s put this figure in perspective: at $5 billion per year, Musk would make more than every single CEO in the S&P 500. COMBINED. In other words, if you add up the salaries of all the CEOs of the 500 largest companies in America, it would still be less than the $5 billion per year that Mr. Musk stands to earn. That’s pretty astounding given that...

If you're a parent, you've had at least one passing discussion on the closure of Toys R Us. The mega-giant toy chain that ruled the childhoods of many of today's parents is shuttering nearly 200 stores this month. While bankruptcy is the official reason, it isn't the only or perhaps even the biggest reason why Geoffrey the Giraffe is being sent to the big zoo in the sky: Debt. Competition from online retailers like Amazon, as well as cheaper big-box stores like Wal-Mart and Target. Yes, bad customer service, too. All of these are the most commonly cited reasons...

fter months of delays, discussions and last-minute attempts to avoid an unfortunate financial necessity, the inevitable has finally happened to one of America’s biggest entertainment companies: iHeartRadio has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The radio titan officially filed for protection late on Wednesday, ending speculation that has been swirling for months. The company has been suffering due to more than $20 billion in debt. That load, which has been crippling the entertainment giant for a decade now, is a result of a 2008 leveraged buyout that also saw the company rebrand into the conglomerate the world knows now. iHeart announced...

The chain — whose history traces back to a post-World War II baby furniture store — has spent many decades as the country's largest dedicated toy emporium. Today's parents are the millennial generation who grew up with the Internet and approach purchasing decisions and time they spend with children differently from baby boomers. Generally, foot traffic is falling at brick-and-mortar stores. And children are playing differently than they used to decades ago.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/tv/news/american-chopper-star-paul-teutul-sr-files-for-bankruptcy/ar-BBJLnuK?li=BBmkt5R&ocid=ientp

Remington Outdoor announced plans to file for bankruptcy on Monday, succumbing to a “Trump slump” that whacked sales by 30 percent in its most recent quarter. https://nypost.com/2018/02/12/gunmaker-remington-filing-for-bankruptcy/

U.S. firearm manufacturer, Remington Outdoor Company, said it will file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, but stay in business throughout the process. "Difficult industry conditions make today's agreement prudent," said Jim Geisler, Remington's executive chairman, in a statement released by the company on Monday.