Free Republic

New research from Sarah Arnett examines states’ abilities to meet their financial obligations in the face of state budget challenges that have far outlasted the Great Recession. Fiscal simulations by the Government Accountability Office suggest that despite recent gains in tax revenues and pension assets, the long-term outlook for states’ fiscal condition is negative (GAO 2013). These simulations predict that states will have yearly difficulties balancing revenues and expenditures due, in part, to rising health care costs and the cost of funding state and local pensions. Arnett uses four different indices to analyze state solvency using each state’s fiscal year...

Just tried to go have a look at my retirements account at Fidelity. It's probably nothing, but their system is down. Not sure how long it has been, or why, or how long it might be, but with EBT cards going down, ObamaCare sites going down, talk of "grid down" drills, etc, I wonder if others are finding such things happening. Hopefully just an isolated glitch - not that my retirement accounts will be of any value to me in a little while anyway, but I think it best to know ASAP when the web or the power or such...

Vedomosti reports that Sergey Glaziev, the economic mastermind behind the Eurasian Union, sent an official report to Kremlin, stating the necessity of a radical revamp of Russia’s economic policy in the wake of the second wave of global economic crisis. “Unknown sources” have provided the media with the contents of this highly controversial document, igniting a fierce debate in the press and blogosphere. Glaziev’s report features apocalyptic predictions in regard to the state of the world economy but the most interesting part of the text refers to the so-called “currency wars”. Basically, one of the most influential advisors of the...

The finances of Christians who tithe are generally healthier than the finances of those who do not, according to a new report that takes a close look at the financial, spiritual and giving practices of people who give 10 percent or more of their income away to churches and charities each year. Researchers compared tithers to non-tithers using nine financial health indicators, and found that tithers were better off in every category. Among tithers, for example, 80 percent have no unpaid credit card bills, 74 percent don't owe anything on their cars, 48 percent own their home and 28 percent...

Dear Dave, Can you please define “necessities” in today’s world while trying to get out of debt and live on a budget? Matthew Dear Matthew, Whether you’re talking about the world today or 50 years ago, necessities haven’t changed. Necessities are still food, shelter, clothing, transportation and utilities. We’re talking about needs versus wants. The problem is that many people were never taught that there’s a difference between the two—a big difference. Most people have enough food to eat and a decent place to live. Those are necessities. I’m not talking about eating out or having a big, fancy house....

Dear Dave, I’m a stay-at-home mom now, and my husband brings home $2,600 a month. We’re trying to get out of debt, but we need more money coming in. I want to go back to work, but emotionally part of me feels like I should stay home with our 2-year-old daughter. What do you think? Kayla Dear Kayla, I understand the feelings involved, especially if you’ve spent all of your time home with your child. But don’t make the mistake of blaming the debt if you simply want to go back to work. You’re not a bad person if you...

Dear Dave, Is there ever a time you should dip into emergency fund savings in order to pay off your home early? Eric Dear Eric, The only time I would advise this is when your emergency fund is too big, and you have a very small amount left to pay on the house. Keep in mind that your emergency fund should be three to six months of expenses, not three to six months of income. Besides, paying off the house doesn’t fall into the category of an emergency. The fact that you have to pay for your house doesn’t catch...

TUCSON, AZ (Tucson News Now) - Hitting terrorist groups where it hurts now means more than using guns and missiles. Shurat HaDin-Israel Law Center uses U.S. anti-terror law to go after those who aid terrorist groups, knowingly or unknowingly. The Israel Law Center's motto is "Bankrupting terrorism--one lawsuit at a time." You might wonder how you sue a terror group. It's not easy. What the Israel Law Center finds more effective is to sue banks, insurance companies, corporations, even countries that knowingly or unknowingly work with terror groups. For instance, it could be a bank that holds an account that's...

The Obama administration is drawing up plans to give all U.S. spy agencies full access to a massive database that contains financial data on American citizens and others who bank in the country, according to a Treasury Department document seen by Reuters...

Dear Dave, My daughter died. She was 32 years old and single, and she had lived with me for the last few years because she was recently disabled. I did not support her financially, and when she died she had no assets and no will. Is it my responsibility to pay the student loans and medical bills she left behind?JimDear Jim,I’m so sorry you’re experiencing this kind of grief. Losing a child is a heartbreaking experience, no matter their age.The short answer is this: If you didn’t sign for it, you’re not liable. If a friend were to move in...

I received a letter from The Social Security administration; they had made some kind of mistake in calculating the benefits due to my daughter and I. They had corrected the mistake, and had deposited over $1,800 into my checking account.

Marc Faber, publisher of the Gloom Boom & Doom Report, is well known for his ultra-bearish commentary. But he's not without reason. In a new presentation given in Hong Kong to the London Bullion Market Association, Faber offers a thick stack of 44 charts that makes him very bearish on the global economy (via ZeroHedge). They include overviews of the emerging and evolving trends on debt, trade, stocks and commodities. Faber points to the explosion of public and private debt and how they have been far outpacing GDP growth for the last 50 years. In this backdrop, the wealth gap...

Despite a whittling away of consumer debt that has been underway since the recession, many Americans are still entering the holiday season unprepared to cope with the expenses that crop up around this time of year. Think Finance, a provider of payday loans and other financial services for consumers with limited or no access to banking services, recently surveyed 1,000 Americans across all income levels who use various forms of alternative financial services — including payday loans, prepaid debit cards and direct deposit advances. Although many of these consumers are on better financial footing and optimistic about their economic future...

Think of your personal finances for a moment. Are you better off than you were four years ago? Yes No About the same Not sure

Various Financial Sector Reports Select a sector, and select which type of financial efficiency rating group to display Sorting: Click on a column header to sort. Hold shift key + click to sort by multiple columns if the first clicked column has multiple rows of identical data. Ministry Noteworthy Efficiency Rating Efficiency Rank Sector Breath of Life, Inc. #1 (100%) Educational Media Children's Medical Ministries (CMM) #2 (99.7%) Relief and Development World Help #3 (99.4%) Foreign Missions Christian Blind Mission /CBM #4 (99.1%) Relief and Development Citihope International #5 (98.8%) Relief and Development Persecution Project Foundation #6 (98.5%) Advocacy Kingsway...

Dear Dave, I’m an accountant, and my company is experiencing layoffs. I just learned that I’ll be losing my job in four weeks. I’ll receive a severance check, but I have no other savings set aside. Should I use some of the severance to pay off debt, or hold on to that money as long as I can? Frank Dear Frank, I’d hang on to that money and pile up as much other cash as I possibly could. Right now, the most important worries are food, lights, water and shelter. Debt is not on the list. We need to take...

Why QE3 Won’t Jumpstart The Economy And What Would Economics / Quantitative EasingSep 22, 2012 - 12:56 PM By: Ellen Brown The economy could use a good dose of “aggregate demand”—new spending money in the pockets of consumers—but QE3 won’t do it. Neither will it trigger the dreaded hyperinflation. In fact, it won’t do much at all. There are better alternatives. The Fed’s announcement on September 13, 2012, that it was embarking on a third round of quantitative easing has brought the “sound money” crew out in force, pumping out articles with frighting titles such as “QE3 Will Unleash’ Economic...

Dear Dave, One of my relatives just discovered she has cancer. She’s a single mom with two young kids, and I’m not sure if she’s prepared to face something like this. What are the best steps she can take financially at this point?ShannonDear Shannon,I’m really sorry to hear about this. I know cancer is a scary thing to hear, but please remember to pray and be there for her all you can. God willing, things can still turn out okay.When people ask if a person has their affairs in order, they’re usually asking a couple of different questions. Are you...

NATIONAL TAXES, SPENDING AND DEBT In June 2009 the U.S. national debt was over 11 million dollars, and growing at $3.82 billion per day. each citizen's share of this debt was $37,231.31. http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock/ As of Aug. 08 2011, the national debt was at $14.5 trillion, but with $211 trillion in unfunded liabilities. http://www.christianpost.com/news/whats-the-real-national-debt-211000000000000-53525/ As of Sept 6. 2012, the national debt was over $16 trillion, The estimated population of the United States is 313,455,377, so each citizen's share of this debt is $51,091.16. The National Debt has continued to increase an average of $3.88 billion per day since September...

In 2006, the city of Flint operated at a $5.9 million surplus. Four years later, the city was $48.1 million in the red. Examining how Flint ended up with an emergency manager in 2011 reveals a laundry list of issues that hit municipal finances at the same time. “It’s hard to tie it to one thing,” said Michael Brown, the city’s current emergency manager. At a time when the city’s revenue was evaporating, its expenses were rapidly escalating. For example, the city’s revenue from property tax, income tax and state-shared revenue dropped a combined $19.2 million from 2006 to 2011....