Free Republic

There's no easy way to say this: You're eating too much chocolate, all of you. And it's getting so out of hand that the world could be headed towards a potentially disastrous scenario if it doesn't stop. Those are, roughly speaking, the words of two huge chocolate makers, Mars, Inc. and Barry Callebaut. And there's some data to back them up. Chocolate deficits, whereby farmers produce less cocoa than the world eats, are becoming the norm. Already, we are in the midst of what could be the longest streak of consecutive chocolate deficits in more than 50 years. It also...

Obama says Republicans holding recovery hostage By Caren Bohan and Alister Bull WASHINGTON | Fri Sep 10, 2010 5:07pm EDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama accused Republicans on Friday of holding the middle class hostage and defended his efforts to stimulate the sluggish economy as he tries to reverse grim election prospects for his fellow Democrats in November. With opinion polls showing more Americans questioning his economic leadership, Obama used a rare news conference at the White House to hammer home a campaign-style message painting Republicans as obstructionist and the party for the rich. Obama has been on the...

Call it the worst worst-case scenario. The interest rate on your adjustable-rate mortgage jumps just as the housing market enters a prolonged slump. Then something really bad happens: You lose your job. There's a medical emergency. You get divorced. You fall behind on your mortgage payments, and the bank forecloses on your home. Those scenarios are now playing out for growing numbers of homeowners. Nearly 90,000 homes entered foreclosure in June, about a 17 percent increase over a year ago, according to RealtyTrac. Especially hard hit are homeowners in Massachusetts, where foreclosure filings jumped 66 percent in the second quarter...