Sunday, March 15, 2009

SPB News for Sunday.




Plus 15K other school employees; districts absorb $8b in cuts.

Insurance giant AIG agrees to restructure bonuses Insurance giant American International Group has agreed to Obama administration demands to restructure some of its corporate bonuses. However, the troubled company will still pay out millions of dollars in bonuses after the Treasury Department determined that the government did not have the legal authority to block those payments... The group of top executives getting bonuses will receive a total of $9.6 million now, with the average payment around $112,000.

Bailout money is flowing abroad --Study casts doubt on the effectiveness of Bank of England's 'quantitative easing' policy Much of the new money the Bank of England has "printed" to stimulate the UK economy is ending up abroad where it will be of no benefit to UK households and businesses, according to an analysis of the Bank's "quantitative easing" programme. The Bank is in the process of purchasing about £75bn of government securities, or gilts, over a three-month period, the first instalment of a massive £150bn programme. City experts analysing the scheme for The Independent say large quantities of money will simply end up abroad because so many of the gilts are held by foreign investors.

China condemns US warship deployment as tensions mount Chinese Navy officers reacted with annoyance today when it emerged that the United States had sent a destroyer to back up a surveillance vessel in the South China Sea after it was harassed by People’s Liberation Army (PLA) sailors. The decision by President Obama to send an armed escort for US surveillance ships in the area follows the 'aggressive' and co-ordinated manoeuvres of five Chinese boats on Sunday.

Minutiae? In This White House, Call It News WASHINGTON — It's been another busy few days for the Obama administration, which the news media has faithfully cataloged. — The Politico broke the story that the president's aides sang “Happy Birthday” to the assistant press secretary …

Michelle Obama comic book to be released in April — Michelle Obama comic book (Bluewater Productions) (March 13, 2009) — She's not faster than a speeding bullet or more powerful than a locomotive. — Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound? Hardly.

No comments: