economic crisis

Experts say long-term unemployment is dangerous because it can have a snowball effect.

The Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission (FCIC) is acting under a legal mandate to investigate the “causes of the collapse of each major financial institution” that failed or received a government bailout in the panicked days of last fall — and the FCIC intends to act quickly, Chairman Phil Angelides said today.
By the end of October, [...]

The 10 members of the panel named by Congress to investigate the causes of last year’s economic implosion appear to be wrestling with their role in this year’s push for financial industry regulatory reform, judging from their statements at today’s first hearing.
Brooksley Born, who fought unsuccessfully to regulate derivatives during her years at the helm [...]

Lawmakers have a choice: let the foreclosure grind on for perhaps years, at the expense of millions of homeowners, or take the crisis head on.

Earlier this week, I wrote about how the economic crisis had led record-high numbers of Americans to dismiss the threat of global warming.
Now Gallup has a new poll that confirms this trend and, for the first time in 25 years of polling, shows that most Americans would prioritize the economy at the expense of the [...]

Despite the administration’s focus on environmental issues, polls show that fewer Americans are worried about global warming than in recent years. Experts say the struggling economy is responsible.

As we wrote today, there’s a real hope among housing experts that President Barack Obama’s new plan to tackle the foreclosure crisis will be wonderfully successful, but the voluntary nature of the program has left more than a few doubts lingering.
And here’s another reason to worry: The component of the plan that expands the refinancing [...]

Not even an economic crisis can stop Philadelphia’s Mummers from holding their annual New Year’s parade today, Bloomberg reports.
The parade, which began in 1901 and has been held every year since then, was nearly canceled this time around because the city cut its funding due to a $1 billion budget shortfall. Private donors came up [...]

We were talking Monday about the unexpected effects of the foreclosure crisis, like skateboarders in California taking advantage of empty swimming pools behind vacant homes to practice their craft. Here’s another: Gambling is falling in popularity as more people choose instead to pay their bills, Bloomberg reports. That means tough times for Atlantic City, where [...]

If President-elect Barack Obama wants to win support for a package to help out struggling homeowners, he will have to help the public understand that we’re all affected by the mortgage crisis.