Could the US lose its AAA credit rating?

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12/12/2009

Could the U.S. really lose its AAA credit rating?

Investors dumped stocks and sought safe-haven assets like the dollar and Treasurys following signs that the global economy is still struggling. Moody's Investors Services said the public finances in both the United States and Britain are deteriorating considerably, and the countries should take action soon to get their finances in order if they want to avoid threats to their top triple-A credit ratings.
 
'Don't tax you, don't tax me, tax that fellow behind the tree." Those famous words were spoken more than 30 years ago by the late Louisiana Sen. Russel B. Long when Congress was looking for ways to raise revenue. Some members of Congress believe they've found the fellow behind the tree: the Wall Street "speculator."
 
For policymakers in the rich world, Japan’s plight is the stuff of nightmares. The damage from the early 1990s property and banking bust lingered for years, devastating the government’s finances and, eventually, enveloping the economy in deflation. The effects are still visible. Small wonder, then, that a desire to avoid Japan’s experience has shaped other governments’ responses to the financial crash.
 
In Somalia's main pirate lair of Haradheere, the sea gangs have set up a cooperative to fund their hijackings offshore, a sort of stock exchange meets criminal syndicate. "The shares are open to all and everybody can take part, whether personally at sea or on land by providing cash, weapons or useful materials ... we've made piracy a community activity."
 
Are bad Christmas gifts ruining the economy? We've all been there, you're unwrapping your presents on a perfect Christmas morning and there it is: the dreaded reindeer sweater from your Great Aunt Mildred. Joel Waldfogel, author of Scroogenomics, thinks bad gift giving is the scourge of the holiday season and is cheating consumers out of $25 billion worth of satisfaction.

 

 

 
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