Middle Class Dismissed

‘Checkout Fees’ Take Effect, Allowing Retailers To Add 4-Percent Surcharge

"Retailers in 40 U.S. states can now charge up to 4 percent extra when consumers pay for goods and services with a credit card. These so-called 'checkout fees' went into effect Jan. 27, and do not apply to debit card payments. The fees are illegal in California, New York, Texas and seven other states. In 2005, a group of merchants claimed that MasterCard, Visa, and nine other companies including JP Morgan Chase & Co conspired to fix the fees that stores pay to accept credit card purchases. As part of the settlement, the merchants are allowed to charge customers a fee equal to the cost of accepting cards, typically 1.5 percent to 3 percent of the purchase price." Continue reading →

Continue Reading‘Checkout Fees’ Take Effect, Allowing Retailers To Add 4-Percent Surcharge

Morningland Dairy raided; another family business destroyed

"Morningland Dairy, a family business that has been in operation for over 30 years without a single complaint or report of any illness has ceased. The over two year battle they’ve had with the Missouri Milk Board ended with a raid and confiscation of over 250 thousand dollars of inventory seized by the state. As a result of the legal stipulations put on Morningland Dairy which are impossible to comply with they will no longer be able to produce their product." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMorningland Dairy raided; another family business destroyed

Boomtown: Washington D.C. Passes Silicon Valley For Highest Median Income In U.S.

"Wealth in Washington, DC has surged to the highest median income in the United States, surpassing even tech mecca Silicon Valley, California. With a median household income of $119,134, the Census Bureau reports that Loudoun County, Virginia now occupies the number one spot for the highest median U.S. income. The number two position belongs to Fairfax County, Virginia at $105,797. Arlington, Virginia comes in third at $100,735. In fact, seven of the ten counties with the highest household incomes are in the Washington region." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBoomtown: Washington D.C. Passes Silicon Valley For Highest Median Income In U.S.

Owner wins court battle against feds trying to seize his Tewksbury motel

"Caswell has been battling the government since September 2009 to save the motel his father built in 1955. The government sought to seize the motel using a civil asset forfeiture law that allows the government to seize property linked to drug crimes. The government introduced information about 15 specific drug-related incidents at the motel from 1994 to 2008, a period of time, the judge noted, when the motel had rented out 196,000 rooms. But Caswell has never been charged with — or even accused of — any criminal wrongdoing, the Globe reported in November." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingOwner wins court battle against feds trying to seize his Tewksbury motel

“FEMA Won’t Let Us Rebuild Our Home”

"The Taylor family lives in the Natomas community in Sacramento, California. On August 24, 2012, Brad and Jennifer were driving home with their two young children when they saw smoke in their neighborhood. As they got closer to home, they realized that their house was on fire. Though shaken, both Brad and Jennifer were relieved that no one had been hurt. 'It's just a fire,' Brad said. 'It can all be replaced.' Little did they know that, thanks to regulations created by the Federal Emergency Managment Agency in the wake of Hurricane Katrina -- which hit land thousands of miles away from Sacramento -- their rebuilding nightmare was just beginning." Continue reading →

Continue Reading“FEMA Won’t Let Us Rebuild Our Home”

Olga from Greece Has a Lithuanian Soulmate Mooching in the United Kingdom

"Natalija Belova, 33, told The Sun how she spurns full-time work — yet can afford foreign holidays and buys designer clothes. The Lithuanian said: 'British benefits give me and my daughter a good life.' She has milked soft-touch Britain for £50,000 in benefits and yesterday said: 'I simply take what is given to me.' And what is given to her? Quite a lot. The graduate, who became a single mum after she arrived here, rakes in more than £1,000 a month in handouts — £14,508 a year — to fund her love of designer clothes, jaunts to the Spanish sun and nightclubbing. Natalija vowed: 'I am not going to work like a dog on minimum wage.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingOlga from Greece Has a Lithuanian Soulmate Mooching in the United Kingdom

Spain: Unemployment For Under 25s Over 55%

"Overall, Spain's unemployment rate has risen to its highest level since measurements began in the 1970s, as a prolonged recession and deep spending cuts have left almost six million people out of work at the end of last year. The nationwide jobless total rose 1% to 26.02% in the fourth quarter of 2012, or 5.97 million people, according to the National Statistics Institute. More than 2,000 Spaniards a day joined the dole queue in the last three months of 2012. The results mean in Q4 there were 8.33 million Spanish households in which every potential worker was unemployed." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSpain: Unemployment For Under 25s Over 55%

The Road to Debt-Serfdom

"The road to debt-serfdom is paved by the banks and enforced by the Central State. If there is any point that is lost on ideologues, Progressive and Conservative alike, it is this: the first-order servitude and second-order tyranny of debt-serfdom can only occur if the banks' power is extended and protected by an expansive Central State." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe Road to Debt-Serfdom

Electricity prices for German households have increased 61% since 2000 – renewables blamed

"Real German electricity prices for households have increased 61% since 2000. One quarter of household costs now stems directly from renewable energy. Also, the increase is *not* because of increasing production costs (which have actually slightly declined since 1978). The increase is due to dramatically increasing taxes, most noticeably from the Renewable Energy Act (EEG). In 2013 the EEG will increase 50% to 6.28 euro-cent (5.28 cents plus 19% VAT). In June 2011, Chancellor Angela Merkel famously promised to keep EEG prices stable, but this promise has now clearly been broken. The German household will pay 24% of its electricity bill to renewables." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingElectricity prices for German households have increased 61% since 2000 – renewables blamed

Tree Theft on the Rise in Germany as Heating Costs Increase

"The problem has been compounded this winter by rising energy costs. The Germany's Renters Association estimates the heating costs will go up 22 percent this winter alone. A side effect is an increasing number of people turning to wood-burning stoves for warmth. Germans bought 400,000 such stoves in 2011, the German magazine FOCUS reported this week. It marks the continuation of a trend: The number of Germans buying heating devices that burn wood and coal has grown steadily since 2005, according to consumer research company GfK Group. That increase in demand has now also boosted prices for wood, leading many to fuel their fires with theft." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTree Theft on the Rise in Germany as Heating Costs Increase