RichC | August 28, 2017
Having been away from my computer this past weekend has left me way delayed on posting the landfall of Hurricane Harvey as it piled into southeastern Texas with enough category 4 wind to pummel the coastline and an unprecedented amount of rain causing catastrophic flooding. The residents of the fourth largest populated city of Houston […]
RichC | August 14, 2017
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RichC | August 10, 2017
With the tension rising between the U.S. and North Korea over nuclear weapons, the broad financial markets headed lower today for the first time in a while (or so it seemed). The often cited DJIA closed down 204.69 or about 1% while the Nasdaq doubled that move at 2% down. Even though the tone was […]
RichC | August 3, 2017
Just one more irritation as to how politicians spend tax dollars … and line their own pockets. For the past couple of decades, the private sector has been struggling … particularly the blue collar worker and mid to lower management employees. Pensions are non-existent, benefits eliminated and health care for the private sector a nightmare! […]
RichC | August 2, 2017
The Dow broke above the 22,000 threshold for the first time on Wednesday rising for the seventh straight day. The boost over the "nice round number" happened after Apple posted stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings and iPhone sales met expectations. $AAPL stock rose 5.5% and made its largest single day percentage rise since February. (Story WSJ.com)
RichC | July 12, 2017
The United States is healthy enough to absorb further gradual rate increases and the slow wind down of the massive bond portfolio accumulated by the Federal Reserve during the financial crisis, Fed Chair Janet Yellen said in prepared testimony to be delivered to Congress Wednesday morning. Source: Fed’s Yellen says economy steady enough for more […]
RichC | July 7, 2017
Complaining is getting me nowhere … but those of us old school users of Yahoo and Google continue to be frustrated to see both companies going down the "design for smartphone – card look format" to their pages, even for large display computers. YAHOO A few weeks ago Yahoo Finance forced all users to give […]
RichC | June 14, 2017
Sort of a surprise to most Fed watchers today as the consensus was for the Federal Reserve to raise rates a 1/4 point in September, not June. Perhaps it won’t make much difference for the whole year, but Chair Janet Yellen obviously wants to stay ahead of the curve. The target inflation rate remain 2% […]
RichC | May 28, 2017
The news on Saturday was depressing as that it was announced Gregg Allman passed away at 69 … I was just commenting about a few of my Music Monday posts that included Coyotus Maximus (his self-described nickname) and the Allman Brothers Band since our politics did not mesh. A talented and musically influential force not just for […]
RichC | May 25, 2017
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RichC | May 1, 2017
The rate of U.S. inflation for March was slower than expected just one month after hitting a five-year peak. The number reflects lower gasoline and consumer goods prices, including automobiles. Thiis could ease pressure on the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates, even though central banks have telegraphed increases this year. The U.S. economy is […]
RichC | April 26, 2017
What a start to the week for the stock market! There is optimism that something "will" get done with taxes, unlike #RepealAndReplace legislation. The news is that President Donald Trump will be unveiling his proposal to cut corporate taxes on US companies’ foreign profits and slash the top tax rate has investors in the "buy" […]
RichC | April 1, 2017
The “Trump Rally” as many have dubbed it, provided investors with solid quarterly gains as a brighter economic outlook offset the lackluster Washington DC agenda which has become bogged down in politics. Investors still believe job growth, better corporate financial returns and tax cuts will over shadow the Fed “applying the brakes” in the form of higher […]
RichC | February 22, 2017
Should municipalities and states charge citizens if they exercise a constitutionally protected right? On the surface, most of us would say "no way" should a city or state charge US citizens to "vote," "worship" or to "speak freely" … but that’s what some politically left leaning cities and states do to those who own firearms. […]
RichC | February 19, 2017
Having been around journalists and the media most of my working life, I disagree with the broad brush of many who paint them as "knowingly biased and of misleading the public." Most reporters, professional journalists, aspire to gather and report the relevant facts with the purpose of getting a story correct and providing the facts […]
RichC | February 5, 2017
The Atlanta Falcons as a team deserve some credit in playing Superbowl LI impressively for three full quarters, until they didn’t in the 4th quarter. The New England Patriots basically slept during the first part of the game and came to life in the 4th quarter. In cardiac arrest inducing fashion, New England mounted the most […]
RichC | January 12, 2017
CVS is now selling a rival, generic version of Mylan’s EpiPen at about a sixth of its price, just months after the maker of the life-saving allergy treatment was eviscerated before Congress because of its soaring cost to consumers.The drugstore chain says it will charge $109.99 for a two-pack of the authorized generic version of […]
RichC | December 15, 2016
Forgiving debt and bankruptcy options aren’t new, but those of us who strive to “play by the rules” often feel like suckers when it comes to bureaucrats playing fast and free with tax dollars … or with OPM. While it is understandable that our society wants to be compassionate and lend a helping hand to […]
RichC | December 7, 2016
U.S. stocks charged to fresh highs, with major indexes logging their biggest one-day rally since the election. See WSJ story.
RichC | November 9, 2016
RichC | November 9, 2016
They won’t call it, but it is all but a shoe in for America’s next president … Donald J. Trump. Since both Clinton and Trump are in NYC, here’s the current New York Times website front page. Good night all and hold on for a wild financial market ride tomorrow.
RichC | November 2, 2016
While I suspect a Thursday post to be about game 7 of the World Series between the Cleveland Indians and Chicago Cubs (let’s just call them the comeback kids now that they have won the last 2 games and have tied the series up), I’ll post an election observation and get my bias media post […]
RichC | October 29, 2016
Pakistani police have arrested National Geographic’s green-eyed “Afghan Girl” — whose striking picture became the symbol of the plight of refugees– for having a phony ID card.Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency conducted a raid Wednesday at a residence in the city of Peshawar, where Sharbat Gula was taken into custody. The FIA had gotten word about […]
RichC | October 25, 2016
Looking at Ohio in the presidential election from theskimm.com distance: OHIO DON’T LIVE THERE, DON’T CARE. If you had to bet on who’d win in November, hang out in Ohio first. The state’s voted for the winner every year since 1964. WHAT DO I NEED TO KNOW? That if the US held up a mirror […]
RichC | October 21, 2016
Twitter status above illustrating second attack shutting down services. The cyber threat continues … as a second wave cripples some of the biggest domain names through Dyn (Manchester, NH), a company that provide DNS services for connecting domain names to IP addresses. Dyn said it had resolved one attack, which disrupted operations for about two […]
RichC | October 17, 2016
Rumors are swirling that something or someone has started triggering the Wikileaks "Deadman’s Switch," which has been put in place if something should happen to founder Julian Assange. Some suspect that a "state party" intentionally severing of his Internet link was more than just someone attempting to silence the release of more incriminating emails, which […]
RichC | September 23, 2016
While Twitter shareholders seemed to like the rumor of Salesforce.com showing interest in $TWTR, those holding shares of $CRM are not quite as enthused. This has happened before so we’ll see if there is any real substance … OR if others might be interested? Google??? Salesforce.com Inc. is considering a takeover of Twitter Inc., according […]
RichC | August 31, 2016
Now that I’m going to be a grandfather, it is time to start reading (or re-reading) all those important articles about babies again. Eating Fruit While Pregnant May Boost A Baby’s Intelligence By DANA WECHSLER LINDEN Aug. 29, 2016 9:00 a.m. ET New research raises the intriguing possibility that eating more fruit during pregnancy […]
RichC | August 11, 2016
There are people who have the ability to communicate and can make "simple-sense" of the usually complicated economic issues facing our country. I’d like to believe that IF enough voters are willing to digest the three minutes of conversation below, that they would be less inclined to "dis" a business oriented pro-growth policy that is […]
RichC | July 27, 2016
While I’d prefer watching something more enjoyable than the political sales pitches from Republicans talking about Donald Trump (at the GOP convention) last week or the Democrats attempt to do the same this week, I am trying to be fair by watching both. Frankly at this point is looks like we are stuck with picking […]
RichC | July 21, 2016
Mike Rowe brings a bit of commonsense to the nutty “mostly” media outrage about Melania Trump‘s plagiarism considering almost every politician reads someone elses’ words off a teleprompter in practically every important speech. Are we fooled they aren’t reading a speech someone else wrote anyway? Should we be outraged at every speech a politician give […]
RichC | July 18, 2016
Two years has passed since a missle downed Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, yet 298 families are still without closure. In the US we’ve heard the slogan “too big to fail” when giving a pass to big banks, companies or their decision makers. When it is the powerful like Vladimir Putin and Russia, one wonders if […]
RichC | July 8, 2016
I can’t stomach posting anything polite today after the horrendous targeted sniping of police officers in Dallas, Texas Thursday night. It is an absolutely senseless murder of 5 police officers (6 wounded) after a relatively peaceful Black Lives Matter protest/rally. These were officers who were just doing their job of crowd control and keeping citizens […]
RichC | July 7, 2016
Every public official who has spent decades under the bright lights of public scrutiny are in one way of the other connected to the political machinery, but few are protected as much as the Clintons. The deep Arkansas doo-doo surrounding Hillary and Bill Clinton never goes away and whether you support their political philosophies or […]
RichC | June 29, 2016
Proving how difficult it is to secure soft targets from suicide committed terrorists. Turkish investigators pored over video footage and witness statements on Wednesday after three suspected Islamic State suicide bombers opened fire and blew themselves up in Istanbul’s main airport, killing 41 people and wounding 239. Source: Islamic State prime suspect after suicide bombers […]
RichC | June 28, 2016
As Volkswagen prepares to dole out $15 BILLION in a diesel emissions settlement for their cheating, here is what VW TDI owners need to know (Source: Yahoo Finance): Who can file a claim? Owners of certain Volkswagen and Audi cars with 2.0 liter diesel engines from model years 2009-2015 are eligible under the settlement. The […]
RichC | June 24, 2016
Financial markets around the globe are reeling Friday morning from yesterday’s historic BREXIT vote in the UK as the people have chosen to exit the EU. Big picture is that life has not improved for citizens of Britain under the real or perceived central control — some suggesting it is "their" Independence Day. Even though […]
RichC | June 23, 2016
Volkswagen AG has agreed to pay more than $10 billion to settle claims from U.S. owners of diesel-powered vehicles affected by the German auto maker’s emissions-cheating scandal, said people familiar with the matter.The $10 billion-plus deal would address owners of nearly 500,000 diesel-powered vehicles with two-liter engines that contain software capable of duping government emissions […]
RichC | June 8, 2016
As the second anniversary approaches of the downing of #MH17 by Russian missiles over the Ukraine, my brother-in-law Jerry Skinner is doing what he can to keep the tragedy in front of the public eye. Pressure on politicians for them to pursue justice, compensation and a admission from Russia and Putin (a long shot) is […]
RichC | June 2, 2016
Kiplinger has long been one of the many websites who’s content, along with their magazine, that I’ve enjoyed reading. I follow several contributors to their content on social networks and complained recently that I disliked their multi short page approach for reading content. I’m sure they want to generate "clicks" and therefore break and article […]
RichC | May 25, 2016
My brother-in-law Jerry Skinner has been busy working on the Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 case in order to bring closure for the families of victims. It is hard to imagine that shooting down of a commercial airliner was anything but a mistake, but who should be held accountable for Buk missiles capable of this kind […]
RichC | May 19, 2016
When consuming the news and information, whether on the Television or any other news media, it is important to pay attention to the biases of who is “painting the picture.” Off the top of my head, I’m thinking about how Facebook priorities their newsfeed.
RichC | April 14, 2016
This isn’t the first close call incident according to the news coming from the Pentagon, but a very close and dangerous pass over the USS Donald Cook in the Baltic. They halted exercises with a Polish helicopter landing on the flight deck and shared the video below. Thankfully cooler head prevailed but at some […]
RichC | March 7, 2016
Watched a grateful Peyton Manning emotionally announce his retirement today after 18 remarkable years in the NFL. He is a great quarterback (perhaps the greatest), terrific team leader and classy man. Fans of football, no matter which team they favor, will miss his play on the field. Peyton Manning has been considered an elite quarterback […]
RichC | March 2, 2016
Heard this interview this morning on SirusXM and glad Maria Bartiromo included it in one of her morning tweets.
RichC | February 23, 2016
Winter weekends (even warm ones) present an opportunity to catch up on a pile of articles collected during the week. These are one that aren’t necessarily timely or are “required” reading based on the news of the day. Those who know me, know that I’ve enjoyed a few minutes each morning leafing though the Wall […]
RichC | February 14, 2016
Politics and the upcoming presidential election seem to be dominating the discussion in my online social networking circles … at least on my Twitter feed. The news of Justice Antonin Scalia’s death on the afternoon of the South Carolina GOP Debate Saturday left most who appreciated his 30 years of conservative jurisprudence in a very […]
RichC | February 11, 2016
As a frustrated political watcher, I'm starting to think I may have hitched my wagon behind the wrong GOP horse, although it is still a bit early. I haven't jumped in with both feet or anything, but I thought I was supporting a Republican with “acceptable” values and ability to grow the party … and […]
RichC | February 3, 2016
We may be proud to be living in a representative democracy, but watching the political sausage being made is probably as disgusting as going to a slaughter house to see the production of real sausage. This past week kicked off the 2016 primaries with the Iowa caucus. After months of political speeches from the large field of […]
RichC | January 31, 2016
Without American boots on the ground, defeating ISIS is not going to happen quickly if at all. After watching the movie “13 Hours” this week (and leaving me angry at our leaders), I pondered the covert activity by the CIA and other nations in the fight. In Libya, it seems that a “mystery sniper” is […]
RichC | January 30, 2016
I had an interesting text exchange with my son Taylor who is smack dab in the middle of finding his political “sense.” Thankfully he is far more rational, a questioner, independent thinker and a lover of history to be snookered into “herding” blindly with the crowd who are “Feeling the Bern.” He has been closely […]
RichC | January 18, 2016
Do you really need to put toilet paper on the seat like mom taught you? "If it makes you feel better," says Melissa Hawkins, director of the public health scholars program at American University, who’s an expert in biostatistics, behavioral health and community health. "The toilet seats are not a vehicle for the transmission of […]
RichC | December 23, 2015
Imagine this editorial cartoon being published by a right-leaning newspaper during a previous presidential campaign … let’s say to a “then” Senator Obama rather than a “now” Senator Cruz? Something tells me Democrats on the political left would have settled for nothing less than a full apology from the publisher and possible firing of those […]
RichC | December 15, 2015
No this is not our BMW X5 35d … but it is my wife’s biggest fear. She has had several items fall off trucks or get kicked up from the road in front of her over the years. Usually it’s a cracked windshield or “thunk-thunk” as she bounces over lumber or whatever (alignment issues perhaps?) […]
RichC | December 8, 2015
Warmer forecasts, no production cut by OPEC and inventory surplus is keeping energy prices low and crude oil has moved to seven year lows. The impact is being felt by small leveraged U.S. oil companies who are on the brink of bankrupcy and even creating waves throughout the economy. As I tweeted… Oil prices fell […]
RichC | November 3, 2015
TransCanada requested a suspension of the U.S. permit on the Keystone XL Pipeline and one of my favorite “short take” email headlines did an appropriate refresher: Keystone XL Pipeline: not a beer. It’s a major oil pipeline project that would carry a LOT of crude oil from Canada to Texas. It’s also a major political […]
RichC | November 3, 2015
When there is blood in the water, it’s a feeding frenzy. Just as we Volkswagen diesel advocates were thinking “maybe” the company would come up with a fix … then the second shoe dropped. This news includes more diesel vehicles, this time the 6-cylinder TDIs adding Audi and Porsche diesel SUVs. According to earlier comments, […]
RichC | October 21, 2015
It looks like Rep Paul Ryan is open to running for Speaker of the House “if” all the political components in the Republican party can unite. In today's divided congress (not just Democrats and Republicans), this will not be a small task. I personally hope that this Miami grad (MU Ohio) will be able to […]
RichC | October 1, 2015
The world around us is degrading into chaos as Russian “tough guy” President Vladimir Putin sent his militarily into the middle east and has quickly backed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad against the supposedly the terrorist group ISIL/ISIS who is aggressively building their Caliphate and the American backed pro-western rebels (well, maybe … but who really […]
RichC | September 17, 2015
Last night’s second GOP debate on CNN at the Reagan Library wasn’t bad as debates go. The current frontrunner, the attention grabbing Donald Trump did one thing for the Republican brand … he got generated attention. His grade school behavior buffoonery brought far viewers to the stodgy GOP and that alone could help Republicans ideas […]