Moody’s Cuts Atlantic City to Junk
ThinkstockAtlantic City, which at one point was supposed to rival Las Vegas as a gambling destination, has nearly fallen to pieces. One of the last bricks taken out of its wall is a new…
All Work
Douglas A. McIntyre
Americans Favor Beer Over Liquor and Wine
ThinkstockGood news for the world’s brewers. Americans prefer beer over both liquor and wine. According to a new Gallup poll: As they have for most of the past two decades, Americans who drink alcohol…
Beretta’s New Super Rifle
Gun company Beretta is tone deaf when it comes to calls for restrictions on powerful guns sold in the United States. It must be the chance to make money. Beretta’s website carried an announcement…
American Consumer Spending Continues to Falter
ThinkstockThe consumer may have returned to malls and retail stores, but he remains wary about what he believes he can spend. Based on the portion of gross domestic product (GDP) that consumer spending represents,…
Mercedes Sells 419,000 Vehicles in Second Quarter
courtesy of Mercedes-BenzIf there is any issue about whether the world’s rich are getting richer, it should be settled by Mercedes sales, which reached 418,700 worldwide in the second quarter, according to results for…
As Russia’s Isolation Grows, Oil Companies Caught in Middle
ThinkstockBy Nicholas Cunningham of Oilprice.com The confrontation between Russia and the West took a turn for the worse with the downing of a Malaysian airliner on July 17, and that could spell trouble for…
FoxNews.com, USAToday.com Top List of Internet News Sites
Results from the American Customer Satisfaction Index 2014 E-business study are bound to set off more debate about which network or newspaper delivers the best news and whether their political leanings are important.
450 Million Chinese Never Go Online
ThinkstockThe People’s Republic had 632 million people who could use the Internet in June, according to the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC). That is a record, and it makes its Internet population well…
Will iPhone 6 Be Waterproof?
The new Apple iPhone will have a stronger processor and a scratchproof screen, and it will be available with a larger 5.5 inch screen size. But, like any cheap watch, it had better be…
Will ‘Back to School Spending’ Hurt Holiday Retail Sales?
ThinkstockAs the economy recovers slowly, among the most critical questions about GDP recovery is how much money Americans actually have to spend for more than essentials. High energy and food prices, particularly as they…
Red Bull May Be Hurt by Alcohol Consumption Study
ThinkstockThe journal Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research has just published a study that concludes that combining energy drinks with alcohol tends to increase overall desire to drink more, compared to when people drink alcohol…
Detroit Has 26 Homes Available for $1,000 Minimum Bid
Wikimedia CommonsThe Detroit Land Bank’s efforts to sell massive inventories of unoccupied homes continues at a snail’s pace. The Detroit Land Bank Authority currently has 20 homes available for auction, with starting bids as…
Last Week of Weather Makes California Drought Worse
ThinkstockThe most recent report on the national drought conditions from the U.S. Drought Monitor: As of July 15: During the past 7-days, a series of slow-moving cold fronts traversed the eastern two-thirds of the…
Five States With Unemployment Over 7%
ThinkstockIf any proof of the unevenness of the economic recovery still has to be made, it is the wild disparity of unemployment from state to state. Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)…
‘Purge’ and ‘Sex Tape’ May Take Weekend Box Office Lead
ThinkstockThe highly successful “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” will have competition for the top box office spot this weekend. The movie was released by Twenty-First Century Fox Inc. (NASDAQ: FOX), part of…
Safest Used Cars to Buy for Teens
ThinkstockNew vehicles are virtually always safer than older ones because the new ones incorporate all the latest and best technologies. But that comes at a price, and it is not a price that most…
Customer Service Hall of Shame
When it comes to companies we dread dealing with, we all know who they are. Let’s put it this way, would you rather go to the Apple Genius Bar to fix something with your…
Malaysia Flight 17 and Other Things That Could Collapse Markets
ThinkstockThe world equity markets did not react much to the downing of Malaysia Flight 17 in Ukraine, apparently hit by a missile. After a brief sell-off, most of the major indices were down less…
Apple’s Reminder of Low Female Board Membership
The appointment of Susan L. Wagner, a senior executive of investment firm BlackRock, to Apple's board of directors is a reminder of how few woman sit on corporate boards.
Customer Service Hall of Shame
courtesy of Alex Proimos, via Wikimedia CommonsWhen it comes to companies we dread dealing with, we all know who they are. Let’s put it this way, would you rather go to the Apple Genius…