New $100 Bill Announced

Well, if you're looking to counterfeit the $100 bill, you might be out of luck:

http://news.yahoo.com/nphotos/New-design-100-bill-unveiled/ss/events/us/042110new100bill



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Needle Exchange Programs: Effective, but at What Cost?

Albany, New York has recently begun a needle exchange program for drug addicts with the hope that the spread of illnesses, such as AIDS or HIV, would lessen. This would cost taxpayers over $150,000 annually; however, it is argued, that without so many people getting sick, it could save money in the end.

At first, I was against this; supplying addicts with the equipment to do illegal drugs sounded nuts. But, being the good little reporter that I try to be, I researched this deeper and was surprised by what I found.

Looking at reports from regions that have already tried similar programs, it became clear that the benefits of such programs were surprising. Studies from the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and the Netherlands, along with raw data from Wales and Uzbekistan clearly show that not only will addicts use such programs, but it helps to reduce HIV a sizable amount. Furthermore, with the spread of education, it is possible for people to be convinced to stop doing drugs.

However, there is a major caveat in the data that sticks out. In the data from the US, UK, Canada, Wales, and the Netherlands, the amount of money saved by having these programs is not clearly stated. The only hard data was from (who would have guessed) Uzbek statistics. They place the minimum cost per infection averted at $1,288 and as high as $9,537. That's per person who did not get a disease because of the program.

So, which saves the taxpayers more money? The data does not say, but nearly $10,000 per illness-stopped could outweigh the many of the benefits.

In the end, it is very surprising to see how effective these programs were in preventing HIV and spreading education. However, the cost could be incredibly high. But after looking at this data, I am no longer very against this program... I need to study it further to come to a final conclusion.

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Obama Offers North Korea $25 Billion in Aid

Maggie Kleist
May 28, 2009

The inauguration of US President Barack Obama in January was hailed as a "transformative" event in American foreign policy. On Iran, the new President is backing talks and in Palestine, Israel's criminal settlement program is being reversed. North Korea, long isolated by the criminal Bush regime, is now being re-included into the family of nations.

North Korea is accused of detonating a test nuclear weapon last week and of firing missiles. The United States and South Korea have both threatened war over this, but it appears that now the US is finally heeding its own advice and stepping back.

According to North Korean media, the US is prepared to offer the north up to $25 billion in direct aid if the North agrees to stop enriching plutonium. According to the plan, $8 billion would be given as food aid, $10 billion as infrastructure, and $7 billion in general funds.

While American conservatives may complain of the plan, it has been noted that only $12 billion of the total will come from the US treasury. The remaining $13 billion will come from many of the other aggressive nations in the world, such as Britain, Japan, and South Korea. France has rejected the call to donate money.

The North Korean leadership is very pleased with this, according to the state media. Pak Ui Chun, North Korea's foreign minister, has stated that the money is "one small step towards the reparations owed to us by the greedy Americans."

Payments are intended to start in August, with the People's Republic's nuclear program beginning shutdowns in November. American pleas for inspectors have been denied. Obama has accepted that the PDRK will disarm without international oversight.

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Get Ready to Kiss Some Rights Away: AP Sources: Obama wants Fed to be 'Finance Supercop'

Love the government in your business? Well, you'll love this.

From Yahoo! News:

WASHINGTON – The White House told industry officials on Friday that it is leaning toward recommending that the Federal Reserve become the supercop for "too big to fail" companies capable of causing another financial meltdown.

According to officials who attended a private one-hour meeting between President Barack Obama's economic advisers and representatives from about a dozen banks, hedge funds and other financial groups, the administration made it clear it was not inclined to divide the job among various regulators as has been suggested by industry and some federal regulators.

"The idea of having a council of regulators was pretty much vetoed," said one participant.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, who briefly attended the meeting but did not identify the Fed specifically as his top choice, told the group that one organization needs to be held responsible for monitoring systemwide risk. He said such a regulator should be given better visibility into all institutions that pose a risk to the financial system, regardless of what business they are in.

"Committees don't make decisions," Geithner told the group, according to another participant.

Officials from the Treasury Department and National Economic Council, which hosted the meeting, told participants that the Fed was considered the most likely candidate for the job, according to several officials who attended or were briefed on the discussions.

The administration officials said a legislative proposal would likely be sent to Capitol Hill in June with the expectation that the House Financial Services Committee, led by Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., would consider the measure before the July 4th recess.

The officials requested anonymity because the meeting had not been publicly announced and they were not authorized to discuss it.

A Treasury Department statement provided to The Associated Press on Friday confirmed Geithner's position that he wants a "single independent regulator with responsibility for systemically important firms and critical payment and settlement systems."

A spokesman said Geithner also is open to creating a council to "coordinate among the various regulators, including the systemic risk regulator."

Industry officials say such a council would likely serve as advisers and would not be given the authority that a "systemic risk regulator" would.

The Fed itself hasn't taken a position on whether it should have the job, although Chairman Ben Bernanke has said the Fed would have to be involved in any effort to identify and resolve systemwide risk.

Geithner said Friday the administration plans an "aggressive" package of reforms for the financial system including proposals to fundamentally overhaul how financial institutions pay their senior executives. Critics have charged that the bonus system used at many major institutions encouraged excessive risk taking.

"We had a financial system that did a terrible job of protecting consumers, of building a strong, stable financial system less prone to crisis and we are going to have to fix that," Geithner said in an interview on PBS' "Newshour." "You will see this president, this administration bringing sweeping reforms to our financial system."

In a speech Thursday, Bernanke said that huge, globally interconnected financial firms whose failure could endanger the U.S. economy should be subject to "a robust framework for consolidated supervision."

Naming the Fed as a kind of super regulator is likely to run into at least some resistance by other federal regulators and in Congress.

Mary Schapiro, the head of the Securities and Exchange Commission, said Friday that she was inclined to support the idea floated this week by the head of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. for a new "systemic risk council" to monitor large institutions against financial threats. The council would include the Treasury Department, Federal Reserve, FDIC and SEC, according to the proposal by FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair.

Speaking to the Investment Company Institute, the mutual fund industry's biggest trade group, Schapiro said she is concerned about an "excessive concentration of power" over financial risk in a single agency.

Lawmakers are divided on whether the Fed alone should assume the role of systemic regulator. Some say the Fed failed to prevent the current economic crisis and shouldn't be trusted with such a big responsibility. Others say the Fed should stay focused on its primary duty of setting monetary policy.

Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, said this week he is "more attracted to the council idea" than having a single regulator play that role.

Unlike other regulatory agencies, the Fed does not rely on appropriations from Congress for its operating funds. It finances itself through its investments.

Fed Gov. Daniel Tarullo told Congress in March that the extent to which the new responsibility for systemic risk should fall to the central bank "depends a great deal on precisely how the Congress defines the role and responsibilities of the authority."

"Any systemic risk authority would need a sophisticated, comprehensive and multidisciplinary approach to systemic risk," he testified. "Such an authority likely would require knowledge and experience across a wide range of financial institutions and markets."

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Joe's Financial Pick of the Week

Dr. Joe is back from Siam after cashing in on his massive nest-egg. Joe C. invested just seven dollars into his latest investment, and has received over three million dollars! If you have any questions about where to put your hard-earned moolah, just ask the Doctor!

This week's pick:
German Marks
Having seen the Great War firsthand, you may ask if the Huns will be able to rebuild their shattered society? Yes, after all of the baby-eating and nun-shooting, the German nation may be able to pick themselves up and create a society that could be considered half-human to the layman.
That is why Dr. Joe is endorsing everyone to buy German Marks. The Mark was once worth four per dollar before the War. Today, you need a full wheelbarrow in order to buy a simple loaf of peasant bread. With such massive depreciation, is it any wonder that the Mark will once again appreciate into the cauldron of strength it was before the War?It is my personal opinion that you should sell your house and invest in this great opportunity! With all of your money in this option, if the Mark ever hits the dollar, you will have upwards of four-trillion dollars to spend! With such money, you can buy the Kaiser's pointy helmet and the art of an aspiring Austrian artist!

So buy, before it's too late!

NOTE- Do not actually follow Joe's advice, unless you wish to go broke and have your family disown you.

Joe's Financial Pick of the Week

While you're drowning in the massive amounts of cash that I have earned you, why don't you take a minute and read about some of the ideas to make your butler rich. In fact, you can have your butler have butlers.

Joe's Pick of the Week:
Buying on Margin

With all of the talk of the stock market, you're trying to figure out how to jump in yourself. Well, my fine sir, let me tell you that the only way to invest in the stockmarket is to purchase on margin. Yes, but your house up for collateral and take out $5,000,000 in subprime loans and open up your newspaper. Put your hand over your eyes and with the other point at a stock in the business section. Foolish, you say? Bah! John D. Rockefeller once made $4.2 billion dollars by investing in a goat insemination corporation.

Buying on margin may seem like a bad idea, if you were born without the stockpicker's luck. Think of it, if you blew your family's life savings and your house, you could always get a new family. Or you could join the circus. I've done both, at the same time. So go out, take the world by the horns, and buy, buy, buy! You won't regret it.

NOTE- Don't invest in this, please.

Joe's Pick of the Week

Well, seeing that you have all gotten rich off of my other picks, now you can give advice to your friends. I'm sitting here in the JoeCave, in the scenic Bahama islands. It makes me feel sad that there are still people who make less that $500,000 a year. Those poor souls.

Joe's Pick:
Nigerian Bank Schemes

With all of the talk of the Nigerian Schemes circulating the internet, this reporter gets the feeling that they may be your ticket to riches. First off, even if they're phony, at least you get to travel to Nigeria. Everyone wants to go to Africa. Not to mention the added bonus if you're captured and your wife sacrificed to a pagan idol.

Second, how do we even know that these "schemes" are fradulent anyway? Maybe the payment got lost in the mail or maybe Kwame Smith from Lagos just forgot to mail the massive package marked "money." People shouldn't listen to everything they hear. Sometimes they give you bad advice.

NOTE: If you follow this advice, you deserve to lose your money.

For Sale-- 50 Iraqi Dinars

Hey everyone. I've recently been able to pick up some Iraqi Dinars. If anyone is interested in picking up 50 crisp Iraqi Dinars, email me at avitmw@gmail.com

PRICE: $1 plus 42 cents shipping.

Can Someone Explain This to Me? Part 3

What in the...Why is Sen. Obama planning to ban domestic drilling for oil? How does that even start to make sense?

Let's see, if we do drill, we will get oil from our own lands, lower our dependency on foreign oil (and in effect give less money to terrorists), bridge the gap until new technology is feasible, lower oil prices (because of an increase in supply), create new jobs, and help our economy.

If we don't, we will continue to buy more oil from overseas, oil prices will increase (less supply, more demand), and we will further be dependent on foreign nations.

I don't even see it can make sense not to drill. Please, how does this make sense in the least?