Blogs
Scam Diego
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Union-Tribune is up for sale, company tells employees
By Don Bauder - July 24, 2008, 2:10 p.m.
The shoe finally drops. Long time rumors are coming true. The Union-Tribune has put itself up for sale. In an announcement to employees today (July 24) Union-Tribune president Gene Bell said, "the Copley Press is announcing today that it is exploring strategic alternatives, a phrase usually associated with putting a ...
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San Diego Unemployment Rate for June Leaps to 5.9 Percent; County Lost Jobs Over Last 12 Months
By Don Bauder - July 18, 2008, 12:14 p.m.
The San Diego County unemployment rate surged to 5.9 percent in June, up from a revised 5.5 percent in May, and well above the 4.6 percent of a year ago, according to the state Employment Development Department. The county lost 4,900 jobs from June of 2007, a decline of 0.4 ...
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More Wall Street Socialism: SEC Wants to Thwart Short Selling of Fannie, Freddie, Brokerage Stocks
By Don Bauder - July 15, 2008, 11:39 a.m.
It is simply hilarious that Wall Street genuflects at the altar of free enterprise, free markets, rugged individualism, etc. The nabobs believe in free enterprise as long as they are making money, but when they start losing, they want a handout or protection from the government they proclaim should not ...
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Administration Wants To Bail Out Wall Street Through Massive Subsidy of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac. But Market Not Buying It
By Don Bauder - July 14, 2008, 10:16 a.m.
One of the biggest lies told in Washington, D.C. is that fiscal and monetary policies are not designed to prop up the stock market. Rather, they are designed to support the economy, claim our leaders. Once again, utter balderdash. On Sunday, the White House and Federal Reserve moved to give ...
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Lepine Drops Harassment Suit, Receives No Payment. Will Campaign Now Focus on Goldsmith's Domestic Uproars?
By Don Bauder - July 11, 2008, 7:53 p.m.
Amy Lepine, one of the losing candidates in the city attorney's race, today (July 11) dropped the harassment and gender discrimination suit against City Attorney Mike Aguirre and the City. She dropped it just before a judge was to rule on the city attorney's motion to dismiss the case for ...
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San Diego Spends Less Per Capita on Fire Protection Than Orange and Los Angeles Counties
By Don Bauder - July 11, 2008, 6:20 p.m.
San Diego County spends less per capita on fire protection and emergency medical services than Orange and L.A. counties, according to a study by the San Diego Institute for Policy Research. The gap has been widening over the last four years. In fiscal 2007-2008, the 42 municipalities, fire districts, and ...
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Seventeen Lose Jobs as Copley News Service Disappears
By Don Bauder - July 10, 2008, 8:12 p.m.
The old Copley News Service is now part of Creators Syndicate, and has a new name: Creators News Service, according to the Editor & Publisher trade publication. When the deal was announced in late May, Copley had 21 employees. Three will be retained and one will be a consultant. A ...
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Brace Yourself for Another Bailout: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Near the Brink
By Don Bauder - July 10, 2008, 11:59 a.m.
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson told Congress today (July 10) that government-sponsored housing behemoths Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are "adequately capitalized." Paulson's nose immediately became as long as a broomstick. At the time, the stock market was knocking Fannie down 13 percent and Freddie 23 percent on the day. Over ...
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County Democrats Endorse Aguirre for City Attorney; Only One Vote Goes for Opponent
By Don Bauder - July 8, 2008, 8:21 p.m.
Elected members of the San Diego County Democratic Party voted tonight (July 8) by roughly 60 to 1 to endorse City Attorney Mike Aguirre for re-election. Prior to the June 3 primary, members of the central committee backed no candidate; Aguirre missed the endorsement by 1 vote, and went on ...
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County Retail Sales Dropping Sharply; Tax Receipts Will Feel It
By Don Bauder - July 8, 2008, 5:55 p.m.
Inflation-adjusted taxable retail sales in the county dropped 2.4 percent in the second quarter of last year, according to figures compiled by the San Diego Institute for Policy Research. In the first quarter of 2007, they were down 0.9 percent. In 2003 and 2004, these quarterly figures were sometimes up ...
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SDGE Should Push Rooftop Solar Program, Says City Attorney, Noting Utility's Lagging Response to State Clean Energy Mandates
By Don Bauder - July 8, 2008, 12:51 p.m.
San Diego Gas & Electric should concentrate on in-area strategies for producing clean energy, such as a rooftop solar program, according to a report by the city attorney's office. SDGE derives just 6 percent of its electricity from renewables, versus 12 percent for Pacific Gas & Electric and 16 percent ...
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Possible Sale of Pittsburgh Steelers Shows Once Again How NFL, Gambling Industry Are Joined at the Hip
By Don Bauder - July 8, 2008, 10:59 a.m.
According to the Wall Street Journal today (July 8), the Pittsburgh Steelers professional football team might be sold. The team is 80 percent owned by the sons of founder Arthur Rooney, a gambler who was, according to author Dan E. Moldea "the most powerful layoff man in Pittsburgh." In the ...
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Gaylord Stock Tanks; Outlook for Business Group Bookings Weakens Sharply
By Don Bauder - July 8, 2008, 10:02 a.m.
Some San Diegans are still hoping that Nashville-based Gaylord Entertainment will build a $1 billion hotel and convention center on the Chula Vista bayfront, with more than $300 million of government subsidy, or corporate welfare. The facility would concentrate on business meetings. However, that business is crumbling in the current ...
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It's Official, If a Bit Silly: We Have a Bear Market. More Disturbing: General Motors Could Go Bankrupt, Says Analyst
By Don Bauder - July 2, 2008, 1:35 p.m.
Stocks plunged today (July 2) as oil soared above $144 a barrel. Both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq are now 20 percent lower than their highs of last October. Officially, that marks a bear market, according to technicians, but this is an arbitrary distinction. The Dow dropped 166.75 ...
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With $6 Million Gift, David Copley Endows UCLA Center for Costume Design
By Don Bauder - June 26, 2008, 4:30 p.m.
Union-Tribune publisher David Copley, who just recently took his $33 million yacht to the Cannes film festival, and had his adventures written up in his own paper, continues on his extravagant ways. Copley has given $6 million to the University of California Los Angeles School of Theater, Film and Television ...
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SeaWorld Could Be Sold: InBev Officially Bids $65 a Share for Anheuser-Busch, Which Turns Down Bid
By Don Bauder - June 26, 2008, 2:10 p.m.
Belgian brewer InBev today (June 26) officially bid $46 billion or $65 a share for St. Louis brewer Anheuser-Busch. The U.S. brewer flatly turned down the offer. Analysts believe Anheuser's non-beer assets, such as three SeaWorlds and a fourth planned for Dubai, could be changing hands. InBev may sell them ...
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Stocks Slaughtered, Now Near Official Bear Market; Oil Almost Hits $140, Dollar Drops
By Don Bauder - June 26, 2008, 1:47 p.m.
The stock market got eviscerated yesterday, as oil briefly topped $140 a barrel before closing up $5.09 at $139.64. The dollar's weakness exacerbated oil's rise. The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged more than 3 percent, down 358.41 to 11,453.42. The Dow is now down 19.1 percent from its all-time high ...
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San Diegans Installing Big Fuel Tanks, Filling Up in Mexico, Where Prices Cheaper. Mexicans Displeased
By Don Bauder - June 24, 2008, 3:41 p.m.
San Diegans are buying big fuel tanks and loading up on cheaper Mexican gas, reports the Wall Street Journal on its front page today (June 24). Americans are getting gas in Tijuana for $2.50 a gallon -- a bargain as prices approach $5 in San Diego. James Blue's Santee auto ...
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San Diego 13th Largest Tech Employer; Tech Jobs Pay More Than Double Average Private Sector Wage
By Don Bauder - June 24, 2008, 9:39 a.m.
AeA, formerly the American Electronics Association, today (June 24) released a study, "Cybercities 2008: An Overview of the High-Technology Industry in the Nation's Top 60 Cities." The data were for 2006. San Diego was the 13th largest cybercity, employing 106,400, in 2006. The area added 1,500 net tech jobs that ...
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Unrelenting Swoon: San Diego Home Prices Now Back to Levels of Fall of 2003
By Don Bauder - June 24, 2008, 7:57 a.m.
The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller Home Price Indexes through April, released today (June 24), show that prices of existing family homes throughout the nation continue to plunge. For 20 major cities, they have dropped a collective 15.3 percent from a year ago and 17.8 percent from the peak two years ago. ...