LyrArc Article Gist
Scott Shane of the NYT provides this exceptional account of how the ideology of Wahhabism on which the Saudi monarchy is based has influenced the evolution of Islam, but not in the way other religions have evolved into more moderate and open religions. Christianity evolved from the period of religious conflict, and evolved to the point that the basis of progress was based on education and technology in most of northern and southern Europe. Where the evolution did not take place because of more intolerant behaviours such as in Spain with the Spanish Inquisition and ideas from the medieval period, this development based on education and technology lagged severely behind.  Wahhabism developed as a result of a sect started by a religious cleric Wahhab in a poor desert region around Mecca and Medina, now the Saudi Kingdom, who sought the help of a tribal chief Ibn Saud. They used the religious-political alliance to gain tribal dominance in the region. Wahhabism sought to change Islam by banning worship and religious rites at tombs common in that period. It also as Brookings scholar William McCants cited here says, drew "sharp lines" and intolerance between believers and non-believers- all non-believers including other sects of Islam, Shiites, Christians. The movement spread throughout the region, but was crushed by the Ottoman Empire based in Istanbul, Turkey, by the 1850's, only to be revived in the 1920's following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. A Norwegian expert Heggenhammer cited here says clearly Islam did not benefit from the evolution that other religions had, and Wahhabism has slowed this evolution into and open, tolerant religion because of its "sharp lines" and intolerance of other faiths and ideas with the Wahhabism from a medieval perod. In India the British rule brought enlightenment thinkers (John Stuart Mill for example was a clerk for the British East India company). But no such change happened under Ottoman rule to inspire leaders like Gandhi and Nehru to setup a new constitution that made changes from medieval Hindu beliefs such as caste and religious practices based on superstition.  The development of an oil rich state in Saudi Arabia with the discovery of oil, and the dependence from 1950-2010 of the global economy, has led say experts to the export of the Wahhabist kind of Islam to other countries in Middle East and South Asia. This they say made the evolution to democracy and peaceful coexistence difficult or impossible in the region. ...

LyrArc Article Gist
The problems that arise when grocery stores merge and consolidate by closing stores can be seen in Portland, Oregon. As the Albertson's and Safeway's are replaced by Kroger's cities can see the effects in supply, price and quality. During a time of cost of living issues for most families and workers, cost of living action by the government is needed to maintain access to grocery store food and supplies.

13% of the US people live in a food desert, low income areas where there is limited access to grocery stores. Many of these people are Latinos in low income occupations. When companies in grocery stores business merge stores close hurting the local population. This is one piece of the cost of living stress faced by ordinary workers and families in 2024 where the government needs to take preventive action to ensure access to food supplies for communities.

LyrArc Article Gist
The step back to larger vehicles in the sales of automobiles in the US in 2010.

LyrArc Article Gist
How the Delta Pan Am merger is still a mess at JFK Terminal. Not a good sign for future mergers. Describes the results of prior mergers and shows a rather mixed record at best. Cites difficulties such as meshing computer reservation systems and facilities. Of major importance is the pride in their work and energy of the people involved, and how it be best tapped into, considering the experience of Continental and Gordon Bethune. America West's Doug Parker is trying to do this at US Airways, and Brazilian airline TAM is working with Varig assets.

LyrArc Article Gist
Greg Ip in the WSJ says president Biden's popularity has not surged because of lack of results in the fight against inflation. Yet inflation has been cut in half as reported in the WSJ recently, with May inflation of 4% in the US being about half of what it was at its peak of 9% in 2022.  Inflation is much worse in Europe. Biden policies that helped fight inflation included the Inflation Reduction Act to control health costs, the policies to keep Russian oil below a certain level that reduced oil prices to $75 a barrel, and the sequential interest rate increases by Jerome Powell at the Fed. The long term benefits of increased investment in manufacturing in the US for jobs growth, and competitive policy to gain US leadership in many technologies also provide for sound growth in the long term. 

LyrArc Article Gist
A WSJ survey of U.S. housing market prices and inventory in November 2013. Price gains moderated in the 3rd quarter of 2013. Gains were 1% in Orange County, 2% in San Diego, and 3% in San Francisco in the 3rd quarter 2013. Gains were over 20% in the 12 month period ending in September 2013 for San Francisco, Phoenix, San Diego, and Orange County, according to Zillow Inc, real estate website. Increase in interest rates on mortgages and rising prices have reduced the affordability of homes for new buyers.

LyrArc Article Gist
The Russian currency, the rouble crashed to 0.8 cents to the US dollar from 1.3 cents. It has now bounced back to 1.2 cents. Peter Coy of the NYT says this is the result of Russian oil and gas exports to Europe and other parts of the world which continued after sanctions for the invasion of Ukraine. The increase in oil prices from the war actually increased Russian oil revenues by a third. Another reason is the steps taken by the Russian government to ask for payment for energy supplies in roubles. 

LyrArc Article Gist
How is it that GM would predict sales close to 16 million when no one else sees that happening. Is it just optimistic, even in the face of last years forecast which also stumbled badly with no improvement in the second half as expected. Instead GM closes the year 2007 with sales down 6% over 2006. And much worse numbers for Ford which saw 12% decline, and Chrysler a 3% decline. Chrysler continues to sell to rental fleets. Toyota's and Honda's sales grew by 3.1 and 2.8% respectively. But this year 2008 Toyota doesn't expect to do well with only a 1% increase. Nissan and Hyundai are in the same straits as the Big Three American makers in inventory of cars and sell to rental car fleets. In terms of inventory per point of market share Nissan has excess production capacity and more cars as inventory, about 39,000 per point of Nissan's market share similar to the Big Three. Toyota and Honda have 28,000 per point of their market share.

LyrArc Article Gist
An enormous achievement of president Joe Biden and of the Federal Reserve's Powell goes unrecognized with the highest growth of any the economically developed nations by far in the US, as groups stuck in old frayed concepts of economic orthodoxy and wanting to keep as FDR said "their place in the economic order," work to denigrate this achievement. They have sold trickle down economics, broken some common sense rules about failures in indiscriminate use of tariffs from the 1930's, which will put at risk this remarkable growth in the US economy. And does the current economic leadership respect Rural White people, Republicans in Republican States Absolutely. It is sending the largest part of the IRA Act funds to these states. It is also standing up for workers and families even on the picket lines for higher wages, a better future for America. True it is that in 4 years the effects of problems that were unanticipated from the pandemic relief and the supply chain crisis with ensuing inflation and price gouging in groceries and essential items, have affected the most depressed groups in America including blacks and Latinos and rural White Americans. These also are largely in the process of being overcome.      ...

LyrArc Article Gist
Advertising is shifting to basic bread and butter products like Campbell soups, Kraft cheese, Post cereal and down for GM and Ford.

LyrArc Article Gist
Bilateral trade between China and Russia is down 31% for the first half of 2015, and Chinese investment in Russia down by 20%, according to Moscow Carnegie Center. This is a result of the fall in oil prices, declining demand for commodities in China, and the economic downturn in Russia. After the western sanctions on Russia Chinese investors are cautious about making investments. This means Russia's large expectations that this would act as an offset for economic relations with Germany and other western nations is not working out in reality. The contract for the second gas deal for gas from western Siberia, for which a memorandum was signed with China in Nov. 2014, was not signed during Putin's visit to Beijing in September 2015. Experts say the economic environment is not favorable for gas deals with the uncertain economic outlook in China.

LyrArc Article Gist
As Washington Post writer points out from personal experience- he is one of those who put up 15% to buy ahome inDenver at the top of the market and now has negative equity as prices drop- negative equity is one of the most serious problems facing the US economy. It has the potential to undo many of the encouraging things from the stimulus, as rising foreclosures continue to act as adrag on the overall economy. As he says about one fourth of Americans with home mortgages, or about 11-15 million people, owe more money on their homes than the market value of their homes. As Hoffman says the administration's approach has been a Band-Aid at best for a serious injury. The Obama administration set aside only $75 billion to get banks to modify loans and also made this voluntary for banks to modify loans. Treasury Secretary Geithner testified in Congress: "This is a conscious choice we made, not to start with principal reduction. We thought it would be dramatically more expensive for the American taxpayer, harder to justify, create much greater risk of unfairness." But making it voluntary means very little of this $75 billion has gone to help achieve modifications- banks had no incentives to do this. Only 31,000 permanent loan modifications have been made. Of the 750,000 temporary loan modifications made as of Dec 2009 only 4% of homeowners signing up have qualified for permanent federal relief. See the links to Martin Feldstein's proposals for this on the pages of the Wall Street Journal in 2008 and 2009 which called for aggressive program of relief for the sake of the economy. With 2.4 million Americans likely to lose their homes in 2009 according to Moody's Economy.com estimates, following the 2 million in 2009 and 1.7 million in 2008, this may be a serious mistake of the Obama administration and drag out this recovery....

LyrArc Article Gist
Automakers had U.S. sales of 1.2 million cars and light trucks in December, 2011, an increase of 8.7% over Dec. 2010, acccording to Autodata Corp. Total light vehicle sales for 2011 were 12.8 millon, an increase of 10.3% over 2010. Chrysler showed a 37% increase in Dec. 2011 over Dec. 2010, Ford 10%, and GM 4.6%. For 2011 Chrysler showed the biggest increase in sales over 2010 of 26%, followed by Ford at 11% and GM at 13%. Toyota's sales declined in 2011 by 6.7% to 1.64 million. Honda's sales for 2011 declined by 7.1% to 1.15 million. American manufacturers introduced new models in the small and midsize segments to take market share from the Japanese. Ford plans a new version of the Fusion and Chrysler will introduce the Dart in the small car segment. GM and Ford are forecasting auto sales above 13.5 million for 2012 in the U.S. market.

LyrArc Article Gist
Jaapanese companies like Nissan and cosmetics maker Shiseido moving to lower priced products to market to price conscious Japanese consumers and to growing middle class in other Asian countries.

LyrArc Article Gist
A prolonged bottom expected for housing market in the U.S. in Aril 2012, as bank financing is tight, borrowers are under water and many Americans do not have the funds to make the large downpayment. Many false starts in the housing market.

LyrArc Article Gist
Germany's growth rate for GDP in 2016 was 1.9% compared to 2015. This is the highest growth rate in half a decade, and better than 2015 when the growth in GDP was 1.7%. Fiscal surplus was 0.6% of GDP in 2016. Germany's Economics and Technology Ministry says the economy is improving because of the positive labor situation, rising incomes and consumer spending. Real estate boom is also helping growth, and also the state spending including on refugees accomodation. Exports have surged and the economy has recovered from the Brexit effect. Exports surged to 1.1 trillion euros in 11 months of 2016.