Your $tock Mom

“Virtually, you can do anything with LED technology, because it’s computer controllable.” Depending on how many hours the light bulb product is actually in use, it will last 25 years in your home – 25,000 to 30,000 hours.  “When we talk about LED technology … the one I have right here in my hand … uses the same exact technology as the [Times Square] ball behind me, uses 80% less energy than the incandescent bulb it replaces; so it actually saves you money.” – Ed Crawford, CEO of Philips Lamps, …

“How healthy is the American workforce, and what can you expect in 2012 if you’re looking for a job?” – A conversation with workplace guru Daniel Pink, author of Drive, to get his predictions on what jobs are needed going forward; what jobs are becoming obsolete; how risk is shifting from the corporations to the individual – pensions, health care, education; the trends toward skills and abilities that are harder to outsource and automate; and, how our nation’s policies are not keeping pace with these transitions and the irrelevancy of …

“From now thru end of 2014, or even 2015, there are going to be over a million properties that are bank owned, in other words, REO properties. And what that tells you is, at least from the supply side, is that there’s an enormous amount of housing that is out there ready to be consumed, so to speak.  And unless there’s a corresponding increase in demand, you can count on the fact that house prices will be under serious downward pressure.”
Translated into losses in terms of the national average that you …

Understanding the US debt in terms of the average American family budget, reminiscent of the movie Dave.
“Think back to third, fourth grade math, things like reducing fractions, common denominators; that’s how we’re gonna make trillions make sense,” says CNBC’s Rick Santelli; who looks at the national debt clock, total U.S. tax revenues, and the U.S. budget to make sense of the numbers by itemizing them in terms of the average American family budget.
(video 1:47)

“… the question we should all ask is:  What would make this economy grow? What has stopped it from growing much over the last few years – indeed over much of the last decade?
One theory heard a lot these days is that the economy is burdened by excessive government regulation, interference and taxes. Cut them, the Republican candidates all say, and the economy will be unleashed.
It’s a compelling picture, but the data simply do not support it. ” – Fareed Zakaria
(video 3:36)

Zakaria: The real burden on the U.S. economy
By …

At the EU summit, the two leaders of the European commission and the European council believe 26 of 27 members will join in a new treaty tying finances together in an effort to solve that region’s financial crisis, where at least 23 countries out of the 27 have signed on.  Britain is the lone holdout.
(video 2:37)

Tracking Unclaimed Benefits From Pension Plans and Past Employers
CNBC’s Sharon Epperson’s “New Retirement” segment shows workers how to track all the retirement funds they have coming to them.
(video 2:13)

UPDATE:  December 11, 2011
Postmaster general and CEO, Patrick Donahoe talks about the future of the postal service amid major cuts to its service.
(video 4:34)

(video 0:59)

Postal Service Progresses With Operational Efficiencies
Proposal to Change Service Standards Filed with PRC
December 05, 2011
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Postal Service today announced it will move forward with its proposal to change service standards. This action is being taken in response to on-going financial challenges caused by the dramatic and continual decline in First-Class Mail volume and the resulting revenue loss.
“The U.S. Postal Service must reduce …