Thursday, January 8, 2009

US Businesses Face Pension Shortfall

Reuters UK has reported that US Business pension plans have $1.21 trillion in assets and face $1.62 trillion in liabilities in the coming year. This gives US businesses a $409 billion deficit in their pension plans which will be sure to hurt earnings of US businesses, and, as the article states "this will reduce balance sheet strength and could affect companies' ability to make capital expenses, meet loan covenants and preserve their credit ratings."

You can read the article here.

14 comments:

Douglas Porter said...

Oh, goody, now workers are going to lose their pensions because of the deregulatinist policies of the Bush regime and its allies (Ron Paul).

Josh said...

Bush wanted to regulate the mortgage industry...Barney Frank stopped him...

Douglas Porter said...

I DONT CARE WHO DID IT JOSH! IT WAS DEREGULATED BASED THE DOMINANT DEREGULATIONIST PUSH IN YOUR PARTY.

Josh said...

"I DONT CARE WHO DID IT JOSH! IT WAS DEREGULATED BASED THE DOMINANT DEREGULATIONIST PUSH IN YOUR PARTY."

Please provide an example of legislation that deregulated the market.

Douglas Porter said...

"Please provide an example of legislation that deregulated the market."

*Sigh* Mexico has some of the most regulatory laws in the world, but they are not efforced. Why? Because the elites in power chose not to enforce them. Bush is the same.

Josh said...

"*Sigh* Mexico has some of the most regulatory laws in the world, but they are not efforced. Why? Because the elites in power chose not to enforce them. Bush is the same."

Can you give an example of Bush not enforcing them?

Also, if government does a poor job enforcing its own laws, it demonstrates once again why it serves to noone's benefit for government to have this power.

Douglas Porter said...

"Can you give an example of Bush not enforcing them?"

The last eight years. Environmental, economic, labor, and product regulations. The Bush administration is famous for not enforcing regulations. BEING LAX>

"Also, if government does a poor job enforcing its own laws, it demonstrates once again why it serves to noone's benefit for government to have this power."

No, it demonstrates that we need to kick out those are for deregulation as a fundamental article of Faith.

Josh said...

"The last eight years. Environmental, economic, labor, and product regulations. The Bush administration is famous for not enforcing regulations."

I'm not asking about what the media has made Bush famous for, I'm asking you to support your statement. If you cannot provide evidence of this your argument falls apart. So please, evidence?

"No, it demonstrates that we need to kick out those are for deregulation as a fundamental article of Faith."

That those who do not use power wisely can obtain power is exactly why the power should not be granted in the first place. Otherwise, we wouldn't need a legislative body, we would just need an elected king with limitless power. If all we need is the RIGHT King than make sure we elect the RIGHT King and give him limitless power; and by your logic, when the king is bad, he should be kicked out. That he is elected is the only check and balance needed, because then the people have the ultimate power, or so goes your logic. Easier said than done though, right?

Douglas Porter said...

"I'm not asking about what the media has made Bush famous for, I'm asking you to support your statement. If you cannot provide evidence of this your argument falls apart. So please, evidence?"

http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/0829-02.htm

http://articles.latimes.com/2006/feb/19/nation/na-preempt19

"
That those who do not use power wisely can obtain power is exactly why the power should not be granted in the first place. Otherwise, we wouldn't need a legislative body, we would just need an elected king with limitless power. If all we need is the RIGHT King than make sure we elect the RIGHT King and give him limitless power; and by your logic, when the king is bad, he should be kicked out. That he is elected is the only check and balance needed, because then the people have the ultimate power, or so goes your logic. Easier said than done though, right?"

I see you are a little pissed off that I called you out on your libertarian authoritarianism.

Yes, welcome to democratic rule.

Josh said...

"I see you are a little pissed off that I called you out on your libertarian authoritarianism."

I'm still not sure what this means.

"Yes, welcome to democratic rule."

So you admit there is a problem with government having as much power as it does?

"Had the Bush administration decided that carbon dioxide is a pollutant and harmful, it could have required expensive new pollution controls on new cars and perhaps on power plants, which together are the main sources of so-called greenhouse gases."

This would help to save those jobs in Detroit. Don't reference global warming stuff. I'm too skeptical, for all I know Bush could be right, CO2 isn't doesn't cause climate change. Also, there is nothing in this article that suggests this particular deregulation caused the financial collapse or recession.

"But safety regulators tucked into the proposed rule something vehicle makers have long desired: protection from future roof-crush lawsuits like the one Parker filed."

So. . . I ask for evidence of deregulation, you link an article that shows the corruptness of government regulation. The government has essentially regulated the justice department from doing its job. This piece of legislation prevents the government from doing one thing it should be able to do, allow a citizen when they've been wrong. If it can be proven that a flaw in the construction of the truck caused the injury, than the citizen should be able to take the company to court for it.

Do you have any examples of actual deregulation, and deregulation that had anything to do with the financial collapse?

Douglas Porter said...

"So you admit there is a problem with government having as much power as it does?
"

No, not at all. The alternatives do not all for the type of world you envision. There is authoritarianism of some stripe, democracy of some stripe, and anarchism. I pick democracy.

"This would help to save those jobs in Detroit. Don't reference global warming stuff. I'm too skeptical, for all I know Bush could be right, CO2 isn't doesn't cause climate change. Also, there is nothing in this article that suggests this particular deregulation caused the financial collapse or recession."

It's an example of Bush deregulating by doing nothing.

"Do you have any examples of actual deregulation, and deregulation that had anything to do with the financial collapse?"

The Republican party's deregulationist philosophy and THEIR GOVERNMENT OF THE LAST 8 YEARS. Which means, the Bush government was the custodian of the regulations. If they decided to do nothing, which they did, then that inaction amounts to de facto deregulation.

Josh said...

"There is authoritarianism of some stripe, democracy of some stripe, and anarchism. I pick democracy"
You need a greater imagination.
"It's an example of Bush deregulating by doing nothing"
It doesn't support your argument.

So, no evidence?

Douglas Porter said...

"You need a greater imagination."

Do you mean authoritarian libertarianism? If not, could you describe your alternative to republican democracy?

"It doesn't support your argument."

Ah, yes, it does.

Douglas Porter said...

That's a big reason the Republicons are getting the boot. Slow response to Katrina, lack of regulation in all departments, and lack of regulation in the FDA, which has led to many poisonings and deaths.