Financial Reflections

I’ve been away from the blog for a month now, and that’s clearly not a good thing. The world of finance goes on, and so do my own personal finances. So what’s been keeping me so busy?

Divorces, pitchforks, and bears, oh my! It’s another crazy week. Here’s this week’s collection of five financial stories that caught my eye on social news site Afternoon Rally and other spots around the web.

When a lender gets an investment from someone besides the government, people take notice. Today it was announced that LendingClub is getting $12 million in venture capital money to help it keep growing. That’s big news when traditional financial institutions are taking billions just to stay in business.

Ideas are cheap. At least that’s what I’m told, but people will struggle for a long time to come up with the idea that will launch a new business into the stratosphere. It’s a given that some ideas are indeed better than others, but how much is an idea really worth?

Here’s a chance for you to save money and make money at the same time. I was looking at my Wachovia online banking account and saw that they are offering $25 for opening a new checking account.

The blog Free Money Finance runs a contest they call “Free Money Finance March Madness” where they pair off personal finance blog entries and have readers vote on which they thought was the best.
FMF was kind enough to accept my entry What Makes Kids Happy as an entry and today it is in the second round of the competition. [...]

This week’s collection of five financial stories that caught my eye on social news site Afternoon Rally and other spots around the web.

It’s funny how a story can be told in just a few pictures. In this case, two stock charts can sum up the recession. GM actually questioned it’s own ability to survive today, leaving Chevy owners like Green Bay Packer fans after Brett Favre was traded. It was a great run, but you knew an era was over.

When the FTC talks, Google and Facebook listen. I wote earlier on what the Federal Trade Comission is calling “Economic Stimulus Scams” and thought I’d call into the FTC’s press conference to get the details on how they are handling the issue. Here’s what I learned.

When the Federal Trade Commission calls a special press conference, you know something’s up. You may have seen one of the hundreds of ads with President Obama’s image and often a shot of a stimulus check. They offer a way to get some of the billions the government is handing out. Well the FTC has had enough and is holding a press conference to show what they call “Economic Stimulus Scams.” So what’s all the fuss about?

You might have noticed a new addition to the blog. I added a Skribit widget not long ago and thought I’d point out how it can help you get topics you’re interested in on the blog.
It’s pretty simple.  You put topics you’d like me to write about in the widget (in the sidebar over to [...]