Stuff You Should Know
Aid for Hurricane Sandy Victims
In the days following Hurricane Sandy, efforts began to rebuild areas that had been hit the hardest, mostly New Jersey. Hometown celebrities like Bruce Springsteen and Jon Bon Jovi headlined benefit concerts. Victims filed insurance claims, while people all over the country dropped change into plastic tubs at gas stations and coffee shops. But how does the money get to those who need it most?
Many people donate to the Red Cross, or similar service organizations who arrive at the scene to provide critical and immediate care. Most homeowners have private insurance, which is money paid to an insurance company each month that will be given back to help pay for items destroyed in an emergency. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency of the U.S. government that uses federal funds to provide temporary housing and property repairs and replacement for those living in places officially declared a “disaster area” by the government. All twenty-one counties in New Jersey were granted this label.
On January 4th, Congress passed $9.7 billion relief package to fund the National Flood Insurance program, managed by FEMA. In addition to helping homeowners and businesses, the money will also be used to repair transportation systems, bridges, tunnels and shorelines. It will also help cover overtime costs for police and fire departments. There have already been over 100,000 claims filed from people who need assistance.
Dig Deeper–Do some research on past disaster relief (9/11, Hurricane Katrina, the 2004 Japanese tsunami, for example). List which efforts experts considered successful or unsuccessful and why. Do you have an emergency kit of supplies at home? If so, what is in it? If not, do some research and make a list of what should be included.
Pricey Way to Start the Day
How much would YOU be willing to pay for some “exotic” coffee?
How much would you pay for a plain, no-frills cup of coffee? Starbucks is hoping you’ll answer $7! Late last year, the popular chain introduced its most expensive coffee ever. Costa Rica Finca Palmilera is part of its limited edition, specialty “reserve” line. It costs so much because it is made from a rare and delicate coffee bean called Geisha, named after a city in Ethiopia–considered the birthplace of coffee where it was originally discovered. The high price is based more on the scarcity of the supply, not necessarily the quality of the beans. Starbucks only had 3,800 pounds, the total amount harvested from La Candelia Estates in Costa Rica.
The Costa Rica Finca Palmilera is currently only available in 48 Starbucks locations across the United States. (Half of them are located in Seattle, Washington, the headquarters of the coffee company.) The fancy brew has already created quite a buzz. A company spokesperson suggested that sensitive types might pick up flowers, fruits, and other complex flavor combinations in the coffee.
What Do You Think? Would you be willing to spend $7 to see if this coffee is better than regular? If you don’t like coffee, can you think of another product (soda, sports drink, snack) that you would be willing to try if it had a special edition or specialty version?
Steady and Optimistic Growth: A U.S. Economy Update
Financial experts had been concerned that the recent “fiscal cliff” negotiations might make employers slow to hire new employees. However, the U.S. workforce added 155,000 new jobs last month, which is 5,000 more than expected. The healthcare field showed the highest growth (55,000 positions), followed by the service industry, such as restaurants and consumer stores (38,000 jobs), construction (30,000), and manufacturing (25,000 new jobs) rounding out the top four categories. The unemployment rate remains steady at 7.8%, since it fell under 8% just before the election. The Jobs Report, issued monthly by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, show that more people entered the job market last month, which means Americans are feeling optimistic.
The holiday shopping season always adds a boost to year-end sales, and 2012 was no different. While Black Friday sales were down 1.8% from $11.2 billion last year, sales on Cyber Monday were up 19% to bring in $1.98 million more than last year. The “big three” U.S. automakers (Ford, General Motors and Chrysler) are reporting continued growth and strongest year since 2007.
Despite the significant repair to the financial crisis and the continued growth, economists say that our recovery from the recession is slow and still uncertain. With Congress still in talks about cuts in government spending, and the possibility of an inflation surge caused by recent actions of the Federal Reserve, only time will determine if how far we have come and how far we have to go.
Dig Deeper–Follow this story, gathering opinions from experts in different fields (economics, politics, business). Note the areas where they agree and where they differ.
Al Jazeera Acquires U.S. Cable Network
On January 2, the Middle Eastern broadcasting company, Al Jazeera Media Network, announced that it had purchased Current TV for $500 million. (Current TV was founded by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore in 2005.) The Current TV network will be renamed Al Jazeera America, and will replace it’s existing programing with original content of its own. This deal will extend Al Jazeera’s reach from 4.7 million homes in mostly in New York and Washington D.C. to 40 million across the United States. The broadcaster, headquartered in Qatar and run by that country’s government, wishes to compete with CNN, MSNBC, Fox News and the BBC as a source for international news.
The recent deal has caused a great deal of controversy. The news channel has, in the past, been accused of being anti-American and sympathetic to the terrorist group al-Qaeda. It has struggled to find an audience in the United States because many cable and satellite companies have been reluctant to carry it. However, in recent years, the network has gained credibility as a legitimate news outlet, earning a number of journalistic awards, including the “cable network of the year” award from the Royal Television Society and a Peabody Award for it’s coverage of the Arab Spring.