Cafferty File: Goldman Sachs may make its largest bonus payouts ever

Crooks and Liars has the video. Here's a snippet of Cafferty:

Goldman Sachs is on track to make the biggest bonus payouts in the company’s 140-year history — according to a report in the British newspaper ‘The Guardian’. Goldman staff in London were reportedly told that they could expect record bonuses if the company — as predicted — has its most profitable year ever.The investment bank’s earnings are up for several reasons — including a lack of competition, along with increased revenue from trading foreign currency, bonds and fixed income products.

Just last week Goldman Sachs repaid the government the $10 billion in TARP money it had received — which would leave it free to do whatever it wants. Yet the company is denying these reports about record bonuses, calling them “pure speculation.” They say they won’t know what bonuses will be until the end of December.

But the company’s CEO told lawmakers recently that the firm is obligated to “ensure that compensation reflects the true performance of the firm and motivates proper behavior.”

Critics say the culture of excessive risk and excessive bonuses is what brought down the financial system in the first place. Also, in light of the ongoing recession, record unemployment, foreclosures and a whole range of economic woes… some might wonder if this would be the best time for Goldman to pay out record bonuses.

It’s believed the firm paid $1 million or more to nearly 1,000 bankers last year.

Read the rest of this post...

Well aren't they?

Of course they're part of the family! They are just a little furrier.

An Associated Press-Petside.com poll released Tuesday found that half of all American pet owners consider their pets as much a part of the family as any other person in the household; another 36 percent said their pet is part of the family but not a full member.

And that means pets often get the human touch: Most pet owners cop to feeding animals human food, nearly half give the animals human names and nearly a third let them sleep in a human bed. While just 19 percent had bought an outfit for a pet, 43 percent felt their pet had its own "sense of style."

Read the rest of this post...

Palin praises mining waste dump ruling

Ever the environmentalist...

A mining company was given the go-ahead by the Supreme Court on Monday to dump waste from an Alaskan gold mine into a nearby 23-acre lake, although the material will kill all of the lake's fish.

The court said that the federal government acted legally in declaring the waste left after metals are extracted from the ore as "fill material" allowing a federal permit without meeting more stringent requirements from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under the Clean Water Act.

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin called the decision "great news for Alaska" and said it "is a green light for responsible resource development." The Kensington gold mine 45 miles north of Juneau will produce as many as 370 jobs when it begins operation.

But environmentalists feared the ruling could lead to a broader easing of requirements on how companies dispose of their mining waste.

Read the rest of this post...

Obama won't use executive power to end gay discharges -- despite request from 77 members of Congress

Via Kerry Eleveld from The Advocate, the White House once again made it very clear that the President will continue to refuse to put an immediate stop the Don't Ask Don't Tell discharges via a stop-loss order - he will only consider a legislative solution, meaning, let someone else take the blame:

The White House has responded to an inquiry from The Advocate about a letter sent from 77 House members Monday urging President Barack Obama to take immediate action to stop the investigations of "don't ask, don't tell" violations.

"President Obama remains committed to a legislative repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell, which he believes will provide a durable and lasting solution to this issue. He welcomes the commitment of these members to seeing Congress take action," read the statement.

There's no explanation why the President won't use his executive authority to stop gays and lesbians from being kicked out of the military pending the legislative repeal. Apparently, we don't warrant an in-depth explanation as to why the president refuses to intervene. Interestingly, as John reported earlier today, the Obama administration is intervening to stop enforcement of an immigration law, requiring the deportation of foreign-born spouses when their husband or wife dies before they get citizenship, pending the legislative fix some time in the future.

(NOTE FROM JOHN: So the notion of Obama not wanting to intervene in contravention of US law pending legislative fixes has now been shown to be absolutely bogus. Also bogus is the notion, presented earlier by the White House, and formerly gay Congressman Barney Frank, that were the president to oppose DOMA in court, that would somehow fly in the face of US law, and good Democratic presidents always enforce US law - ALWAYS - lest they be like George Bush and Atilla the Hun, who didn't enforce US law. Except, of course, now the Obama administration has refused to enforce US law as it applies to foreigners. And I love foreigners. But wouldn't it be neat if they had it in themselves to help Americans too? )

What's most bizarre about the behavior of the White House is that this is not even a controversial issue:

The finding that majorities of weekly churchgoers (60%), conservatives (58%), and Republicans (58%) now favor what essentially equates to repealing the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy implemented under President Clinton in 1993 is noteworthy for several reasons. First, the data show that these traditionally conservative groups are shifting on this issue, supporting it to a far greater extent than they support legalized gay marriage. Second, it suggests the political playing field may be softer on this issue, and President Barack Obama will be well-positioned to forge ahead with his campaign promise to end the military ban on openly gay service members with some support from more conservative segments of the population. To date, it is estimated that more than 12,500 servicemen and servicewomen have been discharged under the policy, including more than 200 since Obama took office.

SLDN estimates that the number discharged under Obama is now at 262. Those are the people Obama should be inviting to the White House next week, not the rich, well-connected "A-list" gays and lesbians. These discharged members have had their lives ruined by the policy, but they want to serve their nation and Obama, who has the power to stop it, won't let them. The President should look those men and women in the face and explain why. Now, that would be in keeping with the spirit of Stonewall.

We keep coming back to the question: What is motivating the White House on gay issues? It looks more and more like the kind of cynical politics we were promised wouldn't be part of the Obama White House. But, what else could we expect when he staffed the West Wing with craven politicos. We really get the sense that some people over there don't mind having the gays upset with the White House. Read the rest of this post...

Missing Governor Sanford seen getting on a plane in Atlanta according to SC TV station

Okay, I'll admit to being a tad obsessed with the missing Governor Sanford story. It sure beats Jon & Kate. Late this afternoon, the plot thickened again. Here's a new twist from WYFF, the NBC affilate in Greenville, South Carolina:

On Tuesday, sources told News 4's Nigel Robertson that a state vehicle is missing and was tracked down, not to the Appalachian Trail, but to the Hartsfield-Jackson Airport in Atlanta.

Sources told Robertson that a federal agent spotted Sanford in the airport boarding a plane. Robertson was told that the governor was not accompanied by security detail.

Sanford has been out of reach for more than four days, including Father's Day.

Sawyer has emphasized that the governor was hiking on the Appalachian Trail and that it wasn't something the staff or Jenny Sanford were concerned about.

But sources told WYFF News 4 that the federal agent who spotted Sanford saw him at the Atlanta airport, which is about 80 miles from the start of the trail.

WYFF News 4 has not yet confirmed where the plane was going or how the governor got to the airport, but it is clear there are two very different stories.

News 4 called the governor's office, and was told again by staffers that they stand by their original statement that the governor is hiking the Appalachian Trail. They did not want to comment on this story.

Someone has some explaining to do. This is going to be one doozy of a press conference -- when, and if, Sanford ever returns.

And, it's probably not a good thing when another station has this as its question-of-the-day:

The question is, should the governor be able to take a vacation without communicating with his staff and leaving someone else in charge?

I might have added that he didn't communicate with his wife and kids either. Read the rest of this post...

Sarkozy: Burqas no longer welcome in France

Interesting bit of news from France. The French president said in a speech yesterday that burqas, the head to toe black gown worn by some more devout Muslim women, is no longer welcome in France. Sarkozy stopped short of actually calling for the burqa to be outlawed, though France did outlaw head scarves in public (state) schools (and after a controversy erupted, they banned all "conspicuous signs" of religion). Sarkozy, interestingly, says he's opposed to the burqa not because of a fear of militant Islam, but rather because he says it oppresses women.

I'm always fascinated by the burqa. From a westerner's eye, it does seem awfully oppressive - imagine being covered, head to toe, in black in 120 degree heat. Is Sarkozy right, is this a women's rights issue? Is it about religious freedom? Are we judging other cultures where we have no right? Should a president be even commenting on this? Read the rest of this post...

Poll: Confidence in stimulus plan ebbs

The Republicans made it their mission, these past several months, to trash the stimulus plan as wasteful, and too expensive. The Democratic counteroffensive? Non-existent, as far as we know.

This plays into a larger pattern that I've been writing about. A desire by the Obama administration to go it alone. They don't believe that they need allies in order to win, or to sustain a past victory. During the battle over passage of the stimulus package, even when it started looking bad, no one from the administration asked for our help, or the collective help of the blogosphere, as far as I know. As a reader of ours noted at the time, could you imagine a Republican administration not asking for the help of right-wing talk radio and FOX News on of the most important pieces of legislation of their presidency? Similarly on health care - the blog outreach has been non-existent from the administration. It is only their most important piece of legislation these four years, other than the stimulus package.

This administration believes in political autarky, and has elevated "going it alone" almost to a religion. They not only don't seek the help of the left, they seem somewhat turned off by the very existence of the political left, of progressives, and even, as we've seen, of the gays - of any Democrat to the left of Joe Lieberman.

And that is why, I think, they're now having problems with public support for the stimulus. There's a level of hubris involved. They know they're right, and they know they're smarter than you. So they don't think they need anyone else's help to win, and they don't need anyone else's help to maintain that victory after the fact. At its most basic level, they don't think they need friends and allies, at least not friends on the left. And as a result, we may already be watching their legacy begin to unravel.

Hopefully they can keep the upper hand on the stimulus and on health care reform. But the notion that they insist on doing so without friends remains troubling. Read the rest of this post...

UPDATED: Victory Fund's Chuck Wolfe won't attend DNC gay fundraiser

6:58 PM: Pam Spaulding has the report that Chuck Wolfe from the Victory Fund is out.

The current list of those still attending, as far as we know, and those who have pulled out:

NOT ATTENDING BUT HAVE LENT THEIR NAME:

Suze Orman
Elizabeth Birch

ATTENDING:

Virginia Governor / DNC Chair Tim Kaine
Former DNC Chair Howard Dean
Chairman Barney Frank
Representatives Tammy Baldwin and Jared Polis
District of Columbia Mayor Adrian Fenty
NBJC's Alexander Robinson (while NBJC has said that none of their board of directors will be attending, it's not clear what Robinson's current role is with the organization, nor whether he has yet decided whether to pull out or not)
GMHC's Marjorie Hill
Iraq Marine vet Brian Fricke (whom you may have seen on 60 Minutes)
Billy Bean
Former GLAAD head Joan Garry
Keith Boykin
Ray Buckley
Brian Johnson
Former SLDN head Dixon Osburn
Paul Smith
Mitchell Gold (who says he's going to bring copies of his new book and make it a teaching moment)
Krystal Bal

DROPPED:

Vermont Senate President Pete Shumlin
David Mixner
Richard Socarides
The Task Force's Rea Carey
HRC's Marty Rouse
ESPA's Alan Van Capelle
GLAD's Mary Bonauto
Towle Road's Andy Towle
Corey Johnson
Bruce Bastian
Hilary Rosen
The Victory Fund's Chuck Wolfe Read the rest of this post...

Murdoch's News Corp hurting again

The bounces have not gone in his favor lately. MySpace isn't what it used to be but then again, what ever was it in the first place? Reuters:

MySpace, the social network owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., said it plans to cut about two-thirds of its international workforce and close at least four of its offices outside the United States.

The proposed move comes a week after it said it will cut 30 percent of its staff. Roughly half of MySpace's total user base comes from outside the United States.

Rival Facebook's worldwide user base is more than double that of MySpace, according to market researcher comScore.

Read the rest of this post...

Obama's press conference

The president is doing a press conference from the Brady press briefing room right now. It was initially scheduled for the Rose Garden, but got moved this morning. That briefing room is pretty small so they're in cramped quarters.

Obama made introductory remarks about Iran, energy and health care.

The second question went to Nico Pitney from Huffington Post. Obama noted how the internet had played a critical role in getting info. out of Iran. Nico, as we've said many times, has done an amazing job covering Iran -- and the President acknowledged that. Nico asked a question from an Iranian. (One wonders if the president noted the same role the internet has played in discussing his administration's DOMA brief.)

I'll keep monitoring the press conference for anything really interesting....

Key points, as of 1:05 PM: The media may be on a 24-hours news cycle on Iran, the president isn't.

And, while Obama stands by the public plan for health care reform, but won't say it's a non-negotiable position. He won't draw lines in the sand. (When dealing with nitwits people on Capitol Hill, I think it helps to draw lines in the sand.)

News flash: Obama doesn't smoke in front of his family, but he has one every now and then.

1:25 PM: The press conference is over. Iran, health care and the economy dominated. No gay questions. There hasn't been one LGBT-related question in any of Obama's pressers so far. Not one. Obama, however, did cite, once again, Martin Luther King's quote:

"The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice."

Bend it faster. Read the rest of this post...

Obama admin refusing to enforce immigration law

No, not the HIV travel ban - they're still enforcing that. It's another immigration law that unfairly deports the foreign-born spouses of Americans who die in the first years of their marriage. The Obama administration is going to defer enforcement of that law until Congress can fix it in a few years.

Then why not defer enforcement of the HIV ban? Why not defer the deportation of the foreign-born partners of gay Americans? Why not defer enforcement of Don't Ask Don't Tell with a stop-loss order? Why not defer filing anti-gay briefs in support of DOMA? We've been told that in each case it's because "it's the law, and there's nothing President Obama can do when a law tells him what to do." And, Obama also adds that it would be inappropriate to order a stop-gap solution now, short of a full legislation fix. Same thing for health benefits for same-sex couples who federal employees. Remember, they said DOMA prevents that.

Actually, we now know that the only time President Obama pleads impotence, the only time our president refuses to lift a finger in the face of the law, is when the victim is gay.

So, in a nutshell, they lied to us again. Read the rest of this post...

Ed McMahon has died at 86

Another piece of my child, gone. Read the rest of this post...

Missing Governor of South Carolina whereabouts have been reported -- kinda

UPDATE: Sam Stein over at Huff Post reports that Sanford's hiking trail got stimulus money that he opposed.

Mark Sanford, the Republican Governor of South Carolina, isn't exactly missing anymore, but he hasn't exactly been seen. His office claims the Governor is hiking on the Appalachian Trail (coincidentally he was hiking on "Naked Hiking Day" - hmmm, and he didn't anyone to know he was there). But, it's probably not a good thing when the newspaper in the state capitol includes a section on "Law of Succession."

And, aren't these GOPers all supposed to be family-friendly? Sanford has already been invited to speak at the right wing "Value Voters Summit" sponsored by FRCAction, "the Legislative arm of Family Research Council." Maybe he can tell them what kind of dad dumps his kids for some time by himself over Father's Day weekend?:

First lady Jenny Sanford said Monday her husband has been gone for several days over Father’s Day weekend - including Father's Day itself - and she did not know where.

She said she was not concerned.

“He was writing something and wanted some space to get away from the kids,” Jenny Sanford told The Associated Press while vacationing with the couple’s four sons at their Sullivan’s Island beach house.

Be interesting to see what Sanford was writing on the Appalachian Trail. This whole episode reeks. Or, as the chief of staff to a former S.C. Republican Governor put it:

“It’s very disconcerting.”

Indeed, it is. One of our readers, KarenMrsLloydRichards wrote a haiku about this episode:

A sad Father's Day . . .
The kids made cards, wrapped a tie.
Dad's "clearing his head."

Read the rest of this post...

In NJ, Corzine is proactively campaigning on marriage equality

Over the weekend, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that New Jersey's Governor, Jon Corzine, has made support for marriage equality a key part of his re-election effort:

Gov. Corzine has made "marriage equality" for gays and lesbians a prominent piece of his reelection campaign, taking another step in his conversion on the issue and encouraging gay-rights advocates who hope to see same-sex marriage approved in New Jersey this year.

In public speeches and private appearances, Corzine, who as recently as 2006 said he believed marriage should be between a man and a woman, has touted his support of same-sex marriage.

In raising the issue, he has tried to draw a bright-line divide with his Republican opponent, Christopher J. Christie, who has said he would veto a bill allowing gay and lesbian couples to wed.

"We believe that government should allow people the freedom to marry whomever they love," Corzine said in his general-election kickoff speech June 2.

This isn't an academic exercise in New Jersey. The state legislature will be taking a vote on marriage during the New Jersey Legislature's lame-duck session -- meaning after the November elections. A win by Corzine will give great momentum to that legislation. A loss to right-winger, anti-equality Chris Christie...well, let's not go there. Corzine has to win. Not many elected officials have run vocally on the marriage issue -- especially state-wide.

After what we've been through the past couple weeks, I'll admit to being skeptical of politicians who are cozying up to "the gays." But, pro-actively campaigning on marriage equality by a governor who can help make it happen -- that gets my attention. Corzine wants to make marriage equality an issue in this race. As important, Garden State Equality, the NJ-based LGBT equality organization, has endorsed Corzine quite strongly -- and they're hard-asses (in a good way). From a Garden State Equality email:

When Garden State Equality endorses a candidate, as we've done in endorsing Governor Corzine for reelection, we don't do so out of reflexive loyalty to any one political party.

The reality is, most Democrats are overwhelmingly better than most Republicans on LGBT and all other civil rights issues. That's why Garden State Equality usually endorses Democrats.

But where a Democrat takes our support for granted, or where a Republican is better than a Democrat on our issues, we say so loudly. Just last week, you'll recall, we strongly criticized President Obama for his disappointing record on LGBT issues.

And over the years, we have endorsed members of both political parties.

But in the 2009 election for Governor, there is no contest: Corzine by a mile.

By a mile.

You can watch video of Governor Corzine campaigning at a gay pride event -- and making it very, very clear he supports marriage equality here. It's pretty clear that Corzine himself -- unprompted -- is the one making marriage an issue. He wants to talk about it. He's not coming up with convoluted excuses, like so many pols do. This is the future. And, more Democratic candidates need to stand up and be upfront about their support for what's right.

Importantly, Corzine isn't just talking about marriage in front of LGBT audiences. As the Inquirer piece noted, Corzine made a pro-marriage equality statement in his June 2nd primary night victory speech. At the about the :30 mark, watch Joe Biden clap right along as Corzine talks about marriage equality:

Now, we need to see Biden clapping behind Obama when he finally endorses marriage equality. Read the rest of this post...

Senator Ensign is back in DC. Expect a rousing ovation from his GOP colleagues today.

Senator John Ensign has returned to the Capitol following his admission of an affair with a staffer. New details about that affair keep emerging. It's very shady:

Ensign aides and an attorney for the Hamptons engaged in an escalating series of accusations last week, including a claim by Ensign’s office that an attorney for the Hamptons was making “exorbitant demands for cash and other financial benefits” from the senator.

Doug Hampton wrote to Fox News on June 11, offering details to the network on his wife’s relationship with the senator and the personal fallout the couple suffered from the affair. Five days later, Ensign held a Las Vegas press conference during which he disclosed his romantic relationship with Cindy Hampton.

This one is far from over.

But, if history is any precedent, Ensign will receive a very warm welcome from his GOP colleagues today at the weekly Tuesday caucus luncheon. That's what happened to David Vitter, fresh from his prostitute scandal. According to USAToday, Vitter "received a round of applause audible outside the room." The Hill called what Vitter got "thunderous applause."

On the other hand, Larry Craig was shunned. Read the rest of this post...

Tuesday Morning Open Thread

Good morning.

D.C. is in a bit of a state of shock over the Metro accident. This morning, we awoke to the news that nine people have died as a result of the crash. Just about everyone in D.C. takes the Metro at one time or another. Today's Washington Post reported:

Metro was designed with a fail-safe computerized signal system that is supposed to prevent trains from colliding.

Something failed badly. D.C. is a small enough city that when something big like this crash happens, there are repercussions around the whole city -- particularly for commuting.

Today, the President is holding a news conference at 12:30 P.M. No doubt, the press corps will have questions about health care and Iran. But, sure would be great to hear Obama himself on "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" or the DOMA brief. We'll be watching.

Let's get it started... Read the rest of this post...

GOP falsely distorts climate bill costs

Predictable but they've never been very good with economics. Boehner and company were quick to add in job loss numbers - numbers that have been rejected by the author of the report they cite - but they still ignore the health care costs associated with climate damage. Obviously there is a cost to the climate bill but it's very small compared to the cost of not taking action. Maybe public health care freeloaders like Boehner don't see the costs, but that's not the case for everyone else. Washington Post:

GOP leaders have tried to portray the proposal as placing a heavy cost on Americans. Boehner has asserted that the bill would raise annual energy costs by $3,128 per household in 2015 and would drive jobs out of the country. He said in an April 2 news release that that figure did not include higher costs for food and consumer goods and services. The conservative Heritage Foundation has asserted that the cost could reach $4,300 a year.

Boehner's office said that it extrapolated its per-household figure from a two-year-old study of a cap-and-trade bill co-sponsored by then-Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.). That study, by John M. Reilly, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor, said that a cap-and-trade bill could generate $366 billion a year in revenue and that the GOP leader's office said it simply divided that by the number of households expected in 2015.

Afterward, Reilly sent a letter to Boehner accusing him of inflating the cost 10-fold by ignoring the offsetting benefits, such as tax cuts and free allowances, that are part of the current Waxman-Markey bill embraced by President Obama. Reilly said that the measure's cost for a family of four, in today's dollars, starts at about $75 in 2015, rises to nearly $510 by 2025, and then falls to $205 by 2050 as new technology works its way into power plants, building efficiency and automobiles. The average overall cost would be about $340 a year, he said.

Read the rest of this post...

World Bank: 'global recession has deepened'

The conflicting reports continue but that's to be expected during such a crisis. There is no clear consensus on direction and there won't be any time soon. It's still amazing to listen to Republicans grumbling about the stimulus as if it wasn't necessary and that it hasn't worked after a few months. This World Bank report is the worst on record - far worse than previously expected - and the global economy does not turn on a dime. The GOP only highlights what complete buffoons they are when they scream about the stimulus. This could have been much worse and even now, it could get worse.

The World Bank has cut its 2009 global growth forecast, saying the world economy will shrink by 2.9 percent and warning that a drop in investment in developing countries will increase poverty.

"The global recession has deepened," the Washington-based multilateral lender said in a report.

Global trade is expected to plunge by 9.7 percent this year, while total gross domestic product for high-income countries contracts by 4.2 percent, the bank said. It said economic growth in developing countries should slow to 1.2 percent — but excluding relatively strong China and India, developing economies will contract by 1.6 percent.

The bank's latest forecast is a sharp reduction from its March prediction of a

1.7 percent global contraction, which it said then would be the worst on record. Read the rest of this post...

UK bailed out bank CEO to receive $25 million bonus

The fact that he has to deliver high profits to pay back the government is fine though he has high incentives to turn these profits in only three years and that sounds much too risky. To get those profits he will have to substantially raise the share price. Most disturbing though is that shareholders and unions have balked at this but as usual, they've been ignored. For the umpteenth time, shareholders voiced their opposition and were ignored. Hard to believe non-binding votes such as Obama's "say on pay" never work. Worse still is that in this case it was the governments team who ignored and rejected the vote. Go figure.

A pay deal for Stephen Hester, the Royal Bank of Scotland's chief ­executive, which could reach £15m provoked anger from unions, shareholders and politicians last night as the state-­controlled bank reignited the public furore over ­boardroom pay.

RBS was accused of missing an opportunity to set an example and put a lid on bankers' pay following the £20bn taxpayer bailout of the Edinburgh-based bank in which the government has a 70% stake.

City institutional investors believe the bank should reconsider Hester's pay package which comprises cash, shares, options, credit notes and debt and will pay out its maximum amount in three years if the taxpayer makes an ­estimated £8bn profit on its shareholding in the bank.

But the call by RBS's traditional investors went unheeded as the deal has been ratified by UK Financial Investments (UKFI), the body that controls the government's stakes in the bailed-out banks.

Not bad for someone who already received a massive pay increase when he accepted the job in the first place. Now he's lined up to make a windfall at the expense of everyone else. Read the rest of this post...

Exclusive cellphone contracts under review by Senate

The lack of competition in this industry in the US is shocking. Even in "socialist" France there are three alternatives for the iPhone with another coming in to the fold soon. What ever happened to the old fashioned America idea of competition? Business doesn't like it but that's their problem to deal with. In my own business I have faced competition my entire life and managed to do just fine even when the competition was a global household name and I was with a startup. Without it, fewer options are there and technology and business models become stagnant. Good to see the Senate looking into this problem and dragging the US mobile industry into the modern world. If they can't handle competition, maybe they ought to quit the business.

Lawmakers yesterday waded into a growing debate on whether the practice of locking in cellphones to exclusive contracts with only one carrier has led to higher prices and fewer choices for consumers and stifled competition in one of the economy's brightest spots -- the wireless industry.

The Senate Commerce Committee met ahead of Apple's debut tomorrow of its latest version of the iPhone. Critics say the company will once again irritate people who want the gadget but are not subscribers of the company's exclusive partner, AT&T.; A similar fate awaits those who want the Palm Pre phone but don't subscribe to Sprint Nextel service, or the new phone running Google Android software and don't get T-Mobile service.

Consumers make up two thirds of the US economy so how about treating them accordingly? Read the rest of this post...