plus 4, The 10 most intriguing people of 2009 - CNN

The 10 most intriguing people of 2009 - CNN
Lawmakers: State tax reform unlikely in 2010 - WRAL
Pep Boys Declares Quarterly Dividend - Yahoo Finance
Americans saving more in recession - AZCentral.com
JBC Technologies manufactures new recipe for success: Surviving 2009 - Cleveland Plain Dealer

The 10 most intriguing people of 2009 - CNN

Posted: 28 Dec 2009 01:30 PM PST

Editor's note: Jay Kernis is managing editor of CNN/US. Before CNN, he spent many years at NPR and CBS News.

(CNN) -- The following is a list of the top 10 people who made the year 2009 memorable. It was compiled by CNN editor Jay Kernis, who acknowledges that it is entirely subjective. Kernis puts together a list each weekday of intriguing people, which runs on CNN.com.

1. Barack Obama: On January 20, Obama made history by becoming the first African-American president of the United States. The 44th president told Oprah Winfrey that he thinks he deserves a B+ for his first-year efforts, even though his approval rating is below 50 percent in some polls. About 15 million Americans are without work, and the budget deficit is more than $1 trillion, but -- after a $787 billion stimulus package -- the economy seems to be improving slightly. And there's still an American auto industry.

The detention facility at Guantanamo Bay is not closed, the Iraq war's not over, and 30,000 more troops are going to Afghanistan. The Mideast peace process is stalled, and North Korea and Iran continue to play shell games with their nuclear ambitions.

Without any Republican votes, health care legislation made it through the Senate. The president acknowledged that people are justified if they're disappointed that the recent Copenhagen climate summit couldn't solve major differences between countries.

Depending on your point of view, you may rate some of those situations as successes or as failures.

Obama set a high bar when he promised change and transparency and then faced Washington's brutal partisanship. Whether his actions thrill or disappoint, no single person in the world today commands such attention.

On December 10, the president accepted the Nobel Peace Prize and said he viewed the decision less as a recognition of his own accomplishments than as a call to action. His opponents saw the prize as premature or unwarranted.

"Let us reach for the world that ought to be." Obama said. "We can understand that there will be war and still strive for peace."

2. Michelle Obama: The first lady's official White House online biography begins, "When people ask Michelle Obama to describe herself, she doesn't hesitate. First and foremost, she is Malia and Sasha's mom." And it concludes, "As first lady, Michelle Obama looks forward to continuing her work on the issues close to her heart -- supporting military families, helping working women balance career and family, and encouraging national service."

She brings students to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., where there's also a program for mentoring girls. The first lady often speaks to federal workers and cultivates a vegetable garden on the South Lawn that helps promote healthy eating and locally grown food. She listens to the president, and presumably addresses his concerns, after all of his appointed advisers have left for the night.

She supervises White House social events. Each scheduled occasion sends columnists and bloggers into a frenzy of speculation: Will she bare her arms? In her first year, she has managed to avoid major controversy, which is quite an accomplishment for a life lived under such a powerful microscope in a city that is terrible at keeping secrets and where gossip is currency.

She once said, "One of the lessons that I grew up with was to always stay true to yourself and never let what somebody else says distract you from your goals. And so when I hear about negative and false attacks, I really don't invest any energy in them, because I know who I am."

3. Sonia Sotomayor: The first Hispanic justice and only the third woman to be be seated on the Supreme Court was sworn in August 8.

Her parents came from Puerto Rico to New York during World War II, and she was raised in housing projects in the Bronx. Sotomayor graduated from Princeton and Yale, and served as an assistant district attorney in the office of legendary New York District Attorney Robert Morgenthau. She was nominated by President George H.W. Bush in 1991 to serve as a federal judge and by President Clinton in 1997 for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals, 2nd Circuit.

During the confirmation hearings for her Supreme Court nomination, some lawmakers questioned a statement she had made in a 2001 speech, "I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life."

She ultimately backed away from the remark, calling it "a rhetorical flourish that fell flat," but not before legal experts, high school debaters and customers in beauty and barber shops across the country debated the merits of the statement. Sotomayor also said, "It's not the heart that compels conclusions in cases; it's the law."

4. Edward Kennedy: The U.S. senator who represented Massachusetts for 46 years died August 25, at the age of 77. He lived a life of tragedy and triumphs.

He was the brother of President Kennedy and Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, both of whom were assassinated. Ted Kennedy was elected to the Senate in 1962.

In July 1969, the car he was driving plunged off a bridge at Chappaquiddick Island, resulting in the death of 28-year-old Mary Jo Kopechne, one of Robert Kennedy's former campaign workers. He pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of an accident, and historians generally agree that his explanation of what happened at the incident made him an unsuitable presidential contender.

He ran for the 1980 Democratic presidential nomination but was defeated by Jimmy Carter. An unapologetic liberal, he was an outspoken critic of the Vietnam War and apartheid in South Africa, and he was an ardent supporter of civil rights, education and health care reform.

He was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor in May 2008. While fighting brain cancer, he spent his final days finishing his autobiography and urging his colleagues to pass universal health care legislation. At the 1980 Democratic Convention, Kennedy said, "The work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dreams shall never die."

5. Sarah Palin: John McCain's vice presidential running mate in the 2008 election resigned as governor of Alaska on July 3. With 18 months remaining in her term, she announced that she would not run again, explaining that it was difficult to do the job while facing various ethics complaints. Her strategic use of traditional and viral media -- including a nationwide book tour, a political action committee and postings on Facebook -- has allowed her to comment regularly on the day's issues, support Republican candidates and remain in the public eye.

Her autobiography, "Going Rogue" was the No. 1 best-seller on The New York Times' list December 27. As pundits speculated on a Palin presidential bid, she said she couldn't imagine running for national office in 2012. In November, she wrote to supporters: "We won't let anyone tell us to sit down and shut up. We're going to stand up, stand together, and fight for what's right!"

6. Michael Jackson: One of the most influential and controversial entertainers in the world died at the age of 50 on June 25. The Los Angeles coroner treated his death from cardiac arrest as a homicide, given the combination of prescription drugs found in his body.

Beginning in the mid-1960s as a child performer with his brothers, Jackson had a continuing impact on music, dance and fashion and on how media covered the personal lives of celebrities. His childhood years, two marriages, the birth of his children, the creation of his Neverland ranch, his financial problems, the allegations of sexual abuse of children and his ever-changing appearance all played out in public.

According to IMDb.com, Jackson sold more than 750 million albums worldwide. He won 18 Grammy Awards. He once said, "Children show me in their playful smiles the divine in everyone. This simple goodness shines straight from their hearts and only asks to be lived."

7. Tiger Woods: The world's greatest golfer has won 93 tournaments, 71 of those on the PGA Tour, making him also one of the planet's richest athletes. According to Golf Digest, Woods made $769,440,709 from 1996 to 2007.

He was born in 1975, began playing golf at the age of 2 and never stopped, until knee surgery to repair a torn ligament cut short his 2008 season. After eight months, he returned to the PGA tour.

But an early morning accident at his Florida home on November 27 not only wrecked his car, it ruined one of the most pristine images in modern-day sports. He had been an unfaithful husband. More than once.

On December 11, Woods announced that he would take an indefinite leave from professional golf to focus on his marriage. Five days later, The Associated Press named him Athlete of the Decade.

Responding to allegations of extramarital affairs, he said, "I have let my family down, and I regret those transgressions with all of my heart. I have not been true to my values and the behavior my family deserves."

8. Henry Louis Gates Jr.: A Harvard professor, an author and one of the country's most prominent scholars of African-American history was arrested at his own home July 16.

Gates and a helpful cab driver had trouble unlocking his door. A neighbor phoned Cambridge, Massachusetts, police, who arrived expecting a possible break-in. Gates exhibited "loud and tumultuous behavior," according to the police report, and was booked for disorderly conduct.

After showing Sgt. James Crowley his identification, Gates told the police officer that he was being targeted because "I'm a black man in America.'' During a prime time news conference, President Obama was asked about the arrest and said police had "acted stupidly." An uproar followed.

Seeking a teachable moment, the president invited Gates and Crowley for beer during a 40-minute White House Rose Garden conversation that month, which Vice President Joe Biden also attended. There were no apologies, but the professor and the police officer agreed to keep talking.

In February, Gates told Time magazine, "African-American history is generally taught only in Black History Month, which is February, the coldest, darkest, shortest month. It's like the month that was left over, they gave to black people. I'm a big advocate of teaching history in our public schools on a multicultural level."

9. Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger: On January 15, the airline captain, along with co-pilot Jeff Skiles, guided the stricken U.S. Airways Flight 1549 into the Hudson River, saving the lives of all 155 people on board. In his autobiography, "Highest Duty," Sullenberger wrote that the landing was not a miracle but rather the result of decades of practice and training.

Nonetheless, immediately after the six-minute flight, Sullenberger was described as a true American hero and was invited to such events as Obama's inauguration and the Super Bowl. He's also the grand marshal of the 121st Rose Parade.

On December 14, one of his pilot's caps -- signed, but not the one he wore that fateful day -- was sold on eBay for $5,800 as a fund-raiser for three San Francisco Bay-area public schools.

He also wrote: "These new pilots may have exceptional training, and they may have a higher degree of ability. But it takes time, hour after hour, to master the science and art of flying a commercial jet."

10. Susan Boyle: Of all the reality show contestants and hopefuls who made headlines this year -- Jon and Kate Gosselin, "plus Eight"; Michaele and Tareq Salahi, the White House crashers; Richard and Mayumi Heene, the balloon parents -- Susan Boyle is the most worthy of the international fame she achieved.

On April 11, the Scottish singer performed "I Dreamed A Dream" from the musical "Les Miserables" and gave new meaning to the adage "Don't judge a book by its cover."

Boyle never married, lives in her family home with her cat, volunteers at her church and looks more like Hollywood's unflattering version of a high school cafeteria lunch lady than one of the world's more stirring popular singers. Her first album, released in November, debuted in the No. 1 best-selling position on music charts. Her TV audition was named the most watched YouTube video of the year, with more 120 million viewings.

She once said. "I was slightly brain damaged at birth, and I want people like me to see that they shouldn't let a disability get in the way. I want to raise awareness. I want to turn my disability into ability."

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Jay Kernis.

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Lawmakers: State tax reform unlikely in 2010 - WRAL

Posted: 28 Dec 2009 02:49 PM PST

Raleigh, N.C. — Much of the debate over how to erase a record budget deficit last summer centered on reforming the way the state charges sales tax. But lawmakers said such changes are unlikely in 2010 as lawmakers face re-election.

In recent decades, North Carolina's economy has shifted from its manufacturing roots to one that is more service-oriented. That has prompted some lawmakers to float the idea of rewriting the state tax code to reflect that.

They argue that broadening the sales tax to include entertainment like golf or a service like professional lawn care or auto repair could lower the overall tax rate on goods.

"We want to know such things as what would be the impact on the average middle-class family," said Rep. Paul Luebke, D-Durham, who chairs the House Finance Committee.

Revising the tax system came closer than ever to passing last summer, with the $4.6 billion deficit forcing lawmakers to scramble for ways to generate revenue as well as cut spending.

Luebke said the historic change still needs more consideration and likely won't happen during an election year like 2010.

"If people go in the direction of political gamesmanship, it makes it much harder for the project to be implemented," he said.

The Federation of Tax Administrators last year surveyed the 45 states that charge sales tax and found that Hawaii taxes 160 of 168 services included in the survey, followed by New Mexico and Washington state at 158 taxed services each. North Carolina taxes 30 of the services.

Chris Fitzsimon, executive director of NC Policy Watch, a progressive think tank, said any tax proposal during an election year poses a political danger. Still, he said, budget shortfalls like the one seen this year and one projected for next year point to the need for a broader revenue stream.

"We've waited and waited, and now we're being told we need to wait again. I think the argument is exactly the opposite. Now is the time to do it," Fitzsimon said.

House Speaker Joe Hackney said lawmakers continue to work through the details of tax reform.

"Tax reform requires careful consideration and thought, which is exactly what we are giving it," Hackney said in a statement. "Ideally, both parties will come out in favor of any proposed overhaul, though at this time, it appears we lack the bipartisan support we would like to have to go forward."

Republicans said they fear reform proposals will only add to the tax burden North Carolina residents face.

"My primary worry is that there's no check on the growth of government spending, and there's no provision to save money," said Rep. Nelson Dollar, R-Wake. "In a recession, to say we're going to begin to tax all of those (things) you don't already pay taxes on, I don't see that happening in 2010."

Fitzsimon said the easiest thing for Republicans to do to block any reform effort "is to play politics and say no matter what they try to do it's bad policy."

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Pep Boys Declares Quarterly Dividend - Yahoo Finance

Posted: 28 Dec 2009 02:20 PM PST

PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Pep Boys – Manny, Moe & Jack (NYSE:PBY - News), the nation's leading automotive aftermarket service and retail chain, announced that its Board of Directors approved the payment of the next quarterly dividend of $0.03 per share payable on January 25, 2010 to shareholders of record on January 11, 2010. The annual dividend of $0.12 per share currently yields approximately 1.4%.

About Pep Boys

Pep Boys has approximately 6,000 service bays within over 580 stores located in 35 states and Puerto Rico. Along with its full-service vehicle maintenance and repair capabilities, the Company also serves the commercial auto parts delivery market and is one of the leading sellers of replacement tires in the United States. Customers can find the nearest location by calling 1-800-PEP-BOYS or by visiting http://www.pepboys.com.

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Americans saving more in recession - AZCentral.com

Posted: 28 Dec 2009 01:30 PM PST

As crazy as it sounds, losing a $70,000-a-year job has been good for Marty Morua's finances. The former Wall Street stockbroker says the setback forced him to scrutinize his family budget and snip away at expenses. And soon, even with less income, their savings grew.

First, he and his wife decided to live on her salary so he could be home with their 5-year-old daughter after school. Without a nanny, they saved $12,000 a year. He dropped services he didn't use on his cellphone - texting and video games - to pocket $250 a year. He took a defensive-driving course for a 10 percent discount on his auto insurance and dropped car-rental and roadside-assistance coverage, for an extra $150 a year.

For holiday gifts, he turned to thrift stores and gave home-baked cookies.

"When I was working, I didn't look at the price tag," he said. "In a strange way," he added, losing the job "has been a blessing to teach me how to become aggressive and wise about saving and ways to save - areas I never would have thought about."

The recession has caused a seismic shift in the consumer culture, converting die-hard spenders into savers. A growing number of people, either smarting from a job loss or spooked by the financial crises of others, are scrambling to get out of debt, establish emergency funds, and add to their retirement and savings accounts.

After having taken the first plunge by cutting holiday spending, many are seeking more substantial ideas on how to sustain their frugality.

With the turn of the calendar, financial planners and counselors typically get an influx of calls from people seeking help with New Year's resolutions to save money. This year, the requests have multiplied.

"Before, people came to us when they hit a crisis. Now they come to us as a preventative measure," said Emily Appel, director of the savings program at Capital Area Asset Builders, a nonprofit organization in the District of Columbia that mainly counsels low- and moderate-income residents.

Demand for the services has increased so much, Appel said, that the organization has added classes. Also, she said, more middle-income people and young professionals are signing up. "When you see your friends go through financial crisis, you want to know how to prevent that from happening to you," she said.

Frank C. Boucher, a financial planner in Northern Virginia, said he advises novice savers to put non-retirement funds into safe high-yield instruments, such as CDs. "The rates aren't terrific, but they're better than regular savings accounts," Boucher said. "Money-market fund rates are also very low. ... Stay away from stocks and bonds unless you're putting money away for retirement, college education and if you (won't need the money) for three to five years."

Consumer spending, which represents 70 percent of the economy, helped propel the nation out of previous recessions. This time, consumers seem to be more cautious, and they are increasingly holding on to their dollars.

The savings rate in October reached 4.4 percent, up from 0.8 percent in April 2008. Some economists say they think savings will return to the 7 to 8 percent levels recorded before 1990.

If that happens, consumer spending could decline further.

"The increase in saving, which is the mirror image of reduction in consumption, will hurt the economy in the near to intermediate term," said Allen Sinai, chief global economist at Decision Economics, a New York consulting firm that analyzes the U.S. economy and financial markets. Banks are the winners when consumers save, Sinai said, but there are "more losers than winners."

"Who loses? The economy loses," Sinai added, because "weak consumption was part of bringing the economy into the deepest recession since the Great Depression." Unemployment will remain high, with businesses driven by consumer spending struggling. Retailers, shopping malls and commercial real estate will continue to be hit hard, he said.

Nevertheless, Sinai said, saving at this point is good for consumers. With borrowing and spending having gotten way out of hand, he said, consumers need this respite to regroup and repair their tattered balance sheets. After that, he said, people should be ready to spend again.

But many new savers say they don't even want to think about spending.

Jeff Davidson, 42, of Reston, Va., said he and his wife spent a few months on the unemployment rolls in North Carolina last year, shortly after returning from work assignments in Peru. At the same time, he said, his wife found out she had breast cancer. She recovered and they found new jobs, eventually relocating with their two kids to the Washington area.

Still, they were stuck with $12,000 in medical bills.

Although they didn't use a financial planner, they did just what many experts advise: They devised a budget on paper and tracked their spending. They discovered they spent $300 a month on entertainment and dining out, so those were among the first expenses to go. They switched their car insurance to Geico from Allstate, which they had been using for 23 years, saving about $180 a month. They saved more money by changing banks and health-care plans.

After paying down the medical bills, they're now working to boost their retirement accounts.

"Our plan is to increase our 401(k) savings and ... contribute to additional IRAs," said Davidson, who works as a business developer for an engineering company. "That's the smartest thing we can do. After that, we'll work on getting the bank account to a comfortable level, and we agree we should have three months (of expenses) in the bank for an emergency."

Though they struggled at first to change old habits, some new savers say it has been liberating to get back to basics - washing and ironing their clothing instead of going to the cleaners, cooking and packing their own lunches instead of eating out, and eliminating indiscriminate credit purchases.

Michelle Andrews, 47, of Washington took a huge pay cut - more than 50 percent - when she changed careers from physical therapy to mental health counseling.

Before, she said, she'd dine out for breakfast, lunch and dinner. She'd spend hundreds of dollars on vacations and shopping sprees. She said she blew more money at convenience stores, often buying lottery tickets and $30 worth of magazines.

Not anymore, said Andrews, who has saved $1,000 toward buying a home.

"Now I don't take (the income) for granted," she said, "I don't look at the short-term satisfaction, I look at the long term."

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JBC Technologies manufactures new recipe for success: Surviving 2009 - Cleveland Plain Dealer

Posted: 28 Dec 2009 01:02 PM PST

SURVIVING 2009

A look at how some Northeast Ohio companies weathered the Great Recession

Company: JBC Technologies Inc.

Location: North Ridgeville

Business: Supplier of seals, gaskets and die-cut products

Founded: 1988

Employees: 75

Challenge: Sales slumped after customers, including auto suppliers, hit hard times

Solution: Cut payroll in the short term, acquired new customers, developed new capacity

More stories on Surviving 2009

NORTH RIDGEVILLE, Ohio -- Joe Bliss describes the thumping array of machines on his plant floor as cookie cutters, pounding out and pressing all manner of seals, gaskets and heat insulators.

So what happens when the cookie crumbles?

Bliss, president of JBC Technologies Inc. in North Ridgeville, found a new recipe to keep his company afloat in 2009 and to position it for growth in 2010.

Like so many, he cut deep into his work force to offset steep revenue losses when orders fell off a cliff late in 2008.

But he also gained new customers, and diversified his product offerings, with the acquisition of smaller, failed competitors. He expanded capacity by buying bargain-basement equipment. And he continued to invest in an entirely new business that could prove fruitful next year.

Bliss, a balding, no-nonsense executive and entrepreneur, counts himself among corporate survivors of the worst recession in a lifetime. His 54,000-square-foot plant is among thousands of companies that constitute the region's manufacturing sector.

In Northeast Ohio, the years-long slide in manufacturing jobs continued unabated during the recession, due partly to dependence on the foundering auto industry.

JBC counts on the auto sector for about 12 percent of its work, Bliss said. He once had hoped to gain more business from the Detroit Big Three automakers. Now he's glad he didn't.

JBC grew steadily since its opening in 1988, Bliss said, typically recording multimillion-dollar sales. The company had its best year in 2007, cutting and cranking out custom parts from felt, rubber, plastic and other materials.

"We don't care what we cut, as long as it's within nonmetallic parts fabrication," Bliss said.

JBC was on pace for another record through October 2008. But November 2008 "was the worst month in years," Bliss said.

The recession had arrived at JBC. Over the next few months, orders sank by 45 percent, he said.

By February, Bliss had made the wrenching decision to cut his 90-person work force by half and the payroll of those who remained by 20 percent.

In that, he was not alone. Manufacturers across the region, especially those doing contract work like JBC, did much the same to avoid bankruptcy, said Robert Schmidt, a senior consultant for MAGNET, a manufacturing advocacy group in the region.

"It's been brutal for anyone on the contract side," Schmidt said. "Sales fall through the roof, cash flow dwindles. You have to make cuts, and most often it's people."

By spring, "the patient was stable and it was time for recovery mode," Bliss said.

He and his top staff went looking for new business "even if it was table scraps," Bliss said.

He learned of two smaller, competing companies that had failed. Despite JBC's sliding revenues, Bliss said his debt-averse stance over the years left JBC in a position to acquire the companies' assets.

More important, their customers agreed to try JBC, resulting in 10 new accounts and a new product capacity in heat shielding, Bliss said.

A manufacturing landscape littered with bankruptcies also meant a surplus of cut-rate machinery for sale. JBC spent tens of thousands of dollars on equipment that bolsters the company's capacity to produce and inspect die-cut parts, Bliss said.

JBC purchased more tools to maintain and repair its machines rather than hiring others to do it, Bliss said.

MAGNET's Schmidt said Bliss was smart to take advantage of the "fire sales" on equipment and to add new capacity, not just duplicate what he had.

"And he was able to diversify his customer base," Schmidt said. "Those were all positives."

Still, Bliss worried whether his recovery strategy would work. Thanks to membership in a local chapter of the Entrepreneurs Organization, he was able to bounce his plans off other veteran company owners in the region.

"It's like having a bunch of highly trained consultants," Bliss said. "It gave you peace of mind that you're doing the right thing."

All along, Bliss continued his own investment in a new company. MP Antenna is about to hit the market with a new kind of antenna that boosts wireless network reception in homes and offices.

Though the companies are unrelated, JBC makes components for MP products, Bliss said.

JBC's sales have gone up bit by bit since June. Bliss said he restored workers' pay levels in midsummer, and has made about 30 new hires since.

"We've regrouped," Bliss said, "and significantly improved our position."

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