Love it, hate it or laugh at it — at least it's inexpensive. ...more

May 29, 2008

The steepest run-ups in food prices since 1990 are hurting grocery shoppers, restaurants and school cafeterias, but they're making others rich. ...more

May 28, 2008

Not since George H.W. Bush ran the White House have consumers felt so downbeat about the economy. And the catalyst for much of the gloom - the housing slump - shows no signs of abating, new data Tuesday showed. ...more

May 28, 2008

Sometimes two things look pretty much the same, like a diamond and a cubic zirconia. ...more

May 28, 2008

Florida Agriculture and Consumer Services Commissioner Charles Bronson is calling on Congress and the Bush administration to investigate skyrocketing fuel prices. Good for him. Although we are not sure if anything will come of it, give Bronson credit for at least trying to do something. "We're being taken for a ride, and the evidence is everywhere, from the escalating prices we pay to fill up our vehicles with gasoline to the purchase of virtually all consumer goods," Bronson said Friday. "It is almost impossible to conceive of a product that is not dependent on oil in either its production or transportation to the stores in which it is sold." ...more

May 24, 2008

Not long ago, the fledgling ethanol industry was the darling of investors, farmers, the federal government and a lot of Americans who liked the idea of turning corn into fuel. ...more

May 22, 2008

The House easily overrode President Bush's veto of a $307 billion farm bill Wednesday night, handing him the most significant legislative rebuff of his presidency after Republicans broke with the White House en masse to side with farm groups, anti-hunger advocates and the biofuels industry. ...more

May 22, 2008

President Bush, acknowledging the economic "tough times" for many Americans, said Monday that he remains opposed to any homeowner rescue legislation that would be a bailout for lenders. ...more

May 20, 2008

It is strange but perhaps not unexpected that as oil price soars to record highs, alternative fuel opponents have been beating the drums. They have to beat them pretty hard to drown out the cries of pain at gas pumps around the world. ...more

May 13, 2008