Business

Updates have been pretty slow around here, but financial circumstances related to having a fiancee in grad school have forced me to take up another job elsewhere on the web. While my own sites will have to be limited to a part time gig on nights and weekends, working online still manages to keep the bills paid in a small town with no local economy to speak of. Theoretically, the new arrangement should be a little bit more stable for a one-income house dealing with the wake of an increasingly fickle Google algorithm.

The term Black Friday was introduced to the American culture at some point back in the 1960s, but back then journalists advised people to stay at home to avoid the congestion and bad attitudes that go along with rampant consumerism and masses of shoppers who are hunting for the next deal. At some point in the last ten years, this dark day seems to have morphed in to an actual celebration of all the greediest and most selfish instincts we have. This year, however, I had a great Thanksgiving and all I had to do was tune Black Friday out. Did I miss out on big savings… or stumble across an even sweeter deal?

A lot of people tend to panic when they receive notification of debt collection activity, and more than a few have paid up on false claims just to protect their credit rating or business’ reputation. It is important to remember, though, that you don’t have to give in to the shakedown because there are legal protections available to those who dispute debt claims being made against them. My recent experience with Sprint has already shown some positive results, and we’ve barely even begun the dispute process! Find out how to protect your credit score and bank account from shady businesses and their favorite debt collectors.

In the aftermath of the Facebook IPO, there are some clear winners and clear losers – as well as a lot of unanswered questions about the role of the banks underwriting the stock. Why, exactly, are some of the biggest banks convinced the stock is worth twice what the revenues would imply? Here’s one theory…

Facebook is seeking to raise big money in an IPO that values the company at nearly $100 billion. However, such a valuation puts the price to earnings ratios in a rather unsustainable place that will require big growth and aggressive monetization.