VALLEJO, CALIF. — The first couple of years were ugly. After this working-class port city became the largest in America to declare bankruptcy in 2008 , crime and prostitution surged as the police force was thinned by 40 percent. Firehouses were shuttered, and funding for libraries and senior centers was slashed. Foreclosures multiplied and home prices plummeted. Read full article > >

See original here:
Vallejo, Calif., once bankrupt, is now a model for cities in an age of austerity

Some states are diverting their share of a $2.5 billion they were awarded in a mortgage settlement, money intended to help homeowners and mitigate the effects of foreclosures.

Read this article:
States Diverting Mortgage Settlement Money to Other Uses

President Obama’s 2011 assets include anywhere from $500,000 to $1 million held in a JPMorgan Chase checking account, according to annual financial disclosure forms released by the White House on Tuesday. Read full article > >

Read more from the original source:
Obamas’ 2011 assets valued at as much as $8 million; includes up to $1 million in JPMorgan Chase account

The Securities and Exchange Commission recently opened a preliminary investigation into JPMorgan’s accounting practices and public disclosures about the trades.

Read the original:
DealBook: S.E.C. Opens Investigation Into JPMorgan’s $2 Billion Loss

A crisis in funding care for the elderly could lead to closure of parks, libraries and public toilets, according to the leaders of nearly every council in England and Wales.

Link:
Care costs could close libraries

Newt Gingrich, whose quixotic presidential bid has been dogged by financial problems, racked up nearly $3 million in new debt for private jet flights, security consultants and travel costs in March even as his campaign teetered on the edge of collapse, according to new disclosures . Read full article > >

See the original post here:
Gingrich racks up more debt as his campaign disintegrates

Two women are killed after bears escape from their enclosures at a park in northern Japan – people are being told to stay indoors.

See more here:
Japan bear attack leaves two dead

A consultation that led to the proposed closure of a paediatric heart unit at a west London hospital was lawful, the Court of Appeal rules.

Here is the original post:
Hospital loses cardiac unit case

Health insurance giant WellPoint is the latest target of an increasingly aggressive campaign to force disclosure of corporate political and lobbying expenditures, including payments to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which has become more active in elections over the past decade. Read full article > >

See more here:
WellPoint is focus of aggressive effort to force political spending disclosures

Maybe somebody spiked the D.C. water system with pixie dust. Or maybe we’re all aching for some happily-ever-after closure as an escape from the open-ended chaos that is current public discourse. Or maybe we’ve just got a cosmic coincidence on our hands, because Washington theaters are offering five — count ’em, five — fairy-tale shows for families. Read full article > >

View post:
Fairy tales for audiences — and theaters — that seek happy endings

Maybe somebody spiked the D.C. water system with pixie dust. Or maybe we’re all aching for some happily-ever-after closure as an escape from the open-ended chaos that is current public discourse. Or maybe we’ve just got a cosmic coincidence on our hands, because Washington theaters are offering five — count ’em, five — fairy-tale shows for families. Read full article > >

More:
Fairy tales for audiences — and theaters — that seek happy endings

State and federal officials who recently completed a $25 billion settlement with five of the nation’s largest banks over shoddy foreclosure practices have begun discussing how to apply some of the terms of that deal to a wider array of financial firms. Read full article > >

More:
Foreclosure reforms to widen

A man dies in a crash between a car and a lorry which sparked the closure of a section of Scotland’s busiest motorway.

Read more:
Man dies in lorry accident on M8

Critics and supporters sparred over whether a foreclosure deal helps banks even more than struggling homeowners.

Read more:
Foreclosure Deal Gives Banks Credit for Routine Activities

Critics and supporters sparred over whether a foreclosure deal helps banks even more than struggling homeowners.

Read more from the original source:
Foreclosure Deal Gives Banks Credit for Routine Activities