If you’re wondering when your federal tax refund will arrive—and who isn’t?—you can now  check your status on the go. In addition to its
Category: Consumer issues
Coming next from Republicans: Cigarette smoking is good for your health
Republicans have made an art form of trying to turn back the clock. I can’t help but wonder what’s next on their agenda. Could
HARP 2.0: Obama’s improved refi program for underwater mortgages
A lot of homeowners with underwater mortgages have March 17, 2012 circled on their calendars. That’s the day when new rules for the federal
Talking about health care reform: People get it when they see what it does for them
Ask people if they support what specific provisions of healthcare reform actually do for them, [eliminating pre-existing conditions, etc.], and they’ll say they like
Poverty, obesity and malnutrition: myth vs. reality
Unless you’ve been living in a cave, you are familiar with first lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move program to combat childhood obesity. You are
Romney turns his back on his home state
If you want to see how convoluted Mitt Romney’s record is regarding what to do to help the American auto industry, simply compare his
More items to add to your Obama-accomplishment list
One of the most-read posts here on Occasional Planet continues to be “President Obama’s 244 accomplishments.” Since it first appeared in 2010, that post
Starving the infrastructure beast: Privatization vs. the American Jobs Act
With 13.1 million Americans waking up every morning with no job to go to, how should we make sense of the three-time Senate “no”
Rural Illinois residents are “SORE” about new hog farm
Residents of Hancock County, Illinois are organizing an effort to prevent an industrial hog confinement facility from opening in their area. Junction Acres LLC
Income inequality in Illinois
At a recent town hall meeting in Joliet, Illinois, Ed Cole, a local organizer for moveon.org examined effects of income inequality and wage theft.