NUKE PLANT: Japan PM Orders Wider Evacuation, As Radiation Levels Hit 1000X Normal

fukushima japan

 Note: This post has several updates. Scroll to the bottom for the latest.

Original post: Ominous flash from Kyodo Wire:

The operator of the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant reported an abnormality Friday following a powerful earthquake which hit a wide area in northeastern Japan including Fukushima Prefecture, the industry ministry said.

The system to cool reactor cores in case of emergency stopped at the No. 1 and No. 2 reactors of the plant operated by Tokyo Electric Power Co., it said.

There are reports that the Japanese PM will declare a nuclear emergency.

Update: There's no evidence of any radioactive leakage, but officials have confirmed that the cooling process for the nuclear plant has not yet gone according to plan.

Update 2: Japan has declared a nuclear emergency.

Update 3: 2000 residents near the Fukushima Nuclear Plant have been urged to evacuate.

Update 4: According to reports, Japanese jets have been ordered to fly over the Fukushima Nuclear plant

Update 5: According to Reuters, a Dam has broken in the same region as the at-risk nuclear power plant.

Update 6: The owner of the plant, TEPCO, says the reactor pressure is rising, and there are risks of a radiation leak, according to Reuters.

Update 7: Now the trade minister says a leak is possible.

Update 8: Word is, Japanese authorities will release a small amount of radioactive vapor into the air to ease pressure.

Update 9: Japan just expanded the evacuation range from 3 KM to 9 KM, says Reuters.

Update: 4:29 PM ET: Anti-nuclear expert Kevin Kamp explains the nightmare scenario in Fukushma, via Forbes and the Institute for Public Accuracy:

“The electrical grid is down. The emergency diesel generators have been damaged. The multi-reactor Fukushima atomic power plant is now relying on battery power, which will only last around eight hours. The danger is, the very thermally hot reactor cores at the plant must be continuously cooled for 24 to 48 hours. Without any electricity, the pumps won’t be able to pump water through the hot reactor cores to cool them. Once electricity is lost, the irradiated nuclear fuel could begin to melt down. If the containment systems fail, a catastrophic radioactivity release to the environment could occur.

“In addition to the reactor cores, the storage pool for highly radioactive irradiated nuclear fuel is also at risk. The pool cooling water must be continuously circulated. Without circulation, the still thermally hot irradiated nuclear fuel in the storage pools will begin to boil off the cooling water. Within a day or two, the pool’s water could completely boil away. Without cooling water, the irradiated nuclear fuel could spontaneously combust in an exothermic reaction. Since the storage pools are not located within containment, a catastrophic radioactivity release to the environment could occur. Up to 100 percent of the volatile radioactive Cesium-137 content of the pools could go up in flames and smoke, to blow downwind over large distances. Given the large quantity of irradiated nuclear fuel in the pool, the radioactivity release could be worse than the Chernobyl nuclear reactor catastrophe of 25 years ago.”

Meanwhile, Kyodo is reporting that local radiation levels are 8 times more than normal.

Update 4:43 PM: Now according to Kyodo, radiation is measured at 1000x normal.

Update 5:05: The entire world is now watching the Fukushima plant. Here's a llink to a satellite image of the plant, just to get some more perspective on where this is.

 Fukushima:

Update 5:33: Both reactors at the plant have been damaged, and officials say they have "lost control" of the pressure, according to Reuters.

 

Click here for incredible pictures of the disaster >

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Don?t Think You Know All There Is To Know As Regards Rules And Requirements Bankruptcy Until You Have Read This

The days are gone when submitting a personal bankruptcy has been generally regarded as being a do-it-yourself undertaking. Currently most of the people prefer to employ a skilled for this task. Bankruptcy legal professionals in Tampa bay support individuals eliminate their debt through deciding on the optimal sort of personal bankruptcy. Generally attorneys need to [...]

Source: http://www.legaldebthelponline.com/2011/03/10/dont-think-you-know-all-there-is-to-know-as-regards-rules-and-requirements-bankruptcy-until-you-have-read-this/

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One on One: Clara Shih of Hearsay Labs

Welcome to another in our One on One series of conversations with some of the most thought-provoking entrepreneurs, authors and experts in business today. Clara Shih, CEO/Founder of Hearsay Labs, spoke with Brent Leary in this interview, which has been edited for publication. To hear audio of the full interview, page down to the loudspeaker icon at the end of the post.

Hearsay Labs is a software company that develops social CRM applications to help B2C companies find and engage customers across Facebook, Twitter and other social sites. Shih is also author of the bestseller The Facebook Era: Tapping Online Social Networks to Build Better Products, Reach New Audiences, and Sell More Stuff, which has been featured in The New York Times, Fast Company and CRM Magazine, and is being used as a textbook at Harvard Business School.

* * * * *

Small Business Trends: Can you tell us about your background?

Clara Shih: I was originally an engineer. I worked at Microsoft and then at Google and Salesforce.com. While I was at Salesforce.com, as a side project, I developed the first business application on Facebook. That is what led to the opportunity to write The Facebook Era.

When the first edition of my book came out in March 2009 and was well received, I knew we had reached the tipping point with social media and that there was a tremendous opportunity, but also a lot of challenges that companies had to address. I decided to leave Salesforce.com and team up with a college friend to start Hearsay two years ago.

Small Business Trends: What are some of the changes you have seen in social media since you wrote your book?

Clara Shih: More than ever, we are seeing social media pervade every company, every business and every industry. Just like the Internet era before it, we are seeing the Facebook Era change the conversation, interactions and relationships that companies have with their customers. As we have seen before, new customer paradigms require new solutions.

Hearsay is focused on businesses that have local branches and representatives. Take your insurance agent or local Starbucks. All of these [local] businesses are part of a larger corporate entity.

For a long time, there’s been tremendous infrastructure and support in a physical sense [for such companies]. But in terms of social media, it’s been the Wild West. Franchisees, insurance agents and realtors are left to their own devices when trying to create profiles on Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter.

Hearsay sought to change that. We have built a system that allows corporate to empower the field with content, campaigns and relevant, timely messages. The field can personalize this in their own voice and push it out to local audiences.

Small Business Trends: What changes have you have been surprised by?

Clara Shih: I have been most surprised by how quickly Facebook has spread. It’s really amazing what can happen in just a few years, where it goes from a niche website to something that everyone is talking about.

Small Business Trends: What hasn?t changed enough?

Clara Shih: Businesses are still grappling with how to make social media work for them. How are you going to make sure that you mitigate these risks, whether it?s legal risk, compliance or operational hurdles, so you can tap into this tremendous opportunity?

I think 2010 was about social media strategy; there was a lot of talk. This year it’s all about social media execution. We are seeing companies mobilize budgets, hire social media teams. It’s a really exciting time and place to be.

Small Business Trends: You started Hearsay in 2009, but the official launch took place in 2011. Why did you spend so much time under the radar?

Clara Shih: We felt that staying under the radar would help us focus on building our product and working with our early customers. Six months ago, we started betas with large brands and almost all of them asked to cut the pilot short and roll out to full deployment. We knew we had stumbled upon something great.

A lot of companies have dabbled in social media. This is the year that companies get serious about it. This means adopting platforms that address more than just a single pain point?that take the entire organization?s needs into context.

Small Business Trends: Talk a little bit about the decision [for Hearsay] not to have a traditional website.

Clara Shih: We decided, not only do we want to practice what we preach, but it?s the right move for the company strategically. Our customers are already on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter; that is why they come to us in the first place. What better way to serve them than in a highly targeted personalized and social environment?

Small Business Trends: Do you see that as a trend?

Clara Shih: I think [social media] pages are the new websites, especially if you are a small or midsized company. A friend of mine owns a nail salon in San Francisco. For a long time she struggled with her website, because she is not technical and didn’t have time or money to really build a website or maintain it. A few months ago I showed her how to use Facebook. She set up a Facebook Page, and now updating her “website” is as easy as updating something on her wall. She is able to connect with her clients in a way that she never could before. She doesn’t have to worry about SEO, SEM or any of these other acronyms that she doesn’t understand.

Small Business Trends: Peer out to the future, maybe a year or two. Where are we going to be in the Facebook era?

Clara Shih: Consumers and marketers are both becoming more sophisticated when it comes to social media. Companies are going to be accountable for showing results. They are also going to be accountable for what their employees are saying and the legal liabilities and ramifications around the conversations that take place on social media. This is especially true for highly regulated industries, such as financial services.

It boils down to three pillars of success. One is compliance–being able to address and mitigate these risks. Two is content. Content is king, especially on social media. You can’t just create a Twitter page and walk away. You need to continually post interesting, relevant, dynamic content to keep your fans engaged. Third is analytics–being able to measure the return on your investment. These three pillars–content management, compliance and analytics–are what form Hearsay as an application.

Small Business Trends: You can find out more about Hearsayat HearSaySocial.

From Small Business TrendsOne on One: Clara Shih of Hearsay Labs

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Advantages of Credit Counselors

Are you seeking financial assistance but are scared of getting in deeper in debt by getting a loan? Getting financial assistance doesn't always necessarily mean that you need to get a loan. Take for example rather than applying for more debt or a loan to consolidate your already stressful debt load you should give credit counseling some serious consideration. Credit counseling can offer some non-monetary benefits that actually may be worth more to you that actual cold, hard cash. The educational benefits that you will receive when speaking with a credit counselor may help you more in the long run, and speaking with a seasoned credit counselor will let you know what your options are and will help you negotiate with your lender.

We all have hit speed bump on the road to financial independence, and sometimes we can hit some serious roadblocks and will have a hard time to take care of our bills. There are also individuals that know exactly how to budget their money and live frugally. Regardless of where you fall on that scale anybody can become unemployed, suffer a medical setback or huge financial setback. That is what credit counselors are there for, to educate you on how to get back on your feet and help you negotiate with you creditors.

The perception of credit counseling is that it is only for people who are under the burden of overwhelming debt or for an individual that cannot manage their own debt, and even though traditionally credit counseling is a perfect fit for those that need a little hand holding financially but in this current economic climate anybody can fall under financial duress. A frugal individual who can budget their money effectively can become unemployed for example but what credit counselings main benefit is the ability for the credit counselor to effectively negotiate with your creditors to lower your interest rate or even your monthly payments, or find out if there are other alternatives to debt settlement or bankruptcy that can be negotiated with your lenders.

Credit counselors are skilled in the art of negotiation and are also very skilled at assisting an individual with finding other ways to increase income. They can give you access to more of your income by possibly lowering your taxes or finding public assistance or resources that may be available to generate more income for you. There is so much more that goes to credit counseling than somebody just stating the obvious and giving you generic advice. One of the greatest benefits, although, is the education you will receive on how to manage your money, and will help you from falling into these problems in the near future.

Sometimes it takes somebody to help you see the forest past the trees and sometimes what you don't know will help you, and that's what credit counseling services are going to do, educate you on what you don't know. A good credit counseling service will know exactly where to go and how to find it. There is always somebody out there that's doing worse than you are so count your blessings and find a credit counselor.

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Why NVE's Earnings Are Outstanding

Although business headlines still tout earnings numbers, many investors have moved past net earnings as a measure of a company's economic output. That's because earnings are very often less trustworthy than cash flow, since earnings are more open to manipulation based on dubious judgment calls.

Earnings' unreliability is one of the reasons Foolish investors often flip straight past the income statement to check the cash flow statement. In general, by taking a close look at the cash moving in and out of the business, you can better understand whether the last batch of earnings brought money into the company, or merely disguised a cash gusher with a pretty headline.

Calling all cash flows
When you are trying to buy the market's best stocks, it's worth checking up on your companies' free cash flow (FCF) once a quarter or so, to see whether it bears any relationship to the net income in the headlines. That brings us to NVE (Nasdaq: NVEC), whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.

Source: Capital IQ, a division of Standard & Poor's. Data is current as of last fully-reported fiscal quarter. Dollar values in millions. FCF = free cash flow. FY = fiscal year. TTM = trailing 12 months.

Over the past 12 months, NVE generated $11.5 million cash on net income of $13.3 million. That means it turned 36.8% of its revenue into FCF. That sounds pretty impressive. Since a single-company snapshot doesn?t offer much context, it always pays to compare that figure to sector and industry peers and competitors, to see how your business stacks up.

Source: Capital IQ, a division of Standard & Poor's. Data is current as of last fully-reported fiscal quarter. Dollar values in millions. FCF = free cash flow. TTM = trailing 12 months.

All cash is not equal
Unfortunately, the cash flow statement isn't immune from nonsense, either. That's why it pays to take a close look at the components of cash flow from operations, to make sure that the cash comes from high-quality sources. They need to be real and replicable in the upcoming quarters, rather than being offset by continual cash outflows that don't appear on the income statement (such as major capital expenditures).

For instance, cash flow based on cash net income and adjustments for non-cash income-statement expenses (like depreciation) is generally favorable. An increase in cash flow based on stiffing your suppliers (by increasing accounts payable) or shortchanging Uncle Sam on taxes will come back to bite investors later. The same goes for decreasing accounts receivable; this is good to see, but it's ordinary in recessionary times, and you can only increase collections so much.

So how does the cash flow at NVE look? Take a peek at the chart below, which flags questionable cash flow sources with a red bar.

anImage

Source: Capital IQ, a division of Standard & Poor's. Data is current as of last fully-reported fiscal quarter. Dollar values in millions. TTM = trailing 12 months.

When I say "questionable cash flow sources," I mean items such as changes in taxes payable, tax benefits from stock options, and asset sales, among others. That's not to say that companies booking these as sources of cash flow are weak, or are engaging in any sort of wrongdoing, or that everything that comes up questionable in my graph is automatically bad news. But whenever a company is getting more than, say, 10% of its cash from operations from these dubious sources, investors ought to make sure to refer to the filings and dig in.

With questionable cash flows amounting to only 0.8% of operating cash flow, NVE's cash flows look clean. Within the questionable cash flow figure plotted in the TTM period above, other operating activities (which can include deferred income taxes, pension charges, and other one-off items) provided the biggest boost, at 1.5% of cash flow from operations. Overall, the biggest drag on FCF came from capital expenditures, which consumed 4.6% of cash from operations.

A Foolish final thought
Most investors don't keep tabs on their companies' cash flow. I think that's a mistake. If you take the time to read past the headlines and crack a filing now and then, you're in a much better position to spot potential trouble early. Better yet, you'll improve your odds of finding the underappreciated home-run stocks that provide the market's best returns.

We can help you keep tabs on your companies with My Watchlist, our free, personalized stock tracking service.

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Source: http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2011/03/10/why-nves-earnings-are-outstanding.aspx

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One Benefit Of Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Is Flexibility

Since the New Year has began, the numbers for 2010 bankruptcy filings is in. It's no surprise that last year set a record for the most Americans ever filing bankruptcy. Unemployment now sits at 9% and much of the media keeps reporting that things are getting better. The numbers don't lie. Although most of the people file under Chapter 7 bankruptcy, there has become a lot of interest in Chapter 13. Pride is something that holds many individuals to hang on way longer than they should because they don't feel right about walking out on their debts. A Chapter 13 bankruptcy has the ability to allow the debtor to negotiate the repayment of their debts to the creditors. This allows the debtor to save face, at least in their own mind.

The flexibility of a Chapter 13 bankruptcy has gotten a lot of attention from debtors in the recent years. Since the bankruptcy code changed back in 2005, it's become tougher to qualify to file Chapter 7. This has forced many people to take another look at Chapter 13 bankruptcy. One of the biggest advantages to filing Chapter 13, is the ability to change your payment plan even after the case is filed. Since the payment plan is set up to run over a 3 to 5 year period, the court understands that sometimes a person's financial situation might change. If the debtor has a change in their income or expenses during the course of a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, the debtor can apply to modify their plan to allow them to afford the payment plan. It has to be submitted to the court and in most cases it will be approved. In today's economy many individuals have suffered a reduction in pay that would kick them out of their chapter 13 plan if they couldn't modify it.

Nowadays many families are suffering financial setbacks and might have to give a car back to the bank while being in the middle of a chapter 13. Being allowed to change midstream is one of the benefits of this type of bankruptcy filing. Think back five years and see all of the changes that happened in your life. Having the ability to negotiate can be very beneficial in today's economy. Banks don't really want to foreclose on properties and nor does lenders want to repossess cars. This gives the debtor extra power with the backing of the bankruptcy court. In some cases the debtor will be able to refinance or modify a mortgage or even negotiate a reduction on the payment amount on your vehicle so you can afford keep it.

Filing Chapter 13 bankruptcy can be very complicated and it is advised to be represented by a bankruptcy attorney. A bankruptcy attorney that specializes in Chapter 13 will have the experience in negotiating and protect their client to the full extent of the bankruptcy law. When deciding to file bankruptcy, always take the time to discuss with a bankruptcy attorney the possibility of your income declining or your expenses increasing over the next few years. This will give the attorney a good knowledge of what could possibly happen in the near future and how to adjust for it.

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Legitimate Debt Relief Help ? Things to Think Before Seeking Legitimate Debt Help Services

Legitimate Debt Relief Assist – Things to Think Just before Looking for Legitimate Debt Aid Services With the growing number of various debt relief approaches, consumers find it challenging to pick the most legitimate relief methods accessible in the market. So, when you are discovering legitimate debt relief aid, you ought to be armed with [...]

Source: http://www.legaldebthelponline.com/2011/03/10/legitimate-debt-relief-help-things-to-think-before-seeking-legitimate-debt-help-services/

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Dave Ramsey's Thoughts on Hybrid Cars

Should I get a hybrid to save on gas? They make financial sense in the long run, right? Gas prices are killing my budget?a hybrid is the only answer!

Dave's been getting many questions recently from people all over America about the rising gas prices and fitting the extra costs into the budget. Many people wonder if it would be better to get a vehicle that gets better gas mileage?like a hybrid?instead.

Well, do you really want to lose more money?

The Math Doesn't Work

Let's say you currently drive a vehicle worth $10,000 that gets 15 miles/gallon. There's this $25,000 hybrid you're thinking about buying that gets 25 miles/gallon. That's a $15,000 price difference just to get 10 more miles a gallon. If you drive 100 miles a week, that's about a $10 difference a week.

So that would be about $40 extra you're spending a month in gas if you stuck with the current car. A monthly car payment is much more than that! To get your money back at current gas prices, it would take you almost 29 years to save $15,000 in gasoline!

The math doesn't work! You'd have to drive to the moon and back to make it worth it!

What You Can Do

  • Get a different car. If you want to sell your gas-guzzling car, buy another car worth no more than the previous car's selling price. This means no car payments!
  • Carpool. If you live near a coworker, this can save you both money?even if you just share a ride one day a week.
  • Move closer to work. Write down all the specifics to see if it makes sense in your unique situation.
  • Change jobs. No one says you have to work where you do. There's always the option to work close to home or even start a home-based business.

Don't use this high-gas excuse as a rationalization to go get yourself a new car or spend a dime more on one. It's not worth it!

Watch this YouTube video to learn how you can drive free cars for life!

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Source: http://www.daveramsey.com/article/dave-ramseys-thoughts-on-hybrid-cars/lifeandmoney_automobiles

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Buy, Sell or Hold: Peabody Energy Corp. (NYSE: BTU) May Be Too Hot to Handle

Buy, Sell or Hold: Peabody Energy Corp. (NYSE: BTU) May Be Too Hot to Handle

[Originally published at Money Morning]

By Jack Barnes, Contributing Writer, Money Morning

Peabody Energy Corp. (NYSE: BTU) provides the coal that creates 10% of America’s electricity.

In fact, the company’s coal creates 2% of the world’s electricity.

The stock is up almost 100% from the 12-month lows it set last summer. And after a quick recent pullback, Peabody Energy’s shares appear to be on the march once again.

Though this is a high-quality investment, we’re in dangerous territory here. It’s time to “Hold” Peabody Energy (**) – until a needed pullback gives investors a chance to add more shares.

A Powerhouse Power-Generator

Peabody Energy shares have soared 95% from the lows they reached back in June (with a 52-week closing low of $35.59) – propelled, in part, by a commodity-fueled bull market.

This share-price surge has almost doubled the company’s market cap – to a current $18.8 billion – which I believe leaves the stock vulnerable to a profit-taking pullback. While there was a short-term correction in the last few days, Peabody shares jumped $3.37 – or 5.11% – to close at $69.32, after setting the new 52-week high of $69.61 in afternoon trading.

After such a scorching run, the odds of a pullback are pretty high. Still, this is a company that investors will want to own long-term – and for five very good reasons.

You see, Peabody Energy:

  • Is the world’s largest private-sector coal company.
  • Has an active global-coal-trading platform.
  • Logged a record $6.86 billion of revenue in 2010.
  • Accounts for 10% of all electricity generation in the United States and 2% of global electricity production.
  • Is growing its production capacity.
King Coal

Founded in 1883 and based in St. Louis, Peabody Energy has evolved into a global heavyweight with interest in 28 coal operations. As I said, its coal products fuel 2% of the world’s electricity production including 10% in the U.S. market.

That fact means Peabody possesses a unique view into the U.S. economy itself, as power stations in different parts of this country have different demands.

Peabody Energy produces coal from mines in the United States and Australia, while sourcing additional seaborne thermal coal from Indonesia. That means the company is active in three of the largest coal producing and exporting countries in the world.

The company has an active global-coal-trading platform, which lets it leverage additional market capacity knowledge. This trading platform gives it a real edge. In fact, Peabody has the ability to track – in “real time” – the worldwide demand for different “flavors” of coal.

Peabody really showed its chops last year, when the company posted a record $6.86 billion of revenue. The surge in revenue was propelled by higher volumes and pricing from mining operations in both the United States and Australia.

2010 sales volumes totaled 245.9 million tons, compared with 243.6 million tons in 2009. Australia shipments jumped 21% to 27 million tons, and revenue from that country rose 50% on higher prices for both metallurgical and seaborne thermal coal.

“Peabody delivered the second best year in company history, with record safety performance, strong cost containment and margin expansion in every operating region,” said Peabody Energy Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Gregory H. Boyce. “While heavy rains and other supply disruptions create near-term logistics challenges, they also result in significant market upside for Peabody’s unpriced metallurgical and thermal export coal beyond the first quarter. At the same time, our platform is in expansion mode to serve the seaborne Pacific markets, which have the greatest sustainable growth opportunities and pricing leverage.”

Peabody believes the world is in the early stages of a long-term super-cycle for coal, as China, India and other emerging nations dramatically increase energy use, steel consumption grows globally, and oil becomes increasingly scarce.

Economic growth in emerging Asia is expected to be the driver of large increases in thermal and metallurgical coal, the company said. Some 390 gigawatts of new coal-fueled generation are expected to be built globally through 2015, requiring 1.2 billion metric tons of annual coal supply. Global steel production is expected to rise more than 30% during that time, requiring approximately 300 million metric tons of additional metallurgical coal supply annually.

For 2011 the company is targeting total sales of 245 to 265 million tons, including 28 to 30 million tons from Australia, 195 to 205 million tons from the United States, and the remainder from trading and brokerage activities.

Advice For Investors

Peabody currently has a market cap of $18.8 billion, with an “enterprise value” (EV) of $19 billion once net debt and cash are added to the balance sheet.

The stock price is up 43% in the last 52 weeks, beating the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index return of 16.9%. It pays out a small dividend, with a yield of about 0.5%.

Peabody Energy is one of those companies that every long-term investor should have exposure to. But at a time when global geopolitical risk is escalating to frightful levels – and after the company’s stock has moved so far, so quickly – the risk of a major pullback outweighs the risk of missing out on a continued run-up in share-price.

If you already own Peabody shares, hold onto them. If you are looking to create a new position in Peabody’s stock, let’s employ some patience and look for a better initial entry point than the top of a 52-week “breakout.” Wait for a pullback and then buy new shares.

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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/businessinsider/~3/MseY35MlrzU/buy-sell-or-hold-peabody-energy-corp-nyse-btu-may-be-too-hot-to-handle-2011-3

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Who Is Credit Counseling For?

Deciding if Credit Counseling is Right for You

Almost everybody has credit cards, and having too much of this kind of debt can lead to some serious trouble. Those plastic rectangles have led many much stronger than you down the path of financial irresponsibility and hardship, but if somebody was properly educated on how to handle credit card debt they may have a higher chance of dealing with this debt and avoiding trouble in the future. This is where a credit card counselor comes in and assists you in this regard. Credit counselors are skilled in the art of dealing with creditors and deal with credit card companies every day; they know how to navigate themselves through the jungle and assist you in turning your dire credit card situation around into something manageable.

A credit counselor from a reputable credit counseling company can negotiate with your current credit card company to save you money in a variety of ways. A lot of times when your credit card debt can get out of control, your credit card payments can go up 50% to 60% with all the late fees and surcharges that are compounded to the minimum payment. One of the biggest benefits of a credit counselor is a lot of the time these guys can negotiate with the credit card company to remove some of those fees and extra surcharges. The credit counselor can also negotiate a lower interest rate for you as well.

Simply put, having a lower interest rate means that your debt will be significantly lower as well. After a credit counselor negotiates lower fees and a lower interest rate that ultimately translates into a debt management plan where you will be able to pay off your debt faster. The good news is when you clean up all this debt it simultaneously cleans up your credit report, and your score will reflect all the effort you put into taking care of this debt. In some cases an individual may feel that his debt is too large and that bankruptcy is his only alternative.

At face value bankruptcy may seem like the magic bullet, but if you ask most people that have gone through the bankruptcy process this couldn't be farther than the truth. If you add up all the attorney and court fees bankruptcy becomes extremely expensive. It's highly advisable that before you take the plunge into bankruptcy that you seriously consider credit counseling. Although credit counselors are an extremely useful group people credit counseling isn't necessarily for everyone.

The perfect candidate for credit counseling is somebody who has a ton of unsecured debt; secured debt such as car loans or mortgages aren't really going to work well with credit counseling. The other factor that you will have to consider is that your credit score is going to be temporarily lower. Credit counselors will let you know that-even though-your credit is going to temporarily go down, as you take care of your debts your credit will also be fixed, and in some cases will be higher than when you started.

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