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Archive for June, 2008

No Evidence That Public Surveillance is Making Us Safer

After the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, local governments across the country set aside concerns over privacy and installed surveillance cameras in public streets and plazas.

Now — even after a damning report by the head of London’s extensive surveillance network and with little evidence that the systems work — police in many cities are trying to add thousands more cameras to their networks.

“‘Cameras Everywhere’ continues to be the best description of the trend in the video surveillance market,” security market analysts J.P. Freeman Co. said in a report in 2006 that estimated that a quarter of major U.S. cities were investing in the technology.

Solar Power and Renewable Energy, It’s All About the Money

Although the renewable energy industry saw over US $100 billion in global market activity, 14 percent of global venture capital investment and accounted for roughly one-third of new U.S. electrical generation capacity last year, the industry is still very far from maturation. But America’s financial leaders are helping change that.

All risks considered, the world’s leading investors are recognizing that a transition to a clean energy economy is the single biggest economic opportunity of the 21st century — and possibly the biggest economic opportunity ever.

The U.S. represents one of the largest renewable energy markets, so merchant bankers, private equity firms and venture capitalists are all educating themselves about how to navigate this immature yet promising marketplace and make the right decisions to drive the industry forward. REFF is an event designed to give financiers the tools to invest in this increasingly complicated space.

Marathon Begins Heavy Oil Refinery Upgrade Project

Michigan’s only gasoline refinery, Marathon Oil in southwest Detroit, received final permission Friday to begin a $1.9-billion expansion of its plant, which will create 800 construction jobs and more than 100 permanent jobs and, possibly, give some gas price relief in 2011 to drivers in southeast Michigan.

Marathon officials moved quickly after getting the news, beginning construction within minutes of learning it had received the permit to start.

“We’re thrilled,” said company spokeswoman Chris Fox.

The company had pile drivers in the ground at the site minutes after the Department of Environmental Quality announced it had approved its air pollution permit.

“We’ve had people on standby, waiting for weeks,” Fox said.

House Passes Unemployment Extension

WASHINGTON — After a breakthrough with the White House, the U.S. House overwhelmingly passed a bill Thursday night that would extend jobless benefits by 13 weeks to an estimated 4 million unemployed workers.

The Senate is expected to pass the legislation, which is combined with funding for the Iraq war, sometime next week. The White House issued a statement Thursday indicating the president would sign the package.

The unemployment compensation is critical to Michigan, which has the nation’s highest unemployment rate, at 8.5 percent. The national average is 5.5 percent.

Hundreds Indicted in Mortgage Fraud

WASHINGTON – Federal authorities announced Thursday that more than 400 real estate industry players have been indicted since March — including dozens over the past two days — in nationwide crackdown on mortgage fraud that has contributed to the country’s housing crisis.