~ Annnnnnnd we’re back! We’ve gotten the all clear from the Google gods so peruse as you normally would. Sorry about yesterday and we really appreciate your patience. There are various theories as to who the culprits are and we’re utilizing enhanced interrogation methods to find out. Now, then. Who’s ready for Irene?
Hurricane Irene Tracker [NYT]
The heavy stuff won’t be coming down for quite awhile.
Evacuations, Transit Shutdown Eyed in City [WSJ]
As Hurricane Irene barreled toward the East Coast, New York City officials prepared for the possibility of evacuating hundreds of thousands of residents in low-lying areas and a full shutdown of the city’s transit system. Mayor Michael Bloomberg, speaking at a news conference from City Hall Thursday evening, said he could make a decision by 8 a.m. Saturday about evacuating the public from parts of the nation’s most populous city.
Tax Tips for Harvey Golub (and Other Millionaires) [WSJ]
Step 1: Fire your accountant.
Ex-Lehman Officers Seek $90 Million to End Lawsuit [WSJ]
Former Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. Chief Executive Richard Fuld and other directors and officers are seeking the release of $90 million in insurance funds to settle a potential multibillion-dollar lawsuit brought by shareholders of the failed investment bank. The pending settlement, filed Wednesday with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan, would end a class-action suit that began in June 2008—about three months before Lehman filed for Chapter 11 protection.
Groupon Has ‘Never Been Stronger,’ Mason Says [Bloomberg]
“When I read some of the press this weekend, I realized a rational person could read this stuff and wrongly conclude that we’re in trouble,” Mason wrote in a memo sent to employees yesterday and obtained by Bloomberg News. “The irony is hopefully clear: We’ve never been stronger.”
For Some in G.O.P., a Tax Cut Not Worth Embracing [NYT]
In a turning of the tax policy tables, Democrats are increasingly hammering on Republicans who oppose the president’s proposal to extend for a year a payroll tax cut passed last year with bipartisan support. That tax cut — which reduces workers’ contributions to Social Security this year to 4.2 percent of wages, from 6.2 percent — expires in December. The White House would like to extend it for another year. But Republicans in Congress are balking, arguing that such a cut adds needlessly to the nation’s budget deficit, and should be replaced with an overhaul of tax policy instead.
