Baltimore — (TFN): One good thing about kids is they are predictable. Give them five bucks and say they’ve got just one hour to spend it or it goes into their savings account and can bet another five bucks the cash will be spent by minute 59.

It’s the same way for politicians. Give them some cash and they’ll have it spent in no time flat, even if they can’t find anything worth buying.

Baltimore (TFN): The Fed is meeting today. And I ask who cares? At this point, Bernanke and his troupe of politicians masquerading as economists are in so far over their heads, no matter what they do or say, you can bet the move is designed to protect their butts, not yours.

The downtrodden retail industry is on the move today. Thanks to good news from companies like Liz Claiborne (NYSE:LIZ) and Wet Seal (NASDAQ:WTSLA), investors are putting some profits in their shopping bags.

If the news today is an indication of things to come, the next few months are not going to be pretty. If the big boys are preparing for the worst, imagine the fear from the debt-ridden little guys.

They may not be the big mergers investors were hoping would fire off another winning week, but today’s movers help prove there is upside potential left in the market.

Retirement is part of the American dream. Unfortunately, the nation’s financial meltdown is making the act tougher than ever. Social Security alone won’t pay the bills.

It has been a long time since we had good news from the newspaper industry. But thanks to today’s upbeat figures from Gannett (NYSE:GCI), the industry is surging. Lee Enterprises (NYSE:LEE) has taken the lead.

I hope the federal government is paying attention. As regulations and costs increase, more companies, like Gander Mountain (NASDAQ:GMTN) are going private. It is not good news for the nation’s vital financial sector.

Sonic Solutions (NASDAQ:SNIC) has soared over the past six months. Is now the time to buy? Savvy investors are checking out this easy options strategy.

There has not been much good news coming from Detroit or the nation’s auto industry over the past year. Is the industry finally out of the woods?