With increasing signs that the economy is laboring, most economists agree that a short-term infusion of spending, or an extension of this year's temporary cut in Social Security taxes, could help fend off a new downturn.

But whatever one thinks of the debt deal—and most of its billions in cuts won't come for a few years—there's a near-consensus in Washington against spending increases.

Today's New York Times has an excellent article about how a Maine homeowner - and her volunteer lawyer, working with Pine Tree Legal Assistance - have exposed the latest round of bank misdeeds: uninformed, and possibly fraudulent, filings of foreclosure proceedings in courts in Maine and all over the country.

If you want to know how this mess has developed, read this story.

In response to the emotional unwinding of many Americans during this recession, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) launched a new Web page as a guide "on how to deal with the effects financial difficulties can have on your physical and mental health."

We offer some links to help those in need sort out their emotional well-being during this tumultuous time.

Overwhelming local support for a nonbinding ballot initiative indicates that a push for a greener future may have legs.

The “Secure Green Future” initiative appeared on ballots in 11 Massachusetts Districts, and proposes legislation that would phase out tax incentives for projects that use a lot of energy (like the Big Dig, for example), reward small businesses that practice energy conservation, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Massachusetts by 80%, by the year 2020.

Not that I think I'm special or anything, but when I heard the news about the Fed's AIG bailout, I thought immediately that Bush's "privatize everything" philosophy was about to turn on its head into "nationalize everything." And sure enough, Cenk Uygur over at HuffPost had the same thought - plus, he argues the point more fully and more convicingly, in his post, "Bush Becomes A Socialist