Canadian savings rates, the smart money and President Obama on the Great Recession.

• Million Dollar Journey. The State of Canadian Family Finances – 2008. “We look south of the border and see the abysmal savings rates of the typical American family. You may assume that Canadians save much more than our U.S friends, however, that is not true. Our savings rates are almost as low as in the U.S!”
• National Post. Smart money is pushing away from the table. “Are you ready for dessert? Perhaps some flan or small slice of gateaux? Or are you too full – complete, as the Spanish say – after the appetizer and the entree? Oh well, we’ll give you some time to think about it while you enjoy your coffee.”
• The Globe and Mail. The prophet of progress. “Capitalism is done like dinner. The free market is over. Globalization is dead. The great recession has finished them all. So say the prophets of doom.”
• Wise Bread. Everything you need to know about personal finance on one page. “Trent Hamm of The Simple Dollar has published a short ebook he’s giving away for free. It’s audaciously titled “Everything You Ever Really Needed to Know About Personal Finance On Just One Page” – and it actually succeeds! Fortunately for us, the ebook doesn’t end on page 1. Trent spends another 48 pages explaining the principles presented on the first page.”
• The New York Times Magazine. After the Great Recession: an interview with President Obama. “On April 14, President Obama gave a speech at Georgetown University, trying to explain why he was taking on so many economic issues so early in his administration. He argued that the country needed to break its bubble-and-bust cycle and cited the New Testament in calling for a new economic foundation for the nation. This foundation would be built on better schools, alternative energy, more affordable health care and a more regulated Wall Street, he said. Later that afternoon (shortly before the Obama family introduced its new dog, Bo, on the South Lawn of the White House), I sat down with the president to talk about how his agenda might change daily life in this country.”
• Economist.com. Insider seduction. “Last week on Gossip Girl, a soap opera about rich New York City high-school students, I caught an interesting bit of dialogue between Rufus (the middle-class Brooklyn arty type) and Serena’s new boyfriend Gabriel (the prodigal son of a wealthy, tobacco family who had some elaborate, yet noble-sounding scheme to make lots of money and help the African poor).”
• Financial Times. Central banks must target more than just inflation. “Did inflation targeting fail? Central banks have mostly escaped blame for the crisis. Do they deserve to do so?”
• Walletpop. The Recession Diaries: The late, great Chicago Tribune column now at Walletpop. “Journalists, more accustomed to covering news than making it, are even less used to becoming part of the beat and story they cover. Imagine someone who reports on the local sewage board being asked to lay some pipe.”
• The Detroit News. Michiganians mine bodies for cash to make ends meet. “Heidi Fetzner is unemployed and willing to be creative to make a few bucks. So when the German and psychology student at Kalamazoo College realized someone was willing to pay her $1,000 for her long brunette locks, her attitude was: Break out the scissors. ”

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