I’ve seen the gold standard blamed for a lot of things in my day—the busts of the 19^th century, the travails of the farmer back when, the Great Depression—but I’d never thought I’d see the blame for the serial economic crises we’re enduring today, in 2012, hung on the gold standard. After all, isn’t the gold standard long gone? Read More

Graduating from college can be rough. You’re saddled with debt and trying to  strike out on your own for the first time.

But there are some cities that make this life transition easier than  others. Read More

Wealthy U.S. shoppers ranked Nordstromas their favorite  department store in a new survey of luxury retailers.

Bergdorf Goodman came next, followed by Barneys’ New York.

Nordstrom was also the most-visited luxury retailer, with 36 percent of  respondents—who make more than $150,000 a year—saying they had shopped there in the past year. In  comparison, only 7 percent had visited Barneys’ and 6 percent had shopped at  Bergdorfs. Read More

If you think providing for your children after divorce is basically about diapers, dentistry, and diplomas, you’re in for a life of surprises.

Whether you’re supporting preschoolers or those who have returned home after college, experts say preparing for any scenario and putting everything in writing is the best way to defuse potentially explosive situations in the future. Read More

A takeover and a huge bet on the future of natural gas sent El Paso shares surging last year. In October 2011, Kinder Morgan struck a $21.1 billion deal to buy El Paso. The sale, which was approved by shareholders and is expected to be finalized later this year, combines the two biggest natural gas pipeline operators in North America, making it the continent’s fourth-largest energy company. Read More

Warren Buffett says that Berkshire Hathaway is buying shares in two U.S. companies and will continue to buy them today, especially if they become cheaper in today’s global stock sell-off.  As usual, he’s not naming those stocks, but does say they are names that are already in the Berkshire portfolio. Read More

I’ve been Business Insider’s Managing Editor for almost two years now. Since  we’re a fast-growing company, we’re constantly looking for new talent, from  interns to site leads. Read More

In Spain, the unemployment rate among workers under 25 is more than 50 percent. In Ireland almost a third of the young are unemployed. Here in America, youth unemployment is “only” 16.5 percent, which is still terrible — but things could be worse. Read More

The Congressional Budget Office said Thursday that 45 million people in 2011 received Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programbenefits, a 70% increase from 2007. It  said the number of people receiving the benefits, commonly known as food stamps, would continue growing until 2014. Read More

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — The government approved the first ever natural gas export facility in the lower 48 states on Monday, clearing the way for a project that could be a significant job creator. Read More