gridlock

On Tuesday, Starbucks launched "Create Jobs for USA," a program to raise loan funds for small businesses. We talked to CEO Howard Schultz about his concerns about gridlock in Washington, unemployment, the need for a sense of solidarity, and the role of corporate leaders in getting America out of this downturn.

Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz has grand plans to cut through the partisan noise and remind our country's politicians of their problem-solving duties: On Tuesday, he's hosting a gigantic, public telephone town hall, and asking all "concerned Americans" to join his movement and participate.

Tuesday's election results probably won't affect the stock market much, at least not in the short term since the outcome was largely anticipated. But even so, it's worth thinking about the effect divided government could have on the stock market over the next two years.

The clock is ticking for Democrats. Obama and his party have just six months to create jobs and lower unemployment, or divided government in Washington is ahead. Failure to improve the jobs outlook by summer means Republicans could return to power in the U.S. House in the November elections.

The streets of Caracas are crammed with three times as many cars as they can handle. And why not? Gas is cheaper in Venezuela than anywhere else on Earth. The consequence, of course, is nasty traffic, made only worse by potholes, police checkpoints and other impediments to smooth vehicular...