Cars, executions and jobs have been in the news lately. Their relationship in this column is by happenstance. The order in which I chose to discuss them is based on their spelling (alphabetical).

The latest car advertisements, especially the Japanese ones, are touting how far manufacturers have come in converting and improving their hybrid (combined gasoline and electric fueled) models.

COLUMBIA, S.C. — A new poll shows Southerners are fretting about job loss and the economy and don’t think the federal government is doing enough to address either.

The Winthrop Poll of 866 respondents in 11 Southern states found the economy was the top concern of four in 10 — the same share of people who said they were concerned about losing their jobs.

Ford Motor Co. earned $1 billion in the third quarter, fueled by U.S. market share gains, cost cuts and the government’s Cash for Clunkers rebates.

Employment balance tips with Mohawk’s impending closure

The number of newly laid-off workers filing first-time claims for jobless benefits fell to the lowest level since early January, as layoffs ease a bit amid a fledgling economic recovery.

At least in recent decades Americans have equated financial independence with adulthood. You aren’t really grown until you can support yourself. You are cautioned not to marry or have children, adult tasks, until you can support yourself. Some young people are told point-blank by their parents that after undergraduate school, and for some after high school, they are on their own. People who may give generously to their favorite charities frequently draw the line at continuing to fund adult children. “Oprah” shows are done on what to do about children lingering in the basement after their parents think they should be gone.

Legislators expect Gov. Timothy M. Kaine today to propose cutting Virginia’s budget by up to $1.5 billion.

Retail sales dropped in July, government data showed, reinforcing concerns among economists that consumers won’t spend enough to help a recovery take hold. But Friday is expected to bring better news: July inflation is expected to have remained flat, and industrial production is likely to have grown for the first time in nine months.

The U.S. trade deficit edged up slightly in June as imports rose for the first time in 11 months, another sign that the worst recession since World War II is beginning to loosen its grip on the economy.

Trumpeting a “made in America” message, President Barack Obama on Wednesday unveiled a national investment in electric cars as the latest effort to rebuild an economy that keeps shedding jobs.

The recession is starving the government of tax revenue, just as the president and Congress are piling a major expansion of health care and other programs on the nation’s plate and struggling to find money to pay the tab.

Two of President Barack Obama’s economic heavyweights said middle-class taxes might have to go up to pare budget deficits or to pay for the proposed overhaul of the nation’s health care system.

The House raced Friday to pass legislation pouring an additional $2 billion into the popular — but financially strapped — “cash for clunkers” car purchase program.

Citigroup Inc., one of the biggest recipients of government bailout money, gave employees $5.33 billion in bonuses for 2008, New York’s attorney general said Thursday in a report detailing the payouts by nine big banks.

Lt. Gov. hopeful offers ideas for economic recovery