Credits

As manager of the Borinquen Federal Credit Union, Ignacio Morales had a tall task: keeping afloat a thrift that catered to low-income Hispanics in North Philadelphia. Morales did just the opposite. He laundered ill-gotten IRS refund checks, plundered Borinquen to fund a large-scale cocaine purchase, and cooked its books to hide his misdeeds. Morales became so indifferent that he once let a customer deposit a $45 million check that was clearly fake. The end for the thrift came two summers ago, when it collapsed under the weight of all the fraud.

Darlene Love is a trouper: a veteran of song, stage, and screen, a veteran of Phil Spector's rule, a veteran of soul-testing background vocal gigs for Elvis Presley and Bono. Not even Laurence Olivier could have attested to appearing with the Royal Shakespeare Company (as Love has done in a coproduction of Carrie ), on Broadway ( Hairspray ), and in soap operas ( Another World ). She has just returned from the funeral of her grandson's 2-month-old baby. But she won't let that get in the way. She'll be on the Kimmel stage Saturday night, joining Freda Payne, Baby Washington, Candi Staton, and other luminaries for an event titled "Jerry Blavat: The Divas of All Time.

As manager of the Borinquen Federal Credit Union, Ignacio Morales had a tall task: keeping afloat a thrift that catered to low-income Hispanics in North Philadelphia. Morales did just the opposite. He laundered ill-gotten IRS refund checks, plundered Borinquen to fund a large-scale cocaine purchase, and cooked its books to hide his misdeeds. Morales became so indifferent that he once let a customer deposit a $45 million check that was clearly fake. The end for the thrift came two summers ago, when it collapsed under the weight of all the fraud.

DEAR HARRY: I had never used my computer to buy merchandise on the Internet, so I'm not sure I did the right thing. I went to a site that I know is legitimate and ordered about $150 worth of Christmas gifts. I played it safe and gave them my credit-card number over the phone rather than send it on the computer. However, the lady I spoke with asked for the three-digit code that appears on the back of the card. I saw no reason not to give it to her, but I am curious as to just what it's for. WHAT HARRY SAYS: They call this a "security code.

The extension of the federal wind-power tax credit as part of the fiscal cliff package was hailed as a victory Wednesday by renewable power advocates. But a Bucks County wind-turbine manufacturer, where much of the workforce was furloughed in September because of a slowdown in orders, is unlikely to ramp up production any time soon because of the last-minute congressional rescue of the tax credit. "I think it will take a little while for this to work its way to the manufacturing sector, but it will be a stimulus," said David J. Rosenberg, the vice president of marketing for Gamesa USA, the Spanish wind-turbine manufacturer with U.S. headquarters in Langhorne.

The extension of the federal wind-power tax credit as part of the fiscal cliff package was hailed as a victory Wednesday by renewable power advocates. But a Bucks County wind-turbine manufacturer, where much of the workforce was furloughed in September because of a slowdown in orders, is unlikely to ramp up production any time soon because of the last-minute Congressional rescue of the tax credit. "I think it will take a little while for this to work its way to the manufacturing sector, but it will be a stimulus," said David J. Rosenberg, the vice president of marketing for Gamesa USA, the Spanish wind-turbine manufacturer with U.S. headquarters in Langhorne.

If every week of the year had a slogan, this week's would be: "Out with the old, in with the new. " But if you're making room for a new TV or laptop, you can't just chuck the old ones in the trash. Most electronic devices contain toxic elements like lead, mercury, silicon, and cadmium that can contaminate landfills. The plastic on the outside and the precious metals on the inside should be recycled - and might even bring in a profit for a local charity. Perhaps more important, starting Jan. 24, Pennsylvania laws will bar putting computers, monitors, laptops, keyboards, printers, or TVs in with the regular trash.

ATHENS, Greece - The Standard & Poor's ratings agency on Tuesday upgraded Greece's credit grade by six notches, yanking the debt-heavy country out of default but keeping its devalued bonds in junk status. The agency said the upgrade to B-minus - the highest grade it has given Greece since June 2011 - reflected its view that the 16 other European Union countries using the euro are determined to keep Greece inside the currency union. It also gave Greece a stable outlook, meaning it is less likely to change its rating again soon.

THE INFORMATION in our credit files has become the doorway to the world of credit, not to mention getting a job or the best insurance rates. Yet how credit files are handled by the major credit bureaus is a mystery to many consumers. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) aims to shatter some of the mystique by looking into how the three largest credit-reporting companies - Equifax, Experian and TransUnion - capture consumer-credit information. Each credit bureau maintains files on more than 200 million adults and gets information from about 10,000 furnishers of data, the report notes.

"Clearly, the fiscal cliff is having effects on the economy. This is a major risk factor right now. " - Fed chairman Ben Bernanke, in a speech in which he tied low interest rates to the unemployment levels. "If consumers are not checking their [credit] reports, these errors can persist and pop up when a consumer can least afford them . . . " - Richard Cordray, director, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, on uncorrected reports by the credit bureaus. "The labor market might be improving a bit quicker than expected.