Posts by Peter Bengston

Although the rapidly approaching holidays usually only induces feelings of anxiety, I do look forward to getting out the cookware and making my tried and true holiday desserts and side dishes such as English trifle, Danish rice pudding (risengrød a la mande) and sweet potatoes baked in a sauce of maple syrup, butter and BOURBON!

After the collapse of financial markets in 2008 and the resulting job loss experienced by millions of Americans, The New York Public Library decided the time was right to expand the services of the former Job Information Center at Mid-Manhattan Library and transform it into the current Job Search Central (JSC) in the Science, Industry and Business Library (SIBL) to provide a broader range of assistance to those in urgent need of finding new avenues of employment.

Recent opinion polling has revealed that consumer confidence in the United States economy has plummeted. However, an even more important question to ask is: how's your confidence in your own economy, that is, your personal finances? This Fall, The New York Public Library is offering a number of programs educating New Yorkers on how to take control of their finances.

Financial Planning Day @ SIBL will be held on October 6, 2011. A number of classes on investing and financial planning, as well as financial database demonstrations, will be given throughout the day. Free sessions with certified financial planners will also be available 

In addition to my "day job" as material selector for the neighborhood libraries, I've been a member of the Steering Committe of World Trade Week NYC for the past six years.  Ever since the tenure of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the President of the United States has officially declared the third full week of every May to be World Trade Week.  

The deadline for filing your income taxes may be rapidly approaching but that is no reason to put your personal finances on the back burner until next April.  If that little voice at the back of your mind is telling your that you need to finally get serious about planning for your financial future, you're in luck!

The recent activities of Wikileaks and Julian Assange have once again reignited the controversy of the degree to which the public has a right to unfettered access to government information.  This year, Freedom of Information Day is being observed nationally on March 16.  At The New York Public Library, Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter for the New York Times, David Barstow, has been invited to speak at the Science, Industry and Business Library on the topic of the Freedom of Information Act and how it affects the work of journalists.  The following titles focusing on freedom of expression and access to government information are available