Thanksgiving typically conjures images of spending time with family, savoring long meals, and watching sports. For those working at the Target corporation this year, they will remain only images. The mega-chain store has just asked many of its employees to put on their work clothes at midnight on Thanksgiving night to prepare for Black Friday shopping. However, many are not looking forward to the extra hours.

A weak economy and the failed pension plans of several bankrupt companies have increased the financial burden of the government agency that insures pensions for one in seven Americans. The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) insures private sector pension plans and takes over retirement benefit payouts when traditional pensions fail. Unfortunately, the little-known federal agency is reporting a record $26 billion deficit for the fiscal year ending in late September. The director of the agency has said that they may "eventually" need a bailout from taxpayers.

The issue of how the U.S. should control migration on the border with Mexico is politically sensitive and emotionally charged. It’s formed a major focus for the Obama administration and a key question for the Republican candidates. But the latest data from both sides of the border suggest that, in fact, Mexicans are no longer migrating to the U.S. in the way they once were. This year's net migration will be close to zero. They are either not crossing the border, or if they do, many end up returning to Mexico.

The recession may have officially ended in June 2009, but consumer confidence remains at recession levels heading into holiday shopping season. In fact, the most recent Consumer Confidence Index from the Conference Board went down 6.6 points for the month of November to 39.8 percent. By comparison, the Confidence Index was 70.4 percent in February of 2011. 

Most economists agree that the recession ended in the summer of 2009. But, because of persistently high unemployment, many Americans are still feeling the economic pain. Across the country, there are almost five percent fewer jobs than there were when the recession began. And, according to a recent Gallup poll, Americans are now more pessimistic about the job market than at any time in the past 10 years. About 90 percent of Americans currently say that it is a "bad time" to find a quality job. 

Billionaire investor Warren Buffett announced on CNBC Monday morning that his Berkshire Hathaway holding company has bought $10.7 billion of stock in IBM. Buffett said the company began investing in March, and now owns 64 million share of IBM, or 5.5 percent of the computer and technology company. The buy is a bit of a shift for Buffett, who has in the past avoided purchasing tech stocks. Erik Holm of The Wall Street Journal reports on the latest.

This week, all of the Republican presidential candidates are back on the campaign trail. Former speaker Newt Gingrich, Texas Governor Rick Perry, and Representative Michele Bachmann will all visit Iowa. Meanwhile, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney heads to Florida, and Cain will be in Wisconsin. President Obama travels to Australia, steering clear of the Congressional "super committee" as its deadline to shave $1.2 trillion from the U.S. budget grows near. 

The roller coaster that is Greek politics continued Wednesday. Talks between the three main political parties forming the new unity government remained deadlocked. The most dramatic moment came when Giorgios Karatzaferis, leader of the smallest party walked out of negotiations. He told reporters it was sad that games were taking place between outgoing Prime Minister George Papandreou and opposition leader Antonis Samaras. The two men are known to be bitter rivals — but it wasn’t always this way.

As the European sovereign debt crisis has spread from Greece to Italy, investors worst fears are coming true. "Contagion" is the word of the day, as Italy's precarious situation threatens to destabilize the entire euro zone, possibly posing a systemic risk to the global economy. A central member of the euro zone, and Europe's third largest economy, Italy is too large to be bailed out by Europe as was the case with Greece. Italian bond rates have skyrocketed to above 7 percent, as investor fret over whether Italy's government will be capable of dealing with the crisis, even with the departure of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

Japanese company Olympus was founded in 1919 with the goal of making microscopes. But now, after a series of shocking accounting revelations the microscope is being turned on Olympus. The camera company admitted on Tuesday to a decades-long scheme to hide almost a billion dollars in investment losses. It is Japan's biggest financial scandal since the bubble of the 90s, and it has rattled stakeholders and shareholders worldwide.

The twin political and fiscal disasters of Greece's sovereign debt crisis have spread to Italy, Europe's third largest economy. Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's governing coalition has crumbled ahead of a crucial budget vote scheduled for Tuesday, and a key ally has demanded his resignation. Interest rates on Italy's debt rose to 6.47 percent, the highest since the country joined the euro. As Greece negotiates a transitional government, the fate of the euro remains in question.

Embattled Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou will resign once plans for a new coalition government are finalized. Papandreou and his political rival, conservative leader Antonis Samaras, reached a deal on Sunday to form a unity government to implement the unpopular austerity measures required by a bailout deal reached with European leaders. The new government is expected to be led by a non-politician who will be named on Monday.

The U.S. economy added 80,000 jobs in the month of October, pushing the unemployment rate down to 9.0 percent from 9.1 percent according the latest figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In October, the private sector added 104,000 jobs, though 24,000 government workers lost their jobs. On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve forecast that unemployment will likely only drop to between 8.5 and 8.7 percent in 2012. Charlie Herman, business and economics editor for The Takeaway and WNYC, analyzes what these figures mean for the economy.

The G20 summit is under way in Cannes. While the European sovereign debt crisis is at the top of the agenda, one of the more noteworthy topics being discussed is a so-called "Robin Hood Tax," a financial transaction tax on stocks, bonds and derivatives trades. Microsoft founder and philanthropist Bill Gates is at the summit to address world leaders in support of the tax, which he says could be utilized to help developed nations meet their global aid obligations to the world's poorest countries.  

Herman Cain's sexual harassment woes. Greece's unstable government buckling under pressure from its debt crisis. The renewed focus on the striking disparity between rich and poor in America. And, well, Kim Kardashian's divorce. These were, for better or worse, the stories that dominated the headlines for the last week. The Takeaway has assembled a panel of analysts to rundown, dissect, and wrap-up all the major stories of the week.

Over the past few weeks, The Takeaway has reported about student loan debt and rising tuition costs. President Obama recently unveiled a new program that he says will help lower the interest rates on student loans. But his strategy does not help students who graduated before 2012. As cash-strapped states continue to cut funding for public universities, tuition is likely to keep on rising. How should public universities balance budget cuts and tuition hikes? 

An estimated 10,000 protesters marched to the Port of Oakland last night as a general strike was called in support of the Occupy Wall Street movement. Demonstrators shut down maritime operations at the port as officials asked that protesters allow the workers to return home safely. The march was generally peaceful, police said, as some vandalism was reported. The strike was the first of its kind since 1946. Meanwhile at Wall Street, protesters have battled the snow and prepare to face the winter.

Remember the $5 monthly fee Bank of America planned to roll out for all its debit card customers? In a complete reversal, the bank now — one month later — says it's dropping plans to introduce that fee. It’s a big victory for the 200,000 customers who signed a petition on Change.org calling for Bank of America to drop this fee.

Federal regulators say hundreds of millions of dollars of customer money is missing from MF Global, the brokerage firm which filed for bankruptcy on Monday. It is unclear where the estimated $700 million has gone, and no one has yet been accused of wrongdoing. Headed by former New Jersey governor Jon Corzine, MF Global made risky bets on the European debt crisis. The Dow dropped 276 points in reaction to the news of the implosion, reminiscent of the Lehman Brothers collapse in 2008.

As part of The Takeaway's innovation discussion the program looks at how new cell phone technology is having some big implications for the developing world. It’s a powerful tool because of its prevalence — cell phone use in the developing world has surged in recent years, meaning it could be the gateway to solving long standing challenges. Dr. Ashifi Gogo is CEO of Sproxil, a multi-national company that uses cell phones to help consumers spot counterfeit drugs in the developing world. Ramesh Raskar is an associate professor at MIT Media Lab.