Value comes from those using it and when those using it mutually assign no value, it disappears, becoming a quaint linguistic oddity or a neglected modifier.

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In fact, were it not for the hearings recently undertaken by the Joint Economic and the House Government Operations Committees, it appears that there would be no effort made by the Congress to assign blame or to consider corrective legislation.

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Since startups like Sungevity typically have no use for such tax credits, they assign them to financiers like Citi in exchange for funding the solar leases.

FORBES: Citigroup To Fund Home Solar Installations By Sungevity

Moreover, analysts assert that Panama gave Hutchinson broader powers in legislation known as "Law No. 5" which enables Hutchinson to assign the pilots who take control of ships and steer them through the canal enabling them to block passage of ships to meet its business needs.

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Because, again, since no one knew which mortgage would default first, it was impossible to assign a specific mortgage to a specific bond.

FORBES: Where Is The Housing Recovery?

How's this for clumsy goods handling: Warehouse managers can't decide in advance how to allocate storage space or assign labor to unpack and store shipments because, in some situations, until a container is unsealed, no one knows whether it contains glass ornaments or dining room tables (the containers aren't marked).

FORBES: The logistics of a dinner plate