My Blog

Category: Finance

  • The Rich Are Getting Poorer

    Trouble for those “Tax the Rich!” folks: For the first time in history, rich people are actually getting poorer, and luxury retailers are freaking out about it.  … “Because these same consumers are significantly invested in their high-end lifestyle with income committed to a wide-range of fixed expenses to maintain that lifestyle, it’s in discretionary…

  • Fallout of China’s One Child Policy

    I’d not thought of this: … The reason Chinese savings levels are so high is the one-child policy. In most developing countries the way that people save is they have multiple children hopefully to generate a gaggle of grandchildren all of whom are trained to respect their elders. Given most people did not live to…

  • Double-Dipping Payments from the “G”

    As many as 117,000 Americans simultaneously collect unemployment benefits and federal disability each year, a form of double-dipping that investigators say costs taxpayers $850 million annually and should be ended. To understand why such “double-dipping” constitutes fraud, please note the following general requirements for each program: To receive unemployment insurance benefit payments, claimants must state…

  • Illinois – 4th Worst Legal Climate for Business

    Illinois, along with California, Louisiana, Mississippi and West Virginia, are among the worst states in the country for businesses because of their legal climates, according to survey of corporate attorneys released Monday. Two Illinois counties did not fare well in the survey by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s institute for legal reform, either. Cook County…

  • Obama’s Unemployment Chart

    Remember when we were promised that if we spent $2 billion of money we didn’t have all would be well? Let’s compare promised to actual: It’s also important to keep in mind that this chart does not reflect the millions of people who simply are no longer included in the workforce.  As of August, only…

  • The Unemployment Farce: Only 42% of People Working

    Worst news ever!! The number of Americans whom the U.S. Department of Labor counted as “not in the civilian labor force” in August hit a record high of 88,921,000.  … In July, there were 155,013,000 in the U.S. civilian labor force. In August that dropped to 154,645,000—meaning that on net 368,000 people simply dropped out…

  • Who Pays What Income Taxes?

    At the DNC there was a lot of talk about “Everyone has to pay their fair share.”  That seems to be at introduction into a philosophical discussion about what a particular group should pay.  What is everyone’s “fair share?” In Tax Year 2009: Top 1%   paid 36.73% of the total tax bill; Top 5%  …

  • IL Pension Hole Analysis

    I wrote this a few weeks ago as a comment on a retired teacher’s blog.  The post there was about how we need to “tax the rich” in order to fund the teachers’ pensions.  I was asked to comment on the post by a retired teacher I know.  Analysis follows: There is no one sided…

  • Denise Rich: Democrat Who Fled the U.S.

    Denise Rich, the wealthy socialite and former wife of pardoned billionaire trader Marc Rich, has given up her U.S. citizenship – and, with it, much of her U.S. tax bill. Rich, 68, a Grammy-nominated songwriter and glossy figure in Democratic and European royalty circles, renounced her American passport in November, according to her lawyer. via…

  • Eat the Rich vs. Obama

    I was reading this story: President Barack Obama will officially launch the battle over the impending fiscal cliff this morning, announcing a plan to extend the Bush-era tax cuts for people earning under $250,000, while letting the rest of the tax cuts expire. via Business Insider. This got me thinking about how much money will…