You’ve probably heard by now: Steve Jobs is dead. Farewell to an amazing innovator. He’s been part of our cultural wallpaper for such a long time it’s hard to believe he was only 56. Don’t know that I’d want to beta test a bank, but if you’re fed up with the Big Boys, here’s an interesting new alternative. Speaking of banks, the always-interesting Barry Ritholtz has a good take on their self-inflicted mark-to-make-believe wounds and other unintended consequences of Brilliant Government Ideas. Believe it or not Tim Burton did not create this wedding photo. (I was going to post the…
Category: Money
Posts about being frugal, getting out of debt, staying out of debt, spending practically and splurging joyfully. This category may also contain posts about hard money and what the government is doing to all that “soft money” it creates.
A good man died last week. Al Woodbridge. Although he was only one of many abused by the ATF in the 90s (and by federal kangaroo courts), he was one of the toughest. H/T to JJ. I really like the way James Altucher thinks. This guy, on the other hand is edging toward the real answer but is still way sidetracked. Will he ever get the Real Clue, do you think? (But Occupy Wall Street is seriously interesting, isn’t it?) Common sense and enlightenment raise their battered heads once again in the world of mind-altering drugs. A good article on…
A while back we talked about “it” — The Day, The Moment, the trigger event, the one unmistakable signal that the house of cards is really, truly commencing to fall. Will there ever be such a moment? If so, will we recognize it when it happens or only spot it in retrospect? Or will there be no “it” — just be a dreary slide? Jim B. points out that Rome didn’t collapse in a day. Ellendra asks, apropos of nothing and everything whether politicians joking (?) about suspending elections might qualify as a sign. I don’t know whether we’ll ever…
They probably hope to save themselves by selling a billion Justin Bieber stamps. Compromise. Ptooey! Y’know, in a free country they’d be in favor of privacy. I agree this is boneheaded. But this is another misuse of the word “mistake.” It’s not like GM did it by accident or anything. I was a little premature when I railed against this 14 years ago when the pilot project was just getting underway. (This is “freedom” as brought to you by “conservatives.” With the help of “liberals.”) I don’t care if they do make them in camo. It’s a dumb idea. Probably…
… and who’s going to get hurt. A trader incautiously tells the truth. It’s an inconvenient truth all the way. But the big wallop comes about 2:30 mins in. Tip o’ hat to S.
Some stuff I’ve been collecting while being quiet: Jake MacGregor is back again. Chapter 34 and 35. Ron Paul: speaking truth to knuckleheads (it’s harder than speaking truth to power). Another example of how government helps lower medical costs and make life easier for people. Jacob Hornberger: Blaming America. For fans of the DullHawk flag (aka “Time’s Up”). One of those good news stories. About a gutsy woman and her big, gutsy horse. A rare act of justice One reason I’ve quit focusing on stuff like this is that no matter how creepy it gets, you know next week it’ll…
“Chained CPI.” Whotta concept. You may have heard of this. The Bureau of Labor Statistics has apparently been tallying it for nine years, right along with CPI-U, CPI-W and all the other variations of the Consumer Price Index, including that perennial favorite, “core CPI,” which considers food, fuel, and shelter to be outside of the core costs of our lives. Anyhow, “chained CPI” isn’t a new concept. But it’s new to me. I’ve just heard of it because there’s talk of shifting to it to determine cost of living increases for social security, federal pensions, veterans programs and such. Now,…
… to this guy. What a fantastic life he earned for himself. No wonder why these folks are slavering over him.
I know a lot of people don’t give a hoot that the Swiss central bank chose this week to tie the fate of the Swiss franc to the nosediving, dying euro. To some, Switzerland’s folly is just another scrap of bad news from muzzy-headed, irresponsible foreigners (at a time when we can’t even keep up with the idiocies perpetrated by our own domestic Irresponsibilistas). To others, who might once have looked to Switzerland as an example of what a country could be, it’s just another step on on that nation’s self-chosen downward path. From gold-backed money and financial privacy to…
Yeah. Wow. My favorite part is the when they cut the payroll tax in half. “Without negatively impacting the Social Security Trust Fund.” That’s good. I don’t even think Penn & Teller, Siegfried & Roy, David Copperfield, Doug Henning, David Blaine, and Houdini could match that achievement if they all worked together for a year. And were all alive at the time, of course. I’m impressed. Really. I need a topic category for Magical Stupidity. I really do. No, what I need is another glass of wine.