October 2, 2009
Four For Friday
Q1 - Presidential Duties: Chicago's bid for the 2016 Summer Olympic Games reached its peak this week when the most well-known, influential and famous person in the world traveled to Copenhagen to make the Windy City's case before the International Olympic Committee: Oprah. Oh, and the President of the United States went as well to make Chicago's case before the IOC picks a host city Friday. Ever since Tony Blair and Vladimir Putin swayed votes for the 2012 and 2014 Games, sending your head of state to the IOC is considered as much of a prerequisite in an Olympic bid as a well-placed "contribution." Do you think it's appropriate for the President of the United States to lobby for an Olympic bid? Related, do you think President Obama would have gone to Copenhagen if a U.S. city other than Chicago was in the running for an Olympic bid?
Q2 - Turn That Down?: A friend asks: "I was waiting in my car for [sic] my daughter's school to let out, had the windows open and was enjoying the breeze. A man pulled up in line and sat in his car playing very loud music with a heavy bass beat. The words to the songs were ugly, and it was bothering my few minutes of solitude. Would you say something?"
Q3 - Earnings: Tiger Woods hit another milestone over the weekend. But his most recent record wasn't set on the golf course but, rather, at the bank. The $10 million bonus Woods received by winning the FedEx Cup golf title makes him the first athlete to earn $1 billion in a career, Forbes.com reported. Woods had earned $895 million going into 2009. Adding his $10.5 million in prize money from this season, the FedEx bonus and more than $100 million in endorsement earnings, Woods has topped the $1,000,000,000.00 mark. Putting aside for a moment that capitalism is alive and well here in the United States and that Woods has done nothing criminal in earning his money, are you okay with the amount of money the 33-year-old golf pro has earned during his professional career, or is there something seriously wrong with the corporations that have collectively chosen to dole out the type of money Woods and others like him are able to earn from playing sports professionally?
Q4 - Tax Returns: H&R Block performed miserably in the 2009 tax season, handling approximately 6 percent fewer in-store, retail tax returns, as consumers sought lower-cost IRS filing alternatives due to difficult economic conditions. Thinking ahead to your 2009 tax filing (which you'll file in early-2010), do you think you'll file your return yourself or seek the help of a professional like the ones at H&R Block?
Posted by Mikal at October 2, 2009 4:01 AM
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Q1 - I don't think he'd have gone if it wasn't Chicago. And it doesn't look good that he went and it didn't matter to the committee. I think there was some anti-american sentiment going on there, which is understandable. Also the 4 bazillion people in South America probably helped.
Q2 - I probably wouldn't say anything, sadly. I didn't say anything to the lady in front of me that texted the entire time during the Jim Gaffigan concert either. I wish I would have. Why would you text the whole time? Texting the jokes?
Q3 - I'm fine with it, but I think it's ridiculous. I hope Tiger gives a lot of that money back to charities. Nobody needs that much money. I also don't think the ROI on the company's investments could possibly be worth that.
Q4 - I'll do it myself, I always do. But, It's also very simple for me, no kids, no 'real' investments, no other money to claim, etc.
q1. Since most other Heads of State's are showing up I don't think there is anything wrong with it. I'm not convinced he'd have gone out for a different city.
q2. Depends on the level of intrusion and my mood. Probably in this case I would.
q3. If professional sports didn't rely so much on government subsidies (read Free Lunch by David C Johnston for more info) then I'd be perfectly fine with it.
q4. I've always done them on my own and I plan to this year as well.
Q1 - I dont think he would have gone and I don't think he should lobby for it.
Q2 - Ha it really depends on the mood and if the guy is larger then me. I know if I said something it would probably smart mouthed and I really don't want to get beat up... ya know?
Q3 - Are you kidding me... what does he do? Nothing but play golf and so what if he is so good at it... we could sure use that money else where right now.
Q4 - We use Jill's Dad who works for H & R block, but we get it done for free... :)
Q1 - Presidential Duties: I don't see a problem with it. For me, hosting the Olympics is an honor, so a country's leader ought to do what he or she can to get the bid. As to whether or not Obama would have gone were it not Chicago... hard to say. I wouldn't blame him if he didn't, because as President I might have gone for SLC, but not any other city.
Q2 - Turn That Down?: Yes, I almost definitely would have said something, only because it's at a school and having that kind of foul-mouthed music blasting is super inappropriate. If the lyrics weren't foul, I'd probably just deal with it as that kind of disregard for others is rampant enough that I've consigned myself to accepting that I have little other choice.
Q3 - Earnings: First, I just want to say how wild this is! I remember hearing the news when a professional golfer became the first to reach $1 million in career earnings. Wow how times have changed so quickly! But to answer your question; when you're not a billionaire it's easy to say there's something wrong with someone getting paid hundreds of millions to play a game that the rest of us have to not only pay to do, but take time away from our normal lives to do. But... in a free society, if someone (or some company) feels like giving you millions, who are we to say, "Nope, you can't do that!" I might feel it's kind of messed up, but I'm okay with it. I had someone give me $10 grand once for doing nothing. I'd be kinda pissed (and so would the person who gave it to me) if someone else stepped in and said, "Sorry, that's just too ridiculous. You can't do that."
Q4 - Tax Returns: I've always prepared tax returns myself. However, last year I logged in to the Utah State website to file my state return online (which said I owed about $300), when suddenly they told me my wife didn't exist. Strange, being that I had filed online through the State system the two years prior without any problem. So I went to Jackson-Hewitt and they got me a $100 refund. So, while I'll still do my own federal return, I'll let Jackson-Hewitt do my state again.
Q1 - Presidential Duties: Last I checked, the U.S. has far greater problems than worrying about one city out of tens of thousands hosting the olymipics.
Q2 - Turn That Down?: Depends on the guy. If he looks like he's an ex-navy seal, I sit there. If he looks like me, I say, turn it down, and if he gives me flack, I bust him up.
Q3 - Earnings: For the entire history of the world, we've have incredibly wealthy individuals and incredibly poor individuals. Used to be Kings/Queens with the money. Now it's Tiger. He's the 2009 version of royalty in the U.S. I predict in 1,000 years we'll have same thing going on.
Q4 - Tax Returns: Because of all the complexities of owning a business, we pay a tax accountant to do them. It's too complex for me to do personally, and I was an accounting major. Let's simplify the tax structure!
Q1: I think the President has bigger and more important things to deal with right now. And what was Oprah doing there? Mayor Daley should have made the pitch.
Q2: Probably not. I might give him a look, though or shove a potato into his exhaust pipe. Does that work?
Q3: I think the discrepancy in pay we have in this country is obscene. Some people work just as hard at more difficult and dangerous jobs and can't make ends meet.
Q4: I use TurboTax.
Q1 - Since it has become essential for a head of state to campaign for an Olympic bid, it was, I suppose, acceptable. If a city in a state that has a Republican Governor and 2 Senators, had applied, I expect that he would have not been there.
Q2 - I probably would have not said anything. Only occasionally do I verbally respond to such situations.
Q3 - I am very much a free market economist. If the free market will support this, and it does, then more power to him.
Q4 - I always do my taxes myself without any of the tax prep companies or products. I have a specific reason to do this that I do not share very often.
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