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October 31, 2008

Four For Friday - The Election Edition

Q1 - Talk About It: Many of my friends have commented they cannot discuss politics with co-workers, family, friends and others without conflict rearing its ugly head. Do you feel you can talk with your family and friends about this particularly divisive Presidential election?

Q2 - And The Winner Is: Do you know who you're voting for in next week's Presidential election?

Q3 - Call It: A pollster is a professional whose primary job is conducting private pre-election surveys and advising candidates on election strategy. Put your pollster hat on: Who will win the Presidential election and by what margin (in percentages)?

Q4 - Issues: What do you think is the most important issue in next Tuesday's Presidential election?

Posted by Mikal at 11:55 AM | Comments (24) | TrackBack

October 24, 2008

Four For Friday

Q1 - Name It: Each of our fingers has unique cultural and functional significance. From right to left -- with the right hand in the "talk to the hand" position -- the fingers are commonly known as: thumb, index finger, middle finger, ring finger, and pinky. If you could rename any one of the fingers, which one would it be and what would you call it?

Q2 - Dress It: Much has been made this week about the Republican National Committee's $150,000-plus expenditure on clothing, hair and makeup, and accessories for Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin and her family. According to financial disclosure records, the accessorizing began in early September and included bills from Saks Fifth Avenue for $49,425.74, a Neiman Marcus bill for more than $75,000, and a $4,700 tab on hair and makeup. In response to the news, the McCain/Palin campaign issued a statement saying "The campaign does not comment on strategic decisions regarding how financial resources available to the campaign are spent." A few hours later, a campaign spokesperson said: "With all of the important issues facing the country right now, it's remarkable that we're spending time talking about pantsuits and blouses. It was always the intent that the clothing go to a charitable purpose after the campaign." Regardless of whether you support McCain/Palin, Obama/Biden, or someone else in the race for the White House, do you think its appropriate for campaigns to spend money like this?

Q3 - Extend It: On October 2, 2008, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced that he would seek to extend the city's term limits law so he could run for a third mayoral term in 2009 (in NYC, two consecutive four-year terms is the limit). Bloomberg's reasoning: a leader of his caliber is needed during the Wall Street financial crisis. Well, the Mayor got his wish yesterday when the City Council voted 29-22 in favor of extending the term limit to three consecutive four-year terms, thus allowing Bloomberg to run for office again (take note: almost two-thirds of the Council's membership is currently in their second term). If you were casting a vote in this matter, how would you have voted: keep the term limits as they are or extend them to three consecutive four-year terms?

Q4 - Medicate It: According to a recent report, about one-half of American doctors in a new survey admitted they regularly give their patients placebo treatments (usually drugs or vitamins that won't really help their condition). If you found out your doctor was doing this to you, what would you do?

Posted by Mikal at 12:28 PM | Comments (14) | TrackBack

October 17, 2008

Q1 - Ouch, That Hurts!: Who do you think hurt the United States of America more... Osama bin Laden and Al-Qaeda on 9/11 or the people responsible for the current state of the economy?

Q2 - Advice: If you were asked to deliver the commencement speech at your high school: A) Would you do it? B) What would you talk about?

Q3 - Event: "Hello! Is this [insert your first and last name here]? My name is Peter Gadwa and I'm calling from Ticketmaster. By a strange twist of events (pun intended), your name has been chosen to receive four tickets to any event in the world -- past, present or future. What event would you like to attend and who will be joining you?"

Q4 - Commute: If a high-speed or local rail line was available to take you to and from within seven blocks of your home to work or shopping, would you use it at least four times per week or are you too attached to your automobile?

October 10, 2008

Q1 - Cutting Back: The rising price of consumer goods is driving shoppers from all lifestyles to use coupons for food, beauty aids and pharmacy products at an increasing rate, according to some of the country's largest purveyors of manufacturers' coupons. Has the current state of the U.S. economy forced you to take a second look at your spending habits? If so, are there any areas in particular where you are consciously cutting back?

Q2 - Installment vs. Lump Sum: A winner of a $42 million lottery in Michigan may do something almost unheard of: receive the money in installments rather than getting smaller, one-time cash payment. The unnamed winner of the October 3 jackpot told state lottery officials she would be taking the annuity (lottery winners typically take a lump-sum payment with plans to invest it, but confidence in the stock market has dropped with the current financial crisis). If you won a $42 million lottery tomorrow, would you take the money in installments or one lump sum?

Q3 - Worries: Just prior to Congress' passing and the president's signing of the Treasury bailout legislation on Oct. 3, the percentage of Americans saying they worried about money the previous day hit a new high for the year at 48%. Since that time, worry has declined, with the percentage of Americans worried about money falling to 39% in Gallup Poll Daily tracking from Oct. 4-6 and 42% from Oct. 5-7. Are you worried about money (asked differently, do your current worries have anything to do with money)?

Q4 - Fund That Cause: Billionaire investor and businessman Warren Buffett is again the richest American, deposing Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, after Forbes magazine recalculated the fortunes of some of the 400 wealthiest Americans. If you could compel Buffett to give away 50% of his $58 Billion net worth for a single cause, to what cause would the money go?

October 3, 2008

Q1 - Email: We've all probably done this: Composed what we thought was an innocuous email or instant message, hit the send button and sat back to await a reply. When you finally do hear back, you learn the recipient of your message is upset with you. You thought what you sent was a very clearly worded message that could not possible be misinterpreted, but the recipient completely misunderstood. As a rule, do you read or reread email messages before you send them? Related: When you attach a document or file to an email message, do you open the file after it has been attached (to make sure it is indeed what you want to send)?

Q2 - It's a Dogs World: If you were reincarnated as dog, what breed would you like to be and what one person--either dead or alive--would you choose to be your master?

Q3 - Debates: According to political pollsters, there are very few instances in which Presidential or Vice Presidential debates had a substantive impact on election outcomes. In other words, most voters choose to vote for a candidate regardless of what takes place during a debate. Has either of this year's debates influenced whom you think you will be voting for in November?

Q4 - City Ordinance: Beginning this Wednesday, Los Angeles pet owners must comply with a city ordinance that requires most dogs and cats to be spayed or neutered by the time they are four months old. Dog and cat owners not complying with the law will receive information on subsidized sterilization services. If their pets are not "fixed" within 60 days, they could face a $100 fine or eight hours of community service. A third offense could result in a $500 fine or 40 hours of community service. The ordinance exempts a number of animals, including service dogs and animals that compete in shows or sporting competitions. Do you like this ordinance or do you think the government has no right to legislate whether your cat or dog can have kittens or puppies?

October 2, 2008

When members of the U.S. Senate voted Wednesday evening to pass an emergency economic stabilization package authorizing the U.S. Treasury to borrow up to $700 billion to buy illiquid mortgages, securities and other assets that are said to be creating instability in the nation's financial anatomy, it simultaneously authorized unrelated expenditures that question the validity of the stabilization package itself.

Take a gander at the following list of unrelated budget provisions tacked onto the measure:

1. Sec. 305. Extension of 15-year straight-line cost recovery for qualified leasehold improvements and qualified restaurant improvements; 15-year straight-line cost recovery for certain improvements to retail space.
2. Sec. 306. Modification of tax treatment of certain payments to controlling exempt organizations.
3. Sec. 307. Basis adjustment to stock of S corporations making charitable contributions of property.


4. Sec. 308. Increase in limit on cover over of rum excise tax to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.


5. Sec. 309. Extension of economic development credit for American Samoa.


6. Sec. 310. Extension of mine rescue team training credit.


7. Sec. 311. Extension of election to expense advanced mine safety equipment.


8. Sec. 312. Deduction allowable with respect to income attributable to domestic production activities in Puerto Rico.


9. Sec. 313. Qualified zone academy bonds.


10. Sec. 314. Indian employment credit.


11. Sec. 315. Accelerated depreciation for business property on Indian reservations.


12. Sec. 316. Railroad track maintenance.


13. Sec. 317. Seven-year cost recovery period for motorsports racing track facility. [From CNN: Creation of a seven-year cost recovery period for construction of a motorsports racetrack: Track owners currently follow a seven-year depreciation schedule and write each year's depreciation off their taxes. The IRS wanted to increase the depreciation timetable to 15 years, which would mean the track owner's depreciation would be cut in half. The measure in the keeps the seven-year depreciation schedule for two years and would cost taxpayers $100 million.]


14. Sec. 318. Expensing of environmental remediation costs.


15. Sec. 319. Extension of work opportunity tax credit for Hurricane Katrina employees.


16. Sec. 320. Extension of increased rehabilitation credit for structures in the Gulf Opportunity Zone.


17. Sec. 321. Enhanced deduction for qualified computer contributions.


18. Sec. 322. Tax incentives for investment in the District of Columbia.


19. Sec. 323. Enhanced charitable deductions for contributions of food inventory. [From Tax Payers For Common Sense: Extends by two years, until December 31, 2009, a provision allowing for deductions related to the charitable donation of "apparently wholesome food"--defined as food intended for human consumption that meets all quality and labeling standards imposed by law and regulations even though the food may not be readily marketable. This provision also changes the application of the law as it relates to donations by farmers and ranchers. The cost is $149 million, according to Joint Committee on Taxation.


20. Sec. 324. Extension of enhanced charitable deduction for contributions of book inventory.


21. Sec. 325. Extension and modification of duty suspension on wool products; wool research fund; wool duty refunds. [From CNN: Extension and modification of duty suspension on wool products, wool research fund and wool duty refunds: The measure helps U.S. worsted wool fabric makers and clothing manufacturers. The bill extends provisions through 2014 or 2015 that were originally sponsored by Reps. Louise Slaughter, D-New York, and Melissa Bean, D-Illinois, in 2007. The measure would cost taxpayers $148 million.]


22. Sec. 502. Provisions related to film and television productions. [From CNN: Provisions related to film and television productions: In order to keep movie production in the U.S., production companies would be allowed to deduct the cost of producing the films from their taxes. Rep. Diane Watson, D-California, has been one of the program's biggest supporters. The measure would cost taxpayers $478 million over 10 years.]


23. Sec. 503. Exemption from excise tax for certain wooden arrows designed for use by children. [From Taxpayers For Common Sense: Current law places an excise tax of 39 cents on the first sale by the manufacturer, producer, or importer of any shaft of a type used to produce certain types of arrows. This proposal would exempt from the excise tax any shaft consisting of all natural wood with no laminations or artificial means to enhance the spine of the shaft used in the manufacture of an arrow that measures 5/16 of an inch or less and is unsuited for use with a bow with a peak draw weight of 30 pounds or more. The proposal is effective for shafts first sold after the date of enactment. The estimated cost of the proposal is $2 million over ten years, according to the Joint Committee on Taxation. The Oregon senators were the initial sponsors of the provisions. According to Bloomberg News, the provision would be worth $200,000 to Rose City Archery in Myrtle Point, Oregon.]


24. Sec. 504. Income averaging for amounts received in connection with the Exxon Valdez litigation. [From CNN: Income averaging for amounts received in connection with the Exxon Valdez litigation: The measure would allow the plaintiffs who won damages from Exxon Mobile for the oil spilled by the Exxon Valdez to average the award over three years rather than treating it as income in a single year. The measure was backed by Alaska Rep. Don Young and would cost taxpayers $49 million.]


25. Sec. 505. Certain farming business machinery and equipment treated as 5-year property.


26. Sec. 506. Modification of penalty on understatement of taxpayer's liability by tax return preparer.


27. Sec. 601. Secure rural schools and community self-determination program.


28. Sec. 602. Transfer to abandoned mine reclamation fund. [From Tax Payers For Common Sense: Transfers interest earned on money in the abandoned mine reclamation fund to the United Mine Workers of America Combined Benefit Fund, which helps pay health benefits for retired miners and their dependents who worked under collective bargaining agreements that promised lifetime health-care benefits. States with the most miners receiving benefits have historically been Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia, and Ohio. This provision extends existing law to include a $9 million transfer for 2010.]

While many of the above measures may be worthwhile or beneficial programs and causes, in my opinion they have no place showing up in this economic stabilization package (or tacked onto any bill for that matter). That all three members of the Senate running for the two highest posts in the land (McCain, Obama, and Biden) voted in favor of this package with all of these entirely unrelated items attached to it, tells me that none of them are serious about changing business as usual in Washington, D.C.

The addition of unrelated "tax extender" legislation and earmarks to legislative measures is, in my opinion, wrong and needs to stop. Transparency isn't just a buzzword. Each and every measure listed above needs to be evaluated on its own merits and deserves its own discussion and deliberation. Yes, that's a timely proposition, but isn't that what our elected officials (supported by government staffers and an informed citizenry) were elected to do?