Arnold Proposes A Flat Tax For California

Is Higher Education The Next Bubble To Burst?

What does the real estate market and a college education have in common? Their prices have risen faster than inflation in recent years, they are both expensive, they are often paid for with credit, the markets for that credit have dried up, they both have less expensive alternatives. We know what happened to housing, might the same thing happen to higher education. Many universities are concerned that cash strapped families will more commonly turn to community colleges to satisfy a portion or all of a child's post-secondary education. With many costs on a college campus unavoidable, this diminished revenue stream could be devastating.

Man Poses As Dead Mother To Collect Social Security Benefits

A New York man turned his dead mother over to a funeral home six years ago with a phony Social Security number and birth certificate. From that moment on until his arrest and subsequent conviction yesterday on 47 counts of fraud, he dressed the role to collect her benefits. Clicking on the title above will take you to the story and a picture of the man in drag and his accomplice who posed as a nephew.

Will Barack Obama Be Herbert Hoover?

Herbert Hoover failed because he couldn't break free of the establishment's expectations. The power of the orthodoxy was too great. Will the same fate befall President Obama. We need radicalization, does he truly have it in him?

Boxers Or Briefs? The Economy Can't Wait To Find Out.

Believe it or not, men's underwear sales are considered a legitimate economic indicator by many, including Alan Greenspan. Like most things "durable", you'll wear your skivvies longer if the recession is weighing on you. A sign of recovery can be the day when enough men venture out to replace those less than perfect ones in the undie drawer. Apparently, from recent numbers, the economy has bottomed but we've yet to see signs of recovery. Underwear sales have stopped receding. One has to wonder what the state of male hygiene would be if this downturn was a more sustained one.

The Pollyanna Effect

Every month the government avails us with mountains of data we plow through to determine the health and well-being of the economy. The numbers are released and one can anticipate the economists will fight over the meaning. But a growing number of voices are questioning the validity of the data. The assumption is that qualified and objective data miners are hired to accumulate and then disseminate the information. Politicians can't change facts but they can pressure statisticians to massage their numbers. Enough of these incremental modifications over the decades and today's information can be quite perverted. Thus, benchmarks at the beginning of every new administration will be flawed. The good intentions of the current administration can't go back and rewrite a legacy of crafted information. Click on the title above to learn more about people's concerns.

Infinite debt: How unlimited interest rates destroyed the economy—By Thomas Geoghegan (Harper's Magazine)

Infinite debt: How Unlimited Interest Rates Destroyed The Economy(Harper's Magazine)

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Success Stories

In the varied fabric of American culture, three ethnic groups have enjoyed an inordinate amount of success. Jewish, Asian, and West Indian Americans have a track record of achievement unparalleled by other strands in our society. The reasons for this are not without debate but the one standard established is that success is within one's control. All three groups have been subject to copious amounts of discrimination yet have risen to disproportionate levels of accomplishment. Click on the title above to investigate the logic behind this ascendancy.

A College Degree Has Never Been More Valuable

For anyone who’s wondering whether a college degree is still worth it, The Wall Street Journal had a nice summary of the statistics this weekend:
The recession has led to steep job losses across the U.S. work force, but less-educated people have been hit particularly hard. The unemployment rate for workers over 25 years old who haven’t gone beyond high school rose to 10% in May, nearly doubling from 5.2% a year earlier, the government said Friday. Among workers who haven’t completed high school, the unemployment rate rose to 15.5%, compared with 8.4% last year. By contrast, the jobless rate among those with four-year college degrees was 4.8%, up considerably from 2.3% a year ago, but well below the rate for people with less education. College graduates have definitely been hurt by the current recession. Thousands find themselves out of work, and many of those newly unemployed will struggle to find a job that paid as well as their last one. Still, on a relative basis, a college education has never been more valuable. The pay gap between college graduates and everyone else, for instance, reached a record high last year. Four-year-college graduates made 54 percent more, on average, than people who attended college but did not graduate. Fifty-four percent! If you’re a college student trying to decide whether to get your degree, I would urge you to remember that number — rather than anecdotes about unemployed college graduates.

People Are Crying In Their Beer

While most manufacturers are waiting out the slump, one industry that bucks the trend is beer. Numbers, though not as rosy as the recent past, are still up in the latest measuring cycle. The one exception is Romania where hard times must be demanding something stronger. Click on the title above to access the article.

Taxing Sugary Soft Drinks

The idea of using taxes as a disincentive from consuming sugar-laced soft drinks is gaining steam. Click on the title above to explore the distinct possibility now that President Obama has appointed a main proponent to head up the CDC.

Ever Wonder What A Pringle Is?

In an earth shaking decision destined to forever alter the consciousness of late night snackers, a court in England has finally answered the age-old question. Proctor and Gamble, the maker of Pringles, was attempting to classify the product as something other than a potato chip to avoid an added VAT tax they were charged. The courts didn't buy the assertion and ruled that the 40% potato flour content spells potato chip. Now P&G has to cough up millions in back taxes. Click on the title above to explore the titanic judicial struggle and all of its ramifications.