Looking for a good summer read? Check out The World's Largest Man, which I wrote about here back on April 5, 2018. “E.J., Here is a little taste of Mississippi life. Enjoy!” That was the note from a client written on the inside cover of the funny as well as tender memoir, The World’s Largest Man, by Harrison Scott Key. Turns out, some parts of growing up in Mississippi aren’t that much different from any town USA. In one excerpt Key writes about how his father would read the telephone bill like some Old Testament scholar with a gift for high blood pressure. “Who called 734-908-4560?” he … [Read more...]
Trump Makes It Simple: Make America Great Again
President Trump, at a recent rally in Montana, was on his “A” game. At one point, he referred to the phrase “thousand points of light” wondering out loud what the heck that meant. And then he said: “Make America Great Again”. People know what that means. It’s simple. Because deep down in their gut Americans know that our greatness has been wasted on foreign endeavors by the former and current elites of the old GOP. As Pat Buchanan points out in The American Conservative: With never-Trump conservatives bailing on the GOP and crying out for the Party of Pelosi to save us, some painful truths … [Read more...]
Tolkien: A Look Back at a Master
I've written to you before about my family's enjoyment of the works of J.R.R. Tolkien. Undoubtedly Tolkien is one of the best known authors of all time, but what is less known is Tolkien's use of visual arts as an aid and accompaniment for his written works. Now, at the Bodleian Libraries’ Weston Library of Oxford University, fans of Tolkien can see an exhibition of his works. Michael FitzGerald writes of the exhibition in The Wall Street Journal: Under the guidance of his mother, who came from a family of engravers, Tolkien began drawing and painting as a child. By the time he entered … [Read more...]
Work, Live and Save Money in these Three Power States
My take-away from this excellent piece by Joel Kotkin is that keeping more of your money matters. In other words, state taxes matter. Look at the magnetic pulling power of the three power states in the sun belt with no income taxes: Texas, Tennessee, and Florida. It turns out state lines can be re-drawn with the help of overbearing government excess. Because the new California is Texas and Tennessee, and the new New York/New England is Florida. Money travels to where it’s treated well. Just don’t tell the politicians. Kotkin writes in Forbes: Among the 71 largest metro areas, the biggest … [Read more...]
Survive and Thrive August: Growing-Up in Mattapoisett/Rochester/Marion: Going on Survival
Editor’s Note: In this three-part series, I examine the benefits of self-sufficiency and resilience through the eyes of my teenage nephew, and myself. Rather than shielding children, it is important to empower them with the confidence to make decisions for themselves. That’s something I learned on “Survival.” Part I: June 19th 2018 I’m excited for my nephew. Saturday he left for a week-long camping trip called “Survival.” It’s a rite of passage for seventh graders at the tri-town regional junior high school from the towns of Mattapoisett, Rochester, and Marion, Massachusetts. I went on … [Read more...]
Tax Cuts to Improve Your Retirement Portfolio
President Trump has a golden opportunity for a second round of tax cuts by indexing capital gains for inflation. I can’t tell you how many times investors have wanted to make their portfolio more conservative but did not because of onerous capital gains. In other words, they kept more money in stocks, against their more prudent instincts, simply to avoid cap gains. This is how serious money is lost as witnessed in the markets twice so far this century circa 2000 and 2008. Kimberley Strassel of the WSJ explains how Trump could cut taxes with the stroke of a pen: What if President Trump had the … [Read more...]
Your Retirement Life: Roaming the Earth
You don’t need an EarthRoamer to see America. But it would be cool if you had one. Imagine where you could go. Save your money, learn a few tricks from the experts, and create your own expedition. What are you waiting for? … [Read more...]
A Japan-Sized Hole in U.S. Pensions
If you have been following my writing for any length of time, you'll know that I have been loudly and regularly sounding the alarm bell on the pension systems of America's cities and states. Here is a sampling of the pieces I have written on the subject: Pensions are Still Hiding from the Truth Dangerous Rules Make American Pensions Riskier Pensions Should be Fearful Pensions: Left on the Hook will be the Taxpayer Pensions in a Load of Trouble Today, Sarah Krouse reports for The Wall Street Journal that the pension hole in the United States for cities and states is the size … [Read more...]
How Red States are Winning the Jobs War
It turns out that one of the keys to business success is lowering costs. That doesn't just mean for raw materials, but also for government imposed costs like taxation. The places doing the best job of lowering those taxes and attracting more business are red states like Texas. In The Wall Street Journal, James Freeman explains how one private equity firm is making money moving software firms from high tax states to low tax states like Texas. Yesterday I told you that CNBC had classified Texas as the best state for business. This is an example of what makes that so. Freeman calls it the … [Read more...]
Cato Institute: Top 5 States: Freedom in the 50 States
The scholars at Cato Institute have narrowed down the Top 5 freest states in America. … [Read more...]
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