The week before every halloween, Joel and Becky make Chili. What I love mostly about it is that there is no recipe - Joel just knows it from memory - yet somehow it gets better every year.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Chili: Our Fall Tradition
The week before every halloween, Joel and Becky make Chili. What I love mostly about it is that there is no recipe - Joel just knows it from memory - yet somehow it gets better every year.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Joe the Plumber and business taxes: They're all getting it WRONG!
The "Joe the Plumber" argument is that "Joe" is going to buy a business that is making $250-$270,000 a year and that Obama's tax plan is going to tax him more. What amazes me is that Obama, McCain and many pundits are really missing the boat on how business taxes actually work.A business who generates $270,000 a year (generally) refers to gross income of the business. Business taxes are in no way connected to the gross income!
"Joe" has expenses such as payroll, trucks, insurance, etc. These expenses reduce his taxable income until at the end of the year - he either shows a profit or a loss. THE PROFIT OF THE BUSINESS is what gets taxed. NOT THE GROSS INCOME.
So, if Joe is an awesome businessman - he'll show a 30% profit and pay taxes based on $75,000 - which is well within Obama's tax cut for the middle class.
Lastly, McCain keeps saying that if Obama increases taxes on these businesses (which we know he won't now - but lets play along), that millions of Americans will lose jobs because if the company they work for has to pay more in taxes - they will cut jobs.
Stop it. That's exactly like saying that because I am going to get taxed on my next pay check that I don't want my next pay check. Come on! Even if some individuals end up (those making $250k and up) paying more in taxes - do you honestly think they'll stop earning money because of it? Of course not!
This argument is illogical and is fear mongering. It's simply meant to scare people who don't understand.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
17 years ago....
I don't specifically remember seeing this picture (left) on the National Geographic cover in 1985, but I *do* remember her eyes.
The newest picture (right) is the second time this Afgan girl has ever been photographed.
Interesting story here....
Monday, October 13, 2008
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Monday, October 6, 2008
Interview with Warren Buffet on Charlie Rose
Here are a few quotes from this Charlie Rose interview with Warren Buffet:
"You want to be fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful."
"They've (Americans have) seen 8% of America's bank deposits in the United States have moved - very skillfully I might say - within the last couple of weeks."
"This is an economic Pearl Harbor."
"If you look at the American public - they have $20 trillion worth of residential homes and they've got $20 trillion worth of stocks, very roughly. Those are both the two big assets of the American family and they are both down dramatically."
"If I got a chance to take 1% of the deal (be a partner with the US in the bailout plan) I'd take it." There's money to be made because the US government has staying power.
"I've said (derivatives) are possible weapons of mass financial destruction and they have been. They destroyed AIG and they certainly contributed to the destruction of Bear Stearns and Lehma."
Americans have improved themselves financially in this century by a rate of 7:1. Some centuries have seen 1%. America's economy is strong.
-Believes strongly in mark-to-market accounting.
-"Inflation is a likely consequence of our decisions now."
-Warren Buffet
"You want to be fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful."
"They've (Americans have) seen 8% of America's bank deposits in the United States have moved - very skillfully I might say - within the last couple of weeks."
"This is an economic Pearl Harbor."
"If you look at the American public - they have $20 trillion worth of residential homes and they've got $20 trillion worth of stocks, very roughly. Those are both the two big assets of the American family and they are both down dramatically."
"If I got a chance to take 1% of the deal (be a partner with the US in the bailout plan) I'd take it." There's money to be made because the US government has staying power.
"I've said (derivatives) are possible weapons of mass financial destruction and they have been. They destroyed AIG and they certainly contributed to the destruction of Bear Stearns and Lehma."
Americans have improved themselves financially in this century by a rate of 7:1. Some centuries have seen 1%. America's economy is strong.
-Believes strongly in mark-to-market accounting.
-"Inflation is a likely consequence of our decisions now."
-Warren Buffet
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
First class idiots
First class idiots
Originally uploaded by -SPK
Did I mention that we got bumped off our Allentown flight so they upgraded us to first class and we drank like fishes (8:45 am flight mind you) all the way to Charlotte.
Look at all the vodka bottles next to me and Todd.
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Seven Hundred Billion Dollars
As our government signs a $700 billion bailout of our central banking system, I think it's time to understand exactly how much $700,000,000,000 actually is.$700 billion is:
$2,325 for every single man, woman and child in the USA
$2,790 for every car registered in the USA
$13,335 for every second since September 29, 1908
$21,540 for every second that a 62 year old has lived
$167,704,839 for every family of a US confirmed death in Iraq (as of 9-28-08)
The NY Times has a nice image to help put this into perspective this too. The below video is called Money as Debt and is totally worth watching. This is what our banking system is, explained in lay persons terms. It's long, but totally worth watching so you understand why the government is doing this. We simply need debt to make our economy work.
It's a vicious cycle, we need debt so we have money and we need money to pay debt, the real question is: How long is this sustainable?
Key West, photo favs
You have to do THIS when you go to Key West.
Key Lime Pie, ahhhhhhhhhhh.
A Sunset sail.
A sunset - with some rain.The whole set is here.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Key West--> Long Way From Home
Key West was a really great stop. Our hotel was right on Duvall Street which the center of Key West. At 6 lofty floors, The Crowne Plaza building is the tallest in all of Key West and if that's not famous enough for you Tennessee Williams stayed here while he was writing A Streetcar Named Desire.We toured The Hemmingway House, saw the Southernmost Point in the Continental USA (left photo), took the famous Conch Train, snorkled, and ate lots of great food.
Got to the Key West Airport with plenty of time to spare yesterday and as it ends up, it didn't matter. There was a crazy storm and we were delayed for over an hour. As we landed at the Atlanta airport - we had about 20 minutes to our connecting flight. If the pilot didn't drive to New Jersey after he landed (or so it seemed) we wouldn't have had to sprint with our 3 bags to the next concourse and run about a mile (no kidding) at full song.
Based on the title of this post, I'll let you guess what happened when we got there. Becky had tears in her eyes from the disapointment and I had tears in my eyes from the run. We tried a standby flight to Philly with no luck and ended up at at nice Comfort Inn in Atlanta with a bunch of Delta Polits.
Alls well that ends well and we sit here this morning, in repeat clothes, at our gate awating the plane to ABE.
Here is the link to the Bahamas Pictures and I will be uploading the Key West Pictures soon.
Friday, September 12, 2008
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Immortalized on Thing of the Moment
This famous blogger is someone who I met on the internets, the tubes, the interwebs, blogosphere, freakysphere, etc.
Our relationship began when I answered a want ad for a photography student, but that's a story for another day. His name is jkirlin and today, my wife and I were immortalized on his blog as you can in the above picture.
For this, I am eternally grateful. Becky is eternally freaked out. And the authorities are eternally prepared.
www.jkirlin.com
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Sunday, September 7, 2008
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