My train back home reads:
• A hot, new pre-election buy signal amid volatility (Market Watch)
• “Less Active” (Research Puzzle) see also Math isn’t an Edge (The Reformed Broker)
• U.K. Bank Inspectors of 1783 Found Some Familiar Flaws (Echoes)
• New Jersey Housing Suffers as Defaults Exceed Nevada (Bloomberg) see also Housing Recovery: More Reasons to Be Bullish (Marketbeat)
• The Lie Factory: How politics became a business (New Yorker)
• Obama is stealing Wall Street from Romney (MarketWatch)
• The 47%: Who They Are, Where They Live, How They Vote, and Why They Matter (The Atlantic) see also Why Competition Will Not Reduce The Price Of Medicare (Cheap Talk)
• iPhone 5 two-fer:
…..-Hands on: Apple’s new EarPods headphones (Mac World)
…..-Lightning: the iPhone’s new connector (Mac World)
• Russia reveals shiny state secret: It’s awash in diamonds (CS Monitor)
• Air Force Official Slams Lockheed Martin on F-35 Program (Bloomberg)
What are you reading?
Money-Printing Is Packing a Consumer Punch
Source: WSJ
Category: Financial Press
Please use the comments to demonstrate your own ignorance, unfamiliarity with empirical data and lack of respect for scientific knowledge. Be sure to create straw men and argue against things I have neither said nor implied. If you could repeat previously discredited memes or steer the conversation into irrelevant, off topic discussions, it would be appreciated. Lastly, kindly forgo all civility in your discourse . . . you are, after all, anonymous.
i don’t know about the stock market, but this is a clear picture from where i live (damn close) and indicates the “direction” of the “recovery.”
http://www.theburningplatform.com/
the gift that keeps giving?
http://baselinescenario.com/2012/09/17/the-gift-that-keeps-on-giving/
“The great mystery story in American politics these days is why, over the course of two presidential administrations (one from each party), there’s been no serious federal criminal investigation of Wall Street during a period of what appears to be epic corruption. People on the outside have speculated and come up with dozens of possible reasons, some plausible, some tending toward the conspiratorial – but there have been very few who’ve come at the issue from the inside….”
A Rare Look at Why The Government Won’t Fight Wall Street
The 47%, we’ve done the Republican experiment, in the South, it’s an ABJECT FAILURE. The South Sucks Tax Revenue from the Profitable ( Jesus following ) states.
This idea of Screw the Poor, Blame the Poor, allow fraud to run wild and free, Does Not Work.
Does Mitt Romney include himself in that bottom 47% who pay no taxes? What assurances do we have that he hasn’t been a member of the 0% rate club at one point or another? Does he realize that the states most likely to be net beneficiaries of federal spending like Alabama and Wyoming are states most likely to vote for him? Or that the strongest group for Romney are seniors who are a major component of the bottom 47% who pay no taxes and take out more in benefits than they ever payed in? And doesn’t this gripe of his go against the entire supply side narrative of keeping taxes as low as possible on the spenders in the economy?
P.s.
Why hasn’t a single reporter asked Mitt Romney point blank if he participated in tax amnesty for offshore-money? That would answer the tax return mystery rather quickly, whether he chose to answer the question or not.
On the Russia diamond story:
Diamonds that are “twice as hard” as normal diamonds? Say what?
Diamonds are not hard to make artificially. Couldn’t they make them as hard as physically possible in the lab? I read an article some time back that it costs maybe $5/carat to make lab diamonds and they are better quality than “real” diamonds (no contaminants).
Romney should voluntarily resign his nomination and allow Paul Ryan to step into his place. Wouldn’t that be a hoot? The Republicans might have a chance then. [lol]
” . . .an Inspector Clouseau-like figure who can’t perform the basic tasks of his job without getting into trouble.
“The only thing that plays bigger in the media than strategy stories is going big on substance — a big speech, a big policy announcement, a big challenge to Obama. A big something . . .”
Mitt Romney, man of constant sorrow
http://goo.gl/nQaOf
Alas, he’s had big ideas, on jobs, on taxes, on entitlements . . . the devil’s been in the details (or lack thereof).
Much has been made in the last two days about the lazy, whiney, no-good 47% of America who would vote for President Obama no matter what. But what about the 42% of America who would vote for Mitt Romney no matter what, due to abject stupidity, blinding hatred, and misguided and largely unapplied will-to-power? That 42% is the real story of modern America, captured eloquently by Thomas Frank in What’s the Matter with Kansas? If you ever wonder how 42% of America are not billionaires and yet the Republican Party remains relevant with policies that are largely targeted to benefit only billionaires, read that book.
In writing about political authors Thomas Mann and Norman Ornstein, Hendrik Hertzberg of The New Yorker recently reported: “When it was Mann’s turn to speak, he remarked that it is no longer accurate to describe the Democrats as the liberal party and the Republicans as the conservative party. It’s closer to the truth to say that the Democrats are the conservative party and the Republicans the radical party.”
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/hendrikhertzberg/2012/05/mann-and-ornstein.html
Can you imagine a large segment of a populace becoming poorer AND turning radically right-wing? I will leave it to others to look up past instances where this happened in history and what the ultimate comeuppances were.
I’m reading Telegraph Avenue. I also read Howard Marks recent letter today. His politics were showing a bit and he really didnt have much to say, but at least he was honest about it.
I really don’t want to hear complaints about people not paying taxes from a wealthy person paying a 13% tax rate. I would love to have Romney’s tax rate – unfortunately, our family’s federal tax rate, including both income tax and payroll taxes, is well over double Romney’s tax rate.
I am constantly hearing complaints from the GOP and the Tea Party about how Social Security and Medicare are unsustainable while simultaneously complaining about 47% of the people not paying income tax. social Security and Medicare are not paid through the “income tax”. They are paid for through the FICA payroll taxes that folks like Romney do not pay!!! Instead, Social Security and Medicare are paid for in part by the 47% who do not pay income taxes!!!
The payroll taxes are 7.65% (temporarily 5.65%) of the employees salary, wages, and tips and the employer also pays 7.65%. These add up to a tax rate of 15.3% on an employee’s gross pay – more than Romney’s tax rate!
If Romney really wants to make a major contribution to the tax discussion, have him declare that there should be no preference on how a dollar is earned and therefore somebody’s income from work will be taxed the same as somebody’s income from passive investment. Apparently Romney believes that income from not working should be more encouraged and taxed less than income from working – another important message for him to deliver to the masses.
just how bad can it get in US health care? pretty bad it seems http://features.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2012/09/18/synthes-norian-criminal/?iid=SF_F_River
not paying taxes isn’t just for the poor http://www.businessinsider.com/7000-millionaires-paid-no-income-tax-2012-9?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+TheMoneyGame+%28The+Money+Game%29
> Air Force Official Slams Lockheed Martin on F-35 Program
Also see:
Air Force Chief Cites Concern About F-35 Operating Costs
“New Pentagon data in April forecast the projected total cost to develop, buy and operate the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter at $1.51 trillion over the next 50-plus years, up from about $1.38 trillion a year ago, including inflation.”
http://goo.gl/ZM6C8
The B-1 bomber was eventually canceled, and only a total of 104 were ever built. The program suffered from bloated costs, interminable delays, and lack of a clear mission. The B-2 also suffered from bloated costs, interminable delays, and lack of a clear mission. Only 21 were built. The F-22 fighter suffered from bloated costs and lack of a mission. Only 195 were ever built despite the program being generously spread across the US.
This sums up military procurement for big, complex programs over the last 40 years, and as the F-35 article vividly illustrates there has been absolutely no improvement in the process. Amazingly, a new bomber is on the horizon. So, a fighter that lasts 50-plus years . . . don’t bet on it.
Having let out my rant above, I would be remiss if I let no one mention the passing of Russell E. Train, lifelong Republican, conservationist, and second administrator of the EPA:
http://earthjustice.org/blog/2012-september/russel-train-best-friend-of-the-clean-water-act
We need more thoughtful, responsible Republicans like Mr. Train, many many more. RIP.
@rd “The payroll taxes are 7.65% (temporarily 5.65%) of the employees salary, wages, and tips and the employer also pays 7.65%. These add up to a tax rate of 15.3% on an employee’s gross pay – more than Romney’s tax rate!”
rd, In 2010, the ss payroll taxes stopped being charged at $106,800 of income. At 15.3%, that’s $16,340 in taxes. In 2010, Romney made $21.6 million. At 13%, he paid $2,808,000 in taxes.
So let me get this straight. Romney paid over $2.8 million in income taxes, but you are pissed about the $16,340 he avoided in social security taxes?
USAF?
Get tough on Lockheed? How does a two star general get over the 60 odd years of “unwarranted influence”? Threaten the militarist keynesian welfare jobs in congress’ districts?
Lockheed competing with the rest of the corporate moochers for 20% of federal spending (40% if you throw in the rest of discretionatry) for warfare welfare.
USAF should have fixed Lockheed 20 years ago when lockheed got paid for 183 F-22 at the total “price” of 750, and the thing continues to suffocate pilots.
Bogden threatening (unitl he gets fired) to not send any more money means the taxpayer gets 1200 fighters instead of 3000, and the things still cost $1500B over the next 25 years.
Regardless of how undependable the F-35 is to try and fly training missions.
I read an interesting article which listed how well each state was doing according to a variety of factors such as per capita income, education level, unemployment level, pollution, etc. Then there was a poll of the people living in each state as to how optimistic they were about their personal future.
Surprisingly, the least well-off states contained the most optimistic people, and vice versa. For example, Mississippi was 49th in how well of its people were, but they led the nation considerably in optimism, with many expecting to be wealthy very soon. In a possibly related observation, I have come to expect that when I see a vehicle on the road which is dire in need of major repairs, the odds are very high it will also have bumper stickers decrying the idea of taxing the wealthy.
It’s a very slippery slope between having a positive attitude and living in a fantasy world.
Another fine list from Mr. Ritholtz. I wish, however, that he had seen fit to include this from Glenn Greenwald on the recent tug-o-war over certain provisions of the monstrous NDAA:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/sep/18/obama-appeals-ndaa-detention-law
If Chris Hedges et al fail, Americans will have two choices- indefinite imprisonment [read: death] or the soul-death of the Good German. We already know what the majority will choose (having already chosen).
Irwin Fletcher:
The income tax code doesn’t need to make sense (recent court ruling) but it is clear that Mitt Romney has pulled out all the stops to reduce his tax burdens using lots of various items buried deep in the fine print. So clearly he is benefiting from numerous decisions by Congress and IRS code writers to build in preferences for certain types of income or activities. That sounds an awful like the decision not to tax Social Security benefits or to provide tax credits to low income working parents and is a form of income redistribution that he decries.
If his $21.6 million was earned income or interest on bonds, he would have paid over $6 million in taxes, so he is clearly a beneficiary of the preference Congress has had over the past decade that people earn money passively through investment instead of working for a living. As somebody whose income comes from salary, I would greatly appreciate it if he announced that capital investment would be treated the same as salary and wages from a taxation standpoint. Maybe normalize top rates for both at 25%?
You seem to argue that the relatively large total amount of his taxes absolves the taxation scheme that allows him to have a marginal tax rate substantially below most people in this country. That would seem to argue that a progressive or flat tax scheme would not be optimum, but instead the lower income people should pay a substantially larger percentage of their pay than the wealthy.
I don’t think rd is pissed at the amount, just at the disingenuous rhetoric of claiming the people who receive benefits pay nothing in. ie, they paid in payroll taxes to fund these programs. Not mentioning that fact while stating that they pay no incime taxes is pure political spin aimed at people who DO pay income taxes, but are to ill-informed to realize the inherent dishonesty in such spin. Divide and conquer tactics againt to get angry middle class rubes to vote against their own best interest.
I don’t think the spin is working this time, as Romney has distanced himself as far from “one if us” to these folks by coming off as an out of touch rich outsider and has consistently proven that he isn’t smooth enough to pull off the spin game such as a Ronald Reagan or a Billy Clint could.
Can he even pour milk on cereal without messing it up?
http://2012.talkingpointsmemo.com/2012/09/obama-hits-50-percent-in-nbcwsj-poll.php?ref=fpnewsfeed
the NYT link for the judicial ruling story that Arequipa01 posted above follows. No idea if this has the implications the writers suggest it may but it seems more important than today’s buzz allows it to appear. This election process has obscured the things that really matter. This issue will matter again at some point when we realize it affects us all.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/18/us/politics/us-warns-judges-ruling-impedes-its-detention-powers.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
Romney, Class Warrior:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/19/opinion/mitt-romney-class-warrior.html?_r=1&hp
Ouch!
Quote:
“The right wing has long been whining about people who don’t pay taxes and who, therefore, don’t deserve a say in government. They have it backward. The shame is not that those people don’t pay income taxes. The shame is how many poor people there are when the top 1 percent can amass uncountable fortunes fed by tax breaks and can donate tens of millions of dollars to political candidates to keep it that way.”
Regarding the WSJ’s consumer debt chart:
… I’m not sure how much of this is due to lower rates and how much is due to less debt outstanding … “consumer debt”, by the Fed’s vocabulary, does not include mortgage debt, and the most recent charts I have seen indicate that the rate of consumer debt pay-down has flattened …
However, the article reads as if mortgage debt is a major factor in this chart, which makes no sense, as the chart is from the Fed … furthermore, this chart seems to be one that is constructed from two different Fed data series, consumer debt and after-tax incomes, leaving itself open to a misrepresentation of the data — a better way to chart it would be to aggregate individual data points instead of merely dividing all the consumer debt payments by all the consumer income — there’s no reason to suspect that those making the debt payments are those with the highest incomes …
Here, after listening to ‘The Mighty Wurlitzer’, and the myriad Presstitutes that accompany it, I *thought “Gold was Dead.” (yes, not really..)
~~
instead..
Gold Seen Extending 6-Month High as Stimulus Spurs Demand
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-09-19/gold-declines-as-rally-spurs-sales-platinum-extends-drop.html
needless to say, ~”These Daze it Pays, to do Your Own Homework..”
~~
http://search.yippy.com/search?query=CIA+and+The+Mighty+Wurlitzer&tb=sitesearch-all&v%3Aproject=clusty
http://search.yippy.com/search?input-form=clusty-simple&v%3Asources=webplus-ns-aaf&v%3Aproject=clusty&query=Presstitutes
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/accompany (here, try All 4..)