Using Open Source for work and play
The 2009 tax filing season for tax professionals was both challenging and rewording. An issue that appears to be seen with increasing familiarity is Medical Deductions for
Seniors.
Read the rest of this entry »
We have to thank Mark Hulbert of the Hulbert Financial Digest for regular reminders about contrarianism. The latest consumer confidence and consumer sentiment data are not a reason to worry about the length or strength of the economic recovery or the market advance. He notes that consumer sentiment is very much a lagging indicator and in times past has bottomed well after the onset of bull markets and economic recoveries. The current low for consumer sentiment was way back in May last year, although we aren’t that far from those levels after this past month’s reading. Typically, consumer sentiment turns several months after the onset of recovery and even further after the onset of bull markets. The recent reports are just a couple more bricks in the wall of worry that this bull market must climb.
Read the rest of this entry »
A strategy to built on the rather basic assumption, that as the economy gets better after the latest recession, interest rates, now at historic lows at the short-end of the curve and near cyclical lows at the long-end, will rise. We have a couple of reasonable reasons for believing that rates will rise.
Read the rest of this entry »
This year will be unlike any other the world has ever known. Why? Because the myriad variables have never been arrayed exactly like this before and are unlikely to be arrayed like this ever again. The simple passage of last year will render impossible many of the other possible scenarios and create at least as many possible new scenarios for this year. Isn’t that wonderful? (Not exactly helpful, but wonderful none the less.)
Read the rest of this entry »
Arizona’s private-school tuition tax-credit law came into effect in 1997 under House Bill 2074. The legislation would provide scholarships for kids to pursue their education dreams in private schools.
Individuals and corporations can donate money to help parents pay for private-school tuition. Donors receive dollar-for-dollar credit against their income-tax bills. The donations are collected and distributed as scholarships by non-profit organizations called school-tuition organizations, or STOs.
Read the rest of this entry »
Gold has been much in the news these days. It has reached new price highs in dollar terms, which probably says more about the dollar than it does about gold. But we still see lots of people with a desire to hold gold. Why? First of all, gold is supposedly a store of value. During times of crisis, lots of folks almost automatically turn to gold for a piece of their savings. This has always fascinated and mystified us. (This is the whole tuna fish and shotgun shell argument. For those who have not heard that one, in the worst case scenario, which the gold bugs seemingly always think is right around the corner, gold will be valued no matter what. We argue that canned tuna will probably be more highly valued while shotgun shells, with the appropriate appliance to put them to good use, will be even more highly prized.) This is a kind of self-fulfilling prophesy. If enough people have the same knee-jerk reaction to buy gold, gold will go up regardless of the cause.
Okay, we’ll grant that so long as that knee-jerk reaction is dependable there is no sense in arguing with it. But, is there any real fundamental reason to own gold in portfolios? It is a dandy diversifier, like most commodities. It can work as an inflation hedge, like most commodities. So, why not just buy commodities?
Read the rest of this entry »