Thomas Sowell on taxes. He is a PhD economist so he knows what he is talking about. This article is an excellent tax primer.
Globalization is favoring the US. It’s more than just the wage rate, or the tax rate. Sometimes it’s logistics, automation, supply chain issues. Clearly our corporate tax rate is far too high. That’s why there is so much money deposited by US companies in foreign banks.
Senate Democrats put Senate Republicans on the spot. Stalemate. Both are sort of right. Want to end the stalemate? How about this compromise. End the billions in subsidies. Cut the corporate rate from 35% to 15%, only if they repatriate all their cash at a 15% tax rate. Remember, corporations don’t pay taxes. Consumers pay.
Muni Bonds bounce back. I own some, and it’s been a hellish ride. I plan on holding to maturity, so I am unaffected. But if I needed to cash out I’d be nervous. Meredith Whitney still thinks they are a sell.
Oil, Silver and Gold all drop in price again. Damn speculators.
How do you margin death derivatives? I don’t want to run that clearinghouse.
The wheat crop is not looking so hot.
Euphemisms are nice, but they are still in default. Soft restructuring is still default.
IMF is looking for new leadership. Obama nominated Mike Tyson.
The Financial Times is doing a series on the Isle of Man. It’s a tax haven.
The dollar is getting stronger, commodities fell out of bed, and everyone is whining about sell in May and go away. I don’t think you read too much into any of this short term swing trading. S&P will be higher than it is today on December 31. If a little commodity break and stronger dollar is all it takes to break the market, then we didn’t have a rally in the first place. POMO ending doesn’t bug me either. The fat cats are making money.
Obama is just like Richard Nixon. Using the IRS.
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