Taxpayers help insurance corporations avoid $100 Billion in taxes
Each state has passed special laws to allow insurers to use
the reserves they are required to keep to pay claims. With accounting tricks, they use
the money to pay CEO bonuses, shareholder dividends, acquisitions and other
projects, and thus escape federal taxation. WE pick up the tab. Insurers don’t have to move overseas; just
across state lines. For instance, TransAmerica Life used a state
law in Iowa last
year to reap $1.8 billion from its reserves while also avoiding an estimated
$640 million in federal taxes. Iowa Bellevue , Wash. Des Moines
Avoid paying their $10 billion in taxes: http://www.amazon.com/Tax-FREE-Retirement-code-lifetime-income/dp/1475206976
Big Banks back to old tricks … that cost US the integrity of
America
After Citibank
wrote and passed the rider on the new budget, banks will go back to
gambling with our money. The 2008 bailout is now likely since banks can’t
restrain themselves and Congress won’t. Banks have also gone back
to using their analyst recommendations to help sell new stock offerings.
The law says banks can’t have the research department pump up the new stocks
they research. In 2003, 10 firms and two analysts struck a settlement with
regulators over these practices, paying $1.4 billion.
Big banks act as if breaking
the law and paying fines are just cost of doing business. Since we
taxpayers ultimately pay, bankers know they won’t go to jail. Laws ignored.
You can build Wealth Without Wall Street: http://www.amazon.com/Wealth-Without-Wall-Street-Commissions/dp/1442168137
Money scams
take $40 billions of our retirement dollars
It is hard to spot fraud when it is happening. The Federal
Trade Commission estimates that consumers lose more than $40 billion a year to
telemarketing fraud alone. And, if you are over age 65, you are a special
target for those offering bogus prizes or selling bogus products and services.
Avoid “Money Scams” by making YOUR plan and sticking to it: http://www.amazon.com/Money-Scams-2014-insurance-financial/dp/1505437962
Your vote counts even less with your ‘representative’ now
Congress just passed a law that lets the wealthy give a
staggering $777,600—a couple could give $3.1 million to party committees. This ends
any pretense to contribution limits enacted after Watergate. Corporations and people can now
buy elections. Democracy only exists if there is some reason for elected
leaders to listen to the voting public.
Now our “representatives” have more reason to do what
contributors tell them to do. Despite the obvious damage bank
gambling can do, our “reps” voted for to reinstate it. We will have to pay
for banks’ mistakes like in 2008. Senator Warren explains how banks took over the process : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H20Dhc85OhM
Corporations’ share of US
revenue has been driven down from 28% to 10%
We picked up the difference yet our incomes have gone down. Over
the past 25 years, the economy has grown 83 percent, after adjusting for
inflation — and the typical
family’s income hasn’t budged. In that time, corporate profits doubled as a
share of the economy. Total
corporate federal taxes paid fell to 12.1% of profits earned from
activities within the U.S.
in fiscal 2011. Workers today produce nearly twice as many goods and services
per hour on the job as they did in 1989, but as a group, they get less of the
nation’s economic pie. In 81 percent of America ’s
counties, the median income is lower today than it was 15 years ago.
Unless you own a business, you are working harder for less.
As heiress Helmsley said, "Only the little people pay taxes": http://www.amazon.com/Only-little-people-pay-taxes/dp/1478222441
More GOP winners—cut regulations and veterans treatments
The budget cuts the Environmental Protection Agency and allows
the mountaintop mining industry to continue dumping toxic coal waste in the
streams of Appalachia . It cuts $345.6 million at IRS so
more big firms don’t get audited. It
gives the gas and oil industry free use of the Western landscapes. The list of special
industry giveaways is extensive. Big Banks can again gamble knowing our tax money will bail them out. Under
the bill, trustees would be enabled to cut
pension benefits to current retirees, reversing a 40-year bond with workers
who earned their retirement packages. Trucking companies can make roads less
safe by giving their employees 82-hour
work weeks without sufficient rest breaks. Pell grants for college students will be cut.
The bill encourages more
NSA spying on our private communications. It blocks the EPA from regulating
certain water sources. It bans the ban on giving funds to Egypt
DEM winners—ObamaCare gives poor hope for future!
More than 1 million
people used the U.S.
healthcare.gov system to sign up for Obamacare plans in the seven days ending
Dec. 12. New York and Idaho
— both state-run marketplaces — extended the deadlines to enroll with a 1/1
effective date by a few days.
Congress took the easy way and extended temporary tax
benefits for ‘14: Teachers $250, mass-transit commuters, sales/income tax
deduction, parents with kids in college, some homeowners and some retirees with
IRAs. A new provision will benefit disabled adults. (IRS accepts returns later
in January.) Free tax prep at AARP sites: http://www.aarp.org/applications/VMISLocator/searchTaxAideLocations.action
2008 Bank bailout by US over—stock sold for profit but jobs
lost forever!
Our government sold its remaining shares in GM’s old lender,
its last remaining major stake from the $426
billion bailout of banks and the U.S. auto industry. Governments like China Russia
Congress last week reversed the Dodd-Frank reg against
government bailouts so we will likely have to keep failed bankers alive again in 2016-20.
Build your own security: http://www.amazon.com/Forget-Social-Security-Medicare-Lifestyle/dp/1466394285
Hedge funds are shutting at a rate not seen since the
financial crisis, as many managers post disappointing returns that averaged 2%.
John Bogle, founder, Vanguard, says: "Times
of great market turbulence ... are just awful times to make investment
decisions." Instead, investors should have a long-term investment strategy
and stay the course, he said. Most wealthy people are long-term investors and
don’t trade/gamble/hedge.
Vanguard is owned by its shareholders so you can earn
more—10-12% per year: http://www.amazon.com/Vanguards-Top-Ten-mutual-funds/dp/150073909X
Lockheed Settles Lawsuit—It Shortchanged 120,000 Workers,
Retirees
Lockheed agreed to settle a $1.3 billion lawsuit over claims
the defense contractor shortchanged the 120,000 workers and retirees who
participate in its pension plans as a trial was set to begin this week. Workers
accused the company of subjecting them to excessive
fees and leaving those investing in its stock fund with returns that were worse than if they had
bought shares by themselves.
You have a choice: Low fees always beat high fees—a larger
pension: http://www.amazon.com/401k-IRA-Tax-FREE-Tax-Deferred-retirement/dp/1475057938
SCAM ALERT
Did you receive in the snail mail what resembles an invoice
from a company to get a copy of your deed? Homeowners beware: It's a scam. Don’t send deed.
Avoid scams of insurance, mutual funds, and all financial
services: Money Scams 2014: http://www.amazon.com/Money-Scams-2014-insurance-financial/dp/1505437962
Are you ready? HALF of pre-retirees had to retire earlier
than planned
Nearly half of survey respondents (45 percent) retired
earlier than planned. The most frequently cited reasons for retiring early are
changes at one’s company or place of work (44 percent) and being able to afford
retirement (39 percent). Nearly 8 in 10 who retired early have
no regrets about the decision to retire when they did.
Make sure you have the right strategy to have enough so when
you must retire, you can: http://www.amazon.com/Will-You-Have-Enough-retirement/dp/1477594086
CR reports on best and worst
value in cars
Make sure you are getting a value in new small cars. Avoid the worst:
Fiat, Fiesta, Cruze and get value for as low as $15,000. Better deal: get
3-year-old safe midsize for same price. Don’t
be fooled by marketing hype—expensive
is not always safe and reliable.
Here's the BEST list by category:
•Subcompact: Hyundai Accent Sport
•Compact: Toyota
Prius Four
•Luxury Compact Cars: Buick Regal Premium I
•Luxury Midsized/Large Cars: Lexus ES 300h
•Large Cars: Chevrolet Impala 2LTZ (3.6)
•Sports Cars/Convertibles: Mazda MX-5 Miata Grand Touring
•Midsized Cars: Toyota
Camry Hybrid XLE
•Wagons (AWD): Subaru Outback 2.5i Premium
•Small SUVs: Subaru Forester 2.5i Premium
•Midsized SUVs: Toyota
Highlander XLE (V-6)
•Large SUVs: Chevrolet Traverse LT
•Luxury Compact SUVs: BMW X3 xDrive28i (2.0T)
•Luxury Midsized/Large SUVs: Lexus RX 450h
•Pickup Trucks: Nissan Frontier SV (V6)
•Minivan: Mazda5
Save $500 on insurance by using all 15 discounts: http://www.amazon.com/Vehicle-Insurance-Beware-Double-Coverage/dp/1480027634
SCAMS Why are
we still
paying $700 Billion a year for WWII
deployments?
We are paying for 164,253 of our active-duty armed personnel
to be in 150 countries around the world. We have about 50,000 in Japan Germany
Are we preparing for WWII again? There are 1,208,083[1] armed
personnel in the United States .
Our taxes pay for about HALF of the WORLD’s military expenditures
every year. We have wasted $398.6 billion
so far on the F-35 program—they can’t
fly safely.
We just can’t afford to pay for everyone else’s defenses
anymore.
Japan, Germany and S.
Korea can pay for their own defenses.
The War on Terror requires SEALS’ attacks on top terrorists
at their homes. Iraq
proved converting a nation to Western-style republic doesn’t work.
Congress has changed the definition of America
Do we want to be moral or immoral?
Bush/Cheney and Congress seem to say Torture is OK if we do
it in revenge and call it by another name—EIT. If we do what other societies do
then we can’t keep telling the world we are better than them. Mrs
Palin and Mr
Giuliani seem to idolize the Russian dictator Putin and our Congress joins
them in criticizing Obama. Do we really want America
to invade other countries, shoot down civilian planes, and torture people like Putin?
Congress did not condemn Bush/Cheney; let alone prosecute them for war crimes.
Do we really want a bully like Putin to be President? Putin is putting Russia
back 5 years economically.
Advisor to athletes gets caught
Bill C. (Billy) Crafton, AKA, Martin Kelly Capital
Management pleaded guilty to criminal charges for $1.5 million in kickbacks on
investments for professional athletes in Major League Baseball, the National
Football League, the National Hockey League and the National Basketball
Association, according to the SEC.
Lawyers use our state Attorneys General to create income for
themselves
Lawyer are using a new tactic to drum up business. They get our
state AG to hire them to file suit against some corporation with deep
pockets so they can make extra cash. Our taxes pay the AG to give business to
private firms at ridiculous rates. Great work!?
Who owns your account now?
Fireman’s Fund to Ace Ltd. Ace wishes to expand insurance of
luxury homes, yachts and art collections because of higher margins.
IAN
41 Watchung Plaza, B242
973.746.2014
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