Showing posts with label spies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label spies. Show all posts

Friday, July 28, 2017

Can you avoid the new taxes?

New taxes: Lobbyists are already designing new taxes for us to pay
Koch Industries, after pouring $1 billion into elections for GOP, has put their former employee, Eli Miller into the Treasury Dept to formulate tax policy for Koch and us. The Koch front group AFP will begin Aug 2 event with extremist Rep Mark Meadows to push reducing corporate taxes and regs. Tax reform for the extremists means cutting spending for our needs since most (70%) of the budget goes for interest on the debt and military. Medicaid and Food Stamps and even SS and Medicare are in Ryan’s plan to be cut to offset wealthy tax cuts. Some consider using a national sales tax (VAT) or tariff but the lobbyists are against it of course. Koch’s AFP has threatened our ‘reps’ with election defeat if they don’t vote their way. (Putin’s hackers may help out.) American corporations want lower taxes even though the amount they actually pay is 12.6% not 34%. Using tax loopholes, many don’t pay. Corporations’ portion of tax revenue has fallen from 32% in 1952 to 10%. The Koch campaign will include advertising, canvassing and rallies in states. The Koch network has said it plans to spend $300-$400 million total during the 2018 election cycle, and AFP has 36 state chapters and close to 500 paid staff who knock on doors to persuade voters. It’s a 3rd US party. Corporations have more money to spend lobbying for more profit less tax. Does your ‘rep’ lobby for less tax for you? Can you give them $100,000 for an audience?

ETFs are all the rage with brokers but are they for you?
Index funds packaged to be sold by brokers/advisors for commission and fees are hot. The marketing and sales hype are amazing and millennials are biting. So between 2004 and 2014, index funds outperformed actively managed funds across almost all asset classes. “If you go the passive route, you might not only save money on investment fees, but snag a greater return to boot.” But why pay a broker advisor to buy an index that was created to be traded. AH. The catch is sales people make money when you trade but trading defeats all the benefit of “passive” investing. Plain old index funds are winning: you earn more by NOT trading. What does Warren Buffett recommend we do? He even tells us where to invest to earn more and pay less!

Trump on the path to dictatorship seizing our assets
Yes, Justice Dept has issued new rules to take our stuff, even if we did nothing and have NOT even been charged with a crime. Trump’s procedure allows police to seize someone’s money, car, or even their home on mere suspicion — in many cases, the person hasn’t even been charged with a crime, let alone prosecuted or convicted. And even if the person isn’t charged with a crime at all, the government keeps those assets.
Just like taking our property to build something like The Wall (‘imminent domain’) except we don’t get paid for the stuff they take. It is called civil forfeiture. The rule was intended for drug dealers. From 2007 to 2016, the Drug Enforcement Administration obtained $3.2 billion in cash seizures without filing any charges against the people from whom they took the money. There have been reports of police departments using their “wish lists” on crime sweeps. Ferguson police used to do this with traffic stops. If you are wealthy, you can hide assets using another name or corp or oversees or you can file suit.

Trump on the path to dictatorship seizing our information
Dictator talk time:
“When the president does it, that means it is not illegal,” Richard Nixon
Trump blocks expert: Glacier National Park's glaciers will largely disappear by 2030.

House to cut OMB so we don’t know what a law will cost in future: NO INFO.
Trump attacks individual reps for not voting his way—3rd world countries do this.
The Don has been attacking the Attorney General of the US and Senators who don’t do what he says or vote his way. His lawyer says 
The Don controls the FBI via Wray. Dictators have their own police force usually.
Will GOP go down with the Trumps? Some know The Don is crazy.
‘In his mind, he is his own best advocate, his own best lawyer,’ one adviser said.”
And “best” president except Lincoln.

Is a top 10 RIA advisor right for you?
Are you one of the 10,000 clients of the largest registered investment advisors? Since you are 1 in 10,000, I assume you are giving them your money because they are doing fantastic things for you. Some RIA are “finding efficiencies and using technology to scale down and serve massive numbers of end clients.” I hope you are not paying for ‘canned’ advice from their technology script. Certainly, when you have $ millions you deserve personal attention from somebody beside the receptionist. Some of these firms are adding thousands of clients a year. That means hundreds of new sales staff. Many firms are reluctant to publish their results so it is hard to evaluate them. Making you feel good is important but bottom line—they should be doing what is in YOUR best interest not worried about ratings or profits. If you don’t feel they are doing what is best for you, and you hate brokerage firms, consider the RIAs at the low-cost fund families like Vanguard, Schwab or TIAA. If you need a real planner, pay the hourly rate like your estate lawyer.

Trump on the path to dictatorship seizing our information
Trump is using fear of “carnage” in the streets to keep his voters in line. Now the WH to set up Govt-run news directly from WH like “Fox and Friends.” The Don consults with Fox Hannity about state propaganda machine. But we have pro-government TV press office already on Fox!
The Don has been attacking the Attorney General of the US and Senators who don’t do what he says or vote his way. His lawyer says he thinks he is the best Commander.
He thinks he is BEST president except for Lincoln—Washington, FDR, Kennedy?


Spies do the same thing around the world—Jr and Jared taken in
Business people are easy targets because they never suspect they are being manipulated. In South America, our CIA used business as cover to overthrow governments and kill people. Trump is right—we are not without our black oops. Many experts including the current TV expert Malcolm Nance have shown that spy masters use money and blackmail to move business people around the world. Since they are everywhere CIA & Putin need to be and have backgrounds that can be checked, businessmen are perfect pawns—some are even happy to be used. Most oil companies have a foreign black oops history. Trump’s ‘family’ and businesses were compromised by Russian mobsters. They needed money since 4 bankruptcies. Why else would Jared ask for a secret telephone line to Putin? Mueller and the Senate and House intelligence will require years to unravel all the connections and links. Trump must hide his past collusion with money launderers.


TrumpCare 3.0 has $13,000 deductible – senators not seen bill yet – vote anyway
TrumpCare 3rd edition is out to reduce premiums but the deductible is $13,000, which happens to violate US law. It would still increase the number of uninsured Americans by 22 million. Despite Trump promises for universal coverage, there is no way to “cover more people and cost less money.” UNLESS, Trump makes the deal he promised to reduce medical costs. Trump gave up that effort after just 1 meeting with industry lobbyists in 2016. Instead he promised them more profit by dropping regs and taxes. So even though he beat up Hillary over taking their money, he gave them what they wanted for nothing! Health care spending takes 18% of the economic activity vs 12% in the equivalent countries. Many studies say we pay up to 60% more than everyone else. Why? Lobbyists claim they spend the extra on research but most of the new drugs are minor cosmetic versions of the old. We know the money goes for endless TV commercials about drugs. Most of our new cures are from the US govt research program we already pay for. Cures for the big killers (heart and cancer) are funded at less than $5 billion—the drug companies spend under $1 billion. Their TV promos cost $6.4 Billion. Liar Pense decries Ohio Medicaid but he brought it to Indiana. ObamaCare has saved communities.
ObamaCare is working according to Trump’s own agency. Medicare could provide care to those that need care now for less. Our current ‘for-profit’ system costs $49 T but a single pay system costs $32 T. and don’t we have single pay NOW—there is only one insurer with most doctors in NJ so Horizon’s clerk decides what care I can have. Sure, if I want to spend $10,000 on my own I can have another insurer but no one does that. Congress gets a great plan and we let them pick their coverage but most working people don’t have that choice. Congress likes the sound of ‘choice’ but it means ZERO to 60%. Americans want the plan their ‘reps’ get—McCain got cancer surgery thanks to ObamaCare—equality.  It’s basic for life, liberty and pursuit of happiness.
DEMS: Now is the time to lead – Medicarefor all – Americans want care!   http://templatelab.com/single-payer-healthcare-research



MONEY BALL for Investing: Winning in an unfair market
Your family can beat Wall Street in the series because you use Billy Beane’s lessons.
In 2002, Billy Beane did the impossible. He knew he could not afford to buy replacements for Damon, Giambi and Isringhousen, so he hired an unknown economist wonk who had a system. Brad Pitt (Moneyball) explains his take on the system to his scouts. To win we need runs, so on-base percentage is critical. Does not matter how they get there—walks are good. He hires cheap players who have high on-base ratios. Scouts complain the new are not “baseball material” or too old or can't play positions or girl friend is ugly.
            The “professionals” think he is nuts. One is fired. Since the manager, Art Howe, doesn't buy it, he does not use the new players. Billy trades Art's players away so the manager is forced to use Billy's. Billy actually explains to the team how they can win by using their strengths—just get on base. Belichick's “Do your job.”          In his book, Michael Lewis tells us how the economics of baseball work and how Billy Beane, as a failed player, made history by NOT following the professionals' 'expert' knowledge.
            How can your family beat Wall Street 'professionals' over time? We take the Billy Beane approach.
            First, we acknowledge that we have a small budget for investing. We can't afford the hedge funds, offshore tax shelters, and expensive Wall Street money managers taking 2-3% a year. We use our economic ‘wonk,’ Warren Buffett.

Did you overpay for your truck?
$80,000 for a vehicle, even a tough one, seems, well, “tough.” If you can write it off your business, that is one thing. But if this is your glam ride, you need to shop for the used version. After doing research, you will find one that has the look you want but doesn’t put you in the $500 a month for 8 year crowd. Some of these are the most profitable item the car guys are selling.

Guess which vehicles are the least reliable?
Luxury cars are the most UNreliable according to the most recent study. Is it because they have too many gizmos or they only make 10000 of them? Who knows? This UK study says the Jag hits the bottom. Small little cheap cars have fewer problems. JD Power says the lowest rated is Fiat Jeep with Jag in the middle ahead of Audi, Volvo, and Rover. No need to pay for junk—Lexus is still top and a used one may be your best bargain.
Now that you have a big insurance bill, get all the discounts: https://www.amazon.com/Vehicle-Insurance-Beware-Double-Coverage/dp/1480027634

Did you leave any money when you moved?
Recently, I got mail addressed to my Dad from an insurer because his nursing home forwards mail of deceased residents. I followed up on a balance left behind with the insurer years ago. Eventually after 2 subsequent letters and emails, I got a check made to the Estate of … My bank refused to cash this check. Apparently, this is a money laundering technique and they can’t cash it even for the executor and heir. Since I would have to set up an account with a new $250 tax ID just for the check, I told them I was giving up. They offered a new form I could notarize and claim the money. After another few emails, I finally got the money and was able to cash the check. I thanked the non-profit nursing home with a donation.
You can do a search of each state by yourself: https://www.usa.gov/unclaimed-money.
My father’s name was not in his state’s registry because the money was still at the insurer so you must check past insurers/utilities/companies. Don’t pay for someone to search for you. They may sell your ID and hurt you. A name only free site is Credit Karma: https://www.creditkarma.com/unclaimed-money/search.
Hey, you never know. In New York state one person has $1.7 million waiting.



*****************
TrumpWorld
Goal: Everyone knows the Trump brand around the world
Trump supporter is upset with DC and future; overlooks his sins


Trump gives in to Putin: removes CIA from Syria leaving moderates to scatter.
Trump group places mob ties above country; it’s about money POWER not US service.
Russian lobbyists guide Trump crew and GOP on business interests toward Russia.
Exxon Tillerson pays $2 mil fine for violating sanctions out of his own pocket change.


Trump is still just a mafia contractor from Queens—Fred taught him to be The Don.
Like mob boss, he threatens Senators

Putin Ambassador: “not on Trump side, we are on side of justice” Putin hacked elections.
Breitbart: firing Sessions “only serves to highlight Trump’s own hypocrisy” Losing base.


Mobsters don’t call the FBI when Jr doing an illegal deal with fellow mobsters.

Putin will have full access to our 2018 elections since Trump doesn’t help states upgrade.



My Theory:
No one expected him to win so no harm getting Putin help. Don owes Vlad’s mob money so they sent mob gofer Manafort to run the campaign. ‘Colluding’ Putin style.

TrumpWorld – using presidency to make money the old fashioned way: theft
Jared/Ivanka lied again on their disclosure: ‘forgot’ 77 more assets worth $millions
Jared in real estate money-laundering deal with Russian investigated by Congress

Trump hires MarLargo foreign workers not America Great workers.
Trump shop from Canada run by Germans sell us Chinese hats et all. Buy US???

Dictator talk time:
“When the president does it, that means it is not illegal,” Richard Nixon
Trump blocks expert: Glacier National Park's glaciers will largely disappear by 2030.
House to cut OMB so we don’t know what a law will cost in future: NO INFO.
Trump attacks individual reps for not voting his way—3rd world countries do this.
The Don controls the FBI via Wray. Dictators have their own police force usually.


“The president can’t have a conflict of interest.” The Don above the law?




*************
Regulators are the only protection against corporations since we can’t sue anymore

Discrimination against your neighbor can cost you taxes. Religious ‘freedom’ is excuse.
Wells Fargo gives away 50,000 wealthy customer data to broker/advisor. Blames others.
Beamers in on VW diesel fix? BMW denies ‘cartel’ of cheaters using software to fake it.
Bankrupt: Harry I. Brown Jr.; James D. Dickey; Jay D. Erickson; Renee Suzanne Floer; Nimish N. Patel; Katrinia L. Walters.

We need regulation—GOP wrong—companies/cities wouldn’t fix bad products on own
GM killed 124 because ignition switch pin not replaced after knew it killed first in 2006.


*******************
Police want gun control.
When everyone has guns; your chance of being killed goes up. Police don’t know who to shoot. They assume everyone has one and shoot first. You and thief have guns. CO schools now allow teachers/administrators to carry guns in the classroom. Kid lesson! Since 2015, police have killed 86 people with realistic looking FAKE guns--suicide?


SCAMS:
Fake Social Security call: Promising fix, they want SS#, DOB; change your direct deposit
Evil manipulated American symbol for our own political purpose—Shame mr president

Ignoramus Award:
"Let's meet face to face and you tell me I'm not worthy," Kristin Beck, a 20-year veteran of the Navy SEALs, told Business Insider. "Transgender doesn't matter. Do your service." Trump avoided his service to country.
"They don't care about people. They don't care about human beings." "They care more about the airplane or the tank than they care about people," Beck said. 
I thought we NEVER abandoned our own in the field.

Who else doesn’t The Don like? Ugly men, ugly women, brown/black skin, bald men.

How our government wastes our money:
$28 million for Afghan’s uniforms that make troops look like trees in desert: our Defense 
$15 million de-enlist the folks that The Don does not like. Which generals did he consult?
$84 million on Viagra and other dysfunction therapy.

Where have all the jobs gone?


Job interview will ask for your salary requirements. Answer: I will research the range.
Which job board sites are best for your job search?

Learn Spanish so you have another skill for jobs.


Miracle:

IAN
41 Watchung Plaza, B242
Montclair, NJ 07042
973.746.2014
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Friday, February 28, 2014

Wealthy escape taxation, Senate says

Wealthy escape taxation, Senate says: Lobbyists win!
Billions of dollars in U.S. taxes are going unpaid because Americans are exploiting Swiss bank accounts, and the U.S. government has failed to aggressively pursue Switzerland's second-largest bank, a Senate investigation has found. Credit Suisse, has provided accounts in Switzerland for more than 22,000 U.S. clients totaling $10 billion to $12 billion, according to the report. The U.S. government has received only 238 names ofU.S. citizens with secret accounts at Credit Suisse, or just 1 percent of the estimated total, the investigation concluded. Pay your fair share
Now, IRS account lets you go tax-FREE at no cost too: http://www.amazon.com/Create-Your-Tax-FREE-Financial-System/dp/1466367466/

IRS lets you cut your tax by up to $1,000 per child
If you have a child under age 17, the Child Tax Credit may save you money at tax time. The non-refundable Child Tax Credit may help cut your federal income tax by up to $1,000 for each qualifying child you claim on your tax return. Check if you qualify: http://www.irs.gov/uac/Form-8812,-Additional-Child-Tax-Credit

Real estate is popular alternate investment after stocks and bonds
77 percent of millionaire investors say they own real estate, and 35 percent say they own Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs). This is a key finding of the Morgan Stanley Wealth Management Investor Pulse Poll. Additionally, after real estate and REITs, millionaire investors cite ownership of collectibles (34 percent), followed by precious metals (28 percent), private equity (27 percent), real assets (oil, gas, mining, 17 percent), private real estate funds (16 percent), hedge funds (16 percent), and venture capital (13 percent). Stock/bond funds have returned over 11% per year since 1976. REIT funds have returned over 10% since 1996: http://www.amazon.com/Your-Retirement-Mutual-Funds-retirement/dp/1481114026/

What you need to know about ObamaCare for your 2013 tax prep.
For most people, the Affordable Care Act has no effect on their 2013 federal income tax return.
The individual shared responsibility provision and the premium tax credit do not affect your 2013 federal income tax return. Some tips for 2014:

How much subsidy do you qualify for?
With the March 31 deadline for getting health insurance fast approaching, people can now use a new website to help them find out if they qualify for financial assistance if they buy a health insurance plan on the healthcare.gov website.
The website -- www.HealthTaxCreditTool.org -- is based on research that shows two-thirds of uninsured adults eligible for government subsidies on the new health exchanges don't know the subsidies exist, and that more than 80 percent said they would likely obtain insurance if they had financial help.

House GOP to vote 50th time on ACA repeal
The House will vote again on repealing ObamaCare this session. It has voted 49 times to repeal, defund or roll back the 2010 health-care law since Republicans took control in 2011, according to a tally kept by Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy’s office.
The House will also vote to dismantle regulations on coal, gas and electric utilities despite the pollution caused by lack of regulation in the WV and NC catastrophes last month. Lobbyists are working overtime.

Mentally Ill in 11 Southern States Excluded from Care
“Dashed Hopes, Broken Promises, More Despair: How the Lack of State Participation in the Medicaid Expansion Will Punish Americans With Mental Illness," released by the American Mental Health Counselors Association (AMHCA) — shows that 6.7 million uninsured people with a mental illness are currently eligible for coverage under the Medicaid Expansion that went into effect on Jan. 1, 2014. But the majority of these individuals with mental health conditions will be left out in the coverage cold due to their state's antagonism toward the Medicaid Expansion health insurance initiative.

Workers no longer trapped by insurance, start businesses, make jobs
Now that Karen Willmus can get health insurance through Obamacare, she plans to quit teaching 9th grade English at the end of the school year. The 51-year-old found policies on the Colorado state exchange for about $300 a month. That's less than what she's paying now for employer-sponsored coverage and less than half what she paid on the individual market in 2007. Like Willmus, millions of people could quit their jobs or cut back on their hours in coming years because of Obamacare. Many Americans may opt to work less to retain eligibility for Medicaid or subsidies. But for some, Obamacare is allowing them to become entrepreneurs or retire a few years early since they'll be able to find affordable individual coverage for the first time. Instead of eating bonbons on her couch, Willmus plans to start her own business with her teen daughter publishing materials for non-native English speakers and others looking to improve their literacy. She expects to work even more than she does now and hire two or three people. Maybe ObamaCare is not so bad after all.

Doctors Become Reluctant Employees: Many Forced Out of Private Practice
Many physicians see employment as a necessary "shelter from the storm" in today's healthcare environment. When asked to select the three reasons to pursue an employed opportunity, necessity ("it is the only financially viable option") was most frequently selected as the primary motivation for choosing employment over primary practice, and the second most common answer selected as one of several motives. Doctors are looking for a work and personal life balance when seeking employment. "Our experience tells us that this trend is in response to heavy workloads, financial pressure from decreasing insurance reimbursements and rising costs of practice ownership," one recruiter said.

Investors moved all their equity money to Vanguard in 2013
As of November, all but $1 billion of the $41 billion investors added the US equities in 2013 went to Vanguard. Money managers and their owners are really worried about the indexing trend. The answer is simple: costs count. If you pay 2% a year for your 401k, mutual funds or IRA/pension contributions, the managers and owners can take up to 63% of your nest egg over time. It’s compounding. $3,000 a year grows to $1 million in 34 years. http://www.amazon.com/Maximize-Social-Security-Benefits-Retirement/dp/1495439224/


Why WhatsApp is worth $19 B? Why not voice mail or email?
The average adult Facebook user has more than 300 Facebook “friends.” It’s an ego thing? “I fear all communication in the digital age is being reduced to shouting in a crowded theater,” Actually, the average adult has far fewer friends — perhaps just a couple in many cases, researchers say — whom they talk to regularly in their real-world social network. “The address book is a simple, reusable list for any application, and simplicity always wins.” The popularity of private-messaging applications like WhatsApp, which has more than 450 million users, suggests that despite all the technological advances in recent decades, people still crave to communicate in small groups and often just with one other person at a time. WhatsApp Messenger is a cross-platform mobile messaging app which allows you to exchange messages without having to pay for SMS. It uses the same internet data plan that you use for email and web browsing, so there is no cost to message. It is a Yahoo email account for your phone.
What is old is new again and worth $19 Billion??? to Zuckerberg.

TN outlaws claims for sinkholes—lobbyists win
Despite some bipartisan objections, the Tennessee House of Representatives has narrowly approved legislation that intended to reduce or prevent homeowner claims against insurance companies from damages caused by sinkholes. Rep. Curry Todd, R-Collierville, who said the measure allows insurance companies to cancel policies “in mid-term on anyone” if they feel a claim may develop. “This is one of the most blatant bills I’ve seen to benefit one particular industry at the expense of the consumer,” said House Democratic Caucus Chairman Mike Turner of Nashville. “Today’s it’s sinkholes. The next day it’s going to be earthquakes and the day after, it’s going to be hail,” Travis said.

Tesla, Lexus triumph in Consumer Reports' annual rankings
Among the other nine top picks, Honda and Subaru claimed two apiece, with Toyota, Audi, Ram, BMW and Hyundai taking the rest. Among Detroit brands, Buick and GMC posted the highest scores, with General Motors as a whole generally performing better than Ford or Chrysler, whose Jeep brand scored lowest among those ranked. http://autos.yahoo.com/blogs/motoramic/tesla--lexus-triumph-in-consumer-reports--annual-rankings-174524556.html

"It's not possible, I'm a nun," she told doctors, according to the Italian press.
A nun who was rushed to hospital complaining of acute stomach pains has given birth to a baby boy – and named him Francesco after the Pope. The 31-year-old nun began to feel severe abdominal cramps on Wednesday and gave birth just a few hours later.
This is why ObamaCare requires all employers to offer birth control to employees!



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 and 50,000 in 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.

DoD head Hagel proposes budget cut but still pay for F35 plane failures.

IRS warns of scams this year
Characteristics of these scams can include:
•    Scammers use fake names and IRS badge numbers. They generally use common names and surnames to identify themselves.
•    Scammers may be able to recite the last four digits of a victim’s Social Security Number.
•    Scammers “spoof” or imitate the IRS toll-free number on caller ID to make it appear that it’s the IRS calling.
•    Scammers sometimes send bogus IRS emails to some victims to support their bogus calls.
•    Victims hear background noise of other calls being conducted to mimic a call site.
After threatening victims with jail time or a driver’s license revocation, scammers hang up and others soon call back pretending to be from the local police or DMV, and the caller ID supports their claim. Read more:

British spies caught collecting our ‘sexually explicit’ pictures—YOUR private pictures
A British intelligence agency collected video webcam images — many of them sexually explicit — from millions of Yahoo users, regardless of whether they were suspected of illegal activity, according to accounts of documents leaked by Edward J. Snowden.
It is unclear how much of the data was shared with American officials at the National Security Agency, though the British ran queries of the data using a search tool provided by the N.S.A. calledXKeyscore, according to a report on Thursday by The Guardian.
The documents show that in one six-month period in 2008, the agency collected webcam imagery – substantial quantities of which were sexually explicit – from more than 1.8 million Yahoo user accounts globally. Certainly a Key Score for the boys!

Who owns your account now?
First Commonwealth Financial Advisors to Cantor Fitzgerald Wealth Partners


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973.746.2014
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