Shred Day This Week!
Published May 16, 2011 6606 Views
Tax returns from 1983? Cancelled checks from the Clinton Administration? Phone bills from If you still have these kinds of documents lurking in your closet, your attic, or anywhere else, now is your chance to free up a little space.This Friday, May 20th, we will hold our second annual Shred Day from...
When a Billion is Not Enough
Published May 12, 2011 6650 Views
The financial media has plenty of coverage of the guilty verdict in the trial of billionaire hedge fund operator Raj Rajaratnam. Apparently Rajaratnam's wealth was due at least in part to trading on tips he solicited (and paid for) from a network of associates willing to break the law for bags of ca...
Glitter
Published May 10, 2011 7104 Views
Back in 1980, the price of silver hit an all-time high of over $20 per ounce (gold was high, too). Jewelry and coin dealers were advertising heavily to buy precious metals - bracelets, silver dollars, what have you - offering high prices. Does any of that sound familiar?
I had a small box of silve...
Earnings News
Published May 5, 2011 7252 Views
It's bankruptcy is past, it's arch-rival Toyota struggling, GM is now making cars that people are buying. The result: General Motors announced sharply higher earnings this morning. Looks like a higher opening for GM shares today.
Our local phone company, Frontier Communications, also reported thi...
Five Bucks for Pakistan
Published May 2, 2011 6768 Views
After this morning's welcome news that a detested terrorist has been killed, focus should now turn to how many of your hard-earned tax dollars are being sent to Pakistan. According to this morning's New York Times, the US plans to send $7.5 billion to Pakistan over the next five years. At $1.5 bill...
Advice for the Royal Couple
Published April 29, 2011 7023 Views
As I write this the wedding of Britain's Prince William and Kate Middleton is under way. They will probably be too busy for the next few days to read this post, but eventually I'm sure things will settle back down for them and they'll get back to walking the dog, making coffee, taking the car for an...
Four Bucks a Gallon
Published April 27, 2011 6837 Views
I am no happier than anyone else to pay $4 a gallon for gas. But I'll admit that years ago (many years ago) when gas first hit $1 a gallon, I was more chagrined than I am now. Partly it's because I am busy enough these days to have other things on my mind. But a big reason why is that some years...
A Week of Mixed Signals
Published April 25, 2011 8178 Views
You'll be hearing in the media about these indicators over the next few days:
New Home Sales
Consumer Confidence
Durable Goods orders
Fed Open Market Committee Interest Rate Decision
Gross Domestic Product
Personal Spending & Income
Retail Sales
Expect mixed signals. Expect earnest conce...
Roundup
Published April 19, 2011 7066 Views
Tax filing deadline was yesterday; here's a shout-out to our Tax Dept., led by Joe Arena, which prepared many hundreds of returns this year, including nearly 100 for brand-new clients. I hope they are enjoying a well-deserved rest. They had better - it will be tax season again before we know it....
Book 'em.
Published April 14, 2011 7445 Views
Pity poor Richard Fuld. Once head of Lehman Brothers, Mr. Fuld saw his net worth drop all the way from $1 billion to a mere $100 million. Please, dear reader, don't avert your eyes from this tragedy; it gets even worse. According to the NY Times, Mr. Fuld and his wife were "forced to sell some of th...