Thursday, November 4, 2010

personal finance planning


Your daily dose of news and tidbits from the world of money in politics:

DEMOCRATS MORE LIKELY TO PERSONALLY ATTACK OPPONENTS IN ADVERTISEMENTS: According to a recent report by the Wesleyan Media Project, in 2010, �pro-Democratic ads focused on the personal characteristics of Republican candidates in 21 percent of their attack ads� compared to 11 percent of pro-Republican ads. This is up from the 12 percent of Democratic attack ads in 2008 that were focused on personal characteristics. 

The report cautions against claims that this election is unusually negative stating the proportion of negative to positive ads is comparable to 2008. However, the big difference is that among negative ads there is an increase among personal attack ads. Overall, that rate has gone up from 14 percent in 2008 to 20 percent in 2010. The report also mentions that attack ads �are far more likely than other ads to be sponsored by parties and/or interest groups� rather than by candidates themselves.

When making independent expenditures with overt messages in favor or opposition to federal candidates, political groups must tell the Federal Election Commission whether their expenditure is to �support� a candidate or �oppose� a candidate. A Center for Responsive Politics analysis of outside groups� expenditures �opposing� candidates compared to ads �supporting� candidates since October 1st shows �opposing ads� totaling $218 million and supporting ads totaling $42 million. These expenditures include TV ads, radio ads, web ads, fliers, mailings, canvassers, phone banks and other communications:

REPUBLICAN RANKING MEMBERS ARE THE COOL KIDS ON THE BLOCK AGAIN:
Ranking members of House committees are becoming the popular kids. If
the Republicans take over majority in the House, committee ranking
members like Rep. David Camp (R-Mich.) will be the new chairmen. As the
New York Times reported Tuesday, Republicans in positions to become
chairmen of House committees are seeing an influx of cash and popularity
at fundraisers. Camp, the current ranking member of the tax-writing
House Ways and Means Committee is receiving more contributions as
lobbyists plan for the future.



Jennifer Bell, a former Senate Finance Committee aide and a current
health care lobbyist told the New York Times, �You don�t wait until Nov.
3 and say, �What is the plan?� Obviously, it is the majority that sets
the agenda.�



As OpenSecrets Blog reported yesterday, many industries have been
planning ahead and have started to shift contributions to Republicans.
This phenomenon is not unique to this election as contributions have
historically favored the majority party and have fluctuated accordingly.



Below is a Center for Responsive Politics analysis of contributions to
Camp that shows a sharp increase in contributions during the last three
months - through September 30th. The second chart shows the total contributions to all candidates
during the same period for a linear comparison:




U.S. FALLS OUT OF THE TOP 20 LEAST CORRUPT NATIONS LIST: Transparency International released their annual Corruption Perceptions Index on Tuesday revealing that the United States has dropped from the 19th least corrupt nation in 2009 to 22nd place this year. According to Reuters, Nancy Boswell, the President of TI in the United States stated that the United States has lost integrity and public faith about ethics in America due in part to the lending practices in the subprime crisis, �Bernard Madoff's Ponzi scheme and rows over political funding.�

On the bright side, the United States is perceived to be just less corrupt than Uruguay, France, Estonia and Slovenia.

Have a news tip or link to pass along? We want to hear from you! E-mail us at press@crp.org.



Consider the Cost Per Use When Planning a New Purchase





When we purchase something and use it frequently we comment that we "got our money's worth" out of it, as the cost-per-use has plummeted. Weigh the frequency of use against the purchase price when considering if something is worth buying.

Photo by Joe Marinaro.


Financial blog Personal Finance by the Book highlights how cost-to-use analysis plays out in different situations. For example, when purchasing a new vehicle it makes little sense to pay extra for features that are infrequently used:



Should you pay an extra $5,000 for that 7 passenger car? It depends on how often you actually need those extra seats for the life of the vehicle. Obviously, if you have a family of seven you need all the seats you can get, but if you only use those extra seats one week a year for your annual vacation, you are paying $1,000 for each of those weeks (assuming you keep your vehicle five years). Because a seven passenger mini-van rents for about $500 a week at Enterprise, you may be better off saving your $5000 purchase price and renting that 7 passenger vehicle when you need it.



Check out the full article at the link below for more examples and tips for applying cost-per-use analysis to your purchases.



bench craft company

Facebook Approved For Yet Another <b>News</b> Feed Patent | The Blog Herald

Facebook has been approved for a news feed patent which allows them to generate a personalized story feed for users, the patent in many ways is similar to the news feed patent they received earlier in 2010. The patent, named Generating ...

Jobless Columbia Grad Finds Time For Marathon Training « CBS New <b>...</b>

NY/post;tag=newyorkcity;tag=newyorkcitymarathon;tag=nycmarathon;tag=running;tag=unemployment;tag=nyc;tag=marladiamond;tag=recession;tag=marathon;tag=uranisanchez;tag=davidwilling;tag=runnersworld;tag=heardon;tag=local;tag=news ...

Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen: Green <b>News</b> Report: November 4, 2010 <b>...</b>

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Jan.-to-Oct. 2010 tied for hottest in satellite record; Pakistan's emergency rations to run out in 30 days; Halliburton may be shielded from liability in BP Oil Disaster; Can SCOTUS whale ruling ...


bench craft company

Your daily dose of news and tidbits from the world of money in politics:

DEMOCRATS MORE LIKELY TO PERSONALLY ATTACK OPPONENTS IN ADVERTISEMENTS: According to a recent report by the Wesleyan Media Project, in 2010, �pro-Democratic ads focused on the personal characteristics of Republican candidates in 21 percent of their attack ads� compared to 11 percent of pro-Republican ads. This is up from the 12 percent of Democratic attack ads in 2008 that were focused on personal characteristics. 

The report cautions against claims that this election is unusually negative stating the proportion of negative to positive ads is comparable to 2008. However, the big difference is that among negative ads there is an increase among personal attack ads. Overall, that rate has gone up from 14 percent in 2008 to 20 percent in 2010. The report also mentions that attack ads �are far more likely than other ads to be sponsored by parties and/or interest groups� rather than by candidates themselves.

When making independent expenditures with overt messages in favor or opposition to federal candidates, political groups must tell the Federal Election Commission whether their expenditure is to �support� a candidate or �oppose� a candidate. A Center for Responsive Politics analysis of outside groups� expenditures �opposing� candidates compared to ads �supporting� candidates since October 1st shows �opposing ads� totaling $218 million and supporting ads totaling $42 million. These expenditures include TV ads, radio ads, web ads, fliers, mailings, canvassers, phone banks and other communications:

REPUBLICAN RANKING MEMBERS ARE THE COOL KIDS ON THE BLOCK AGAIN:
Ranking members of House committees are becoming the popular kids. If
the Republicans take over majority in the House, committee ranking
members like Rep. David Camp (R-Mich.) will be the new chairmen. As the
New York Times reported Tuesday, Republicans in positions to become
chairmen of House committees are seeing an influx of cash and popularity
at fundraisers. Camp, the current ranking member of the tax-writing
House Ways and Means Committee is receiving more contributions as
lobbyists plan for the future.



Jennifer Bell, a former Senate Finance Committee aide and a current
health care lobbyist told the New York Times, �You don�t wait until Nov.
3 and say, �What is the plan?� Obviously, it is the majority that sets
the agenda.�



As OpenSecrets Blog reported yesterday, many industries have been
planning ahead and have started to shift contributions to Republicans.
This phenomenon is not unique to this election as contributions have
historically favored the majority party and have fluctuated accordingly.



Below is a Center for Responsive Politics analysis of contributions to
Camp that shows a sharp increase in contributions during the last three
months - through September 30th. The second chart shows the total contributions to all candidates
during the same period for a linear comparison:




U.S. FALLS OUT OF THE TOP 20 LEAST CORRUPT NATIONS LIST: Transparency International released their annual Corruption Perceptions Index on Tuesday revealing that the United States has dropped from the 19th least corrupt nation in 2009 to 22nd place this year. According to Reuters, Nancy Boswell, the President of TI in the United States stated that the United States has lost integrity and public faith about ethics in America due in part to the lending practices in the subprime crisis, �Bernard Madoff's Ponzi scheme and rows over political funding.�

On the bright side, the United States is perceived to be just less corrupt than Uruguay, France, Estonia and Slovenia.

Have a news tip or link to pass along? We want to hear from you! E-mail us at press@crp.org.



Consider the Cost Per Use When Planning a New Purchase





When we purchase something and use it frequently we comment that we "got our money's worth" out of it, as the cost-per-use has plummeted. Weigh the frequency of use against the purchase price when considering if something is worth buying.

Photo by Joe Marinaro.


Financial blog Personal Finance by the Book highlights how cost-to-use analysis plays out in different situations. For example, when purchasing a new vehicle it makes little sense to pay extra for features that are infrequently used:



Should you pay an extra $5,000 for that 7 passenger car? It depends on how often you actually need those extra seats for the life of the vehicle. Obviously, if you have a family of seven you need all the seats you can get, but if you only use those extra seats one week a year for your annual vacation, you are paying $1,000 for each of those weeks (assuming you keep your vehicle five years). Because a seven passenger mini-van rents for about $500 a week at Enterprise, you may be better off saving your $5000 purchase price and renting that 7 passenger vehicle when you need it.



Check out the full article at the link below for more examples and tips for applying cost-per-use analysis to your purchases.



bench craft company

Facebook Approved For Yet Another <b>News</b> Feed Patent | The Blog Herald

Facebook has been approved for a news feed patent which allows them to generate a personalized story feed for users, the patent in many ways is similar to the news feed patent they received earlier in 2010. The patent, named Generating ...

Jobless Columbia Grad Finds Time For Marathon Training « CBS New <b>...</b>

NY/post;tag=newyorkcity;tag=newyorkcitymarathon;tag=nycmarathon;tag=running;tag=unemployment;tag=nyc;tag=marladiamond;tag=recession;tag=marathon;tag=uranisanchez;tag=davidwilling;tag=runnersworld;tag=heardon;tag=local;tag=news ...

Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen: Green <b>News</b> Report: November 4, 2010 <b>...</b>

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Jan.-to-Oct. 2010 tied for hottest in satellite record; Pakistan's emergency rations to run out in 30 days; Halliburton may be shielded from liability in BP Oil Disaster; Can SCOTUS whale ruling ...


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bench craft company

Sponsor: PNC by Julia Delligatti


bench craft company

Facebook Approved For Yet Another <b>News</b> Feed Patent | The Blog Herald

Facebook has been approved for a news feed patent which allows them to generate a personalized story feed for users, the patent in many ways is similar to the news feed patent they received earlier in 2010. The patent, named Generating ...

Jobless Columbia Grad Finds Time For Marathon Training « CBS New <b>...</b>

NY/post;tag=newyorkcity;tag=newyorkcitymarathon;tag=nycmarathon;tag=running;tag=unemployment;tag=nyc;tag=marladiamond;tag=recession;tag=marathon;tag=uranisanchez;tag=davidwilling;tag=runnersworld;tag=heardon;tag=local;tag=news ...

Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen: Green <b>News</b> Report: November 4, 2010 <b>...</b>

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Jan.-to-Oct. 2010 tied for hottest in satellite record; Pakistan's emergency rations to run out in 30 days; Halliburton may be shielded from liability in BP Oil Disaster; Can SCOTUS whale ruling ...


bench craft company

Your daily dose of news and tidbits from the world of money in politics:

DEMOCRATS MORE LIKELY TO PERSONALLY ATTACK OPPONENTS IN ADVERTISEMENTS: According to a recent report by the Wesleyan Media Project, in 2010, �pro-Democratic ads focused on the personal characteristics of Republican candidates in 21 percent of their attack ads� compared to 11 percent of pro-Republican ads. This is up from the 12 percent of Democratic attack ads in 2008 that were focused on personal characteristics. 

The report cautions against claims that this election is unusually negative stating the proportion of negative to positive ads is comparable to 2008. However, the big difference is that among negative ads there is an increase among personal attack ads. Overall, that rate has gone up from 14 percent in 2008 to 20 percent in 2010. The report also mentions that attack ads �are far more likely than other ads to be sponsored by parties and/or interest groups� rather than by candidates themselves.

When making independent expenditures with overt messages in favor or opposition to federal candidates, political groups must tell the Federal Election Commission whether their expenditure is to �support� a candidate or �oppose� a candidate. A Center for Responsive Politics analysis of outside groups� expenditures �opposing� candidates compared to ads �supporting� candidates since October 1st shows �opposing ads� totaling $218 million and supporting ads totaling $42 million. These expenditures include TV ads, radio ads, web ads, fliers, mailings, canvassers, phone banks and other communications:

REPUBLICAN RANKING MEMBERS ARE THE COOL KIDS ON THE BLOCK AGAIN:
Ranking members of House committees are becoming the popular kids. If
the Republicans take over majority in the House, committee ranking
members like Rep. David Camp (R-Mich.) will be the new chairmen. As the
New York Times reported Tuesday, Republicans in positions to become
chairmen of House committees are seeing an influx of cash and popularity
at fundraisers. Camp, the current ranking member of the tax-writing
House Ways and Means Committee is receiving more contributions as
lobbyists plan for the future.



Jennifer Bell, a former Senate Finance Committee aide and a current
health care lobbyist told the New York Times, �You don�t wait until Nov.
3 and say, �What is the plan?� Obviously, it is the majority that sets
the agenda.�



As OpenSecrets Blog reported yesterday, many industries have been
planning ahead and have started to shift contributions to Republicans.
This phenomenon is not unique to this election as contributions have
historically favored the majority party and have fluctuated accordingly.



Below is a Center for Responsive Politics analysis of contributions to
Camp that shows a sharp increase in contributions during the last three
months - through September 30th. The second chart shows the total contributions to all candidates
during the same period for a linear comparison:




U.S. FALLS OUT OF THE TOP 20 LEAST CORRUPT NATIONS LIST: Transparency International released their annual Corruption Perceptions Index on Tuesday revealing that the United States has dropped from the 19th least corrupt nation in 2009 to 22nd place this year. According to Reuters, Nancy Boswell, the President of TI in the United States stated that the United States has lost integrity and public faith about ethics in America due in part to the lending practices in the subprime crisis, �Bernard Madoff's Ponzi scheme and rows over political funding.�

On the bright side, the United States is perceived to be just less corrupt than Uruguay, France, Estonia and Slovenia.

Have a news tip or link to pass along? We want to hear from you! E-mail us at press@crp.org.



Consider the Cost Per Use When Planning a New Purchase





When we purchase something and use it frequently we comment that we "got our money's worth" out of it, as the cost-per-use has plummeted. Weigh the frequency of use against the purchase price when considering if something is worth buying.

Photo by Joe Marinaro.


Financial blog Personal Finance by the Book highlights how cost-to-use analysis plays out in different situations. For example, when purchasing a new vehicle it makes little sense to pay extra for features that are infrequently used:



Should you pay an extra $5,000 for that 7 passenger car? It depends on how often you actually need those extra seats for the life of the vehicle. Obviously, if you have a family of seven you need all the seats you can get, but if you only use those extra seats one week a year for your annual vacation, you are paying $1,000 for each of those weeks (assuming you keep your vehicle five years). Because a seven passenger mini-van rents for about $500 a week at Enterprise, you may be better off saving your $5000 purchase price and renting that 7 passenger vehicle when you need it.



Check out the full article at the link below for more examples and tips for applying cost-per-use analysis to your purchases.



bench craft company

Sponsor: PNC by Julia Delligatti


bench craft company

Facebook Approved For Yet Another <b>News</b> Feed Patent | The Blog Herald

Facebook has been approved for a news feed patent which allows them to generate a personalized story feed for users, the patent in many ways is similar to the news feed patent they received earlier in 2010. The patent, named Generating ...

Jobless Columbia Grad Finds Time For Marathon Training « CBS New <b>...</b>

NY/post;tag=newyorkcity;tag=newyorkcitymarathon;tag=nycmarathon;tag=running;tag=unemployment;tag=nyc;tag=marladiamond;tag=recession;tag=marathon;tag=uranisanchez;tag=davidwilling;tag=runnersworld;tag=heardon;tag=local;tag=news ...

Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen: Green <b>News</b> Report: November 4, 2010 <b>...</b>

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Jan.-to-Oct. 2010 tied for hottest in satellite record; Pakistan's emergency rations to run out in 30 days; Halliburton may be shielded from liability in BP Oil Disaster; Can SCOTUS whale ruling ...


bench craft company

Sponsor: PNC by Julia Delligatti


bench craft company

Facebook Approved For Yet Another <b>News</b> Feed Patent | The Blog Herald

Facebook has been approved for a news feed patent which allows them to generate a personalized story feed for users, the patent in many ways is similar to the news feed patent they received earlier in 2010. The patent, named Generating ...

Jobless Columbia Grad Finds Time For Marathon Training « CBS New <b>...</b>

NY/post;tag=newyorkcity;tag=newyorkcitymarathon;tag=nycmarathon;tag=running;tag=unemployment;tag=nyc;tag=marladiamond;tag=recession;tag=marathon;tag=uranisanchez;tag=davidwilling;tag=runnersworld;tag=heardon;tag=local;tag=news ...

Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen: Green <b>News</b> Report: November 4, 2010 <b>...</b>

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Jan.-to-Oct. 2010 tied for hottest in satellite record; Pakistan's emergency rations to run out in 30 days; Halliburton may be shielded from liability in BP Oil Disaster; Can SCOTUS whale ruling ...


bench craft company

Facebook Approved For Yet Another <b>News</b> Feed Patent | The Blog Herald

Facebook has been approved for a news feed patent which allows them to generate a personalized story feed for users, the patent in many ways is similar to the news feed patent they received earlier in 2010. The patent, named Generating ...

Jobless Columbia Grad Finds Time For Marathon Training « CBS New <b>...</b>

NY/post;tag=newyorkcity;tag=newyorkcitymarathon;tag=nycmarathon;tag=running;tag=unemployment;tag=nyc;tag=marladiamond;tag=recession;tag=marathon;tag=uranisanchez;tag=davidwilling;tag=runnersworld;tag=heardon;tag=local;tag=news ...

Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen: Green <b>News</b> Report: November 4, 2010 <b>...</b>

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Jan.-to-Oct. 2010 tied for hottest in satellite record; Pakistan's emergency rations to run out in 30 days; Halliburton may be shielded from liability in BP Oil Disaster; Can SCOTUS whale ruling ...


bench craft company

Facebook Approved For Yet Another <b>News</b> Feed Patent | The Blog Herald

Facebook has been approved for a news feed patent which allows them to generate a personalized story feed for users, the patent in many ways is similar to the news feed patent they received earlier in 2010. The patent, named Generating ...

Jobless Columbia Grad Finds Time For Marathon Training « CBS New <b>...</b>

NY/post;tag=newyorkcity;tag=newyorkcitymarathon;tag=nycmarathon;tag=running;tag=unemployment;tag=nyc;tag=marladiamond;tag=recession;tag=marathon;tag=uranisanchez;tag=davidwilling;tag=runnersworld;tag=heardon;tag=local;tag=news ...

Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen: Green <b>News</b> Report: November 4, 2010 <b>...</b>

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Jan.-to-Oct. 2010 tied for hottest in satellite record; Pakistan's emergency rations to run out in 30 days; Halliburton may be shielded from liability in BP Oil Disaster; Can SCOTUS whale ruling ...


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bench craft company

Sponsor: PNC by Julia Delligatti


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bench craft company

Facebook Approved For Yet Another <b>News</b> Feed Patent | The Blog Herald

Facebook has been approved for a news feed patent which allows them to generate a personalized story feed for users, the patent in many ways is similar to the news feed patent they received earlier in 2010. The patent, named Generating ...

Jobless Columbia Grad Finds Time For Marathon Training « CBS New <b>...</b>

NY/post;tag=newyorkcity;tag=newyorkcitymarathon;tag=nycmarathon;tag=running;tag=unemployment;tag=nyc;tag=marladiamond;tag=recession;tag=marathon;tag=uranisanchez;tag=davidwilling;tag=runnersworld;tag=heardon;tag=local;tag=news ...

Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen: Green <b>News</b> Report: November 4, 2010 <b>...</b>

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Jan.-to-Oct. 2010 tied for hottest in satellite record; Pakistan's emergency rations to run out in 30 days; Halliburton may be shielded from liability in BP Oil Disaster; Can SCOTUS whale ruling ...


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Timing of income is crucial for Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) planning. The timing of certain types of income can actually influence whether you have to pay ATM or not. Employees, unfortunately, have little control over when they receive their salaried income. If the employer offers a bonus program, the employee may have the ability to exercise a bit of control over the timing of bonuses, but even this is unlikely. If an employee gets stock options, the timing of this income can be controlled.

If an employee can defer the payment of bonus monies from one year to the next, this will definitely help them with their plan for the Alternative Minimum Tax. Taxpayers likely to come in the net of AMT need to calculate the effect of this upon the AMT before deciding whether to defer their bonus monies or not. The more standard income, from salary or hourly wages, an individual has, the more they will be pulled away from the AMT.

If an employee receives non-qualified (standard) stock options, they will be reported as standard income on their W-2 when said options are exercised. For independent contractors, this "standard" income will be reported on their form 1099. The timing of exercising a stock option is entirely up to the individual. The Alternative Minimum Tax might be eliminated if a stock option is exercised with precise timing and offers income in proportion to a standard salary. The employee will need to take state taxes in to account in this plan as well. Since state taxes are not deductible with the Alternative Minimum Tax, they will have to be calculated into this equation to be sure that they do not eliminate the benefits of exercising the stock options in regard to the AMT.

If the stock options are Incentive Stock Options (ISO), which can also be referred to as qualified stock options, holding and exercising the options will only serve to increase the Alternative Minimum Tax. You should exercise Incentive Stock Options in a year when ordinary income will offset their effects upon the AMT. Some Incentive Stock Option holders realize this by spreading the exercise of their ISO options over a period of years.
Some employees are paid a commission along with their other forms of income. Commission income should be studied to determine if it could be timed in a fashion to aid in planning for the Alternative Minimum Tax.

It is an open secret that the employees are more vulnerable to tax than any other individual taxpayer. So it is obvious that they will have little scope to reduce liability under Minimum alternative tax. However, there are a few selective strategies employees can use. What are they? Chintamani Abhyankar provides some hidden tips to employees.

Chintamani Abhyankar, is a well known expert in the field of finance and taxation for last 25 years. He has written many books explaining inside secrets of the magic world of personal finance. His famous eBook Stop donating your money to IRS which is now running in its second edition, provides intricate knowledge and valuable tips on personal finance and income tax.





















































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