Tag Archives: Middle Class Dismissed

Retirement Dreams (Workers) vs. Reality (Retirees)

Posted on by

“There are major discrepancies between what workers think they will live on in retirement vs. what retirees are actually living on.  The youngsters have figured out that Social Security will not be there. Under a third think Social Security will be the major source of their income. Over half of retirees say Social Security is in fact the major portion.  The [discrepancies] are surveyed in this short video.”

http://teapartyeconomist.com/2014/07/05/video-retirement-dreams-workers-vs-reality-retirees/

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet

Bill Bonner: The Greatest Fraud Ever

Posted on by

Bill-Bonner2

“Banks – with the happy connivance of the Fed – create new money. Corporations use it to buy their own shares. Central banks buy shares too.  Besides, buying stocks seems to please everyone who matters. Investors are happy. Speculators are happy. Economists are happy. Politicians are happy, too.  After all, a rising stock market means the economy is getting better, doesn’t it?  But there is a heavy price to pay, dear reader. The financiers end up owning more of the real businesses… the real enterprises… the real houses… the real output of the real economy.  Wall Street firms own more houses. And more stocks. All are bought with money that they – or their cronies – created.”

http://www.bonnerandpartners.com/the-greatest-fraud-ever/

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet

Neofeudalism’s Tax Donkeys and the Battle for Control of Resources

Posted on by

“Those with access to the low-interest unlimited credit spigot of the Federal Reserve are free to snap up tens of thousands of houses and tens of thousands of acres of productive land, along with other rentier assets such as parking lots and meters, fossil fuels in the ground, and of course the engines of credit creation, the banks.  Should a legitimate (as opposed to black market/cash business) small business manage to open its doors, it faces a blizzard of junk fees, permits and taxes that make its survival a dubious prospect. No wonder self-employment and small business are in structural decline.”

http://www.oftwominds.com/blogjuly14/tax-donkeys7-14.html

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet

Airlines Change the Carry on Rules

Posted on by

“What I didn’t realize, because it’s never become an issue, is that American (as well as Delta and United) have fairly new carry on bag limits, including a 14-inch maximum width, and my Rimowa is 15 inches wide, as are many carry ons. Even though it’s an inch shorter than the 22-inch length limit, and an inch shorter than the official 9-inch depth limit, back to check in I went. And the line was so long, I almost missed my flight. I was then told that this is a new ‘FAA regulation’ but I doubt that’s true, since some airlines still have more generous allowances.  And these size limits are fairly recent policies. In fact, United made the change on March 2, 2014.”

http://www.airfarewatchdog.com/blog/18811748/airlines-change-the-carry-on-rules/

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet

The Airlines Work for Uncle Sam

Posted on by

“Bryan Riley, writing for The Daily Signal, tells us that the government’s cash register rings every time we step on a plane. According to Airlines for America, $61.49 of a $300 domestic round-trip ticket goes to federal government taxes. That’s almost as much as fuel ($63.47) and more than labor ($51.52). Other expenses total $123.11, leaving 41 cents for profits.  That’s right: Uncle Sam takes 20% off the top, while only 0.1% drops to the bottom line. And by the way, that doesn’t include taxes on payroll or jet fuel.  What’s worse than a government picking your pocket? Two governments picking your pocket, as they do for international flights.”

http://www.caseyresearch.com/articles/the-airlines-work-for-uncle-sam

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet

Real Estate: “Millennials” Out, Chinese Buyers In

Posted on by

“‘Millennials’ born in the early 1980s are shunning the [housing] market amid concerns about future financial stability, rising expenses and excessive debts. And who is increasingly filling the housing demand hole? Foreign investors, led by cash-rich Chinese buyers!  Housing Wire notes that foreign buyers purchased just over $92 billion worth of U.S. real estate in the year ending in March, up sharply from $68 billion a year earlier. A whopping 60% of them paid all cash, compared to one-third of domestic buyers.  Chinese buyers spent $22 billion of that total, the largest percentage by dollar volume. They now account for 16 percent of all foreign purchases, triple the level of just a few years ago.”

http://www.moneyandmarkets.com/real-estate-millennials-chinese-buyers-63102

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet

Want to Be Rich? Salary Alone Won’t Get You There

Posted on by

“The top 400 averaged $92.6 million in capital gains income, or 16% of the total capital gains reported by all taxpayers. If you want to get rich: Working for a salary won’t cut it; Making relatively safe ‘income’ investments won’t cut it; Investing only in stocks of large companies won’t cut it;  Owning a business or businesses, whether in part or partnership, could not only build a solid wealth foundation but could someday generate a huge financial windfall and make you rich.  Obviously becoming super rich (in financial terms) comes from investing in yourself and others, from taking risks, from doing a lot of small things well… and then doing one big thing really, really well.”

http://www.forbes.com/sites/markeghrari/2014/06/25/want-to-be-rich-your-salary-wont-get-you-there/

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet

Insurance Premiums Surging as Obamacare Kicks In

Posted on by

“We reviewed data from 784 health-care insurers around the nation. The sample included both private insurance firms and those with publicly traded parent companies, companies that took in a total of $450 billion in premium income last year.  Here’s what we found happened in the first quarter of this year, a period where Obamacare shifted into high gear:  Overall premiums rose a hefty 5.9 percent, or $12.44 per month, to $224.28. That followed a 2.7 percent increase in 2013. Private insurers who don’t have shareholders to answer to raised prices by 2.7 percent. But public companies jacked up their premiums by much more: 13.4 percent.”

http://www.moneyandmarkets.com/weiss-ratings-insurance-premiums-surging-obamacare-kicks-62978

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet

This Company Saved Money By Tracking Employees With Fitbits

Posted on by

“One day soon, your company could hand you a fitness-tracking device as a gift.  The gift could have a sizeable payoff for the company. They could use it to track your fitness habits and, if you and your coworkers behave well, use that data to negotiate lower insurance premiums.  In fact, hot Valley startup Appirio did exactly that, handing out Fitbits to about 400 employees. And thanks to CloudFit, Appirio convinced its insurance company to lower its rates by 5%. That added up to a hefty  $280,000.  Thanks to provisions in the Affordable Care Act, which offers companies incentives for implementing wellness programs, and savings like that, more companies may try similar programs.”

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/company-saved-lot-money-tracking-005949318.html

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet

The Federal Reserve: Asleep at the Switch

Posted on by

“Yellen conceded that higher interest rates in 2003 and 2006 might have slowed the rate of home price growth that created the housing bubble.  But, she added, such increases wouldn’t have done much to quell the rapid rise in housing prices but would have ‘weakened households’ ability to repay previous debts.’ The net effect would have been to improve ‘household balance sheets only modestly.’  What’s most disturbing about her comments is that her central bank colleagues in other countries deeply disagree with this position. They argue that low rates caused by central bank stimulus programs may be sowing the seeds for the next financial crisis.”

http://www.investingdaily.com/20677/the-federal-reserve-asleep-at-the-switch-2/

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet