Delayed, not saved: Foxconn's Wisconsin "factory" announcement is a bid to help Trump save face After announcing that, inevitably, it wasn't going to build an LCD factory in Wisconsin, and would instead use its $4.1 billion subsidy to build a modest R&D facility employing out-of-state skilled workers; Foxconn reversed itself and promised that the factory was back on. The factory is not back on. LCDs are pure commodities, among the lowest-margin components, and about to be made obsolete by OLEDs. There is zero business-case for building these outside of Asia-Pacific. It was a stunt, it was always a stunt, just like it was a stunt all the other times they did it. The reason for the announcement is that Donald Trump called them up and asked them to announce that the factory would be built. This is obvious to anyone except desperate cognitive-dissonance types wanting more than anything to believe that their white supremacist in the White House is an infallible god-king of negotiations. I mean, obviously. Secret Service challenge coin commemorates unpaid labor during the shutdown
The bad behavior of the richest: what I learned from wealth managers If nearly a decade interviewing the wealth managers for the 1% taught me anything, it is that the ultra-rich and the ultra-poor have a lot more in common than stereotypes might lead you to believe. In conversation, wealth managers kept coming back to the flamboyant vices of their clients. It was quite unexpected, in the course of discussing tax avoidance, to hear professional service providers say things like: “I’ve told my colleagues: ‘If I ever become like some of our clients, shoot me.’ The clients of this Geneva-based wealth manager also “believe that they are descended from the pharaohs, and that they were destined to inherit the earth”. If a poor person voiced such beliefs, he or she might well be institutionalized; for those who work with the wealthy, however, such “eccentricities” are all in a day’s work. As Lane and Harburg put it in the libretto of the musical Finian’s Rainbow: Many even present themselves as homeless – for tax purposes – despite owning multiple residences.
Why retirees should feel very worried right now You know the old adage that “a rising tide lifts all boats?” What if you don’t own a boat in the first place? That rising tide won’t do much for you, will it? And so it is with this historic bull market, which, if it continues, will enter its 11th year—11 years! But most Americans—perhaps you—haven’t benefited much. 54% of middle-income households (defined as income ranging from $48,000 to $95,000) don’t have enough saved to maintain a decent retirement. What happened? Let’s focus on the last issue, investment mistakes. Some investors got burned in the first crash (AOL, Webvan and Pets.com, anyone?) The net effect of this is that millions of retail investors, spooked by the market’s one-two punch, have stayed away—thus missing out on what may turn out to be a once-in-a-lifetime gain. The question is, what now? Meantime, what about those proverbial boat owners, whose wealth has soared? “I never have an opinion about the market,” he has said, “because it wouldn’t be any good.”
The Simplest Explanation Of Global Warming Ever Earth energy budget diagram, with incoming and outgoing radiation (values are shown in W/m^2). Satellite instruments (CERES) measure the reflected solar, and emitted infrared radiation fluxes. The energy balance determines Earth's climate. Let's play pretend for a moment. Pretend, if you can, that you've never heard about the idea of global warming before. Pretend you've never heard anyone else's opinions on the matter, including from politicians, scientists, friends or relatives. If you were going to make a genuine inquiry, there would instead be only two questions to ask and answer: is the Earth warming or not, and if so, what's the main cause? This is a question that was tailor-made for the enterprise of science to answer. There are really only two things that determine the Earth's temperature, or the temperature of any object that's heated by an external source. During the day, we absorb energy from the Sun; this is the power inputted into the Earth. But that's not the full story.
Midterm big spenders: the top 20 political donors this election The 2018 midterms will probably be the most expensive in US history. More than $5.2bn is predicted to be funneled into closely watched races – and an extraordinary amount is coming from just a few individuals. Political spending has leapt by 35% since the 2014 midterms, according to the Center for Responsive Politics (CRP). The center has found that individual political donations account for the majority of campaign cash across the board: they comprise about 71% of donations to Senate races for both Republicans and Democrats and about 61% of donations to House candidates. While political donations can come in all shapes and sizes – from large to small – it’s the big-ticket players who have an outsized influence in shaping elections and, in turn, public policy. “Donors get their phone calls answered, is one way of thinking about it,” says Ian Vandewalker, a senior counsel at the Brennan Center for Justice. So who are the biggest givers? 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15.
30 Reasons It’s Hard to Retire at 65 click 2x This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 30 Reasons It’s Hard to Retire at 65 Sixty-five has long been the magic age for retirement. But the expected age of retirement is becoming more diverse for the majority of non-retired U.S. adults, according to a 2017 Gallup Poll. Click through to find out the reasons why you probably won’t retire as early as you might think. You Haven’t Saved Enough Many people think that if they contribute to an IRA or a 401k, they should have enough money to retire. Check Out: 42 Easy Ways to Save for Retirement You Haven’t Saved Anything The only good thing about not having anything saved for retirement is that you’re not alone. Get started now: Look at your budget and see where you can trim a few dollars, then put that amount away every week or every month. Sixty-Five Is No Longer Considered the Full Retirement Age As we live longer, our retirements are becoming longer, which means people collect Social Security for longer. You Cashed in Your 401k
Medicaid work requirements: Where do they stand after the blue wave? The 2018 midterm elections have dealt a significant setback to President Trump’s agenda in the legislative arena. However, there are still many ways for the Trump administration to keep swinging away at the Affordable Care Act. One particularly effective unilateral instrument is the regulatory process – that is, the implementation of statutory law by executive agencies. This may prove particularly consequential for Medicaid, the health coverage program for those with low incomes or disabilities. One particular area of attention for scholars like me is so-called community engagement or work requirements for Medicaid beneficiaries. While still in litigation, the Trump administration has indicated its strong commitment to moving forward with these efforts. Helping individuals leave poverty is a worthwhile cause. Work for coverage: What the evidence from welfare reform tells us Work requirements have been implemented in a variety of public assistance programs outside of Medicaid.
What billionaires want: the secret influence of America’s 100 richest If we judge US billionaires by their most prominent fellows, they may seem to be a rather attractive bunch: ideologically diverse (perhaps even tending center-left), frank in speaking out about their political views, and generous in philanthropic giving for the common good – not to mention useful for the goods and jobs they have helped produce. The very top titans – Warren Buffett, Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates – have all taken left-of-center stands on various issues, and Buffett and Gates are paragons of philanthropy. The former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg is known for his advocacy of gun control, gay rights, and environmental protection. Unfortunately, this picture is misleading. How can this be so? The answer is simple: billionaires who favor unpopular, ultraconservative economic policies, and work actively to advance them (that is, most politically active billionaires) stay almost entirely silent about those issues in public. Or consider the estate tax.
How an outsider bucked prevailing Alzheimer's theory, clawed for validation Robert Moir was damned if he did and damned if he didn’t. The Massachusetts General Hospital neurobiologist had applied for government funding for his Alzheimer’s disease research and received wildly disparate comments from the scientists tapped to assess his proposal’s merits. It was an “unorthodox hypothesis” that might “fill flagrant knowledge gaps,” wrote one reviewer, but another said the planned work might add little “to what is currently known.” A third complained that although Moir wanted to study whether microbes might be involved in causing Alzheimer’s, no one had proved that was the case. As if scientists are supposed to study only what’s already known, an exasperated Moir thought when he read the reviews two years ago. He’d just had a paper published in a leading journal, providing strong data for his idea that beta-amyloid, a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease, might be a response to microbes in the brain. But something had long bothered him about the “evil amyloid” dogma. Dr.
The Prescription Drug Landscape, Explored Overview Americans spend more on prescription medications each year than the citizens of any other country. Measuring drug spending remains a challenge, however, because of limited public data on how much the various payers and supply chain intermediaries pay for prescription drugs. Several public and private organizations have recently published U.S. drug spending estimates using different methodologies. The complex drug supply and payment chain involves transactions among drug manufacturers, wholesalers, pharmacies, pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), and health plans. This study includes a survey of health plan and PBM personnel to estimate trends in the share of overall health insurance premiums attributable to the pharmacy benefit, and in the volume of rebates and other payments paid by pharmaceutical manufacturers to PBMs. Key Findings Important findings on retail prescription drug spending and the various stakeholders include: Methodology Results Results by Stakeholder Group Conclusion
Latinos and the Consequences of Eugenics | American Experience | Official Site By Natalie Lira In February 1930, Concepcion Ruiz, a 16-year-old Mexican-American, was arrested and tried in California Juvenile Court on charges of sexual delinquency. Legal officers brought the young woman before Superior Court Judge Robert H. Ruiz’s lawsuit did not receive national attention like the egregiously orchestrated Supreme Court trial to sterilize Carrie Buck and uphold the constitutionality of Virginia’s eugenic sterilization law (Buck v. Ruiz was one of approximately 20,000 people sterilized in California institutions between the 1920s and the 1950s. Eugenic beliefs were widespread among decision-making judges, parole officers, physicians and superintendents, who sought to prevent the reproduction of the “unfit” and were eager to play a part in creating a “better” future. During the late 19th century and into the 1920s, states established and expanded large institutions to confine the mentally, physically and socially “unfit” in order to segregate them from the public.
Divorced or widowed? 5 ways to boost your Social Security spousal benefits When you retire, you don't want to pinch pennies. These are the 10 least tax-friendly states for retirees, according to GOBankingRates. USA TODAY As benefits go, few compare with those offered by Social Security to spouses. Consider this: Even if you've never worked under Social Security, you may be able to get spouse’s retirement benefits if you are at least 62, and your spouse is receiving retirement or disability benefits. As easy as all that sounds on paper, experts say there’s much that spouses don’t know about these benefits, like how much they will receive and how to apply. Given the lack of knowledge out there, experts say spouses make plenty of mistakes when claiming Social Security. What are those mistakes and how can they be corrected or avoided? Old rules vs. new rules Married or divorced, women who were born before Jan. 2, 1954, can still file something called a restricted application. Don’t file early and keep working Maximize joint lifetime benefits Others concur.