TPS

C'mon, let me have a little semantic fun... Seriously, one can view any government tax policy as a giveaway to some industry/individual? Once those giveaways have been in place for long periods, don't they become viewed as entitlements? Mortgage interest deduction, depletion allowances, child tax credits, etc. People fight or go ballistic to keep "their entitlements" when they're in danger of elimination. Look at Tasker's reaction to this.

Not according to this statement:"The Treasury Department says its proposal would still allow existing accounts to continue to grow tax-free until distributions occur, but it would prevent new contributions once a saver hits the cap." You are not allowed to contribute anymore to a tax deferred account, which is not the same thing as saying you are not allowed to save anymore. That is an ideological interpretation. This isn't some god-given right--it's a tax break that was started in 1978, and you're making it sound like the government owes you this entitlement.

How are they telling you that you saved enough? Again, it puts a cap on what's tax deductible up front. How is it different from capping any other deduction?

Good way to start: if you don't agree with me, then your opinion is irrational. Your complaint is that the government that created the tax shield for retirement income now wants to cap that tax shield? It doesn't put a cap on retirement savings in general; it puts a cap on how much you can shield in a 401k. They do this all of the time, put limits on how much income you can shield from the tax laws they write. Is it much different from putting a cap on mortgage interest deduction?

http://xrepublic.tv/node/2832 John Stewart's take...

Smith certainly got trashed in the article.

The Bills getting Kolb adds fuel to this article. http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nfl--2013-qb-draft-class-may-be-nfl-s-most-lowly-regarded-in-more-than-a-decade-060530895.html;_ylt=Ahlj9W9MCc12oxFmMhVDcEc5nYcB;_ylu=X3oDMTQ0cmFyMTMxBG1pdANGRUFUVVJFRCBNZWdhdHJvbiBTUE9SVFMgRlAEcGtnA2YyODA2YWIwLTE4NzAtMzQxNC05OWMwLWNiZDRmM2UxZGU2MgRwb3MDMgRzZWMDbWVnYXRyb24EdmVyAzZlNzc2NDczLTllNDAtMTFlMi1iZGZmLWVhYTVkYWE5ZDY2Ng--;_ylg=X3oDMTFpNzk0NjhtBGludGwDdXMEbGFuZwNlbi11cwRwc3RhaWQDBHBzdGNhdANob21lBHB0A3NlY3Rpb25z;_ylv=3

I've already learned from my mistake...

Which is why I rejected the dominant neo-keynesian model in grad school--there is no place for profit-driven banks and private sector debt in their models. Minsky never developed a formal model, but was more descriptive and prescriptive. There are some interesting attempts to develop Minsky-type models using balance sheet accounting; for example, Steve Keen and the folks at the Levy Institute. I was going to ask which exam you failed, but I didn't want to be so mean...good luck!

And I thought I had my bases covered with PIMCO....drat!

For those who have been around here a long time, you know that I've said on several occasions that Minsky is the economist who influenced me the most. This is an excellent read by a managing partner at PIMCO who uses Minsky's analysis to describe the financial crisis. http://www.cfapubs.org/doi/pdf/10.2470/rf.v2009.n5.15

They clearly need a run-stuffer. I'm sure Pettine wanted DeVito, but he got scooped up pretty quick by the Chiefs.

Yes, I did. Had it been wacka, then no.My mea culpa is that I'm hungover from Dyngus day...

Ahhh...living down to the reputation that "We come in Peace" noted...

I am in 100% agreement. Unfortunately too many people try to make it a partisan issue without seeing that truth.

I didn't think the wackas here would give this much credit since he didn't blame the Dems and poor people for the crisis...

I was actually a little disappointed in this first one. There are too many interesting characters to do justice to any of them in a 50 minute episode. I don't know how they will be able to do this going forward, unless they do what dibs said about the books--ignore some for a few episodes and focus on fewer? I was actually a little disappointed in this first one. There are too many interesting characters to do justice to any of them in a 50 minute episode. I don't know how they will be able to do this going forward, unless they do what dibs said about the books--ignore some for a few episodes and focus on fewer?

My head hurts from too much Tyskie... While it was cold, the world's best Polish rock band Them Idiots had us all dancing. Huge crowd, everyone getting whacked by willows. We went to Corpus Christi's community center after that, which was way too packed, so we ended up going to the Polish Cadets on the corner of Grant and Amherst. That was a blast. My head hurts....

I took it in the spirit of the thread. I just gave it as much consideration as a post by 3rdnlng...

The first idea, to tax all deposits, was !@#$ing nuts. If you have in excess of the insured level, aren't you supposed to be aware of the risk?

Stupidity about financial issues does not explain why the personal savings rate has declined over time. We've been a consumer oriented culture since the end of WW2, it's just that the toys have changed over time. Neither one of those things explains the long term trend. Oh, it was entertaining though.

Rather than suggest a reason for the long term decline in the US personal savings rate, you suggest stupidity? The long term decline is a consequence of stagnant real wages (mainly caused by globalization) and households use of debt to maintain living standards. There might be some justification for "stupidity" in the 2000s, as Americans cashed in (home equity loans) on the increase in their most valuable asset (housing) to consume more things. The most recent data show the deleveraging process has led to an increase in the savings rate during the great slow down. The last few months could indicate that deleveraging is done, and consumers are ready to drive the economic recovery.

Agreed. Trying to raise the level of witty repartee on a board dominated by conservatives, is like trying to sell viagra to eunuchs. I'm including the definition so they get the joke. Eunuch: a man or boy deprived of the testes or external genitals

Didn't really know anything about the show, but for some reason decided to check it out by renting the first couple of episodes through Blockbuster two weeks ago. I was immediately hooked and just finished the entire two seasons last night. It's one of the few things I've ever watched where you can't predict where it's going. More precisely, who dies. So many interesting characters, especially the women characters. As the 3rd season starts, I'm not looking forward to having to wait a week between episodes.

Catching up on what was posted over the last 2 hours before heading upstairs, and its always good to end the evening with a good chuckle. Thanks guys.