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AFBF pushes for tax relief for wealthy heirs
The secretive American Family Business Foundation is busy pushing for tax relief for those waiting heirs. It wants the deficit reduction commission to include repeal of the estate tax as a job creating measure
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Trying to sell estate tax repeal and the loss of billions of tax revenues as a revenue raiser, on the grounds that cut taxes will be invested in ways that create new jobs, has got to be a new low in the pro-business, anti-government, anti-safety net, pro-tax-cuts-for-the-wealthy arguments that the radicalized right feels free to make now.
And apart from the usual suspects at the Peasant’s Revolt, no-one seems to want to prevent this.
WikiLeaks Suspends Operations, May Have To Close
[Quote]:
Saying that "an arbitrary and unlawful financial blockade … has destroyed 95 percent of our revenue," WikiLeaks has suspended publishing operations and founder Julian Assange says it may have to shut down permanently by year’s end.
The whistle-blowing operation is famous for its uncovering of U.S. diplomatic cables and other materials that governments and corporations wanted to keep secret. But the decision by some U.S.-based financial institutions, including Visa, MasterCard, Western Union and PayPal, to block would-be donors from using their networks to give WikiLeaks money has dramatically reduced its ability to raise funds.
So banks are allowed to coordinate their activities to just shut particular people or organizations out of the banking system for political reasons without some lawful authority.
I guess it’s only illegal if the government doesn’t want you to do it.
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Cartoons
New Big Brother: Market-Moving Satellite Images
In a “perfect market” all the players have the same information.
Unless you own a couple of photo satellites, the stock market is not perfect.
The Last Super
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Drug-sniffing dogs come to Wolcott High School, with a twist.
[Quote]:
At Wolcott High School one morning this week, an urgent announcement crackled over the intercom: a threatening intruder was in the building and students were told to immediately take refuge in classrooms.
Doors were locked and police, with dogs, moved in. Students stayed huddled in classrooms where they were told to stay away from the windows.
But what sounded like a frightening situation was just a search for narcotics. Drug-sniffing dogs combed the school while students stayed in locked classrooms, believing that an attacker was roaming the halls.
[..]
“After 10 minutes we say this is a drill and at that point we started a search for drugs,” McCary said. “We are providing a safe and secure nurturing environment.”
No drugs turned up in the search.
[..]
Andrew Schneider, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Connecticut, called it a “terrible policy. It will cause more trouble in the long run. Young people will learn not to trust the police.”
“It’s a terrible civics lesson.”
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The Biggest Stars In The Universe
Michele Bachmann Says Iraq Should Reimburse U.S. For War Expenses
[Quote]:
You know how every time Michele Bachmann opens her mouth it’s kind of exciting because you never know what’s going to come out, but then it’s also terrifying because you’re worried whatever she says will be taken seriously? Well, brace yourselves because today she’s dropped a real doozy: she thinks the people of Iraq should pay us back for all of the money we spent invading them.
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Microsoft collects license fees on 50% of Android devices, tells Google to “wake up”
[Quote]:
Google’s complaints about patent-based attacks against Android don’t seem to be doing the company any good. We all know Steve Jobs pledged to destroy Android, claiming it stole its ideas from Apple’s iOS. Yet what is likely an even bigger threat comes from Microsoft, which claims that more than half of all Android devices are now subject to patent licensing agreements.What does that mean? When you buy an Android phone, there’s a good chance either the vendor whose name is on the device or one of the manufacturers who contributed hardware to it is paying Microsoft a fee for each sale. Today, Microsoft announced an agreement with Compal, an original design manufacturer that produces smartphones and tablets for third parties and takes in $28 billion in annual revenue. This was the “tenth license agreement providing coverage under our patent portfolio for Android mobile phones and tablets,” and the ninth in the last four months, Microsoft lawyers Brad Smith and Horacio Gutierrez write in a blog post.
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John, otherwise intelligent people eat it up gladly “if it’s a privately owned company, it can do whatever it wants!” and “tax cuts are good, I am glad to pay for anything, and if I can’t I don’t deserve it!” is something a lot of them earnestly believe.
It seems they hate being “enslaved by government” but will happily put on a privately owned collar and march into the salve pens if asked by a private company.
Roland, I didn’t post this