The Late Great Jim Valvano: Cutting Down the Nets (1987)

Thank You McCall72 from Youtube

As explained by McCall72 - A speech delivered by the late great Jim Valvano the then head coach of the NC State Wolfpack circa 1987. I've had this in my possession for a good long while. This speech was giving at the 1987 Million Dollar Round Table annual meeting.

Newsletter about the City Council meeting of January 2, 2013

This newsletter is about the Hickory City Council meeting that I attended this past week. City council meetings are held on the first and third Tuesdays of each Month in the Council Chambers of the Julian Whitener building.

At right of this page under Main Information links is an Hickory's City Website link. If you click on that link, it takes you to our city’s website, at the left of the page you will see the Agenda's and Minutes link you need to click. This will give you a choice of PDF files to upcoming and previous meetings.

You will find historic Agenda and Minutes links. Agendas show what is on the docket for the meeting of that date. The Minutes is an actual summary of the proceedings of the meeting of that date.

Here is a summary of the agenda of the 1/2/2012 meeting. There were a couple of important items that were discussed at this meeting and the details are listed further below:

Please remember that pressing Ctrl and + will magnify the text and page and pressing Ctrl and - will make the text and page smaller. This will help the readability for those with smaller screens and/or eye difficulties.

All materials and maps for this meeting are provide at this link:

 City Council Action Agenda - January 2, 2013



Invocation by Rev. Deacon Barbara Burns, Episcopal Church of the Epiphany

Consent Agenda:
A. Approval to surplus 2,231 Discarded Library Materials so that these materials may be given to the Friends of the Library to be sold at the Friends “Corner Book Store” at Patrick Beaver Memorial Library. The sale of donated and discarded books is the primary fundraising activity of the Friends of the Library and discarded library materials comprise a significant portion of their inventory. The sale of these items ultimately benefits the library, and is an appropriate means of disposing of unneeded materials. Public Notice advertised on December 21, 2012 in a newspaper having general circulation in the Hickory area.

B. Approval to Declare as Surplus eighty-four (84) Scott AV-2000 Masks that can be utilized by other public safety agencies. In 2003 Scott Safety redesigned their Self Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) masks which improved the facial fit to the wearer and the voice amplification system. The fire department purchased the new mask (AV-3000) for all fire suppression members. The AV-2000 masks that were replaced by this new mask were taken out of service and put into storage. The City of Hickory Fire Department has received requests from Hiddenite Fire Department requesting (20) twenty AV-200 SCBA Masks and a request from Stewart-Simmons Volunteer Fire Department for (25) twenty-five masks. The currently value of each mask, per the manufacturer, is approximately $50. This request is to donate the masks to departments that request the need. Public Notice advertised on December 21, 2012 in a newspaper having general circulation in the Hickory area.

C. Approval to Purchase Six Specialized Police Package Emergency Vehicles. - Hickory Police Department request approval of the purchase of six rear wheel drive Chevrolet Caprice police package vehicles from Bobby Murray Chevrolet on the North Carolina State Contract at a cost of $27,458.60 per vehicle and a total cost of $164,751.60. The police department has funds budgeted in 2012-2013 CIP for replacement of police vehicles.

D. Approval to issue a pyrotechnic display permit to Hickory Crawdads. - The North Carolina Fire Code requires a mandatory operational permit for the use and handling of pyrotechnic special effects material. The Fire Prevention Bureau shall review all required documentation such as but not limited to the following: Alcohol Tobacco and Firearm’s (ATF) License, Operator and Assistant Operators Permits from North Carolina Office of State Fire Marshal (NCOSFM), Site Plan, and the one million dollar liability insurance policy. The Fire Prevention Bureau will also inspect the pyrotechnics display area prior to the event to ensure compliance with NCOSFM Guidelines, National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) NFPA 1123 Code for Fireworks Display, and NFPA 1126 Use of Pyrotechnics Before a Proximate Audience (if applicable) are met.

E. Approval of 2012 State Legislative Agenda. - Staff has sent to City Council a draft of the proposed 2012 State Legislative Agenda. The NC General Assembly convenes its long session on January 9, 2013. City staff, City Council and City residents and business owners will promote to our local delegation and other members the City’s priorities which will enhance the City’s opportunities for economic growth and provision of municipal services. The Legislative agenda is dynamic and may change as different proposals are discussed by the NC 2013 General Assembly and Executive Branch.

F. Budget Ordinance Amendment No. 10.
1. To budget a $2,000 donation from the N.R.P.A. (National Recreation and Park Association) in the Parks and Recreation Department Recreation Supplies ($1,361) and M & R Grounds ($639) line items. This donation is to purchase basketball goals at Southside Park.
2. To budget $20,000 of General Fund Contingency in the Public Buildings Maintenance and Repair line item. This amendment is to pay for installation of a 125KW generator at City Hall to provide a backup power source. Currently there is no backup power source at City Hall and there is a risk of loss of data if a power failure does occur. All work will be performed by Public Services staff.
3. To budget $9,551 of Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program funds in the Part-Time Salaries ($8,873) and FICA Taxes ($678) line items. This represents the reimbursement to the General Fund for the salary and tax benefits paid for a Part-Time employee to complete the grant funded duties for the smoke detector/carbon monoxide detector installation program.
4. To budget $35,880 of Community Development Block Grant revenues in the Public Buildings General Capital Improvements line item. This amendment is necessary to pay for the parking lot project at the 400 Block of South Center Street. This project will be funded with Community Development Block Grant revenues and the Community Development Block Grant Fund will reimburse the General Fund when the project is complete.
5. To transfer $38,381 of remaining revenues in excess of expenditures related to the Hickory District Court Facility in FY11-12 from the General Fund to the District Court Capital Reserve Fund.

Informational Items
A. Report of Alderman Hank Guess travel to Metropolitan Mayors Legislative Retreat in Raleigh, NC on December 12-13, 2012 (Meals - $34.18; Gas in city vehicle - $36.00; Lodging - $156.72; Registration - $120.00 and Parking - $22.00)

New Business - Public Hearing

1. (3:30) Financing Concept for the Hickory-Catawba Wastewater Treatment Facility Upgrade and Expansion.

 

 New Business - Departmental Reports:

1. Appointments to Boards and Commissions

a) (16;30) NORTH CAROLINA LEAGUE OF MUNICIPALITIES - Selection of a Voting Delegate to the North Carolina League of Municipalities Advocacy Goals Conference 2013

b) (20:40) SUBCOMMITTEE ON CITIZEN INPUT AT THE BEGINNING OF MEETINGS - At it’s December 18, 2012 meeting, City Council established a subcommittee of Mayor Wright, Alderwoman Fox and Alderwoman Patton to “Decide the language for getting citizens input at the beginning of the meeting.” As a duly appointed subcommittee of its members, the meetings will be advertised and open to the public. Council can discuss the process of the subcommittee and establish a time and location for its first meeting.

Previous History on this issue.

Newsletter about the City Council meeting of December 18, 2012 - Cliff Moone spoke once again about the process that has been instituted in relation to allowing Citizens to be heard before votes are taken in relation to second readings,  Consent Agenda Items, and Departmental Reports.At the end of the meeting Council voted affirmatively to form a subcommittee to formally put this process, allowing Citizens to be Heard before votes are taken, on the Agenda.


Newsletter about the City Council meeting of October 2, 2012 - Addendum on the CEG proposals - Proposal introduced by the Mayor outside of the constructs of the agenda

Newsletter about the City Council meeting of November 20, 2012 - Cliff Moone addressed the issue of Citizens being allowed the question items on the agenda at the beginning of the meeting. He discussed what occurred at the October 2, 2012 meeting.

Newsletter about the City Council meeting of December 4, 2012 -  Cliff Moone addresses the City Council about the Council's new policy odf making a motion to allow citizen's to address the City Council about items on the Agenda. Cliff and all members of the Citizens for Equity in Government feel that the Council is proverbially flying by the seat of their pants on this. Second they are not following proper protocol, because this is nowhere to be found on the Public Agenda, so technically it is a matter not on the Agenda and should by statute come at the end of the meeting after Citizens Requesting to Be Heard, which takes us back to square one. Hickory Inc. wants to say what's the big deal and we agree. Since it isn't a big deal, then formally put in on the agenda and quit with the ruse.


The Hound's Comment:
This was a straight forward meeting that lasted right around 30 minutes. Of course the "Citizens Requesting to be Heard" item is the real issue of the moment. I hold out hope that the Mayor will be cooperative in allowing citizens to speak about items on the agenda before votes take place. It is only a big deal because of certain processes that occurred over the last few years. It isn't a big deal to allow the public to be heard before decisions are made that affect them. It is the right thing to do.

Hickory City Council Meeting - January 2, 2013 - Video Presentation

The Following is a video presentation of the Hickory City Council meeting of January 2, 2013.

Lower right hand square in the Youtube box takes you to full screen mode.



The big discussion of the night was about the subcommittee consisting of Mayor Wright, Alderwoman Fox and Alderwoman Patton to “Decide the language for getting citizens input at the beginning of the meeting.” As a duly appointed subcommittee of its members, the meetings will be advertised and open to the public. Council can discuss the process of the subcommittee and establish a time and location for its first meeting.

It looks like this meeting will occur on Monday January 14, 2012 at 9:30am. They did not mention where the meeting will take place but it will be a public meeting. This discussion begin at 20:40.

Cutting off the GOP Gravy Train

Peter King: Halt donations to House GOP

This is what I have done for the past few years. I have given no money to the GOP. One of the reasons why I haven't given any money is because I don't have it and what little money I do have to give has gone to help the Church and some individual causes.

I received a phone call on Saturday asking for a contribution to "Activate" my GOP membership. I told the guy I wasn't giving them a damned thing. First off, the only reason I answered the phone was because I thought it was a family member, because my family was in town, but if this guy was going to talk it up, then I was going to give him a piece of my mind.

I could tell that he was going over a schematic list... if I say this, then you say that type of thing. The first thing out of his mouth was about the Fiscal Cliff and how we need to beat back the Democrats to get the governments finances under control. I told him the Fiscal Cliff was a joke and we've gone over the cliff long ago. I told him that our party has contributed to this as much as the Democrats. We just initiated and pushed through a $677 billion Defense Authorization Program and how much is Homeland Security costing us? I fully support our troops, but in 2001 I wasn't signing on to wars that would last forever. I feel duped by all of that stuff. Hell, we blow things up to build them back again to blow them up again... How much is that costing along with giving billions to Warlords all over the Near and Far East?

Then he switches and says he understands my anger. Yeah, we need to get some of our guys out of there, how he is AWAKE, but we can only do that by supporting the party. Sounded like Bush telling us how the only way to save the free market system was through policies that interfered with the operation of the free market. I gave him Harry's line about "if you keep doing what you're doing, you're gonna get what you've got."

Can you give $100... Our party was fully instrumental in destroying my community's Industrial base through all of these "Free for All" trade agreements like GATT, the WTO, and NAFTA, why should I support that?

Can you give $50... My party turned a blind eye on immigration and worked with Democrats to allow an influx of people who have helped, along with the one way trade agreements, to diminish my ability to earn income, then they fuss about people not working or being on food stamps. That helps Democrats look good, because at least they say they don't want people being homeless or starving to death. Hey Republicans, why not work to bring decent paying jobs back to America? Then you will have a right to tell people to work or starve. Right now you just come across as apathetic idiots and hypocrites.

Can you give $25... The Republican Party says it is against unions, but they run the party like it's a union. Everybody is supposed to wait their turn and be seen, but not heard. This is as much our country as it is the bigwigs. They aren't going to get that until we show them that. I believe in a Meritocracy. I like the best ideas to come forward... the cream to rise to the top. One of the points of the Contract with America in 1993 was the idea of term limits. The idea that citizens would serve a few years and then go back home to rejoin society as a citizen - to be like everyone else as one of the people. When the Republicans won the majority, this was pushed to the background and rarely heard of again,. The Congress continued with their special salaries, special healthcare, special pensions, and other special privileges and amenities, while most of the rest of society has continued to decline... No I am not going to give you any money to continue on with your party and these policies.

Can you give anything... You don't get it. Back when I was making decent money and expenses were a lot less, I gave you money. That is how I got on this list. I gave you money, because I had it and I believed in the cause and the agenda you were espousing. And you took my money and you worked against my interests, because my money didn't amount to a hill of beans compared to that of the spoiled, effeminate Wall Street and Main Street Nutthuggers. You didn't do what you said you were going to do. I'll tell you what. When you do what you said you were going to do all of those years ago and you accomplish what you promised me and you begin working in my interests (the majority of the working public's interests), then I might feel like giving you some money and better yet, I might be able to afford to give you some money.

Til  then GOOD BYE!

I told you so -- The Fiscal Farce

It is time folks. It is time to decide. Do you want to look in the mirror and see a tool and a fool or are you going to say No More... No More.

Folks, the charades that we have seen have destroyed the Republic. I told you they were going to make a deal and I told you that it was going to be bad. I am not arguing for arguments sake. I understand in negotiations that you have to compromise. I am not an idiot.

What we see is that at a time when we have grown the National Debt by over $6 trillion in 4 years, we are ready to further expand that. Like I pointed to a few weeks ago, you could actually see the National debt balloon to $22 trillion to $32 Trillion in the next 4 years. That is just by extrapolating the exponential numbers that we have seen over the last 8 years.

All it takes to break the dollar is a little blip up in interest rates. If interest rates go back to where they were in 2000, then our economy will be fully decimated. Bear with me.

The Federal Funds Rate

Wikipedia - In the United States, the federal funds rate is the interest rate at which depository institutions actively trade balances held at the Federal Reserve, called federal funds, with each other, usually overnight, on an uncollateralized basis. Institutions with surplus balances in their accounts lend those balances to institutions in need of larger balances. The federal funds rate is an important benchmark in financial markets.[1][2]

In other words the Fed Funds rate is the Interest Rate at which Intrabank Lending takes place at the shortest term basis (Daily). How much interest you earn or pay on a loan is based upon this rate. How much interest the Government earns or pays is based upon the Fed Funds Rate. It always costs more to take a loan out than you will earn in interest, because of the inherent risk associated with payback.

Today, because of Federal Reserve System manipulation, the Ded Funds interest rate is .1%. If you look back to 2007, that rate was 5.5% and back in 2000 it was 6.24%. Right now we are servicing the National Debt at an interest rate that floats somewhere near this rate through the sale of Treasury notes. When they tell you that they are going to raise the National Debt, that means that they are going to auction off more of these notes to the public Market. Other sovereign governments have been buying these notes (China, Japan, Russia, Saudi Arabia). Your Social Security is invested in these instruments. All of your financial institutions (Banks, Insurance Companies, Mutual Funds, and Pension Funds) are invested heavily in these instruments. And the Federal Reserve is even purchasing these funds from themselves, while this money already essentially has no backing.

All it takes is for one of these big institutions to start selling their holdings and/or demand a higher interest rate to invest and our problems will grow exponentially.

Last year the interest on the National debt was nearly $360 Billion ($359,796,008,919.49). If you round off that our average debt for 2011-12 was $15.5 trillion, then we paid an average interest rate of around 2.3% on the National Debt. What if interest rates were to go back closer to their historical average of around 4, 5, or 6%?

That would mean that we would easily see a doubling of the interest paid annually on the National Debt. That could easily take interest payments up to $700 Billion a year or higher. We are already running annual deficits of over $1 trillion over the past 4 years. If you start adding another $300 billion in interest, then you will never get that number down.

The biggest effect of all of this is that it is debasing the currency. Think of dollars as shares in a Corporation called the United States of America. The more of those dollars that are issued, the less the value of each share, especially when the value of the company isn't increasing.

I can go on and on about this, but what I presented is a lot to ponder. You might think everything is alright, because you have hitched your wagonj to the news media and the politicos. Oh they will tell you how the Gross Domestic Product grew at 3.1% last quarter, but they aren't factoring in inflation (resulting from the debasement of the currency) or the fact that much of that growth is accounted for through government spending paid for by increased debt.

And all the while, they continue on with their games, while kicking the can down the road. There is a reckoning steaming towards us. We're already over the cliff. I believe we are days (if not hours) away from the markets reacting very negatively.

Message to Congressman McHenry -- Get Rid of Boehner! It is time for him to go. He doesn't get it.

Goodbye 2012 - Don't let the door hit ya...

where the good Lord split ya.

2012 wasn't a terrible year, but it was another rut year. Here's to the hope that 2013 will be better, but by the looks of things it isn't going to be better for the country. Oh, it might be better for some individuals, but as a collective it looks like it will be another rut year... an insane year. Doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.

Once again the agenda is being driven by self interests and the brain dead discussion about the Fiscal Cliff. Like I have told you, there will be a deal made and you are going to be worse off because of it. We commoners will pay and the Richie Rich's will continue paying their lawyers and accountants to duck and dodge their responsibilities.

Like I told a person the other day, the Republican's constantly p*** and moan about unions and then they turn around and run their party like a union. Everything is based on seniority and new thoughts and ideas are pushed to the background and the younger people are told to wait their turn as the Bitter Old Men drive us nowhere.

The big question leaving 2012. You took care of your Wall Street buddies and helped them send jobs overseas. You imposed a costly military industrial and security apparatus over us that is stifling the country's ability to grow from a cost/expense aspect. For every job that has been created more have been destroyed and now you can't paper it over any more. Now come the spending cuts and tax increases. Do you think that people are going to willingly crawl in the corner and starve to death when the ultimate result goes down?

Economic Stories of Relevance in Today's World -- December 30, 2012

16 Things About 2013 That Are Really Going To Stink - The Economic Collapse Blog -
Michael Snyder - December 27th, 2012 - The beginning of the year has traditionally been a time of optimism when we all look forward to the exciting things that are going to happen over the next 12 months. Unfortunately, there are a whole bunch of things about 2013 that we already know are going to stink. Taxes are going to go up, good paying jobs will continue to leave the country, small businesses will continue to be destroyed, the number of Americans living in poverty will continue to soar, our infrastructure will continue to decay, global food supplies will likely continue to dwindle and the U.S. national debt will continue to explode. Our politicians continue to pursue the same policies that got us into this mess, and yet they continue to expect things to magically turn around. But that is not the way that things work in the real world. Bad decisions lead to bad outcomes. Instead of realizing that what we are doing is not working, our "leaders" continue to give us more of the same. As a result, there are going to be a lot of things about 2013 that will not be great. Sticking our heads in the sand and pretending that everything will be "okay" somehow is not going to help anyone. We've got to make people understand exactly what is happening and why it is happening if we ever hope to see real changes. The following are 16 things about 2013 that are really going to stink...
#1 Taxes Are Going To Go Up...
#2 The Middle Class Is About To Be Scorched By The Alternative Minimum Tax...
#3 The Economy Will Continue To Get Worse...
#4 Good Paying Jobs Will Continue To Be Shipped Out Of The United States...
#5 Small Businesses Will Continue To Be Destroyed...
#6 Hunger And Poverty Will Continue To Explode To Unprecedented Levels...
#7 The Number Of Americans On Food Stamps Will Continue To Increase...
#8 Millions Of Americans Are About To Lose Their Unemployment Benefits...
#9 Our Infrastructure Will Continue To Rot And Decay...
#10 Many Of Our Major Cities Will Continue To Be Transformed Into Festering Hellholes...
#11 State And Local Governments Will Find Ways To Squeeze Even More Money Out Of Us...
#12 Drug Cartels Will Continue To Easily Cross Our Borders And Terrorize Our Citizens...
#13 Social Decay Will Continue To Accelerate...
#14 Global Food Supplies Will Continue To Dwindle...
#15 Wall Street Will Continue To Resemble A Giant Casino...
#16 The U.S. National Debt Will Cross The 17 Trillion Dollar Mark...


Ron Paul On The Fiscal Cliff: "We Have Passed The Point Of No Return" - Zero Hedge - Tyler Durden - December 29, 2012 -  In a little under three minutes, Ron Paul explains to a somewhat nonplussed CNBC anchor just how ridiculous the charade that is occurring in D.C. actually is. This succinct spin-free clip should be required viewing for each and every asset-manager, talking-head, propagandist, and mom-and-pop who are viewing the last-minute idiocy of the 'fiscal cliff' debacle with some hope that things will be different this time. "We have passed the point of no return where we can actually get our house back in order," Paul begins, adding that "they pretend they are fighting up there, but they really aren't. They are arguing over power, spin, who looks good, who looks bad; all trying to preserve the system where they can spend what they want, take care of their friends and print money when they need it." With social safety nets available to rich and poor, there is no impetus for change and "the country loses," but Paul concludes, the markets are starting to say "there is a limit to this."


Bob Shiller On The 'Housing Recovery': "Highly Uncertain, It's Risky" - Zero Hedge - Tyler Durden - December 28, 2012 - Sometimes, taking a break from the mainstream view of the world is healthy for our sheep-like tendencies to follow the herd. To wit, Robert Shiller can't understand the enthusiasm for the long-term recovery outlook of the housing market. With rentals rising and home-ownership dwindling, Shiller, in this Bloomberg TV clip, questions the positivity noting that the outlook is 'fuzzy' at best; and in fact in the short-term is negative as MoM things have deteriorated modestly (though seasonally). He note that the focus has been on multi-family residences and "if you are sitting in a suburban single-family house - what is your outlook? Highly uncertain - It's Risky!" And in one of the most prescient comments of recent weeks, Shiller admits something that many others should try: "[the outlook] could be up; but I don't see how anyone knows?" adding that another plausible outlook for the next five years is that "housing stays right where it is now," adding that Zillow's 1.3% annual real growth expectation could be too optimistic.


Payback time: Florida homeowners foreclosing on banks - CNN Money - Les Christie - December 26, 2012 -  Since the housing bubble burst in Florida five years ago, more than 400,000 borrowers have had their homes foreclosed on by their lenders. But for some, it's payback time.                   Hundreds of homeowners and condo associations are foreclosing on banks that have failed to pay dues and other expenses on the properties they've repossessed.                     When banks foreclose on a home they become responsible for paying fees to the homeowners association -- both any unpaid fees going back as far as 12 months and all expenses going forward.                     In many cases, however, banks are failing to pay, leaving these associations short on cash, according to Miami-based attorney Ben Solomon.                   But now, homeowners groups are putting liens on the properties until banks pay up and foreclosing on them if they don't.                      Related: American Dream homes: Prices in 9 cities                 So far, Solomon's firm has filed more than 1,100 liens against banks on behalf of homeowners and has pursued 131 foreclosures. In more than 90% of the cases, he said, the banks settle by paying the bills.                      The banks' failure to pay dues has consequences. Other homeowners have to make up the difference, or the homeowners associations may lack the money they need for things like routine maintenance, security, water and garbage collection.                         Don Gonzales owns a townhouse in a condo community on a golf course in Homestead, Fla., where Solomon recently filed suit to foreclose on JPMorgan Chase (JPM, Fortune 500) to recover $20,000 it owed on more than two years of dues and common charges.
"I own two properties and it really ticks me off when the banks don't pay their fair share," he said. "Everybody else has to make it up."

5 fiscal-cliff effects on your wallet - MarketWatch - Kelli B. Grant - December 29, 2012 - As Congress continues working toward a deal that could avoid the fiscal cliff, consumers may want to consider what going over it could mean for their wallets.                     The most talked-about impact, naturally, would be higher tax rates. (This fall, we estimated that taxpayers in the bottom quintile would see their bill increase by $412; the middle class, by $1,984. Read “What a fiscal-cliff plunge would cost you.” ) But experts say the cliff’s broad budget cuts affecting nearly all government agencies would have a trickle-down effect that would hit consumers in less expected ways in 2013 and beyond—some involving price hikes, others decreases. “There is a dizzying variety of things the government pays for,” says Jack Plunkett, chief executive of consulting firm Plunkett Research....       

Cheaper gasoline... Longer airport waits ... Pricier groceries... Bigger retail discounts... Riskier foods and drugs...

Yes, we can fix Social Security (but it won't be pretty) - Life Inc. on Today - Allison Linn, TODAY - December 24, 2012 - ... Experts say there are two ways to fix Social Security, and neither of them are pretty: reduce benefits or increase revenue...                The proposed switch to calculating cost of living increases using the chained Consumer Price Index instead of the current method would result in smaller annual Social Security raises. That’s because that method assumes that people change their spending habits when prices go up.                 Proponents say the switch could save billions and is a more realistic method of how Americans really adjust to rising prices.                  But opponents say the chained Consumer Price Index isn’t a good way to measure the needs of older and disabled Americans, because their expenditures are disproportionately focused on things like health care. A family of four may choose to eat more chicken if beef prices go up, but an elderly person can’t easily choose to spend less on heart medicine, they argue.                      Under the current rules, the maximum taxable earnings for Social Security in 2012 is about $110,000. Some argue that an easy fix would be to simply raise the cap on Social Security taxes to include higher wages.                       Baker, of CEPR, proposes raising the cap to around $190,000, reflecting the growing wealth at the top of the income scale. Raise it higher than that, he said, and wealthy earners will just start finding ways to dodge it.                     But others say that it’s unlikely politicians will propose raising taxes on high earners now, when many expect those taxpayers to already see increases as part of the fiscal cliff negotiations.


U.S. retailers scramble after lackluster holiday sales - Reuters - Nivedita Bhattacharjee and Jessica Wohl - December 26, 2012 -  The 2012 holiday season may have been the worst for retailers since the 2008 financial crisis, with sales growth far below expectations, forcing many to offer massive post-Christmas discounts in hopes of shedding excess inventory.                   While chains like Wal-Mart Stores Inc and Gap Inc are thought to have done well, analysts expect much less from the likes of book seller Barnes & Noble Inc and department store chain J. C. Penney Co Inc.              Shares of retailers dropped sharply on Wednesday, helping drag broader indexes lower, as investors realized they were likely to be disappointed when companies start to report results in a few weeks' time...                    Growth was always expected to slow this season, though an improving employment picture and rising home values had helped mitigate the worst fears. But then Superstorm Sandy hit the East Coast in late October, mild weather blunted sales of winter clothing and rising concern about the "fiscal cliff" became more of a reality, dragging down already-pessimistic forecasts.                    The latest sign of trouble came from MasterCard Advisors Spending Pulse, which reported holiday-related sales rose 0.7 percent from October 28 through December 24, compared with a 2 percent increase last year.                       The preliminary estimate from SpendingPulse was in line with other estimates showing weak growth during the holiday season, when retailers can book about 30 percent of annual sales - and in many cases, half of their profit.





Thrive 2011