Here's a two-minute drill in soak-the-rich economics:
Maryland couldn't balance its budget last year, so the state tried to close the shortfall by fleecing the wealthy. Politicians in Annapolis created a millionaire tax bracket, raising the top marginal income-tax rate to 6.25%. And because cities such as Baltimore and Bethesda also impose income taxes, the state-local tax rate can go as high as 9.45%. Governor Martin O'Malley, a dedicated class warrior, declared that these richest 0.3% of filers were "willing and able to pay their fair share." The Baltimore Sun predicted the rich would "grin and bear it."
One year later, nobody's grinning. One-third of the millionaires have disappeared from Maryland tax rolls. In 2008 roughly 3,000 million-dollar income tax returns were filed by the end of April. This year there were 2,000, which the state comptroller's office concedes is a "substantial decline." On those missing returns, the government collects 6.25% of nothing. Instead of the state coffers gaining the extra $106 million the politicians predicted, millionaires paid $100 million less in taxes than they did last year -- even at higher rates.
read the rest > http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124329282377252471.html
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Saturday, May 23, 2009
An in-depth guide to Champagne
For as much as Champagne is beloved, there's a gaping void in advice about it once you move beyond the same few obvious names.
Part of this is intentional: Champagne more than most places is dominated by its largest brands (in turn run by large corporations with more than bubbles on their minds), and despite the endless enthusiasm of we writer types for many smaller houses, most have neither the money nor werewithal to compete. So Champagne remains wrapped in a well-woven mystique.
Read the rest > http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/wine/detail?blogid=54&entry_id=40099
Part of this is intentional: Champagne more than most places is dominated by its largest brands (in turn run by large corporations with more than bubbles on their minds), and despite the endless enthusiasm of we writer types for many smaller houses, most have neither the money nor werewithal to compete. So Champagne remains wrapped in a well-woven mystique.
Read the rest > http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/wine/detail?blogid=54&entry_id=40099
Monday, May 18, 2009
FACT CHECK: Are US Students Really That Bad?
America's moms and dads are getting a good scolding: Your kids are lagging behind students all around the world.
The White House says so, with concern bordering on alarm. So do institutions such as the Gates Foundation, citing performance tests, graduation rates and other benchmarks.
But don't measure for dunce caps just yet.
While they're not in first place, U.S. students generally hold their own on international tests. They spend more time in school than the Obama administration would have you believe. And their college graduation rates stack up better than reported.
That is not to say the critics are totally wet, that the U.S. can't do better.
read the rest > http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2009/05/18/us/politics/AP-US-Education-Trash-Talk.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1
The White House says so, with concern bordering on alarm. So do institutions such as the Gates Foundation, citing performance tests, graduation rates and other benchmarks.
But don't measure for dunce caps just yet.
While they're not in first place, U.S. students generally hold their own on international tests. They spend more time in school than the Obama administration would have you believe. And their college graduation rates stack up better than reported.
That is not to say the critics are totally wet, that the U.S. can't do better.
read the rest > http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2009/05/18/us/politics/AP-US-Education-Trash-Talk.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1
Sunday, May 17, 2009
From Frisée to Finance, It Has to Be Perfect
Known for his sumptuous menus and seamless service, Mr. Boulud — the name, brain and palate behind one of the country’s gold-plated dining empires — has already taken a bow for just about every round of applause that the industry has to offer. With the Dinex Group, a management company he co-founded, he and a team of managers and accountants oversee an operation with more than 900 employees in markets as far-flung as Beijing and Vancouver.
They have not misfired yet, but Mr. Boulud and his cadre might be trying their trickiest maneuver to date, creating DBGB at a moment that is smiling on fast food and little else. In this environment, you could forgive the man for cutting a few corners, or scaling back his ambitions.
read the rest > http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/17/business/17boulud.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all
They have not misfired yet, but Mr. Boulud and his cadre might be trying their trickiest maneuver to date, creating DBGB at a moment that is smiling on fast food and little else. In this environment, you could forgive the man for cutting a few corners, or scaling back his ambitions.
read the rest > http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/17/business/17boulud.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all
Friday, May 15, 2009
A Cloud In Every Garage
In light of all of the historical comparisons about the current economic situation and its proposed fixes, I'd like to offer my own perspective based on technology trends that have the potential to re-ignite growth for decades. My analogy comes from what at first sounds like an unlikely source: the automobile industry.
In the early 1900s, Ford ( F - news - people ) mastered the art of assembly line manufacturing, revolutionizing production techniques across industries, from consumer goods to large-scale machinery. What was once the privilege of the upper class became within reach of the average citizen.
The efficiencies gained through mass production not only put a car in every garage, but also catalyzed consumer culture, reset the baseline standard of living and reshaped everything from how and where we worked, to how and where we lived.
The introduction of the assembly line began moving our economy away from an inefficient, build-to-order model to scale manufacturing. Over the last century, the automotive industry dramatically refined the art. Today, companies including BMW run highly automated factories that seamlessly integrate customers' orders with parts suppliers and dealerships. This configure-to-order model allows for customization not available in the Model-T era, while preserving and enhancing the efficiencies gained by the assembly line.
The early 21st century is like the early 20th century in that we are at the beginning of a new economic paradigm. This time, however, the engine of growth will not be manufacturing, but information.
The equivalent of the assembly line is industry standard hardware, the components used to build the backbone of the largest Internet companies on the planet. Standardized hardware has unshackled the computing power once trapped in mainframe computers, democratizing it so that all can share. More recently, software has been developed that virtualizes, automates and differentiates this hardware to enable a configure-to-order model for the IT industry.
Even better: The "cloud" can deliver these capabilities and offer a new level of customization and efficiency at affordable prices and on a massive scale.
There's been a great deal of hype in the industry about cloud computing. To say it simply, the cloud is the next stage in the evolution of the Internet. Its impact, however, will be sweeping, fundamentally changing the way we connect with each other and with information.
The cloud is making once-expensive information technology available to a mass market through a pay-per-use model. This promises to increase productivity and drive growth. Small and medium-sized businesses can leverage data to drive efficiencies and improve products and services. Large companies can shift applications to the cloud and so spend their resources on the technology that gives them a competitive advantage.
More importantly, with this underlying infrastructure in place, both large and small companies can use technology to expand or invent services, open up markets and address some of the biggest challenges we face as a global society. For individuals, this promises services that are more intuitive, personalized and relevant in our daily lives. Here's one example:
HP has a cloud service, called MagCloud, that makes it possible for anyone to publish a professional-quality magazine and print, promote, sell and deliver it on demand. Printing on demand means no large press runs, no pre-publication expense, no waste.
By eliminating substantial pieces of the physical supply chain, we can offer professional-quality print to a mass audience while reducing the impact on the environment. The same on-demand technology can be extended to book publishing and allow individuals to print customized books, mixing their own content with that of professionals.
Looking ahead, we envision a rich ecosystem of printing services--connecting businesses to businesses and businesses to individuals--that delivers information where, when and how it's needed.
This is truly just the beginning. The cloud makes it possible to deliver everything as a service--from business processes to personal interactions--and to create altogether new business models across industries.
In my view, the ability to facilitate innovation and entrepreneurship in this new model is one of the most promising ways to ignite the next wave of economic growth. We can no more see the full impact of the cloud than Henry Ford foresaw the impact of his desire to produce more cars in less time.
In the early 1900s, Ford ( F - news - people ) mastered the art of assembly line manufacturing, revolutionizing production techniques across industries, from consumer goods to large-scale machinery. What was once the privilege of the upper class became within reach of the average citizen.
The efficiencies gained through mass production not only put a car in every garage, but also catalyzed consumer culture, reset the baseline standard of living and reshaped everything from how and where we worked, to how and where we lived.
The introduction of the assembly line began moving our economy away from an inefficient, build-to-order model to scale manufacturing. Over the last century, the automotive industry dramatically refined the art. Today, companies including BMW run highly automated factories that seamlessly integrate customers' orders with parts suppliers and dealerships. This configure-to-order model allows for customization not available in the Model-T era, while preserving and enhancing the efficiencies gained by the assembly line.
The early 21st century is like the early 20th century in that we are at the beginning of a new economic paradigm. This time, however, the engine of growth will not be manufacturing, but information.
The equivalent of the assembly line is industry standard hardware, the components used to build the backbone of the largest Internet companies on the planet. Standardized hardware has unshackled the computing power once trapped in mainframe computers, democratizing it so that all can share. More recently, software has been developed that virtualizes, automates and differentiates this hardware to enable a configure-to-order model for the IT industry.
Even better: The "cloud" can deliver these capabilities and offer a new level of customization and efficiency at affordable prices and on a massive scale.
There's been a great deal of hype in the industry about cloud computing. To say it simply, the cloud is the next stage in the evolution of the Internet. Its impact, however, will be sweeping, fundamentally changing the way we connect with each other and with information.
The cloud is making once-expensive information technology available to a mass market through a pay-per-use model. This promises to increase productivity and drive growth. Small and medium-sized businesses can leverage data to drive efficiencies and improve products and services. Large companies can shift applications to the cloud and so spend their resources on the technology that gives them a competitive advantage.
More importantly, with this underlying infrastructure in place, both large and small companies can use technology to expand or invent services, open up markets and address some of the biggest challenges we face as a global society. For individuals, this promises services that are more intuitive, personalized and relevant in our daily lives. Here's one example:
HP has a cloud service, called MagCloud, that makes it possible for anyone to publish a professional-quality magazine and print, promote, sell and deliver it on demand. Printing on demand means no large press runs, no pre-publication expense, no waste.
By eliminating substantial pieces of the physical supply chain, we can offer professional-quality print to a mass audience while reducing the impact on the environment. The same on-demand technology can be extended to book publishing and allow individuals to print customized books, mixing their own content with that of professionals.
Looking ahead, we envision a rich ecosystem of printing services--connecting businesses to businesses and businesses to individuals--that delivers information where, when and how it's needed.
This is truly just the beginning. The cloud makes it possible to deliver everything as a service--from business processes to personal interactions--and to create altogether new business models across industries.
In my view, the ability to facilitate innovation and entrepreneurship in this new model is one of the most promising ways to ignite the next wave of economic growth. We can no more see the full impact of the cloud than Henry Ford foresaw the impact of his desire to produce more cars in less time.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Vitamins Found to Curb Exercise Benefits
If you exercise to improve your metabolism and prevent diabetes, you may want to avoid antioxidants like vitamins C and E.
That is the message of a surprising new look at the body’s reaction to exercise, reported on Monday by researchers in Germany and Boston.
Exercise is known to have many beneficial effects on health, including on the body’s sensitivity to insulin. “Get more exercise” is often among the first recommendations given by doctors to people at risk of diabetes.
But exercise makes the muscle cells metabolize glucose, by combining its carbon atoms with oxygen and extracting the energy that is released. In the process, some highly reactive oxygen molecules escape and make chemical attacks on anything in sight.
read the rest> http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/12/health/research/12exer.html?_r=1&em=&pagewanted=print
That is the message of a surprising new look at the body’s reaction to exercise, reported on Monday by researchers in Germany and Boston.
Exercise is known to have many beneficial effects on health, including on the body’s sensitivity to insulin. “Get more exercise” is often among the first recommendations given by doctors to people at risk of diabetes.
But exercise makes the muscle cells metabolize glucose, by combining its carbon atoms with oxygen and extracting the energy that is released. In the process, some highly reactive oxygen molecules escape and make chemical attacks on anything in sight.
read the rest> http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/12/health/research/12exer.html?_r=1&em=&pagewanted=print
Monday, May 11, 2009
Guy Sues Burger King For Forgetting to Hold The Pickles, Onions & Tomatoes
A little over two years ago, a Virginia man ordered a a drink and two sandwiches from Burger King. He then proceeded to take a bite and swallow— before he realized that his "specific request for the omission of onions, pickles and tomatoes had not been complied with." The result? A lawsuit for $100,000 filed in the Virginia Beach Circuit Court.
The Burger King customer says that the inclusion of said condiments was "tantamount to negligence," and that he suffered a severe allergic reaction to the food that caused him to miss work while the medical bills piled up.
The world has to many dolts in the world!!!!
read the rest> http://consumerist.com/5249753/guy-sues-burger-king-for-forgetting-to-hold-the-pickles-onions--tomatoes?skyline=true&s=x
The Burger King customer says that the inclusion of said condiments was "tantamount to negligence," and that he suffered a severe allergic reaction to the food that caused him to miss work while the medical bills piled up.
The world has to many dolts in the world!!!!
read the rest> http://consumerist.com/5249753/guy-sues-burger-king-for-forgetting-to-hold-the-pickles-onions--tomatoes?skyline=true&s=x
Study: More Women Named to Boards
Are more women moving into corporate boardrooms?
At least one study says yes. In the first three months of the year, 38% of new directors – 38 of 101 appointments – were women, according to data compiled by quarterly journal Directors & Boards. That's the highest number and percentage since the publication began counting in 1994.
Women's share of board appointments has been climbing for the past two years and spiked in the most recent quarter, says James Kristie, editor of Directors & Boards. For all of 2007 and 2008, it averaged about 25%; in 2006 it was 18.5%.
Read the rest >http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124208439032108595.html
At least one study says yes. In the first three months of the year, 38% of new directors – 38 of 101 appointments – were women, according to data compiled by quarterly journal Directors & Boards. That's the highest number and percentage since the publication began counting in 1994.
Women's share of board appointments has been climbing for the past two years and spiked in the most recent quarter, says James Kristie, editor of Directors & Boards. For all of 2007 and 2008, it averaged about 25%; in 2006 it was 18.5%.
Read the rest >http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124208439032108595.html
Sunday, May 10, 2009
All You Need to Know to Twitter
Twittermania has only begun. In the days after Oprah’s show, Twitter’s traffic growth is accelerating. The ratings service HitWise now ranks twitter.com as America’s No. 38 Web site. It’s about to rocket past CNN and Wells Fargo.
Because it’s kept simple, most users figure out Twitter quickly. If you began tweeting the day of Oprah’s show, it’s a safe bet you already know how to DM a private message to a friend, and how to R.T. a joke worth retweeting. You search for #swineflu every few hours, and know it’s called a hashtag. You’ve learned how to follow Demi Moore and block online marketers.
Assuming you’ve got these basics down, there are many less obvious tips and tweaks to get more from tweeting. They all can be Googled, but the online version of this article has the links.
read the rest here > http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/07/technology/personaltech/07basics.html?em
Because it’s kept simple, most users figure out Twitter quickly. If you began tweeting the day of Oprah’s show, it’s a safe bet you already know how to DM a private message to a friend, and how to R.T. a joke worth retweeting. You search for #swineflu every few hours, and know it’s called a hashtag. You’ve learned how to follow Demi Moore and block online marketers.
Assuming you’ve got these basics down, there are many less obvious tips and tweaks to get more from tweeting. They all can be Googled, but the online version of this article has the links.
read the rest here > http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/07/technology/personaltech/07basics.html?em
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
8 NEW RULES FOR ORDERING WINE
NOTHING strikes fear in the hearts of diners like the wine list. It's filled with foreign words, vexing varietals and eye-popping prices. But there's never been a better time to up your wine game now that restaurants are reducing menu markups, eliminating corkage fees, pouring it from beer kegs (it's cheaper and eco-friendly!) and --...
read the rest here> http://www.nypost.com/seven/05062009/entertainment/food/8_new_rules_for_ordering_wine_167893.htm
read the rest here> http://www.nypost.com/seven/05062009/entertainment/food/8_new_rules_for_ordering_wine_167893.htm
Turkey Burgers Don’t Count
ONE by one they approached the counter at Zaitzeff, a storefront in New York’s financial district, and repeated the words like a mantra. Half-pound sirloin burger. Bacon. Cheddar.
None of the seven men, still in neckties from the workday, dared order a turkey burger ($8.50 on the chalkboard menu). Nobody got the sliders ($12.50 for three). Not one request for Kobe ($9.75 for a quarter-pounder, $15.50 for a half).
“If anybody didn’t order a half,” Brett Weiss told the beefy guy taking it all down on a restaurant pad, “make them a half-pound anyway.”
Mr. Weiss, 33, operations manager for a software company, is the founder and de facto leader of the Burger of the Month Club, or BOTM (which he and his friends pronounce “bottom”). One Monday a month for the last four years, they have sampled a burger — bacon-cheddar whenever available — at a different New York restaurant.
They do not just eat the burgers, they rank them, compiling the averages on a Web site, burgerrankings.com, and competing through the year to see whose restaurant choice will wind up as the best-loved burger (winner gets ... nothing).
Read the rest here>http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/06/dining/06burg.html?_r=1
None of the seven men, still in neckties from the workday, dared order a turkey burger ($8.50 on the chalkboard menu). Nobody got the sliders ($12.50 for three). Not one request for Kobe ($9.75 for a quarter-pounder, $15.50 for a half).
“If anybody didn’t order a half,” Brett Weiss told the beefy guy taking it all down on a restaurant pad, “make them a half-pound anyway.”
Mr. Weiss, 33, operations manager for a software company, is the founder and de facto leader of the Burger of the Month Club, or BOTM (which he and his friends pronounce “bottom”). One Monday a month for the last four years, they have sampled a burger — bacon-cheddar whenever available — at a different New York restaurant.
They do not just eat the burgers, they rank them, compiling the averages on a Web site, burgerrankings.com, and competing through the year to see whose restaurant choice will wind up as the best-loved burger (winner gets ... nothing).
Read the rest here>http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/06/dining/06burg.html?_r=1
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
The Hottest Role in Bollywood: Member of Parliament
PATNA, India -- On Thursday, Indian voters in Patna, capital of the unruly state of Bihar, will face a stark choice for the national Parliament: Will it be "Shotgun" or "Shaker"?
The two aren't local toughs. They're Bollywood stars. Shekhar "Shaker" Suman, an actor and TV talk-show host who models himself on Jay Leno, is running for the Indian National Congress, the party that now runs the ruling coalition. His rival from the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party is Shatrughan "Shotgun" Sinha, a movie star and a judge on one of the country's most-watched TV talent shows.
The two men are part of a surge of Indian celebrities throwing their hats in the ring this year. Bollywood actors turned politicians have been around almost as long as Indian democracy. But this year, in a race with hundreds of competitors, parties are relying more on celebrity power than ever before, with at least a dozen movie stars and entertainers in the mix.
read the rest > http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124156460089789341.html
The two aren't local toughs. They're Bollywood stars. Shekhar "Shaker" Suman, an actor and TV talk-show host who models himself on Jay Leno, is running for the Indian National Congress, the party that now runs the ruling coalition. His rival from the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party is Shatrughan "Shotgun" Sinha, a movie star and a judge on one of the country's most-watched TV talent shows.
The two men are part of a surge of Indian celebrities throwing their hats in the ring this year. Bollywood actors turned politicians have been around almost as long as Indian democracy. But this year, in a race with hundreds of competitors, parties are relying more on celebrity power than ever before, with at least a dozen movie stars and entertainers in the mix.
read the rest > http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124156460089789341.html
Monday, May 4, 2009
A Walk in Calcutta - compelling read
ON a rainy day in the late 17th century, an enterprising agent of the British East India Company named Job Charnock sailed along the Hooghly River, a tributary of the Ganges that flows from high in the Himalayas into the Bay of Bengal, and pitched a tent on its swampy banks. The company bought three riverside villages. Soon they would become a port — flowing with opium, muslin and jute — and then, as the capital of British India until 1912, draw conquerors, dreamers and hungry folk from all over the world.
Calcutta, India’s first modern city, was born.
read rest here> http://travel.nytimes.com/2009/05/03/travel/03calcutta.html?8dpc
Calcutta, India’s first modern city, was born.
read rest here> http://travel.nytimes.com/2009/05/03/travel/03calcutta.html?8dpc
Pending U.S. Home Resales, Construction Spending Climb in Sign of Recovery
This is great news!!!!
May 4 (Bloomberg) -- Pending sales of U.S. existing homes posted their first back-to-back gain in almost a year in March and construction spending ended a six-month slide, spurring a rally in stocks and sell-off in Treasuries. The number of Americans signing contracts to buy previously owned homes jumped 3.2 percent after a 2 percent gain in February, the National Association of Realtors said today in Washington.
Construction unexpectedly rose 0.3 percent as gains in commercial and government projects overshadowed a continued drop in homebuilding, Commerce Department data showed. Benchmark stock indexes climbed to levels unseen since January, and Treasuries fell for a fifth day, after the reports underscored that the worst of the recession is past.
Shares of builders including Hovnanian Enterprises Inc., Lennar Corp. and Pulte Homes Inc. rallied on optimism the four-year housing slump will end this year. “People are worrying a bit less about a depression and starting to see signs of recovery,” said James O’Sullivan, a senior economist at UBS Securities LLC in Stamford, Connecticut.
May 4 (Bloomberg) -- Pending sales of U.S. existing homes posted their first back-to-back gain in almost a year in March and construction spending ended a six-month slide, spurring a rally in stocks and sell-off in Treasuries. The number of Americans signing contracts to buy previously owned homes jumped 3.2 percent after a 2 percent gain in February, the National Association of Realtors said today in Washington.
Construction unexpectedly rose 0.3 percent as gains in commercial and government projects overshadowed a continued drop in homebuilding, Commerce Department data showed. Benchmark stock indexes climbed to levels unseen since January, and Treasuries fell for a fifth day, after the reports underscored that the worst of the recession is past.
Shares of builders including Hovnanian Enterprises Inc., Lennar Corp. and Pulte Homes Inc. rallied on optimism the four-year housing slump will end this year. “People are worrying a bit less about a depression and starting to see signs of recovery,” said James O’Sullivan, a senior economist at UBS Securities LLC in Stamford, Connecticut.
The Big Bored: NYSE Traders Look for Diversions as Life Slows on Floor
On Thursday by 10:30 a.m., trading had been under way for an hour on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Down a stone stairwell, half a dozen traders sat in a dark room, slumped in black office chairs watching a movie.
Officially a members' lounge, the "Movie Room" has screened hundreds of DVDs on a TV set during trading hours, traders say. "Rambo," "Star Wars" and "Wall Street" are among the favorites.
As the financial markets continue their wildest ride in decades, many once-frantic floor traders find themselves all dressed up in mesh-backed jackets with less work to do. Some say they're flat-out bored.
Read here> http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124139512869981763.html
Officially a members' lounge, the "Movie Room" has screened hundreds of DVDs on a TV set during trading hours, traders say. "Rambo," "Star Wars" and "Wall Street" are among the favorites.
As the financial markets continue their wildest ride in decades, many once-frantic floor traders find themselves all dressed up in mesh-backed jackets with less work to do. Some say they're flat-out bored.
Read here> http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124139512869981763.html
A Way to Modernize Health Records
At Midland Memorial Hospital in Texas, nurse William Winslett used to spend hours deciphering physician's scribbled notes, filling out forms and retrieving misplaced patient charts. Worst of all was the pneumatic tube system used to shoot orders and other documents between floors -- or, at least, that was the idea.
"Sometimes the tube system was down or got stuck," recalls Mr. Winslett. As for patient charts, "sometimes we couldn't find them at all."
read here > http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124104350516570503.html
"Sometimes the tube system was down or got stuck," recalls Mr. Winslett. As for patient charts, "sometimes we couldn't find them at all."
read here > http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124104350516570503.html
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