Burger King has announced the purchase of Canadian donut chain, "Tim Horton's", and move part of their corporate headquarters to Onatrio. The move will save Burger King millions of tax dollars, since the Canadian corporate tax rate is 15%. Predicatably, the left went apoplectic when they heard the news. Illinois Senator Dick Durbin denounced the move and vowed to close the loophole that has become known as "corporate inversion." President Obama declared as ""unpatriotic" any US business that moves its headquarters to another country as a tax dodge. So is the King really a joker, or an ace when it comes to patriotism and business strategy?
I wrote in a previous blog that the US corporate tax rate of 35% is the highest in the world, which means US companies are at a decided disadvantage when competing in the world market. Last year, Burger King paid a rate of 27%. Compare that to the Canadian rate of 15%, and its clear why the King booked. Corporations don't become and remain successful by being stupid. When the rest of us ordinary folks do our taxes every year, do we not seek out and utilize every legal tax advantage we can find? Only a total idiot would refuse to do so. Afterall, our incomes and corporate revenues are not the property of the government.
When the likes of Obama and Durbin accuse companies of being "unpatriotic," they portray this legal tax loophole as a way to steal money from working people, and predict economic disaster. The only "whoppers" being cooked up come from the Dems, who fear the loss of their welfare state financing.
Let's leave off the pickles and mustard and take a bite of the real numbers. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that over the next 10 years, US corporations will pay 4.5 trillion dollars in taxes. The CBO also estimates that losses from "corporate inversion" will amount to a microscopic 0.5% of those tax revenues over the next decade. Hardly a financial apocalypse.
Don't blame Burger King. The King is just doing what any rational person would do: He is hiding his money from the muggers.
Friday, August 29, 2014
Thursday, August 21, 2014
WEIRD NUMBERS GAME #9
1. Walt Disney World is the second largest purchaser of explosives after the Department Of Defense.
2. Wages are down 23% since Obama took office.
3.Over 600,000 people a year visit Graceland, making it the second most visited private home after the White House.
4. 84% of Americans at one time or another buy organic food.
5. Most recent stats shop that 109,631,000 Americans receive some sort of welfare.
6. A study has found that the Democrat Party pays African American campaign workers 1/3 less than white campaign workers.
7. A study of three and a half million people determined that married people had a 5% less risk of cardiovascular disease than single people.
8. 1,472,000 Americans have stopped looking for work since Obama became president.
9. 194,871 miles of toilet paper are used annually at Walt Disney World.
2. Wages are down 23% since Obama took office.
3.Over 600,000 people a year visit Graceland, making it the second most visited private home after the White House.
4. 84% of Americans at one time or another buy organic food.
5. Most recent stats shop that 109,631,000 Americans receive some sort of welfare.
6. A study has found that the Democrat Party pays African American campaign workers 1/3 less than white campaign workers.
7. A study of three and a half million people determined that married people had a 5% less risk of cardiovascular disease than single people.
8. 1,472,000 Americans have stopped looking for work since Obama became president.
9. 194,871 miles of toilet paper are used annually at Walt Disney World.
Wednesday, August 20, 2014
DUMB AND EVEN DUMBER
Willie Nelson and Neil Young have announced that on Sept. 27 they will hold a "Harvest Hope" concert in Neligh, Nebraska. The purpose of the concert is to raise money and protest the Keystone XL pipeline that would run through tribal land in the state of Nebraska.
Down through the years, Willie and Neil have portrayed themselves as champions of the (take your pick) "underdog", the "little guys", the "downtrodden", "blue collar/working class" types. Apparently all their years of smoking ganja has fogged their thought processes. They consider the pipeline and oil companies to be the enemy. Below are 4 reasons why their anti-corporate, big government thinking is skewered:
1. Funneling more oil into the US will increase the supply, and when supplies are increased, gas prices stabalize and generally go down. That's good for the little guy.
2. Willie and Neil are strong supporters of American workers, and the idea of "buy American." The pipeline will mean more oil will come from America, and less from the Middle-east and Russia. That's good for the little guy.
3. Building the pipeline will create more jobs. That's good for the little guy.
4. The bulk of these new jobs will be good to high paying jobs, rather than minimum wage. That's good for the little guy.
5.Finally, the concern over "tribal lands" is a remnant of superstitious and mythical thinking. Tribalism is the crudest,most rudimentary and destructive form of social organization, and has no place in the 21st century. Violence in Africa, the Congo, and the religious wars in the Middle-east are primary examples of tribalism and the "my tribe is better than your tribe" mentality. Just look at the bloodshed in Iraq betwen the Sunnis and Sheeites.
So, Willie and Neil, if you really want to help the downtrodden, snuff out the blunts, discard your 19th century socialist/collectivst thinking, and help put more money and self-respect into the hands of working men and women,.
Down through the years, Willie and Neil have portrayed themselves as champions of the (take your pick) "underdog", the "little guys", the "downtrodden", "blue collar/working class" types. Apparently all their years of smoking ganja has fogged their thought processes. They consider the pipeline and oil companies to be the enemy. Below are 4 reasons why their anti-corporate, big government thinking is skewered:
1. Funneling more oil into the US will increase the supply, and when supplies are increased, gas prices stabalize and generally go down. That's good for the little guy.
2. Willie and Neil are strong supporters of American workers, and the idea of "buy American." The pipeline will mean more oil will come from America, and less from the Middle-east and Russia. That's good for the little guy.
3. Building the pipeline will create more jobs. That's good for the little guy.
4. The bulk of these new jobs will be good to high paying jobs, rather than minimum wage. That's good for the little guy.
5.Finally, the concern over "tribal lands" is a remnant of superstitious and mythical thinking. Tribalism is the crudest,most rudimentary and destructive form of social organization, and has no place in the 21st century. Violence in Africa, the Congo, and the religious wars in the Middle-east are primary examples of tribalism and the "my tribe is better than your tribe" mentality. Just look at the bloodshed in Iraq betwen the Sunnis and Sheeites.
So, Willie and Neil, if you really want to help the downtrodden, snuff out the blunts, discard your 19th century socialist/collectivst thinking, and help put more money and self-respect into the hands of working men and women,.
Thursday, August 7, 2014
A CONSPIRACY OF CONSPIRATORS
We live in the age of the conspiracy theory. If one is to believe conspiracy advocates, every major event that has happened is the result of a conspiracy between unseen and unnamed groups or individuals. Here are a few examples: The 1929 stock market crash and the Great Depression; the JFK assassination; the Bobby Kennedy assassination; the moon landing; 9-11; the Iraq invasion; and the newest one--Ebola epidemic. And who is involved in these conspiracies? Depending on which conspiracy advocate you ask, it is the Federal Government, a cabal of international bankers; various religious groups;multi-national corporations, or a combination of these groups.
If one is to believe these theories, no event simply happens; it is the result of unseen forces manipulating and pulling strings to bring these events into play.For example, it wasn't some unhinged schmuck named Oswald who killed Kennedy It was (take your pick) the CIA, LBJ, the mafia, Fidel Castro, those international bankers, or a combination thereof. Afterall, believing the killer was some nondescript malcontent like Oswald is nowhere near as exciting, interesting and mysterious as believing in a sinister behind-the-scenes, multi-player conspiracy plot.
Adjunct professor, author and publisher of Skeptic Magazine, Michael Shermer, wrote in his book, THE BELIEVING BRAIN, "From sensory data flowing through the senses, the brain naturally begins to look for and find patterns, and then infuses those patterns with meaning. Our brains evolved to connect the dots of our world into meaningful patterns that explain why things happen. Those patterns become beliefs, and those beliefs shape our understanding of reality. Once beliefs are formed, the brain begins to look for and find confirmatory evidence in support of those beliefs."
That isn't to say there aren't true conspiracies, but to blame every major historical event on secretive organizations and actors stretches the limits of credulity. To show how misguided this can be, conspirscy theorists seem to have forgotten the primary conspirator behind all world trajedies: the devil.
And if you believe that theory, I have some shares in a bank cabal I'd like to sell you.
If one is to believe these theories, no event simply happens; it is the result of unseen forces manipulating and pulling strings to bring these events into play.For example, it wasn't some unhinged schmuck named Oswald who killed Kennedy It was (take your pick) the CIA, LBJ, the mafia, Fidel Castro, those international bankers, or a combination thereof. Afterall, believing the killer was some nondescript malcontent like Oswald is nowhere near as exciting, interesting and mysterious as believing in a sinister behind-the-scenes, multi-player conspiracy plot.
Adjunct professor, author and publisher of Skeptic Magazine, Michael Shermer, wrote in his book, THE BELIEVING BRAIN, "From sensory data flowing through the senses, the brain naturally begins to look for and find patterns, and then infuses those patterns with meaning. Our brains evolved to connect the dots of our world into meaningful patterns that explain why things happen. Those patterns become beliefs, and those beliefs shape our understanding of reality. Once beliefs are formed, the brain begins to look for and find confirmatory evidence in support of those beliefs."
That isn't to say there aren't true conspiracies, but to blame every major historical event on secretive organizations and actors stretches the limits of credulity. To show how misguided this can be, conspirscy theorists seem to have forgotten the primary conspirator behind all world trajedies: the devil.
And if you believe that theory, I have some shares in a bank cabal I'd like to sell you.
Tuesday, August 5, 2014
FOUR MORE REASONS TO BE SKEPTICAL OF GLOBAL WARMING
1. Frequency of 90% days has been plummeting for 80 years, and so far, 2014 is lowest of all.
2. 28,504 record low temperatures were set in 2013 in the US, while only 13,205 record high temperatures were set.
3. US Historical Climatology Network data shows that winter temperatures have been in a cooling trend since 1930.
4. After Hurricane Katrina, climatologists predicted swarms of killer hurricanes would devastate the gulf states, yet Florida has now gone over 3100 days without a hurricane.
2. 28,504 record low temperatures were set in 2013 in the US, while only 13,205 record high temperatures were set.
3. US Historical Climatology Network data shows that winter temperatures have been in a cooling trend since 1930.
4. After Hurricane Katrina, climatologists predicted swarms of killer hurricanes would devastate the gulf states, yet Florida has now gone over 3100 days without a hurricane.
Friday, August 1, 2014
DUH! NO SHIT, SHERLOCK!
Occassionally we will read or hear about researchers who have spent millions of dollars (usually taxpayers') researching various subjects and coming to conclusions any 10 year old could have figured out, and for a hell of a lot less money. Here are a few of these lamebrained headlines:
Healthy lifestyle adds years to your life.
Study shows that doing something is better than doing nothing for most people.
Fistbumps are less contagious than handshakes.
A CDC study revealed that women who have more non-marital sexual partners are less likely to have a stable marriage.
People who are afraid of losing money invest more conservatively in the stockmarket.
Duh! No shit, Sherlock!
Healthy lifestyle adds years to your life.
Study shows that doing something is better than doing nothing for most people.
Fistbumps are less contagious than handshakes.
A CDC study revealed that women who have more non-marital sexual partners are less likely to have a stable marriage.
People who are afraid of losing money invest more conservatively in the stockmarket.
Duh! No shit, Sherlock!
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