The best economic indicators

The best economic indicators

The number of days in a week  the van of my neighbor is in his driveway.

The number of days the usual perfect used car that my neighbor put on sale for $2.000 stays in the his driveway.

The number of days the foreclosure for sale signs in my neighborhood stay in the yard.

Pushing for raising taxes and trying to avoid tax increase

At the Democratic National Convention, Costco
 co-founder and former CEO Jim Sinegal provided
 his endorsement of President Obama.

He also  pushed for raising
the top marginal rates in the federal income tax code.


Months later Jim Sinegal and the rest of the Costco
 board voted to give themselves a
special dividend to avoid Mr. Obama's looming
 tax increase.

Create theories out of practice through a trial and error proces

Create theories out of practice through  a trial and error process.
Create and destroy in order to grab  opportunities.
If you want to get something you must take risk.

To Whom Does The U.S. Government Owe Money?

The Biggest Holders of US Government Debt



1. Social Security Trust Funds

U.S. debt holdings: $2.67 trillion


2. U.S. Federal Reserve

U.S. debt holdings: $1.659 trillion

3. China

U.S. debt holdings: $1.169 trillion


4. Savings Bonds & Other Investors

U.S. debt holdings $1.102 trillion

With the most recent numbers from December
 2011, this extremely diverse group includes
individuals, government-sponsored enterprises,
brokers and dealers, bank personal trusts, estates,
savings bonds, corporate and non-corporate businesses
 for a total of $1.102 trillion.


5. Japan

U.S. debt holdings: $1.083 trillion

6. Pension Funds

U.S. debt holdings: $903.4 billion


7. Mutual Funds

U.S. debt holdings: $797.9 billion

 Including money
 market funds, mutual funds and closed-end funds,
this group of investment funds manages approximately
 $797.9 billion of U.S.



8. State and Local Governments

U.S. debt holdings: $444.6 billion



9. Medicare Trust Funds

U.S. debt holdings: $324.57 billion

The trust funds supplying capital to Medicare -
the Hospital Insurance Trust Fund and the Supplementary
 Medical Insurance Trust Fund - hold approximately
$324.57 billion in U.S. Government debt, according
to the Treasury. The Hospital Insurance Trust Fund
draws revenue mostly from payroll taxes and pays for
 Medicare Part A benefits, including inpatient

10. Depository Institutions

U.S. debt holdings: $286.3 billion

This group includes commercial banks,
savings banks and credit unions and in
2011 holdings nearly tripled from the 2008
low of $105 billion.

European banks  hold some €1.6 trillion
 ($2.1 trillion) in sovereign bonds.




11. Oil Exporters

U.S. debt holdings: $254.5 billion
Ecuador, Venezuela, Indonesia, Bahrain, Iran,
Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United
Arab Emirates, Algeria, Gabon, Libya, and Nigeria.
The group combines for a total of $254.5 billion,



12. Insurance Companies

U.S. debt holdings: $253.7 billion

According to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors,
 insurance companies hold $253.7 billion in Treasury
securities. This group includes property-casualty
 and life insurance firms.



13. Brazil

U.S. debt holdings: $237.4 billion

14
Caribbean Banking Centers

U.S. debt holdings: $224.8 billion
15
Taiwan

U.S. debt holdings: $184.4 billion
16
Russia's $146.7 billion and

17
Hong Kong’s $138.8 billion.

2671
1659
1169
1102
1083
903
798
445
324
286
254
254
237
225
184
146
139
TOTAL: 11879


 As of 15 November 2012, debt held by the
public was approximately $11.45 trillion
or about 72% of GDP. Intra-governmental
holdings stood at $4.83 trillion, giving
a combined total public debt of $16.28 trillion

Walmart applicants for job

Walmart has 1.3 million  associates and it had five million applicants for jobs last year and 20% of those applicants had previously worked for the company.

 Walmart's average sale Associate makes $8.81 per hour, according to IBISWorld.
 The average wage of a Walmart associate is $11.75 an hour, according to Dan Fogleman, a spokesman for Walmart,
 Walmart says the national average hourly wage for its full-time workers is $12.40.

Walmart is the biggest employer in the U.S. after the Department of Defense.

The average salary at U.S. Department of Defense is $63,846 according to  careerbliss.com.

 In 2011, federal civilian workers had an average wage of $84,671, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

58% of the 1.8 million borrowers whose student loans were began to be due in 2005 hadn't received a degree

According to a 2011 study by the Institute for Higher Education Policy, a Washington, D.C.-based research firm, 58% of the 1.8 million borrowers whose student loans were began to be due in 2005 hadn't received a degree. Some 59% of them were delinquent on their loans or had already defaulted, compared with 38% of college graduates

Debt burden—which exceeds 100% of GDP in U.S

On 15 November 2012, debt held by the public
 was approximately $11.45 trillion or about
72% of GDP. Intra-governmental holdings stood
 at $4.83 trillion, giving a combined total
public debt of $16.28 trillion.
GDP was estimated to be almost $16 trillion in 2012.

Mental inequality versus social inequality

Mental inequality is something that government cannot do anything about

Individual responsibility

Individual responsibility is the capacity to recognize and accept the consequences of a fact made freely.

Turnout US presidential election 2012

Turnout dropped by 7.9 million voters, falling to 123.6 million this year from 131.5 million in 2008. This is the first decline in a presidential election in 16 years. Only 51.3% of the voting-age population went to the polls.

They're basically just looking for a steady job as their own boss.

Less than a quarter of America's 27 million small businesses have employees. An even smaller portion grow beyond 20 employees. And many of them don't want to. New research from the University of Chicago finds that 75% of small-business owners aren't aiming for growth at all. They're basically just looking for a steady job as their own boss.

The 2012 presidential election results in the highest income counties in the United States:

The 2012 presidential election results in the highest income counties in the United States:

Loudoun County - Virginia
Mitt Romney/Paul Ryan - 47%		R
Barack Obama/Joe Biden - 52%		D

Fairfax County - Virginia
Mitt Romney/Paul Ryan - 40%		R
Barack Obama/Joe Biden - 59%		D

Arlington County - Virginia
Mitt Romney/Paul Ryan - 29%		R
Barack Obama/Joe Biden - 69%		D

Societies that herd livestock in rugged terrain tend to develop a “culture of honor.”

Anthropologists have long noted that societies that herd livestock in rugged terrain tend to develop a “culture of honor.” Since their wealth has feet and can be stolen in an eye blink, they are forced to deter rustlers by cultivating a hair-trigger for violent retaliation against any trespass or insult that probes their resolve. Farmers can afford to be less belligerent because it is harder to steal their land out from under them, particularly in territories within the reach of law enforcement.