Chinese hackers have stolen the designs for some of the U.S.'s most advanced weapons' systems, a study for the Pentagon has reportedly alleged. The programs to have been breached include missile systems from Raytheon (RTN) and Lockheed Martin (LMT), and aircraft made by Boeing (BA), Textron's (TXT) Bell Helicopter and United Technology's (UTX) Sikorsky. Pentagon officials are not surprisingly frustrated by the degree of theft from the contractors. [View news story]
It's a little ironic that foreign companies and/or facilities manufacture many of the components (particularly electronic) that make up these systems and we cry about the plans being stolen.
If we were to go to war with China we wouldn't have the equipment to wage war with them.
With their healthcare costs ballooning, many companies have started to penalize fat employees with regards to healthcare coverage, raising all sorts of legal, privacy and discrimination questions. Michelin North America, for example, plans to cut healthcare credits for staff who fail to meet requirement for waistline and other metrics, and don't sign up to health programs. Other companies making similar moves include Mohawk (MHK), CVS and Honeywell (HON). [View news story]
What you miss about the person who lives or dies is that we spend a lot of money on that terminal healthcare. If someone chooses to die in their 60's that's fine with me - but please don't burden me with their medical coverage in the meantime.
You see, if I wasn't going to be burdened with someone's cost of choice then I wouldn't care. Companies could opt to simply not provide any insurance coverage -- except there is that huge distortion called tax shelter. That would simplify things a bit.
Almost - now you can't disallow coverage for a pre-existing condition (obesity). Soon you'll be forced to pay the same premiums -- so the person who has the worse health benefits the most.
Unless we can actually get society to support fitness over tolerance of the morbidly obese or anorexic. And do not try to tell me that they can't help it. I've watched friends lose 200 pounds just by living better - no fads, no operations, no kidding.
With their healthcare costs ballooning, many companies have started to penalize fat employees with regards to healthcare coverage, raising all sorts of legal, privacy and discrimination questions. Michelin North America, for example, plans to cut healthcare credits for staff who fail to meet requirement for waistline and other metrics, and don't sign up to health programs. Other companies making similar moves include Mohawk (MHK), CVS and Honeywell (HON). [View news story]
I saw this coming two years ago. It's only going to get worse.
Soon they will tell you what you must eat -- even if you choose to eat better than that. You will still be penalized for non-conformance. Reminds me of Animal Farm.
20 Signs The U.S. Economy Is Heading For Big Trouble In The Months Ahead [View article]
20 gallons of gas to fill a vehicle isn't unheard of. So yes, you can spend that much to fill up the vehicle. I spend over $50 to fill up a very small compact vehicle.
I think it has a lot to do with the economy.
And $100 for groceries is becoming commonplace. Worst part is, you can't even cover the bottom of the cart for $100 on some days.
The Biggest Threat To Stocks, Bonds, And GDP Growth [View article]
Most LT investors are probably the 401K accounts.
Most 401K accounts don't really start up in earnest until later in life. Being that close to retirement there's a tendency to roll heavy into bonds based on your age. Very applicable to the older age groups.
And there's a lot more deleveraging going on - so money is diverted from investments into debt repayment. Very applicable to middle and older age groups.
As for the youngest age groups - jobs, college debt, skepticism at large.
Market Euphoria Continues As We Get Ready To Jump Off The Fiscal Cliff [View article]
What you are describing doesn't sound much like a compromise but an assumption that the Democratic party is able to establish a much stronger control of the government than has been over the past 4 years. I firmly believe that neither party, even in a indisputable super-majority of both houses and the White House is capable of resolving these problems. It's more likely that they will claim solution and the blame the resulting Unintended Consequences on someone else.
What is most likely with the Cliff is that everyone will let it happen, laying blame on the other party. Once it happens then they can claim massive tax cuts to boost their next election cycle coming in 2 years. But it's typical that government first has to have a crisis created (Fiscal Cliff) so that they can use that Emergency to invoke further rules and regulations to strip the citizens. So the crisis will allow them to do things that ordinarily seem illogical and even irresponsible.
Electric Vehicle Battery Grants, 3 Years Of Disappointment And Failure [View article]
Interesting point but I would ask that you complete the analysis in terms of the costs for the different components required for the two vehicles to operate.
The cost of batteries, to the consumer, is significant. This is something else to consider as well as the various TCO line items for making the various motor/engine and fuel systems.
It is a trivial fact that conversion of chemical energy to heat at the source of consumption (engine) is far more effective in power delivery than current technologies for converting chemical energy to electricity.
Now, if you change this from "effective power delivery" to "efficient work" you may change the argument. But that requires us to resist jack-rabbit starts and a focus on performance.
It may be more efficient and effective to reconsider the concept of the design entirely. I recall 20 years ago Ford developed a Taurus that ran in excess of 100mpg using something similar to the diesel electric design of trains and shipping.
There are many factors which make this venture nearly impossible. Even our crash safety standards are wrong. Did you know that a vehicle is considered safe if you can survive a crash without wearing a seat belt - yet not wearing a seat belt will get you a ticket? Talk about reinforcing bad behavior... Sheesh!
The economy, says Harvard's Clayton Christensen, suffers from too much "efficiency" innovation, which tends to lead to job losses, and not enough "empowering" innovation, which creates jobs. Because "efficiency" innovation provides a quicker return, one remedy is to change the tax code to encourage long-term innovation. [View news story]
They are kidding themselves if they think they are that smart.
So change the tax code to encourage/discourage different behaviors and you will push the economy out of balance but at the other end of the scale.
The only solution is to get Washington out of the way and allow the economy to find it's own balance. Over time these things become self regulating and balanced. There are always temporal inconsistencies but that's the nature of a dynamic system - it moves. And the movement is what drives changes.
Washington would like to implement Directive 10-289.
The economy, says Harvard's Clayton Christensen, suffers from too much "efficiency" innovation, which tends to lead to job losses, and not enough "empowering" innovation, which creates jobs. Because "efficiency" innovation provides a quicker return, one remedy is to change the tax code to encourage long-term innovation. [View news story]
Why have a progressive tax code at all? That's still "encouraging" activity... You are discouraging success and encouraging status quo by punishing those who chose to make more money.
I wouldn't expect to see an increase in rates for a very long time. Perhaps a decade. We seem to be doing everything we can to follow Japan even though the Talking Heads assure us they know what they are doing and that this time it will be different.
I'm still inclined to stick with the primitive notion of a core investment that starts out as equal portions of Bonds, US Stocks, non-US Stocks and going for a walk. There is so much back room manipulations that it's very difficult to make headway beyond a fundamentals portfolio in a consistent manner.
Why There's Less High-Frequency Trading [View article]
I think you have your math close. You want something like a -c*log(t) so that .001s is 10X more expensive than .01s. I get your point and I think it's excellent.
I would advocate that anything over a time limit (eg: 5 minutes) would be exempt from such a charge. But even an hour might be a better number since the original idea behind a stock exchange was for Capital Investment and not Gambling/Speculation.
I'm currently leaning heavily on limit orders so I don't get too swept away by HFC actions.
Market Euphoria Continues As We Get Ready To Jump Off The Fiscal Cliff [View article]
You are spot on. And there really is nothing that politicians can do to change this that won't cause harm.
Perhaps the best thing they can do is to "clear the air" by showing the same basic responsibilities for their own actions that we expect of our family, co-workers, employees, employers.
I would love to see someone just come out and say - "OK, taxes - lets make that a 15% across the board on everything starting with the first dollar" and watch what happens to the economy. You won't make everyone happy, but we'll know exactly where we stand at every moment.
Much of the problem, in my opinion, is that we don't know what the politicians are going to do to us in the future. They've already done so much to change things up that no one can really understand it. It's very difficult to plan when you don't know if January 1st will bring a $400/month reduction in available income or not.
It's even harder to plan when you have no idea what your other (mandated) expenses will be either. Discourages you from doing anything but going to the library and looking up farming techniques.
Market Euphoria Continues As We Get Ready To Jump Off The Fiscal Cliff [View article]
I think your second paragraphs says it all -- even if we do nothing at all, the "fiscal cliff" will have almost no impact on the economy.
Which means that whatever solution is negotiated in the coming year -- it will have almost no impact on the economy. It's a political game but the fundamental economic problems will not be addressed in the least.
In short, we will continue along with nothing really being fixed but everyone trying to claim they have fixed the world.
Chinese hackers have stolen the designs for some of the U.S.'s most advanced weapons' systems, a study for the Pentagon has reportedly alleged. The programs to have been breached include missile systems from Raytheon (RTN) and Lockheed Martin (LMT), and aircraft made by Boeing (BA), Textron's (TXT) Bell Helicopter and United Technology's (UTX) Sikorsky. Pentagon officials are not surprisingly frustrated by the degree of theft from the contractors. [View news story]
If we were to go to war with China we wouldn't have the equipment to wage war with them.
With their healthcare costs ballooning, many companies have started to penalize fat employees with regards to healthcare coverage, raising all sorts of legal, privacy and discrimination questions. Michelin North America, for example, plans to cut healthcare credits for staff who fail to meet requirement for waistline and other metrics, and don't sign up to health programs. Other companies making similar moves include Mohawk (MHK), CVS and Honeywell (HON). [View news story]
You see, if I wasn't going to be burdened with someone's cost of choice then I wouldn't care. Companies could opt to simply not provide any insurance coverage -- except there is that huge distortion called tax shelter. That would simplify things a bit.
Almost - now you can't disallow coverage for a pre-existing condition (obesity). Soon you'll be forced to pay the same premiums -- so the person who has the worse health benefits the most.
Unless we can actually get society to support fitness over tolerance of the morbidly obese or anorexic. And do not try to tell me that they can't help it. I've watched friends lose 200 pounds just by living better - no fads, no operations, no kidding.
With their healthcare costs ballooning, many companies have started to penalize fat employees with regards to healthcare coverage, raising all sorts of legal, privacy and discrimination questions. Michelin North America, for example, plans to cut healthcare credits for staff who fail to meet requirement for waistline and other metrics, and don't sign up to health programs. Other companies making similar moves include Mohawk (MHK), CVS and Honeywell (HON). [View news story]
Soon they will tell you what you must eat -- even if you choose to eat better than that. You will still be penalized for non-conformance. Reminds me of Animal Farm.
20 Signs The U.S. Economy Is Heading For Big Trouble In The Months Ahead [View article]
I spend over $50 to fill up a very small compact vehicle.
I think it has a lot to do with the economy.
And $100 for groceries is becoming commonplace. Worst part is, you can't even cover the bottom of the cart for $100 on some days.
The Biggest Threat To Stocks, Bonds, And GDP Growth [View article]
Most 401K accounts don't really start up in earnest until later in life. Being that close to retirement there's a tendency to roll heavy into bonds based on your age. Very applicable to the older age groups.
And there's a lot more deleveraging going on - so money is diverted from investments into debt repayment. Very applicable to middle and older age groups.
As for the youngest age groups - jobs, college debt, skepticism at large.
Market Euphoria Continues As We Get Ready To Jump Off The Fiscal Cliff [View article]
What is most likely with the Cliff is that everyone will let it happen, laying blame on the other party. Once it happens then they can claim massive tax cuts to boost their next election cycle coming in 2 years. But it's typical that government first has to have a crisis created (Fiscal Cliff) so that they can use that Emergency to invoke further rules and regulations to strip the citizens. So the crisis will allow them to do things that ordinarily seem illogical and even irresponsible.
Electric Vehicle Battery Grants, 3 Years Of Disappointment And Failure [View article]
Electric Vehicle Battery Grants, 3 Years Of Disappointment And Failure [View article]
The cost of batteries, to the consumer, is significant. This is something else to consider as well as the various TCO line items for making the various motor/engine and fuel systems.
It is a trivial fact that conversion of chemical energy to heat at the source of consumption (engine) is far more effective in power delivery than current technologies for converting chemical energy to electricity.
Now, if you change this from "effective power delivery" to "efficient work" you may change the argument. But that requires us to resist jack-rabbit starts and a focus on performance.
It may be more efficient and effective to reconsider the concept of the design entirely. I recall 20 years ago Ford developed a Taurus that ran in excess of 100mpg using something similar to the diesel electric design of trains and shipping.
There are many factors which make this venture nearly impossible. Even our crash safety standards are wrong. Did you know that a vehicle is considered safe if you can survive a crash without wearing a seat belt - yet not wearing a seat belt will get you a ticket? Talk about reinforcing bad behavior... Sheesh!
The economy, says Harvard's Clayton Christensen, suffers from too much "efficiency" innovation, which tends to lead to job losses, and not enough "empowering" innovation, which creates jobs. Because "efficiency" innovation provides a quicker return, one remedy is to change the tax code to encourage long-term innovation. [View news story]
So change the tax code to encourage/discourage different behaviors and you will push the economy out of balance but at the other end of the scale.
The only solution is to get Washington out of the way and allow the economy to find it's own balance. Over time these things become self regulating and balanced. There are always temporal inconsistencies but that's the nature of a dynamic system - it moves. And the movement is what drives changes.
Washington would like to implement Directive 10-289.
The economy, says Harvard's Clayton Christensen, suffers from too much "efficiency" innovation, which tends to lead to job losses, and not enough "empowering" innovation, which creates jobs. Because "efficiency" innovation provides a quicker return, one remedy is to change the tax code to encourage long-term innovation. [View news story]
Making A Case For U.S. Treasuries [View article]
We seem to be doing everything we can to follow Japan even though the Talking Heads assure us they know what they are doing and that this time it will be different.
I'm still inclined to stick with the primitive notion of a core investment that starts out as equal portions of Bonds, US Stocks, non-US Stocks and going for a walk. There is so much back room manipulations that it's very difficult to make headway beyond a fundamentals portfolio in a consistent manner.
Why There's Less High-Frequency Trading [View article]
I get your point and I think it's excellent.
I would advocate that anything over a time limit (eg: 5 minutes) would be exempt from such a charge. But even an hour might be a better number since the original idea behind a stock exchange was for Capital Investment and not Gambling/Speculation.
I'm currently leaning heavily on limit orders so I don't get too swept away by HFC actions.
Market Euphoria Continues As We Get Ready To Jump Off The Fiscal Cliff [View article]
Market Euphoria Continues As We Get Ready To Jump Off The Fiscal Cliff [View article]
Perhaps the best thing they can do is to "clear the air" by showing the same basic responsibilities for their own actions that we expect of our family, co-workers, employees, employers.
I would love to see someone just come out and say - "OK, taxes - lets make that a 15% across the board on everything starting with the first dollar" and watch what happens to the economy. You won't make everyone happy, but we'll know exactly where we stand at every moment.
Much of the problem, in my opinion, is that we don't know what the politicians are going to do to us in the future. They've already done so much to change things up that no one can really understand it. It's very difficult to plan when you don't know if January 1st will bring a $400/month reduction in available income or not.
It's even harder to plan when you have no idea what your other (mandated) expenses will be either. Discourages you from doing anything but going to the library and looking up farming techniques.
Market Euphoria Continues As We Get Ready To Jump Off The Fiscal Cliff [View article]
Which means that whatever solution is negotiated in the coming year -- it will have almost no impact on the economy. It's a political game but the fundamental economic problems will not be addressed in the least.
In short, we will continue along with nothing really being fixed but everyone trying to claim they have fixed the world.