Money and Business

The Tax Man Cometh – Again

Tax season is here again, at least in our household. I had been waiting for our tax software provider to notify us of the availability of the product for the 2013 tax year. Today, the offer was in the mail. Not hesitating, I downloaded the software, installed it and dove right in to start putting in our 2013 data.

In a matter of less than an hour, I had most of the updated figures plugged into the program. We have a pretty similar tax situation to that of our 2012 return, so most things were already imported from last year by the software. A few tweaks here and there gave us a pretty good idea of where we will be when we finally file in early February.

Of course, the IRS will be modifying things until the December 31 deadline and probably beyond then knowing how efficient the .gov is. Meanwhile, we can pour over the figures we know about and look for some shortcuts to maximize our refund.

02 Dec 2013 by CapnBob Money and Business

Jump Shot

Here’s an example of the due diligence given to the economy and jobs by the administration . . .

Jump Shot

From Fox Business:

Payrolls increased by 88,000 last month following a revised 268,000 gain in February, with the disappointing report following two others this week that also cast a negative view on the labor market.

“We can now add the monthly employment report to the growing list of data points that simply haven’t met expectations,” Dan Greenhaus, chief global strategist at BTIG LLC in New York, said in emailed comments.

After falling 171 points, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) recovered the lions share of its losses to end at 14,565.25, down 0.3% for the session and 0.1% for the week.

Cartoon via The Patriot Post.

Gas Prices

When we have to make the obligatory trip back to the old homestead in The People’s Republik, we try and plan such that we only need to buy fuel once while we’re there. This recent trip worked out OK in that we bought only once there and at the “best” price available in the area. Still, the Arco (cheap) price is between thirty and fifty cents per gallon more than we pay in Arizona. Mostly (I’m certain), thanks to the enviro-nutty tax on fuel out there. Still, fuel prices are going up everywhere according to the plan of the idiots in Congress and elsewhere.

Note the eighteen cent differential between Arco and Chevron located on the same intersection in Torrance, CA. Click on the image to enlarge.

16 Feb 2013 by CapnBob California Money and Business Whacko Politics

Simple

How much damage can one administration do in four years? It’s this simple . . .

Simple

26 Jan 2013 by CapnBob Beltway Kabuki Money and Business Whacko Politics

Family Entrepreneur

Damsel’s nephew has a little business going where he applies his graphic arts training to creating custom designs for his clients. As a sideline, he started making custom T shirts, many with pro-second amendment messages. I got these images of just two of many Pro 2A designs from his facebook page, TB Creative Designs. Click on the image to enlarge.

I’ve known this kid since he was literally a knee-high. Glad to see him doing well in spite of the dour economical picture.

03 Jan 2013 by CapnBob Firearms Money and Business

The Truth About The Mayan Calendar

One of our gun bloggers thinks the administration welcomes all the hype over the Newtown massacre to hide their failure with the economy and the “fiscal cliff.” The media, of course, are complicit in the ruse. It serves two agendas: hide the fail and implement gun control.