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Thread: MrJohnRoss' Account Talk

  1. #457

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    Default Re: MrJohnRoss' Account Talk

    Quote Originally Posted by nasa1974 View Post
    If looking at personal debt the biggest way you will reduce that debt is by reducing your spending. But that might not get you totally out of debt or may take years that could strain a family relationship. If you’re lucky you might be able to get a second job. But you would still need to keep your spending to a minimum to continue to get out of debt.
    A government cannot depend solely on reducing spending to get out of debt. A second job has to be found (taxes on people or business or both) A government will never get out of debt by reduced spending alone. There are some things that have to be maintained or family relationships will suffer and the infrastructure will collapse. Just like any family there are emergencies that strain the budget and on the government side they are on a much larger scale. The politicians have to stop saying my way or the highway. I don't mind sacrificing a little if everyone is sacrificing a little.

    We have to do this as Americans not as democrats or republicans and show the world how it is done.
    I disagree on one point, I reduced my spending which EXACTLY what got me out of debt.

    Now, to your point about raising revenues; I agree, ONCE spending is reduced to below our revenue level OR below our revenue level plus reasonable tax increases...

    My point is that spending is always the last thing to be addressed. It's always... we must tax, Tax, TAX !!! not funny
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  3. #458

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    Default Re: MrJohnRoss' Account Talk

    I'd be glad to pound peanuts for 99 weeks of unemployment and do nothing else. There is no incentive for the welfare crowd to seek employment, ever.

  4.  
  5. #459

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    Default Re: MrJohnRoss' Account Talk

    Quote Originally Posted by RealMoneyIssues View Post
    I disagree on one point, I reduced my spending which EXACTLY what got me out of debt. That's great that it worked for you and it is possible on a personal scale.

    Now, to your point about raising revenues; I agree, ONCE spending is reduced to below our revenue level OR below our revenue level plus reasonable tax increases...

    My point is that spending is always the last thing to be addressed. It's always... we must tax, Tax, TAX !!! not funny
    On a personal level it can be done. It just depends on how deep the debt is and how much time it will take.

    From the government side I agree that tax, tax, tax is not the solution because if you do not reduce spending you get nowhere but deeper into debt. If you do both responsibly then it should work.
    May the force be with us.


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  7. #460

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    Default Re: MrJohnRoss' Account Talk

    Just a little jump-in reallity check from the peanut-gallery...
    I believe the record shows that we are at multi-generation LOWs on Federal tax rates across the board, for most if not all sectors (personal income-tax, Corporate, etc.). If, as posed, the 1st options are always tax-tax-tax, then rates would be way huge by now, especially with impactful events on the order of the way huge cost for Iraq-Conflict (about $1-trillion), and big hit in lost revenues for the near-depression, and big-bank bailouts due to weakening of related federal regulation for that industry & very little enforcement of same. Seems there's ample room & justification of some "revenue enhancement" along with spending-reductions -- in a balanced, coordinated solution.

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  9. #461

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    Default Re: MrJohnRoss' Account Talk

    Quote Originally Posted by FAAM View Post
    Just a little jump-in reallity check from the peanut-gallery...
    I believe the record shows that we are at multi-generation LOWs on Federal tax rates across the board, for most if not all sectors (personal income-tax, Corporate, etc.). If, as posed, the 1st options are always tax-tax-tax, then rates would be way huge by now, especially with impactful events on the order of the way huge cost for Iraq-Conflict (about $1-trillion), and big hit in lost revenues for the near-depression, and big-bank bailouts due to weakening of related federal regulation for that industry & very little enforcement of same. Seems there's ample room & justification of some "revenue enhancement" along with spending-reductions -- in a balanced, coordinated solution.
    Yes, simple... how about a flat tax, that way everyone pays some and it isn't diluted by "deductions." Wouldn't the rich pay more at this point, oh wait, the rich already pay most of the taxes...
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  11. #462

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    Default Re: MrJohnRoss' Account Talk

    Quote Originally Posted by RealMoneyIssues View Post
    I disagree on one point, I reduced my spending which EXACTLY what got me out of debt.

    OK, this is one thing that continues to drive me batty . Running your personal budget is in no way analogous to running the budget of the entire United States. That is a GROSS simplification. How, for example, do you deal with the infrastructure spending required to keep an economy competitive OR defending the nation/providing local police service OR attempting to balance trade OR ensuring workers are paid a fair and livable wage etc. etc. etc.

    It's a different ball game.

    Question:
    Who do we owe our debts to?
    Answer:
    Ourselves.

    No, not China. China INVESTS in the US because they believe they will get a reliable consistent return. IF we fail to invest in our own country...why would anyone else invest in us. That, my friend, is the risk we run. Sure cutting spending in some areas may be very wise AND important. But cutting, just for the sake of cutting, can be very dangerous.

    I'll say it again, See #1 Greece then IRELAND, Spain, Italy, Britain, Portugal. Compare, for example, to Iceland. You may say that those countries are NOT analogous to the US, but they are much more so than a personal budget.
    Last edited by Mapper; 02-21-2012 at 02:40 PM.
    2011: 12.73%; 2012: 16.44 %, 2013: 17.46%, 2014: 5.35 ; Past 12 months 6.81% as of 01/31/2015


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  13. #463

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    Default Re: MrJohnRoss' Account Talk

    Quote Originally Posted by RealMoneyIssues View Post
    oh wait, the rich already pay most of the taxes...
    Define "most of the taxes". Recall our conversation about how percentages work.
    2011: 12.73%; 2012: 16.44 %, 2013: 17.46%, 2014: 5.35 ; Past 12 months 6.81% as of 01/31/2015


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  15. #464

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    Default Re: MrJohnRoss' Account Talk

    Quote Originally Posted by Mapper View Post
    Define "most of the taxes". Recall our conversation about how percentages work.
    yes, and it was still wrong... at least according to the IRS
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  17. #465

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    Default Re: MrJohnRoss' Account Talk

    Screw it, raise taxes on everyone making over $250k (thats rich right?) to 90%

    Good luck, I am buying gold
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  19. #466

    Default Re: MrJohnRoss' Account Talk

    Quote Originally Posted by Mapper View Post
    OK, this is one thing that continues to drive me batty . Running your personal budget is in no way analogous to running the budget of the entire United States. That is a GROSS simplification. How, for example, do you deal with the infrastructure spending required to keep an economy competitive OR defending the nation/providing local police service OR attempting to balance trade OR ensuring workers are paid a fair and livable wage etc. etc. etc.

    It's a different ball game.

    Question:
    Who do we owe our debts to?
    Answer:
    Ourselves.

    No, not China. China INVESTS in the US because they believe they will get a reliable consistent return. IF we fail to invest in our own country...why would anyone else invest in us. That, my friend, is the risk we run. Sure cutting spending in some areas may be very wise AND important. But cutting, just for the sake of cutting, can be very dangerous.

    I'll say it again, See #1 Greece then IRELAND, Spain, Italy, Britain, Portugal. Compare, for example, to Iceland. You may say that those countries are NOT analogous to the US, but they are much more so than a personal budget.
    It is a simplification but it still makes sense. If my personal goal is to reduce my own spending to take care of my debt, I still need shelter, I still need to eat, I still need to get to my place of employment and back, I need clean water, etc.
    There are necessities and there are wants. Our society has made it impossible to differentiate or has reached a point where they allow wants to outweigh needs. Housing bubble? For God's sake, our society is a bubble.

  20.  
  21. #467

    Default Re: MrJohnRoss' Account Talk

    Quote Originally Posted by FireWeatherMet View Post
    The biggest economic fallicy is that "war" got us out of the Great Depression.
    What WWII was on the American side...was our biggest Gov't Stimulus Plan ever...on a GDP/inflation scale, kind of like combining QE1, QE2, and a QE3...4...5 to boot. Thats what got us out of our mess. The result was that by the end of WWII we had low unemployment, but a gov't national debt at a bigger ratio per GDP than we do today.
    At that point...income taxes were raised on everyone (up to 90% for the top 1%) and military spending was severely reduced. The result was tremendous economic expansion thru the 1950's and we GREW our way out of the debt. We were well on our way to repeating this in the 1990's but then...

    Bernanke luckily is a student of the Great Depression and we are fortunate to have him and Geithner in there instead of the ECB chiefs. They should kick Greece out now while they still can.

    So WWII was just one giant stimulus package and all it cost was 50-70 million lives. I guess you have to break a few eggs to make an omelette.
    Geithner... the tax fraud... you really wanted to put his name in there?

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  23. #468

    Default Re: MrJohnRoss' Account Talk

    Ok gents, we're gonna shift gears...

    I have an investment idea that might be worth looking into (in your non TSP accounts). With the threat of war in the Middle East, oil prices are going through the roof. Meanwhile, the U.S. now has a GLUT of natural gas. How can we capitalize on this?

    One idea that is taking shape is the fact that many large corporations and gov't entities are switching from diesel engines to natural gas engines. The cost savings are huge (around $40K a year for each heavy duty truck). For a large corp (i.e. Wal Mart), the cost savings could be hundreds of millions per year.

    One company that is at the forefront of natural gas engines is Westport Innovations (WPRT). It has three major catalysts going for it: 1) Rising oil prices, 2) Glut of natural gas, and 3) Big corporations looking to trim costs.

    Take a look at the chart below. Since the beginning of this year, the stock has grown from $33.24 to it's current price around $45.50. That's a solid 37% gain in a little over a month and a half.

    Although it looks like it may be extended at this point, I may be looking for pullbacks to add some positions in the future. If GM, Ford, etc. start offering autos with natural gas engines in the near future, this stock could skyrocket.

    wprt.png
    CURRENT ALLOCATION: 100% I AS OF C.O.B. 5/22/2017


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