4-30-14 Great Guests for Your Show

1. Lowell Ponte: French Economist Advocates Hefty Taxes

2. Dave Bego: The Symbiotic Relationship that Short-Changes Americans

3. Joe Messina: The Destruction of Marriage

4. Michelle Seiler-Tucker: McDonald's vs Taco Bell: The Breakfast Wars

5. Sandy Botkin: Estimated Tax Penalties

French Economist Advocates Hefty Taxes

By Lowell Ponte

French economist, Thomas Piketty's runaway near-700-page best-seller "Capital in the Twenty-First Century" has galvanized an American left dispirited by President Barack Obama's waning charisma and failed promises. Piketty, a professor at the Paris School of Economics, arrived here like an old-time preacher trailing clouds of glory from the European motherland of socialist collectivism and the welfare state to restore wealth redistribution. Most American leftists have welcomed him like an intellectual savior who is restoring their faith, faded by a century of progressive failure. He is renewing their mission to bring down capitalism. Piketty even acknowledges the long-self-evident truth that the free market is more productive than socialism. He says he would retain the good competitive virtues of capitalism while purging what it does badly. [more...]

The Symbiotic Relationship that Short-Changes Americans

By Dave Bego

Wealthy democratic donors met with Big Labor and high interest liberal groups in Chicago this week to plot strategy for the 2014 Mid-Term Elections, an obvious sign of the increasing desperation of democrats and the "gasping dinosaurs" of big labor (see The left’s secret club plans for 2014, 2016). The approaching elections, however, may very well be the beginning of the end for these symbiotic partners. The liberal left has already begun to suggest that their pending demise is due to the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in the Citizens United case in 2012. In that case, the Court opened the door for unrestricted corporate spending on political elections stating that, "Political speech does not lose its First Amendment protection simply because its source is a corporation." [more...]

The Destruction of Marriage

By Joe Messina

Recently, in Massachusetts, three lesbian women decided they wanted to be married to each other. Yes, THREE PEOPLE wanted to enter into marriage together. Why? Because they love each other. One woman admitted after several failed male relationships she just couldn't see herself being monogamous. So what happens when she decides she is tired of or falls out of love with wife A, but is really into wife B and John's wife next door is not looking so bad either? We will deal with that later. [more...]

McDonald's vs Taco Bell: The Breakfast Wars

By Michelle Seiler-Tucker

Taco Bell has recently introduced an entirely new breakfast menu to the public and while doing so, threw a few entertaining advertising punches at the fast food conglomerate McDonald's. A short film used primarily for viral visibility featured dozens of people named Ronald McDonald endorsing the taco franchise, a brave move given the clout of the almighty Egg McMuffin. McDonald's has generally ruled rush hour breakfast. According to figures released from the food research and consulting firm Technomic, breakfast sales produced upwards of $10 billion in profit for McDonald's.  The abrupt entrance of Taco Bell and a number of other fast-food chains into the breakfast market has put McDonald's on the defensive in a now very competitive market, offering a free coffee promotion and a clever advertisement of the company's beloved clown petting a chiwawa in an act of patronization to lure more consumer interest. [more...]

Estimated Tax Penalties

By Sandy Botkin

Here is one area that has a lot of misconceptions. First, you will NOT be charged with any criminal behavior if you don't pay estimated taxes. In fact, surprisingly, you don't need to file and pay estimated taxes at all. If you don't, however, you will pay a penalty that is currently set at a non-deductible penalty rate of 3% unless you meet one of the exceptions from the penalty. Thus, if you can make more than 3% after tax with your investments, it might not be wise to pay estimated taxes. So, how do you avoid the penalties? Here are the major exceptions: [more...]