When blog reader Kyle contacted us with his story of how thinking "freakonomically" first netted - then lost - him significant amounts of incremental income, we had what we'd call an "aha moment," if Oprah hadn't apparently patented that phrase. Here's Kyle's story - and if you have a tale of "appl ... Read more

Who's paying taxes and just how much, relatively speaking, are they handing over to the Treasury? That's been the topic of debate since several groups released income tax studies this year. First, the Tax Foundation reported that the tax burden of the top 1 percent of taxpayers ... ... Read more

Well, somebody liked the post about owning your own business-- Being your own boss is so exciting. You can do whatever your heart tells. Of course before doing whatever you want you must consider making some cash flow plan otherwise you won't be your own boss but your own slave. With g ... Read more

Governor Culver has formed a panel to review Iowa's 30-odd business incentive tax credits . He sent a letter to some of his agency heads: To assist the panel with their work, I am asking you to submit information on your respective departments’ tax credits to the Iowa Department of Manageme ... Read more

Tax Policy Blog has a handy summary of how Harry Reidcare will allegedly be financed . Peter Pappas has a nice summary of some of the more baleful provisions of the bill , including a sexism angle. One of the taxes in the bill applies to cosmetic surgery, which Mr. Pappas calls "...a vanity ta ... Read more

It's well-established that domestic violence is bad for the children directly exposed to it (and possibly their classmates as well) but experts still debate the drivers of family violence. Economists have traditionally characterized violence as a signal to outside parties or as part of an incentive ... Read more

It's good to watch a fight when you don't have to pick sides, and you can enjoy every blow. For example, H&R Block Tax Services Inc. v. Jackson Hewitt Tax Service Inc.; No. 6:08-cv-00037 . Go to it, guys! ... Read the full post ... Read more

The new Cavalcade of Risk is up at Healthcare Economist ! Among the many useful insurance and risk management posts there is the InsureBlog's explanation of the hidden link between heart attacks and double-decker buses . I would have suspected double-decker cheeseburgers, myself. ... Rea ... Read more

Chart of The Day: "With a large majority of third-quarter earnings in the books (87% of S&P 500 companies have reported for Q3 2009), today's chart provides some long-term perspective to the current earnings environment by focusing on 12-month, as reported S&P 500 earnings. Today's chart ... Read more

An estimated 41,280 new and resale houses and condos were sold statewide last month. That was up 2.6 percent from 40,216 in September, and down 2.4 percent from 42,293 for October 2008. California sales for the month of October have varied from a low of 25,832 in 2007 to a peak of ... ... Read more