600 bones coming back from Uncle Sam! Woo hoo!

I'm sorry, but I haven't heard of this(not saying I don't believe you!), ca nyou explain to me what you guys are talking about?

Is this separate from our regular tax returns?

I just got married in '07, and have one 5yr old...

Thanks!

 

As long as you're not in a hurry to pull money out (at least 5 years), the low market is a great buying opportunity. Each dollar put into a mutual fund (inside a Roth or not) buys more shares. Then, when the market recovers (which it will) you will have more market share. I invested for the longhaul, and don't plan to start switching things around. It just looks like a good time to invest while my few dollars have a little more buying power. There has never been a 5 year period where the market, as a whole, lost money. The Great Depression created more millionaires than any time before or since. If the general idea is to "Buy Low and Sell High", looks like time to buy. :gossip:

 

Sebspeed - check this link

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/01/25/economic.stimulus/index.html?iref=newssearch

 

Time for Vlad's soap box, put on your reading glasses, it'll be a long one........

I'm usually an optimist when it comes to the economy. The chart I posted shows how well the market indicies have done in the past five years. In fact the performance through his Bush's two terms has been quite good. While my belief is that presidential policy has a low to, at most, moderate impact on the economy, Bush is getting beat up by people who believe otherwise. Do I think the stimulus package is good? No. Not when per capita the US has over $30,000 in debit.
I do agree that we as Americans are selling out our future to the Chinese et al. I do my best to purchase American products whenever it makes sense. You have no idea how long it took me to find Christmas cards printed in the USA this season. I recently heard a report on the radio about a town in the US that is known for producing socks and the whole place was going to hell because a tariff expiration. The tariff was renewed and the town was saved. Some may say, "gov't bastards made me spend more on my socks." The owner of a family business explained that because of automation he can produce the knitted blank as cheap as anywhere in the world, but the labor addition for sewing the toe shut was 2 cents more a pair than what foriegn producers could do it for. People who bitch about gov't tarriffs ought to dip down deep into their pockets for the $0.02 to keep a fellow American working so such gov't intervention is not needed. Hell, I'll give 'em a nickel! Unfortunately the average person in the US (don't get me started on illegals) would rather go to Wal-Mart and soak up imported stuff, send their money overseas, walk away a couple bucks heavier, and "live better" as the adds say. People need to think about how they are f#&king thier neighbors as they "live better." Maybe when your job is on the line because you're facing foreign competition you'll think a few cents more for some domestic goods isn't such a bad idea.
Now I'm off and running................
Remember when people got all up in arms about the UAE running the US ports? I say building a nice capitalist venture with one of your strongest allies in the Middle East might change some hearts and minds in that region. The ports weren't domestically run in the first place, it was done by the Brittish. Now take the same group of average Americans that bitched and you're likely to find a high percentage that have sub-prime loan, are upside down in a house they can't afford, and aren't saying boo about Korea and Dubai proping up the financial institutions they're screwing. That wasn't as alarming and newsworthy for some reason. Don't believe it? It's all around you. Read this...
http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/01/15/business/banks.php
Okay, last set of bitches.....
Last weekend I went into a Thomasville store that was going out-of-business locally. I figure there's a chance I could find some pieces of quality US made furniture that I need. I see a soffa and wonder why it's so cheap, lift the cusion and read "Made in China for Thomasville". What???!!! Thomasville, a town in the Carolinas known for producing quality hardwood furniture, selling out it's own namesake for some more margin and price point marketing. I was sickend; not with Thomasville, but with myself and my fellow Americans for letting it come to this. That store wouldn't sell that crap if we expected to pay a fair price for a good piece of US furniture when we walked through the door.
More Wal-Mart "live better" mentality. I fear for my daughters future and wish a majority of others felt the same.

Rant off.

 

the so called "refund" is like giving a rape victim flowers in hope it will soothe the pain. thank's Vlad for addressing the real issues. i was wondering when someone would actually question a government that blows billions of tax dollars on stuff very few Americans support and give us a taste back. the money is a joke compared to what you give George and the rest of the fucks in Washington each month.

 

I don't think I get to emotional about this stuff. Somebody has to. Not doing so is what is screwing us.
I hope that I can impress upon some people to spend on US made products when they get their checks. I say that with a sinking gut feeling, knowing that the vast majority of my fine fellow citizens will not.
Last thought.....
Take the conditions that exist today that folks are ranting about. Add something that immediatley affects them personally and forces them to think about it. Example draft! Now you see why people were in the streets in the 60s. It would happen today too if people got pushed just a bit farther.

 

Well, I've changed my mind. I'm going to use the money to get cable modem service so I can see derstuka's "Bike Wreck" video link. My dial-up just won't do it.

So, derstuka, I hope you're happy now! I was SOOO looking forward to buying more windscreens...

 

Manuela Arcuri...

Hi, Derstuka !
Thanks For Manuela Arcuri's Video. She's Italian...
What Do You Prefer ? A Ride With Manuela Or With A Vfr ?
The Best Thing I Can Imagine Is A Ride With A Vfr And Manuela Arcuri On Board !
Ciao
Carmine.

 

Thanks, doesn't sound like it's approved yet though? Sounds like a washer & dryer set to me if it goes through... or a down payment on a Duc 1098! :biggrin:

 

What??!! Those things in the sky aren't smoke signals? When I think of how many batteries I've consumed trying to read at night...

Actually, "cave" is a bit closer than you think. Cazadero is essentially a ravine in the coastal redwoods. Beautiful from May through October, cold and damp the rest of the time. And we lose power if a cloud passes by and makes a mean face...

 

I think its a ridiculous stimulous,....but bring on them greenbacks, I could sure use em.