The MarcDown Report
January 30, 2012
The Realities of the Buffett Tax - Here's a great article by Robert Samuelson discussing how the 'Buffett Rule' is not a serious proposal to deal with the deficit, raising only $40-50 billion a year versus a deficit of ~$1.5 trillion.
May 31, 2011
Excessive Government Spending Hurting the Economy
By Marc Smith
March 1, 2011
Cloud of Unemployment Lingers
By Marc Smith
March 12, 2010
Why ObamaCare is Bad Politics - WSJ
February 24, 2010
Great article today in the Arizona Republic on the impact of taxes on the investment.
The Chief Economic Worry About Democrats
Was Obama Really on the Ballot in NJ and VA?
By Marc Smith
November 4, 2009 11:30pm
Much has been made about the importance and significance of the Republican sweeps in Virginia and New Jersey yesterday. As expected, the relative importance of these elections depends on which party is speaking at the time. I saw an exit poll on CNN this morning suggesting that 60% of NJ voters and 56% of VA voters said Obama had no impact on their votes. What is amazing to me is that implies 40% of NJ voters and 44% of VA were at least partially using these elections to express a view on the Obama administration and current Congress…Keep Reading.
Florida’s Brandon Spikes Only Gets Half-Game Suspension
By Marc Smith
November 3, 2009 11:20am
Get Out and Vote Tomorrow!
By Marc Smith
November 2, 2009 10:30am
Numerous important elections are taking place tomorrow across the country. Key Governor races in Virginia and New Jersey allow voters to both choose a new state leader and express a view on the success of the current Obama administration. Regardless of your political views, I encourage you to get out and exercise your right to influence government through your vote…Keep Reading.
World Series Scheduling
By Marc Smith
October 22, 2009 12:20am
The Philadelphia Phillies are on their way to the World Series, but will have an entire week to prepare. The World Series is scheduled to start on October 28th and the Phillies just wrapped up the NLCS on October 21st. The Yankees are one game away from sealing the ALCS, meaning there could be five full days off where no one is playing baseball. Who comes up with this scheduling? Keep Reading.
Windfall Profits Tax – What is a Windfall?
By Marc Smith
October 16, 2009 1:05pm
Nancy Pelosi again mentioned a windfall profits tax on health insurance companies to help cover the cost of healthcare reform. These ideas have been floated in the past, most recently against oil companies for the price of oil and therefore gasoline in the summer of 2008. I think this is a horrendous idea…Keep Reading.
October 16, 2009
Obama Hasn’t Closed the Healthcare Sale – Wall Street Journal
Cash for Oldsters – Wall Street Journal
Organic Fish?
By Marc Smith
October 14, 2009 1:45pm
A few days ago I was at Harris Teeter, a grocery store in the Mid-Atlantic region, and purchased organic salmon. I had never heard of organic fish and so I asked the man behind the counter what exactly it meant to be “organic” fish. He told me it meant it was farm-raised but feed with grains, presumably organic grains, although I’m not sure about that…Keep Reading.
October 12, 2009 Reading
Job Creation 101 – Wall Street Journal
The Economic Recovery Is Well Underway – Wall Street Journal
Taking the National Debt Seriously – Wall Street Journal
In Need of Urgent Care – Washington Post
A Path to Downward Mobility – Washington Post
October 11, 2009 Reading
The Stressed German [Healthcare] Model – Wall Street Journal
The Nobel Hope Prize – Wall Street Journal
What Happened to Global Warming – BBC
Should Obama Have Won the Nobel Peace Prize?
By Marc Smith
October 9, 2009 11:30am
President Barack Obama just received the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize. He is the 4th President of the United States to win the award, following Teddy Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson and Jimmy Carter. According to headlines I’ve seen so far this was a shock to the international community. I do not know how the selection process works or whether there was a list of published finalists, but I’m personally very surprised Obama won the award based solely on his lack of actual accomplishment...Keep Reading
October 9, 2009 Reading
The Dollar Adrift – A Global Vote on Non-Confidence – Wall Street Journal
Health Costs are Crushing Small Businesses – Wall Street Journal
Let Congress Go Without Insurance – New York Times
Poll May Point to Democrats' Worries Beyond Virginia – Washington Post
House Ethics Panel Expands Rangel Probe – Michelle Malkin
Joe Biden on Jobs: Mission Accomplished – Wall Street Journal
Do Health Insurance Companies Put Profits Over Patients?
By Marc Smith
October 8th, 2009 12:45pm
October 8, 2009 Reading
Ms. Pelosi’s VAT – The Speaker Floats a Middle Class Tax Hike – Wall Street Journal
Michael Moore’s “Socialist” President – Wall Street Journal
The GOP is Winning the Healthcare Debate – Wall Street Journal
A Better Way to Health Reform – Washington Post
House Republicans Press Obama on Jobs Creation – WSJ Blogs
Is that Warranty Worth It?
By Marc Smith
October 7, 2009 3:30pm
The Massachusetts Senator Fiasco
By Marc Smith - September 24, 2009 4:05pm
Massachusetts Governor appointed an interim replacement today to fill the late Ted Kennedy’s seat until a special election is held in January. The ability of the Governor to do this was just passed yesterday. This is a tricky issue that I would imagine is split right down political lines. I’m not so much opposed to the appointment of an interim, or the appointment of an actual replacement or of holding a special election. What I am opposed to is changing your argument, or your states laws, solely because it fits your political goals…Keep Reading.
Oh, The Taxes We Pay
By Marc Smith - September 23, 2009 12:05pm
I was looking at my Verizon home phone bill the other day. I continue to pay $63.99/month for the privilege of having a home phone even though I essentially have no need for one. So, I decided to see exactly what I was paying for…Keep Reading
Did Tennis’ Governing Body Forget Math?
By Marc Smith - September 17, 2009 3:55pm
I just saw a headline that Roger Federer has been fined $1,500 for using profanity towards the chair umpire in the championship match. This follows Serena Williams $10,000 fine for telling a lines judge she wanted to “shove this ball down your f---ing throat” after a bad call. Is this is a joke?...Keep Reading
What is Jimmy Carter Talking About??
By Marc Smith - September 17, 2009 1:05pm
"I think an overwhelming portion of the intensely demonstrated animosity toward President Barack Obama is based on the fact that he is a black man, that he's African-American." – Former President Jimmy Carter to NBC News
Since his somewhat disastrous presidency, Jimmy Carter has become a humanitarian hero. I don’t know what the general public’s current view of Jimmy Carter’s relevency, but he is still an individual that receives significant news coverage. So, it’s very disappointing to me to read a quote like the above from someone of his stature. It is offensive to all intelligent individuals who differ with Obama’s policies that Jimmy Carter believes racism is ‘an overwhelming portion’ of the disagreement with Obama…Keep Reading
College Football Scheduling Needs a Makeover
By Marc Smith - September 16, 2009 11:15am
Much has been written about the problems of the BCS system and the need/desire for a true playoff system. While I could write pages upon pages about my strong beliefs in the need for a playoff, I want to focus this post on the absurdity of non-conference college football scheduling. My proposal is a governing body that schedules non-conference games to create exciting early season match-ups and eliminates the joke scheduling that many teams employ to pad their win-loss record…Keep Reading
Excellent Op/Ed on Obama's Healthcare Speech
September 15, 2009
This is an excellent article on several of the examples Obama used in his speech last week. There is a need for healthcare reform, but we continue to be against any government run option.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203440104574409501904118682.html
Ichiro Reaches Hits Milestone
By Marc Smith - September 8, 2009 7:15pm
The Seattle Mariners are easily my favorite sports team. Over the years, Ichiro has become one of my favorite players for his consistency, determination and work ethic. I was at the 2001 All-Star game in Seattle and watched him hit seven or eight straight pitches into the right field stands during batting practice. His ability with a bat is truly awe inspiring... Keep Reading
Obama Speaks to Students
By Marc Smith - September 8, 2009 6:40pm
After reading the speech Obama gave to students across the country this afternoon, I’m blown away at the uproar over this event. If anything, I’m surprised there was not more positive feedback in the media over the speech. I loved his challenge to students to take personal responsibility for their own education and his statement that bad circumstances in life is no excuse for not giving one’s best effort... Keep Reading
I Don’t Want to Take Lipitor When I’m 60
By Marc Smith - September 4, 2009 4:05pm
Surprisingly absent from the healthcare debates surrounding ObamaCare is the “high” cost of prescription drugs. I’m not sure exactly why this issue has not received as much discussion. Sadly it is probably not because the population at large is realizing current drug prices compensate investors for the risk of drug development and fund current drug research for the next generation of drugs...Keep Reading
NFL Blackout Rule Needs Reconsideration
By Marc Smith - September 3, 2009 7:55pm
Headlines recently came out suggesting that multiple NFL teams have failed to sell out home games and are at risk of having games blacked out in local markets. This impacts everyone, even those with the DirecTV NFL package. The Jacksonville Jaguars are apparently at risk of not selling out one single home game. That means the Jaguar faithful could miss half of all the team’s games. (Road games are not blacked out)...Keep Reading
Healthcare Debate Moves to Facebook Status Updates
By Marc Smith - September 3, 2009 4:00pm
“No one should die because they cannot afford health care, and no one should go broke because they get sick. If you agree, please post this as your status for the rest of the day.”
I just saw this on Facebook. One of my friends posted it as his status. I did not update my status with the same message. It is interesting how this healthcare debate is going. I personally think this is an enormously complex issue that cannot be argued in 35-word status updates on Facebook...Keep Reading