Some economists have argued that American drive is based on the principle of “the sky is the limit.” This is what motivates us to do our best so as to climb the corporate ladder all the way to the top. Break the glass ceiling, we urge our female counterparts, and you, too, can be the [...]
Continue reading …As the 10 Days of Atonement are here, a time of reflection and stock-taking, a seasonal turning point that encourages revisiting ideas and habits alike, I want to share my sense of the value of business partnerships. My late accountant Sam Huff used to tell me the problem with partnerships is that when they succeed, [...]
Continue reading …It was a sad day when Chinook closed its doors in 2004. Since 1959, it was a fixture on North Tejon Street, with Dick and Judy Noyes and their staff taking care of us. They knew the classics and the latest trends; they knew our family; they had a play area for kids and book [...]
Continue reading …Having watched the first Republican panel of presidential contenders, it seemed that an evil villain is running our country. They might have been talking about Syria’s Assad who “must go,” as they chanted about our own President. What happened to civility in public discourse? Think about growing up in a so-called typical American family. As [...]
Continue reading …We’ve heard enough of the slogan “Too Big To Fail.” For some it was an excuse for government handouts; for others, it was a symbol of the corrupt relationship between regulators and those they regulate, benefitting undeserving mega-banks whose leaders are compensated more that than their institutions pay in taxes. Was it justified after the [...]
Continue reading …Perhaps soon enough we’d be in a position promised to Jeremiah (and repeated in Ezekiel) that the proverb “Parents have eaten sour grapes and children’s teeth are blunted” shall be replaced by an appreciation that everyone shall pay for his or her own sins. Unfortunately, we are not there yet. The housing bubble with its [...]
Continue reading …All too often we come across something that just doesn’t make sense. We look at something and wonder, really? Is it inconsistency, blindness, or hypocrisy? My observations are random without any priority to one phenomenon over another. We have compassion for homeless people, trying our best not to judge their choice to live under a [...]
Continue reading …It made sense two centuries ago to describe the theories and practices of the world of finance as political economy. Politics, as we have just seen in the past couple of months, play just as important a role in the economy as economic factors, such as employment and interest rates. When discord dominates the halls [...]
Continue reading …When I purchased an old Victorian house in 1986 in the ritzy, historic Old North End neighborhood, the county assessor — or his agent — showed up. He looked around and then announced that my annual real-estate taxes would be increased to about $700. That’s all? I asked in amazement. Perhaps it should be more, [...]
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