Economy and Business
Smashing the Austerity Idols
I’d like to apologize to the people of Greece. I’ve been pretty hard on them over the years. I’ve made fun of their freewheeling spendthrift habits, their unwillingness to pay their taxes, and their early retirement ethos. When they were given membership in the Euro...
$248 a Minute
Florida’s Disney World bills itself "the happiest place on Earth." But last year, some Disney World employees made so little they became homeless. Meanwhile, Disney paid CEO Robert Iger $46.5 million. That amounts to a stunning $248 a minute if he works 60 hours a...
Why Won’t Greece Take a Deal?
Greece is in dire straits. As a Greek American, it hurts to watch. Without emergency loans from its European partners, Greece will default on its debts and likely be forced out of the Eurozone. That means tougher times ahead for Greece, Europe, and international...
Putting ‘Independence’ Back in Independence Day
When we fire up the grill on the Fourth of July, few of us take time to consider what "independence" is all about. We live in the land of liberty. We celebrate freedom. But independence? The Declaration of Independence, approved by Congress on July 4, 1776, stated the...
How Would Francis Invest?
When Pope Francis unveiled his letter to the world about how we must stop trashing the planet, he nearly broke the Internet. The pithy document included hundreds of zingers, including this line: “Whatever is fragile, like the environment, is defenseless before the...
Paying the Pink Tax
You probably think you know about all the taxes you pay. Income taxes, property taxes, sales taxes — it seems like the list is endless. But there’s one tax I’ve been paying for most of my life that you might not know about. If you’re a woman, chances are you’re paying...
Nabbing Financial Felons
Big news from that razzle-dazzle place I call "El Casino Grande" — otherwise known as Wall Street. Four massive financial conglomerates — JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Barclays, and the Royal Bank of Scotland — have been busted for engaging in a criminal conspiracy to...
Tightening Whose Belt?
Listening to so-called fiscal conservatives like Representatives Kevin Brady and Mike Kelly, you’d think we were in a desperate fight for survival, with the national debt threatening our future. "I cannot in good conscience support adding more debt to the backs of our...
Not-So-Special Delivery
When a big-name retailer finds its sales in a slow downward spiral, the geniuses in the executive suite often try to keep their profits up by cheapening their product and delivering less to customers. To see how well this strategy works, look no further than the...
No Taxpayer Dollars for the ‘Bank of Boeing’
Have you heard of the Export-Import Bank? It’s little-known yet high on the list of special-interest priorities these days. Created in 1934, this government agency loans money to foreign buyers of American products and gives U.S. exporters loan guarantees. It also...
