Word cloud of the front page, from Tagxedo
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Brief update II (Afghan fauna)
Source: NatGeo
The July 24th, 2011 bog entry, 'Brief update (Afghan fauna)', linked to an Al Jazeera article reporting that the Wildlife Conservation Society had found "...a surprisingly healthy population of snow leopards... in northeastern Afghanistan’s Wakhan Corridor..."
Here are a couple of National Geographic articles with additional information and photos:
Random charts - mobile action codes
Source: Mobile Action Codes In Magazine Advertising 2011From Advertisers Drive Growth in Mags’ Use of Mobile Action Codes: "... Magazines’ use of mobile action codes, including all 2D barcodes, QR codes, Microsoft Tags, and watermarks, exploded in 2011, rising 439% from Q1 to Q4, according to [download page] a January 2012 study from Nellymoser. The total number of action codes in the top 100 US magazines by circulation jumped 64% quarter-over-quarter in Q4, rising from 1155 to 1189. November’s 681 action codes was the most of any month in 2011, up from 278 in July and 88 in January..."
Saturday, February 4, 2012
Random charts - Income and taxes
A number of charts re taxes:
Source: The Struggling Middle Class
Source: Table H-2. Share of Aggregate Income Received by Each Fifth and Top 5 Percent of Households
Source
Source: Summary of Latest Federal Individual Income Tax Data
Source: Misconceptions and Realities About Who Pays Taxes
And some articles:
Who Pays the Taxes in the USA ?
Class warfare: Who pays their fair share of taxes?
9 Things The Rich Don't Want You To Know About Taxes
By the Numbers: What the 47 Percent Who Pay No Income Tax Look Like
Millionaires Don't Pay Taxes? 1,470 of America's Richest Didn't, According to IRS
Aah, the sound and fury resulting from arguments and disagreements about taxes! Terms like "fair" and "unfair" are bandied around.... It's a very complex subject and you can 'slice and dice' the numbers many different ways. Be a little vague about exactly what you are quoting or comparing (when it comes to contrasting the rates and/or amounts paid by folks at different levels in the economy), and you can selectively "prove' almost any proposition... Is it magnitude or rates that you are citing, and when you talk about taxes are you referring to federal incomes taxes, all federal taxes (i.e. including payroll taxes, etc.), or the total tax burden (e.g. including state taxes)?
You also can throw in a little sleight of hand - talk about a certain level and then when it comes to making tax law changes you can "extend" your solution. Thus Warren Buffet in his famous editorial sets the stage by referencing the "super rich", penning 873 words about himself, the "top 400" and his "mega-rich" friends, then proposing increased taxes for those who have total incomes of less than 14% of what he pays in total federal taxes. Similarly, following all the talk of "millionaires" the tax rate increases proposed by the President kicked in at the individual level of $125,000 and the family level of $250,000!
The President and politicians of all stripes bemoan the state of the nation's tax laws that allow the various examples of "unfairness" that they like to point out. Every one of them act as if the tax code miraculously appeared out of the blue and that they had no role in its provenance, when in reality it is their creation. They shed tears about rich people and companies abusing the existing tax code at the same time that they propose the layering on of new changes encourage or discourage outcomes that they favor.
So President Obama in his latest State of the Union can decry "... loopholes and shelters in the tax code..." while simultaneously proposing to tweak the tax code a) to remove breaks for companies moving jobs and profits overseas, b) to redirect them to companies that insource jobs, c) to add a tax cut for manufacturers, which doubles if the company is in a high-tech sector, d) to include financing help for companies relocating to hard hit communities, e) to support retraining programs, f) to extend the tuition tax credit, g) to expand tax relief to small businesses that are raising wages and creating good jobs, h) to pass clean-energy tax credits, and so on...
As suggested on TaxVox "... We seem to have forgotten that the fundamental purpose of our tax system is to raise revenue to fund government. The current system is riddled with tax provisions that favor one activity over another or provide targeted tax benefits to a limited number of taxpayers. Whether permanent or temporary, these provisions create complexity, impose enormous compliance costs, breed perceptions of unfairness, create opportunities to manipulate rules to avoid tax, and lead to an inefficient use of our economic resources. The tax code has become less stable, increasingly unpredictable, and more and more difficult for taxpayers to understand..."
However, I'm not holding my breath...
And some articles:
Who Pays the Taxes in the USA ?
Class warfare: Who pays their fair share of taxes?
9 Things The Rich Don't Want You To Know About Taxes
By the Numbers: What the 47 Percent Who Pay No Income Tax Look Like
Millionaires Don't Pay Taxes? 1,470 of America's Richest Didn't, According to IRS
Aah, the sound and fury resulting from arguments and disagreements about taxes! Terms like "fair" and "unfair" are bandied around.... It's a very complex subject and you can 'slice and dice' the numbers many different ways. Be a little vague about exactly what you are quoting or comparing (when it comes to contrasting the rates and/or amounts paid by folks at different levels in the economy), and you can selectively "prove' almost any proposition... Is it magnitude or rates that you are citing, and when you talk about taxes are you referring to federal incomes taxes, all federal taxes (i.e. including payroll taxes, etc.), or the total tax burden (e.g. including state taxes)?
You also can throw in a little sleight of hand - talk about a certain level and then when it comes to making tax law changes you can "extend" your solution. Thus Warren Buffet in his famous editorial sets the stage by referencing the "super rich", penning 873 words about himself, the "top 400" and his "mega-rich" friends, then proposing increased taxes for those who have total incomes of less than 14% of what he pays in total federal taxes. Similarly, following all the talk of "millionaires" the tax rate increases proposed by the President kicked in at the individual level of $125,000 and the family level of $250,000!
The President and politicians of all stripes bemoan the state of the nation's tax laws that allow the various examples of "unfairness" that they like to point out. Every one of them act as if the tax code miraculously appeared out of the blue and that they had no role in its provenance, when in reality it is their creation. They shed tears about rich people and companies abusing the existing tax code at the same time that they propose the layering on of new changes encourage or discourage outcomes that they favor.
So President Obama in his latest State of the Union can decry "... loopholes and shelters in the tax code..." while simultaneously proposing to tweak the tax code a) to remove breaks for companies moving jobs and profits overseas, b) to redirect them to companies that insource jobs, c) to add a tax cut for manufacturers, which doubles if the company is in a high-tech sector, d) to include financing help for companies relocating to hard hit communities, e) to support retraining programs, f) to extend the tuition tax credit, g) to expand tax relief to small businesses that are raising wages and creating good jobs, h) to pass clean-energy tax credits, and so on...
As suggested on TaxVox "... We seem to have forgotten that the fundamental purpose of our tax system is to raise revenue to fund government. The current system is riddled with tax provisions that favor one activity over another or provide targeted tax benefits to a limited number of taxpayers. Whether permanent or temporary, these provisions create complexity, impose enormous compliance costs, breed perceptions of unfairness, create opportunities to manipulate rules to avoid tax, and lead to an inefficient use of our economic resources. The tax code has become less stable, increasingly unpredictable, and more and more difficult for taxpayers to understand..."
However, I'm not holding my breath...
Friday, February 3, 2012
Random charts - federal compensation
Source: Comparing the Compensation of Federal and Private-Sector EmployeesPoliticians (and others) have long argued whether federal employees are paid better, as well as, or worse than similar public sector employees. This CBO study looks at the questions, and concludes:
CBO combined its analyses of wages and benefits to assess differences between the federal government and
the private sector in total compensation for workers with certain similar observable characteristics:
the private sector in total compensation for workers with certain similar observable characteristics:
- Among people with a high school diploma or less education, total compensation costs were 36 percent higher, on average, for federal employees than for similar private-sector employees.
- Among people whose education ended in a bachelor’s degree, the cost of total compensation averaged 15 percent more for federal workers than for similar workers in the private sector.
- Among people with a professional degree or doctorate, by contrast, total compensation costs were 18 percent lower, on average, for federal employees than for private-sector employees with similar attributes.
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Random chart - Area C
- Over 60 percent of the West Bank is considered Area C, where Israel retains control over planning and zoning among other issues.
- An estimated 150,000 Palestinians live in Area C, including 27,500 Bedouin and other herders.
- More than 20% of communities in Area C have extremely limited access to health services.
- Water consumption dips to 20 litres/capita/day (l/c/d) in communities without water infrastructure, one-fifth of the World Health Organisation’s recommendation.
- Communities depending on tankered water pay up to 400% more for every liter than those connected to the water network.
- 70% of Area C is off-limits to Palestinian construction; 29% is heavily restricted.
- Less than 1% of Area C has been planned for Palestinian development by the Israeli Civil Administration.
- 560 Palestinian-owned structures were demolished, including 200 residential structures and 46 rainwater cisterns and pools , by the Israeli authorities in Area C in 2011.
- 1,006 people, including 565 children, lost their homes in 2011, over twice as many as in 2010.
- Over 3,000 demolition orders are outstanding, including 18 targeting schools.
- The planned expansion area of the around 135 Israeli settlements in Area C is 9 times larger than their built-up area. (B’Tselem).
- Approximately 300,000 settlers currently live in Area C.
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