No, it’s not Vegas, and it’s certainly not Atlantic City or Biloxi … it’s Macau.
According to the WSJ:
The combined gambling revenue for all Macau’s casinos increased 80% to HK$80.6 billion between 2005 and 2007, making it bigger than Atlantic City and the Las Vegas Strip combined.
Source:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121901865070348277.html?mod=hps_us_inside_today
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Excerpted from Washington Post, “Five Ways to Wreck a Recovery”, by Amity Shlaes, August 18, 2008
Perverse monetary policy was the greatest cause of the Great Depression. But five non-monetary missteps were important in making the Depression great, and the same missteps damaged the global economy as well. While many are thinking about the Depression, few seem concerned about replicating these Foolish Five today:
The proximate danger today is a repeat of the 1970s, not the 1930s. But if lawmakers don’t remember the old missteps, they might find that their new recovery legislation imperils our recovery.
Amity Shlaes is the author of “The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression” and a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations.
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For full op-ed (worth reading):
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/17/AR2008081702079_pf.html
Thanks to Dave Fedlam, MBS-MBA ’09 for the heads-up
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Obama frequently rants that Warren Buffett’s tax rate is a bit under 18% — while Buffett’s $60,000 per year secretary has to pay 30%.
Among the ironies of the Obama plan – as “clarified” by Forman and Goolsbee – is that Buffett will still be paying a lower rate than his secretary.
By my math, Buffett’s effective rate will go up to about 22% (mostly due to the 5% bump in the capital gains rate) and his secretary’s rate will come down to 29% (courtesy of the $500 tax credit).
The gap closes, but the much ballyhooed injustice is still there.
Apparently the plan’s architects fired but missed one of their most conspicuous, self-declared targets.
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Excerpted from IBD, “Obama Moves In Right Direction On Taxes, Laurence Kudlow, August 15, 2008
Lo and behold, Team Obama is moving toward the supply side and pivoting toward the political center on key aspects of its tax policy.
And perhaps they are implicitly recognizing the likelihood that higher tax rates on cap-gains and dividends will generate lower revenues and a higher budget deficit.
Obama advisers … outlined a plan that would raise tax rates on capital gains and dividends only from 15% to 20% for individuals making more than $200,000 and on family incomes above $250,000.
Before this, investors worried that Barack Obama would double the 15% tax rate on cap gains and bring the 15% rate on dividends back to 40%.
Nonetheless, the cost of capital would rise under Obama, and investment returns would decline by 11%. Uncle Sam will keep more and investors will retain less, all while the economy is languishing.
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Another glitch in the Obama plan is the difference between the $200,000 income limit for individuals and the $250,000 threshold for two-earner families.
If two singles each earning $200,000 get married, one will have to surrender over half of what he or she earns to the government.
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Full editorial:
http://www.ibdeditorials.com/IBDArticles.aspx?id=303692432142866
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