Friday, August 15, 2014

Boycott tax evaders?

UK consumers move Starbucks HQ over tax evasion
Starbucks has moved from its tax haven to London after consumer’s protests. Starbucks will move its tax base from the Netherlands to London in an attempt to banish its ‘immoral’ image. Accountant Richard Murphy said: ‘They are not paying any more tax, just paying more tax here. I don’t think they would have made the move if there wasn’t an overall tax advantage as well.’ Starbucks has said it will pay more tax in the UK as it moves its European headquarters here from the Netherlands following a row over tax avoidance.
Can protests move it back to the US?
 

Dem crazies
Dick Durbin, senior senator IL said he has written to Hospira Inc and urged the drug and medical device maker not to move its tax domicile abroad to save on U.S. taxes.
Citing recent reports that Hospira plans to buy the medical nutrition unit of France's Danone SA, Dick Durbin said in a statement he told Chief Executive Officer Michael Ball that Hospira should not "turn its back on American taxpayers and consumers by taking advantage of a tax loophole called 'inversion.'" The statement from the No. 2 Democrat in the Senate came amid growing concern in Washington with inversion transactions, which allow U.S. corporations to shift their tax home-base to a different country and cut their U.S. tax bills. "I strongly urge you and the board of directors not to move your company’s headquarters overseas, since a significant portion of Hospira’s revenue comes from U.S. taxpayers and depends on U.S. taxpayer-funded support."
Of 52 inversions and similar deals done since 1983, 22 have occurred just since 2008, with 10 more being finalized and many more said to be in the works.



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Brokers targeting low-cost federal employee investment plans
Federal employees are a tempting target for financial companies. To supplement their traditional pensions, they participate in the Thrift Savings Plan, the largest 401(k)-type plan in the U.S. It oversees $418 billion for 4.6 million current and former federal employees, including the armed forces, park rangers, FBI agents and members of Congress. As in a 401(k), an employee sets aside money in a menu of mutual funds that isn’t taxed until withdrawal. Benefiting from economies of scale, the Thrift Savings Plan offers funds far cheaper than most 401(k)s. Its average fee is .029 percent -- or 29 cents per $1,000 invested vs 1.4%. The average 401(k) plan participant pays about 20 times as much for a stock mutual fund, according to a July study by the Investment Company Institute, a Washington-based mutual-fund trade group.
Don’t be deceived—low-fee beat high-fee investments: http://www.amazon.com/Unbiased-Advisors-Network-helps-tax-FREE/dp/1470106841


Credit score may double your premium
Homeowners with poor credit pay 91% more for homeowner's insurance than people with excellent credit, according to insuranceQuotes.com. Homeowners with median credit pay 29% more than those with excellent credit. People with poor credit pay at least twice as much as people with excellent credit in 37 states and Washington, D.C. West Virginia's 208% increase is the highest in the nation, followed by Virginia (186%), Ohio (185%) and Washington, D.C. (182%). The greatest differences between excellent and median credit were observed in Montana (65%), Washington, D.C. (60%) and Arizona (55%). "This is another example of why credit is such an important part of your financial life," said Laura Adams, senior analyst, insuranceQuotes.com. "Maintaining a good credit history suggests that you're a less risky customer and can lead to several hundred dollars in annual homeowner's insurance savings."

Long-term care insurance buyers paying more
The average buyer of LTC coverage is younger than ever before—aged 53. The insurers noticed that they preferred younger clients with a longer "runway" of premiums on average. The LTC Tree study also found that decline rates for those ages 65+ are 220% higher than decline rates for those ages 45-55—younger people are healthier. This means insurers are capturing younger people who will have to pay premiums for an average of 30 years before only 4% of them become an expense. Insurers have a longer income stream ($2000 premium for 30 years) and larger reserves of $500,000+. Consider creating your own reserve: http://www.amazon.com/Long-term-Care-Insurance-better-alternatives/dp/147006877X/



ObamaCare II
Large employers are required to provide affordable coverage beginning in 2015 or potentially face penalties. For 2014, the definition of affordability was set at 9.5% of the employee's income. Some employers will be fined if they do not offer insurance at rates their employees can handle.

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SCAMS           Why are we still paying $700 Billion a year for WWII deployments?
We are paying for 164,253 of our active-duty armed personnel to be in 150 countries around the world. We have about 50,000 in Japan and 50,000 in Germany.
Are we preparing for WWII again? There are 1,208,083[1] armed personnel in the United States. Our taxes pay for about HALF of the WORLD’s military expenditures every year. We have wasted $398.6 billion so far on the F-35 program—they can’t fly safely.
We just can’t afford to pay for everyone else’s defenses anymore.
Japan, Germany and S. Korea can pay for their own defenses.



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