[daniel200]

Originally Posted by Aces4

Avocados can be grown in Hawaii, California and Florida.

Blueberries can be grown in Washington, Oregon, Georgia, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, California, and Florida.

Strawberries can be grown in fresh strawberries are primarily grown in California (roughly 90 percent annually) and Florida (about 8 percent), followed by New York, North Carolina, Oregon, and Washington and many other states seasonally.

True, they can be grown in the states and then rot on the vine as the fruit pickers leave the USA. It is similar with eggs. All the large corporate “egg factories” in the USA depend on immigrant labor. Same with the beef and pork processing plants.

[jimjamuser]

Originally Posted by Aces4

Could this possibly be your impression of money projected on the rich? Seriously, the wealthy people of whom I am aware are full steam ahead for education and often gifts are awarded to schools through them.

The people you are profiling for wealth sound as though they are scrambling to make ends meet and taxes make them sweat.

The upper 10 % do NOT do things for money per se, but mostly for POWER and bragging rights. Some keep working because they like the challenge. Warren Buffet could have quit long ago.

[jimjamuser]

Originally Posted by Aces4

Could this possibly be your impression of money projected on the rich? Seriously, the wealthy people of whom I am aware are full steam ahead for education and often gifts are awarded to schools through them.

The people you are profiling for wealth sound as though they are scrambling to make ends meet and taxes make them sweat.

If wealthy people are so interested in education, then why do they put people on school boards purposely to keep the school property tax DOWN. It is that way in DeSoto County, Fl. "taxes make them sweat" ? They don't because they have CONTROLLED the tax brackets to be very low for themselves.

[jimjamuser]

Originally Posted by daniel200

True, they can be grown in the states and then rot on the vine as the fruit pickers leave the USA. It is similar with eggs. All the large corporate “egg factories” in the USA depend on immigrant labor. Same with the beef and pork processing plants.

That is true, but is it RIGHT to bring in illegals to RUIN a country just for the GREED of few owners. There should be ZERO jobs for ILLEGALS. Pay US workers enough for them to work, let them be unionized to protect their HEALTH. If employers need to have slave- laborers, that is their problem. They should get into another business. Their children go to schools and clog up already overcrowded classrooms and they have no health records or immunizations. It is just a bad disgusting system that brings down America. And all for GREED.

[MorTech]

What if Latvia triggers a NATO Article 5 event...What are YOU going to do?
USA has no obligation to NATO....NONE!
It ain't 1990 anymore.

[Pballer]

Originally Posted by jimjamuser

That is true, but is it RIGHT to bring in illegals to RUIN a country just for the GREED of few owners. There should be ZERO jobs for ILLEGALS. Pay US workers enough for them to work, let them be unionized to protect their HEALTH. If employers need to have slave- laborers, that is their problem. They should get into another business. Their children go to schools and clog up already overcrowded classrooms and they have no health records or immunizations. It is just a bad disgusting system that brings down America. And all for GREED.

Or do what Florida wants to do - let teenagers work as much as they want on school days for crappy wages to make up for the expulsion of illegal workers; if they are too tired to get an education no big deal, this is Florida after all.

[MorTech]

I worked at a UAW shop first job out of college. I will never knowingly buy anything made in a USA Union shop. I will pay the tariff. There are plenty of other productive competitors in Southeast Asia coming alive now to displace China. They were first to want to negotiate a low tariff deal.

[MorTech]

Again...China and Russia are NOT our enemies - They're our rivals...The City of London/Brussels/Ottawa are the enemy. This was made obvious for all to see with these tariff threats. The China tariff retaliation was more about saving face and Xi's political survival at home. People are so gaslit by the manipulating parasites on television that they can't think rationally.

Pax Americana is the ultimate goal...And it is GOOD! The individual is sovereign over the government. Eliminate worldwide Fascist National Mercantilism and create one global free market with one language (English) and one common medium of exchange (USD) and Bitcoin. Global wealth and peace will flourish. This has been the dream of The Illuminati...1776 was a great year for human individual freedom! The Illuminati/Deceleration of Independence/Wealth of Nations all in 1776.

[Aces4]

Originally Posted by jimjamuser

The upper 10 % do NOT do things for money per se, but mostly for POWER and bragging rights. Some keep working because they like the challenge. Warren Buffet could have quit long ago.

If one is sure "the rich", whatever amount of money that means to one, are so vile why does one stay?

It appears to be very important to some to level everything to nothing and live a programmed life. There are countries available in this world to where they can move and life their perfect life. I suggest they should pack and move on, they will never be happy with the American lifestyle. They need suppression in their life and everything squat level. Easy peasy solution and good for their health perhaps if they don't have to worry about their prejudices all the time.

[Boomer]

Originally Posted by golfing eagles

That's all well and fine, but my tendency is to listen to my senior VP of wealth management at Merrill Lynch and not the "talking heads" on TV and the internet

Originally Posted by golfing eagles

EXCEPT——When that advisor is also a long time personal friend and pretty much does the same with his own money as he does with mine

Hey, ge,

All I did was suggest a couple of general listens. No need for you to take umbrage. So a big bank’s advisor is your friend. Whatever makes you happy with your investments is certainly no concern of mine. But why be condescending?

Full disclosure from me:

I admit that I do not have a soft spot for your friend’s firm. As previously stated somewhere in this meandering thread, I am not a fan of big banks — and BAC acquired that firm for their advisory. Are BAC and its stockholders in line to be paid from advisors’ sales?

Yes, I said, “sales,” but that does not always mean what we usually think of as sales commissions on annuities or other insurance policies. I am referring to expense ratios on funds.

Expense ratios along with AUM fees go on even when the investor is not making money. (said Boomer, stating the obvious)

All financial advisors are in sales. Successful salespeople tend their relationships. I will resist asking if your friend was your friend before you were courted by his firm.

My other bias when It comes to advisors, in general, is that I would prefer an arms-length, professional relationship. That way, if breaking up becomes necessary, it is not hard to do.

A friend of mine has his money with his nephew. The friend was always bragging about his nephew’s lifestyle. When QCDs first became an ongoing thing in tax law, his nephew told him he could put his money in a DAF and not have to include it in his AGI.

In a string of emails, my friend kept insisting his “brilliant” rich nephew was right. Finally, I got an email that said, “Thank you for being so persistent.”

Yeah, I saved him from a big tax mistake. It took him a while to listen to me though. I have no doubt it was because I am a woman. Women talking about investments seems to bother certain types of guys.

Boomer

[jimjamuser]

Originally Posted by MorTech

What if Latvia triggers a NATO Article 5 event...What are YOU going to do?
USA has no obligation to NATO....NONE!
It ain't 1990 anymore.

Yes the US IS still a member of NATO and is therefore BOUND by Article 5 which states that an attack on ONE member is considered an attack on all. Note - there are currently 30 member countries of NATO.

[CoachKandSportsguy]

Originally Posted by Boomer

Yeah, I saved him from a big tax mistake. It took him a while to listen to me though. I have no doubt it was because I am a woman. Women talking about investments seems to bother certain types of guys.

Boomer

maybe being a woman, maybe not. maybe other factors like professional bias, education bias, expert bias, success bias, maybe not.

Our financial advisor at Fidelity is a woman, and she and I can sit there and talk for hours about markets. She and I grew up very similarly as far as education, athletics and interests. Never knew her until three years ago, but she went to a nearby school which we occasionally competed against, same with our kids. . I disagreed with her about the fidelity outlook for the rest of the year. . we will see who is right, so far I am , but there is a long way to go before the end of the year. .

Most financial plans work, until they don't. . . same with most every plan conceived. .

good luck all, most of us will need it. .

[jimjamuser]

Originally Posted by Aces4

If one is sure "the rich", whatever amount of money that means to one, are so vile why does one stay?

It appears to be very important to some to level everything to nothing and live a programmed life. There are countries available in this world to where they can move and life their perfect life. I suggest they should pack and move on, they will never be happy with the American lifestyle. They need suppression in their life and everything squat level. Easy peasy solution and good for their health perhaps if they don't have to worry about their prejudices all the time.

I would define "the rich"as the upper 30% in the US. I had trouble understanding the last paragraph in that post?

[jimjamuser]

Originally Posted by Boomer

Hey, ge,

All I did was suggest a couple of general listens. No need for you to take umbrage. So a big bank’s advisor is your friend. Whatever makes you happy with your investments is certainly no concern of mine. But why be condescending?

Full disclosure from me:

I admit that I do not have a soft spot for your friend’s firm. As previously stated somewhere in this meandering thread, I am not a fan of big banks — and BAC acquired that firm for their advisory. Are BAC and its stockholders in line to be paid from advisors’ sales?

Yes, I said, “sales,” but that does not always mean what we usually think of as sales commissions on annuities or other insurance policies. I am referring to expense ratios on funds.

Expense ratios along with AUM fees go on even when the investor is not making money. (said Boomer, stating the obvious)

All financial advisors are in sales. Successful salespeople tend their relationships. I will resist asking if your friend was your friend before you were courted by his firm.

My other bias when It comes to advisors, in general, is that I would prefer an arms-length, professional relationship. That way, if breaking up becomes necessary, it is not hard to do.

A friend of mine has his money with his nephew. The friend was always bragging about his nephew’s lifestyle. When QCDs first became an ongoing thing in tax law, his nephew told him he could put his money in a DAF and not have to include it in his AGI.

In a string of emails, my friend kept insisting his “brilliant” rich nephew was right. Finally, I got an email that said, “Thank you for being so persistent.”

Yeah, I saved him from a big tax mistake. It took him a while to listen to me though. I have no doubt it was because I am a woman. Women talking about investments seems to bother certain types of guys.

Boomer

You go........WOMAN. But I have one small extraneous question-----who is Pogo and why are they right?

[fdpaq0580]

Originally Posted by jimjamuser

Yes the US IS still a member of NATO and is therefore BOUND by Article 5 which states that an attack on ONE member is considered an attack on all. Note - there are currently 30 member countries of NATO.

Tes, assuming that the "leadership" is honorable, honest, law abiding, ethical, truthful, willing to serve and due their duty under said agreement.
Currently, I'm not so sure that is the case. Sadly!