Advice to Santorum

Poll: Santorum’s Pennsylvania Lead Vanishes.

Excerpt:

Support for Rick Santorum in Pennsylvania is crumbling, according to a new Franklin and Marshall College Poll of the state he represented in Congress for 16 years.

Mr. Santorum, is statistically tied with Mitt Romney in the poll with a 30% to 28% lead, within the poll’s margin of error.

Ron Paul and Newt Gingrich came in with 9% and 6% respectively.

By contrast, the college’s February poll found Mr. Santorum with a commanding 45%-16% lead over the former Massachusetts governor.

The landscape changed significantly during the last month as support for Mr. Santorum has been dropping nationally, but Mr. Santorum has been banking on Pennsylvania’s April 24 primary to help keep his candidacy viable.

Comment: Advice to Santorum ... bow out after Wisconsin (April 3rd).

Santorum as Mitt's VP?

David Brody’s interview with Rick Santorum

 Excerpt:

David Brody: If he for some reason asks you to be the vice presidential candidate on his ticket? I know, after is all said and done. Would you even consider it?

Rick Santorum: Of course. I mean, look. I would do in this race as I always say, this is the most important race in our country’s history. I’m going to do everything I can. I’m doing everything I can.

Comment: Like when hell freezes over!

"Continuance for dismissal" - Paying for a break

Some drivers find that cash can make the ticket go away

 Excerpt:

In Hennepin County, most cities allow qualified drivers to get a deal, called a continuance for dismissal, simply by going to the courthouse and getting the OK from a hearing officer. The ticket's fines and fees are dismissed and replaced by "prosecution costs" which go entirely to the city, along with a state surcharge. The total bill can run as high as $325 in some cities, far above the $145 or so that the speeding ticket would have cost.

If the driver doesn't violate traffic laws for a specified amount of time -- often a year -- the ticket is dismissed. If the driver is convicted, both tickets will appear on the record.

Prosecutors who issue the deals say they are giving relatively law-abiding drivers a break and encouraging them to drive with care in the future.

Each city sets its own parameters for which speeding situations qualify for a continuance. Many require that there was no accident, that the driver cooperated with police and wasn't going more than 15 or 20 miles per hour over the limit.

Minnetonka prosecutor Rolf Sponheim called it a compromise; motorists have to pay more while the city is "compromising our goal of having the person's driving record reflect their driving conduct."

Attorney Steve Tallen, a long-time prosecutor for several cities in Hennepin County, makes no apologies for charging prosecution costs of $250 in speeding cases.

Comment: Interesting. More on here.  I still have not been charged with anything. It's been 3 months!

Low income housing at $ 392,000 per unit

$100 million in flour power to transform Pillsbury A-Mill

 Excerpt:

More than 130 years after the Mississippi River was diverted to power the Pillsbury A-Mill, it continues to flow beneath the building -- its dull roar a constant reminder that this landmark helped make Minneapolis the flour capital of the world.

The mill stopped operating a decade ago, but the building is largely unchanged. Gaping holes in the floors mark where there were once grain chutes. Broken window panes reveal stunning views of downtown Minneapolis and St. Anthony Falls. In the disheveled offices, there's unopened mail and a pair of reading glasses on a desk, as though the people who once worked at the mill are just away on break.

Now, a robust rental market and an ambitious plan from a local developer could mean new life for the site. Dominium Co. plans to convert the complex into 255 rental apartments for low-income artists, including studios and performance spaces. The project will cost more than $100 million, making it one of the most expensive residential construction projects on the books in the Twin Cities.

"This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to save this place," said Owen Metz, senior development associate for Dominium. "It's going to be an amazing project."

Comment: Of course the only way this could be financed is with state and federal government funds. Have to be a poor artist to live there! More on the A Mill here

Best ... Worst

Looking at the old portfolio today:

• Worst stock: Pitney Bowes - PBI down 21.5% (since 06/18/2010)
• Best stock: CenterPoint Energy - CNP up 45.5% (since 05/24/2010)
• Middling stock: PowerShares High Yield Dividend (PEY) (ETF) no change (but have only had it for 1 month)

You never know with these things! Chart (image above)

After-Manning-Shock

Jets trade backup QB Drew Stanton to Colts

 Excerpt:

Drew Stanton, the Jets backup quarterback who grew upset with the team when Tim Tebow joined the depth chart, has been traded to the Indianapolis Colts, the Jets announced Friday. The Jets get a sixth-round pick in April's draft in exchange for Stanton and a seventh rounder -- one of the picks acquired from Denver in the trade for Tebow.

Comment: Manning to Broncos .. Tebow to Jets ... Stanton to Colts

"Maybe the copy key got stuck on the presidential speechwriter's keyboard."

  Danish TV Host Mocks Obama for His Rhetoric

Santorum shills for Ohio Art

Etch A Sketch sales jump 1500%

 Excerpt:

Mitt Romney's presidential hopes may have been shaken up when an aide compared his campaign to an "Etch A Sketch" toy, but the publicity blitz has been a delightful surprise for the U.S. makers of the well-known erasable children's art tablet.

Ohio Art, the low-key, family-run company that has made "Etch A Sketch" for half a century, saw its sales of the toy soar to 1,556 on Amazon.com within 24 hours of the gaffe. The company's thinly traded stock more than doubled, to $9.65.

Comment: I had an Etch A Sketch back in the sixties. The most I accomplished was to erase the entire screen to figure out how it worked. Ohio Art. Seriously Rick, it's time to wrap things up! I didn't know Ohio Art was publicly traded (as OART.PK)

Cincy & Ohio State

Cincy & Ohio State

Excerpt:

I don’t know if I’m the first to say this, but I believe it with all of my heart: No. 6 Cincinnati is going to have a very, very good chance of beating No. 2 Ohio State in the Sweet 16 on Thursday night in Boston for the same reason that Kentucky beat Ohio State last season in the Sweet 16. (I had that upset in my bracket, no big deal.)

Comment: My Alma Mater (Cincy). I think the game starts late (like 9 ish Central) but will try to watch (until Mr Sandman visits)

Preview: ObamaCare before the Supremes

The Supreme Court Weighs ObamaCare

WSJ article - 1st paragraph:

On Monday, the Supreme Court will begin an extraordinary three-day hearing on the constitutionality of ObamaCare. At stake are the Constitution's structural guarantees of individual liberty, which limit governmental power and ensure political accountability by dividing that power between federal and state authorities. Upholding ObamaCare would destroy this dual-sovereignty system, the most distinctive feature of American constitutionalism.

Comment: So much at stake!

Why my son peed on me

Study Finds Newborn Infants Can Tell If Parents Are Losers

Joe Mayo

Joe Mayo

 Comment: Just found this .... funny! I completely forgot that quote.

Don't be an investing "muppet"

How to avoid becoming a Wall Street muppet

Excerpt:

With three layers of agents, everyone has their hand in your pocket. That’s what defines a muppet! Here are three ways to reduce agency risk:

1. RIA vs. broker: Do you know the difference between a registered investment adviser (RIA) and a broker? They are as distinct as chiropractors are to orthopedic surgeons. RIAs are regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission and are not allowed to earn fees from any source other than you. Conversely, brokers can be paid in many ways that you don’t see. Spend some time learning this critical difference. While you are at it, search the term “breakaway brokers” and learn why brokers are leaving their firms in droves to start up RIA firms so they can operate with less conflict.
2. Index funds vs. actively managed funds: Most investors don’t know the difference between an index fund and an actively managed fund. If you are one of them, do some homework. With an index fund or exchange-traded fund, you can save on fees and replace fund managers with computers that buy every stock in a particular market. Performance? The statistics are indisputable — owning active funds is an expensive loser’s game. That’s one reason why Vanguard Group, which created index funds, is now the largest money manager in the world with $1.75 trillion.
3. Clearing brokers: Where your money is located is a critical decision. Make sure that your money is held by what is called a “clearing broker,” like Charles Schwab or Fidelity Investments — not your local independent broker dealer. Clearing brokers are much more regulated and plugged into what is called the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTC). This dramatically lowers the risk of fraud and helps insure that no one but you can move money out of your account.

Enjoy watching the Muppets; don’t become one. Having your own account at well-known firms such as Schwab and Fidelity, with an independent adviser (not a broker) buying you a portfolio of index funds, means you’re investing with fewer strings attached.

Comments:

• This is hard to do (if you like the person) but fire the weath advisor. They can take between 1-2% off the top every year.
• If you can't invest in stocks (or bonds) ... use ETFs. I found this book to be very helpful: The ETF Book: All You Need to Know About Exchange-Traded Funds
• We have all of our investments at Wells Fargo. (our "clearing broker") (point 3 above)
• Read, read read about investing. Money magazine is very helpful. As is the Wall Street Journal and Yahoo Finance
• Diversify, diversify, diversify!
• Don't get emotionally attached to your investments (although we did buy MMM because our daughter works there!
• Regularly invest and save. We started way too late (20 years ago). Start early!

Hard to beat "Gas" engines

Leaf, Yaris, Cruze Compare

My dear Mother just gave up driving (she's almost 92) and sold her 2007 Toyoto Yaris.

What a deal the buyer got on her Yaris .... just 11,000 miles. We thought about buying it ourselves but it would have involved flying to Dallas and driving it back so we did not!

Her Yaris got me thinking about the Leaf. We've had a reservation in for a Leaf for several years. Well we got the call that we could buy one in Minneapolis. I declined and got a refund on my reservation fee.

Mom's Yaris was certainly nothing fancy but the Yaris is a well-built car that would be perfect for driving around town. I'm a big, tall, handicapped guy and I could get in and out of Mom's Yaris.

I used the Microsoft auto site (link above) to compare and contrast the Leaf, the Yaris and the Chevy Cruze.

As cool as electric will be someday ... it's hard to beat "gas".

Fat Lady tuning up

Illinois

Illinois - a Romney win?

In Illinois, Santorum’s Chance at Nomination Is Slipping Away

 Excerpt:

Illinois had appeared to offer Mr. Santorum a chance at a breakthrough. Instead, unless the polls are very wrong, it may represent a breakthrough of sorts for Mr. Romney – by far his biggest delegate grab and margin of victory in a Midwestern state so far. If Mr. Romney wins Illinois by that margin, it will take the political equivalent of the Bartman ball to cost him the nomination.

Comment: Santorum keeps calling Romney a weak candidate but if that's so he's weaker!

Ancient negative political ad: "he disgraced himself by going down to the market and buying a girl to be his sex slave."

Campaign tips

Excerpts:

1. Promise everything to everyone. .... tell them what they want to hear
2. Call in all favors. If you have helped friends or associates in the past, let them know that it's payback time
3. Know your opponent's weaknesses—and exploit them.
4. Flatter voters shamelessly. ... A candidate must make voters believe that he thinks they're important. Shake their hands, look them in the eye, listen to their problems.
5. Give people hope.

Comment: BC political advice. Some things never change. Post title:

Quintus practically invented opposition research: "Consider Antonius, who once had his property confiscated for debt…then after he was elected as praetor, he disgraced himself by going down to the market and buying a girl to be his sex slave." A winning candidate calmly assesses his opponent and then focuses relentlessly on his weaknesses, all the while trying to distract voters from his strengths.

More on Cicero

Battle of the Alma maters

No. 3 Florida State vs. No. 6 Cincinnati

Kathee: FSU '73
Jim: UC '71

I don't think Kathee really cares. But we will be watching

TREFIS analyzes MSFT

TREFIS analyzes MSFT

 Comment: With INTC one of my favorite stocks

JPM or WFC?

Bank Dividends are Rising, so Which is Better: JPMorgan or Wells Fargo?

 Excerpt:

But sometimes, unassuming can mask an inner strength. Firstly, Wells Fargo plans to hike its dividend by 83% to 22 cents a share per quarter, compared with a mere 20% rise for JPMorgan to 30 cents a share.

Secondly, for investors looking to stocks for income, the steadiness of Wells Fargo’s business is more comforting than the sometimes-erratic nature of JPMorgan’s exposure to investment banking. Both suffered some wackiness during the recession, but remove that period from the chart below and Wells Fargo demonstrates a continuous, steady rise in net income. Kind of looks like a utility, say PPL Corp. (PPL).

Comment: The two best large banks. Good stocks for investors. Image