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Via allidoiswynn
(Source: oldqueersoul)
Who is the eccentric crocodile-hunting billionaire who kept the Santorum campaign alive?
“When Friess returned home to the United States, it was to a pursuit even more far-fetched than killing giant-crocodiles—trying to get Rick Santorum elected president. Friess is responsible for $331,000 of the $730,000 raised by Santorum’s Super PAC, the Red White and Blue Fund. He has also kicked in a third of the $150,000 raised by Leaders for Families, another pro-Santorum Super PAC. Friess has promised to keep the spigot open until the February 28 Michigan primary, if not beyond.
—Molly Redden, “Pac Man: An eccentric Republican billionaire contemplates his next move.”
Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
Must-read of the week: The Washington Post’s “Capital Assets” series
In case you haven’t seen this, the Post’s coverage of how members of Congress are directing spending to places where it benefits them personally is pretty impressive. Examples: Sen. Richard Shelby helped push more than $100 million in earmarks to help rebuild Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and much of that money went to nicen up an area directly around an office building he owns in the city, which has risen in property value as development has increased. (Watch the video; it syncs up with a map of Tuscaloosa.) He’s not alone. Congressmen around the country directly or indirectly benefited from millions in spending that, at the very least, might give them a nicer view around their property — or in other cases, benefited their family members. The Post did a lot of great work on this piece, and it shows. source
Shorter: Congress doing the same thing it’s been doing since 1789.
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The Giants won the Super Bowl, meaning Mayor Bloomberg won his friendly wager with Boston’s Mayor Tom Menino. One lucky New Yorker will win a “Super Trip” for four to Boston including:
- Four (4) roundtrip tickets on JetBlue
- A two-night stay at the Ritz Carlton
- Dinner for four (4) at Legal Seafoods Harborside
- Dinner for four (4) at the Top of the Hub restaurant
- Four (4) tickets to a performance at the Citi Performing Arts Center
- Four (4) box seats for either a Bruins or Celtics game at the TD Garden
- A behind-the-scenes-tour of the newly expanded Isabella Stewart Gardner museum
- A Duck Tour ride
- A VIP tour of the personal diaries of John Adams, which inspired the HBO series
- A VIP tour of the Samuel Adams Brewery in Jamaica Plain
- A photo with Mayor Menino
Click here to enter by 9:59 AM on Friday, February 10th. You can also enter by calling 311 or texting 311-692.
But how much income tax will Mr. Zuckerberg pay on the rest of his stock that he won’t immediately sell? He need not pay any. Instead, he can simply use his stock as collateral to borrow against his tremendous wealth and avoid all tax. That’s what Lawrence J. Ellison, the chief executive of Oracle, did. He reportedly borrowed more than a billion dollars against his Oracle shares and bought one of the most expensive yachts in the world.
If Mr. Zuckerberg never sells his shares, he can avoid all income tax and then, on his death, pass on his shares to his heirs. When they sell them, they will be taxed only on any appreciation in value since his death.
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“The evidence is not there,” said veteran Florida state Senator Mike Fasano, a Republican who was stripped of the chairmanship of the powerful Senate appropriations committee last week after he spoke out against the privatization bill. “There needs to be an in-depth study to tell us if it’s going to save money,” he added.
Critics remained unswayed by the privatization proposal.
“The overwhelming body of evidence on private prisons, including their history in Florida, shows that locking people away for profit is an invitation to abuse,” said Julie Ebenstein, policy and advocacy counsel with the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida.
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