The Only Way I Could Enter this Contest

Today I received an e-mail from Amazon.com attempting to tempt me into signing up for e-mail alerts regarding stuff I would want to buy.  In exchange, I would have the opportunity to win a $1000 gift card.  I checked out the Official Rules and found this troubling statement:


"How to Enter. You may enter the Sweepstakes beginning at 12:00:01 a.m. (PST) on April 15, 2010 and ending at 11:59:59 p.m. (PST) on May 31, 2010 (the "Sweepstakes Period")."

There's only one way I could enter this sweepstakes:

Vending Machine Economics

You must enlarge the photo to get the full story.

Why Doesn't This Ever Happen to Me?

Get Rich Buying Foreclosed Property

I'll be there when they auction off this beauty!

Buddy, Can You Spare $8Billion?

Harvard Hit by Loss As Crisis Spreads To Colleges

By John Hechinger and
Craig Karmin

912 words

4 December 2008

The Wall Street Journal

A1

English

(Copyright (c) 2008, Dow Jones & Company, Inc.)

Harvard University's endowment suffered investment losses of at least 22% in the first four months of the school's fiscal year, the latest evidence of the financial woes facing higher education.

The Harvard endowment, the biggest of any university, stood at $36.9 billion as of June 30, meaning the loss amounts to about $8 billion. That's more than the entire endowments of all but six colleges, according to the latest official tally.

Harvard said the actual loss could be even higher, once it factors in declines in hard-to-value assets such as real estate and private equity -- investments that have become increasingly popular among colleges. The university is planning for a 30% decline for the fiscal year ending in June 2009.

Nonprofit is not Necessarily Not Profitable

As I read of one financial disaster after another, it's comforting to know that my employer is doing just fine. Though not much trickles down into my paycheck, at least its wealth assures me that America's oldest corporation will be around to pay my pension.

April is the Cruelest Month...

But not for me, because I finished my taxes. This year Mass. introduced a tax on items bought out-of-state for in-state use. Of course I buy all kinds of stuff on the internet. Fortunately, Mass. gave us the option of paying a flat fee based on your income, if you didn't want to keep even more receipts. Did you know that you must even pay taxes on ill-gotten gains? So even if the feds can't prove you robbed the bank, they can nab you for not paying taxes on the take. Pay your taxes today!