American Madness

Do you ever feel poor? Like you are just scraping together enough money each month to barely make it by?

Well, now you can see where you rank in terms of world salaries or as they put it on the GlobalRichList:

Every year we gaze enviously at the lists of the richest people in world.
Wondering what it would be like to have that sort of cash. But where
would you sit on one of those lists? Here’s your chance to find out.

Just plug in your salary (it even adjusts for Yen, Pounds, US Dollars, Canadian Dollars and Euros) and they will tell you where you where your slary falls in terms of others in the world.

Little tidbits like “Did you know MIcrosfot CEO Bill Gates has more wealth than the bottom 45 percent of American Households combined.”

Once you see where you sit on the Global Rich List you may be inclined to make a donation to a charity to help those less fortunate (and trust me, there are probably a few people less fortunate than you)
and they have it all set up for you to do so right on the website. Pretty convenient.

Yesterday’s Senate hearing on commodities (Real Player).

Well, at least if you are in the Netherlands.

Apparently, as the value of the dollar drops (and the Euro inflates) some small currency exchange locations in Amsterdam will no longer accept US Dollars since their value is dropping at such an alarming rate. The exchanges are concerned that if the make a currency exchange, by the time they try to sell their dollars they will be worth even less then they are already worth.

Now, since currency rates change on an hourly basis there are some built in safe guards for such problems, they create a spread so that if you sell currency at an accepted rate you won’t be losing money on it. The US dollar is currently dropping faster then the spread will cover. To get a better understanding of the currency exchange market, check out the Wikipedia entry and try and get through all of it. I wish you luck in your endeavor.

But on the bright side… Um, doesn’t Washington look happy dancing with the dollar bill?

In the great tradition of the conquered, much as the French built the Maginot line to protect themselves from a World War I offensive, the U.S. Government has come out with suggestions for how we can best prepare for the last economic war.

“A mortgage broker would be required by law to act in the borrower’s best interest, not his or her own interest,” suggests Uncle Sam. The only problem with this suggestion is that it would create a fiduciary relationship between the Broker and the prospective Borrower. Such a relationship would be anathema to the mortgage industry. (more…)

Filled with insight, and a joy to read!

As we enter the holiday season folks are opening their wallets for many reasons, usually to buy a gift for some one. well here is an idea, give the gift of charity… I know it sounds hokey and all, but this really is the time of year when folks consider giving to charities and good causes.

There are the typical players like Oxfam, UNICEF, Sierra Club and of course, the Salvation Army. Then there are some new projects working on raising money or doing good.

DonorsChoice allows you to donate money to fund the needs of public schools. You can even look for what public schools in your area need and provide a donation to help fund those specific items.

Heifer International is a growing organization that, based on your donation, gives livestock to families in need, allowing them to produce their own eggs or milk. They’ve also expanded their initiatives and have a full online catalogue for you to search through and decide which gift is right for you.

If you still want to give (or give as a gift), but none of those seem right for you check out Charity Watch, a site set up by the American Institute of Philanthropy which gives various charities grades based on a whole set of criteria.

If you are fed up with mass consumerism and think that the capitalist paradigm we live in is bringing about the destruction of the planet, maybe the shopping and sales on Black Friday are something you don’t want to participate in. Well then, how about Buy Nothing Day.

Buy Nothing day is the Friday after Thanksgiving and was created by Adbusters in order to create “a 24 hour moratorium on consumer spending - participate by not participating.” In a protest against mass-consumerism and consumption each year on Black Friday in the US (and the following day internationally). The concept isn’t just to protest one day of shopping but rather to change the way people shop, moving away from a culture of over indulgence indulgence and focusing on “starting a lasting lifestyle commitment to consuming less and producing less waste” (again thanks to Wikipedia).

So, your choice. Whether you rush out to the Black Friday Sales or support the Buy Nothing Day movement, enjoy your Friday.

You may have noticed the increased posting today and yesterday. This is because Josh and I have been building up a pile of posts here for those of you who plan on reading over the next two days while we are off enjoying our Thanksgiving dinners. Don’t expect much from the two of us on Thursday or Friday, but hopefully the 12 or so post that have already gone up this week will tide you over.

If not and you find yourself lost for something to do on Friday, there are always the infamous Black Friday Sales where some grandmother in Middle-America is bound to get trampled going for a $15 DVD player at Wal-mart.

For those of you up to actually attending the sales you can get a jump on them and map out your plan of attack using TGIBlackFriday, a website that has gotten its hands on some of the Black Friday circulars and has published its findings on their site. So, go now, check it out. Keep in mind though, according to Wikipedia: “‘Black Friday’ was originally so named because of the heavy traffic on that day, although most contemporary uses of the term refer instead to it as the beginning of the period in which retailers are in the black (i.e., turning a profit).” So you might be better lugging that new flat screen via public transportation rather then driving it home in your car.

In order to give Josh a hand I’ve whipped up a couple of posts to help him out along the way. Okay, so far that’s not true. In fact, I’ve only written this, but really, I blame Josh.

The time I had scheduled to write before my fleeing departure from the US was interrupted when Josh came over on Saturday. I would have typed up a few posts for him, but instead we went out to lunch and ate tasty Vietnamese sandwiches and discussed some of the weaker years that the Simpsons had on the air. So now, because I do feel pity for Josh, I have to take time out of my vacation to get his back and help him out with a post here and there this week. Here we go:

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Thrasher Funds is a mutual fund management company that that is choosing a different marketing ploy to connect with its potential investors.

Rather then targeting your traditional investor, they are looking for the non-traditional (shocking, I know) younger investor. Folks from the Gen-X and Gen-Y groups who are weary of the typical stuffed shirts down on Wall Street and don’t necessarily think that the folks at MErril Lynch hold the same values that they do.

The GendeX™ Mutual Fund was developed and is managed by young adult investors for young adult investors. A group of more than 60 million Gen X and Y’ers largely untapped by the financial market place…until now.

The idea is to capture younger investors who are typically ignored by the power brokers on Wall Street by making them aware of the benefits of investing at a younger age as well as targeting them through their interests and the mutual fund investments.

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