“I’m Listening”
From 1993 through 2004, Kelsey Grammar became the highest-paid actor on television, playing the psychiatrist and radio host Frasier Crane in the critically-acclaimed sitcom Frasier. Every weekday at 2:00 PM, he took to his mic on Seattle’s KACL and opened his show with the soothing words, “Hello Seattle, I’m listening.” Invariably, hijinks ensued. (Little-known fact: […]
High Stakes
These days it seems like every time you open your laptop, some crypto-bro is philosophizing about the brave new world of cryptocurrency. Today it’s our turn to jump on that bandwagon. We’re not going to tackle the existential questions, like “is crypto really just astrology for libertarians?” We can’t tell you whether cryptocurrencies or their […]
Odds Are Good
Life is full of mysteries that we may never solve. Nature, or nurture? Growth, or value? “Tastes great,” or “less filling”? But last month, one fortunate gambler proved it’s better to be lucky than smart. He started with a $20 credit on the FanDuel betting site – house money! He bet that the underdog Cincinnati […]
The Godfather, the Billionaire, and the IRS
Back in the 1980s, sharp-eyed visitors to New York’s Greenwich Village might have spotted a disheveled man wandering the streets in pajamas, a bathrobe, and slippers. Sometimes he mumbled to himself. Other times, he talked to parking meters. Who was this sad, strange figure, they may have wondered? One of the throngs of homeless people […]
Offensive Tax Interference
After eighteen long and grueling weeks, the NFL is finally into the playoffs. The Cincinnati Bengals proved they could finally win a playoff game after 31 years. The Buffalo Bills proved that the Patriots without Tom Brady are just another football team. And the Tampa Bay Buccaneers proved that any team is a contender with […]
Virtue Is Its Own Reward
In 1996, two ambitious doctors named Raymond and Mortimer Sackler rolled out an extended-release painkiller called OxyContin. The drug was a hit, delivering a warm glow of relief for millions of Americans. And their company, Purdue Pharmaceutical, made the Sacklers billionaires. The family used part of that fortune to make millions in tax-deductible gifts to […]
Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?
Sunday night, Paramount+ aired the season four finale of their hit drama Yellowstone. (No spoilers!) The show follows the Dutton family, sixth-generation heirs to the largest contiguous ranch in the United States, as they fight to defend their legacy. On one side, greedy developers want to turn the area into the next Park City. On […]
Resolutions for 2022
2021 is almost over — a dank, foul, depressing funhouse mirror of 2020 — and for most of us, it can’t end too soon. Covid fear-mongering is still here, taunting us with new mutations every time we finally think we’ve turned the corner. Americans still hate each other as much as ever. The “Real” “Housewives” […]
A Visit From St. Nicholas
‘Twas the Night Before Christmas, and all through the house, not a client was stirring, not even a mouse The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, in hopes that more tax shelters soon would be there Dependents were nestled all snug in their beds while visions of tax-free gifts danced in their heads […]
The Twelve Days of Taxmas
Every year, PNC Bank publishes its “Christmas Price Index” to track the cost of the Twelve Days of Christmas. For 2021, it’s a hefty $41,206 — up 5.6% since we looked two years ago. (Have you heard about the “supply chain”?) The index may not be completely accurate — for example, the ten lords-a-leaping are […]