Cardboard Demon, isn't he?

Spread the wealth!

From Carpe Diem blog (http://mjperry.blogspot.com/)

The Significant Medal Inequality of the Olympics

There was a significant amount of "medal inequality" in the 2012 Summer Olympics, see the country shares above of the total 962 medals that were awarded this year to athletes from 85 countries.   Note the amazing similarity between the shares of adjusted gross income earned in the U.S. in 2008 and the country shares of Olympic medals awarded this year, in both cases by the top 5, 10, 25 and 50% of "participants" or "earners."

The average person seems to understand how "medal taxes" and "medal redistribution" would undermine the competitive process that is essential to the success of the Olympics, but then that same person often seems to accept progressive "income taxes" and "income redistribution," without realizing that the "tax and redistribution" process can undermine incentives to work, produce and invest that are essential to the success of the market economy.  

Love the GoPro

The Progressivity of Taxes and Transfers

 From Harvard Econ Professor, Greg Mankiw

To update one of the tables for the next edition of my favorite textbook, I have been looking at the new CBO report on the distribution of income and taxes. I found the following calculations, based on the numbers in the CBO's Table 7, illuminating. Because transfer payments are, in effect, the opposite of taxes, it makes sense to look not just at taxes paid, but at taxes paid minus transfers received. For 2009, the most recent year available, here are taxes less transfers as a percentage of market income (income that households earned from their work and savings):
Bottom quintile: -301%
Second quintile: -42%
Middle quintile: -5%
Fourth quintile: 10%
Highest quintile: 22%

Top one percent: 28%

The negative 301% means that a typical family in the bottom quintile receives about $3 in transfer payments for every dollar earned.

Bill Note: The CBO uses all transfers in (including State and Local), but only Federal Taxes paid.   Therefore, since State and Local taxes are highly progressive, each quintiile would get progressively more positive as you move up the curve, with the middle class likely moving into a positive percentage, and the top quintile paying even more.

U12 Soccer

Pictures from Katie's final regular season game against Eden Prarie

Sunday morning stroll

U10-A Girls Soccer Team

Our U10 Spring Soccer travel team.

Meet the Parents

Pictures of Max's mother (dam Noel, a Lab) and father (sire Dakota, a Poodle).

Balsam Wake

Spent the day in Balsam Wake, Wisconsin yesterday at our friends' cabin.

All I want to do is DANCE

This is back from March. Katie participated in both the one week Jr. Hawkettes Dance Camp which incorporates middle and elementary schoolers in different groups. She also was part of the semester long Grandview Middle School Dance Team.