{"id":34204,"date":"2015-10-31T00:15:55","date_gmt":"2015-10-31T07:15:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lenpenzo.com\/blog\/?p=34204"},"modified":"2020-03-07T16:54:22","modified_gmt":"2020-03-08T00:54:22","slug":"black-coffee-the-halloween-edition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lenpenzo.com\/blog\/id34204-black-coffee-the-halloween-edition.html","title":{"rendered":"Black Coffee: The Halloween Edition"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"black<\/a>It’s time to sit back, relax and enjoy a little joe<\/em> …<\/p>\n

Welcome to another rousing edition of Black Coffee, your off-beat weekly round-up of what’s been going on in the world of money and personal finance.<\/p>\n

Let’s get right to it this week …<\/p>\n

Credits and Debits<\/strong><\/p>\n

Credit:<\/strong><\/span> Last month, Warren Buffett noted<\/a> that the US economy was “not booming,” but “not bad” either. And a recent headline in the Columbus Dispatch proclaimed that the current economy “reflects buoyant consumer<\/a> (and) business spending.” Hooray! I think.<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> For its part, the Commerce Department announced this week that the US GDP climbed 1.5%<\/a> last quarter. One word: meh.<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> Then again, who can be sure anymore? As the Economist notes, the evidence clearly shows that government GDP statistics are becoming less reliable<\/a>. (Psst. It’s not just the GDP stats<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> If the economy isn’t<\/em> on death’s door, then somebody needs to tell Janet Yellen, because this week the Fed declined to abandon<\/a> its seven-year-old zero-interest rate policy (ZIRP) crutch that continues to punish savers and retirees at the expense of borrowers. You know … borrowers like the US government.<\/p>\n

Credit:<\/strong><\/span> And while Ms. Yellen suggests a gradual return to “normal” interest rates — 5% to 6%, historically — is coming, financial analyst and author Bill Bonner says, “Don’t believe it. The entire system depends on abnormality<\/a>: ZIRP, quantitative easing (QE), and negative interest rates.” He’s right, you know.<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> Speaking of retirees, for only the third time<\/a> since 1985, Social Security recipients won’t be getting a cost of living allowance (COLA) next year — despite increasing rent, utility, healthcare and grocery bills<\/a>. No, really.<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> Oh, and if the Motley Fool is correct<\/a>, then Social Security recipients shouldn’t expect much of a COLA increase in 2017 either. Hey … don’t shoot me: I’m only the messenger.<\/p>\n

Credit:<\/strong><\/span> Seniors aren’t the only ones frustrated with declining purchasing power: A Georgia man was arrested last week after going into a rage<\/a> at a local Waffle House because they raised the price of their sausage biscuits from $1 to $1.50. The good news for him is food at the county jail is free.<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> According to the Senior Citizen’s League, over the past 15 years, Social Security recipients have lost 25% of their purchasing power due to rising healthcare costs. And because Social Security is a Ponzi scheme on its last legs<\/a>, there will be no significant relief.<\/p>\n

Credit:<\/strong><\/span> By the way, wasn’t Obamacare supposed to magically fix our “broken” healthcare system, lower premiums by an average of up to $2500 per family per year, and ensure that everyone lived happily ever after? I know — but I’m sure I heard that somewhere<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> Unfortunately, Obamacare is a political illusion that made things worse — yet another failing government boondoggle<\/a> plagued by increasing costs, declining enrollment, and rising loss ratios. Other than that, it’s been a wild success. Forward!<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> Meanwhile, a bill that extends US government borrowing authority<\/a> through March 2017 was passed by Congress this week. In other words, the country is no longer broke because it just found another box of blank checks.<\/p>\n

Credit:<\/strong><\/span> Yes, yes — the “official” US debt is already more than $18 trillion and greater than 100% of GDP. But all of the “really smart people” say “we owe it ourselves!<\/a>” — so why worry? Right. Let the bread and circuses continue. Er, for now.<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> Of course, the higher debt limit will only exacerbate the greatest selloff of US debt holdings<\/a> by other countries in 15 years that is going on right now<\/em>. But that’s what happens when foreign nations get tired of trading real goods and services for America’s increasingly-worthless dollars.<\/p>\n

Credit:<\/strong><\/span> Maybe somebody should tell our global trading partners that we owe the debt to ourselves.<\/p>\n

Credit:<\/strong><\/span> But seriously, America’s continued abuse of the exorbitant privilege that comes with owning the world’s primary reserve currency is why China is demanding a new global currency<\/a>. When that day comes, the bread and circuses will end, and the US will have to produce more than it consumes<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> On a related note, the first Black Friday moron<\/a> of the year set up a tent outside a Florida Best Buy store on October 26th so he can snatch a deal on a new television. Yes, that’s 33 days before the big sale day arrives. With that much free time, wouldn’t it be easier to just get a second job?<\/p>\n

By the Numbers<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hey! Amaze your family at the dinner table tonight with these fun facts about Halloween:<\/p>\n

72<\/strong><\/span><\/span> Percentage of Americans who hand out Halloween candy.<\/p>\n

46<\/strong><\/span><\/span> Percentage of American adults who carve pumpkins on Halloween.<\/p>\n

6<\/strong><\/span><\/span> Number of major pumpkin producing states. (Illinois, California, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Michigan.)<\/p>\n

1810<\/strong><\/span><\/span> Weight, in pounds, of the largest known pumpkin. It was grown in 2010.<\/p>\n

500<\/strong><\/span><\/span> Number of seeds in the average pumpkin.<\/p>\n

120,000,000<\/strong><\/span><\/span> Americans who dress up for Halloween.<\/p>\n

11.5<\/strong><\/span><\/span> Percentage of Americans who dress their pets up for Halloween.<\/p>\n

90<\/strong><\/span><\/span> Percentage of American parents who admit to sneaking candy from their kids’ trick-or-treat bags.<\/p>\n

Sources: History Channel<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

The Question of the Week<\/strong><\/p>\n

[poll id=\"86\"]<\/code><\/p>\n

Last Week’s Poll Results<\/strong><\/p>\n

Given a choice, which would you choose?<\/p>\n