Sunday, December 31, 2017

Notations From the Grid (Special New Year's Eve Edition): On the First Year of @POTUS


As only depicted by the Economist' Kal!!

Onward to 2018.

Happy New Year to all.....


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Saturday, December 30, 2017

Notations From the Grid (Special @POTUS Watch Y-End Edition): As we Await #2018....

As the year draws to a close, our team compiled a "snapshot" of the first year since Donald Trump Became President of the United States which we hope all all enjoy:
  • The View from China  
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Dear Taxpayer,
Our office has received a number of inquiries from taxpayers asking if they can prepay property taxes due to the new Federal legislation relating to the deductibility of State and Local Taxes (SALT). In the new legislation, the deductibility of state and local taxes for federal income taxes in 2018 is greatly scaled back. Taxpayers can only deduct up to $10,000 of any combination of property, income or sales taxes. As the average secured property tax bill in fiscal year 2017-2018 is approximately $7,100, and California has both an income tax and sales tax, it is likely that many taxpayers would pay more than $10,000 in SALT next year.
We are not able to accept any pre-payments for property taxes that have not yet been billed. At this time we can only accept payments for the first or second installment of the FY 2017-18 property taxes or any supplemental property taxes already billed and not for any FY 2018-19 property taxes. We also do not accept partial payments of property tax bills. The second installment of secured property taxes is due on February 1 and delinquent if received or postmarked after April 10, 2018. You can pay any outstanding property tax payments prior January 1, 2018 using one of our convenient options:
  • "Discourse" From the "Social Grid" On the aftermath of the enactment of the Tax Cut Bill:  
DECEMBER 21, 2017
Good morning.
Republicans celebrated their big tax win yesterday at the White House, with President Trump, Mitch McConnell, and Paul Ryan acting like BFFs. Trump hugged McConnell. Ryan said “something this big, this profound, could not have been done without exquisite presidential leadership.”
There were quieter celebrations in corporate offices around the country, where an overhaul of a broken corporate tax system has been sought in vain for years. A few companies, recognizing the danger of voter backlash, had the good sense to promise the tax changes will result in investment and jobs in the U.S., as well as benefits for workers.
AT&T, for instance, issued a press release saying that once the bill is passed into law, it will “invest an additional $1 billion in the United States in 2018 and pay a special $1,000 bonus to more than 200,000 AT&T U.S. employees.” Boeing said it will earmark $300 million for “employee-related and charitable investment” as a result of the tax bill. And Fifth Third Bancorp said it would “raise its minimum hourly wage for all employees to $15, and distribute a one-time bonus of $1,000 for more than 13,5000 employees.”
While most businesses will benefit from the change, the biggest winners include:
  • Retailers, who pay among the highest average corporate tax rates and need help competing against more lightly taxed Amazon;
  • Health insurers, who could reap an estimated 15% to 20% increase in earnings as a result, according to some analysts;
  • Telecom companies, like AT&T, who earn most of their income in the U.S.;
  • Refiners, who could reap more than $150 billion in tax savings next year; and
  • Pharmaceutical companies and tech companies, who may repatriate some of the trillions of dollars in earnings they have stashed overseas, at reduced rates.
You can read a more thorough review of the effects on various industries here. While businesses are the big winners, most individuals will get tax cuts as well. For individuals, tax brackets will change as of January 1, and new guidance about tax withholding should be out by the end of the month, leading to paycheck changes as early as February. 
US economy faces a painful comedown from its ‘sugar high’ https://t.co/Y3c6Pe9hqP




We conclude with this as we wish all a #HappyNewYear2018: 

 “To announce that there must be
no criticism of the President,
or that we are to stand by the President,
right or wrong,
is not only unpatriotic and servile,
but is morally treasonable to the American public.”~ Theodore Roosevelt  
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Friday, December 29, 2017

Notations From the Grid (Special Edition): On #Iran Watch





Our team just captured these images from Social Media  from wide-spread demonstrations throughout Iran over the past 36 hours as the Government has called for major demonstrations in support of the Government in the aftermath of the challenges of the Green Movement.   Ayatollah Khameini noted in the first screen capture on how he wanted the current President and the former President to be held to account--even though his own accountability is not to be questioned for the continued profound challenges the Country Faces.     Clips of Videos continue to be hitting the Social Media Airways throughout the past number of days as Official Government Media continues to stay silent and dismissive of the wide-spread demonstrations.   Cries of "No to Gaza, No to Lebanon..I will lay my life for Iran " especially resonated as the first Vice President, Jahangiri, dismissed is as "an excuse" and underscored that such will not harm the Government.   

As we went to press, we wanted to note one interesting note was by Professor Zibakalam of Tehran University.   He has been one of the leading internal voices of dissent as he underscored how the rising voices of discontent against the current President, Hassan Rouhani, must be held in check.     This is as he released this on what he viewed as the misguided view on how Iran approaches its' Foreign Policy in relations to Israel:

. یکی از دلایل ناکامی فلسطینی‌ها ظرف ۷۰سال گذشته اختلافات کشورهای اسلامی بوده. در ماجرای اخیر به عنوان مثال، ما ایرانیان بیش از آن که به فکر یاری فلسطینی‌ها باشیم، در پی تسویه حساب با سعودی‌ها هستیم. تلاش می‌کنیم نشان دهیم آن‌ها و خط سازش مقصر بوده‌اند و در مقابل، موضعِ رادیکالِ ایرانِ انقلابی، درست و بر حق. #زیباکلام_توییتر #زیباکلام_توئیتر #زیباکلام #صادق_زیباکلام #تولد_اسراییل #تولد_اسرائیل #کتاب_تولد_اسرائیل #کتاب_تولد_اسراییل #فلسطین #اسرائیل #اورشلیم #اسراییل #اسرائیل_باید_نابود_شود #اسرائیل_باید_از_بین_برود
A post shared by صادق زیباکلام (@zibakalamsadegh) on




 He featured three of the defeated and discredited Presidential Candidates and asked:  there is no alternative as he challenged Rouhani to hear the pleas of the ordinary faces on the street.    This is as major cities throughout Iran dealt with environmental hazards that prompted closures of Schools and Institutions as Iran continued to face challenging weather in the aftermath of a very challenging Budget that the President has presented to Parliament which is being deliberated as we went to press.

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