COVID vaccine qualification for those 60+ starts on Monday in Florida

The Palm Beach Examiner

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis

Amending his previous Emergency Order, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has ordered Floridians 60 years old and over will be qualified to get one of the COVID-19 vaccines available beginning on Monday, March 15, 2021. This will expand those who qualify to:

• Long-term care facility residents and staff;
• Persons 60 years of age and older;
• Health care personnel with direct patient contact;
• K-I 2 school employees 50 years of age and older;
• Sworn law enforcement officers 50 years of age and older; and
• Firefighters 50 years of age and older.

Vaccinations are available throughout Palm Beach County and the State of Florida via Publix, CVS, Walgreens, and other locations. To find a site near you, you can visit the vaccine locater on the Florida Department of Health’s website. To be tested if you have COVID-19, one can go to this…

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Berkshire Hathaway continues to be one of the best vehicles for retirement

The Palm Beach Examiner

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (BRK) has been a godsend for investors over many decades. The company does not throw off a dividend, and the only tax implications in owning the stock are when you sell. The annual per share market value of BRK has been 20 percent since 1965, while the S&P 500 has only returned just over 10 percent per year. It is like a mutual fund, as it is a conglomerate and operates without the fees or tax implications of a mutual fund.

Berkshire Hathaway Class A Stock Chart via Google Finance

By owning the one stock, an investor is getting Apple, Coca-Cola, American Express, NetJets, and many other companies under one roof so-to-speak. For the past 55 years, BRK has been a long-term efficient way to invest in the stock market and is meant to be a long-term hold instead of trading the stock regularly.

There…

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Palm Beach Examiner Voter Guide and Endorsements

The Palm Beach Examiner

Here, we will put forth our endorsements for most candidates and issues on Palm Beach County voter ballots in the November 3, 2020 general election. We would strongly advise voters to completely research all the candidates and issues rather than rely on endorsements from us, mainstream media, or special interest groups. You can use our search box above to research the amendments or candidates for more in-depth articles.

PRESIDENT: There are 7 candidates on the ballot plus 6 more qualified write-in candidates. Out of those, only three will be on the ballot in all 50 states; Joe Biden, Jo Jorgensen, and Donald Trump. We seek the most freedom-based candidates (those who will vote for maximum freedom of the individual). In that regard, we recommend voting for Jo Jorgensen.

U.S. House District 21: There are 3 candidates seeking to represent Florida’s Congressional District 21; Lois Frankel, Laura Loomer, and…

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Lyft offering discounted rides to the polls so more Americans can vote

The Palm Beach Examiner

As a way for encourage more voting in tomorrow’s general election, ride share tech company Lyft is offering 50% off for riders going to their polling location. Called “Ride to Vote” the discount does not apply to your trip back home or work. On Election Day, Lyft is offering 50% off one ride up to $10 to any polling location or drop box using the code 2020VOTE*. You can get an extra $5 to download their app for the first time using this link.

The Palm Beach Examiner created a voter guide which you can use found here: https://palmbeachexaminer.com/2020/10/05/palm-beach-examiner-voter-guide-and-endorsements/

Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com

Lyft is working withWhen We All Vote,Vote.org, and other partners to provide communities with the tools they need to register to vote.These organizations join Lyft’s growing list of Voting Access partners, which includes theNational Federation of the Blind,

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Happy Mother’s Day to my mom

Today is Mother’s Day for 2020 and many are celebrating their mothers….from a distance. Unfortunately, I am doing the same, as my mother is in a physical rehabilitation center two hours to my north.

I have been more fortunate than many in having such a loving mother over the years. She has truly been an amazing mother, and she is an amazing person for anyone who has been fortunate to meet her.

My mother provided a safe and nurturing environment for me and my siblings to live. She kept us constantly busy; cleaning the house, volunteering our time, giving us entrepreneurial direction, etc.

Happy Mother’s Day, Mom! And Happy Mother’s Day to all the great moms out there!!!

Coronavirus Humor, Part VII

International Liberty

For this seventh edition of coronavirus humor (previous versions here, here, here, here, here, and here), let’s start with a clever video from Reason.

There are many reasons why the Founding Fathers are rolling in their graves.

The coronavirus is merely the most-recent example.

While law-abiding people are worried about crime and societal breakdown, it appears that criminals also have something to worry about.

Meanwhile, the Babylon Beesatirizes vapid celebrities.

No matter how they expressed their emotions, everyone agreed that the scene off the Malibu coast Monday morning was exactly what America needed to get through this pandemic. Celebrities gathered their multi-million-dollar yachts on the waters of the Pacific Ocean and spelled out “WE’RE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER.” “We’re just like you,” said Ellen DeGeneres on her Instagram as her servants sailed her yacht into position to form the apostrophe. …”Stay…

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Happy #NationalPrinciplesDay or is it #SchoolPrincipalsDay ? I get confused

Coronavirus and Subsidized Unemployment

International Liberty

Remember the “jobless recovery” of the Obama years?

Part of the problem was that President Obama kept extending unemployment benefits, which subsidized joblessness, as even Paul Krugman and Larry Summers had warned.

The good news was that Congress eventually said no in 2014 (actually one of the three best things to happen that year).

After that happened, the labor market improved.

But politicians apparently didn’t learn anything. As part of emergency coronavirus legislation, they turbo-charged unemployment benefits.

The Wall Street Journal‘s editorial from yesterday has a good summary.

Much of the harm from the coronavirus is unavoidable, but it would be nice if politicians didn’t compound the damage by ignoring the laws of economics. The worst blunder so far on that score is the $600 increase in federal jobless benefits… Why would anyone take a pay cut to go back to work? …Employees say they’ll…

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The Minimum Wage Should Be Abolished, not Increased

International Liberty

As I discuss in this recent interview, a higher minimum wage is a terrible idea if we care about facts and evidence (and also want to help poor people).

In the interview, I mentioned that minimum wage mandates aren’t good news for workers who lose their jobs.

One of them, Simone Barron, wrote in the Wall Street Journal about her unfortunate experience after the minimum wage was increased in Seattle.

This city’s minimum wage is rising to $16.39 an hour on Jan. 1. Instead of receiving a bigger paycheck, I’m left without any pay at all… That’s because the restaurant where I’ve worked for six years is closing as a consequence of the city’s harmful minimum-wage experiment. …When rent is too high, labor costs too much, and customers don’t want to pay $40 for a roast-chicken entree, the only way for many operators to ease the pain is to…

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2019 update on my permanent portfolio

So, we close out 2019 with only a slight gain from 2018. Frankly, you would have been better off investing in a simple index fund than in my portfolio in 2019. That said, over the last four and a half years the portfolio has increased in value by just shy of 160% (159.5%) while the DOW increased 73% and the S&P increased 63.5% over the same period (8/21/2015-12/31/2019).

While the DOW increased by about 25% in 2019, my permanent portfolio only increased slightly due to the decrease in Bitcoin. As mentioned in a few prior posts, we would have likely sold off a lot of the Bitcoin during a once a year rebalancing of the portfolio; however, this portfolio is designed to be static (buy and hold). Nonetheless, the portfolio has seen gains over 2X the DOW and the S&P with near-zero tax consequences and little risk. The only tax consequences of this portfolio can be found in the mutual funds as the hard assets (gold, silver, etc.) and the three stocks do not throw off a dividend.

We’ll take another look at the portfolio on August 21, 2020, which will be 5 years the portfolio has been public.

Here is a link to the permanent portfolio page.

There’s No Galt’s Gulch, but New Zealand, Switzerland, and Hong Kong Are the Next-Best Alternatives

https://wp.me/przCm-beh

Shoddy Oxfam Study on Inequality Puts Greece, Afghanistan, and Zimbabwe Ahead of Singapore

https://wp.me/przCm-b4q

Florida is the 8th most diverse state in the nation

With Hispanic Heritage Month in full swing and the leadership in Fortune 500 companies still dominated by Caucasian males, the personal-finance website WalletHub conducted an in-depth analysis of 2018’s Most & Least Diverse States in America.

To determine where the most idea and identity exchanges have occurred at the highest level in the U.S. — and where the population is relatively more homogeneous — WalletHub compared the 50 states across six key categories: socio-economic, cultural, economic, household, religious and political diversity.

Diversity in Florida (1=Most Diverse, 25=Avg.):

• 22^nd – Educational-Attainment Diversity
• 9^th – Racial & Ethnic Diversity
• 7^th – Linguistic Diversity
• 2^nd – Birthplace Diversity
• 16^th – Industry Diversity*
• 3^rd – Marital-Status Diversity
• 1^st – Generational Diversity
• 12^th – Household-Type Diversity

*Includes civilian employed population aged 16 and older

For the full report, please visit:
https://wallethub.com/edu/most-least-diverse-states-in-america/38262/

Stealing by Government

Class-Warfare Taxes Are Most Harmful to Prosperity – International Liberty