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Not a Bad Start
Jan. 7th, 2013 07:01 pmHappy New Year, everybody! It hasn't been a bad start to the year. Well, I've gotten over my illness, at any rate, though this cold season continues to be among the worst. Those around the Harvard campus and Harvard Square area should be aware of an outbreak of whooping cough among the undergrads there.
A partial "fiscal cliff" deal was passed on-time-ish, raising marginal tax rates to the pre-Bush-tax-cut levels for marginal income over $400k individual ($450k joint), letting the temporary payroll tax cut expire on schedule, extending unemployment insurance, and deferring the issue of spending cuts for another two months. Strikes me as much better than an unmitigated disaster. Much rather have a debate on how to pay now for a social safety net that will still be there in the future than on how to screw everyone who's not near retirement rather than return to the grim darkness of 1990s tax rates. The 2010s are probably going to be more expensive than the 1990s, but the 1990s were easy-mode so far as decades go.
Various people were in from out of town this weekend, so it was fun to hang out with folks and listen to DJ's band work on recording their first EP.
A partial "fiscal cliff" deal was passed on-time-ish, raising marginal tax rates to the pre-Bush-tax-cut levels for marginal income over $400k individual ($450k joint), letting the temporary payroll tax cut expire on schedule, extending unemployment insurance, and deferring the issue of spending cuts for another two months. Strikes me as much better than an unmitigated disaster. Much rather have a debate on how to pay now for a social safety net that will still be there in the future than on how to screw everyone who's not near retirement rather than return to the grim darkness of 1990s tax rates. The 2010s are probably going to be more expensive than the 1990s, but the 1990s were easy-mode so far as decades go.
Various people were in from out of town this weekend, so it was fun to hang out with folks and listen to DJ's band work on recording their first EP.
