It is Done, Ice Bucket Challenge, Media Perceptions and #theBestFin4TheWeek

This week Robin Williams decided he couldn’t deal with the inner demons (or Parkinson’s Disease, evidently) he had, and ended his life. Everyone has choices in life, but if you are having these thoughts, please go get help before you make any final decisions.

The ALS (Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis ) “folks” in the states seem to have found a viral shtick that is catching on and that is the Ice Bucket Challenge. It seems many celebrated folks are dowsing themselves with Ice Water to show their support for folks suffering from ALS (if you click on the Ice Bucket Challenge link, you’ll get to where you can donate to the ALS Canada organization). ALS (to me) is the most frightening disease out there, and when they find a cure, I will celebrate.

The #IfTheyGunnedMeDown movement in the states is an interesting commentary on the media’s portrayal of minorities. I am confident if I am mentioned in the news in some fashion it will most likely be a very unflattering photo, but I am curious to see if the media changes their use of Social Media to find unflattering photos for folks in News stories?

My Writings for Week Ending August 15th

Lots of rain in Ottawa, and a chill in the air that is reminding us there are only 19 more Fridays until Christmas!

• WW1 Centenery, More Hacked Passwords and #theBestFin4TheWeek was the list of the good writings from the week of August 8, 2014.
• Stats Canada’s news last week about Moribund Job Growth in Canada, underlines the problem that this economy seems to be creating a large number of part-time jobs, but not enough full-time jobs. Will Part-Time become the new norm in this economy?
• Even though we have had the TFSA for a while folks are still having problems getting the hang of the TFSA Two Step, the important factor to remember is that it is not like a regular savings account, so read the rules carefully.
• I got to meet with a Financial Planner when I was laid off from Nortel, and I did write about it 6 years ago, so I figured it was time to do a Financial Planner Retrospective, given I now have 20/20 hindsight to rely on.

This Week’s Finest

So many things going on this week in the World, with Ebola, the Ukraine, Iraq, Syria, and all the like, but in the world of money there were still some interesting stories to follow:

• The Harvard Business Review commented about how stock buybacks manipulate the market and leave most Americans worse off, certainly I have seen that a great deal in the high-tech world.
• Mark from the Blunt Bean Counter is enjoying his summer but also gives us Transferring Property Among Family Members – A Potential Income Tax Nightmare most things with families do that.
• Cisco is laying off 8% of it’s work force? Is that on top of the 10% they normally lay off every year? That is their standard practice, so I am not sure why CNN Money thinks this is news.
• Who does the Smith Manoeuvre? Why the Million Dollar Journey for one, and here is their Smith Manoeuvre/Dividend Portfolio“ Q2 2014 Update
• Hopefully you realize that All HDMI Cables are the Same, no matter how much Monster Cables wants you to think that a $250 cable is better than a $5 cable.
• The Fraser Institute announced this week that Typical Canadians spend more on Taxes than they do on the necessities of life, again, not exactly earth shattering for Canadians “living the life”, but still an interesting read.
• Congrats to Robb and Marie over at Boomer and Echo for 4 years of writing, and they remind us that it is important to Have that Difficult Money Conversation, no matter what.
• If you really want to learn how to make money writing on the web you should add This Site to your reading list.
• My new search engine is DuckDuckGo seems to work well and leaves less of a footprint on the web too.
• The Canadian Capitalist continues his silence, but a few years back he made a good point about Reasons for Caution in Comparing Real Estate Returns with Stocks, I don’t ever want to be a landlord, so it is a lot easier for me.
• Mark at My Own Advisor is a REIT fan, and he continues his writing about this topic with REITs: Book Value and Net Asset Value Revealed.
• How much debt is too much debt ? asks Barry over at Money We Have, my answer (of course) is ANY, but I am also paranoid.
• A worrying story from Radio-Canada about how Canada’s BMO Falls for a Scam and empties a customers account of $87K, and won’t give it back now.
• Evidently (in London, UK) there is an Ultimate Guide to Tube Etiquette, wish we had one of those here for OC Transpo.
• Mark from 2nd Career Search changes his hats, and puts on his Relationship Analyst hat, with How to Be a Good Husband (without even trying).
• Michael James leaves us with the Loan Pushers, evidently the fabulous deal offered by Pay Day Loan Dens isn’t good enough for him (yes, I am being sarcastic, relax, I have not gone soft on the Pay Day Loan Den of Vipers).

MIT Does Cool Stuff

No wonder they call it the University of Waterloo of the South!

John Oliver on Pay Day Loans

I do like this man’s style, and his accent just adds to it all.

And I for one Welcome our Gigantic Spider Overlords

That is a BIG SPIDER!!!

Random Thoughts for 2014

Lots of these kinds of Best of articles in 2014. Here is a list of them.

• Cuba, Rubles, Christmas and #BestThisWeek – getting close to Christmas but Ian McKellen can teach us about impulse control.
• Snow, Christmas, Enhanced and #BestThisWeek talk of more festive ideas, like how to save money at Christmas.
• A Gentleman, Day of Disability, Christmas, Rugby and #BestThisWeek noted the passing of Jean Beliveau and John Oliver’s views on Lotteries.
• Black Friday is Here, Advent, and #BestThisWeek speaks of the blessed Black Friday and associated sales but also includes a Fanfare for the Common Man.
• Lake Effect Snow, Web Cameras, Travel Insurance and #BestThisWeek November brings snow in Toronto, as we see, and other financial ideas.
• Asteroids, Tax Cuts, Lemurs and #BestThisWeek how many times has the Earth almost been hit by an asteroid? Too often to remember.
• Lame Ducks, Financial Literacy, Working for Free and #BestThisWeek lame duck leaders never really get that much done, no matter how they negotiate.
• Happy Halloween, Income Splitting and #BestThisWeek a wonderful financial time of the year is Halloween? Maybe income splitting is a better subject.
• Ottawa We Shall Remember, Bank of Canada and #BestThisWeek after a bad week in Ottawa, with senseless violence.
• Crashing Markets, Ebola, Low Loonie, Cheap Gas and #BestThisWeek even in 2014 the markets were a little volatile.
• Hockey, Turkey, Leaves, Carry On Bags and #theBestFin4TheWeek is it right that the hockey season starts before Thanksgiving?
• October, Hello Ebola, Give Blood and #theBestFin4TheWeek October arrived unexpectedly this week, almost unnoticed. As we have entered the final (calendar) quarter of the year 2014, it may be time to start considering a year-end review of your financial plans.
• Autumn , United Kingdom, Beer Money, and #theBestFin4TheWeek the colours in Ottawa during Autumn are truly spectacular.
• Pins, Alibaba , Apple Pay , Lecosse , and #theBestFin4TheWeek remember when Alibaba the IPO happened, those were heady days.
• Home Despot, iPhones, and #theBestFin4TheWeek
• Back to School, Tim Burger King, Knee Defenders and #theBestFin4TheWeek will the dutchie ever come back? I can only hope.
• Broken Humerus, Ebola, Anniversaries, Blood and #theBestFin4TheWeek remember when we thought Ebola was going to wipe us out?
• It is Done, Ice Bucket Challenge, Media Perceptions and #theBestFin4TheWeek
• WW1 Centenery, More Hacked Passwords and #theBestFin4TheWeek
• The Long Weekend with no Name, Defaults, and #BestFinancialForTheWeek
• Unmasking Super Heroes, Dogs of Summer and #BestOfFinancialForThisWeek
• All Stars, Al Stars and the #BestOfFinancialForWeek the world cup was a big thing in 2014 as was Bastille day too.
• Brazilian Defeats, Tour De Chunnel, and #BestOfFinancialForWeek you mean Brazil can lose at the world cup?
• Tennis, Racing, Inflation and #BestofFinancial Canada Day is the start of the summer for most Canadians, and financial stories too.
• The Stand, Football Biting, Naughty Banks and #BestofFinancial even in 2014 the banks were misbehaving with shenanigans.
• Elections, Dad’s Day, World Cup, Friday the 13th and #BestofFinancial somehow the Liberals won the 2014 Ontario Provincial Election
• No Rate Hike, Better Performance, Montreal Grand Prix and #Bestof-Financial back in 2014 we were worried about rates, but they were already pretty low.
• Elections, Farewell Knowlton, May Done, and #Bestof-Financial Knowlton Nash was the voice of news for Canada for a while.
• Internet Memory, Grand Prix of Monaco and #FreeFormFridays the Internet has memory?
• Time Off, Elections, Victoria Day and #FreeFormFridays Victoria Day is always a fun weekend.
• Frosts, Elections, Farley Mowat and #FreeFormFridays it does get cold in May!
• Rain, Budgets, Bloggers Meeting, May Day and #FreeFormFridays When financial bloggers meet what happens?
• Beware the Financial Jabberwock, Netflix Expansion, Model Trains, Backups and #FreeFormFridays a thematically odd article.
• Easter is Here and a Saturday #BestOf for the Weekend a time of renewal, new beginnings in life and financially as well.
• RIP Flaherty, Heartbleed, Tax Time, Quebec Elections and #FreeFormFridays the former finance minister did a lot of good for the economy.
• #Selfies, Quebec Election, Big Joe, Awareness, and #FreeFormFridays would Big Joe Mufferaw have been a good fit for the Redblacks? We’ll never know.
• Don Quixote, Tax Time, Cheap Mortgages and #FreeFormFridays gotta hate tax time.
• Spring Has Sprung, March Madness, Celebrity Blogger and #FreeFormFridays talking about Spring in March in Ottawa can be a bit early.
• Pi Day, March Break, Two Ferns, Snow and #FreeFormFridays given pi is infinite, how much pie can we expect?
• Quebec Elections, Eating Sugar, Suing Parents, Big Rocks and #FreeFormFridays those elections in Quebec are never dull.
• Saint David’s Day, Big Posts, RRSP Time, the Dating Game and #FreeFormFridays always a good time to put a Welsh Choir Clip in an article.
• Hockey Day, Tax & RRSP Time and #FreeFormFridays Hockey day in Canada? Well it does happen, right around RRSP time too.
• More Olympics, Budgets, Love Day and #FreeFormFridays Valentine’s Day: Celebrating Love and Dealing with Financial Whining.
• Olympics, Not Super Bowls, Creationism and #FreeFormFridays 2014 Olympics Opening Ceremonies and Soshi Stadium’s Doppleganger: The Super Bowl.
• Senators, Weak Loonie, Superb Owls and #FreeFormFridays Rugby is a Hooligan’s game played by a Gentleman.
• Polar Vorteces, Olympics, Mayors and #FreeFormFridays The Polar Vortex brings Winter in Canada. But don’t worry – -30C highs in Ottawa in January are normal.
• Giveaways, Oil tanks, Eagles and #FreeFormFriday Have you checked your oil tank if you heat with Oil? What will your insurance do if the tank ruptures?
• Truly Canadian Issues, Ultra HD TV, Car Loans and #FreeFormFriday Get your lock de-icer and unlock your Super Mailbox cubicle like I did – Canadian Tire to the rescue!
• Some #RandomThoughts from 2014 Some of the best of, best of posts on my random thoughts weekly post.
• CPP Reform, Snow, Christmas, Boxing day and #FreeFormFriday Did the CPP reform of 2013 fix much? Kind of, but Christmas was coming too.