It looked like a good idea at the time, but with the Canadian TSX exchange dropping like Wall Street, the October 14 election may not be kind to the current Conservative government of Stephen Harper.  A month ago things were moving right along and the future was rosy, but no longer.

This is not a good time to be in power and having to face the voters.

Well it probably has as much to do with A Modest Proposal as a “cunning plan”, but there are a few tweaks to the tax system that might help pay for all of the largess we are expending on the markets.

Obviously there will be a lot of action on capital gains, but as the bulk of the capital being gained comes from the taxpayers, it would be appropriate to limit the special capital gains tax rate for investments of five years or more. Less than five years and you are gambling, not investing. This would also eliminate the current loophole enjoyed by hedge fund managers.

While I opposed any government limit on pay scales, which are a matter between employer and employee, I see no reason taxpayers should subsidize excess, so I would limit the expense deduction for individual employee compensation to an amount equal to the salary of the President of the Unites States, currently $400,000 per annum, i.e. pay whatever you want, but only the first $400K may be taken as an expense against the taxable income.

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Position: 20.0 N 97.5 W [10 PM CDT 0300 UTC].
Movement: West [270°] near 5 mph.
Maximum sustained winds: 25 mph [35 kph].
Wind Gusts: 30 mph.
Minimum central pressure: 1008 mb ↑.

It is inland 70 miles [110 km] South of Tuxpan, Mexico and 100 miles [165 km] West-Northwest of Veracruz.

This is the final advisory on Marco.

Here’s the link for NOAA’s latest satellite images.

[For the latest information click on the storm symbol, or go to the CATEGORIES drop-down box below the CALENDAR and select “Hurricanes” for all of the posts related to storms on this site.]