Fri, 24 Nov 2006

A Rare Sight Captured on Film

On page 27 of the September 25, 2004 U.S. edition of Time magazine appears a picture of the President of the United States, George W. Bush, in which he does not appear to be an idiot.

Fascinating.

culture | Permanent Link

Creative Talent Tax Exemption

I had to pay business tax to the city of Los Angeles last month since I receive 1099 income. The city took $600 from me, but it turns out that "creative artists" who earn up to $300,000 are exempt from the business tax thanks to the lobbying of the Screen Writers Guild. I should move to New Hampshire.

business » taxes | Permanent Link

Zopa, Consumer Lending

The latest newsletter from Springwise, which lists new businesses from around the world, mentions Zopa, which they describe as "eBay for money". The concept is fairly simple.

Zopa is a place where creditworthy people who want to borrow money can get together with people who are happy to lend it to them. And because there's no middleman - the borrower just pays a 1% exchange fee to Zopa up front - both get a great deal.

They pool loans together so each lender's loans are distributed among 50 or so borrowers. Lenders can decide what type of debtors they want to lend to based on the debtors' credit.

Zopa is only open to UK residents. I wonder how such a system would work in the states with each state having different lending laws. It's an interesting idea, and easier than standing outside the check cashing store looking for customers.

business » ideas | Permanent Link

The state is that great fiction by which everyone tries to live at the expense of everyone else. - Frederic Bastiat