Where Is the Price Transparency in Healthcare?
Healthcare costs are high, but we don't know that until we see the bill. Accountability and transparency would go further than socialization in fixing the cost problem in healthcare. August 19, 2019 By: Bobby Casey, Mangeing Director GWP Part of what makes the free market the best solution to meeting the needs of others is the freedom to succeed or fail. Success and failure don't have to be all or nothing. It could just be a tick in either direction in the bottom line. Sales are down. That's a small fail. Sales are up. … [Read More...]
U.S. Clamping Down on Passports (Here’s How)
The US is denying and revoking passports in much greater numbers. The time to get a second passport is now. August 15, 2019 Imagine how life may be in the U.S. if you couldn’t travel outside of its borders. In any free society, you should be able to travel, well… freely. But if the Government took away your passport, or denied your passport application, you would be trapped. So imagine if the Government made it almost impossible to get a passport in the first place. What would you think if you were told, “Your passport has … [Read More...]
Unintended Consequences of Trade War with China
The trade war is escalating to what might become a currency war. Other unintended consequences have followed, making global markets nervous. August 12, 2019 By: Bobby Casey, Managing Director GWP In this battle of will between the US and China, inevitably, the victims will be the private consumers. At the G20 Summit in Japan, it there was hope that some sort of resolution was possible between the US and China and their trade war. Trump agreed to suspend tariffs while they were in talks. Then Trump took to Twitter and … [Read More...]
US Military Testing Surveillance Balloons in Latest Surveillance State Expansion
The US military commissioned a test run of surveillance balloons. This latest intrusion into the privacy of individuals is like metadata collection. August 5, 2019 By: Bobby Casey, Managing Director GWP I forget about the contingent of people who genuinely believe that government's job is to make them feel safe. It's not. Providing for the common defense is NOT the same as making people feel safe. In fact, defense doesn't even guarantee safety. It's only the effort to get to safety. Safety is a feeling. How that … [Read More...]
Lehman-Style “Lock-Up” May Freeze Deutsche Assets…
Poor management decisions at the bank level can lead to some scary decisions like frozen accounts. The spin Deutsche put on it makes it even scarier. August 2, 2019 James Simons heads up one of the world’s top-performing hedge funds (Ren-Tech). This fund got to that esteemed position by making predictions so accurate it seemed a crystal ball was involved. For example, they recently yanked funds from banking giant Deutsche Bank far in advance of a dire announcement: … the quant fund pulled its cash from Deutsche Bank as a … [Read More...]
Healthcare & Housing Affordability are Election Hot-Button Issues
With elections coming in the US, affordability of healthcare and housing are the hot-button topics dominating policy discussions. July 29, 2019 By: Bobby Casey, Managing Director GWP With the elections coming up, there is a lot of talk about what people can "afford" and how that connects with "living wages". It's obnoxious because the political solution to political problems seems to be that businesses need to pay for it or fix it. If people can't afford something, it's the business's fault for not making it more … [Read More...]
5 U.S. Agencies Team Up to END Bank Security
The US government is looking for ways to compromise the security of your information so they can gain access to your bank accounts. July 23, 2019 Imagine opening your email one morning and finding this message from your bank: Security Alert: Your Account Has Been Compromised As you processed the meaning of the email, there would be a pit in your stomach as you worried about how much data… or actual money… had been stolen. Bank accounts are compromised regularly. But if the U.S. government gets their way, your bank account … [Read More...]
The SECURE Act: Good or Bad for IRAs?
The SECURE Act has a provision in it which puts a wrench in the estate planning strategy of Stretch IRAs, and it looks like a money-grab on the 1%. July 22, 2019 By: Bobby Casey, Managing Director GWP By the end of first quarter in 2017, US total retirement holdings was just over $26 Trillion. It turns out that the American people are better at frugality than their government. $8.2 trillion of that is in IRAs. A country with over $22.5 trillion in debt, might be tempted to tap those accounts. The headlines say that the … [Read More...]
Interview: 12 Minute Convo
July 17, 2019 Bobby Casey and Engel Jones have a brief conversation about the dynamics of working with entrepreneurs and what keeps him going. A little motivation, some relateable content, and insights... enjoy the conversation! Until next time, Live Well. … [Read More...]
Deutsche Bank Investigated for Money Laundering (And This)
Several banks around the world are jeopardizing their depositors’ holdings with some rather shady dealings with money launderers. July 16, 2019 What would you think if you went down to the local coffee shop, got a newspaper, and read that your bank was being investigated for money laundering? We’ve previously covered an instance where a Wells Fargo banker admitted to laundering money for the Sinaloa Cartel. Now we have a German bank on the hook for another money laundering investigation, according to the New York Times: … [Read More...]
The CASE Act: Help or Hinder?
Government policy has a tendency to derail from its good intentions. Will the CASE Act help defend copyright, or be weaponized against free speech? July 15, 2019 By: Bobby Casey, Managing Director GWP I'm going to ask you to keep something in mind while you read through this. It's going to seem odd, but just humor me. William Shakespeare introduced over 1,700 words and at least 45 idiomatic phrases to the English language. That's an incredible contribution to the English language! This is as incredible a feat as a brand … [Read More...]
A Win for Property & A Loss for Privacy
A win for property rights curbs abuses in asset forfeiture policy; but a loss of privacy could lead to abuse and misuse from the surveillance state. July 8, 2019 By: Bobby Casey, Managing Director GWP Seems I'm reading about taking one step forward on one page and one step backward on the next with the Trump administration. He cut corporate taxes! Yay! He imposed tariffs! What? He cut regulations! Yay! He increased spending! What? It sounds diplomatic to say something like, "Politics is compromise... we take the … [Read More...]
Tax Distraction
When people are distracted by who is paying taxes and who isn't, they miss the part where a crazy tax regime and new recruits aren't necessary. July 1, 2019 By: Bobby Casey, Managing Director GWP I see these articles flying around incredibly angry about how the "uber rich" aren't paying taxes from the left... I see the right complaining about how immigrants aren't paying federal taxes... I see rich people actually asking to be taxed more. Regardless of where you stand, there's no denying that taxation has become one of the most … [Read More...]
You Need to Know About “Operation Choke Point”…
The FDIC made a weak admission to Operation Choke Point and its targeted "risk management" in shutting down certain accounts without explanation. June 27, 2019 Imagine this… You walk into your bank to do some business. You pull out your ID, hand it to the teller, and wait for your money or deposit receipt. But then something creepy happens… The teller says, “I’m sorry, we’ve received notice that your activities are ‘high risk,’ so I’m afraid we’ve shut your account down.” You talk to the manager, and get the same story. You … [Read More...]
The Fight Against a Subtle Tyranny
Are hand-outs and welfare rooted in what has been called "the tyranny of low expectations"? Could economic freedom be the antidote to that poison? June 24, 2019 By: Bobby Casey, Managing Director, GWP I heard a very thought-provoking quote from Naval Ravikant. He was addressing the coming of further automation and artificial intelligence (AI). When asked if people can learn to adapt to these coming changes, he responded nonchalantly in the affirmative. What about those who say people won't be able to keep up? That a … [Read More...]
