These 3 Charts Show The Amazing Power Of Compound Interest

By Libby Kane  |  Business Insider  |  July 8, 2014

One of the biggest financial advantages out there is something anyone can access by opening a simple retirement account: compound interest.

Retirement accounts such as 401(k)s and Roth IRAs aren't just savings accounts — they're actively invested, and therefore have the potential to make the most of this benefit.

As Business Insider's Sam Ro explains, "Compound interest occurs when the interest that accrues to an amount of money in turn accrues interest itself."

So why is that so important?

The charts below will show you the incredible impact compound interest has on your savings and why starting to save in your 20s is one of the best things you can do.

25 Things You Should Do Before You Die

By Richard Feloni  |  Business Insider  |  July 11, 2014

It can be easy to get caught up in the routine of life, doing whatever it takes to get from one point to the next, without doing much that's exciting or enriching.

Some Quora users offer a few ideas to break the routine in their responses to the thread: "What is something every person should experience at least once in a lifetime?" 

The responses range from trying an extreme sport to discovering something life-changing about yourself.

We've summarized some of the best answers below. 

1. Live somewhere vastly different from your hometown.

Living in an unfamiliar setting among people with a different worldview from yours can help you become more self-reliant. —Deepthi Amarasuriya

2. Go out of your way to help a stranger.

Put in time and effort to help someone you have "absolutely no social, moral, or legal obligation to help," and don't expect anything in return. —Kent Fung

3. Learn how to appreciate being alone.

Avoid feeling lonely on your own by truly becoming comfortable with yourself. —Barbara Rose

4. Travel without being a tourist.

Go on a trip without feeling the need to take nonstop photos of the biggest tourist attractions. Instead of being a "tourist," be a "traveler" and try to get an idea of how the locals live. —Arya Raje

Obamacare Architect, Jonathan Gruber, Admits To Deceiving Americans To Pass Law

By Vanessa Righeimer  |  OpposingViews.com  |  November 10, 2014

What does it take to convince a nation to pass a law such as the Affordable Care Act? According to MIT health economist and Obamacare architect Jonathan Gruber, a “lack of transparency” and the “stupidity of an American voter.”

In a 2013 clip that has been recently brought into focus, Gruber speaks candidly on Obamacare and the role he played. An expert in making predictions on how new laws will play out, specifically in healthcare, Gruber was contacted by the White House in 2008 when it was in need of a consultant, according to the New York Times. It is then that Gruber was able to tell them that, based off his research, they would have to require everyone to buy insurance in order for health care reform to work.

In the recording posted by American Commitment, Gruber emphasizes the importance of a lack of transparency, commenting: “If CBO scored the mandate as taxes, the bill dies. OK, so it’s written to do that. In terms of risk-rated subsidies, if you had a law which said that healthy people are going to pay in – you made explicit healthy people pay in and sick people get money, it would not have passed.”

Gruber's comments blatantly make it known that law makers feared that voters would not pass the bill if they knew their money would be going towards other patients and not directly and positively impacting themselves. Because of this fear, they left out key details, which might have swayed the votes.

Obamacare has statistically been shown not to be favored amongst most Americans, and this recent clip might have added an even more negative opinion of the Affordable Care Act. According to a report released in September by the Kaiser Health Tracking Poll, 47 percent of Americans viewed Obamacare unfavorably. In light of this new information, it will be interesting to see how the Democrats will react, especially leading up to the 2016 election.

10 Financial Terms Every Investor Should Know

By Geoff Williams  |  U.S. News & World Report  |  September 5, 2014

For a novice, it can be intimidating to invest money. There's the anxiety that comes with taking risks and knowing you may not get all of your money back. But arguably, what's even more intimidating is the investing jargon. There are a lot of buzzwords financial advisors and veteran investors use, like expense ratio and asset allocation, that are important for average investors to understand, yet the language can be a barrier.

So if you'd like to invest but feel like you're visiting another country where your money may not be welcome, maybe you just need to learn the language first. This isn't a comprehensive list by any means, but understanding these terms may make you feel more confident about investing.

Asset allocation. This is just a fancy phrase for your investment strategy. There are three general categories where you're going to put your money: cash, bonds and stocks, says Kemberley Washington, an accounting professor at Dillard University in New Orleans and a certified public accountant. "Cash," she says, "is the least risky and would provide the least amount of return … Bonds are generally riskier than cash but less risky than stocks."

Cash. Since Washington brought it up, let's define cash. It's money – you know that – but if a financial advisor suggests you move some of your portfolio into cash, Washington says he or she is probably referring to certificates of deposit, also known as CDs, Treasury bills or money market accounts.

90-year-old among first charged under Fort Lauderdale's strict rules against feeding homeless

By FoxNews.com  |  November 4, 2014

Fort Lauderdale police say Arnold Abbott violated a new city law, but the 90-year-old homeless advocate says his only crime was to “love thy neighbor.”

Abbott was charged Sunday along with two local pastors with violating the city’s new ordinance that effectively bans giving out food in public. He faces 60 days in jail and a $500 fine, and he intends to get cited again Wednesday night, when he sets out to feed some of the Florida city’s estimated 10,000 homeless on a public beach.

“I know that I will be arrested again, and I am prepared for that,” Abbott said by phone from his office at Love Thy Neighbor, Inc., a nonprofit he established in honor of his wife, Maureen, after her death in a car accident 23 years ago. “I am my brother’s keeper, and what they are doing is just heartless.”

ACLU: FBI Seeks 'Green Light' to Hack Into Any Computer Worldwide

By Melanie Batley  |  NewsMax  |  October 30, 2014



The FBI is petitioning the government for new powers to hack into computers for surveillance in what is being described by civil liberties groups as "extremely invasive" and unconstitutional, The Guardian reported.

The intelligence agency is proposing a relaxation to the rules governing the scope of court warrants for searches. The regulations currently require warrants to be tied to specific locations where suspected criminal activity is occurring. The proposed change to the rules would enable the FBI to obtain warrants that would apply at any location in the world, giving the agency remote access to tap into computers whose location is being concealed by technology.

"This is a giant step forward for the FBI's operational capabilities, without any consideration of the policy implications. To be seeking these powers at a time of heightened international concern about U.S. surveillance is an especially brazen and potentially dangerous move," Ahmed Ghappour, an expert in computer law at the University of California Hastings College of Law, told the Guardian.

A federal judicial committee will meet on Nov. 5 to consider the issue. Technology experts and privacy campaigners are expected to raise concerns at the hearing. Some argue that the proposed changes would violate First Amendment rights to privacy and Fourth Amendment rights related to searches and seizures.

If the rule changes are approved, the FBI would have the power to employ a new range of investigative techniques on computers in America and around the world for any criminal investigation, according to the Guardian. It would also be the first time that courts would be asked to issue warrants to conduct searches outside the U.S.

7 things the middle class can't afford anymore

By Erika Rawes  |  The Cheat Sheet  |  October 25, 2014

During debates and speeches, politicians often bring up the financial burden that's placed on the middle class. We talk about the middle class as though they are this singular entity, who used to thrive until they underwent persecution by the evil 1%. But, realistically speaking, the middle class and the 99% are not really synonymous. So, who are the middle class?

In its discussion of historical middle class societies, The Economist reports, "Their members are neither rich nor poor but somewhere in-between. . . . 'Middle-class' describes an income category but also a set of attitudes . . . An essential characteristic is the possession of a reasonable amount of discretionary income. Middle-class people do not live from hand to mouth, job to job, season to season, as the poor do."

Some argue that the most sensible income amount to attach to the middle class would be the median household income, of around $54,000. Perhaps, anyone who earns between the 25th percentile and 75th percentile is a member of the middle class.

Diana Farrell, once Deputy Director of America's National Economic Council, told The Economist she thinks a middle class income begins at the point where a person (or family) has one-third of their income left over for discretionary purposes after they've provided themselves with food and shelter. In other words, someone who earns $3,000 per month would have $1,000 left after they've paid their mortgage or rent, utilities, and grocery bills.

Though there is some debate over the exact income a middle class household brings in, we do have an idea of who the middle class are — most working class people. Today's bourgeoisie is composed of laborers and skilled workers, white collar and blue collar workers, many of whom face financial challenges. Bill Maher reminded us a few months back that 50 years ago, the largest employer was General Motors, where workers earned an equivalent of $50 per hour (in today's money). Today, the largest employer — Wal-Mart — pays around $8 per hour.

The middle class has certainly changed. We've ranked a list of things the middle class can no longer really afford. We're not talking about lavish luxuries, like private jets and yachts. The items on this list are a bit more basic, and some of them are even necessities. The ranking of this list is based on affordability and necessity. Therefore, items that are necessity ranked higher, as did items that a larger percentage of people have trouble paying for.

Cook County ballot box tries to cast GOP votes for Democrats

By Paul Miller  |  IllinoisWatchdog.org  |  October 22, 2014

CHICAGO — Early Voting in Illinois got off to its typical start Monday, as votes being cast for Republican candidates were transformed into votes for Democrats.

Republican state representative candidate Jim Moynihan went to vote Monday at the Schaumburg Public Library.

“I tried to cast a vote for myself and instead it cast the vote for my opponent,” Moynihan said. “You could imagine my surprise as the same thing happened with a number of races when I tried to vote for a Republican and the machine registered a vote for a Democrat.”

The conservative website Illinois Review reported that “While using a touch screen voting machine in Schaumburg, Moynihan voted for several races on the ballot, only to find that whenever he voted for a Republican candidate, the machine registered the vote for a Democrat in the same race. He notified the election judge at his polling place and demonstrated that it continued to cast a vote for the opposing candidate’s party. Moynihan was eventually allowed to vote for Republican candidates, including his own race.

Moynihan offered this gracious lesson to his followers on Twitter: “Be careful when you vote in Illinois. Make sure you take the time to check your votes before submitting.”

Cook County Clerk’s Office Deputy Communications Director Jim Scalzitti, told Illinois Watchdog, the machine was taken out of service and tested.

“This was a calibration error of the touch-screen on the machine,” Scalzitti said. “When Mr. Moynihan used the touch-screen, it improperly assigned his votes due to improper calibration.”

Scalzitti stressed that at no time were Moynihan’s votes actually registered, and that voters are always asked to make sure the votes they cast are correct before they are counted. Scalzitti praised Moynihan for checking his ballot and alerting the election judge of the machine’s failure.

10 Illinois jobs facts you should know

By Illinois Policy Institute  |  October 20, 2014

Illinois is ready to boom. That is the single most important fact about Illinois’ jobs climate and economy as a whole.

However, Illinoisans have been held back by policy errors that have plagued the state for decades, especially since the Great Recession. Policy errors are causing tremendous pain for Illinoisans, but that pain can be alleviated through the correct policy prescriptions.

With the proper policy framework, the state will come back to life and lead the Midwest. Here are the top 10 facts that should inform that framework:

1)  The claims of an Illinois comeback are a myth

Illinois has had the worst recovery from the Great Recession in the U.S. From January 2008 – July 2014, Illinois has 290,000 fewer people working and 170,000 fewer payroll jobs, the worst of any state.

2)  The 2011 tax hikes were a historic policy mistake, and a major reason why Illinois is hurting

In the first year of recovery, Illinois was ranked fifth  in the Midwest for job creation. Then came the 2011 tax hikes, which slammed the breaks on Illinois job creation.

12 Grammar Mistakes That Are Making You Look Stupid

By Damian Davila   \  WiseBread  |  September 30, 2014

Good grammar is sexy.

On the other hand, bad grammar is not only a turn off, but also increases the likelihood that people skip your message altogether. (See also:15 Ways to Get People to Respond to Your Email)

"If you is not doing it good, the grammar," you may be appearing dumb to others. So, clean up your speech and your writing by avoiding these 12 common grammar mistakes.

Use the Right Word

As Inigo Montoya said in The Princess Bride: "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."

1. Specially vs Especially

These two adverbs often confuse people. While both of them indicate that something is particular, they are used in different circumstances.

• Use specially to indicate a particular or specific purpose. For example, "I baked this pie specially for this occasion."
   
• Include "especially" to denote a particular or exceptional quality. For example, "Steve did especially well on today's game."