Elon Musk, Loser
Love him or hate him, everyone’s favorite richest man on the planet, Elon Musk, keeps racking up the headlines. Is he a twenty-first-century Edison or Ford, hurtling towards the first trillion-dollar fortune? Will he change the world with his genius for cars, batteries, rockets, and satellites? Or is he a cranky, drug-addled narcissist, costing himself […]
Too Many Men on the Field?
This weekend marks the kickoff of the NFL playoffs, and questions abound. Does Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson have what it takes to go all the way? Can San Francisco’s Brock Purdy finally silence the doubters? Will Kansas City’s Travis Kelce be too distracted by his new girlfriend to focus on the field? Stay tuned for all […]
Shotime!
If you’re a football fan, you’ve just come off a weekend-long binge full of college and NFL games. If you’re a basketball fan, March Madness is just around the corner. If you’re a hockey fan . . . well, does anyone but another hockey diehard know what’s going on in your head right now? So […]
This Honorable Court Is Now in Session
Over 234 years, the Supreme Court has issued opinions that have changed the course of our government, our history, and our very American character. In 1803, Marbury v. Madison established the principle of judicial review and cemented the court’s role as a co-equal branch of government. In 1954, Brown v. Board of Education ruled that […]
TikTok Tax Tip
Barely five years ago, in September 2018, a Chinese company named ByteDance rolled out a video-sharing social media app called TikTok. The company’s Chinese origin has caused headaches around the globe, with concerns that they might pass sensitive user data to the Chinese government. Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, and Montana have banned the app entirely, while […]
Excedrin Headache #1,367
What do sophisticated tax cheats, drug cartel money launderers, Russian potash oligarchs, and quite possibly you all have in common? Well, if you operate your business as a partnership, corporation, or limited liability company, you’re all about to find yourself caught up in a sticky new web of Grade A federal red tape. Washington is […]
That Giant Sucking Sound
For decades, growing numbers of scientists have warned that burning fossil fuels is pumping dangerous amounts of greenhouse gases into the Earth’s atmosphere. Nations across the planet are grudgingly joining forces to reduce emissions and head off the supposed danger from rising sea levels, more severe storms, and loss of biodiversity. But many experts say […]
There’s No Place Like Home
Generations ago, Hugh Hefner shocked America with a new kind of men’s magazine: a fictionalized portrait of American womanhood built around “the girl next door.” Today, Playboy and its imitators are just a memory. But there’s a new kind of porn that millions of Americans devour. Zillow.com lets you peek inside the girl next door’s […]
Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?
What’s the last thing you want to read about for fun, and why is it taxes? Writing about taxes is easy. Every day there’s something worth reporting. Someone is always introducing legislation. The IRS is always issuing regulations. The Tax Court is always issuing opinions. Several news outlets, including Bloomberg, Politico, and Law360, publish weekly […]
Mind the Gap
Last week, the IRS announced that the “tax gap”—the difference between the amount of taxes Americans legally owed and the amount they actually paid—grew to $688 billion for 2021. That’s a lot more than a few pizza shop owners skimming out of the cash drawer. With Uncle Sam routinely running trillion-dollar deficits, closing that gap […]