OK, fine, full-blown Socialism does not exist in the UK; however, the UK is definitely more socialized than here in the States. Below, you will find a great ‘perk’ of trying to work with more-socialized countries:

Q: How come other services are not blocked?

We can only really speak for ourselves on this one. There are two rules we follow: to abide by standing copyright laws, and to pay artists fairly.

In the UK, to be a licensed service for all the music we want to play on Pandora, we are being asked to pay per track/stream rates which equate to over 80% of our gross revenues. This licensing framework does not enable any entity to grow an economically viable ad-supported Internet radio business. These rates apply to all Internet radio, or so we have been told. You would have to ask those other companies about how they are still streaming to the UK.

That is from www.pandora.com, one of [if not the] best free-streaming-radio websites available online.

Nick

A controversial provision that would allow bankruptcy judges to modify mortgages for troubled homeowners was rejected by the Senate on Thursday.

The provision, known as “cram-down,” failed on a vote of 51-45. A similar measure was approved by the House earlier this year.

In May, I will be graduating with a degree in Computer Systems. I have two options; one is to find a company to work for, and the other is to start my own development firm. I have actively been searching for a job, but I have also considered opening my own firm. The thrills of owning a business are extremely enticing, and I find myself leaning that way more and more. Do not get me wrong, I would love to find a job in the KC Metro area, with which I can have a structured future. However, I am about two weeks from graduating college, and I have some huge decisions to make.

Our corporate taxes, in the United States, are some of the highest in the world. More importantly, our taxes on small businesses are exorbitant. I direct you to this link to see for yourself. If you notice the range of $100,000 to $335,000 USD, that tax rate is the highest of any level. OK, so if you have a small business, you aim to jump from $99,999 to $335,001 USD. All jesting aside, President Obama is looking to increase taxes for businesses making over $250,000 USD in taxable income. I am not sure about you, but giving away 39% of any sort of income does not seem very fair. And now, the Obama Administration has proposed raising that to an even higher percentage!?! What are we thinking, America?

By now, I am sure that you are getting tired of the ‘complaining’ in regards to taxes. However, I am making a call to all sane people out there. Write to your congressmen and congresswomen and tell them that you have had enough of the ridiculous amount of taxing that our government has instilled on our society. Make sure that they know that the ‘tea parties’ that the country partook in a few weeks ago were for real. Now is the time for ‘change’.

I digress. Taxation is a needed part of any functional government; however, it has its limitations. To loosely paraphrase a smart gentleman, “Ask not what your [government] can do for you, but what you can do for [yourselves].” Too often we rely on our government to tell us what to do; now is the time to realize that a government is only in place to assist, not direct [except in few instances, i.e. - war].

Many of you out there will read this and do nothing. I cannot blame you, because the majority of you are not small business owners. However, for all of the small business owners out there, the future is now. We, and we alone, can define what it holds.

Nick

Enough said

Nick

While reading an article about airlines and the price of fuel, I came across this:

You are SO on target! I can hardly look at my 401K….someone should hang our Pres and VP. Each day I think maybe we have hit bottom (maybe I should join AA) and each day we sink deeper into the black hole. I feel like I am drownding…..

Source

I mean, seriously. Love or hate the guy, how do you say that anyone should be hanged?

Nick