Every year around February 1, I fire up the IRS's Free File Fillable Forms and begin the arduous process of manually inputting all my income and expenses for the year. I have what you could think of as either a very complex individual tax return or a very simple business tax return. It's a very complex individual tax return since I have to fill out Schedules C and SE in … [Read more...] about Why I do my own taxes (and why you might not)
Archives for September 2017
Accelerating payments versus making good decisions
Here at Saverocity, our glorious leader Matt and I have a difference in opinion, which is always more fun than agreement, so I thought I'd take a few minutes to give the strong form of our disagreement. I don't think either of us actually holds the strong form of these opinions, but the strong form illustrates the difference most dramatically. Anyone who has met Matt knows … [Read more...] about Accelerating payments versus making good decisions
Bitcoin seems fine, but there’s no reason to own any
The other day someone on Twitter linked to this very interesting essay by Marc Andreesen of Andreesen Horowitz, the prominent venture capital firm, which I highly recommend if, like me, you missed it when it was published in 2014. I think the essay crystalized for me two points in the cryptocurrency/blockchain discussion that are sometimes passed over or muddled. The … [Read more...] about Bitcoin seems fine, but there’s no reason to own any
The problem of class projection
A few different situations have recently set me to ruminating on a curious problem that I think doesn't receive the attention it deserves. My working name for this problem is "class projection," although I'm sure the academics have already come up with a much better, or at least longer, term for it. The problem is that when people imagine how other people think, they project … [Read more...] about The problem of class projection
Do we have a retirement savings crisis or a retirement income crisis (or neither)?
I'd like to set some facts up on the board: In 1966, prior to the Johnson Administration's "War on Poverty," 28.5% of Americans over the age of 65 were living below the poverty line. In 2012, just 9.1% were; Since 1978, the number of workers covered by defined benefit pension plans has been in steady decline. in 2013, 39.5% of new female filers and 35.6% of new male … [Read more...] about Do we have a retirement savings crisis or a retirement income crisis (or neither)?