Making government contracting pay and pay and pay……..

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According to the Washington Post, a federal judge sentenced Kerry F. Khan, the mastermind of a contracting scam of “historic proportions,” to nearly two decades behind bars. This sentence was even more than prosecutors had requested because of the “staggering” scope of the scheme. Questions: 1. What were some of the “red flags” associated with… Read more »

Would you invest in a Bitcoin Fund?

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Bitcoin has been promoted as an alternative crypto-currency that exists outside the realms of governments and central banks. Now Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, the twins best known for their part in the history of Facebook, filed a proposal with securities regulators that would allow any investor to trade bitcoins, just as if they were stocks…. Read more »

Could you live on $8M a month?

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Equilar Inc., the executive compensation analysis firm, found that the median 2012 pay package came in at $15.1 million — a leap of 16 percent from 2011. However, at 19 percent in 2012, that median stock market returns for these companies was only three percentage points higher than the pay raise. Lawrence J. Ellison, founder… Read more »

Double-Dipping Pain

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Many homeowners are being taken to court by their lenders long after their houses were taken in foreclosure. How? Lenders are filing new motions in old foreclosure lawsuits and hiring debt collectors to pursue leftover debt, plus court fees, attorneys’ fees and tens of thousands in interest that had been accruing for years. Questions: 1…. Read more »

Deloitte Fined and Banned: Accounting Firm Botches Consulting Engagement Dealing with Bank Regulatory Problems

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Deloitte was hired by Standard Chartered, a British bank, to independently spot suspicious money transfers routed through its New York branches. However, as the consultants, a final report submitted to state regulators was watered down, indicating misconduct by Deloitte and a lack of autonomy for Standard Chartered’s illicit transfers of billions of dollars on behalf… Read more »

Read the fine print

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It is likely that when you get your first job or when you move to a new job that you will be asked about enrolling in a long-term care insurance benefits program. According to Ms. Siegel, one of the most important reasons for people buy long-term care insurance is to avoid burdening a spouse or… Read more »

Massive Estate Planning Mistakes of Celebrities

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[Marilyn Monroe]Consider the mistakes of these five celebrities when you make decisions about your estate or advise others about theirs. As Sheyna Steiner reports, problems in life may compound after death as creditors, heirs and the Internal Revenue Service come calling for their share of an estate. Questions: 1. After reading about these five celebrities,… Read more »

Welcome to the GMO free zone of the future

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As we head into the hot summer, what sounds great? Well, ice cream, of course! And who is in the news? Ben and Jerry’s. According to the Huffington Post, Ben and Jerry’s is removing a controversial ingredient from its ice cream: Genetically-modified organisms (or GMOs). The back story is that only 80% of Ben &… Read more »

Pension Predators – A New York Investigation

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Gov. Andrew Cuomo is ordering New York’s top banking regulator to investigate “pension advance” firms. The payments by these firms are advertised as advances. However, they are really cleverly disguised high interest rate loans that target older citizens’ assets. Questions: 1. What are the benefits for the firms on insisting that they are advances rather… Read more »

Is it fair that some hospitals are charging 400% above their costs to deliver services?

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According to government data, hospitals charge Medicare wildly differing amounts — sometimes 10 to 20 times what Medicare typically reimburses — for the same procedure. This raises questions about how hospitals determine prices and why they differ so widely. Questions: 1. Discuss the data set and what was included. 2. According to the article, who… Read more »