Category Archives: News and Current Events
Those Re-Entering Dating Game Later In Life Can Use Some Help
Here’s the bad news: dating never gets easy, not even for people in their 60s and beyond. There’s some good news, as well. Those matchmaking sites so heavily advertised on television can also be of great benefit to people getting back into the dating decades after they thought that aspect of their lives was… Read More »
Budget Cuts Affect Veterans and Survivor Benefits
A budget cut in last month’s budget agreement will not only affect all military retirees, but also the benefits received by surviving spouses, according to a recent article. The budget agreement included a cut to the annual cost-of-living increases of one percent, which according to the Pentagon will save $6 billion dollars over the… Read More »
Bill would help veterans capitalize on military skills
They fought for our freedom. They shouldn’t have to fight for jobs. Too often, veterans of the various recent conflicts abroad return home to discover the skills they needed in Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere aren’t appreciated by potential employers, and that they don’t have a way of explaining just how prepared their experiences make… Read More »
Veterans Should Not Be Held Hostage in Budget Impasse
As the government shutdown continued, there was plenty of blame and lots of shame to be passed around. For veterans, it’s looking like they may become hostages to the political infighting and budget impasse. “Veterans groups have reacted angrily to news that an extended government shutdown will leave the Department of Veterans Affairs unable… Read More »
Threatened Food-Stamp Cuts Would Harm Elderly
Unconscionable. That’s the only way to describe the recent vote in the U.S. House of Representatives to cut $40 billion from the nation’s food stamp program. The impact of that attack on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program on just one vulnerable segment of the population, the elderly, is potentially devastating, and an advocacy organization… Read More »
Special needs of military for consumer protection recognized
In a gesture somewhat overdo but almost worth the wait, the federal government formally recognized Military Consumer Protection Day on July 17. According to a wide array of sources, improving ways to keep men and women who have honorably served their country from falling prey to scams isn’t going to stop at only one… Read More »
Law would treat military parents of children with disabilities with the same respect as it does their civilian counterparts
On the plus side, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives and of the Senate recently had the courage to introduce a bill that would greatly aid children with disabilities who have a parent in the military. On the down side, the website govtrack.us gives the measure only a 1-percent chance of making… Read More »
Family Caregivers Search for Resources and Support
As people in the U.S. continue to live longer, and as our aging population grows, more and more adult children are finding themselves straying from their own goals and career paths in order to provide caregiving services to elderly parents or grandparents. It should come as no surprise to our readers that, according to… Read More »
Tax Law Allows Married Couples to Reduce Their Estate Taxes
Married couples take note: Congress passed a law in 2010 that can significantly reduce the amount your estate pays in estate taxes. Unfortunately, most couples are either completely unaware of this opportunity for savings, or they find out about it too late to take advantage of it. This recent article in the Wall Street… Read More »
Should Heirs Pay Taxes on Assets They Can’t Sell?
Throughout history artists and their artwork have often been on the leading edge of controversy. In a recent brou-ha-ha between the heirs of the New York art dealer Ileana Sonnabend and the U.S. Internal Revenue Service the controversy is over nothing less than the value of art—although perhaps not “value of art” in the… Read More »