The Book of the Shadows

I don't usually follow the Apple WWDC. I don't usually follow much about Apple. The last Apple product I actually used was the first generation iMacs (the bubble shaped ones with the bunch of colors) when my elementary school dropped what had to have been a ton of cash on them right after their launch. It's not that I have anything particularly against Apple on the scale of the Apple vs. Microsoft fan wars. But basically it comes down to cost. Entry price for Apple has often been higher than PC, which I think has hurt Apple in that sector in its past. Those on the lower end of the market in terms of price actually make up a large part of the market in terms of numbers. Not having a cheaper alternative from Mac, many went with PC by default. Price vs. quality may narrow or negate some of that margin, but most computer buyers have not traditionally been so sophisticated to care about that. Many of those who are, tend to be sophisticated enough to put together a PC on their ...

Now, I'm not going to get into the habit of promoting one company or another. I don't personally take one side or the other in this particular topic. But I do appreciate the craft of making good, funny, commercials and ads. I want to go with a little levity now too, as opposed to the heady topics I've covered in my last few posts. The first one you've probably seen countless times by now and may even be sick of it. But it's another hilarious commercial from the folks at Old Spice. This second is a new ad from Microsoft, poking fun at Apple, lining up an Asus tablet to an iPad. It's not the most hilarious commercial (not close to the one above) but it's still something to snicker at.

In my last post I noted that there was a need for individuals to think about the question How Much Is Enough. The point of the post was that devoid of any desire or need for legislation, individuals should think, both for their own benefit and for the general social welfare, about how much wealth they really need to accumulate and how they will go about doing so. Today I want to speak briefly about policy, particularly as it relates to the tax code and the interplay of corporations in that paradigm. The other day, May 21, Apple CEO Tim Cook went before a Congressional committee to testify. It wasn't part of any high-level investigation or anything of the sort, but they wanted to know how it was Apple over the past few years avoided paying taxes on a very large sum of money, somewhere in the neighborhood of $44 billion. For days leading up to this testimony the media seemed almost fearful that Apple would get raked over the coals with accusations of being railroaded and f...