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[2011-03-10 23:44:58] - hi meg, i'm dc! ~a
[2011-03-10 17:27:44] - you aren't supposed to tell people you have a bomb shelter and you are supposed to tell people when you have a doomsday machine. ~a
[2011-03-10 17:15:24] - Gurkie: You say that now, but guess who will be begging for acceptance into my bomb shelter once the dead rise from the grave? -Paul
[2011-03-10 17:11:49] - a: I think for most of this conversation, I've just been counting the government approved retirement sources that I have (Roth IRA, Traditional IRA and Traditional 401(k)). -Paul
[2011-03-10 17:09:19] - a: no, i have "short-term investments" for stuff i want to buy on april 16th as well as "long term investments" for money i want to waste ensuring that i can maintain a prolonged emotionally sterile existence well into my 200s - aaron
[2011-03-10 16:57:33] - so you guys consider all "investments" as the same thing as "for retirement"? ~a
[2011-03-10 16:51:41] - paul: and in some ways gold would count towards retirement... assuming it was purchased as an investment and not jewelery for me ~gurkie
[2011-03-10 16:51:07] - paul: none of that is allowed in my family! except the gold
that I will take. ~gurkie[2011-03-10 16:45:13] - Daniel: Not unless I can count my bomb shelter, canned goods, guns, ammunition stores and gold coins towards retirement / zombie apocalypse survival.
-Paul[2011-03-10 16:26:08] - Daniel: Somehow I dont think so... But I am doing that too
~gurkie[2011-03-10 16:25:31] - gurkie: I expect most of it will come from growth. OK.... honestly, I expect I won't reach it, but if I get even close it's because of growth, not what I put in. Compound interest is a powerful force. I've gotten double digit returns most years. Even for 2007-2008 I was still positive overall. -- Xpovos
[2011-03-10 16:23:47] - Daniel: I feel your pains. Via my wife, but her debts are mine now. -- Xpovos
[2011-03-10 16:18:03] - Does paying off student loans count as retirement savings?
-Daniel[2011-03-10 16:15:37] - ugh... you guys are making me feel like such a slacker... 26x can you do that in a 401K? Considering current max contribution is 16,500 a year... 40 years would get you 660000 obviously the max will go up but... will it go up enough to get to 26x? or you might just have to open an IRA too~gurkie
[2011-03-10 16:11:59] - Xpovos: Hmm most stuff I've read has people generally taking out 60-80% of their salary when they retire instead of 100%. The idea being that some expenses go away when you retire and don't go to work everyday. However if you can get to being able to draw 100% more power to you. -Daniel
[2011-03-10 15:57:55] - Daniel: Assuming I can get about 8% returns and inflation is 3-4% 26 times annual salary as a nut means that I can essentially take an equivalent to a one year salary out forever. It means that barring financial collapses, hyper-inflation, and other epicly bad financial crises, I'll never have to work or rely on SS, or my pension, or anything. -- Xpovos
[2011-03-10 15:49:37] - Xpovos: I would say my retirement savings is at about 1.25x my current salary. Not sure if that's good or bad. -Paul
[2011-03-10 15:46:57] - Xpovos: How did you come up with the 26x mark? Did you just decide on that? read it somewhere? I'm just curious. -Daniel
[2011-03-10 15:45:04] - Daniel: Yes. I LOVE THE LETTER X! And I want to have 26 times my annual salary in retirement savings. This is made more fun by the fact that my annual salary continues to grow and I anticipate it will continue to do so due to inflation. -- Xpovos
[2011-03-10 15:24:22] - Daniel: And it feels like so many decisions have to take into account these random tax breaks. For instance, I should've bought my house a year later than I did so I could've gotten the first time homeowners credit. Maybe I should've bought a new car during cash for clunkers. Too bad I am saving for a wedding or else I could've gotten new windows for a tax credit too. -Pau
[2011-03-10 15:22:21] - Daniel: And I understand that none of those programs individually are that bad, but it all adds up. I find it virtually impossible to do my taxes on my own (without something like TurboTax) while still feeling at all confident that I am getting all the tax breaks I am entitled to. -Paul
[2011-03-10 15:21:18] - Paul: I think a simpler tax code is good in theory. In practice it seems very hard to accomplish. -Daniel
[2011-03-10 15:20:32] - Xpovos: Your goal is to have 26 times your annual salary in retirement savings? I'm trying to read your post with all the x's and I'm not sure I'm undestanding it. -Daniel
[2011-03-10 15:19:40] - Daniel: That's why I would prefer they just get rid of all of these (somewhat) random tax breaks and instead just aim for a lower overall tax bracket. I understand they are trying to encourage retirement saving or reduce health care burdens or whatever, but I just find it overly complicated. -Paul
[2011-03-10 15:07:38] - a: But that's not the IRS' fault. We get to blame the legislature for every piece of tax insanity. The problem is that the tax code has become a playground for politics rather than a source of revenue. We'll tax rich people more because that's progressive and good. And then we'll give tax credits to certain groups because we want to encourage their activities. -- Xpovos
[2011-03-10 15:05:30] - Even with all of that my total 40x(x) savings is just under 1x annual salary. My goal is to get it to 26x. -- Xpovos
[2011-03-10 15:04:57] - gurkie: Had. This was for about 6 months in 2006-2007. It helped bridge the gap because my primary job I wasn't allowed to contribute via 401(k) until I'd been there 6 months. But I was working the second job and putting 100% of that away. (Fun note, they still took SS and Medicare first) to compensate. -- Xpovos
[2011-03-10 14:49:54] - daniel: they could make the restrictions far simpler. but 90% of the issues i have with the IRS is related to complicated rules. ~a
[2011-03-10 14:47:21] - i almost said "queue"
~a[2011-03-10 14:47:07] - cue adrian or amy talking about how the quotation mark isn't near the enter key in dvorak. ~a
[2011-03-10 14:44:45] - Paul: And I don't think that the max contribution limit for 401ks is really a problem for most people. -Daniel
[2011-03-10 14:44:27] - but I'm not sure that you can keep tax breaks for retirement investing w/o keeping restrictions on them as well. -Daniel
[2011-03-10 14:44:06] - Paul: I get what you are saying, I'm not sure I agree. I think the optimize comment on my part is the trying to figure out if you should be in a roth vs regular if you should use a 401k or IRA type stuff. I think there could be a 'right' answer there but I dont think any of those choices are 'wrong'. I agree there are restrictions on investing for retirement...
[2011-03-10 14:38:28] - Stupid enter key being close to the quotation marks. -Paul
[2011-03-10 14:38:06] - Daniel: The rules only get more complicated if you want to "optimize" and get 100% of your money cashed out.
-Paul[2011-03-10 14:37:49] - Daniel: The rules only get more complicated if you want to "
[2011-03-10 14:37:22] - Daniel: I feel like it would be similar to if during poker, I only let people cash out for 100% of their chip value if it was after 11pm, and only if they bought in less than once an hour, and only for less than $80 during the entire night, otherwise you get 80% of your chip-value in cash. -Paul
[2011-03-10 14:33:16] - Daniel: Even if you don't try to optimize, it's still more complicated than simply investing. Also, I don't consider maximum contributions and limits on what you can invest in and penalties for withdrawing money early to be a little more than "optimizing". -Paul
[2011-03-10 14:29:30] - Gurkie: My 401(k) I just have invested in mutual funds. I choose the funds, but they choose where to invest my money. My Roth IRA, I manage myself. -Paul
[2011-03-10 14:13:34] - xpovos: you have a second job??? since when? and 100% of your salary! That is insane! ~gurkie
[2011-03-10 14:04:46] - gurkie: No, I don't max. I can't afford it. Even when I was putting 100% of my salary in for a while I still didn't come close to breaking the ceiling... of course that was my second job, but--still, no. I've never even come close to maxing it. -- Xpovos
[2011-03-10 13:59:37] - gurkie: i understand. i don't call that "grow tax free" though. i call that tax on growth even if it happens when i withdraw. ~a
[2011-03-10 13:57:19] - Best Drudge-style headline I've seen in a while. Transvestites Duke it Out at Mexican Eatery... -- Xpovos
[2011-03-10 13:55:29] - a: I think Daniel is saying that it doesnt get taxed while growing... that it is only taxed once... ~gurkie
[2011-03-10 13:54:44] - also... why can your company enforce limits on how much can be contributed? What is the companies rational for not letting you just use the gov'ts value... I read online that its whatever is lower your company enforced value or 16500 ~gurkie
[2011-03-10 13:54:12] - gurkie: yes. i also have an ira, and i'm not sure that's allowed. ~a
[2011-03-10 13:53:39] - traditional 401k grows tax free? by my perspective, that is in conflict with "pay taxes on the money you take out". if i pay taxes on all the money i take out, then i hardly call that "growing tax free". ~a
[2011-03-10 13:52:24] - do you people max out your 401K contributions? ~gurkie
[2011-03-10 13:51:17] - daniel: imo it's wrong if i do something that drastically changes my final balance . . . assuming it is something could have been foreseen. ~a
[2011-03-10 13:49:44] - a: Roth / Regular IRA/401k all grow tax free. The difference is when you pay the taxes on the money. Regular 401k / Roth you don't pay taxes up front but pay taxes on the money you take out. Roths you pay taxes up front but you get to take money out later w/o paying taxes. Both grow tax free. -Daniel
[2011-03-10 13:48:38] - 401k systems don't let you pick any stock. you can only pick from the funds they let you pick. some bullshit about "fiduciary responsibility". ~a
[2011-03-10 13:48:28] - a / Paul : It can get complicated if you try to optimize. Even if you just did a regular 401k at our age that might not be the best strategy but it doesn't make it wrong. -Daniel
[2011-03-10 13:41:29] - paul: do you manage what gets purchased with your 401k? I think I just have options of what funds to put it in rather than individual stocks... ~gurkie
[2011-03-10 13:39:44] - roth is good imo. roth means you use post-tax dollars to fund the account, but all the money that the account accumulates is tax-free. i think that means if you expect your money to double or more (after inflation adjustments) then you want a roth. ~a
[2011-03-10 13:28:55] - a: i agree the roth bit confuses me... I just go with a traditional 401 right now but I would love to know if I should be using a Roth 401 or an IRA instead... ~gurkie
[2011-03-10 13:28:09] - I actually didnt think that the limit on a 401 changed based on your salary, I thought it was always something like... 16,500 but looking online it looks like your company can enforce limits too... ~gurkie
[2011-03-10 13:13:31] - it's more complex than another form of investing because of the complicated and constantly changing maximums. the rules about what happens (pre-tax vs post-tax of traditional vs roth) can be confusing too if you're trying to make the right decision. for instance, if you have a traditional 401k, and your company offers roth, you're making the wrong decision at our age. ~a
[2011-03-10 13:08:51] - Paul: Sure, which is why I would tell people to use a 401k. But I'm still not sure how a 401k is that more complex than another form of investing. There are rules for it, but if you know its money that you can't use until retirement and just tell the company to take $ out of your paycheck, how is it making saving for retirement harder? -Daniel
[2011-03-10 12:50:01] - Daniel: Sure, 401(k)s and IRAs and all opt-in, but if you are saving for retirement and buying and selling stocks (and paying capital gains taxes), then you're paying thousands of dollars of extra taxes than you should. -Paul
[2011-03-10 12:48:46] - Daniel: I understand, and for something like an FSA we're probably talking about inconsequential amounts of money, but in a larger sense, I think claiming that it's an opt in system is a little weak. -Paul
[2011-03-10 12:39:38] - I also don't have/use an FSA. Andrea does but she has to do more work and keep track of stuff to use it. I choose not to. -Daniel
[2011-03-10 12:39:07] - Paul: 401ks auto stop when you reach the limit I believe. Its only for IRAs that you have to keep track. FSAs do take more work but no one makes you do that more work to save that money. Its an opt in system. -Daniel
[2011-03-10 12:37:49] - that's why i won't get a FSA. ~a
[2011-03-10 12:26:20] - Daniel: It's really the flexible spending accounts which make me mad, because it seems so silly. We have to estimate how much we're going to spend over the coming year on certain items and remember to buy them through the FSA. And if you guess wrong and have money leftover at the end you either have to splurge on bandaids or lose your money. -Paul
[2011-03-10 12:22:52] - Daniel: I suppose, although you still have to keep track of what your max contribution is at any given time. I just wish that instead of coming up with all of these overly complicated ways of helping us save money (FSA, IRA, 401(k), etc), legislators would just cut taxes by a bit or something. -Paul
[2011-03-10 12:13:18] - Paul: you can get into the more complicated stuff but you dont' have to. -Daniel
[2011-03-10 12:13:04] - Paul: Sure ok, the system for retirement savings can be complicated if you are trying to fully optimize it. However it still works pretty well if you dont fully optomize and then its less complicated. Contribute to your 401k enough to get full company match. Increase contributions 1% a year or something to work your way up to max contributions. Boom! -Daniel
[2011-03-10 12:12:11] - Daniel: Not only that, but I think the contribution limits for most (if not all) of those are dependent on how old you are and how much money you make. And it's not like those rules are static, they sometimes change from year to year. -Paul
[2011-03-10 12:09:00] - Daniel: First off, there are traditional 401(k)s and Roth 401(k)s, and I believe there are different contributions limits (and obviously different tax implications) for both. Then there are also traditional IRAs and Roth IRAs which seem to serve the same purpose as 401(k)s, but have different rules (and different contribution limits from 401(k)s). -Paul
[2011-03-10 12:07:22] - Daniel: I'm not saying a 401(k) is overly complicated by itself, but all of these special programs for saving for retirement make something that should be extremely simple (spend less than you make) into something that even smart people worry they aren't handling properly. -Paul
[2011-03-10 11:57:35] - Daniel: on another note I think the 401K becomes complicated when you are wondering if you should open one or an IRA or a Roth IRA or a Roth 401K (I think that is an option) and debating the benefits of the different retirement funds. ~gurkie
[2011-03-10 11:51:53] - Gurkie: Nice! Do we get to have spoiler talk on here or are there other readers around to want no spoilers? -Daneil
[2011-03-10 11:50:52] - Daniel: I finally finished Wise Man's Fear!! ~Gurkie
[2011-03-10 11:49:10] - Paul: Whats complicated about a 401k? -Daniel
[2011-03-10 11:48:27] - Stephen: I have it but have been busy this week and haven't actually started to play it yet. -Daniel
[2011-03-10 11:00:34] - stephen: i have started on tuesday, about 5-6 hours in. - mig
[2011-03-10 10:45:40] - gurkie: Yeah, tough choice on the politics there. My perspective, I wouldn't be offended to be offered, but I'd probably decline. But if it were making things painful, say I'd slept badly that night and had a crick in my neck, I might accept. In any case, I'd probably be grateful, but I can definitely see someone getting offended. Silly, but human nature. -- Xpovos
[2011-03-10 10:31:51] - Miguel, Daniel: Are either of you playing Dragon Age 2 yet? I was thinking of starting it this weekend. - Stephen
[2011-03-10 10:30:50] - xpovos: He definately ducked to get in, thats how I first noticed him you dont usually see people have to hunch and duck to get in the metro... I thought about offering him my seat but I wasnt sure if he would find it insulting to be offered a girls seat... ~gurkie
[2011-03-10 10:26:30] - I'm not saying that individually, things like 401(k)s and IRAs and flexible spending accounts are that difficult to deal with, but they all add up. Just to drive a car, I have to make sure I pay insurance every six months, registration every two years, inspection every 1 (or 2 for emissions) years, and license renewal every 5? years. -Paul
[2011-03-10 10:24:15] - at the end of the year. And I don't think jumping through all of those hoops are worth saving $20. It's like 401(k)'s and IRAs, instead of making saving for retirement simple we have to jump through all these hoops. -Paul
[2011-03-10 10:21:19] - gurkie: That's pretty tall! I'd say the metro car interiors, at the peak, since I think they're slightly rounded at the sides are at least 6.5ft. Were there no seats available for him? If I'd had one, I'd totally have offered. It's not cool to have to stand in a situation like that. He must have to duck to get out the doors too. Hurray for being short! -- Xpovos
[2011-03-10 10:21:09] - xpovos: Honestly, I think the thing that I was thinking about when reading this article is how complicated all these regulations make my life. I'm thinking specifically of the flexible spending account. I could probably try to use it to save $30 or so a year, but I'm guessing most of those savings would be eaten up by money I might potentially leave in there... -Paul
[2011-03-10 10:20:08] - gurkie: i usually feel like i've got about 8 inches of headroom. so maybe like 6'8"? - aaron
[2011-03-10 10:18:22] - How tall do you guys think metro cars are? There was a guy on the metro today who couldnt stand up straight and I was curious how tall he had to be... Also I felt bad for him cause he must be super uncomfortable on the metro ~gurkie
[2011-03-09 17:36:56] - aaron: i'm not shocked, but i'm ok with that
~a[2011-03-09 17:16:54] - xpovos: unintended consequences that drives up health care costs ... i'm shocked. SHOCKED! - mig
[2011-03-09 17:11:30] - Changing subjects: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704692904576166554110739560.html Any discussion on this? -- Xpovos
[2011-03-09 16:48:58] - I have a feeling the distance those news outlets are using is something like the average distance from earth to whereever it ultimately went. just a guess though, and I realize how confusing the methods of measurement can get - vinnie
[2011-03-09 16:19:15] - mainly i'm just having trouble finding out . . . what does a "mile" even mean if you don't have a standard frame of reference? ECEF or ECI are all well and good. except if you're chilling out on the moon or at a lagrangian point having a drink, they both say you're actually traveling a distance! ~a
[2011-03-09 16:19:08] - i love days where I get to spend 5 consecutive hours in meetings... really... especially when I get to lead them... really... ~gurkie
[2011-03-09 16:16:49] - a: You're right, I was forgetting most importantly the negligent friction. Inertia plays a major role. I think it'd be impossible to generate a fuel efficiency number. Yeah, it's a thorny issue even keeping at well below relativistic speeds. -- Xpovos
[2011-03-09 16:11:00] - i can see why you came up with this idea though. the concept of "miles per gallon" works pretty well for cars. for stuff in orbit i don't think you can measure "miles per gallon"
~a[2011-03-09 16:09:24] - won't that just calculate work done? not distance traveled? for example, it costs zero fuel to travel a distance in many situations. iow, the unit for "fuel expenditure cross efficiency" will be Nm (newton meters). i'm trying to calculate units of m (meters)? ~a
[2011-03-09 15:45:44] - a: Fuel expenditure cross efficiency? -- Xpovos
[2011-03-09 14:01:10] - a: check the odometer?? - aaron
[2011-03-09 13:33:53] - i can think of three different, and seemingly "correct" ways of calculating space shuttle movement distance and all three would give wildly different numbers. i wonder which of the three they used? ~a
[2011-03-09 13:33:38] - a bunch of news outlets are talking about the space shuttles retirement recently. they all like to quote the number of millions of kilometers that the shuttle flew. in space, an object's movement "distance" or "velocity" is a funny thing, right? so... ~a
[2011-03-08 18:39:13] - so gurkie's it is then ~a
[2011-03-08 17:35:09] - Gurkie:
-Paul[2011-03-08 17:20:11] - Paul: sorry bun, the cake is a lie.... ~gurkie
[2011-03-08 17:12:09] - a: I am. I hear she throws great parties and that there will be cake and it's not a lie. -Paul
[2011-03-08 16:50:26] - so then, who is going to gurkie's? ~a
[2011-03-08 16:36:41] - I think I am going to watch at my place... I dont mind if people show up and watch there too, but I think Meg's would probably be more fun seeing as you can congratulate/commiserate with her as necessary. Stephen is going to Meg's... ~gurkie
[2011-03-08 16:30:26] - a: sorry i'll definitely watch it from home though! - aaron
[2011-03-08 14:51:52] - so . . . uhhh. who's going to meg's? i'll "rsvp" if i know someone else is going. ~a
[2011-03-08 13:43:58] - no, not in hs. i went to a few of his parties in college though and i had a few mutual friends. i thought he was a pretty cool guy. ~a
[2011-03-08 13:34:55] - David Wadden just started working at my company... were any of you people friends with him in HS? ~gurkie
[2011-03-08 13:34:20] - Paul: hehehe, but if you dont stop when you are injured you might end up at the point where you cant work out for months!!! ~gurkie
[2011-03-08 13:25:14] - Gurkie: In the future, see if I stop working out after injuring my arm. -Paul
[2011-03-08 13:18:32] - Paul: if one of us was said to have done P90X alone on Sunday who would it have been? (in spirit not counting)~gurkie
[2011-03-08 13:16:14] - a: yea what stephen said... it was just on her profile... ~gurkie
[2011-03-08 12:19:01] - a: It wasn't an event, it was just a status message. If you are FB friends with her, you had the potential to see it. - Stephen
[2011-03-08 11:59:10] - maybe i'm not invited? ~a
[2011-03-08 11:59:00] - oh i didn't see the thing on facebook. ~a
[2011-03-08 11:23:39] - a: Nothing is currently planned that I know of... Paul and I were discussing it yesterday but Meg had posted on fbook asking if people wanted to go to hers... ~gurkie
[2011-03-08 11:02:09] - a: Are you talking about Jeopardy tonight? -Paul
[2011-03-08 10:54:55] - Normally I would be ok with her reading, since it gives me time to play video games. Unfortunately, now it just means I have to do P90x by myself.
-Paul[2011-03-08 10:54:42] - gurkie: "I was thinking of offering... but I guess you can." was something planned? ~a
[2011-03-08 09:47:11] - im currently about 70% done with it... it is really screwing with my sleep schedule though. I keep not going to bed when I want to cause I want to read... plus every evening paul says what are we doing tonight and I say Im reading... ~gurkie
[2011-03-08 09:46:14] - daniel: one of my coworkers is convinced that Rothfuss is setting himself up for a current day trilogy. The past is a great story but there are a lot of open ended aspects to what is happening now... ~gurkie
[2011-03-08 09:34:36] - a: well, in his defense he really nailed rayleigh scattering
- aaron[2011-03-08 08:59:33] - a: Hehehe, I recognize that.
-Paul[2011-03-08 01:16:13] - "What a visionary." "i think this is a surprisingly accurate description" "This kid may be the next Buddha. Very zen!!" OH MY GOD! my dad made me watch Being There last night. it's a 79 movie about an adult with severely impaired cognitive abilities who accidentally convinces the social elite that he is a visionary. they were saying basically the same things. ~a
[2011-03-08 00:57:40] - http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/fxhsu/im_4_years_old_amaa/ i don't know if anybody gets sick of reading these reddit "amas" but i don't. here's one of a four year old kid answering questions (his dad handled the typing) - aaron
[2011-03-08 00:51:12] - "This page was created using notepad (no frontpage here) and was tested using Internet Explorer at 1024x768 resolution. 800x600 should work but is not recommended. Netscape is not supported, Netscape users are advised to use Internet Explorer."
~a[2011-03-07 10:15:18] - I'm a little curious how the story wraps up and if he actually sticks to a trilogy. Since his main character is so young it would seem to leave room for a story to continue on into more books. -Daniel
[2011-03-07 10:14:29] - Gurkie: Finished Wise Man's Fear. I enjoyed it, thought it was good. Definitely looking forward to the 3rd one.
[2011-03-05 11:09:21] - wait - i mean dominion not diplomacy! there was already online diplomacy... - aaron
[2011-03-05 11:09:00] - http://dominion.isotropic.org/ online diplomacy! really good interface imho, easy to get on and play and uses open id so you don't need to create an account. who wants to play! - aaron
[2011-03-05 00:17:07] - daniel: ok, here's an even better response to your post! i socially hacked your life using this simple string: whoah, that's some fucked up shit ~a
[2011-03-05 00:14:45] - don't do it . . . daniel found a bug in the flash app, adobe flash, and the browser sandbox and has written a virus using music. ~a
[2011-03-04 23:40:50] - Should you choose to listen you can load that string in there. -Daniel
[2011-03-04 23:40:36] - -----556-3---4-1---0---8889991---1---9--6-00-2-3-554-889-6-0--0---0---99980---6-6-889--c------2---2-4---8---7-a---4---8---b6---c---c---c---c----4--7-5-5-3-5-560---3-5-3-b---a------6-6-88-7-6-7-a-----8-7-6-7-a--a---a---a---a------8-1---8998-----0-7-6-8-7-a
[2011-03-04 23:40:28] - Super old - like from my college but I'm oddly proud of this and randomly refound it again. http://www.2flashgames.com/f/f-548.htm is a simple way to make simple songs. I made one that I thought wasn't bad. -Daniel
[2011-03-04 17:09:24] - gurkie: no not as of yet. we have a 401k also, so there are conflicting interests in changing your salary. ~a
[2011-03-04 16:38:49] - who was it who set their salary to 1 buck? steve jobs? ~gurkie
[2011-03-04 16:38:23] - a: some small business owners... aka a? ~gurkie
[2011-03-04 16:34:30] - i believe bonuses are not subject to employee social security. nor are dividend payments? something like that, but i forget the details. anyways, some small company owners will set their salary and dividend payments to weird values to legally decrease their tax payments. ~a
[2011-03-04 16:31:53] - a: does that mean bonuses arent subject to social security? ~gurkie
[2011-03-04 16:31:19] - or over like 400K ... point being... tax the rich! ~gurkie
[2011-03-04 16:30:49] - employer ss = 0.062*MIN(106800,salary)
~a[2011-03-04 16:30:31] - hehe what if the govt only took social security on any money you made over 1 million... I bet that would also fix things... ~gurkie
[2011-03-04 16:28:13] - daniel: <pedant>106800</pedant> ~a
[2011-03-04 16:27:39] - interesting... does medicare work the same way? ~gurkie
[2011-03-04 16:22:46] - Gurkie: Yeah you only pay social security tax on your first 106k earned. People have talked about increasing that limit or removing it but currently its at 106k. -Daniel
[2011-03-04 16:13:34] - do they only take SS money from your first 100K in income? ~gurkie
[2011-03-04 16:12:49] - Daniel: taxable limit? Can you tell me what that means? ~gurkie
[2011-03-04 16:10:50] - sorry that reads funny: raising the taxable limit from 100k a year to 156k a year. -Daniel
[2011-03-04 16:10:19] - I "solved" social security by rasing the SS tax .1% every year for the next 20 years and raising the taxable limit 156K a year. -Daniel
[2011-03-04 16:09:03] - Has http://public-consultation.org been posted before? One of those interactive tools to try and solve the deficit and Social Security. Its interesting cause when I did it I chopped some fairly big numbers off defense to start with, but I wonder if I had a army general actually make an informed case about Iraq/Afgan if I would chop less money. -Daniel
[2011-03-04 15:58:34] - Gurkie: Also, the owner of the sushi place (who I expected to be some forward thinking hero of the story) said he only puts 18-25 year olds at the counter. "If someone wanted to work here and was 30, I'd put her in the back."
-Paul[2011-03-04 15:57:08] - Gurkie: That's a pretty accurate assessment of the article, although I feel like it's sexist in a weird way. The guys are like "female hands are too warm!" and the female response was, "but women are usually colder than men". -Paul
[2011-03-04 15:55:19] - Daniel: http://www.googlefight.com/index.php?lang=en_GB&word1=aaron+makes+up+facts&word2=men+have+warmer+hands Looks like "men have warmer hands" wins by a hair. -Paul
[2011-03-04 15:53:24] - aaron: Yeah, I guess that's what I found so amusing. They "addressed" all these reasons which made little sense and also didn't try refuting any. I dunno, it just felt strangely written, and amusingly so. -Paul
[2011-03-04 15:52:48] - aaron: I wasnt agreeing with your argument just saying why I could see them discriminating based on that. I cant really just google things at this office, big brother is watching... But I am guessing that the article is mostly spouting attempted justifications of sexism. ~gurkie
[2011-03-04 15:50:36] - I think its widely accepted that Aaron just makes up facts. Feel free to google it, you'll see for yourself.
-Daniel[2011-03-04 15:45:04] - gurkie: right, warm hands handling the fish could ruin it. again, it's been demonstrated men have warmer hands than women; something to do with the nerves that control blood flow when the body is cold. i can't really find any reputable sources right now but if you google it, it seems like it's widely accepted - aaron
[2011-03-04 15:31:10] - aaron: for sushi you are supposed to keep the fish cold... warm hands handling the fish could ruin it... BUT I didnt read the article so maybe they said that... ~gurkie
[2011-03-04 15:25:54] - paul: but even if it were true it's funny that they discriminate based on that. i mean, there are far more logical things to discriminate about. like, surgeons should be female, i'd understand that one. lives are at stake and having small hands is probably a big advantage - aaron
[2011-03-04 15:22:49] - paul: the thing about women having warmer hands is factually inaccurate; it's been demonstrated that men have warmer hands than women. it's bizarre that there's any difference at all, although there are some obvious theories why it's the case - aaron
[2011-03-04 14:11:29] - Really CNN? Urgent 13 year old girl missing lured in by sexual predator. Details on Nancy Grace at 8. If its urgent why do I need to wait until 8 to know anything??? ~gurkie
[2011-03-04 13:18:06] - http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704254304576117193420193936.html I found this article about female sushi chefs in Tokyo to be amusing for all sorts of reasons. -Paul
[2011-03-04 11:54:04] - daniel: yea that is my concern based on the bit of wise mans fear I have read... ~gurkie
[2011-03-04 11:41:49] - gurkie: It would definitely be tricky since the gap in the story is pretty much non existant. You would have to be very careful when talking about University stuff to know where the cutoff in events was. -Daniel
[2011-03-04 11:27:40] - Daniel: for my book club we chose Name of the Wind for this months book (we are on month 2) and so far we have a nice core group of us who might need to split off at some point in the conversation cause we will have all finished wise mans fear too... I dont know how you can talk about Name of the Wind after finishing Wise Mans Fear without revealing information ~gurkie
[2011-03-04 11:00:01] - Gurkie: I'm about 1/2 way through Wise Man's Fear currently. I'm definitely enjoying it so far. Its made me laugh much more than the 1st book. -Daniel
[2011-03-04 10:54:27] - according to my work book club, dance for dragons has a new release date... June 12 2011... Who reads game of thrones? ~gurkie
[2011-03-04 10:06:18] - reread the old not new... ~gurkie
[2011-03-04 10:06:08] - daniel: I am glad I re-read the new one though cause I feel like Rothfuss left a lot of storylines open and if he finishes any of them I want to know what he is talking about. ~gurkie
[2011-03-04 10:05:07] - Daniel: all of the above. I finished Name of the Wind last night and immediately started Wise Man's Fear... I am not far in the new one yet though, have you finished? ~gurkie
[2011-03-04 09:42:00] - Gurkie: Did you decide to finish name of the wind or have you started Wise Man's Fear yet? -Daniel
[2011-03-03 21:34:16] - Gurkie: Sorry, have been at a conference the last two days. I'm pretty sure Meg is not watching in VA on the 8th, but I don't know if she's planned anything since I last spoke to her. - Stephen
[2011-03-03 15:56:39] - oh no, i wish i hadn't missed ultimate last weekend. ~a
[2011-03-03 15:50:31] - a: no, i was talking about ultimate - aaron
[2011-03-03 14:46:46] - Paul: Yea last thing you setup was Ultimate last weekend... Last event I organized was the birthday party... ~gurkie
[2011-03-03 14:44:44] - http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/fwpzj/iama_74time_jeopardy_champion_ken_jennings_i_will/ ken jennings is answering questions on reddit; he's got a good sense of humor and it's interesting to hear his take on the kinds of crude or inconsiderate questions "real interviewers" would have too much tact to ask - aaron
[2011-03-03 14:33:48] - strippers? you're talking about travis's thing? hmmm, that's a good point. ~a
[2011-03-03 14:25:37] - I think by most accounts, my last events planned involved poker chips and frisbees.
-Paul[2011-03-03 13:57:34] - maybe paul threw the superbowl party? if so, i guess i guess gurkie might win - aaron
[2011-03-03 13:57:14] - a: hmm. i think there might have been strippers at paul's last event, depending on how you categorize these events - aaron
[2011-03-03 13:56:48] - yay me! but that being said.. I am not planning on buying a cake this time... ~gurkie
[2011-03-03 13:50:33] - we're deciding who the better host is? i vote for gurkie because there was a cake at her last event. ~a
[2011-03-03 13:45:02] - Paul's place sucks, I'd rather Gurkie host - vinnie
[2011-03-03 13:05:47] - a: OH GOD THEY'RE BOTH AWFUL - aaron
[2011-03-03 12:31:43] - aaron: sometimes red sometimes blue ~a
[2011-03-03 12:26:27] - Paul: I was thinking of offering... but I guess you can. ~gurkie
[2011-03-03 10:28:19] - title: I'm willing to host, if nobody else wants to. -Paul
[2011-03-03 10:20:50] - stephen: is meg into watching with us or is she watching with her family? (or with others) ~gurkie
[2011-03-03 10:20:02] - Paul: the 8th. ~gurkie
[2011-03-03 08:43:20] - Stephen: Maybe I am dense and missed it, but which Tuesday? This one has already passed. Next Tuesday? -Paul
[2011-03-03 08:04:50] - http://sometimesredsometimesblue.com/ - aaron
[2011-03-02 16:22:36] - Daniel: she was at aaron/paul's bday. Got married Jan 15th, blonde... She is a friend of ours from HS both her and Stephen are going to be on Jeopardy this month, her showing is sooner... ~gurkie
[2011-03-02 15:33:06] - Jeopardy is on at 7:30 -Daniel
[2011-03-02 15:32:52] - Who's Meg? -Daniel
[2011-03-02 15:14:38] - Stephen: what time does it air?? ~gurkie
[2011-03-02 14:39:29] - Yes, Meg's Jeopardy is on Tuesday. No plans have been finalized as of yet. - Stephen
[2011-03-02 14:23:48] - mig: if you want a new job.... our company wont just yank your pay
although there is a difference between billing and working ~gurkie[2011-03-02 14:23:04] - mig: yea I can see that my company is nice in that our "salaried" pay is gauranteed... Then if we bill extra we get paid it (although this depends on the contract so if they get paid we do...) ~gurkie
[2011-03-02 14:10:31] - The pro part of that was that a lot of people were able to do overtime just for extra money on a regular basis, and since at the time our contracts had a lot of money to spend, the company was ok with that, so a lot of developers that liked the arrangement. - mig
[2011-03-02 14:10:27] - yeah it's funny how people's perspective of how a company should behave is directly affected by the companies where they have worked. it's like relativism or something. ~a
[2011-03-02 14:05:17] - gurkie: well yes and no. In the past up until about a year or 2 ago, our paychecks were actually directly tied to how many hours we billed, but technically we were "salaried". It never made much sense to me. - mig
[2011-03-02 14:03:43] - gurkie: "shady". sure, i agree it probably will usually only happen in dire situations unless you're at a really small company. you probably should be looking for a new job if that happens. most companies have better contingencies for this sort of situation unless you're a 1099 or something. ~a
[2011-03-02 14:01:10] - a: if they say "dont come in today, we arent paying you" it seems like you are actually an hourly employee paid based on what you bill... not salaried. ~gurkie
[2011-03-02 14:00:56] - Basketball people: I see we did in fact lose to BC last night. I'm laughing more than I'm crying. What craziness. -- Xpovos
[2011-03-02 13:59:12] - a: If they cant afford to pay their employees they need to lay them off, with severance
imho. Or they can ask who wants to be unpaid and who wants to be laid off... I dont know I just think its a shady policy to have in place and doesnt seem "salaried" to me... ~gurkie[2011-03-02 13:58:47] - legal weight? legally, i'm pretty sure an employer can ask you not to come into work. though ianal and i'm pretty fuzzy on the details of what "exempt" means. ~a
[2011-03-02 13:49:37] - a: Thats pretty much what I thought too, and what I think most people intuitively understand when they tell us not to come to work when we don't have a contract. However gurkie's position does seem to have some legal weight to it. Whether it would be a good idea for them to continue to pay salary with 0 income is another story I imagine. -Daniel
[2011-03-02 13:46:44] - Title: He's that Doctor guy on the other station. -- Xpovos
[2011-03-02 13:46:27] - gurkie: "If you are salaried it shouldnt be contingent on their schedule" more or less true. however, if the company isn't getting any money, how are they expected to pay you? i guess in some situations, they can get a loan (or use up some liquid assets), but i can imagine situations where that might be impossible or at least dangerous, right? ~a
[2011-03-02 13:42:08] - well i heard from somebody it was tuesday. maybe it is monday, i dunno. ~a
[2011-03-02 13:39:20] - Meg is on on Tuesday for some reason I thought it was Monday.... What time does Jeopary air? ~gurkie
[2011-03-02 13:39:10] - maybe a lady I know in HR? She might have more knowledge on the subject? Also while curious I'm not sure I want to actually cause any problems over it since its not that big an issue
-Daniel[2011-03-02 13:38:07] - daniel: forward the email to his boss and ask if he knows? ~gurkie
[2011-03-02 13:37:49] - gurkie: Yeah it looks like you should be right based on what wikipedia says : "A properly classified, as exempt, salaried employee is typically not paid more for more hours worked and employers may not deduct wages for items such as lack of work or because the employee worked less hours due to no fault of their own" which is why I asked. -Daniel
[2011-03-02 13:36:37] - a: Well I can see how you come to that conclusion but I don't thnk of him as an a-hole. I actually like him pretty well for a boss. Its not the optimal answer for me but I do believe he is busy. He mentioned that he had asked someone above him at some point but I guess didn't an answer either. -Daniel
[2011-03-02 13:36:32] - the govt isnt opened... If you are salaried it shouldnt be contingent on their schedule... ~gurkie
[2011-03-02 13:36:09] - Daniel: well they have extended budgeting for at least 2 more weeks, it might not matter. But as I said I think its totally messed up if you guys dont get paid just cause
[2011-03-02 13:29:08] - what an a-hole. i guess "i don't know" is a fair answer. but "i'm busy" implies to me that he doesn't give a fuck about your question. ~a
[2011-03-02 13:03:19] - gurkie: Ha. His reply? I don't know and I'm busy. -Daniel
[2011-03-02 13:00:58] - gurkie: I sent my boss an email asking about that whole salaried / not getting paid during a gov shutdown thing. We'll see what he says. oO -Daniel
[2011-03-02 10:05:51] - uh oh, I dont think I would want him to sign my kindle... But maybe I would buy a copy to have it dedicated... ~gurkie
[2011-03-02 09:47:15] - Xpovos: Oo according to the 3rd link he is coming to a borders in our area. Perhaps I could get my copy signed. -Daniel
[2011-03-01 21:56:45] - A signed copy of a Terry Pratchett novel was among the wedding presents for Katie and I.
-- Xpovos[2011-03-01 21:55:49] - From Katie: Here's the stuff re: the signed Rothfuss books. 1) http://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2011/01/signed-copies-of-the-wise-mans-fear/ 2) http://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2011/02/signed-copies-of-the-wise-mans-fear-part-ii/ 3) http://www.patrickrothfuss.com/content/tour.asp -- Xpovos
[2011-03-01 15:39:46] - Gurkie: I have a couple of WoT books signed by Jordon, some books signed by Brandon Sanderson, and I think one somewhere signed by Brian Jacques. -Daniel
[2011-03-01 15:30:30] - It seems that it's popular to bash the ACC this year. Up until this week there were lots of projections that the ACC might only get 3 bids to the tourney, which I find ludicrous. I mean I get it, the ACC is not as good as it used to be, but is it that much worse than all the other conferences. Who pray tell, other than the Big East, and Big 10, are good? - mig
[2011-03-01 15:24:48] - hmm I wonder if Jordan signed a bunch of his books before dying so that his family could sell them off? And/or I wonder if the price of books signed by him went up after he passed... ~gurkie
[2011-03-01 15:24:14] - xpovos: as of right now we are on the good side of the bubble, but a loss tonight to Boston College might endanger that. Despite the bashing of the ACC lately, 10 or 11 wins in conference is still pretty good and should get them in. - mig
[2011-03-01 15:23:59] - xpovos: thats awesome! I got orson scott card to sign/dedicate my books but none of my other favorite authors... ~gurkie
[2011-03-01 15:23:04] - Daniel: Grrrr... I wish I had started my reread before... 5PM yesterday. Maybe I would have gotten more than 10% in... ~Gurkie
[2011-03-01 15:18:20] - I guess there's an analogy to our football team in there somewhere. -- Xpovos
[2011-03-01 15:18:07] - I don't follow <strike>college</strike> basketball except for the Hokies, and I gave up on the Hokies early on in the season when we were looking bad. I check back and I see we upset Duke the other night? And now some are saying that's put us in the bracket? Really? We definitely didn't seem like a bracket worthy team early on. -- Xpovos
[2011-03-01 15:05:40] - Xpovos: Sure I would be curios about that. -Daniel
[2011-03-01 14:33:16] - Daniel: She bought it from a third party that had some sort of arrangement. She cancelled her Amazon pre-order (significantly under retail) and paid a premium (significantly over retail). But, it arrives, signed, and with a dedication of your selection. I can ask her for the website, if you like. -- Xpovos
[2011-03-01 13:40:33] - Xpovos: Did she order her book from his website? Or how is she getting a signed copy mailed to her? -Daniel
[2011-03-01 13:40:04] - Gurkie: I finished my reread of NotW last night. I will be going old school and stopping by an actual book store on the way home from work to get my copy. -Daniel
[2011-03-01 13:30:38] - Katie's getting a hardcover, signed. Should be arriving in the mail this week. -- Xpovos
[2011-03-01 13:16:30] - I am very excited about the book and have a few other friends who most likely dl'ed it last night. ~gurkie
[2011-03-01 13:15:33] - Daniel: I got it delivered at midnight last night (gotta love the kindle) but I started re-reading Name of the Wind yesterday sooo I don't know if I should finish the reread before the new book... ~gurkie
[2011-03-01 11:49:39] - http://www.amazon.com/Wise-Mans-Fear-Kingkiller-Chronicles/dp/0756404738 nope. -Daniel
[2011-03-01 11:09:41] - daniel: you mean wise men fear today - aaron
[2011-03-01 10:52:04] - Xpovos: Perhaps - if she is into that series. I told my wife I pretty much planned on reading all night. -Daniel
[2011-03-01 10:49:46] - Daniel: So what you're saying is I should get my wife back in a couple of days? -- Xpovos
[2011-03-01 08:53:39] - Wise Man's Fear today! Woo! -Daniel
[2011-02-28 10:12:35] - Stephen: Probably not. I sadly didn't enjoy the first game as much as a lot of you guys did (and I never ended up finishing it). -Paul
[2011-02-28 10:01:44] - xpovos: lol i missed that one, wow that's terrible and hilarious (terriblarious?) - aaron
[2011-02-28 09:52:13] - stephen: almost certainly. - mig
[2011-02-28 08:59:14] - Stephen: I will probably be playing through Dragon Age II. Whether or not I purchase it on launch day will be determined by whether or not I'm done with ME2 in time. -Daniel
[2011-02-27 12:41:48] - Stephen: I downloaded the demo and will give it a whirl. I've heard good things, but I should probably finish DA:O first. At least once. -- Xpovos
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