tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-54471964131040120042024-02-20T22:32:46.328-06:00Friendly FireI think therefore I am ... an enemy of the state.Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.comBlogger77125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-70539218398513626232015-08-22T08:00:00.000-05:002015-08-22T08:07:42.431-05:00History of Municipal Bankruptcies Under Chapter 9Municipal bankruptcies are covered under Chapter 9 of the bankruptcy code. Chapter 9 was created in 1934 in the midst of the Great Depression. Chapter 9 has many differences from corporate or personal bankruptcy. First, states can determine if municipalities are permitted to file for Chapter 9. If Chapter 9 filing is allowed the municipality cannot be forced to liquidate assets to cover debts, does not protect collective bargaining agreements, does not protect retiree benefit guarantees, and the bankruptcy judge has no ability to modify bankruptcy plans; he can only approve or reject a submitted bankruptcy plan. (<a href="http://www.abajournal.com/magazine/article/the_next_chapter_municipalities_are_using_chapter_9_to_fend_off_creditors/">source</a>)<br />
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The list below contains a brief account of counties, towns, and cities that either filed for chapter 9 or came close to filing. Note that there are other municipalities that file for chapter 9 that are not a county, town, or city. These special municipalities are setup for special projects: hospitals, sewers, landfills, etc. The list below is only of municipalities that can be found on a map.<br />
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<h3>
New York City, New York. April, 1975. </h3>
Although New York City did not declare bankruptcy it did default on bonds in 1975. By 1975 the city had experienced many years of deficit spending due to a generous welfare system that consumed 22% of the city’s budget. The city continued to borrow money to help cover expenses. By April of 1975 the city had accumulated $14 billion of debt with $6 billion being short term debt (due in less than a year). Unable to borrow more money the city was unable to pay back bonds that were due and so it defaulted. The city petitioned New York State and federal government for help. To help raise money for the city, the New York State government created the Municipal Assistance Corporation (MAC) that would issue its own bonds. The state placed pressure on government unions as well as New York banks to purchase MAC bonds. The unions complied by purchasing $500 million in MAC bonds. Gerald Ford initially stated he would veto any proposal by the federal government to aid the city. By November of 1975 Ford had changed his mind and the federal government loaned $2.3 billion to the city for 3 years. Conditions on the loan from the federal government included having the city pension fund use 40% of its assets to buy MAC bonds, NY banks must purchase $819 million in MAC bonds, the city must raise taxes and fees, and the city would have to balance its budget by 1978. In the end the state was able to raise $2 billion in MAC bonds at 11% interest which was quite a bit higher than the municipal bond rate of 6.89%. The MAC bonds were still not enough for the city to be solvent. The city cut 40,000 employees from a workforce of 300,000 and increased taxes. The city was still unable to pay back creditors so it postponed payment of $1.6 billion of bonds for 3 years. By 1978, three years later, the city balanced its budget, had paid back all delinquent bonds, and was able to borrow money again on the bond market.<br />
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<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
<div>
Population: 7,400,000</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $12 billion ($1621 per capita)</div>
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Debt: $14 billion ($1891 per capita)</div>
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Cause: Social Services (welfare)</div>
<div>
Resolution: Cut city employment, raised taxes, state and federal bailout</div>
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<div>
Sources: <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124701298016709067.html">1</a>, <a href="http://www.library.ca.gov/crb/95/notes/v3n1.pdf">2</a>, <a href="http://www.ny.frb.org/research/quarterly_review/1976v1/v1n1article1.pdf">3</a></div>
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<h3>
Cleveland, Ohio. December 15, 1978.</h3>
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The City of Cleveland also did not declare bankruptcy but it too failed to pay back bonds when they became due. By 1978 the city population had decreased by almost 25% from just eight years ago which caused city tax revenues to decline. During the 1970’s the city borrowed money to cover deficits as it failed to cut spending despite declining tax revenue. On December 15, 1978 the city was unable to borrow more money and it failed to pay $15.5 million in bonds due that day to six local banks. The city defaulted. In an attempt to raise money the city sold several assets: its sewage treatment facility for $32 million, its transit system for $8.9 million in 1975, and a power company whose sale was later rescinded. By February, 1979 voters approved a 50% increase in the city income tax rate and in 1980 the governor of Ohio loaned $36.2 million to the city for 3 years which allowed the city to bay back the $14 million still owed to the banks.</div>
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<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
<div>
Population: 573,000</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $90 million in 1971 ($158 per capita). I could not find a budget for 1978.</div>
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Debt: $33 million ($58 per capita)</div>
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Cause: Decreasing tax revenues due to decreasing population</div>
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Resolution: Sell city assets, raise taxes, state bailout</div>
</div>
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Sources: <a href="http://publishing.cdlib.org/ucpressebooks/view?docId=ft4x0nb2jj&chunk.id=d0e4679&toc.id=d0e4679&brand=ucpress">1</a>, <a href="http://ech.cwru.edu/timeline.html">2</a>, <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=qJgpDMlCOPEC&pg=PA178&lpg=PA178&dq=city+of+cleveland+1978+default&source=bl&ots=PMkc_q4Gb3&sig=CCpmfsEB1baPmi8njpela5ilzWk&hl=en&sa=X&ei=4bj6UfzKF4vq8ASswIDABQ&ved=0CEoQ6AEwBDgK#v=onepage&q=city%20of%20cleveland%201978%20default&f=false">3</a>, <a href="http://ech.case.edu/cgi/article.pl?id=D2">4</a>, <a href="http://www.clevelandmemory.org/mayors/perk/achievements.html">5</a></div>
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<h3>
Lipscomb, Alabama. April 19, 1991.</h3>
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The town of Lipscomb had constructed a $3 million sewage treatment plant in 1979. The project was financed by issuing bonds that were backed by taxes charged to property owners who were connected to the sewer system. The city also raised money by issuing bonds that were backed by an increase in the town sales tax of 1%. Over time the city experienced a 90% decrease in sales tax revenue as many businesses moved out of the town to neighboring areas. By 1985 the town stopped making payments on the debt. The creditor filed suit in 1987 and 1988 to collect delinquent payments from the city and was awarded a judgment of $120,000. In 1991 the creditor again sued the town for delinquent payments, asking for the town to turn over keys to city hall, its three police cars, and some of its fire trucks.</div>
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<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
<div>
Population: 2,800</div>
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Annual Budget: Unable to determine</div>
<div>
Debt: $1.2 million ($423 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Sewage treatment bonds, declining tax base</div>
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Resolution: Could not determine the outcome.</div>
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<div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.gfoaa.org/docs/CGAT/CGAT%20Muni%20BR%20Presentation.pdf">1</a></div>
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<h3>
Bridgeport, Connecticut. June 6, 1991.</h3>
<div>
Bridgeport filed for bankruptcy in June and the bankruptcy was dismissed by a judge in July making it one of the shortest bankruptcies in the list. When Bridgeport filed for bankruptcy it was able to meet its expenses for the current fiscal year but the city was doubtful it would be able to do so the following year. The bankruptcy judge determined that projections into the next year were too unreliable and dismissed the bankruptcy. City employee salaries and benefits were the majority of the city spending causing the city to accumulate $220 million in debt. The city was able to avoid bankruptcy the following year by union concessions of $10 million in payroll freezes, having city employees pay part of their health insurance saving another $10 million, and by aggressive tax collection of pass due property taxes bringing in another $10 million.</div>
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<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
<div>
Population: 142,000</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $304 million ($2,141 per capita)</div>
<div>
Debt: $220 million ($1,549 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Employee salary and benefits</div>
<div>
Resolution: Bankruptcy dismissed. City avoided bankruptcy with union concessions and aggressive tax collection</div>
</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/1991/07/06/news/06iht-muni.html">1</a>, <a href="http://business-finance-restructuring.weil.com/chapter-9/bridgeport-%E2%80%93-distressed-but-not-insolvent/">2</a>, <a href="http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Bridgeport+rebounds+from+bankruptcy+to+balanced+budgets.-a019641964">3</a></div>
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<h3>
North Courtland, Alabama. December 9, 1992.</h3>
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An employee of the city sued the city stating their 14 amendment rights were violated. An award of $100,000 was decided for the employee. The city did not have $100,000 to pay the employee which represented 40% of the city’s annual budget. With a total debt of $187,000 of which $107,000 was debt from the lawsuit, the city filed for bankruptcy. The city had portions of its tax revenue garnished to pay the award over years.</div>
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<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
<div>
Population: 1,000</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $290,000 ($290 per capita)</div>
<div>
Debt: $187,000 ($187 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Employee lawsuit</div>
<div>
Resolution: Portion of city tax revenue’s was garnished to pay the award to the employee over years.</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.gfoaa.org/docs/CGAT/CGAT%20Muni%20BR%20Presentation.pdf">1</a></div>
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<h3>
Orange County, California. December 6, 1994.</h3>
<div>
Orange county had relied heavily on interest income from investments compared to other California counties (12% for Orange county compared to the average of 3% for other California counties). The treasurer of Orange County, Robert Citron, used a county fund of $7.6 billion as collateral to borrow money against. He ended up borrowing $2 for every $1 in the fund increasing the size of the fund to $20 billion. He then invested the money in interest rate derivatives which are financial instruments used to hedge against interest rates going up or down. Using an astrologer and psychic, the treasurer bet rates would go down. By late 1994 the fund had lost $1.64 billion and at that time the county now depended on 35% of their tax revenue coming from investments. Around $910 million in bonds were due and the county was unable to pay them. When the banks that loaned the county the money attempted to seize the money from the county’s deposit account the county declared bankruptcy. The county then proposed a sales tax increase which was voted down. It petitioned the stated for assistance but was denied. The county proceeded to cut 1,000 county jobs and $200 million from the annual budget. In addition, the county took $570 million from the transportation fund to help pay back the debt. Other local governments had also contributed money (around $800 million) to the county investment fund and they withheld their demand for payment until the bank lawsuits were finished. The county also borrowed $880 million in new bonds to pay back debt on existing bonds and to refinance some of the existing bonds. Several banks were sued by the county resulting in Merrill Lynch being ordered to pay $430 million, First Boston $55 million, and KPMG Peat Marwick $75 million. The county emerged from bankruptcy almost two years later in June of 1996.</div>
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<h4>
Summary</h4>
<div>
Population: 2.567 million </div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $3.7 billion ($1,441 per capita)</div>
<div>
Debt: $12 billion ($4,674 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Bad investments</div>
<div>
Resolution: Reduction in county workforce, reduction in county spending, money diverted from transportation budget, renegotiated terms with lenders, penalties paid by banks.</div>
</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/1994/12/08/business/orange-county-s-bankruptcy-the-overview-orange-county-crisis-jolts-bond-market.html">1</a>, <a href="http://www.ppic.org/content/pubs/op/op_398op.pdf">2</a>, <a href="http://articles.latimes.com/1995-01-01/business/fi-15459_1_business-stories">3</a>, <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2013/01/17/obit-citron-orange-county-bankruptcy/1842401/">4</a>, <a href="http://articles.latimes.com/1998/jun/03/news/mn-56196">5</a>, <a href="http://www.sec.gov/litigation/admin/337260.txt">6</a></div>
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<h3>
Greene County, Alabama. September, 1996.</h3>
<div>
When Greene County filed for bankruptcy in September of 1996 it listed liabilities of $154 million of which $152 million were claims made by 87 residents of the county equaling $1.7 million per resident. I couldn’t determine what type of claims the residents levied against the county. The bankruptcy plan was amended in 1997 which showed liabilities of only $3.4 million. A dog track provided over 1/3 of the county’s revenue which began to suffer in the 1990’s due to a new dog track opening in Birmingham and a casino opening in Mississippi. In 1988 the dog track had revenues of $98 million and by 1994 those revenues were down to $24 million. The county owed the IRS $519,000 since it was not submitting withheld income taxes from county employees to the federal government. Around $1 million in revenues was diverted from road and bridge programs to pay employee salaries. Another $1.5 million was owed to other government agencies.</div>
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<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
<div>
Population: 9,700</div>
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Annual Budget: Could not determine</div>
<div>
Debt: $3,400,000 ($351 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Gambling revenues declining</div>
<div>
Resolution: Count not determine</div>
</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.gfoaa.org/docs/CGAT/CGAT%20Muni%20BR%20Presentation.pdf">1</a></div>
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<h3>
Westlake, Texas. June 9, 1997.</h3>
<div>
Westlake was a town founded in 1956 when three large landowners formed the town to avoid having a local government. The Town of Westlake did not provide government water, sewer, police, fire, or schooling. In 1997, Westlake consisted of 250 residents on 4517 acres. Ross Perot Jr. was one of the residents owning the Circle T Ranch. He submitted a plan to develop the ranch into a western themed town with apartments, shopping, and golf courses. Residents, along with the mayor, tried to fight the development. Eventually the town board voted to remove the mayor, and de-annex several properties, including Perot’s ranch, from the town. This de-annexation would reduce the size of Westlake to just 1414 acres with 160 residents. Several lawsuits were filed and Westlake’s accounts of $2.5 million were frozen while the lawsuits were being settled. This caused Westlake to file for bankruptcy since it could not pay its bills. Once a judge granted certain government officials access to the funds to pay the town bills the bankruptcy was dismissed.</div>
<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
<div>
Population: 250</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: Could not determine</div>
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Debt: Could not determine</div>
<div>
Cause: De-annexation caused lawsuits which froze the town’s bank accounts.</div>
<div>
Resolution: Bankruptcy was dismissed once accounts were unfrozen by a judge.</div>
</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.westlake-tx.org/DocumentCenter/Home/View/139">1</a>, <a href="http://www.texnews.com/texas97/suburb061197.html">2</a>, <a href="http://www.dmagazine.com/Home/1997/10/01/FEUDS_GUNFIGHT_AT_THE_CIRCLE_T_RANCH.aspx">3</a></div>
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<h3>
Prichard, Alabama. October 5, 1999.</h3>
<div>
It was difficult for bankruptcy officials to assess the financial situation of Prichard as very few records were kept of the city’s financial accounts and expenditures. The city admitted to not making contributions to the city’s pension fund for years before the bankruptcy filing. Income taxes owed to federal and state governments were also not paid by the city. The city emerged from bankruptcy two years later and was ordered to increase its pension fund contributions by $16.5 million in order to make up for the years the city did not contribute to the pension fund. Prichard appears on the bankruptcy list again since the city never implemented the increase in pension fund contributions.</div>
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<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
<div>
Population: 33,000</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: Could not determine</div>
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Debt: $3.9 million ($118 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Pension Fund, poor financial record keeping of city funds</div>
<div>
Resolution: Ordered to increase pension fund contributions</div>
</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/23/business/23prichard.html">1</a></div>
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<h3>
Desert Hot Springs, California. December 18, 2001.</h3>
<div>
In 1990 the town of Desert Hot Springs rejected a plan by Silver Sage Partners to build a mobile home park in the town. Silver Sage sued the town under the basis the town was discriminating against the poor which is illegal under the federal Fair Housing Act. After lengthy court proceedings, Silver Sage was awarded $6 million, nearly 11 years after court proceedings began. The town immediately filed for bankruptcy after the reward was announced. In took three 3 years for the town to emerge from bankruptcy. As part of the bankruptcy plan the town passed two tax increases and issued $12.8 million in 40 year bonds to pay Silver Sage $8.85 million as well as other creditors. By 2012 the city had amassed $42.7 million in debt.</div>
</div>
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<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
<div>
Population: 17,000</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $25 million ($1,471 per capita)</div>
<div>
Debt: $8 million ($471 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: City sued by developer under Fair Housing Act. Developer awarded $6 million.</div>
<div>
Resolution: Increased taxes and borrowing by town to pay reward.</div>
</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://articles.latimes.com/2001/dec/21/local/me-16931">1</a>, <a href="http://www.hmbreview.com/news/municipal-bankruptcy-offers-protection-but-at-a-price/article_da6ab1cf-cfe2-5afa-8153-d2eab91c9170.html">2</a></div>
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<h3>
Millport, Alabama. December 14, 2004.</h3>
</div>
<div>
Millport borrowed $2.081 million from the USDA in 1993 for a sewer and water system upgrade. At the time of the bankruptcy filing, over 11 years later, the town still owed $2.010 million to the USDA. The town had stopped payment of the bonds to the USDA for several years. The town had also borrowed $1.3 million to renovate a civic center. At the time of the bankruptcy filing the town had amassed debt totaling $3.5 million when its annual budget was a mere $750,000. Money was even borrowed from the town clerk who was owed $20,000 by the town. Factories had been closing or moving out of the area causing a declining population in the town. This caused sales tax revenues to decline by 20% from 2000 to 2004. The bankruptcy plan reduced debt from $3.5 million to $2.7 million by having 8% of monthly sales tax revenues for the next 40 years directed to the bondholders of the civic center loans ($1.3 million), along with a lien placed on the town hall, and the town was to make annual payments of $12,000 for the next 10 years to other creditors who were owed $120,000. Penalties and interest were added to the money owed the USDA increasing this debt to $2.147 million. No relief was given on this debt.</div>
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<h4>
Summary</h4>
</div>
<div>
Population: 1,000</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $750,000 ($750 per capita)</div>
<div>
Debt: $3.5 million ($3,500 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Declining population, jobs, and tax base coupled with a large USDA loan for a sewer and water system project.</div>
<div>
Resolution: Restructured loan agreements where creditors receive portion of sales tax revenues.</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.tuscaloosanews.com/article/20080623/NEWS/221197967/-1/NIE">1</a>, <a href="http://etd.auburn.edu/etd/bitstream/handle/10415/956/DEAL_KEREN_35.pdf?sequence=1">2</a></div>
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<h3>
Los Osos, California. August 25, 2006.</h3>
</div>
<div>
In 1989 the California Central Coast Regional Water Quality board issued a building moratorium for a section of Los Osos. No new construction was to take place due to the concentration of septic systems in Los Osos. Almost all of the residents in Los Osos use septic systems for sewage treatment. The county proposed the building of a sewage treatment plant. Many residents were upset at the cost of the plant so it 1998 an election was held that established the Los Osos Community Services District (LOCSD). In August of 2005, LOCSD began construction on a sewage treatment plant. The location of the plant in the middle of Los Osos upset some residents so a recall election was held which removed three (3) council members. After the recall election construction on the sewage plant was halted. LOCSD filed for bankruptcy in August, 2006 with approximately $45 million in debts, fines, and claims. In 2007 the county took over the construction of the sewage plant and LOCSD citizens approved a Proposition 218 (which requires a majority of voters to reject the proposal) property tax increase to help raise $127 million to cover some of the costs of the sewage plant. The county also obtained $87.2 million in 40 years loans from the USDA for the project. Based on the original project plans the estimated monthly sewage fee would be $50 per month. Now the monthly fee is expected to be $200-$250 per month. In March, 2011 the California state Water Resources Control Board awarded Los Osos a 30 year loan of $86.2 million towards the sewer project. In July, 2011 the bankruptcy judge approved a plan where most creditors and contractors would only receive 35-40% of their owed money in relation to the sewage treatment plant.</div>
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<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
</div>
<div>
Population: 14,500</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $4.3 million in 2012 ($297 per capita)</div>
<div>
Debt: $45 million ($3,103 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Sewage Treatment Plant</div>
<div>
Resolution: Property taxes increased, monthly sewage fees increased, creditors to receive 35-40% of owed amount.</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://calcoastnews.com/2011/08/what-next-for-los-osos/">1</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Osos,_California">2</a>, <a href="http://www.rockofthecoast.com/razor/2012/01/16/the-sewer-wars-fought-in-cyberspace/">3</a>, <a href="http://www.csda.net/?option=com_content&task=view&id=400">4</a>, <a href="http://www.slocoastjournal.com/docs/archives/2010/Nov/pages/news5.html">5</a></div>
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<h3>
Moffett, Oklahoma. January 31, 2007.</h3>
</div>
<div>
The town had setup a speed trap that generated 75-80% of town tax revenue. In 2007 a judge ruled the speed trap illegal causing the town to declare bankruptcy. At the time of the bankruptcy filing the town had amassed $200,000 in debt of which $95,000 was for two police cruisers.</div>
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<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
</div>
<div>
Population: 178</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $290,000 ($1,629 per capita)</div>
<div>
Debt: $200,000 ($1,125 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Town speed trap ruled illegal.</div>
<div>
Resolution: Could not determine</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/15/1584.asp">1</a>, <a href="http://www.sequoyahcountytimes.com/archives/article_6b871427-8ad4-5214-819a-8697e8f29aed.html">2</a></div>
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<h3>
Vallejo, California. May 6, 2008.</h3>
</div>
<div>
Almost 80% of Vallejo’s general fund budget was spent on public salaries and benefits. The next fiscal year, which started in July, would begin with Vallejo having no reserve funds as well as a budget shortfall of $16 million. The city decided in May to file for bankruptcy before the next fiscal year began in order to avoid running out of cash. Note that most municipalities file for bankruptcy after defaulting on a bond payment. This bankruptcy was filed in anticipation of running out of money even though Vallejo was solvent at the time of filing. The city proceeded to cut the workforce by 40% with a 50% reduction in the police force, and 42% reduction in fire fighters. Pension contributions from the city were also reduced for new employees, payments to retiree health care plans were reduced, and the amount current employees had to contribute to the pension plan was increased. Pension payment amounts for retirees and current employees were unchanged which means an estimated $195 million remains in unfunded pension liabilities. A portion of the debt, in the amount of $50 million, was restructured with some creditors receiving reduced interest payments and other receiving only 50% of their original loan amount. The city also passed a sales tax increase in November, 2011 to generate an additional $9.5 million a year. The city emerged from bankruptcy nearly 3 years after filing and spending $10 million on legal fees during bankruptcy proceeding.</div>
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<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
</div>
<div>
Population: 117,000</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $50 million ($427 per capita)</div>
<div>
Debt: $78 million ($667 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Employee salary and benefits</div>
<div>
Resolution: Reduced debt payments, reduction in city work force, reduction in city pension and healthcare contributions, increased sales tax</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Vallejo-votes-to-declare-Chapter-9-bankruptcy-3285168.php">1</a>, <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111903885604576486402778541450.html">2</a>, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/23/us/23bcweber.html?_r=0">3</a></div>
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<br />
<h3>
Gould, Arkansas. April 21, 2008.</h3>
</div>
<div>
The town had accumulated debt of $900,000 in loans from the Arkansas Natural Resources ($318,000), the USDA ($200,000), and other creditors for water and sewer improvements. The town also owed the IRS $224,000 in income taxes for employees of the town who the town withheld money for income taxes but never sent the money to the IRS.</div>
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<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
</div>
<div>
Population: 1,305</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: Could not determine</div>
<div>
Debt: $900,000 ($690 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Accumulated debt for water and sewer improvements</div>
<div>
Resolution: Could not determine</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2007387/posts">1</a></div>
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<h3>
Westfall Township, Pennsylvania. January, 2009.</h3>
</div>
<div>
The town lost a lawsuit to a developer who had applied to build a 1500 unit housing complex and was denied by the town. The developer, David Katz, sued the town under the federal Fair Housing Act and was granted an award of $20 million. The town filed for bankruptcy once the award was announced. The bankruptcy judge reduced the award to $6 million which the town was allowed to pay over 20 years in annual payments of $75,000. The town also agreed to raise property taxes by $200 for the average homeowner. Around 20-30 other creditors agreed to extend credit and payments as part of the bankruptcy plan. One year later the town emerged from bankruptcy.</div>
<div>
<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
</div>
<div>
Population: 2,430</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $1 million ($412 per capita)</div>
<div>
Debt: $6 million ($2,469 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Lawsuit award to housing developer of $6 million</div>
<div>
Resolution: City raised property taxes, lawsuit award to be paid over 20 years in annual installments of $75,000, other creditors extended credit and/or postponed payment of debt by town.</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://thetimes-tribune.com/news/westfall-twp-s-first-in-the-state-bankruptcy-may-not-be-pennsylvania-s-last-1.695242">1</a>, <a href="http://www.vosizneias.com/30330/2009/04/19/westfall-township-pa-town-goes-bankrupt-after-jewish-developer-wins-20m-judgment/">2</a></div>
<div>
<br />
<h3>
Washington Park, Illinois. July 6, 2009.</h3>
</div>
<div>
At the time of the bankruptcy filing the town listed assets of $50,000 and liabilities of $1,000,000 which included $450,000 owed to the Department of Employment Security and $300,000 owed to the former public safety chief. The former public safety chief sued the town in 2000 after being fired. He won the lawsuit and the court awarded him $165,000 for distress and humiliation. The town had still not paid the award by 2009 and was accruing interest and penalties on the award. Corruption in the town began to be exposed in 2006 when a town employee, Takisha Walker, was sentenced to three (3) in federal prison and ordered to pay more than $170,000 for the money she stole from town funds to cover personal expenses for herself and others. In March of 2009, Dorothy Triplett, a former payroll clerk, was sentenced to 18 months in prison for stealing nearly $144,000 from the town in 2006 and 2007. A few months after the bankruptcy filing another town employee was sentenced to three (3) years in federal prison and ordered to repay $370,000 that she admitted to embezzling from 2005 to 2007 causing the town employees’ pension fund to be underfunded. An amount of $26,346 was shown to be owed to the pension fund at the time of the bankruptcy filing.</div>
<div>
<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
</div>
<div>
Population: 5,300</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: Could not determine</div>
<div>
Debt: $1 million ($189 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Lost lawsuit, rampant embezzlement by town employees</div>
<div>
Resolution: Town employees fired and imprisoned, could not determine status of lawsuit award to former public safety chief.</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2484789/posts">1</a>, <a href="http://www.vcstar.com/news/2011/jan/10/judge-throws-out-ill-villages-bankruptcy-case/?print=1">2</a></div>
<div>
<br />
<h3>
Hamtramck, Michigan. November 16, 2010.</h3>
</div>
<div>
In November, 2010 the city manager of Hamtramck, a suburb of Detroit, filed for bankruptcy citing a $3 million deficit with a budget of $18 million. In November, 2010 the city manager of Hamtramck expected the city would only have enough cash for another two months prompting the city manager to file for bankruptcy. Like Detroit the city was very dependent on the auto industry. A General Motor’s assembly plant was located in the city and a tax sharing agreement existed between Detroit and Hamtramck where Detroit sent a portion of collected taxes to Hamtramck. Detroit itself was struggling financially so in early 2010 Detroit said it had sent too much tax money to Hamtramck over the decades and so Detroit stopped sending the annual $2 million to Hamtramck. The city was once home to 50,000 people but by 2010 the population had dwindled to 22,000 eroding the tax base. Around 60% of the city’s revenue is spent on police and firefighter salary and benefits (75 current policemen and firefighters and 240 retired). Before bankruptcy the city had attempted to negotiate a pay cut and increases in the health insurance premiums paid by employees but the unions for the police and fire would not agree to the terms. The governor of Michigan dismissed the bankruptcy since Michigan law states that an emergency financial manager is the only person who is able to file for municipal bankruptcy. On June 3, 2013 the Michigan governor declared a financial emergency for the city which could lead to the appointment of an emergency financial manager and eventually bankruptcy.</div>
<div>
<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
</div>
<div>
Population: 22,000</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $18 million ($818 per capita)</div>
<div>
Debt: Could not determine</div>
<div>
Cause: Declining tax base, employee salary and benefits</div>
<div>
Resolution: Initial bankruptcy dismissed. Governor appointed an emergency financial manager.</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2010/11/17/us-michigan-hamtramck-bankruptcy-idUSTRE6AG06A20101117">1</a>, <a href="http://www.governing.com/news/state/mct-mich-gov-declares-financial-emergency-in-hamtramck.html">2</a>, <a href="http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2010/11/city-of-hamtramck-michigan-seeks.html">3</a>, <a href="http://www.mlive.com/news/detroit/index.ssf/2010/12/hamtramck_city_manager_well_pu.html">4</a>, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/28/us/28city.html?_r=2&partner=rss&emc=rss&%20%20Central%20Falls,%20Rhode%20Island.%20%20August%201,%202011.">5</a></div>
<div>
<br />
<h3>
Central Falls, Rhode Island. August 1, 2011.</h3>
</div>
<div>
From 1997 to 2009 at least 11 textile plans closed in the Northeast area including Elizabeth Webbing Mills in Central Falls which employed 280. By 2011 the city had accumulated $21 million in debt from chronic deficit spending due to declining tax revenue and increasing salary, pension, and healthcare obligations to city employees. The city is estimated to owe $80 million to employee pension and healthcare funds. City unions rejected numerous offers by the city which included cutting pension payments in half. Interestingly enough, just one month before the bankruptcy filing the Rhode Island state government passed legislation stating bondholders would be first in line for payment in the case of municipal bankruptcy. This changed the general obligation bonds that were issued by the city from unsecured bonds to secured bonds. In September, 2012 a bankruptcy plan was approved that increased property taxes by 4%, cut pension payout by 55% for those receive over $10,000 per year, and cut city payroll by 1/3 from 174 workers to 118. Bond holders were to be paid in full.</div>
<div>
<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
</div>
<div>
Population: 19,000</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $17 million ($895 per capita)</div>
<div>
Debt: $21 million ($1,105 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Declining tax base, employee salary and benefits</div>
<div>
Resolution: Property tax increase, cut city employment, cut pension benefit for retirees</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/01/central-falls-rhode-island-bankruptcy-unfunded-pensions_n_915119.html">1</a>, <a href="http://www.wpri.com/dpp/news/local_news/blackstone/central-falls-receiver-robert-flanders-to-make-bankruptcy-announcement">2</a>, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/07/us/central-falls-ri-to-emerge-from-bankruptcy.html?_r=0">3</a>, <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-08-02/central-falls-bankruptcy-driven-by-pensions-casts-shadow-over-rhode-island.htm">4</a>, <a href="http://www.foxbusiness.com/government/2013/07/24/in-rhode-island-bankrputcy-bondholders-came-first/l">5</a></div>
<div>
<br />
<h3>
Boise County, Idaho. March 2, 2011.</h3>
</div>
<div>
Alamar Ranch was a mental health and drug addiction treatment facility for teens that was proposed by a developer to be built in Boise County. County leadership did not reject the proposal but instead added many cost additions to the project making it unfeasible for the developer. The developer argued the residents of Alamar Ranch would be classified as handicapped so the developer proceeded to sue the county under the federal Fair Housing Act stating the county was discriminating against handicap persons. Alamar Ranch won the lawsuit and was awarded $4 million plus $1.4 million in attorney fees to be paid for by the county. On February 22, 2011 the county offered to pay $3.2 million to Alamar Ranch. The $3.2 million consisted of $1.9 million in cash immediately with the remaining amount to be paid from money raised by an increase of 3 points in the sales tax for the next 10 years. If the amount paid after 10 years did not cover the $3.2 million then the remaining balance would be forgiven. Alamar Ranch rejected this offer. On September 8, 2011 the bankruptcy judge dismissed the bankruptcy filing since Boise County was meeting its current obligations. The judge ordered the county to pay $2.5 million of the award by December and ordered the county to raise taxes to pay the rest. In May, 2012 voters approved a 7 year property tax increase to help pay back the award. The county borrowed $2.7 million to pay the rest of the award.</div>
<div>
<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
</div>
<div>
Population: 7,400</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $9.4 million ($1,270 per capita)</div>
<div>
Debt: $5.4 million ($730 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Lawsuit awarded under Fair Housing Act to developer of rehab center.</div>
<div>
Resolution: Raise property taxes, increased borrowing to pay lawsuit award</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/beleaguered-idaho-county-seeks-chapter-9-protection-2011-3">1</a>, <a href="http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2011/09/03/123099/federal-judge-denies-idaho-countys.html#.UfV5SI3rymw">2</a></div>
<div>
<br />
<h3>
Jefferson County, Alabama. November 9, 2011.</h3>
</div>
<div>
In 1996, the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) accused Jefferson County of dumping raw sewage into the Black Warrior and Cahaba rivers. The County began to borrow money to build a new sewer system. The borrowed money was to be paid back from sewage connection fees and monthly sewage bills. Original estimate for system was $1 billion. Project costs escalated to $3.2 billion and monthly sewage bills increased by more than 3 times irritating residents. The County continued to borrow money. JP Morgan offered bonds with complicated interest rate swaps derivatives that made the county’s interest rate on the bonds a floating rate. In 2008 rates went up which increased interest payments for Jefferson County. A total of $3.2 billion had been accumulated in sewage debt of which $1 billion was owed to JP Morgan. At the time of the bankruptcy filing total debts was listed at $4.23 billion. The approved bankruptcy plan including county layoffs, and for most creditors to receive only 60% of their original loan amount from the county. JP Morgan, which held $1.22 billion in Jefferson County bonds, was to be paid only $378 million which is only 31% of the original loan amount. This drastic reduction included a $722 million fine against JP Morgan for its role in the credit default financing for Jefferson County. The plan also called to increase sewer rates by 7.4% annually for the next four years.</div>
<div>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
</div>
<div>
Population: 658,000</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $686 million in 2011 ($1,043 per capita)</div>
<div>
Debt: $4.23 billion ($6,429 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Debt related to construction of a sewage treatment plant which started based on EPA findings</div>
<div>
Resolution: County laid off more than 1,000 works, debt repayments renegotiated to 60% of original amount, increase sewer rates by 7.4% annually for next 4 years.</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/19/business/jefferson-county-ala-falls-off-the-bankruptcy-cliff.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0">1</a>, <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-11-09/alabama-s-jefferson-county-files-for-u-s-s-biggest-municipal-bankruptcy.html">2</a>, <a href="http://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/municipal-bankruptcies-an-overview-and-52963/">3</a>, <a href="http://jeffconline.jccal.org/bmo/docs/2013Budget.PDF">4</a></div>
<div>
<br />
<h3>
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. October 12, 2011.</h3>
</div>
<div>
A new trash incinerator was approved by the city council and mayor in 2003 with an initial project estimate of $125 million. The city borrowed money to build the incinerator. At the time of the bankruptcy filing in 2011 the city listed total debt our $400 million with $340 million of the debt related to the incinerator project. Harrisburg filed for bankruptcy in October, 2011 and during the preceding summer the Pennsylvania state legislature passed legislation preventing Harrisburg from filing for bankruptcy. That legislation expired on July 1, 2013. In February, 2012 a Pennsylvania district court dismissed the bankruptcy and the city was appointed a receiver to oversee the city’s finances. Under Pennsylvania law only the receiver is allowed to file for bankruptcy. The restructuring agreement call for the city to sell the incinerator for $130 million, lease some of the city parking garages for 50-60 years, auctioning off 8,000 Wild West artifacts collected by the previous mayor estimated at $2.7 million, asking police, fire and municipal workers to agree to pay freezes, and implement a court ordered doubling of the city’s income tax rate to generate an additional $5.1 million a year. Bondholders would be paid in full by companies that insured the city’s bonds (Assured Guaranty and Ambac). The bond insurance companies will receive payments from the leasing of the city parking garages.</div>
<div>
<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
</div>
<div>
Population: 50,000</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $65 million ($1,300 per capita)</div>
<div>
Debt: $400 million ($8,000 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Massive debt related to building of a city trash incinerator</div>
<div>
Resolution: Sell trash incinerator, lease city parking garages for next 50-60 years, pay freezes for city employees, and doubling of city income tax rate</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/25/us/harrisburg-sees-path-to-restructuring-debts-without-bankruptcy-filing.html">1</a>, <a href="http://blogs.wsj.com/bankruptcy/2012/02/06/summertime-bankruptcy-for-harrisburg/">2</a>, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/13/us/harrisburg-pennsylvania-files-for-bankruptcy.html">3</a>, <a href="http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/inq-phillydeals/Judge-Harrisburg-tax-hike-OK-but-not-for-bonds.html">4</a></div>
<div>
<br />
<h3>
Stockton, California. June 28, 2012.</h3>
</div>
<div>
The City of Stockton provides lifetime healthcare benefits for municipal employees and one dependent regardless of how long the person was employed by the city. Around 75% of the city’s budget was used for public safety payroll and to service debt along with 13% used for pension plan obligations. The city has 350 police officers with an average salary of $93,000. The average fireman’s salary was $110,000. The median household income in Stockton is $50,000. At the time of the bankruptcy filing Stockton had amassed $700 million in debt from civic improvement projects and past borrowing to continue to make pension plan contributions. Before bankruptcy the city had stopped paying back pension obligation bonds which were unsecured bonds meaning no specific tax revenue was tied the repayment of these bonds. The city has 2,400 retirees and the city continued to make current pension plan payments of $30 million a year while defaulting on debt owed to bondholders. The Assured Guaranty Corp insured the pension bonds and it, along with other creditors, are objecting to Stockton’s bankruptcy. City has stopped paying health insurance premiums for half of the city retirees. The city has cut the police force by 25% and salaries by 20%.</div>
<div>
<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
</div>
<div>
Population: 296,000</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $521 million ($1,760 per capita)</div>
<div>
Debt: $700 million ($2,365 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Employee salary and benefits</div>
<div>
Resolution: Default on bondholder payments, cut police staff by 25%, cut salaries by 20%, stopped paying health insurance premiums for retirees</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.stocktongov.com/government/departments/manager/bankruptcy/default.html">1</a>, <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324020504578396801452133528.html">2</a>, <a href="http://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2013/04/01/city-of-stockton-ruled-eligible-for-chapter-9-bankruptcy/">3</a>, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/25/business/economy/court-to-decide-on-pensions-in-stockton-calif-bankruptcy.html">4</a>, <a href="http://www.realclearpolicy.com/articles/2013/04/09/should_california_let_stockton_go_bankrupt_480.html">5</a>, <a href="http://blogs.reuters.com/muniland/2012/07/11/did-the-police-and-fire-departments-sink-stockton/">6</a>, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/29/stockton-bankruptcy-california_n_1311339.html">7</a>, <a href="http://www.nealwolflaw.com/treatment-of-municipal-employee-benefits-in-chapter-9-bankruptcies">8</a>, <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-04-22/stockton-retirees-worry-pension-cuts-follow-health-losses.html">9</a></div>
<div>
<br />
<h3>
Mammoth Lakes, California. July 3, 2012.</h3>
</div>
<div>
A company called Mammoth Lakes Land Acquisition (MLLA) wanted to be build a $400 million hotel and condominium project near the airport in the Town of Mammoth Lake. The town agreed to the development as long as MLLA agreed to make improvements to the airport. In 1997 the town decided it no longer wanted the development so it prevented MLLA from building the development. MLLA sued the town and was awarded a settlement of $30 million in 2008. By 2012 the award had grown to $43 million with interest and legal fees. The town could not pay the award so it filed for bankruptcy in 2012. The bankruptcy was dismissed a little over four (4) months after the town had filed. An agreement had been reached between MLLA and the town where the town agreed to pay MLLA $29.5 million over 23 years at a fixed interest rate of 5.17%.</div>
<div>
<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
</div>
<div>
Population: 8,000</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $18 million ($2,250 per capita)</div>
<div>
Debt: $43 million ($5,375 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Lawsuit settlement to developer who sued town after being denied permission to build.</div>
<div>
Resolution: Lawsuit award agreed to be paid to developer over 23 years.</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.mammothtimes.com/content/raw-mammoth-lakes-chapter-9-bankruptcy-petition-dismissed">1</a>, <a href="http://blog.munibk.com/blog/bffcd340-076c-4b74-b02c-126bc2a4c1a0/wrapping-up-the-short-successful-chapter-9-case-of-mammoth-lakes">2</a></div>
<div>
<br />
<h3>
San Bernardino, California. August 1, 2012.</h3>
</div>
<div>
In 2008 the city of San Bernardino had revenues of $133 million. The real estate crash of 2008 caused the revenues of the city to drop to $120 million by 2012. By then approximately 73% of the city’s general fund was being used for the city’s public safety payroll. The city cut its workforce by 20% which included a reduction in the police force from 350 to 264. Labor cuts of $10 million annually were also negotiated by the city with labor unions. The city was still unable to make the required payments to the pension fund and retiree health care fund. In April, 2012 the city stopped making payments to the pension and retiree health care funds. At the time of bankruptcy the city had amassed $55.9 million in bond debt of which $50 million was borrowed to make payments to the pension system. The city had an annual bill of $31.2 million for the pension fund and $2.22 million for the retiree health care fund. In April, 2013 the city agreed to resume payments into the pension fund and retiree health care fund but not make payments on bonds. A bankruptcy plan is still being developed and the city has still not addressed the $33 million it did not pay into the pension fund from April 2012.</div>
<div>
<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
</div>
<div>
Population: 209,000</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $120 million ($574 per capita)</div>
<div>
Debt: $56 million ($268 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Employee salary and benefits</div>
<div>
Resolution: Workforce reduction, pay cuts, stopped payment on bonds, did not pay into pension fund for over a year.</div>
<div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-08-02/san-bernardino-california-files-for-bankruptcy-protection-2-.html">1</a>, <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/04/23/usa-municipalities-sanbdo-idUSL2N0DA07O20130423">2</a>, <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/05/08/us-usa-municipality-sanbernardino-idUSBRE94700T20130508">3</a></div>
<div>
<br />
<h3>
Detroit, Michigan. July 18, 2013.</h3>
</div>
<div>
In 1950 Detroit had a population of 1.8 million but by 2013 the population had dwindled to 700,000. Property tax revenues have declined by 20% since 2008 and income tax revenues by 30% since 2002. The city has 10,000 employees and supports 20,000 city retirees. Approximately 38% of city spending is on servicing debt related to pension and benefits. Debt at the time of the bankruptcy filing was estimated to be $18 billion which includes $9.2 billion owed to pension and healthcare funds for retirees. Since 2008 the city has spent $100 million more each year than it has received in revenue. The city mayor has reduced the city work workforce by 1,800 from 2009 to 2011. Negotiations were attempted asking for a 20% reduction in city contributions to retiree health plans as well as suspending payments into the pension fund for one year to save $65 million. This offer was rejected by the union.</div>
<div>
<h4>
</h4>
<h4>
Summary</h4>
</div>
<div>
Population: 700,000</div>
<div>
Annual Budget: $3.1 billion ($4,429 per capita)</div>
<div>
Debt: $18.5 billion ($26,429 per capita)</div>
<div>
Cause: Declining population and tax revenues, employee salary and benefits</div>
<div>
Resolution: Reduction in city workforce, bankruptcy plan still being developed.</div>
Sources: <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/07/19/us-usa-detroit-chapter-idUSBRE96I01A20130719">1</a>, <a href="http://www.theinternational.org/articles/449-will-chapter-9-bankruptcy-save-detroit-fr">2</a>,<a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/07/18/detroit-prepares-bankruptcy-filing-friday/2552819/"> 3</a>, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/24/detroit-bankruptcy-chapter-9_n_3640734.html">4</a>, <a href="http://www.economist.com/news/united-states/21582285-americas-biggest-ever-city-bankruptcy-starts-roll-can-motown-be-mended">5</a>, <a href="http://www.legalnews.com/detroit/933480">6</a><br />
<br />
<h3>
Hillview, Kentucy. August 21, 2015.</h3>
In 2002 the city signed a contract with Truck America, a truck driver training school, giving the school permission to lease a 40 acre plot of city land along with the agreement to purchase the plot in the future. Truck America started building on the land but in 2005 the city evicted them from the plot violating the contract which would have allowed Truck America to purchase the plot. There are various reports on why Truck America was evicted including a better offer for the land as well as Truck America not making the required lease payments. The trucking company sued and was awarded $11.4 million in damages which has now reached over $15 million with interests since the city has not made any payments. The city has been appealing the award but lost their last appeal and decided to declare bankruptcy in the hopes of reducing the award.<br />
<h4>
Summary</h4>
Population: 9,000<br />
Annual Budget: $3.0 million ($333 per capita)<br />
Debt: Between $50 million and $100 million ($5,555 per capita using $50 million)<br />
Cause: City sued for violating a land contract with Truck America<br />
Resolution: City files for bankruptcy in an effort to reduce or not pay lawsuit award.<br />
Sources: <a href="http://www.wdrb.com/story/29845100/city-of-hillview-in-bullitt-county-files-for-bankruptcy-protection">1,</a> <a href="http://www.bizjournals.com/louisville/news/2015/08/20/hillview-files-for-bankruptcy-after-lawsuit-with.html">2,</a> <a href="http://bigstory.ap.org/article/94db21b97ab444ffb01dce72e834f0d3/kentucky-city-files-bankruptcy-after-large-jury-verdict">3</a><br />
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And, of course, a gratuitous trend chart:<br />
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<br />Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-41957395696633325072014-06-28T16:09:00.000-05:002014-06-28T16:09:44.628-05:00Whole Foods fined $800,000 for cheating customersA <a href="http://online.wsj.com/articles/whole-foods-fined-in-california-overcharging-case-1403650229">story</a> broke recently about a fine levied against Whole Foods for <a href="http://laist.com/2014/06/24/whole_foods_fined_800000_for_overch.php">cheating</a> customers. A year long government investigation found that there were instances where Whole Foods did not properly account for the container for items purchased from the salad bar, priced some items by unit instead of by weight as dictated by the overlords of California, and some items weighed less than stated on the packaging.<div>
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Proponents of government regulation, such as <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G93CQ9Lu3UIf">these folks</a>, use this as an example of the necessity of government regulation and mock the silly libertarian idea that the market can regulate itself.</div>
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Little information is available from the government investigation as to the extent of fraud conducted by Whole Foods. A representative from Whole Foods stated that company prices are accurate 98% of the time which acknowledges that errors were made when pricing items.</div>
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So is government regulation necessary for cases like these? How else would this dastardly practice be exposed?</div>
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Certification of accurate scales, weights, and measures is something easily done by a third party company. Couldn't the third party company be bribed by the companies that hire them? Yes, but there would be multiple companies, each measured in the marketplace by their customer’s recognition of the firm’s integrity and accuracy. Besides, are government inspection agencies immune to bribery? A quick Google search unearthed the following <a href="http://wqad.com/2014/06/03/iowa-egg-factory-admits-distributing-poisonous-eggs-bribing-public-official/">two</a> <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/2-dc-environmental-inspectors-accused-of-accepting-a-bribe/2011/09/02/gIQAZJmpxJ_story.html">examples</a>. There are many others and these are only the ones that were caught. In a free market customers would quickly discover which inspection company’s approval process was the most stringent.</div>
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Also, it is interesting to note the recipient of the $800,000 in fines when the government regulates. If fraud is discovered in the market, attempts are usually made at reimbursing the victims of the fraud. Did the customers of Whole Foods receive some of the $800,000? Nope, not a dime. Instead various government agencies received the money. Specifically: $630,000 went to government attorneys, $100,000 to a government weights and measures fund, and $68,394 to cover the cost of the investigation. The government attorneys and agencies investigate a business, find some wrongdoing, and then receive money from those being investigated. This is a very perverse structure: those investigating reap rewards, instead of the victims, when they discover fraud. A third party company would be paid to perform periodic audits and report the results. If issues were found the third party company would not receive extra money since that was the purpose of the audit. Instead, the company would need to attempt reimburse its customers, instead of the auditors, in order to keep its existing customer base.</div>
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Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-33794580013399563122014-06-25T18:46:00.000-05:002014-06-25T18:46:29.428-05:00The internet 100 years from nowAwhile ago I read an article where folks speculated what people 100 years from now would read with amazement and disbelief about life today. One speculation was about the need for oil, another about the abundance of poverty, and so on.<br />
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One entry that was not in the list that I think will be mind boggling to those 100 years from now: the freedom of the internet.<br />
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The internet, as it exists today, is a fascinating place. Thoughts, recordings, books, essays, images, and many other types of media are shared around the world in an instant with others without censor. I realize the governments of some countries attempt to censor content but plenty of people have access to a wide open world. This will be amazing to folks 100 years from now. Why? The internet will change from the "wild, wild, www" to the regulated and controlled internet.<br />
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Governments are continuing to lose legitimacy everyday as more folks are exposed to the depraved actions of <a href="http://www.policestateusa.com/">government agents</a> as well as being exposed to <a href="http://www.mises.org/">liberty</a>, <a href="http://www.lewrockwell.com/">freedom</a>, and the prosperity they bring. Governments will have to control this media otherwise government's very existence is threatened.<br />
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How will the internet be reigned in? Probably using the tried-and-true method for expanding government oppression: fear. Terrorism, financial panic, pornography, or some other conjured up demon will be raised in order to be slaughtered by our fearless leaders. It will begin with regulations on the large ISP's along with large websites. Then there will be government agencies created to monitor the content of internet traffic. This will be expanded to all ISP's and websites where a governmental license or registration will be required and internet traffic will be required to be routed through a government agency before being published so the government can insure it is safe for the general population. This will allow the government to quickly censor or shut down any site or ISP that could publish dangerous information, information dangerous for the government that is.<br />
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My grand kids will listen in disbelief as I tell them how anyone could publish on the internet in the "good-ole-days" and there were all kinds of videos, songs, ideas, pictures, and most of all: criticism of government. Not just criticism of the current government but the actual idea that folks could live without government. "No way grandpa!".Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-30599009937240144272014-06-04T18:16:00.002-05:002014-06-04T18:17:27.503-05:00Man helps people reduce taxes, government official says he is hurting everyone<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Upstate New York has some of the highest property taxes in the country (see map below of property taxes as a percent of home price). One man has started a <a href="http://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/2014/06/03/chad-hummel-ron-nesbitt-tax-assessments/9923551/">business</a> where he helps residents challenge government assessments which are used as the basis for calculating property taxes.</span><br />
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"The Tax Opposer" is the name of his business and he gets a percentage of the savings if he is able to reduce the assessment for a homeowner, nothing if he is unsuccessful.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe7bzemmgDC8E-DnW4S0EwV6tDSoCWq3dMjd-zjRHMo9M9ZF9ZuWjUE55uRbKPMfilwgHpPXJ97JQJXsy2Yr0R08IgYooT6NbSnNvGOu-L2M0WhLCOiQ5LleFFIu6m-Zb9XPk9qepSua0/s1600/us_property_taxes.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe7bzemmgDC8E-DnW4S0EwV6tDSoCWq3dMjd-zjRHMo9M9ZF9ZuWjUE55uRbKPMfilwgHpPXJ97JQJXsy2Yr0R08IgYooT6NbSnNvGOu-L2M0WhLCOiQ5LleFFIu6m-Zb9XPk9qepSua0/s1600/us_property_taxes.png" height="302" width="400" /></a></div>
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One of the local government officials spoke out against this hideous man who dares to help folks keep their hard earned money out of the hands of their glorious overlords.</div>
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Ron Nesbitt, the Webster town supervisor, stated that lowering property taxes for some in the town would cause everyone else to pick up more of the tab. This is the typical view of those in government positions, that is, unlike business, the stream of money flowing towards government shall forever remain constant or increase. Thus, according to Nesbitt: "In the end, this hurts everybody". Well it certainly hurts those dependent on government funds but I doubt those paying less taxes fell much hurt.</div>
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The government official also stated what he believed to be the depraved motivation of this crafty businessman: "...is doing this for mass marketing, for money." Oh the horror. When governments shake down people for property tax payments it is only doing so because the government knows what is best for residents. It's not doing it for the money. Nah, that couldn't be the case.</div>
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The real kicker is the last sentence in the article. The bureaucrat states "The problem here is taxes are too high". Huh? First he derides those who attempt to reduce their taxes and in the same breath states that taxes are too high? Logic is obviously not a strength of most bureaucrats.</div>
Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-53130356607819312632014-02-24T21:59:00.003-06:002014-06-04T18:19:05.904-05:00McDonald’s employee fired for paying for customers’ meals. I would have fired her too.Heather Levia, a 23-year-old employee of a McDonald’s in Olean, NY used $83 of <a href="http://wivb.com/2014/02/18/mcdonalds-worker-fired-after-paying-for-food-donation/">her own money to purchase breakfast</a> for firefighters that had placed a breakfast order at the restaurant. The firefighters were fighting a house fire in the area. A little while later another fire department placed a $70 breakfast order at the same McDonald’s. Levia asked her boss if McDonald’s would pick up the tab for these firefighters. Her boss said no. She then called McDonald’s corporate office who also denied her request that McDonald’s pay for the fire fighters’ meals. Levia and her coworkers pinched in to pay the $70 for the second fire department’s meals.<br />
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The next day she was fired. Based on the information in the story, I would have fired her too.<br />
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According to the article some firefighters learned of Levia and her fellow employees paying for the firefighters’ meals. The firefighters proceeded to call Levia’s boss to complain stating management had pressured Levia into paying for the meals.<br />
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Levia commented, “It’s just wrong. I wish the communities would change and help each other out.” I agree. It is wrong. It is wrong that she is forced to pay the salaries of these firefighters unlike in her job where people voluntarily pay for McDonald’s products and she would be out of a job if people no longer desired McDonald’s products. It is wrong that she believes that McDonald’s should give away their product to people of certain occupations. What is so special about firefighters? Or police? Why doesn't McDonalds’ pay for the food of garbage collectors since they perform one of the most dangerous jobs in the country and they provide a valuable service that McDonald’s uses every day?<br />
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Maybe Ms. Levia would think twice about paying for the meals of government “heroes” if she was aware of how well said “heroes” are doing at taxpayer expense. Below are the 2013 salaries of five (5) members of the Olean fire department. This figure does not include their pension or health benefits. Once pensions and health benefits are counted most NY firefighters easily have a net worth over $1 million.<br />
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Although giving free food to government workers is appalling, I would have fired her for making a spectacle about giving away food regardless of the target recipient. This probably won’t be the last time she asks and who needs employees who desire to give away your product.<br />
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Robert Bell, $79,504<br />
Michael Connelly, $77,419<br />
James Theodore, $73,288<br />
Sally Bullers, $72,610<br />
Steve Wolfe, $72,268Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-85677146291056435572013-10-01T19:02:00.002-05:002014-06-04T18:19:32.238-05:00A true government shutdown<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-71385201061954451242013-09-28T07:05:00.001-05:002015-01-03T04:44:54.001-06:00History of government confiscation, raiding, taking of private pension, retirement accountsBelow is a history of the confiscation, raiding, or taxing of private retirement or pension funds by government. Note that the list only includes instances where private pension or retirement funds were targeted. There are many other instances of public pension funds being raided by government. I’ll attempt to catalogue those instances in another post.<br />
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<b>Argentina. October, 2008.</b><br />
The government of Argentina moved private pension funds into the government social security system. Government seizes over $30 billion in private pension funds. The president of Argentina stated the action was "….aimed at protecting investors from losses resulting from global market turmoil." At the time Argentina was facing a shortfall of $12 billion on a bond payment and refunding the government social security system from private pension funds relieved the government of using other funds. But, of course, this was not relevant. The government was only looking out for the interest of the citizens when it stole their money.<br />
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Sources: <a href="http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/finance/ambroseevans-pritchard/5504137/Argentina_seizes_pension_funds_to_pay_debts_Whos_next/">1</a>, <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122460155879054331.html">2</a>, <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2008/10/21/argentina-pensions-idUSN2128838220081021">3</a><br />
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<b>Portugal. December, 2010.</b><br />
The Portuguese government moved almost 1.8 billion euros ($2.5 billion) of pension fund assets of Portugal's largest phone company (Portugal Telecom) into the government social security system. Since the pension fund was underfunded, the Telecom agreed to make additional payments into the fund through 2012 to make up the difference between the funds current assets and liabilities. The government used the funds to reduce its budget deficit for 2010.<br />
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Sources: <a href="http://www.ipe.com/news/portugal-telecom-agrees-pension-transfer-to-state-treasury_38222.php#.Uje_CjbrxMw">1</a>, <a href="http://www.professionalpensions.com/global-pensions/news/1930321/portugal-telecom-transfer-pension-fund">2</a>, <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2010/09/29/portugal-government-pt-idUSLSB000028201009294">3</a>, <a href="http://wirelessfederation.com/news/31251-portugal-telecom-to-transfer-3-69bn-pension-fund-to-state/">4</a><br />
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<b>Hungary. December, 2010.</b><br />
Hungary has a private/public pension system. Citizens are forced to contribute 24% of their gross wages into the system, 8% of which goes into the private fund, the rest into the government fund. During retirement the government would pay 70% of the pension payouts and the remaining 30% coming from the private fund. The government would make up the difference if the private fund could not payout the 30%. In 2010 Hungary gave citizens an option: they could move all of the private pension funds into the government fund or they would lose the 70% pension payout from the government when they retired. Also, the government would no longer guarantee the 30% payout from the private fund. The amount in the fund was estimated at 2.8 trillion forints ($14.2 billion). Hungary used the money to pay current state pensions as well as paying government debt. If one chose to keep contributing to the private fund then he/she would still have to pay the government portion.<br />
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Sources: <a href="http://blogs.wsj.com/emergingeurope/2010/11/24/hungary-forces-private-pension-fund-members-back-to-state-scheme/">1</a><br />
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<b>Bolivia. December, 2010.</b><br />
The Bolivian government nationalizes the nation's two largest private pension plans with an estimated $3 billion in assets. The government lowers the retirement age to 58 from 65.<br />
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Sources: <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2010/11/16/us-bolivia-pensions-idUSTRE6AF5Z120101116">1</a>, <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703350104575652852902005086.html">2</a>, <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-12-03/bolivian-senate-approves-nationalization-of-3-billion-pension-fund-system.html">3</a><br />
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<b>Ireland. May, 2011.</b><br />
The Irish government instituted a tax that taxed the capital value of private pensions at 0.6% for four years to fund a government jobs initiative. Only private pensions are taxed, not government pensions. Tax is expected to raise 470 million euros per year ($2.6 billion total over the 4 years).<br />
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Sources: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/irish-bombshell-government-raids-private-pensions-to-pay-for-jobs-program-2011-5">1</a>, <a href="http://www.towerswatson.com/en-IE/Insights/Newsletters/Global/global-news-briefs/2011/Ireland-Tax-Levy-Is-Introduced-on-Pension-Funds-and-Tighter-Funding-Standards-Are-Forthcoming">2</a>, <a href="http://www.efinancialnews.com/story/2011-05-06/irish-pensions-tax?ea9c8a2de0ee111045601ab04d673622">3</a><br />
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<b>Portugal. December, 2011.</b><br />
The Portuguese government moves assets of the four biggest banks, which consists largely of private pension funds, onto the government's balance sheet. Government acquires 5.6 billion in euros ($7.7 billion). This was done by the government in order to reduce the deficit to 5.9% of GDP which was a target set during the EU/IMF bailout of the country in 2010.<br />
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Sources: <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financialcrisis/8932687/Portugal-raids-pension-funds-to-meet-deficit-targets.html">1</a>, <a href="http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-12-02/portugal-says-bank-pension-fund-transfer-may-be-6-billion-euros.html">2</a>, <a href="http://www.zerohedge.com/news/portugal-latest-country-go-mf-global-raids-pensions-funds-delay-fiscal-death">3</a><br />
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<b>Poland. September, 2013.</b><br />
Half of private pensions are confiscated by the government of Poland in order to be able to borrow more money. Bond holdings in the private pension fund would be transferred into the state pension system. The rest of the assets in the private fund (i.e. equity assets) would be transferred into the state system over the next 10 years. The seizure was done by the government so the government could reduce its debt to GDP ratio. This reduction would allow the government to borrow more money.<br />
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Sources: <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/04/poland-pensions-idUSL6N0H02UV20130904">1</a><br />
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Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-14532138471256417202013-08-19T21:51:00.003-05:002014-06-04T18:19:52.808-05:00Why does the yield curve invert?There are moments in time when the yield curve inverts. This article takes a look at when such events occur and what could possibly cause them.<br />
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The bond market exists of bonds of varying maturity: 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, 10 years, etc. This timeframe describes how long you must hold the bond before you will receive the principal portion of the bond back. For example, if I purchase a 10 year bond today that has a par value of $100 then I will have to wait 10 years to receive a $100.<br />
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The yield on a bond is a mathematical calculation that calculates how much money the bond will make for the holder. If I purchase a 1 year bond today for $90 that has a par value of $100, which means I receive $100 a year later, then the yield on the bond is 11% since the bond will produce $10 on a $90 investment (10/90 * 100 = 11%).<br />
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As bonds are traded their prices move up and down causing their yields to move accordingly. Important to remember is that when a bond price goes up the yield of that bond goes down and vice versa.<br />
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The yield curve is a snapshot in time of bond yields with different maturities. The length of the bond is on the x-axis and its yield is on the y-axis. The most cited yield curve is the yields on the bonds of the US government.<br />
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Below is a picture of a typical yield curve where shorter term bonds have lower yields then longer term bonds. Investors will usually require higher yields for longer term bonds since there is more uncertainty farther into the future.<br />
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Below is a chart of the yield curve from December, 2006. This is an inverted yield curve since the yield on shorter term bonds is higher than the yield on longer term bonds.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDCB2O54-e_WPDvQrEmOaa2dmm-u6zV-PMnWy7HMGy2ZvuGB4gazhRzHvgwwxHBW2rkRWa8y_V5iYlSDxjuF3xQRvpZj0IXrdQvFN7FykRdufqUTXuiRSU7wA9DFK5Ob84fjuZ_yLo8_s/s1600/yield_curve_inverted.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDCB2O54-e_WPDvQrEmOaa2dmm-u6zV-PMnWy7HMGy2ZvuGB4gazhRzHvgwwxHBW2rkRWa8y_V5iYlSDxjuF3xQRvpZj0IXrdQvFN7FykRdufqUTXuiRSU7wA9DFK5Ob84fjuZ_yLo8_s/s400/yield_curve_inverted.png" height="211" width="400" /></a></div>
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The next chart shows the yield on government bonds of various maturities as a function of time. The shaded areas are times when the yield curve either flattened or a portion of the yield curve inverted (i.e. longer term bonds with lower yields than shorter term bonds). Of the 43 years shown on the chart, 11 of those years had a flattened or inverted yield curve.<br />
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I’ve read some articles where analysts speculate that the yield curve inverts because people are flocking to the safety of long term bonds driving long term bond prices up which in turn lowers the yield on long term bonds. The chart tells a different story. Notice that after 1982, when the yield curve flattens it is short term yields that rise sharply to match long term yields. If investors were rushing into long term bonds then the chart would show long term yields going down sharply to meet short term yields but that is not what is happening. In fact, longer term government bonds are a much smaller market than shorter term government bonds. The chart below shows the maturity of the public US debt in 2006. Only 25% of the debt had a maturity of 7 years or longer while 75% of the debt had a maturity of 6 or less years. Thus the longer term bond market is much smaller than the short term market which would make it easier for those yields to change when investors rushed in yet as the yield history chart above shows it is the short term yields that change more rapidly.<br />
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So why does the yield curve invert? Why does the short term yields change more than long term yields when the curve flattens or inverts?<br />
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I believe the inversion occurs because investors are moving out of short term bonds. Many banks and money markets hold short term US treasuries as a way to earn interest when money is essentially idle. Having money sit in US bonds is almost as good as cash. Almost, but not quite. Investors or banks move out of short term US debt for one of two reasons: there are better yielding investments in the market or they need cash. With the former the investor or bank could believe there are some great investment opportunities and so they move from safe US bonds to these investments. This could explain the inversion in 1999-2000 when internet stocks were booming and 2006-2007 when real estate was booming. Raising cash was the other reason the yield curve could invert. Banks or investors may need to raise cash to cover for bad investments. The bank or investor would sell their short term bonds to raise cash to help cover losses on bad investments.<br />
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<br />Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-68422648405701653322013-08-01T22:53:00.001-05:002013-08-14T21:53:56.623-05:00Chinese Villagers Defending their propertyI read this <a href="http://www.blogger.com/"><span id="goog_1582363945"></span>article<span id="goog_1582363946"></span></a> that describes a group of Chinese villagers who are trying to prevent the government from selling their land to developers without consent of the villagers.<br />
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The villagers have decided to sign a pact that any villager who is harmed by the government while defending their land from seizure will be given a grand burial. Their family will also be cared for. This is an interesting tactic that I think would be effective. <br />
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They do not seek to physically fight the government, a fight which would be desired by the government since the government could prove its superiority by suppressing the villagers. They only seek to defend their property from aggression and if a villager is harmed in the process that villager will be honored. Thus, admiration is placed on the most virtuous person: the non-aggressive defender of property. Not some charismatic leader of some movement. Not some eloquent orator who drums up support for violence. And definitely not the most wicked of men: a politician.Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-46809939037012413052013-06-06T22:17:00.003-05:002013-06-06T22:18:09.032-05:00Prism SearchThe NSA has developed a new website that can be accessed by the public: Prism Search. Since the NSA has access to everyone's Google, Facebook, Yahoo, Youtube, and Skype content, as well as other undisclosed online content, they thought people may want to search their online content across all these disparate domains. Thus, Prism Search was born. A nice feature of Prism Search is that all harmful content has been removed by the NSA. For your safety, of course.<br />
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<br />Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-43950567430654599732013-05-08T22:44:00.002-05:002013-05-08T22:44:43.169-05:00Melinda Gates saves lives using birth control. Huh?<br />
I literally laughed out loud when I read the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/melinda-gates-family-planning-initiative-2013-4">headline</a> "Melinda Gates Will Saves Thousands of Lives With Birth Control". <br />
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Yes, the best way to save lives is to prevent them from being created. <br />
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If her "life-saving" technique were adopted by all women then within a few decades all life would vanquish. <br />
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Quite the life saving technique.<br />
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But don't worry. Ms. Gates isn't targeting everyone with her altruistic plans. Her concern is targeted toward reducing the spawning of new life by the most despicable group of people on the planet: the poor. In particular poor Africans.<br />
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She says the contraception allows women to follow the recommendation of elitists like herself who have such wonderful plans and ideas for everyone. She states "When women have the power to make choices about their families, they tend to decide precisely what demographers, economists, and development experts recommend. They invest in the long-term human capital of their families."<br />
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"Invest in the long-term human capital of their families." By not having family? What? Who believes such nonsense. She definitely needs a better script writer<br />
.<br />
The article continues with more drivel from her about saving lives by not creating them using the one group of people that is always used by elitists to justify their plans for everyone else: the poor.<br />
Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-66510696185957663862013-05-04T06:39:00.000-05:002013-05-04T06:39:42.974-05:00Munger says banks should be bailed out and bankers are like heroin addictsBack in September,2010 Charlie Munger, the Vice Chairman of Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway, <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-09-20/berkshire-s-munger-says-cash-strapped-should-suck-it-in-not-get-bailout.html">stated</a> that "You should thank God" for bank bailouts. In regards to the bailouts he said "You shouldn't be bitching about a little bailout. You should have been thinking it should have been bigger." His most famous line from this address was when he said Americans should "suck it in and cope".<br />
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What is surprising is in a<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/munger-says-bankers-like-heroin-addicts-2013-5"> recent interview</a> on CNBC the same Munger says bankers can't be trusted. He said they are like "heroin addicts".<br />
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In the first article Munger talks about how the bailouts where required to "...save civilization". So let me get this straight: we must bail out banks because they are the basis of civilization. Banks? The basis of civilization? The same banks that are run by heroin-like addicts? This is what our civilization is based on?<br />
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It doesn't occur to Mr. Munger that banks might behave like heroin addicts BECAUSE they get bailed out.<br />
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I'm coping Mr. Munger but I no longer "suck it in"....especially your drivel.Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-437037257136906912013-05-02T14:06:00.001-05:002013-05-02T14:06:25.345-05:00Does Google Glass have a chance?Does Google Glass have a chance? I don't think so.<br />
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Several articles have appeared recently stating Google Glass will be the wave of the future. I'm not so sure. Google Glass is an indication to me that Google is ran by engineers instead of a product designer who understands the desire for attractive products. Engineers are typically terrible at product design since they place very heavy emphasis of function over form. When making a purchase a typical engineer will construct a spreadsheet comparing all the features of different models of a product in an attempt to determine which model provides the most "bang for the buck". The engineer rarely takes into consideration the form or attractiveness of the product. I have quite a few spreadsheets as proof of this behavior.<br />
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Most people want to look nice. See the substantial size of the fashion, makeup and plastic surgery industries as proof of this. In fact, people are willing to shoot lasers into their eye balls in an effort to rid them self of unsightly glasses.<br />
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Google glasses are not attractive and I believe this will be a major hindrance to their adoption. I was skeptical of 3D TVs that also required glasses. Who wants to put on glasses to watch TV? Google Glass could meet the same fate as 3D glasses.Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-89075762640879550992013-04-18T21:58:00.002-05:002013-04-18T21:58:57.945-05:00Targeting innocent civilians is terrorismIn this <a href="http://cnsnews.com/video/national/obama-any-time-bombs-are-used-target-civilians-it-act-terror">clip</a> regarding the Boston marathon bombings Obama states:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Any time bombs are used to target innocent civilians it is an act of terror.</blockquote>
Drone attacks under the Obama administration have killed over 150 innocent children. But the killing of innocent children by government personnel is not terrorism? Of course not. The term terrorism never applies to government killing. The killing of innocent people by government is called "collateral damage" making it sound like it couldn't be prevented.<br />
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Reminds me of a quote: "The terrorist is the one with the small bomb."<br />
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<br />Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-89982706375917784382013-04-10T21:20:00.001-05:002013-04-10T21:20:55.275-05:00Fidelity executive is concerned about Americans' savings rate....sureIn this <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/04/10/us-funds-fidelity-retirement-idUSBRE9390PJ20130410">article</a> a Fidelity executive argues that Americans should be saving more for retirement. He seems so concerned for Americans and their future. Sure.<br />
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In 2006 congress passed the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pension_Protection_Act_of_2006">Pension Protection Act</a> which allows employers to automatically enroll employees in retirement plans. Employers can enroll employees at a maximum rate of 3% under the act. The Fidelity executive states that rate should be increased to 6%. He says Americans aren't saving enough.<br />
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He seems so concerned with my well being. I'm sure he couldn't have an ulterior motive, right?<br />
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Guess which company is the largest administrator of 401K plans? You guessed it: Fidelity.Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-53044444065378205052013-03-20T21:19:00.000-05:002013-03-20T21:19:58.451-05:00Confiscation of savings accounts proposed in US<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">The Cyprus President, in
cahoots with the EU, proposed a one-time tax on money in savings and deposit
accounts. The tax would range from 6% to 10% depending on the amount in
the account. If the proposal was approved the government of Cyprus would
take the funds from peoples’ bank accounts.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">How fantastically
efficient and simple? For some reason this has outraged many people who
are correctly calling this action robbery. Strange that taking money from
peoples’ bank accounts is theft but taking it from their paychecks is just
fine.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Why have other governments
not thought of this approach?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">They have. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">The very idea was
proposed to the Federal Reserve whose response to the proposal exposed the
institution’s socialist tendencies.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">From </span><a href="http://fraser.stlouisfed.org/docs/publications/FRB/1940s/frb_111941.pdf" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">page 31 in theNovember, 1941 Federal Reserve Bulletin</a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">, the FED states:</span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">“….proposal is not in
accord with one of the fundamental principles of taxation in a democracy,
namely, that taxes should be imposed in accordance with ability to pay.”</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Later on in their
response:</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">“…a result that is not
consistent with the principle that the well-to-do should contribute a large
share of their income than those in less comfortable circumstances.”</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Huh? A democracy
dictates that taxes should be levied based on one’s ability to pay? I’ve
never before heard such an association with democracy. Besides, if you
have more money in the bank doesn’t it follow that you have a greater ability
to pay and thus a deposit tax would meet the requirement that those with more
should pay more? Also, how is it principled to ask people to pay more
based on their income? No products or services sold in the very
principled free market are priced this way. When selling a loaf of bread
the baker does not first ask the customer “What is your income?” No free
market business prices their products this way.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">The last paragraph gets
to the true reason the FED does not advocate the policy of stealing directly
from depositors. It states:</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">“…some depositors could
easily evade the tax by making payments in currency and by means of re-endorsed
checks passing from person to person without being deposited.”</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Ahhhh….yes. People
would start operating outside the banking system which would do severe damage
to the US banking cartel headed up by the FED. This is the true reason
the FED is against the policy.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-24195746177333820712013-02-25T22:58:00.001-06:002013-02-26T06:42:13.603-06:00Michael Arrington upset about Homeland Security taking his boatMr. Arrington ordered a boat from Canada. Upon the boat's arrival in the US a Homeland Security official needed Mr. Arrington's signature on a form. Mr. Arrington noticed a discrepancy in some of the financial information reported on the form so he refused to sign the form at which point the Department of Homeland Security seized Mr. Arrington's new boat. Arrington <a href="http://uncrunched.com/2013/02/21/the-department-of-homeland-security-stole-my-boat-today/">complain</a>s about the "bastards" on his blog as well as "...how screwed up our government bureaucracy has become".<br />
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I agree with his assessment of the government however I find it hard to sympathize with his condition.<br />
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Let me explain.<br />
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In an <a href="http://uncrunched.com/2012/09/19/mikes-tax-notes/">article</a> written by Mr. Arrington back in September he detailed why the super rich, like himself, do not pay income taxes since income taxes are too high. Instead, the rich prefer to make money using capital gains which are taxed at lower rates. What was Mr. Arrington's assessment of his tax situation? He was not taxed enough. You read that correctly: he was not taxed enough.<br />
<br />
From the article: "I make almost all my money on carried interest via CrunchFund. And I’m telling you right now that it’s undertaxed. It should be taxed at normal income tax rates."<br />
<br />
What does Mr. Arrington believe the government will do with more of his money? Does he believe there will be <i>less</i> bureaucracy? This is why I find it hard to sympathize with his condition. He advocates for more government but when he himself is the victim of a growing government he complains about that same government which he believes should have more of his money. <br />
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In the same article where Arrington advocates for higher taxes he takes pride in using the word "specious". He tells his readers to go look up the word if they don't know what it means. Maybe Mr. Arrington should take time to look up words like "inchoate", "illogical", and "discordant" to name a few.<br />
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<br />Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-78407916968079157362013-02-16T10:36:00.000-06:002013-02-16T10:37:23.232-06:00Obama the gun salesmanObama may be one of the best salesmen for guns. The chart below shows the number of background checks conducted by the FBI. At this rate it won't take long before the FBI has done a background check on every person in the US.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiDemXlS7-4Obn1sB8asfQ-qcPGAcTRFajOE_5CJjkKJZ5CzI1r0i0E-GV6Kckqg0Opr6wAk4LZWi9pTQJEeVjo7f_aw1-Z0tG9LU4k60pYS-r3ALNZis3Zga_0dba1NtNQ5RsukihReg/s1600/bcs.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiDemXlS7-4Obn1sB8asfQ-qcPGAcTRFajOE_5CJjkKJZ5CzI1r0i0E-GV6Kckqg0Opr6wAk4LZWi9pTQJEeVjo7f_aw1-Z0tG9LU4k60pYS-r3ALNZis3Zga_0dba1NtNQ5RsukihReg/s400/bcs.png" title="FBI Background Checks" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">FBI Background Checks</td></tr>
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Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-69991497605427521662013-02-07T07:39:00.000-06:002013-02-07T12:31:19.750-06:00Penelope Soto offends a tyrant, goes to jailImagine being dragged in front of a dress wearing man who is attempting to set the bond amount that you must fork over so that you return to his lair at which point he'll determine how to properly punish you for possessing a dangerous substance. Your only crime was the possession of a substance a group of politicians deemed dangerous. No one was harmed by your possession of this substance. Absolutely no one. This is the illogical craziness of the war on drugs.<br />
<br />
Well, some are amused by the silliness of it all. Witness one Penelope Soto.<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
Penelope was appearing before a judge for possession of some Xanax pills. The judge was attempting to set Penelope's bond. Penelope giggled throughout the proceeding and avoided answering the judge when he asked her how much her jewelry was worth. Maybe Penelope was giggling because she was nervous. Maybe she was giggling because she was high. Maybe she was giggling because she found the whole oppressive exercise amusing. I don't know. Anyway, the judge was not amused by her flippant attitude and seemed to be irritated because she was not trembling in the presence of his awesomeness.<br />
<br />
The judge initially set the bail at $5,000.<br />
<br />
Penelope cheerfully said "Adios" and turned to leave the courtroom probably elated to finally be free, even though temporarily, from the tyrant.<br />
<br />
At that point the judge, obviously irritated, ordered her to return and raise the bond to $10,000.<br />
<br />
Penelope, shocked that the equal hand of the law has different bail amounts based on the use of the word "Adios", showed her disgust by giving the tyrant the finger and saying "Fuck You".<br />
<br />
The tyrant, excuse me "judge", still perturbed that Penelope was not respectful of his greatness, ordered Penelope to spend 30 days in jail.<br />
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Every day citizens throughout the country are given the finger and told to fuck off. Somehow they are able to cope without extorting money from one another or throwing each other into cages. But not so for the wearer of a government dress. No. All shall bow down before him, bask in his glory and never cross the glorious one. Disgusting.<br />
<br />
I feel for Ms. Soto. I watched the video and smiled at she treated the affair with the amount of care it should have been given. The comments to internet articles, however, show that most Americans side with the judge. That she should bow down before the judge in his courtroom. She should respect the judge and his courtroom. Some slaves can't imagine life without masters and are appalled when someone will not lick the boot or kiss the ring.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/pfttKjMM8rQ" width="560"></iframe>Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-58948138897816388172013-01-24T23:53:00.003-06:002013-01-24T23:54:06.222-06:00America has low taxesHenry Blodget at Business Insider posted an <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/america-taxes-charts-2013-1">article</a> essentially stating that Americans shouldn't complain about high taxes.<br />
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He posted the following chart to make Americans feel better about their indentured servitude:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga3IRzpqoqngQbjMf8MoYXzEGp_ASj-uT4G9LQh-h9TMOwpenq-3kxImrIzPNt1ceariamxuFC1Uzk5uY1nDgOGBKGzonPVNoCpsd21UuM7n_kKTQieTuLOqfz0raOwHAoO6MG6-SjTHk/s1600/tax+rates+ranking+100k.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="207" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga3IRzpqoqngQbjMf8MoYXzEGp_ASj-uT4G9LQh-h9TMOwpenq-3kxImrIzPNt1ceariamxuFC1Uzk5uY1nDgOGBKGzonPVNoCpsd21UuM7n_kKTQieTuLOqfz0raOwHAoO6MG6-SjTHk/s400/tax+rates+ranking+100k.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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See? Americans don't have its so bad, according to Blodget. Blodget's chart illustrates that there are other <strike>criminal organizations</strike> governments that are much more oppressive than the US government so he argues that Americans shouldn't complain about their lot.</div>
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I believe that one most posses a slave-like mentality to look at the chart with Blodget's perspective and focus on the columns <i>to the left</i> of the USA column to feel good about being oppressed less than others.</div>
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On the other hand, people who cherish liberty focus on the <i>columns to the right</i> of the USA column and see hope and wonder if the USA could ever be the right-most column.</div>
<br />Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-29359329879889592782013-01-12T08:34:00.000-06:002013-01-12T17:56:22.382-06:00NYPD DronesEssam Attia is the artist who <a href="http://www1.wsws.org/articles/2012/dec2012/nypd-d10.shtml">mocked</a> the NYPD and its use of drones. He placed images, in public areas, which criticized the NYPD's use of drones. The NYPD was able to track him down and have charged him with 56 criminal counts as a way to make an example of anyone who dare make a mockery of the NYPD's oppression. Thou shall worship oppression and praise its glory.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5BMYXyt6itch5mIR8cfYlY_QSVwE1_YYl3PU1MSGja6n_KCkMeidMGK7SFmKmnidqGF99zMJCi5iF_avTpLKA_214RU5j7BCYnXXZfMsnqoEI4iTby9Lnuy6iMyL9CBHH4GKlaN-gFdw/s1600/free_essam_attia.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5BMYXyt6itch5mIR8cfYlY_QSVwE1_YYl3PU1MSGja6n_KCkMeidMGK7SFmKmnidqGF99zMJCi5iF_avTpLKA_214RU5j7BCYnXXZfMsnqoEI4iTby9Lnuy6iMyL9CBHH4GKlaN-gFdw/s400/free_essam_attia.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-10358685976594898322012-12-20T18:21:00.001-06:002012-12-20T18:21:24.840-06:00More gun controlThe recent massacre of school children in Newton Connecticut has led to a vocal outcry for more gun control. Apparently the killing of innocent people by civilians is appalling to many. So appalling that many are now clamoring for more gun control to prevent this type of massacre from happening again.<br />
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As I've pointed out in a previous <a href="http://edfriendly.blogspot.com/2011/02/death-by-government-why-you-are-46.html">post</a>, it makes no sense to believe the most savage organization in history will be any help in preventing murder.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuNEUr7GMOmxJKDhgT2U2boouPxZBhviJv814hlEaDx-mAB9IDIhH242V-6K6nQFCtFFiP6j2-70Qp8G-0yUq2mCUG00j6CerLs2gaAQ2iOp3zE3bTchulWhnsqbeZ0SQiCGwTn7zPAsI/s1600/pakistan-children-15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuNEUr7GMOmxJKDhgT2U2boouPxZBhviJv814hlEaDx-mAB9IDIhH242V-6K6nQFCtFFiP6j2-70Qp8G-0yUq2mCUG00j6CerLs2gaAQ2iOp3zE3bTchulWhnsqbeZ0SQiCGwTn7zPAsI/s320/pakistan-children-15.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdsERtSi1XNHid0QC7Qt7aCjNXsGU7ym09PoAf1cefLvqvfYSmCXNw3qgD27lw3tHHjF9A9uHbN1sfTsFnFHV4oMyS6bCmxYfKHT0SYpi3igP2Gii8NyIIZXnodGoLDvjm_YKXbUyqGSI/s1600/motivator_poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdsERtSi1XNHid0QC7Qt7aCjNXsGU7ym09PoAf1cefLvqvfYSmCXNw3qgD27lw3tHHjF9A9uHbN1sfTsFnFHV4oMyS6bCmxYfKHT0SYpi3igP2Gii8NyIIZXnodGoLDvjm_YKXbUyqGSI/s320/motivator_poster.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-76751715532893305932012-10-18T13:52:00.001-05:002012-10-18T13:53:30.430-05:00How are short sales tracked?If an investor believes the price of a stock is heading down, that investor can short the stock.<br />
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A brief summary of the short sale process:<br />
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<b>Borrow shares from someone</b>. This is usually performed by the investor’s brokerage firm. The brokerage firm finds shares that can be borrowed either from the brokerage firm’s own customers or from a different firm.<br />
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<b>Sell the borrowed shares</b>. The investor sells the borrowed shares on the market.<br />
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<b>Wait for the share price to drop</b>. The investor waits for the price of the stock to drop.<br />
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<b>Buy the shares back</b>. Once the price has dropped the desired amount the investor buys back the number of shares he sold.<br />
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<b>Return borrowed shares</b>. The investor returns the borrowed shares to their original owner. The investor profit is the difference between the price he sold and the price he bought the shares minus commissions.<br />
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Most of the above steps would be performed by the investor’s brokerage firm. An investor instructs his firm to short a particular stock. The brokerage firm will handle the borrowing, selling, buying back, and returning of shares. The investor does not realize the gain until the short sale is closed out. In other words, the investor does not receive the cash when the borrowed shares our sold in the second step. The investor only receives cash once the entire short sale process is completed.<br />
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What if the stock price goes up instead of down? When closing the short position the investor must pay the difference between the sell price and the buy price and will lose money on the short sale. Brokerage firms will usually require short investors to have some additional cash in their account to cover their short sale in case the price goes against the investor.<br />
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Brokerage firms are required to report the number of shares being shorted. This information is reported to the exchange (NYSE of NASDAQ) and is made public. Most financial sites indicate the number of shares being shorted for a particular stock. The image below from Yahoo finance shows 3.29 million shares of CMG were being shorted at the close of 9-28-2012. This is over 12% of the total outstanding shares of CMG.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYMIwW4xQyamPf_y6s11vKRQELKnshM1ikRRchLzG_GjfYKWAMbZ_fChxaUKlIMXglqbIVitsJSIR590jjSMIWBdCB-ZRTeBaRvoBS81sOEPwcHWbsEHxsaorKfA2HFfi6NeAkgFH0hf8/s1600/cmd.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYMIwW4xQyamPf_y6s11vKRQELKnshM1ikRRchLzG_GjfYKWAMbZ_fChxaUKlIMXglqbIVitsJSIR590jjSMIWBdCB-ZRTeBaRvoBS81sOEPwcHWbsEHxsaorKfA2HFfi6NeAkgFH0hf8/s1600/cmd.png" /></a></div>
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What is a naked short sale?<br />
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A naked short sale is where the first step of a normal short sale is skipped. The brokerage firm does not borrow the shares. The brokerage firm goes to the market and says “I don’t have any shares of XYZ to sell at this very moment but I will obtain the shares to sell before the settlement date”. The settlement date is three (3) business days <a href="http://www.sec.gov/investor/pubs/tplus3.htm">after the trade</a>. Thus, the brokerage firm sells shares of XYZ without having the shares. This is naked short selling. The brokerage firm must borrow the shares before the settlement date three (3) days later in order to deliver the shares to the buyer.<br />
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If the brokerage is unable to borrow shares to deliver before the settlement date the transaction is recorded as fails-to-deliver. No money or shares are exchanged since the brokerage is unable to deliver the shares that were agreed upon. A large amount of fails-to-deliver transactions for a stock usually indicates an excessive amount of naked shorting. When investors and brokerage firms start to aggressively short a stock they will do so without having borrowed the shares to sell. This will result in a large amount of naked short selling. When there are a large number of naked short sellers not all the sellers will be able to borrow the necessary shares before the settlement date and many fails-to-deliver transactions will be recorded.<br />
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The SEC records the number of fails-to-deliver transactions.<br />
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The tables below summarize the fails-to-deliver transactions from 1-1-2012 through 9-14-2012 (data obtained from <a href="http://www.sec.gov/foia/docs/failsdata.htm">here</a>). The “Ext Amount” column shows the total dollar value of the transactions that failed ( i.e. Fail Qty * Share price ). The “Volume” column is the total number of shares traded in the same time period. The “% Volume” shows the percentage of shares that failed to deliver as a percentage of the total market volume.<br />
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The first table orders the data in descending order by the quantity of shares that were not delivered. Most of the companies at the top of the list no longer exist. For many of these companies, the quantity of shares that failed to deliver where many multiples of the number of shares traded during the same time period. This indicates massive naked short selling as many brokerages where unable to find shares to borrow before the settlement date.<br />
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The second table orders the data in descending order by the “Ext Amount” column.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKHEwibeaDkpdMnHECvzkt3nCGmAYyfqyE7t4lw6uJkVkqK6jadZNJYwUv4qfaiajjEOrrKN2_SVsu-Kn4vUQyzN8xprj-Tz9kLzuI5YF9KjsPGcTzYJjqLGRlkNbnp3auGwu72FEt39A/s1600/fails_qty.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKHEwibeaDkpdMnHECvzkt3nCGmAYyfqyE7t4lw6uJkVkqK6jadZNJYwUv4qfaiajjEOrrKN2_SVsu-Kn4vUQyzN8xprj-Tz9kLzuI5YF9KjsPGcTzYJjqLGRlkNbnp3auGwu72FEt39A/s320/fails_qty.png" width="310" /></a></div>
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Table 1 - Ordered by fails-to-deliver quantity</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7mB46CqrzIPh1Z-NREJIgG1siHLKQ8PV41XJX7KH_6Kf6_OV-g1hEchrGui9G7ZXZCtKy-BUk9u58LCVhVmjAzQxrGtjbV8oBgPjcxUnOxNbcyVgaCEbqgzfOieZohnPmT5QsXTHVQjE/s1600/fails_ext_amount.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7mB46CqrzIPh1Z-NREJIgG1siHLKQ8PV41XJX7KH_6Kf6_OV-g1hEchrGui9G7ZXZCtKy-BUk9u58LCVhVmjAzQxrGtjbV8oBgPjcxUnOxNbcyVgaCEbqgzfOieZohnPmT5QsXTHVQjE/s320/fails_ext_amount.png" width="303" /></a></div>
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Table 2 - Ordered by extended amount</div>
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Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-75533372443253214292012-10-12T12:34:00.003-05:002012-10-16T11:48:32.702-05:00Beer ReviewsAs a gift for a recent milestone birthday, my lovely children gave me an amazing gift. They purchased one beer for each year I have inhabited this planet. Each beer was a different type which allowed me to try a bunch of different beers I probably would have never purchased on my own.<br />
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My wife suggested that I write down a little review for each one so I'll remember which ones I liked. Below are my reviews of the different beers.</div>
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The reviews are ordered chronologically. The first couple of reviews are fairly basic as I was still trying to determine what information to capture. Actually, I still struggle with how to describe the different aspects of a beer. For the last beer I reviewed I asked my son what he thought it smelled like. Since he is too young too drink he is not familiar with beer odors -hops, malts, etc - so he has to relate the smell to something else. He said it smelled like honey. I thought this was insightful. I may solicit his help on future reviews.</div>
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These are very unscientific reviews. I usually drank the beers right before dinner but there were other times I drank them in the evening. This may affect my perception of the beer. I'm not sure.</div>
<div align="center" id="BeerReviews_9128" x:publishsource="Excel">
<br /><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse; table-layout: fixed; width: 513px;">
<colgroup><col class="xl655359128" style="mso-width-alt: 3035; mso-width-source: userset; width: 62pt;" width="83"></col>
<col class="xl649128" style="mso-width-alt: 15725; mso-width-source: userset; width: 323pt;" width="430"></col>
</colgroup><tbody>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt; width: 62pt;" width="83">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Abita</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Purple Haze</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Rasberry Wheat Brew</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Light amber color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Light taste, smooth, very
little bitterness, very slight raspberry taste - not overpowing.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">OK</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">5</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Victory</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Prima</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Pilsner</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Very light yellow color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Skunky bitterness.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Did not like it - the
bitterness was unpleasant.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">3</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Hebrew</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Messiah Bold</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Dark Brown Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Brown color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Malt aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Mild bitterness, mild but
not completely tasteless flavor of malt and hops, slight bitter aftertaste.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">OK</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">6</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Yazoo</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Pale Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Pale Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Nice yellow color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Slight hop aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Pleasant bitterness, clean
aftertaste.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Nice pale ale.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">6</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Yazoo<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Dos Perros</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">mexican brown ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Dark brown color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Little fragrance, slight
malt aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Strong malt taste at first,
finish is clean with no aftertaste</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">OK</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">6</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Highland</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Oatmeal Porter</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Porter</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Dark brown color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Low</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Little aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Smooth taste all the way
through, little bitterness, finish is clean with no aftertaste.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Only drawback: seems to lack
carbonation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Still like this one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The wife liked this one also.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">7</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Fort Collins Brewery</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Chocolate Stout</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Stout</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Dark brown, almost black
color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Little aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Smooth malty taste, little
bitterness,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>a slight aftertaste that
is off.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">OK except for the slight,
awkward aftertaste.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">6</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Left Handing Brewing</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Milk Stout</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Stout</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Dark brown color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Low</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl659128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Little aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Smooth malty taste, slight
milk like aftertaste which was surprisingly pleasant.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good beer.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">7</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Shock Top</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Belgian White</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Belgian wheat ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Dark yellow, murky light
orange color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">A slight skunky type odor</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Mild wheat flavor; mild
bitterness; clean finish; no aftertaste.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">OK</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">5</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Monthy Python's</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Holy Grail Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Amber, clear color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Not much aroma, a little bit
of hops</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Smooth, little bitterness,
little aftertaste.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">It's OK, not much flavor but
smooth.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">6</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Abita</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Pecan Harvest</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Amber, cloudy color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Slight hop aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Smooth taste, little
bitterness, very slight pecan flavor - could be a bit stronger; very slight
bitter aftertaste. OK</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">OK</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">6</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Dundee</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Oktoberfest</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Marzen lager</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Dark, clear, amber color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Mild malty aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">initial taste is a strong
malty flavor, slightly bitter; finish with slight malty aftertaste</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">OK</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">5</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Lost Coast Brewery and Café</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Great White Beer</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Light Ale with wheat</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Light golden color, little
cloudy</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Low</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Slight aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Smooth, light taste, no
bitterness; mild aftertaste; Good mild beer for guests.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">OK. The wife liked this one
also.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">5</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Flying Dog</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">In-Heat Wheat Hefeweizen</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Hefeweizen</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Dark amber color, slightly
cloudy</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Low</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Slight wheat aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Smooth, light taste, a
slight bitterness; mild aftertaste</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">OK</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">5</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Redhook Ale Brewery</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Late Harvest</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Medium amber color, cloudy</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Low</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Slight hop aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Some slight bitterness at
first, clean finish with little aftertaste.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">I like this one.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">7</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Sierra Nevada</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Pale Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Pale Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Light clear amber color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Nice hop aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Strong bitterness at
beginning, fades quickly, clean aftertaste.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">OK</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">6</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Cerveza Mexicali</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Special Dark Beer</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Dark Beer</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Clear, dark color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Slightly skunky aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Strong bitterness at
beginning, a little skunky bitterness; lingering bitter aftertaste.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Lingering aftertaste was
unpleasant.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">4</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Boulder Beer Company</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Hazed and Infused</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Dry hopped Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Slightly cloudy amber color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Mild hop aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Strong tasteful hoppy
bitterness at beginning; pleasant fading aftertaste.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">This is a good hoppy beer.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">8</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Kingfisher Premium</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Premium Lager Beer</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Lager</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Very slight cloudiness,
light amber color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Strange hop aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Skunkiness taste at
beginning; little to no aftertaste.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">I did not care for this one.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">4</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Spaten</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Oktoberfest</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Oktoberfest</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Clear, rich amber color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Nice clean hop aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Pleasant bitter hop taste at
first; finishes clean with no aftertaste.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="80" style="height: 60.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="80" style="height: 60.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Excellent beer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Although this beer is just as bitter as
others, the bitterness is of a different type and is pleasant to both the
nose and palette.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The bitterness
almost has a flowery type aspect to it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I'm guessing a different type of hop is used in this beer.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">9</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Redhook Ale Brewery</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">ESB Original Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Medium amber color, cloudy</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Low</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Slight skunky hop aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Some slight bitterness at
first, clean finish with little aftertaste</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">It was OK, bitterness was a
little skunky.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">5</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Bluegrass Brewing</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Amber Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">German Style Altbier</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Dark amber color, slightly
cloudy</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Low</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Slight malt aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Smooth, light taste, a
slight bitterness; mild aftertaste</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">It was OK.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">6</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">O'haras</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Irish Stout</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Stout</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Dark, almost black color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Very little aroma, slight
malt aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Smooth taste all the way
through, little bitterness, finish is clean with no aftertaste.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Only drawback: seems to lack
carbonation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Still like this one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The wife liked this one also.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">7</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Dixie</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Blackened Vodoo Lager</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Lager</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Dark brown, cloudy, color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Slight malty aroma with a
little skunkiness</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Mild malty taste at first
with a strange flavor I cannot place, no aftertaste</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">OK</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">6</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Wolters</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Pilsener</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Pilsner</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Clear, light yellow-orange
color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Very slight aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">mild bitterness with slight
skunkiness, no aftertaste</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">OK</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">5</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Napa Smith</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Wheat Beer</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Wheat Beer</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Slightly cloudy, light
orange-yellow color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Slight aroma - can't really
place the odor, wheat maybe?</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Strange taste with a
lingering unpleasant aftertaste</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">I did not like this one.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">2</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Cerveza Mexicali</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Original Formula</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Clear, light yellow color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Slight skunky aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Initial skunkiness, quickly
subsides, very slight aftertaste</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">OK</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">6</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Harpoon Brewery</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Hefeweizen</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Unfiltered Wheat beer</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Slightly cloudy, light
golden color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Sharp bitter smell - not
skunky</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Nice initial bitterness,
quickly subsides to a pleasant finish with no aftertaste</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">This is the first wheat beer
I have liked.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">8</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Fuller's</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">London Porter</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Porter</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Dark, almost black color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Strange, skunky aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Initial skunky bitterness
with a lasting, unpleasant aftertaste</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">I could barely finish the
bottle.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">1</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Highland</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">St Terese's Pale Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Pale Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Clear, dark amber color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Very slight hop aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Initial taste is a slight
skunky bitterness, finishes clean with little to no aftertaste</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">OK</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">4</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Paulaner</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Oktoberfest Marzen</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Oktoberfest</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Clear, dark amber color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Mild hop aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Initial taste is a skunky
bitterness, finishes with a lingering slightly skunky aftertaste</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">OK</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">3</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Bridgeport</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">India Pale Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Pale Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Very cloudy, amber color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Mild hop and orange armoa</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Initial taste is a mild
skunky bitterness, finishes with a slight bitter aftertaste</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">OK</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">4</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Boulder Beer Company</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Singletrack Copper Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Copper Ale</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Clear, medium amber color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Mild skunky aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Slight initial bitterness,
clean finish with small amount of aftertaste</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">OK</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">5</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Harpoon Brewery</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Oktoberfest Beer</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Marzen lager</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Clear, dark amber color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Very slight hop aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Initial taste is a slight
skunky bitterness, finishes clean with little to no aftertaste</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">OK</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">5</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Saranac</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Caramel Porter</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Porter</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Dark brown, almost black</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Odor is an odd aroma that is
a sweet caramel-like smell</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Initial taste has strong
flavor of caramel mixed with some bitterness, finishes with slight bitter
aftertaste</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">I found the flavor odd, not
necessarily unpleasant, just odd,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>could probably only drink one.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">4</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Spaten-Brau</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Franziskaner Weissbier</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Dunkel</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Slightly cloudy, medium
brown color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Slightly skunky aroma</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">initial taste has strong
bitterness that is slightly skunky, finishes with very slight aftertaste</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">OK</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">4</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"></td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Brewer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Sam Adams</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Beer</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Noble Pils</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Type</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Five hop beer</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Color</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Slightly cloudy, light amber
color</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Carbonation</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Good</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Aroma</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">A strong aroma that is
slightly fruity, kinda honey-like, and slightly bitter</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="40" style="height: 30.0pt;">Taste</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Bitter, pleasant hop taste
at first, a little fruity/sweet taste immediately follows, no aftertaste</td>
</tr>
<tr height="60" style="height: 45.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="60" style="height: 45.0pt;">Comments</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">Different than other
hop-heavy beers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Has a slight sweet,
fruitiness to it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A pleasant
bitterness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not as bitter as I
expected for a beer with lots of hops.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl639128" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Rating</td>
<td class="xl649128" style="width: 323pt;" width="430">7</td>
</tr>
<tr height="0" style="display: none;">
<td style="width: 62pt;" width="83"></td>
<td style="width: 323pt;" width="430"></td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5447196413104012004.post-19686972375312843952012-08-16T18:56:00.000-05:002012-08-16T18:57:11.334-05:00Evil pirate banksThis yahoo <a href="http://finance.yahoo.com/news/wealthy-stash-21-trillion-pirate-160830668.html">article</a> talks about people stashing their money into "pirate" banks so as to avoid their money being confiscated by the professional criminal class - government.<br />
<br />
Oh dear! The nerve of some people to believe they should keep what they earn.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
The article contains the typical superficial analysis on how these pirate banks are "robbing" the government of revenue:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.450000762939453px;">That hidden wealth is costing governments $280 billion a year in lost tax revenue, the report says.</span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.450000762939453px;">This type of statement is not surprising. There are an abundance of so-called news articles that explain how people try to hide their money to keep it out of the hands of thieves. Of course the journalists are appalled that such people exist and so such articles always take the side of the robbers.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.450000762939453px;">What really surprised me was the following line in the article:</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.450000762939453px;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.450000762939453px;">The 'pirate banking' system now launders, shelters, manages and, if necessary, re-domiciles the riches of many of the world's worst villains, as well as the tangible and <b>intangible assets and liabilities of many of our wealthiest individuals</b></span></blockquote>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.450000762939453px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.450000762939453px;">"Our" wealthiest individuals? Huh? The last time I checked the word "our" indicates possession. Our dog. Our car. Our house. Our wealthiest individuals? Scary.</span>Ed Friendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668186760575249326noreply@blogger.com0