Browsing Posts published on July 21, 2010
A new study has suggested that cell phone radiation may be contributing to declines in bee populations in some areas of the world.
Bee populations dropped 17 percent in the UK last year, according to the British Bee Association, and nearly 30 percent in the United States says the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Parasitic mites called varroa, agricultural pesticides and the effects of climate change have all been implicated in what has been dubbed “colony collapse disorder” (CCD).
But researchers in India believe cell phones could also be to blame for some of the losses.
In a study at Panjab University in Chandigarh, northern India, researchers fitted cell phones to a hive and powered them up for two fifteen-minute periods each day.
After three months, they found the bees stopped producing honey, egg production by the queen bee halved, and the size of the hive dramatically reduced.
It’s not just the honey that will be lost if populations plummet further. Bees are estimated to pollinate 90 commercial crops worldwide. Their economic value in the UK is estimated to be $290 million per year and around $12 billion in the U.S.
The Internal Revenue Service issues a list of the top 12 tax scams each year – known as the Dirty Dozen. The scams are illegal and can lead to problems for taxpayers including significant penalties, interest and possible criminal prosecution. These scams don’t just happen during the tax filing season, they can happen anytime during the year. Here are five scams from the 2010 Dirty Dozen list every taxpayer should be aware of this summer.
- Phishing Phishing is a tactic used by scam artists to trick unsuspecting victims into revealing personal or financial information in an electronic communication. Scams can take the form of e-mails, tweets or phony websites and they try to mislead consumers by telling them they are entitled to a tax refund from the IRS and they must reveal personal information to claim it. Regardless of how official this e-mail may look and sound, the IRS never initiates unsolicited e-mail contact with taxpayers about their tax issues. Phishers use the personal information obtained to steal the victim’s identity, access bank accounts, run up credit card charges or apply for loans in the victim’s name. If you receive an e-mail that you suspect is a phishing attempt or directs you to an imitation IRS website, please forward it to the IRS at phishing@irs.gov. You can also visit IRS.gov and enter the keyword phishing for additional information.
- Return Preparer Fraud Dishonest tax return preparers can cause trouble for taxpayers who fall victim to their ploys. Such preparers are skimming a portion of their clients’ refunds, charging inflated fees for tax preparation or are attracting new clients by promising refunds that are too good to be true. To increase confidence in the tax system, the IRS is requiring all paid return preparers to register with the IRS, pass competency tests and attend continuing education.
- Hiding Income Offshore Taxpayers have tried to avoid or evade U.S. income tax by hiding income in offshore banks and brokerage accounts. IRS agents continue to develop their investigations of these offshore tax avoidance transactions using information gained from more than 14,700 voluntary disclosures received last year. Taxpayers also evade taxes by using offshore debit cards, credit cards, wire transfers, foreign trusts, employee-leasing schemes, private annuities or life insurance plans.
- Abuse of Charitable Organizations and Deductions The IRS continues to observe the misuse of tax-exempt organizations. This includes arrangements to improperly shield income or assets from taxation and attempts by donors to maintain control over donated assets. The IRS also continues to investigate various schemes where donations are highly overvalued or the organization receiving the donation promises that the donor can purchase the items back at a later date at a price the donor sets.
- Frivolous Arguments Promoters of frivolous schemes encourage people to make unreasonable and outlandish claims to avoid paying the taxes they owe. If a scheme seems too good to be true, it probably is. The IRS has a list of frivolous legal positions that taxpayers should avoid on IRS.gov. These arguments are false and have been thrown out of court.
For the full list of 2010 Dirty Dozen tax scams or to find out how to report suspected tax fraud, visit IRS.gov.
Links:
- IR-2010-32, Beware of IRS’ 2010 “Dirty Dozen” Tax Scams
- Suspicious e-Mails and Identity Theft
- Identity Theft and Your Tax Records
- How to Report and Identify Phishing, E-mail Scams and Bogus IRS Web Sites
- pishing@irs.gov
- IR-2010-1, IRS Proposes New Registration, Testing and Continuing Education Requirements for Tax Return Preparers Not Already Subject to Oversight
- FS-2010-3, How to Choose a Tax Return Preparer and Avoid Preparer Fraud
- Abusive Offshore Tax Avoidance Schemes
- The Truth About Frivolous Tax Arguments
- How Do You Report Suspected Tax Fraud Activity?
YouTube Videos:
- Dirty Dozen: English | Spanish | ASL
- Phishing – Malware: English | Spanish | ASL
- Choosing a Tax Preparer: English | Spanish | ASL
Message for Tax Preparers: English | Spanish | ASL
The United States and South Korea will conduct major joint military exercises starting Sunday just off the Korean peninsula, the U.S. military announced Tuesday.
The purpose of the training is to improve readiness against a “range of threats” facing South Korea, the military said in a statement. The four-day exercise will be the first in a series planned in the Sea of Japan.
U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who Tuesday visited troops stationed at Camp Casey, just north of Seoul, said the upcoming exercises should send a signal to communist North Korea.
The exercises come amid months of heightened tensions on the Korean peninsula after the sinking of the South Korean warship Cheonan in March. A multinational investigation found North Korea responsible for the torpedo attack that killed 46 South Korean sailors. North Korea has denied any connection with the attack and said it is the victim of an international conspiracy.
Earlier this month, the United Nations formally denounced the Cheonan’s sinking, but did not specifically mention North Korea.
“We stand fully prepared to respond militarily to any further North Korean provocation,” said Gen. Han Min-koo, chairman of the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Gen. Walter Sharp, commander of Combined Forces Command, said U.S. support for “South Korea’s defense is unequivocal.”
Pyongyang over the weekend said such a U.S. presence would be a “reckless provocation,” according to the state-run Korean Central News Agency. It said the United States and South Korea were trying to save face after suffering a “diplomatic defeat” in the United Nations.
http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/07/20/us.south.korea.military/index.html#fbid=pArL57IOvoS
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This is NOT a joke. If you were able to pass these 3 tests, you can cancel your annual visit to your neurologist. Your brain is great and you’re far from having a close relationship with Alzheimer.
Congratulations!
China is tightening its grip on rare earth metals again… and it could cost America dearly.
We already know that China holds 97% of the rare earth market — the very materials that power your iPods, cell phones, and computers.
But it’s the Middle Kingdom’s latest move to cut exports by 72% that has America up in arms.
Put simply, we need the supply or we are screwed.
Electronics could start disappearing from shelves… Products that depend on these materials would see prices skyrocket, possibly bankrupting the very companies that depend on these sales… Green technologies would suffer… And strategic and defense weaponry (guided missiles, for example) wouldn’t be produced as quickly.
The impact on electric batteries and motors would be crippling. Toyota’s Prius depends on 2.2 lbs. of neodymium in the hybrid’s electric motor and 22-33 lbs. of lanthanum in the car’s battery pack.
And there are still plans to double production of the Prius from one million to two million units. But it’ll never happen without rare earth supply. The President can call for a million electric cars all he wants, but they all depend on available rare earth supply.
It’s the same story with wind power; turbines use massive amounts of rare earth. Right now, all of those rare earth materials are coming from just one place: China.
All of this demand will no doubt send prices for rare earth metals soaring.
“Foreign countries should calmly and logically think about this and develop their own mines for their own needs. Our resources are diminishing. And we need these minerals for our own use,” said one researcher from China at a recent conference in Beijing.
There is a bill in the works — the Restart Act — that could reignite the rare earth sector on American soil through loan guarantees and a stockpile of rare earth.
We have possible deposits in Idaho, Wyoming, and Alaska — giving us hope that U.S. rare earth production will get us by. And we can always get a little help from Greenland, Canada, and Australia…
But the clock is ticking. Developing new mines can take years. And it’s not as if the crisis is a ways off. It’s already here.
And it’s the reason we like stocks like Hudson Resources (HUD.V) and Lynas (LYSCF.PK) so much.
Another one we have our eye on is the coming IPO from Molycorp, a company described as the only rare earth minerals producer in the Western Hemisphere. Its Mountain Pass mine (for which it has plans to reopen and expand) is one of the world’s largest rare earth mines outside China.
Think about jumping on this IPO. It could skyrocket if they can make up for the supply shortfall.
But rare earth isn’t the only opportunity out there…
We’re confident that our editors will give you at least one or two investment ideas to mull over through the weekend. You can find those below.
Stay Ahead of the Curve,
Ian L. Cooper
Wealth Daily
TubePress
© 2010 Roger Knecht