patrick.net

The Four Seasons in EPA is quite nice.

I recommend the warm seafood salad there. Service at the restaurant is superb at times.

StuckinBA,

First of all, this is hardly a freedom of speech issue at all, but one of social nicety. If most people here had declared me so repugnant as to boot me out, that's your perogative. Freedom of speech is not applicable to small privately runned websites.

In any case, I have no problem that you think, on this one point, that I hold a repugnant view. I'm not big on this particular brand of social nicety. And I think very very poorly of people with bad parenting skill.

Also, what location is awesome in Sunnyvale?

Why, the part next to Cupertino - of course!

"Do these guys think they’re selling to idiots?"

Yes.

And I think very very poorly of people with bad parenting skill.

To the extent that you think the kids are better off with the parent dead ? Because they don't match your definition of good parenting skill ?

SFWoman,

Death tax is just the nickname. It's called the federal estate tax. Exemption limit is $2mm this year.

Link

SQT,

If her son was a decent kid and she made an effort to raise him properly, then I was wrong and I retract that statement. My impression was that she was a very unfit mother.

StuckinBA,

Because it is my opinion only! It would be different if I was a family court judge or child service person making a judgment that affects these people's lives. I see no reason to tone down my opinion simply because they may offend the sensibility of some, unless I deem that offense to be great enough to cause some sort of actual harm.

Increasingly, I’ve started to appreciate socialism, as in the European sense.

Socialism works only for countries with small population and large reserve of natural resources.

I think you are admiring the relative wealth of those countries.

BTW, I've repeated stated my own opinion about child raising. People can do whatever the heck they want to their own lives, but if they have a child, I think they owe that child at least 18 years of reasonable stability and loving care. That obligation, once undertaken, supersedes their own personal preferences.

I do think that a major reason why this society is screwed up is that many people don't think before undertaking this responsibility and are derelict in their duty as parents.

MtView,

Ah, I thought the amount to qualify for the estate tax was much higher, because such a small percentage of people end up qualifying to pay it.

I feel sorry for ANS's daughter. Who knows, maybe she died of flu, but I'd guess it was likely drugs or heart failure. Why didn't the people close to her do an intervention or something? Everytime I've seen the woman appear on anything she seemed to be a stupor.

I do think that a major reason why this society is screwed up is that many people don’t think before undertaking this responsibility and are derelict in their duty as parents.

I agree. But I am not ready to accuse any specific person of not being a good parent.

I am probably a bad parent myself. :(

What is the $$ amount that the ‘death tax’ kicks in at now? It doesn’t really tax your death, unless you have a decent estate, I find that such an odd name for it.

SFWoman,
Will your kids be surly teenagers in 2010? If so, I would look both ways before crossing the street -- I know FABs parents will :-)
Exemption limits revert to $1 million in 2011.

SQT said:
I think ANS biggest flaw was that she wasn’t terribly bright. Being beautiful and not-to-smart is a sure fire way to be taken advantage of.
Uhhhh.... she was a golddigger, and quite a good one I would say -- or am I missing something?

"Not that you need or want me on your side. Nor that there are sides. "

:-) It's more of an oval. ( I hope I didn't just offend the rhombus people)

Anyone ever have to deal with having accounts at a bank or S&L that fails? How long until you get access to your FDIC insured balances? What if you have automatic bill pay? Do those bills get paid?

I've recently noticed that one of banks that I have accounts with (small balances but with the bill pay) is deteriorating rapidly. I'll be working to change this situation as quick as possible but I thought I'd ask the questions just in case I'm not quick enough.

Thanks,
Paul

SQT,

I felt bad for her when her son died too. I thought she was a terrible mother, but no one (including Saddam Hussein) deserves to have their child die before them.

Huh?

GC,

I think it's conventionally understood that men with neither a job or a bank account have other problems too, all of which make them less than desireable husbands.

SFWoman Says:

> What is the $$ amount that the ‘death tax’ kicks
> in at now? It doesn’t really tax your death, unless
> you have a decent estate, I find that such an
> odd name for it.

The people that use the term “Death Tax” are usually Libertarians or Republicans (or others that think that the government wastes most of the money we pay in taxes) and the people that use the term “Estate Tax” are usually Democrats or Greens (or others that get money from the government and think that the government could solve all our problems if the “rich” only paid more taxes).

2001 Death Tax Rate 55% Exemption $675,000
2002 Death Tax Rate 50% Exemption $1,000,000
2003 Death Tax Rate 49% Exemption $1,000,000
2004 Death Tax Rate 48% Exemption $1,500,000
2005 Death Tax Rate 47% Exemption $1,500,000
2006 Death Tax Rate 46% Exemption $2,000,000
2007 Death Tax Rate 45% Exemption $2,000,000
2008 Death Tax Rate 45% Exemption $2,000,000
2009 Death Tax Rate 45% Exemption 3,500,000
2010 Death Tax Rate 0% No death tax on any Estate
2011 Death Tax Rate 55% Exemption $1,000,000

P.S. In 2000 less than 2% of the Americans who died paid the Death Tax and some states had less than 100 total estates over the $675K exemption (that was $650K in 1999)…

P.P.S. My Dad has joked that he plans to hire a “food taster” (like the medieval kings had to avoid poisoning) in 2010…

I see no reason to tone down my opinion simply because they may offend the sensibility of some,

Precisely. Those are your rights. But you have failed to offer any analysis of supporting that opinion, and as I said earlier, simply hiding behind your right to say whatever you want to say. But that's your right too, you do not have to offer any justification for saying it.

A child, who is less than a year old, lost it's mother. It's a grave loss. A loss that cannot be replaced. A child needs a mother, especially a mother at that age. For good physical, emotional and psychological development. You suggested, very casually, that it was better for the child for her mother to have died. That is a very serious statement.

What you in essence are suggesting is, you think it's better for kids to lose their parents if their parenting skills are not up to your definition of "good parenting". Saying things are better by someone being dead because they do not fit with your idea of "goodness" is strikingly similar to the viewpoint of most terrorists.

Saying things are better by someone being dead because they do not fit with your idea of “goodness” is strikingly similar to the viewpoint of most terrorists.

Not always. Terrorists are better dead.

At some point we do need to draw the line between good and evil.

StuckinBA,

Are you suggesting that adopted children, who grew up without a biological parent, are irredemably damaged.

I'm not suggesting ANS's child grow up without responsible guardians. In fact, I was originally suggesting that this girl would do better in the hands of responsible guardians than she would in the care of a highly irresponsible parent.

My paternal grandmother's mother died when my grandmother was two and she was packed off to her maternal grandparents. However, she was reasonably treated there and grew up quite well adjusted. My extended family has suffered a few instances of kids who lost parents in infancy or childhood. They managed to grow up okay and I don't see the deep psychological scar. It's not nothing, but I'm not convinced that the damage is worse than growing up with outright bad parents.

She unfortunately will have a different mother figure so the arguement of her life being over because her mother passed on is BS.

Who said the child's life was over ? What happens to the child as a result of this tragedy is simply unknown future. The issue we are debating is completely different.

The issue is statements like... "Since I don't like the person's particular skills, I think xyz is better off with that person dead."

Not always. Terrorists are better dead.
At some point we do need to draw the line between good and evil.

Sure. But that is when we know with enough certainty that they either killed or plan to kill other innocent people. Is ANS in that category ?

astrid :

Please see my answer to Wood River.

Is ANS in that category ?

Of course NOT.

But that is when we know with enough certainty that they either killed or plan to kill other innocent people.

For national security (a greater good), sometimes we just need to make reasonable guesses.

"Saying things are better by someone being dead because they do not fit with your idea of “goodness” is strikingly similar to the viewpoint of most terrorists. "

You live in a society where a majority supports the death penalty. They do not merely state an opinion but act to force that opinion on other people.

Secondly, there is a huge distinction between personally believing something to be right, even to the repugnance of others, and acting (esp. violently acting) to force that opinion on other people. I would never wish ANS death - I'm not even sure the world is better off for her death, I was merely observing that based on my knowledge as of 90 minutes or so ago, I thought her death would increase the change of her daughter for a normal life and being responsibly cared for.

Are you suggesting that adopted children, who grew up without a biological parent, are irredemably damaged.

Completely unrelated issue. I only said there was a grave loss. How the child cope with the loss is not under discussion.

FAB,

I am fiscally conservative, but am still going to call an estate tax an estate tax. It simply doesn't tax death, so calling it a 'death tax' seems rather Rovian.

I am not someone who believes that government take care of every-one's wants and desires, but let's call a spade a spade. The tax is on estates over a certain valuation, not on death.

StuckinBA,

I'm not going to argue further on this point. I think you've misread the intent of my original statement and responses.

Shall we resume the discussion on food?

Peter P.,

And who will make that reasonable guess? I would hope not the same people who have been making reasonable guesses (which all turn out to be worng) as of late.

You do bring up a good point though, perhaps ANS was a Fembot.

worng means not correct.

GC,

ANS was a special case. She was, in my original contention, a complete trainwreck who had screwed up her son's life. No one is saying the average child is benefitted by the loss of a parent.

You live in a society where a majority supports the death penalty.

Again a diversion. Death penalty is not given because of subjective opinion of someone's skills. It is given after conclusive evidence of killing others. Or whatever the legal way of phrasing it. But that's a different topic.

I was merely observing that based on my knowledge as of 90 minutes or so ago, I thought her death would increase the change of her daughter for a normal life and being responsibly cared for.

I have very little knowledge about ANS. Your conclusion could be true. I just don't like the method of arriving at it. But I guess, let's agree to disagree and move on.

Anna Nicole Smith --and other f***ed-up Gen-X celebs like her-- give my generation a bad name. Her drug-addled, greed-obsessed, narcissistic train wreck of a lifestyle would have made any Boomer proud. I don't celebrate anyone's death, but I can't say it was unexpected.

BTW, even though I said no more replies. I'd like to point out that an adopted infant and an orphaned infant raised by guardians can quite analogous. In both instances, the infant is too young at the time of death to experience the grief of an older child, and the place of the biological parent could be replaced by surrogates.

SFWoman & FAB,

We're getting into estate planning here and I'm not an expert in this area. So what I'm about to say might not be entirely accurate.

I think the main reason so few actually end up paying the "death tax" is a combination of good estate planning and favorable asset transfer laws.

In addition to the estate transfer exemption, there's also a lifetime gift tax exemption of $1mm for each giftor. Also, the estate tax exemption of $2mm is for each person, and since most wealthy estates are built up by a couple. Realistically at the end, the exemption is $6mm when all is accounted for.

Another thing is that each person is allowed to gift any person $12k (this number changes quite often) every year without that counting toward your lifetime limit and without gift taxes. So you and your husband can gift each of your children $24k a year tax free. Many wealthy families start doing this very early on in a child's life.

There are, of course, other ways to decrease taxes. But the basic items I just listed would suffice for most families.

And who will make that reasonable guess? I would hope not the same people who have been making reasonable guesses (which all turn out to be worng) as of late.

Someone must do the work. They need to do a good job. Even so, there will be mistakes. If the mistakes are reasonable, they should be seen as acceptable.

We cannot avoid that simply because of a few failures.

But you did give the impression (IMO) that the little girl was doomed to a life of misery and despair since she had lost her mother.

I didn't intend to give that impression, so sorry if I came across as such. Time heals a lot of sorrows. But not having the sorrow is even better.

But yes, let's move onto estate taxes and generation skipping transfers...