Your elderly dog has arthritis. His breathing is difficult. He needs assistance to get up, and his bladder is failing. The vet bills are far higher than your own, and it is getting more difficult to pay them. “How much is too much?” Some say there is a limit, others would be willing to go into enormous debt to prolong the life of their pet. The veterinarian technological and medical innovations of today make preserving your pet’s life achievable. Vets offer plenty of ways to prolong life, even in cases of terminal illness. Advancements in veterinary care aren’t cheap Specialists…
Insights & Advice
Bill Schmick
Public-sector jobs can’t compete in a tight labor market
State and local government employees are essential in delivering everyday services to the American public, but the government’s labor force is understaffed and has yet to recover from its pandemic lows. The reasons range from lower pay and less advancement, to little flexibility in areas such as remote working. Private-sector jobs have already surpassed pre-pandemic levels, while in the public sector, government employers are still looking for more than 664,000 workers with little success. This may sound like one of those “so what” kinds of issues but consider this. Public employees operate the nation’s trains, subways, and buses in addition…
Streaming comes of age
There are roughly 817,000 unique and different programs available via streaming services in the U.S. The median streaming household pays for three to four such subscriptions, costing between $20 and $30 per month. Most consumers claim the choices are overwhelming and cumulatively expensive, so why don’t they plan to do anything about it? Those were the findings of a Nielson report titled “State of Play” published in April 2022 which analyzed the state of streaming entertainment in America. The number of programs (movies, series, specials, etc.) has increased by 26.5% since the beginning of 2020. The amount of content that…
Midterms create market volatility
The stock market does not perform well in the year leading up to midterm elections. This year’s election may just add to the overall woes besetting equities. Historically, the average annual return of the benchmark S&P 500 Index in the 12 months before the November 5 election is 0.3%, versus the historical average of 8.1%. in non-mid-term years. In 2022, of course, with the S&P 500 down more than 20%, those historical numbers look fairly good. Unfortunately, volatility also tends to rise before and after midterm elections. Will midterm elections cause a market dip in 2022? But this year is…