By Amanda Morrall
I thought for my Take Five today I would pull a few of my favourites from the archives. Many thanks to my fabulous stable of columnists below of all whom donate their time for the benefit of helping others to grow their knowledge base.
1) All in the family
Janine Starks explores some financial options for an asset rich cash poor octogenarian couple who need a new car but don't want to borrow from the bank.
2) Nice girls finish last
Joan Baker, author of a "Man is not a financial plan"offers some straight shooting advice for women on how to get ahead without being a bitch. Tip: being nice doesn't work.
3) Protecting your best asset
Sheryl Sutherland, of Women's Financial Strategies in Christchurch, looks at some sobering statistics that reinforce the importance of income protection. See also the Financial Services Council's new insurance calculator here.
4) Working ahead of the insurance claims curve
Insurance industry combatant and litigator Andrew Hooker with some sound advice on how to head off insurance claim rejections from the start.
5) IRD strikes back - hard
An estimated 25% of New Zealand's population hails from foreign shores. What are the implications for foreign pensions when it comes time to drawing on them or transferring them to NZ? Terry Baucher lays out the bad news so you're not caught unaware. Check out the time chart on taxation rates. Very scary.
Oh and here's a bonus link for all you 007 fans from The Vulture website. World Bank economist Jean-Jacques Dethier looks at the plausibility of various Bond plots applied to today's economy. Goldfinger could be prescient I reckon. This one's for you Kevin. RIP
To read other Take Fives by Amanda Morrall click here. You can also follow Amanda on Twitter @amandamorrall
3 Comments
From the James Bond extra:
Live and Let Die
Plausibility: “First of all, I think you can’t just grow opium poppies anywhere, which is why Afghanistan is considered such a high value location.”
Interesting to note that by the year 2000 the Taliban had all but eradicated the opium growing in Afghanistan, yet since the US invasion the crop has been steadily increasing until the country is now the world leader in opium production. For those who have an inkling of how US foreign policy and the *ahem* War On Drugs work, it's fairly obvious that this is not a coincidence. Next ANZAC day take a minute to remember our brave Australasian troops who are giving their lives to ensure the CIA's heroin business goes on unhindered by those pesky locals.
Casino Royale
Plot: Before Bond foils him (and forces him into a high-stakes underground poker game), Le Schiffre (Mads Mikkelsen) is shorting airline stocks, while simultaneously planning to destroy a prototype luxury jetliner on its maiden voyage. That will then drive airline stocks down, allowing him to make millions.
So kind of like the suspicious shorting of airline stocks on September 10, 2001 then...
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