Regulation of alcohol in the United States uses  a three-tiered system  that perpetuates big business’s control on the alcohol industry and has helped maintain a cartel-like hold on the marketplace ever since the end of alcohol prohibition in 1933.

Sit up and take notice, Washington – the future of America’s entitlements is unfolding before you in the form of the Illinois pension crisis. Illinois’ five state-funded pension systems were almost $100 billion too small to meet promised pension obligations, potentially affecting state employees, “down-state” teachers (Chicago teachers have their own pension problems), state university employees and even General Assembly members.

Imagine, for a moment, a game show set. Wink Martindale is the host, because you need a pro to keep this thing on the rails. Contestants are picked at random from the studio audience to answer questions about the IRS, prepared by auditors and CPAs. Winners are awarded a tax rebate. Losers get the last 10 years of their income tax returns audited.

Hallie Kuperman loves to dance. But what she loves even more is sharing this passion with visitors to her social dancing club, the Century Ballroom.Hallie purchased the vintage dancing space 16 years ago, turning it into a Seattle institution. The Century Ballroom not only teaches swing, tango and the foxtrot, it also hosts cabarets and other live performances for an eclectic crowd of all ages. The club’s trendsetting owner has become a prominent and beloved figure in the community.

On February 5, the Congressional Budget Office released a report titled, "Macroeconomic Effects of Alternative Budgetary Paths". Full disclosure: even to us policy wonks, this report sounds a bit dry. Not exactly 50 Shades of Grey, if you know what I mean. But this report did contain some very interesting nuggets. Prepared at the request of the Chair of the Senate Budget Committee, Patty Murray, I'm certain that it came as a bit of a surprise.

The Senate Democratic Leadership offered a plan yesterday that would delay the sequester through January 2, 2014 (a ten-month postponement) and would “pay for” this delay of spending reductions with a set of new tax hikes and alternative spending trims. 

Thousands of Americans are voting with their feet and heading to the Lone Star State. Despite a national economic slump, Texas boasts a rock solid economy and pro-active leadership committed to fostering a business friendly environment. And it's just this type of climate that's attracting the nation's best and brightest.  

You never want to think that when economic trouble strikes, it's going to hit you. In fact, often times it doesn’t affect you directly because your business is not necessarily in the market segment currently under fire. This has been my family's experience for the majority of my life, at least until the last couple of years. 

On Wednesday, The Hill reported that the Obama administration had begun to implement the individual mandate at the heart of Obamacare. Noting its unpopularity, rules have been written by the IRS and Department of Health and Human Services that "downplay the scope" of the mandate and emphasize the exemptions. As a curious blogger, I wanted to see for myself the fact sheet that was disseminated.