nVerse

With today’s surging commodity prices, it costs more to create pennies and nickels than the values they represent

The key ingredients of a penny are copper (2%) and zinc (98%)- both of which have more than tripled in price since 2003. Ditto for nickel prices.

According to the SF Chronicle, as of Tuesday may 6th, a penny costs 1.26 cents to make, and a nickel (which is 75% copper) costs 7.7 cents.

As Politico.com’s Ben Smith pointed out, Hilary’s recent mailing attempting to draw negative attention to Barack’s gun control record features a collectible left handed (or image reversed right handed) bolt-action Mauser 66 with a custom double-set trigger - quite an expensive and very European setup, but hardly a gun that your average American owns, or has even seen…

So my buddy grease is very excited about flying across the country to attend the New England Gerbil show… being held at the Holiday Inn in Nashua, NH.

I think it’s a little weird, but it makes him happy. When does a quirky hobby turn into a harmful addiction?

Kinda looks like a bad scene from Hogwarts Academy…

…but no, it’s Ladeuzeplein square in Leuven, Belgium where 1,500 students attempted to set the zany record of simultaneously dropping a mentos candy into bottles of diet coke. Avid YouTube users will be familiar with the chemical reaction that occurs when you mix a mentos with coke - a crazy stream of carbonated soda erupts from the bottle. It makes me recall that old urban legend about the kid who ate Pop Rocks and drank some Coke, and his stomach exploded.

“A federal judge has sentenced action star Wesley Snipes to the maximum three-year sentence on tax charges.

Prosecutors had requested three years, one year for each of Snipes’ convictions of willfully failing to file a tax return.”

[source:SF Chronicle]

thought i would post this schedule for those of you that are interested in when your ‘economic stimulus’ check will arrive…so you know when you can buy the new 3G iPhone
(source: turbotax/intuit site)

… rebate by DIRECT DEPOSIT

Last two digits of your Social Security number:

Payments will be transmitted:
00 through 20 May 2
21 through 75 May 8
76 through 99 May 16

.. or rebate by MAIL

Last two digits of your Social Security number:

Payments will be mailed by:
00 through 09 May 16
10 through 18 May 23
19 through 25 May 30
26 through 38 June 6
39 through 51 June 13
52 through 63 June 20
64 through 75 June 27
76 through 87 July 4
88 through 99 July 11

…subprime mortgage foreclosures as a percentage of overall subprime mortgages…(click to enlarge)

[source: NY Times]

It is also interesting to tie it to the unemployment and construction activities maps. Not sure any additional comments are necessary except to reiterate, that as a general rule of thumb, it’s a good idea to try and live below your means…apparently that old adage was easier said than done back in 2004, when the temptation to buy a home outweighed the clear risks of taking on a crazy, creative mortgage.