JohnH

And on the other side of the equation we have greedy cynics who are perfectly willing to use the power of the state to forcibly take what one person has earned and give it to another whom they deem more deserving, thereby buying their votes in the process. Looks like there's plenty of greed to go around on all sides.

Don't most countries have those sorts of provisions? After all, a visa is permission to visit the country for a limited period of time. I think it's reasonable for the guest to prove that he/she intends to return to their country of origin.

Interesting difference. And it makes sense. I just prefer Basmati because of its nutty flavor. But I doubt the stuff at the big boxes would qualify as unadulterated - probably still good, but not full-flavored. Dry and fluffy rice can still be eaten with sauces, you just have to eat it Indian style - no utensils. Spin a portion about the size of a golf ball in the edge of the sauce with your fingers & thumb, slightly pressing it together until it becomes "clumpy". Then pick up the ball, flip it into your mouth, and enjoy..

One excellent way to make good rice with unique flavor is to be sure and use authentic, unadulterated Basmati rice. (Indian cuisine, not Chinese though)

Pretty hard these days for me to justify traveling to a seminar site and sitting all day in a class which is usually paced to the learning abilities and skill level of the lowest-qualified participants, with rest breaks and lunch scheduled at times which may not necessarily be when I'm ready to rest my brain and body. Group seminars must be planned and paced in that manner because they need to appeal to the lowest common denominator in order to meet their enrollment targets. Cookie cutter education is as archaic as buggy rides. Both will get you to your destination, you'll learn something along the way, and the scenery may be even nice, but they're anything but efficient. I think it's much more efficient to complete CE online at my own pace, which will be faster than some and slower that others. Of course, I still have the responsibility to evaluate whether the online education has accomplished anything in terms of advancing my knowledge. And that usually isn't known for sure until after the course is completed, regardless of whether it's online or in person.

I'm wondering if ATX will make you sign a confidentiality agreement as a condition of being a Beta tester, thus locking you down and preventing you from discussing the program while you are testing it.

So if someone walked into your office, beat you up, took all your money, and left you for dead, you wouldn't call them a criminal until they were convicted in a court of law? Maybe you would just refer to that person as a misbehaver, so as not to be offensive? And if it happened they had also bypassed our borders to get into the country, would they just be an undocumented misbehaver?

Thanks for that bit of wisdom and common sense in your definitions KC. On our last trip to India my wife's passport went missing. We had to spend an entire day visiting the police, US Consulate, and India immigration. We were described as aliens, foreigners, non-Indians, and maybe a few other terms in the various reports and paperwork generated. We didn't take offense at any of it, though, because even though she was truly an undocumented person, we were not in the country illegally. I think that is the key difference.

Oh please...

I think you have to take the bank documentation at its face value. After all, that's what they are sending to the IRS and it's what the AUR system will be looking for. So if the 1099-R says 2011, then you'll need to amend 2011. The bank should pay your fee for that as well, but to paraphrase what Jack said, - "good luck with that one."

I'm sure some people think that way, but how someone interprets the term doesn't change the real meaning of the term. Perhaps it's better to use the proper terminology and educate people to what it means rather than to try and massage the language and rob it of its true meaning.. I even heard a guy on NPR straining so hard to be politically correct recently that he kept referring to illegal aliens as "undocumented citizens". He knew "undocumented workers" is getting a bad rap because there are many non-working illegal aliens in this country as well. So he had the presence of mind to avoid the stupid description and move on to one even more stupid. Can't get much more absurd than that, IMO. People also refer to all Hispanics (or Latinos) (or Hispano-Latinos) as Mexicans, even though many of them come from Guatemala, Honduras, Colombia, etc. Probably need a little education there as well. But there's one good side to all this. If I ever decide to rob a bank, I'm going to try and convince the judge that I was just making an "undocumented withdrawall" in a sincere attempt to get ahead. Think that will fly?

I agree that "illegal alien" is definitely politically incorrect. But it is not factually incorrect.

I freely admit to being an Apple cheerleader. Having said that, the ZAGG is a good old keyboard.

It is almost impossible to take lenthy notes using the iPad screen keyboard. IMO the only way to efficiently takes notes with the iPad is to use a bluetooth keyboard. I prefer the ZAGG Pro bluetooth keyboard. It converts the iPad to something resembling a laptop for those rare times when you need to operate in that mode and makes a great stand for viewing. Plus, it doubles as a very durable hard protective case. Cost is about $130 or less, depending upon the discount you get.

I can't imagine doing business without my cell phone and iPad. (and a cheap wifi enabled Galaxy tablet when I need to use flash player). External power boosters are the equivalent of a battery - actually better than an internal battery. Personally I take advantage of all the tehcnology available to make me more productive and efficient. We are selling our expertise and time. For me it's a simple matter of greater efficiency translating time savings, translating into higher income. I think that's the reason for being in business in the first place. But, to each his own...

Looks like the bank is going to be on the hook for the penalty. Or else they should l lose a customer.

Use an iPad and you won't have to worry about WiFi. 4G is available almost anywhere in the civilzed world, and it's cheap.

Use an iPad and you won't have those problems. Especially if you take a cheap, fully charged battery booster along.

I've been approached about filing returns for illegal aliens on several occasions. (no quotes needed - there's no confusion about who is an alien, and no confusion about who is illegal). No way I'd touch one now or in the future.

It's fascinating how much I use PayPal - it has probably increased five-fold just in the last couple of years. It's safe, secure, and easy to manage. Much better than writing checks or using credit cards. It's easy to offer to clients for invoice payments too.

I didn't say "the top marketing person". I said "a sharp marketing person." Any suit can give interviews and issue apologies. We are seeing examples of that in another context, aren't we?

A sharp marketing person could have turned this article about poor customer service into a public relations win - by giving her a RAL with no processing charges and no interest. That would have also made it into the article and they would have looked like people who really cared about their customers. Even if they happened to never get their money back, it probably would have been worth more than $1,300 in free publicity. As it is, they showed themselves to be just another big company that blows a lot of smoke but doesn't give a hoot about their customers. Oh, and they also should have FedExed or couriered the copy to her instead of having her come get it.

From time-to-time people will bring me unusual situations or downright messes and when I look at it I immediately know how to fix it or where to get good, solid answers. It is rewarding to be able to help move a worried, fearful client into a state of calm and relaxation. I've also been handed situations which were such a mess or so far outside my area of experience that I couldn't get a good handle on the situation, or I found that I needed to do one-time research that I'd never use again. Not a good use of my time or my client's funds. So I learned over the years that it's equally rewarding to simply tell the client this is outside my area of expertise or experience, and recommend that they find someone else. As far as I'm concerned, BOTH situations gave me a sense of control and assurance that I'm doing what is in my client's best interest. If the potential client thought less of me because I admitted my limitations, that's his problem, not mine. (Incidentally, I learned this in part from my mechanic. I had a problem with my car one time that he just could not resolve. He finally suggested that I take it to a dealer, who had fancier testing equipment and more experience with my year and model car. They found a wierd anomaly unique to that vehicle and fixed it at probably twice what my mechanic would have charged, but all 3 of us benefitted in the long run. And I remain a loyal customer of my mechanic going on 20 years because I respect his judgement. )

Agreed. To me, this thread has been especially enlightening in several areas. And fascinating.

Joel: I'm glad you pointed out that clarification. In reading some of the other responses, I realized that some people took my reference to "speed" to mean how fast the program crunches the numbers. That's a part of it, but far from the whole story. Speed includes how fast it loads, how fast it processes updates, how fast it prints, how fast it backs up, etc. It also takes into account how long we might spend watching an hourglass spin or how many times we have to recover form a crash and re-enter data. Because the ultimate measure of speed isn't how quickly the program does any of that, but rather how quickly it allows you to move on to the next project. That's how we evaluate effectiveness if the merchandise we are selling is our expertise. Slow software forces us to leave inventory gathering dust on the shelf.