Several readers have contacted me asking to go over the specifics of the two tax plans after the last blog, and how it might affect their investments and family. I took it for granted that most of my readers were familiar with the plans and, in the heat of the moment, forgot to include a link to the actual data so here's the followup. Although at this point, we can only get into general outlines because you never know what type of Congress you are going to have, here's a breakdown provided by both the Tax Policy Center and CNN Money on how the two plans might help (or hurt) your net worth and income:

Obama: "Obama would also introduce new tax breaks for lower and middle-income groups. Such breaks include expanding the earned income tax credit, giving those making less than $150,000 a $500 tax credit per person on the first $8,100 in income, giving those making under $75,000 a 50% federal match on the first $1,000 of savings, and exempting seniors making less than $50,000 from having to pay income tax. The net result: compared with their tax bill today, taxpayers on average would see their tax bill cut by nearly $160 under Obama's plan. That means their after-tax income would rise by 0.3%.... those in the lowest-income groups would enjoy the biggest after-tax income rise as a percentage of income - between 2.4% and 5.5% (worth between $567 and $1,042). By contrast, the highest-income households - those with at least $603,000 in income - would see a dramatic decline in their after-tax income - a drop of 8.7%, or $116,000."

McCain: "The net result: compared with their tax bill today, taxpayers on average would see their tax bill cut by nearly $1,200. That means their after-tax income would rise by 2%. But those in the lowest income groups would only see their after-tax income rise by less than 1% (or between $19 and $319). By contrast, the highest-income households - those with incomes of at least $603,000 - would see a boost in after-tax income of 3.4%, or more than $40,000."

Some Thoughts: Warren Buffett has repeatedly stated that when tax breaks are given to those on the lower end of the spectrum, they are going to spend it because they need it. They will go to Wal-Mart or Target or Borders or Home Depot or J.C. Penny to buy clothes, food, put in new carpet, et cetera. When those at the higher end of the spectrum get tax relief, it is almost always, without exception, put to work in the stock market or other investments because they don't need the money. For the sake of kicking up the economy, that's partly why profits rose so heavily under the Clinton - Gingrich era because the average lower class and middle class households saw their purchasing power increase by thousands of dollars. These demographic sectors spend income increases. Those making $250,000 per year don't.

That played a big role in my decision to switch out of my usual party alliances (as many of you know, I'm a Republican who is voting for Barack Obama). Again, here we're only dealing with the economics and investing side of it - you're personal convictions on social issues and other topics don't factor into this and, to be honest, that's not what we're here to discuss at Investing for Beginners so I'll quietly bow out of those issues, if you'll pardon me.

Roberto Goizueta remains one of the greatest executives and managers in history. During his tenure, the Cuban immigrant grew the value of Coca-Cola’s common shares by more than 3,500%, while cleaning up the mess of his predecessor, which had resulted in the beverage company tied up in everything from shrimp farming in South America to manufacturing plastics. He strengthened, consolidated, and spun-off a substantial part of the bottler network in the form of Coca-Cola Enterprises that now forms the backbone of the Coca-Cola system, and focused on capital allocation with such spectacular results that even Warren Buffett would have to stand up in admiration.

In this brief special, we are going to look at some of the lessons Goizueta can teach us from his day-to-day management of one of the most famous companies on the planet. It is our hope that you can take away from it practical, and actionable, ideas to grow your own net worth or improve your life in some meaningful way.

Continue reading about the 9 Lessons of Roberto Goizueta ...

As many of you know, I'm a Republican that is voting for Barack Obama. Actually, I'm pretty sure most of my all-Republican family is voting for Obama. Politics matter to us a great deal, in part because they have very real influence on the economy and your (and my) investment results - witness the wealth that has been created because of the Roth IRA, Traditional IRA, SEP-IRA, and 401k plans. Anyway, last night, after his acceptance speech, I was working on a new specialty retail business my holding company is launching and had Larry King Live on in the background. The guests they had on the show included Ben Stein (for whom I have great respect), and a few other folks.

Once they got into the specifics of the pledge Obama made to cut taxes on 95% of Americans, one guest went on about how most lower and middle class people don't pay income taxes anyway. Sitting here, in the decorum of my office, it would have felt good to yell through the television. That's why the proposal is based on a $1,000 tax credit to offset payroll taxes. For the average employee, who is not subject to self-employment taxes, you're talking about virtually no FICA withholding on the first, say, $10,000 in income. That's not only comparable, but bigger, to the economic stimulus payments that just went out, permanently rippling through the economy. The benefits, of course, are lower for a self-employed person because they have to pay both components of the payroll tax (whereas half the costs are covered for those working for someone else).

As always, though, I appreciated Ben Stein's commentary. I did feel like he was a bit intellectually dishonest (uninformed, I hope) about the abortion issue when he stated that Obama had not even voted against a partial birth ban in Illinois. If you go back and study the issue, it was because the particular law did not include an exception for the health of the mother and wasn't expected to pass judicial muster when brought up on a constitutional challenge. What I want to know is, if I'm sitting here running a collection of businesses and investing full-time yet still study and read all of these papers, what the heck is the average American doing?

Thank goodness I didn't witness the protest debacle. Apparently, there were protestors on television holding signs with faces such as Dick Cheney, Nancy Pelosi, and George W. Bush, demanding that the war come to an end. The people in the group didn't know who Madam Speaker was - not her name, job title, role - nothing.

And can someone please explain to people who talk about "activist judges legislating from the bench" who are "usurping our democracy" that we do not and have not ever lived in a Democracy. We live in a Republic. A Constitutional Republic. This is due, in part, to the wisdom of Benjamin Franklin (a fantastic investor himself! Take note!) who likened a democracy to mob rule; comparable to two wolves and a lamb having a vote on what's for dinner. When you get into issues like gay rights, abortion, prayer in schools, segregation, et cetera, the judges are performing their duty. If we had put the issue of desegregation up for a vote, it never would have passed.

Maybe if I ever put down the stock certificates and pick up a pen by running for Governor or Congress, I'll push to have every high school senior in my state sign an agreement prior to graduation stating, "I understand that I do not live in a Democracy. I live in a Constitutional Republic." Even then, would they realize that individual citizens do not have the right to elect the President, but rather the State Legislatures? And even if the Delegates are sent to the Electoral College, they can change their mind (in most cases) and, if they wanted, elect Oprah Winfrey or Billy Joel as the Commander in Chief an there's not a thing they can do about it?

I'm also fascinated by the issue of polls. They keep saying the race is close, but has anyone pointed out that it isn't even close with those who are 30 years old or younger - yet these are the people who are most likely to have only a cell phone, no land line used by traditional polling groups, and aren't registered anywhere in terms of phone lists, donor lists, etc.? I've got direct access to at least four corporate landlines from near my desk at headquarters - but personally, I don't maintain a landline. Everything goes through my iPhone. My siblings are the same way. The government has got to figure out how to catch up with the paradigm shift that's taken place these past few years.

Image property of the Associated Press

This morning, I had the pleasure of reading what I consider to be one of, if not the, greatest money and business management secrets that has ever been penned by legendary management guru Peter Drucker. Buried more than one hundred pages into his treatise, this concept can revolutionize everything from whether you learn to play the piano or build a $20 million fortune. It can help you see things in an entirely new light by focusing on the one variable that we all seem to overlook - the present. Right now, before you get up, focus on anything else, or get distracted, do yourself the favor and read Drucker's words. It will only take a brief, but possibly life changing moment, for you to discover the secret ...