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Reagan1k

Certifiably Surly
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Everything posted by Reagan1k

  1. Agreed. CZ pumps or Benelli pumps are outstanding in that price range.
  2. For those $400-$500 shotgun/boat paddle combos - Don't overlook the Turks. Mfgs. like Tristar and Impala make some nicely functional semis that won't break the bank or your heart if you fall asleep before cleaning them or need to use them as a push pole.
  3. You don't get a tax deduction on realized losses in an IRA....and you don't have capital gains taxes on realized gains. You pay income tax on whatever comes out (plus a penalty unless it is a conversion or otherwise allowed distribution). There is no wash sale rule since there is no capital loss deduction.
  4. Well, if you believe that over any considerable, long term period of time your investment assets will increase in value (if they don't it's Thunderdome anyway IMO) then yes, strategically converting to a Roth during a declining market will allow you to pay lower taxes on what otherwise would have been a larger conversion. You run the risk of being out of the market during potential up-day pops while the transfer is taking place, but in general, your situation would allow you to convert and reinvest in the same assets while paying a 15% lower tax bill than you would have otherwise.
  5. Some people do conversions up to the next marginal bracket if they think that's about as low as their income tax will ever go. For instance.....if you are MFJ and have taxable income above $83.5k but less than $178k, you can convert up to that 178k threshold if you have doubts you'll see marginal rates remain at or below 22% in the decades to come. Bear in mind that you have to have the cash on hand to pay the taxes on what's converted in a given year and the conversion amount is locked up for 5 years without the more liberal standard Roth withdrawal rules. Basically you are pre-paying the tax today to have income flexibility down the road and locking in a tax rate now at a known rate that might increase in the future. You limit or eliminate RMDs down the road so you have a lot of tax planning flexibility when you hit retirement age and start drawing SS. Some of the benefits to heirs has been muted by recent legislation, but there are still some benefits.
  6. Some dogs seems to always go back and touch that hot stove over and over.....just like people I guess. What's the dog lingo equivalent of "Hold my beer; y'all watch this." Most only need one encounter with a badger, porcupine, or rattlebug.
  7. Bet the dog won’t sniff one again. Probably not a worry now.
  8. Any trees bordering or growing over pen?
  9. Miami can get like that WITH power. It can take AA days to unwind the messes there. Line to the help desk goes from tip to tail of the terminal.
  10. In Texas - Sounds like you'll be teal hunting right? If so, no more sporting and classic shotgun to use than a 20ga o/u. Third shot is always a waste on teal anyway, unless the 1st is a skillet shot. Take the browning to the blind inside a good soft-sided case and enjoy the hunting. Then take it home and completely strip/clean it. Don't worry as much about the gun you take as you do about the mosquitos and gators. Or, go to the pawn shop and get a used Rem. 870 in 20 or 12. Have fun either way.
  11. Hour and a half from Austin to Castroville / Hondo. Call an outfitter down there and get set up on an afternoon hunt and then a morning hunt the next day....spend the night in CV or Hondo. Get 2 hunts in over 24 hours. Leave noon on a Friday / Saturday and be home by 2:00 on Saturday / Sunday. Steve Wilson is a big outfitter down there who runs day hunts. Also many others. What used to be Hotel Alsace in CV is decent...plus you have the usual "Express" hotels along that route. I used to fly into to ABIA (back when they had power) and do that 24 hour turnaround deal with buddies from college. Great way to spend a weekend with your kid.
  12. Holy shit - I've tried to quit saying that or using logic to make assumptions on anything related to air travel. Good luck - hope it goes well.
  13. Tanks fer nuttin...... Your question and my own answer now have me down a rabbit hole looking at stock and chassis options for building a guest gun (excuse for wife)....which of course I'd want to use. Bell and Carlson or chassis? Chassis with brace? Folder or extendable? Pistol grip or straight? LPVO or FP? This could get complicated. That was true in the past and remains so to the best of my knowledge.
  14. It took me a while to grasp that alcoholism is a family disease. Everyone is afflicted; even those that don't drink. Our spouses, kids, family, and friends have to adjust to a new normal and I for one didn't get that. I pretended that my disease existed in a vacuum and no one was affected. That's not true. It takes time and just like us, our loved ones have good days and bad, stub their toe, say stupid shit, and get overcome with fear and uncertainty. I was told to be gentle with not only myself, but with others. Take that for what it's worth.
  15. Understood. Was making a generalized comment.....not towards your post specifically.
  16. I think about the early AAs who were lucky if they had one meeting a week, or the guys who were doing this before the book was written and it was all in the passing of an experience from one drunk to the next. Sandy Beach talks about how they did it and it always makes me laugh (and remember that recovery isn't just hiding in a fellowship). SB says they'd look forward to the meeting all week, but mainly they talked one on one and just prayed like hell all day.
  17. Exactly - Nothing more complicated than that. If he's doing the real deal, he'll be ecstatic that you reached out. That phone is really heavy when you start, but once you exercise that muscle it becomes lighter. Makes my day when an new guy calls.
  18. Their rifles in general and the mini action are highly under-appreciated by the general public. Obviously Ruger, Savage and others have bigger name recognition and marketing budgets. In that class of rifle, Howa would be my choice every time, and I own all three so I've been able to compare.
  19. Wait a minute here.....I was told on the internet that the CM was a laser beam and I could kill an elk out to 1000 yards with no holdover or adjustment. (full disclosure - I shoot both the CM and the GR and they are great rounds). If I was buying a new 6.5 bolt gun for hunting in TX, I'd start my looking at the Howa Mini Action in 6.5 Grendel. Most TX hunting is a combination of riding in the truck and sitting in a blind and that Mini Action is a sweet little compact rifle that does everything you need and more. Buy the rifle and spend the rest of the money on a good scope and you're golden for TX whitetail hunting.
  20. Both are correct. The Alabama makes it because it is a "might-as-well" stop on I-10. 1000's of people pass by daily and if you siphon off a tiny percentage you end up with a model that could be feasible. Even if they don't give a shit about the history and they only stop to keep the kids from imploding on a long drive, the curators don't care. "Please daddy, can we stop?" and "If we don't let them out for a break I'm going to smother everyone in their sleep tonight." Think Bobby Petrino meme here. If the Alabama were 5 miles father south off I10 it would draw a fraction of what it does. Having it visible on I-10 from either direction, and having a couple of billboards 30 miles out each way makes it a destination. No significant amount of people will go 10+ minutes out of their way to see the Texas or the Alabama, but put it within sight of an interstate and there's a chance to maintain history without breaking the bank / relying on tax dollars. Ground it in the Lost/Old River basin or stick it in the Neches above the Port of Beaumont. Put in an RV Park and a playground with a dog park. That's the only chance it survives. Any other plan becomes a tax hell-hole IMO.
  21. If the legislature isn't going to fund it beyond the current allocation, it needs to be located within eyeshot of a Interstate like the Alabama so it can grab eyeballs. Done right, it could generate enough gate fees to pair with preservation foundation funds or corporate sponsors to keep it around. Would chew up someone's shoreline, so the right partner would be an entity looking to siphon off traffic into an area anyway; willing to trade shoreline for traffic.
  22. Yep - @Not that Bob is looking for (throw a dart) anywhere from Orange Beach to Panama City ..........and Sept. - Oct. is a lower season for pricing, but the weather and surf/beach are usually great.
  23. Found them.
  24. That'll do!
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