Mama had the eagle eye for chanterelles. Marching through the dense forest near our summer dacha, she would often stop and point. “Right there, under the birch tree.” To be fair, they were not hard to spot. Yellow clusters in a sea of green. These days, I see them on sale for $29.99 for a […]
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As expected, the diplomatic talks between Russia, the U.S. and NATO produced no progress. The opposing sides are far apart. Meanwhile, long trains carrying Russian military equipment are heading in the Western direction. What will Putin do next? Something significant will happen soon. Neither side seems willing to back down. Instead, each seems committed to […]
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Originally published in Tax Notes on September 13, 2021 – Summary: This article examines a few common fact patterns involving a liquidation or wind-down of a corporation or a disregarded entity owned by a corporation. The form and timing of the transaction can produce surprising tax results.
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Click here for Part I: Our Family’s Encounter with COVID-19 Part II : Fighting For Our Lives Sunday, March 29. I wake up at 7:30 am. Temperature? 98.6. Feeling better. Hmmm. But having read about the peak happening on day 9 with many people, too early to celebrate. But Alicia wakes up at 10 am […]
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Part I: The Tsunami Is Coming The news reports from China started catching my eye in late January. On January 30, I recall my first conversation with a coworker about the new virus. “This is more dangerous than Ebola,” I told her as we rode the B train down to Lower East Side. “Very contagious, […]
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New York has been very quiet for over a month now. The bars, coffee shops and nightclubs are shuttered. Fancy clothing stores are boarded up. No more shows on Broadway. Times Square is a ghost town, with neon ads appealing to a limited audience: a few vloggers documenting the apocalypse with their iPhones and a […]
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How do hostile nations prevent a cold war from erupting into a hot one? Usually, by respecting each other’s “red lines,” avoiding escalation, and accepting the existing status quo – even though it may not be satisfactory to anyone. When one side decides that escalation is necessary to break a stalemate, and starts breaching the […]
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“Assad has won the war.” — Jean-Yves Le Drian. “Assad is going to remain in power, and the Russians are committed to that.” — Robert Gates. The pundits are furious. How dare Trump decide to pull US troops out of Syria? There it is, further proof of his idiocy. Another whimsical decision, made during a […]
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Previously published in Tax Notes on October 2, 2017 Summary: Many uncertainties surround the treatment of an insurance company’s deferred acquisition costs under two loss limitation provisions: the unified loss rules under Treas. Reg. 1.1502-36 and the built-in loss limitations of IRC Section 382(h).
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The war against ISIS is approaching its third anniversary. After thousands of dead, dozens of wrecked cities, and billions of dollars spent, there may be light at the end of the tunnel. While Mosul is getting obliterated (seven months and counting), US-backed Kurdish forces are slowly grinding their way towards Raqqa. But even after these […]
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