Can Tax Cuts Pay for Themselves?

By SIMON JOHNSON

Simon Johnson, the former chief economist at the International Monetary Fund, is the co-author of “13 Bankers.”
Can tax cuts “pay for themselves,” inducing so much additional economic growth that government revenue actually increases, rather than decreases? The evidence clearly says no.

Today’s Economist

Perspectives from expert contributors.

Nevertheless, a version of this idea, under the guise of “dynamic scoring,” has apparently surfaced in the supercommittee charged with deficit reduction — the joint Congressional committee with 12 members. Dynamic scoring sounds technical or perhaps even scientific, but here the argument means simply that any pro-growth effect of tax cuts should be stressed when assessing potential policy changes (e.g., reforming the tax code). For anyone seriously concerned with fiscal responsibility, this is a dangerous notion.
Economists disagree about almost everything, of course, and the effect of tax cuts is no exception. One reasonable way to assess the evidence is to begin with the highest plausible effects, then see what happens if some of the more extreme assumptions are relaxed (this is a nice way of saying that we don’t believe everything the authors are trying to tell us).
I would start with a study by Gregory Mankiw, former chairman of George W. Bush’s Council of Economic Advisers – and therefore presumably on the tax-cutting side of American politics – and Matthew Weinzierl (published in The Journal of Public Economics in 2006 and, unfortunately, available only to subscribers) that shows the economic growth caused by a tax cut can offset, at best, a portion of the revenues lost by that tax cut.

Specifically, Professors. Mankiw and Weinzierl calculated that 32.4 percent of the “static” or direct revenue loss of a capital-gains tax cut and 14.7 percent of the static revenue loss of a labor tax cut could be offset in present-value terms by additional growth, ignoring short-term Keynesian effects (i.e., any immediate stimulus provided to the economy).
Now 32.4 percent is a lot, but it is far less than 100 percent. And a critical assumption for Professors Mankiw and Weinzierl is that government spending falls to keep the budget in balance. In their framework that’s a good thing — as they are effectively assuming away the consequences of any productive effects of government spending (e.g., what if less spending on schools means less education and this hurts “human capital” and therefore productivity down the road?).
Sticking for a moment with just with their view of the world, if instead the tax cuts are financed by additional debt, as was our collective experience during the 2000s, the ultimate effect of those cuts can be to lower economic growth in the long term, depending on whether the larger debt eventually leads to lower government transfers, lower government consumption, higher taxes on capital or higher taxes on labor. (Eric M. Leeper and Shu-Chun Susan Yang discuss this in “Dynamic Scoring: Alternative Financing Schemes,” also in The Journal of Public Economics, in 2008.)
More broadly, in 2005, the Congressional Budget Office, then headed by a Republican appointee, Douglas Holtz-Eakin, estimated that the economic effects of a 10 percent cut in income taxes would offset from 1 to 22 percent of the revenue loss in the first five years; in the following five years, the economic effects might offset up to 32 percent of the revenue loss, but might also add 5 percent to the revenue loss.
This is an entirely reasonable assessment — the budget office exists to provide balanced analysis for the budget process. The bottom line is that betting that tax cuts will pay for themselves is a high-risk strategy and not a good idea at our current levels of government debt relative to gross domestic product. We do not have a large margin for error. (Disclosure: I’m on the Panel of Economic Advisers for the the budget office, but I didn’t have anything to do with that study.)
Of course, economic studies do not necessarily have a direct effect on political discourse. For example, President George W. Bush asserted in 2007, “It is also a fact that our tax cuts have fueled robust economic growth and record revenues.” But this is nothing more than an assertion. Growth during the 2001-7 expansion was only 2.7 percent compared, for example, with 3.7 percent during the 1990s expansion (when tax rates were higher).
And much of the growth during the Bush period turned out to be illusory; it was based on our corporate and national accounting system, which measures profits (an important part of G.D.P.) but not on a risk-adjusted basis. When the risks materialized in the financial crisis of 2008-9, we lost so much output that G.D.P. per capita in real terms today is only at about the level of 2005.
To assess growth properly, you should look “over the cycle,” meaning roughly 10 years for the modern American economy. It is hard to argue that the last decade was any kind of growth success. Of course, other things happened during the 2000s, including further financial sector deregulation not directly related to the tax cuts.
That’s why we have the economic analysis, particularly by the budget office, to disentangle what tax cuts can really do. If the supercommittee buys into dynamic scoring for tax cuts, at best this would be wishful thinking. At worst, it would represent yet another round of fiscal irresponsibility at the top of American politics.
And if people are seriously considering altering the rules under which the the budget office operates, they should stop and think again. Changing the score-keeping guidelines at this stage would amount to undermining the credibility of the office, one of the few remaining impartial and well-informed observers of the nation’s economy.
Perhaps this strategy might yield some short-term political gains, but the damage to our creditworthiness would be immense, and the consequences would be felt sooner rather than later.
The nightmare downward spiral and fiscal implosion in the euro zone began with a few countries cheating on their numbers — first to get into the currency union and then to avoid various forms of official criticism. We do not want to start down the same path.

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Congressional Budget Office, Daily Economist, deficit reduction, politics, Simon Johnson, tax, Taxation

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Rent vs. Buy

For years my colleague David Leonhardt has been helping people calculate whether it makes more sense to rent or buy a home, based on the relative costs of each decision. This week, the economists at Capital Economics noticed an interesting phenomenon related to this tradeoff. For the first time in three decades, the median monthly mortgage payment is about the same as the median rental payment:

Source: Capital Economics, Thomson Reuters

Of course, this chart is a little bit misleading because it excludes many of the upfront expenses of buying a home, like a down payment and closing costs. Perhaps more important, not everyone has the option to buy.
Credit conditions are still significantly tighter than they were a few years ago, despite the Federal Reserve’s efforts to loosen credit markets. Many lenders now require a credit score of 700 as opposed to 650, the previous standard. Capital Economics estimates that that requirement alone has shut 13 million households out of the mortgage market.

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Capital Economics, credit, Mortgages, rent ratio, rent vs. buy

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• Seattle’s Foreseeable Housing Bust

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Debating a Labor Contract on Facebook By NICK BUNKLEY

By NICK BUNKLEY

A screen shot of a U.A.W. Facebook page.

DETROIT — As Ford’s 41,000 hourly workers weigh the merits of their proposed four-year contract in plants and union halls across the United States this week, their debates have spilled onto Facebook, providing a glimpse into which issues are influencing their votes most.

For the first time, the United Automobile Workers union has been using social media to communicate with its members during the contract talks in Detroit, and the most intense back-and-forth has occurred in the last few days, as ratification voting got under way at Ford.

Some bemoaned the lack of a wage increase while Ford’s two top executives got bonuses totaling about $100 million. Others criticized the continuation of a two-tier wage scale.

Even those who said they supported the deal acknowledged being unhappy with many portions of it. Some suggested the deal would be much better received if it covered just two years instead of four, so the terms could be revisited sooner.

One of the union staff members who administer the “U.A.W. Ford Department” page and worked closely with the bargaining team during talks, conceded that the agreement was less than ideal but argued that circumstances did not allow for anything better.

“In 2015 we will do better,” the post said. “This is not the last agreement we will ever settle and hopefully our economy, our image, and our ability to bargain with a bigger stick will be better in the future. But this is not the time to wage this war.”

As it became apparent that more workers were voting “no,” talk turned to the possibility of a strike as soon as next week.

A man who identified himself as working in the body shop of Ford’s Kentucky Truck Plant in Louisville, said the mood had become “somber and quiet” there.

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HR Strategies Inc

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ING DIRECT

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Norrep Inc.

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Picton Mahoney

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Primevest Capital Corp.

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Redwood Asset Management Inc

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Resolute Funds Ltd.

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Sentry Select Capital Corp Includes: Sentry Select Cap F Cl, Sentry Select Cap I Class, Sentry Select Capital , Sentry Select Capital Crp.

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Standard Life Includes: SL Ideal – Platinum 100, SL Ideal – Platinum 75, SL Ideal Income – PLTN, SL Ideal Income (GLWB), Standard Life A-Series, Standard Life Corp Cl A, Standard Life E-Series, Standard Life F-Series , Standard Life Ideal RST, Standard Life Ideal Seg, Standard Life Legend, Standard Life P – Series, Standard Life SI Ideal 75, Standard Life SI Ideal100, Standard Life T-Series.

Stanton Asset Management Inc. Includes: O’Leary Funds Mgmt , O’Leary Funds Mgmt F, O’Leary Funds Mgmt H, O’Leary Funds Mgmt I, O’Leary Funds Mgmt M, O’Leary Funds Mgmt T, O’Leary Funds Mgmt X.

Sterling Group of Funds

Stone & Co. Limited Includes: Stone & Co. Limited Cl F, Stone & Co. Limited Ser A, Stone & Co. Limited Ser B, Stone & Co. Limited Ser C, Stone & Co. Limited Ser L, Stone & Co. Ltd Ser T8A, Stone Funds Series T8B, Stone Funds Series T8C.

TD Asset Management Inc. Includes: TD Advant Invest Ptf – F, TD Advant Invest Ptf – H, TD Advant Invest Ptf – S, TD Advant Invest Ptf – T, TD Advant Invest Ptf -Adv, TD Advant Invest Ptf -Inv, TD Comfort Port – Inv Ser, TD e-Series Funds, TD Funds-Invest Series U$, TD GIF I, TD GIF II (TA), TD GIF II (TA) Class A, TD GIF II (TA) Class B, TD Index Funds – Inv Ser, TD Institutional Series, TD Managed Portfolios – H, TD Managed Portfolios – K, TD Managed Portfolios – T, TD MAP FundSmart Ptfl – H, TD MAP FundSmart Ptfl – K, TD MAP FundSmart Ptfl – T, TD MAP FundSmart Ptfl-Adv, TD MAP FundSmart Ptfl-Inv, TD MAP FundSmart Ptfl-Pre, TD MAP Idx ePortfolios, TD MAP Index Ptfls-InvSer, TD MAP Mgd Ptfls-Adv. Ser, TD MAP Mgd Ptfls-Inv. Ser, TD MAP Mgd Ptfls-Pre. Ser, TD Mutual Funds Adv U$, TD Mutual Funds Adv. Ser, TD Mutual Funds Inv. Ser, TD Mutual Funds Premium , TD Mutual Funds Series F, TD Mutual Funds Series H, TD Mutual Funds Series S, TD Mutual Funds Series T.

Terra Fund Management Ltd.

The Goodwood Fund

Tradex Management Inc.

Transamerica Life Canada Includes: Transamerica 5FL Seg, Transamerica GIF, Transamerica Growsafe, Transamerica GS3 100/100, Transamerica GS3 75/100, Transamerica GS3 75/75, Transamerica Life Canada, Transam-imaxxGIF 100/100, Transam-imaxxGIF 75/100, Transam-imaxxGIF 75/75.

Value Partners Investments

Van Arbor Asset Mgmt Ltd

Venator Capital Mgmt. Ltd.

Vertex One

VMD-McLean Budden LifePlan

W.A. Robinson & Associates

Webb Asset Management

West Face Capital Inc.

I'M YOUR VENUS, I'M YOUR FIRE, IT'S YOUR DESIRE

I'M YOUR VENUS, I'M YOUR FIRE, IT'S YOUR DESIRE

This past week Fujitsu Ltd. announced that they have developed the world's fastest central processing unit, called Venus, capable of performing 128 gigaflops - er, billion calculations per second. That's about 2.5 times faster than the previous record-holding model made by Intel. Comparatively, it takes your hand and a pencil .0119 seconds to jot down instructions from your brain. Which is a little different than the calculations speed per second for your mind to determine whether you need brats or dogs for Saturday's BBQ which may or may not happen depending on whether it rains. Can you compute that faster? Maybe. Read more!

VIRTUAL ASSISTANCE

The bot race to find the perfect personal assistant has been on for a long time with developers across the world still hell-bent on creating a virtual assistant whether they've been a talking head on a computer screen or a rubber facsimile with a giant power cord. Remember, the idyllic 1950s vacuuming robot with apron only evolved into a simplistic Roomba. And still hovering in the fatalistic future is good 'ol HAL from Space Odyssey 2001. Yet, we're still trying to go there. NPR host Liane Hansen talks this week with Microsoft researcher Eric Horvitz about the development of their virtual personal assistant Laura. And while Microsoft is forever focused on PC utilization (ehem), Japanese programmers have been trying to "make it real" for years, like this expo video from 2006.

Read more!

Posted by Jeff Wichmann of SMaRT Technology Services at Wednesday, March 25, 2009 1 comments

What Kind of Tech User Are You?

What Kind of Tech User Are You?

Can you go a day without emailing or twittering? Has your laptop replaced your TV for entertainment? Do computers provide more or less control over your life?


The Pew Research Center offers an online test to see how digitally reliant you are. For the record, I am (unfortunately to some) locked in as Digital Collaborator - meaning I'm lost without my i-Phone, laptop, and internet. Whereas fellow SMaRT marketer, Anna, is a Roving Node who uses her gadgets for dealing with the logistics of life and enhancing personal productivity.

Take the test and see where you stand. Are you an Ambivalent Networker, Media Mover, or Drifting Surfer?

The Pew Center is a nonpartisan, nonprofit "fact tank" that provides information on the issues, attitudes and trends shaping America and the world.

Posted by Jeff Wichmann of SMaRT Technology Services at Wednesday, June 10, 2009

SMART Goals

Get the PDF Version

By Duncan Haughey, PMP

Once you have planned your project, turn your attention to developing several goals that will enable you to be successful. Goals should be SMART - specific, measurable, agreed upon, realistic and time-based.

A goal might be to hold a weekly project meeting with the key members of your team or to organise and run a continuous test programme throughout the project.

The acronym SMART has a number of slightly different variations, which can be used to provide a more comprehensive definition for goal setting:

S - specific, significant, stretching

M - measurable, meaningful, motivational

A - agreed upon, attainable, achievable, acceptable, action-oriented

R - realistic, relevant, reasonable, rewarding, results-oriented

T - time-based, timely, tangible, trackable

This provides a broader definition that will help you to be successful in both your business and personal life.

When you next run a project take a moment to consider whether your goals are SMART goals.

To quote renowned American philanthropist Elbert Hubbard:

"Many people fail in life, not for lack of ability or brains or even courage, but simply because they have never organised their energies around a goal."

SMART Goals

Specific

• Well defined
• Clear to anyone that has a basic knowledge of the project

Measurable

• Know if the goal is obtainable and how far away completion is
• Know when it has been achieved

Agreed Upon

• Agreement with all the stakeholders what the goals should be

Realistic

• Within the availability of resources, knowledge and time

Time Based

• Enough time to achieve the goal
• Not too much time, which can affect project performance

Download our free SMARTER Goals template.

Earn a Business Administration degree on weekends at Germanna

Deirdre Blake of WFLS reports on Germanna Community College's new Accelerated Business Administration Program.
The program will make it possible to get an Accelerated Business Administration associate's degree on weekends over the course of the Spring semester.

Registration starts in November and classes begin in January.

Please go to the the GCC Web site or call 540/891-3000 for more information.

ON Semiconductor intros smallest active clock generator ICs for EMI reduction in portable apps

PHOENIX, USA: ON Semiconductor, a premier supplier of high performance silicon solutions for energy efficient electronics, has introduced a new series of active clock generator integrated circuits (ICs) that manage electromagnetic interference (EMI) and Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) at the clock source, delivering system-wide EMI reduction of all clock dependent signals.The new P3MS650100H

Multiservice line card adaptive clock translators support wide range of wired communications apps

NORWOOD, USA: Analog Devices Inc. (ADI) introduced two fully programmable jitter attenuating clock translators ICs (integrated circuits) that perform frequency translations for a wide range of wired communications applications -- including Synchronous Ethernet and SONET/SDH optical networks -- that require low jitter, fast time to market and cost effectiveness. The AD9557 dual-input multiservice

Cypress adds SmartSense auto-tuning to PSoC 3

SAN JOSE, USA: Cypress Semiconductor Corp. has introduced the PSoC 3 CapSense Plus capacitive touch-sensing solution for buttons, sliders, touchpads, and proximity sensing. It’s the industry’s best capacitive-sensing solution that can also perform general system control functions. To accomplish this task, the new product combines two premier Cypress product offerings, the PSoC 3 programmable

IR expands SupIRBuck online design tool to simplify POL design using integrated voltage regulators

EL SEGUNDO, USA: International Rectifier (IR) has expanded its online design tool for the SupIRBuck family of integrated point-of-load voltage regulators to include new devices utilizing hysteretic constant on-time (COT) control designed to offer improved light load efficiency.The user friendly, interactive, web-based tool enables rapid selection, electrical and thermal simulation and design

IXYS and Clare intro optically coupled driver for power MOSFETs, IGBTs and thyristors

BEVERLY, USA. & BIEL, SWITZERLAND: IXYS Corp. and Clare Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of IXYS, announced the introduction of the IX3120 2.5A “optocoupled” Gate Drive. The IX3120 driver combines Clare’s expertise with the OptoMOS product line with the newly introduced ‘600 Series’ of high current gate drivers. The input signal is provided by a light emitting diode (LED) which is optically

NeoPhotonics completes acquisition of Santur

SAN JOSE, USA: NeoPhotonics Corp. has completed the acquisition of privately held Santur Corp., a leading designer and manufacturer of Indium Phosphide (InP) based PIC products.As previously disclosed, NeoPhotonics agreed to pay an estimated $39.2 million in cash for Santur, after deductions for closing costs and other adjustments, plus up to $7.5 million additional cash contingent on the

SMSC inter-chip connectivity technology licensed by Samsung

HAUPPAUGE, USA: SMSC, a leading semiconductor company creating valued connectivity ecosystems, announced that Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd (Samsung) has licensed SMSC's patented Inter-Chip Connectivity (ICC) technology.ICC enables the USB 2.0 protocol, which is now standard in billions of electronic devices, to be delivered over short distances consuming a fraction of the power of a traditional

10th Annual Educators Day emphasizes the need for “Do Engineering”

BANGALORE, INDIA: National Instruments (NI), a technology pioneer and leader in Graphical System Design along with NICE (Nurturing Innovation and Creativity in Education) Committee hosted the 10th Annual Educator’s Day 2011, India’s largest academic platform for science and engineering professors today. The two-day event was a compelling success with participation of around 1000 students,

X-FAB and Senodia bring MEMS gyroscopes to China

ERFURT, GERMANY & SHANGHAI, CHINA: X-FAB Silicon Foundries Group and Senodia Technologies (Shanghai) Co. Ltd have concluded development and are ramping production of microelectromechanical system (MEMS) gyroscopes for high-volume consumer applications. X-FAB will serve as the front-end manufacturing partner, leveraging its open-platform inertial sensor process. Senodia will use sensor devices

LG Electronics accelerates analog simulation by 10X with Synopsys CustomSim

BANGALORE, INDIA: Synopsys Inc. announced that LG Electronics Inc. has selected its CustomSim FastSPICE simulator for the verification of its advanced analog intellectual property (IP) and mixed-signal system-on-chip (SoC) designs. By deploying the CustomSim simulator, LG Electronics has accelerated verification of its analog IP and SoCs by an average of 10X over previous solutions, enabling

Renesas Electronics and Renesas Mobile intro single chip solution for top view system with image recognition capabilities

TOKYO, JAPAN: Renesas Electronics Corp. and its subsidiary, Renesas Mobile Corp., an innovative supplier of advanced cellular semiconductor solutions and platforms, have announced the availability of its new image recognition system-on-chip (SoC), the SH7766.This solution integrates on a single chip all the required functions to implement camera based surround view system together with the

Tips to Overcome Pain Tired netpreneur Ala, Powerful 100%

Humans in nature to work has a sense of where he could create, and feel something and of course, bosan.Rasa bored at work are very reasonable and it may occur due to rollovers versus the desire to achieve in work. Reasonable saturation point should be resolved by taking the time to vacation on a cruise, enjoying the beautiful scenery surrounded by angels who are ready to be bathed Red Label.
But on the other hand, may also feel bored in this present work because routine from day to day it's just that alone. If the way a vacation or riotous spree above does not match your pocket I'll give you tips to overcome the tedium of work. This is the secret way the ancestors of the age 14 Twenty Years ago. But humans have always wanted to achieve ayalnya lust instant gratification and quick, so Secret overcome boredom in this work then so be it. Learn tips and tricks hacking tedium in the following work.

    Expand the related Agency With Friends Around You.

    One possibility is to make you bored at work is because you spend a little time to just drink drink. Playing Golf, or visit a place like a blue lake, park and Nibung Lawang may have been waiting for you and your friend.
    Change Variation Sex With Your Job.

    No harm is not, if every day you open the browser and then immediately drunk temple temple open 10 email accounts, try to just open a fresh web site. So that could arouse your libido to work. Try to ask within yourself, Position Like what you and your job you want. Adjust with the ability, mindset, and the time available for it.
    Find Something New From Your Job.

    Consciously or not, sometimes there are so many things that happen in one day. Try to explore your job back making it possible to try other variations in sex with the Works. There are many new things, new stuff, new opportunities may even be ready for a new job that awaits you. A little playing with fire with another job might be as a seasoning flavor you missed with routine work at home.
    Disappointing Do not Fear Your Work

    One is natural, that is not fair is when we are wrong but just leave your job slumped disappointed with your performance to explore the job. And remember, the work there because we want to and not because the work tells us.
    Analyze your step.

    Not too late! Try stacking re SWOT strategy that may have or have not you have today in doing business on the internet. Everything has a chance to fail and succeed. The percentage of failures must be minimized when we know what can and can not be done by you and the work you do. 1, 2, or any internet-digit digit income you can get home we never get bored!
    Try to be grateful.

    This is the last step! Where a feeling of deep brain stimulation controlled by conscious and unconscious work for you and your work. There are so many people who do not like you now, out there on the river pentil2 bauk with yellow water. Try running combing it all while providing something that they do not have but you've got. Too often see ketas definitely make you delirious!

Overcome the tedium and boredom

Enjoy the Day with Inspiration and Creation
Doing the little things that mean more valuable than just expecting great things without effort.
saturated magesSetiap day we perform a variety of activities ranging from waking to sleep again. Learn, play, go to school, work or just sit thoughtfully. Have we appreciate the meaning of all the activities we do, enjoy it or just live it? Often we are bored with what we experience?
If we already have these questions, CONGRATULATIONS! ... Means we still have a desire to know and the dynamic power of thought. The question will inevitably arise when we feel bored with what we experience. Saturation, boredom. To overcome this, we must find out the root of it is boredom, so they can find ways to work around.
Generally, we feel bored because there are vacant in our hearts. That could happen because of something that is monotonous, routine, and there is not harmony. Not everyone likes order, much like the challenge. Something we are looking to overcome the boredom is inspiration. While the gap is able to eliminate boredom creations. Inspiration and creation are two of the ideas that can touch the soul to feel and taste. Peddling thought to continue to flow and lead to a work that can, even ordinary extraordinary. The inspiration was born from the vision, hearing forwarded to the fields desires, hopes, dreams and ideals. Creative inspiration to grow because of the urge to boldly create and realize it's something to be real.
Many reading can stimulate the growth of inspiration. With a lot of reading, we became a lot to learn. With a lot to learn, we can produce creations and work. Reading here is not simply read a series of characters, but read by involving elements of the sensitivity of the ears, hearts and minds, so that our souls inspired to create. Medium such as this, not necessarily the things that seem large, but can start from small things that we experience everyday that just makes us feel saturated earlier. As an illustration, we often feel tired of eating cireng (snacks made of corn starch fried dough) with standard flavors (salty savory). Boredom can make us think to make a variety of flavors cireng. Cireng oncom contents, the contents of chicken, cheese, meat content, and content of sausages. When the mind is of the senses and our desire to try, then this is the inspiration. This inspiration can be developed into a creative ideas and produce work that liked and enjoyed by others. Creative ideas is what will be a creation.
Creations born of courage to try and dare to be different. Something that is considered creative is different from most and unusual. At first, the illustrations as cireng various taste may be only one or two people who developed, so many hunt culinary connoisseurs such snacks until out of town. Snacks that differs from taste, packaging, even the regular price. During its development, many people who later inspired and create a more varied taste. So, people who want to read, dare to try and create something to sharpen the intelligence of thoughts, feelings and actions in order to escape from boredom.
Read from the things we see, read from the personal that we often encounter, read from the experience of anyone who ever experienced and read from all desires and reality. Then, try to do something that we can, we expect and we want it. Try to make something that we read to be real. Undoubtedly more meaningful life even though it's simple. The idea was never to die while we still have a sense of curiosity, would think and would attempt to make it happen.

SMSC’s JukeBlox 2.2 connectivity platform enables up to 20 percent lower system cost

HAUPPAUGE, USA: SMSC, a leading semiconductor company enabling content rich connectivity systems, announced its latest generation JukeBlox 2.2 (JB2.2) platform with enhanced audio streaming features including up to a 4 times faster boot time, improved WiFi performance leveraging the new WiFi Multimedia (WMM) standard, low power standby modes and automatic network wake-up features. JB2.2 also

Maiden Breakers Shine on Stakes Loaded Weekend Racecards...

--Steve Sherack

With all of the focus on Breeders’ Cup preview races the past two weekends, and rightfully so, several maiden winners snuck in a bit under the radar with big-time performances.

COACH SICKIE (c, 2, Henny Hughes--Dixie Holiday, by Dixieland Band) looked like the real deal winning his Santa Anita debut for fun Oct. 1 (TDN Video).

Sent off at odds of 6-1, the Michael House colorbearer chased the early leaders in third through a sharp opening quarter in :21.45. With Alonso Quinonez aboard, the $90,000 FTMMAY juvenile graduate cruised up three wide to join the dueling pair entering the stretch and accelerated nicely down the lane to score by 5 1/4 lengths.

Coach Sickie, bred in Kentucky by Peter Blum, stopped the clock for 5 1/2 furlongs in 1:03.12 over the “fast” track, good for a 78 Beyer Speed Figure. Trained by Jeff Mullins, the bay has already gotten back to business in the a.m., posting a four-furlong breeze in :50.40 at Santa Anita Oct. 10. Coach Sickie is a half brother to GII Carry Back S. runner-up Smash (Smart Strike) and the multiple stakes winning mare Holiday Runner (Meadowlake), who went on to produce MGISW Seventh Street (Street Cry {Ire}).

GOLDEN HISTORY (f, 2, Medaglia d’Oro--User History, by Mr. Prospector) didn’t get much love from the Beyer boys, receiving only a 57 rating following her successful Woodbine unveiling Oct. 2 (TDN Video), but was visually impressive, nontheless.

Backed as the 8-5 favorite, the granddaughter of champion User Friendly (GB) (Slip Anchor {GB}) was outsprinted in seventh through fractions of :22.58 and :45.75. The dark bay began to roll while racing very wide on the turn for home and quickened impressively once switching over to her right lead in the stretch to score by 2 3/4 lengths, stopping the clock for seven furlongs in 1:24.74 over the Polytrack.

Golden History, bred in Kentucky by Stonewall Farm Stallions LLC, was the third highest-priced juvenile at the 2011 OBS March Sale, fetching $450,000 from trainer Mark Casse on behalf of owner John Oxley. She was also the most expensive 2-year-old filly to go through the ring for her leading sire in 2011.

The loaded Bob Baffert barn looks like it has a couple more future stars on its hands.

CONTESTED (f, 2, Ghostzapper--Gold Vault, by Arch), from the family of MGISW Pomeroy (Boundary), earned a “TDN Rising Star” tag with a sharp 6 1/2-length win at second asking at Santa Anita Oct. 2 (TDN Video). Breaking from post 11, the even-money favorite was away alertly and forced the early issue on the outside from third through a blazing opening quarter in :21.72. With Baffert’s go-to-guy Martin Garcia aboard, she revved up three wide on the far turn, took over in hand at the head of affairs and ran away and hid from ‘em in the stretch under mild urging.

Owned by Natalie J. Baffert, the $110,000 KEESEP yearling purchase covered six furlongs over the “fast” going in 1:08.95. She was awarded an 88 Beyer Speed Figure. Contested, bred in Kentucky by Cherry Valley Farm LLC, finished a good second behind the promising Egg Drop (Alphabet Soup) in her Del Mar unveiling Sept. 3. The latter failed to land a blow when finishing a disappointing 10th in the GI Darley Alcibiades S. at Keeneland Oct. 7.

FAST BULLET (c, 3, Speightstown--Renfro Valley Star, by Dayjur), a grandson of champion Brave Raj (Rajab), proved to be well worth the wait, airing by 6 1/4 lengths in his debut at the Great Race Place Oct. 9 (TDN Video).

Not much of a secret at 7-5 while sporting a typical flashy Baffert worktab, the blinkered chestnut was hustled to the front and raced under heavy pressure on the inside through fractions of :21.84 and :44.80. Seemingly unphased by his early efforts, the Zayat Stables representative found another gear when asked the question by Martin Garcia in the stretch and kept finding more to report home an eye-catching winner.

The final time for six was furlongs over the “fast” surface was 1:08.59. One race earlier on the card fillies and mares in the 6 1/2-furlong Louis R. Rowan S. covered the same distance in 1:08.86 before stopping the clock in 1:15.

The half-brother to GIII Hollywood Juvenile Championship S. runner-up Blairs Roarin Star (Roar), bred in Kentucky by Roy Gottlieb, earned a 92 Beyer. He was purchased for $230,000 as a KEESEP yearling.