| SWBC Mortgage buys new branches, hires over 100 employees
Southwest Business Corp.'s mortgage division has purchased the assets of 15 branches of lender Home Loan Corp. As a result, SWBC Mortgage Corp. has picked up 114 new employees and new locations nationwide. Company officials would not reveal the purchase price of the branches. Houston-based Home Loan Corp. is a mortgage lender that's licensed in nine states. The company continues to operate branches not included in the purchase agreement with SWBC. SWBC Mortgage now has additional offices in Arlington, Austin, Clear Lake and Spring, Texas; Baton Rouge and Shreveport, La.; Olympia, Wash.; and Bountiful, Utah. "The new group both supports and strengthens our existing talent pool which complements our future growth strategy nicely," says Susan Stewart, president and CEO of SWBC Mortgage.
Jackson Browne Backs Off Support for Pro-Nuke Obama
On Capitol Hill today, there was a press conference. Three members of Congress - Ed Markey (D-Massachusetts), John Hall (D-New York), and Shelley Berkley (D-Nevada) - were there. Activists like Harvey Wasserman and David Fenton - were there. And musicians including Hall, Bonnie Raitt, Jackson Browne and Graham Nash - who were among the organizers, with Wasserman, of the 1979 No Nukes Concerts in Madison Square Garden, which played a prominent role in galvanizing citizen energy against nuclear power - were there. Environmental leaders from NRDC, Greenpeace, U.S. PIRG, Public Citzen, Sierra Club, the Environmental Working Group, the League of Conservation Voters, among others - were there. They made arguments against pending legislation that will grant massive loan guarantees to nuclear power companies to build new reactors.
Radio & TV Talk
I don't think Atlanta has faced this much morning turmoil in ages. And technically, there's a fifth new morning show. WGKA-AM, which has relied on syndicated programming on weekdays since its inception, will debut its first local early early morning show which starts at 4:30 a.m. and runs through 6 a.m. starring Joel Aarom. The 27 year old has done their fun weekend "Hub" talk show, with a rotating crew of opinion makers. Bill Bennett will continue from 6 to 9 a.m. Joel's show starts Monday January 28. ABOVE: I took this shot of Joel last year for a story about the Hub Show. "Joel hits the target demographics (males 25-54)," said Jeff Carter, WGKA program director. "We want to give him a daily live program and see what happens." And if there's breaking news, Joel can do cut-ins from 6 to 9 a.m.
Top things dogs eat ... and shouldn't
Funny how they'll go down an esophagus but get caught in an intestine.
No. 6: Chew Toys. This is unfortunate because these are marketed for dogs to chew on for either dental care or entertainment purposes. I have even seen dentrifice-purposed rope toys in dogs wrap themselves around the intestine, causing strangulation of the bowel in segments once the rope "unwinds."
No. 5: Balls. Racquetballs, tennis balls, toy rubber balls, yes, I've seen them caught in the throat, esophagus, stomach and intestine in my practice life.
The good news? At least they light up well on the X-rays.
No. 4: Rocks. Rocks in solitary form or an amalgamation of small rocks together can really clog up the works in an intestine.
Why do dogs in particular eat rocks?
Do they need minerals?
Are they that bored or that hungry?
All I know is, they do.
Rules for deducting casualty losses
Baltimoresun.com's tax-advice column features three experts from the Hunt Valley accounting firm SC&H Group answering questions about preparing your return every Monday until April 17. To be included in the following weeks, please use the form at the right side of this page to submit your questions.
Bernie Weill, Brooklyn, N.Y.: Can I deduct losses on my house destroyed by a fire during 2005, although I have not yet settled with the insurance company as of Dec. 31, 2005?
SC&H Group: Generally, you can deduct a casualty loss only in the tax year in which the casualty occurred. To determine your deduction for a casualty or theft loss, you must first figure your loss.
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