Jonathan Parry

The cost of running a car just keeps rising.

As if this weeks fuel price rises werent bad enough, now comes the news that insurance has ­rocketed by more than 15 per cent.

The AA found the ­average ­comprehensive premium has gone up by 128.71 in a year, to 971.40.

Young and middle-aged male drivers have been hit hardest, largely down to the fact men have more accidents than women..

But even this is set to change, with new European laws in ­December making it illegal for ­insurers to calculate premiums based on gender.

This could mean costs for female drivers could rise considerably.

So what can you do to reduce costs? The

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It’s been a good couple of days:

• Yesterday, we just got a very good sized check from the IRS (we’d let some things slide when the Unknown Son was sick, and finally got things straightened out a few months ago.
• about a half-hour ago, I submitted a paper to a journal (not a top-tier one, but a decent one). It’s been about 4 years since we started it. So now, it’s off my desk.
• I just got an email that my new 43-inch flat-panel TV is available for pickup from Best Buy.

All in all, a nice way to close out the year. Now I just have to get the TV set up in time to watch the Lesnar/Overeem MMA fight on Friday.

Des Moines, IA depositors searching for a great 2-year CD rate can rest easy with a CD from Cornerstone Credit Union. The institution is providing a high-yield 2-year CD rate of 1.40% APY so nest eggs can grow strong. A standard deposit account cannot produce high returns compared to this interest rate, so why waste time and money? Protect your investment with a Cornerstone Credit Union CD today.

2-Year CD Rate Terms and Conditions

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At a press conference following the GOP debate last night, GOP presumed favored candidate Mitt Romney acknowledged for the first time that his effective tax rate is around 15%.  That’s a lot lower rate than middle class taxpayers typically pay. 

Romney isn’t releasing his full return–at least not yet.  He says maybe he’ll release just the 2011 return in April.  But not any back returns. (Tha

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One of the rising trends regarding investing is the use of dividend stocks. Dividend stocks are becoming popular because they tend to fall less during times of economic upheaval than their non-dividend-paying counterparts. Additionally, the payouts from dividend stocks make it possible for investors to receive income that is above and beyond the value of the stock.

Carefully investing in dividend stocks can help your portfolio in two main ways: Helping you create an income stream from your investments, or allowing you to boost your investment and earn money faster

Using Dividends to Create an Income Stream

Some companies make regular payments, out of the cash and profits they have, to shareholders. Shareholders receive a certain amount per share monthly, quarterly, semi-annually or annually.

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