• In the February edition of Golf Digest, it listed the income for the top 50 golfers in the world.  It is no surprise that Tiger Woods was number 1 with around $23 million earned on the course, and almost another $100 million earned off the course – yes, an astounding $123 million.  If you add the total winnings of Phil Mickelson ($50 million), Vijay Singh ($31.8 million), and Ernie Els ($29.6 million), it still doesn’t match the earnings for Tiger.  Further, the number 5 spot is held by Arnie Palmer at $29.5 million, followed by Greg Norman at $24 million (only $6,000 on the course), and Jack Nicklaus at $20.9 million in the number 7 position.  Perhaps the most ironic spot of all is held by Michelle Wie, who won less than $10,000 on the course last year, but still earned $12.5 million off the course.

• There is a lot of talk in Congress about spending money and taxation.  President Bush would very much like to make his tax cuts permanent, but with a looming $400 billion deficit, it’s hard to imagine that occurring - perhaps pieces of it, but not all of it.  It was in early February 1913 when Congress ratified the 16th Amendment which created our income tax system.  Since then, there has been a lot of discussion concerning what the tax should do and how big or small it might be.  Currently, the highest marginal rate is 35%.  Most people believe that the trend to a lower rate not only has stopped but will be reversed.  Here’s a little interesting trivia:  What was the top rate when the income tax system was first introduce in 1913?  It was a whopping 7%!  My, how times have changed!

• By now, you’ve probably heard that Congress passed and the President signed the economic stimulus package that will put money into the hands of most taxpayers in May.  The direct cash payments and the investment tax credits are expected to add about $161 billion to the economy and most of it will be spent within the first 90 days.  Having said that, corporate spending will likely take place over a longer period of time.  What most people are not paying attention to, however, is that there is a faster way to get money flowing into the economy – through the money supply.  In looking past some of the headlines and deep into the numbers, it appears that over the last several weeks the Fed has injected $130 to $150 billion into the system, i.e., banks.  This money has to be put to work so the banks will need to lend this money.  Thus, in a two week period of time the Federal Reserve has done almost everything that the economic stimulus package is expected to do.  We expect the money supply to continue to expand rapidly.  As you have heard us say, “cash is the fuel that makes our economy run.”  If it works out this way once again, it means that the jumpstart will occur sooner rather than later, and will be much bigger than many anticipate. 

• President Bush has submitted the budget that will begin in October 2009 and will eventually be inherited by his successor, Democrat or Republican.  The budget proposes spending $3.1 trillion – the largest ever!  Just how much money is that?  You would have to spend a little over $8 billion each day for 365 days to spend that much money!  Let’s break it down a little further – it’s $333 million every hour, $5.6 million every minute, and almost $93 million every second.  Staggering, no matter how many pieces you break it into!

• Much has been said about John McCain perhaps being too “old” to be President at age 71.  Obviously, it’s not too old to be a Supreme Court Justice, as four of them are over age 71, and John Paul Stevens is age 88.  In a time when Americans used to retire at 65 and spent only seven years in retirement before the “average” person passed away, perhaps 71 was too “old”.  But today, 71 doesn’t seem as “old” as it used to be.  Of course, as we age, it’s definitely not as “old” as it used to be.

As always, we encourage you to give us a call if you would like to discuss anything further.  We will visit again soon.

RAY, KIM, ERIC, BRUCE, and LOU

©2/15/08 ProVise Management Group, LLC

This material represents an assessment of the market and economic environment at a specific point in time.  Due to various factors, including changing market conditions, the contents may no longer be reflective of current opinions or positions.  It is not intended to be a forecast of future events, or a guarantee of future results.  Forward looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties.  Please remember that past performance may not be indicative of future results.  Different types of investments involve varying degrees of risk, and there can be no assurance that the future performance of any specific investment, investment strategy, or product made reference to directly or indirectly in these Bullets,, will be profitable, equal any corresponding indicated historical performance level(s), or be suitable for your portfolio.  Moreover, you should not assume that any discussion or information contained in these Bullets serves as the receipt of, or as a substitute for, personalized investment advice from ProVise.  To the extent that a reader has any questions regarding the applicability of any specific issue discussed above to his/her individual situation, he/she is encouraged to consult with the professional advisor of his/her choosing.  Information is based on data gathered from what we believe are reliable sources.  The information contained herein is not guaranteed by Provise Management Group, LLC as to accuracy, does not purport to be complete and is not intended to be used as a primary basis for investment decisions.  The indices mentioned are unmanaged and cannot be directly invested into. .  If you do not want to receive the ProVise Bullets, please contact us at:  info@provise.com or call:  (727) 441-9022.  Please visit our Web Site at:  www.provise.com.

Notice: This e-mail message and any attachment to this e-mail message may contain information that is confidential, proprietary, privileged, legally privileged and/or exempt from disclosure under applicable law. If you are not the intended recipient, please accept this as notice that any disclosure, copying, distribution or use of the information contained in this transmission is strictly prohibited. National Financial Partners Corp. reserves the right, to the extent and under circumstances permitted by applicable law, to retain, monitor and intercept e-mail messages to and from its systems. Any views or opinions expressed in this e-mail are those of the sender and do not necessarily express those of National Financial Partners Corp. Although this transmission and any attachment are believed to be free of any virus or other defect that might affect any computer system into which it is received and opened, it is the responsibility of the recipient to ensure that it is virus free and no responsibility is accepted by NFP, its subsidiaries and affiliates, as applicable, for any loss or damage arising in any way from its use. If you have received this e-mail in error, please immediately contact the sender by return e-mail or by telephone at 212-301-4000 and destroy the material in its entirety, whether electronic or hard copy format.

(c) ProVise Management Group, Inc.

www.provise.com