Tuesday's Assorted Links
July 4th cookouts, global poverty, life skills, cost of owning a car, and credit scores
Hi y’all! Here are five stories from this week that contain some neat applications of economic principles or are related to teaching:
Feeding a hungry crowd at your Fourth of July cookout this week will cost about $70.92 for a group of ten people, not including drinks or personal favorites. [American Farm Bureau]
How many weekly working hours does it take to escape poverty in each country? [Visual Capitalist]
38% of parents consider teaching their kids about money as the most difficult life skill to impart [Business Wire]
The average cost to own and operate an automobile jumped 30% over the past decade, thanks to more expensive payments, soaring insurance costs, and high-priced repairs [🔒 The Wall Street Journal]
The company behind the FICO credit scores used by 90% of US lenders announced two new scoring models that will factor in “buy now, pay later” loans [FICO]
Happy Bobby Bonilla Day! Every July 1, the former Met collects a $1.2 million check as part of a contract built on the quiet power of compound interest. This week’s post breaks down how a $5.9 million payout turned into nearly $30 million, and what that can teach the rest of us about patience, opportunity cost, and long-term growth.
How $5.9 Million Turns Into $30 Million
In 2000, the New York Mets owed Bobby Bonilla $5.9 million when they released him from the team. Instead of paying him up front, both sides agreed to a deferred contract. Bonilla would agree to wait a decade before receiving his first payment. Beginning in 2011,
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I love a good Fourth of July cookout. It's right up there with Twenty-Fifth of December dinner and Thirty-First of October parties.