Tim Burgess

SALE! CLEARANCE! HUGE DISCOUNTS! SAVINGS UP TO 70% OFF!!

Did I get your attention? Probably…. My tip this week for living a happier life is: stop buying stuff!

We all want things… new things bring us joy. How long does this joy last? Probably not that long. Research shows that happiness from purchases are fleeting. At first, I am really happywith my purchases. Then I get bored of them, they burden me, they no longer are new and pleasant, and I replace them, toss them away, donate them, or throw them back into the dresser until they are in style again.

Sometimes I clean to find that I have a brand new designer shirt crumpled in the corner of my closet. This irks me because in the store, this shirt was so exciting and called out to me. While handing my credit card over to the cashier, I didnt realize the future of this shirtwas to collect dust in the bottom corner of my closet and wrinkle itself into oblivion. What is even more unfortunate is that this has happened to me numerous times.

My college professor in my Consumer Society course would cringe if she read this article. I got an A in the course, and I cant even manage to stop buying things. I wasliterally trained in college not to prioritize material possessions. If I know better than how can I ever convince teenager girls or those around me to put their consumer ideas aside and stop purchasing unnecessarily? Its going to be tough, but I am going to try… stay with me.

Remember that saying less is more? Lets try to apply it here.The more stuff you have, the harder it is to keep track of it. The more you bring into your house, the harder it will be to organize. All of this stuff becomes a burden… to clean, to wash, toorganize, and to take up your timethat you would utilize differently if you didnt have so much stuff.

Easier said than done, I know. However, I found a way to curb the rush of the purchase. While doing aseasonal house cleanse, I realized that I get a rush out of getting rid of things. As I donated 10 bags ofitems, I feltthe burden of these belongingsliftingoff my shoulders. I felt light and carefree. All of the sudden, I had a rush from the newspace I had gained. I could dance around in my room if I wanted to. If you dont want to donate your things, you could always sell them too. There definitely is a rush from selling belongings and getting money back from the consignment shop.

I dont want to sell or donate. I just dont want to purchase more. Okay, if this describes you… you need to use your shopping time wisely. Instead of spending an afternoon alone in a store or with a friend at the mall, take some time and plan ahead. Research shows that people have much longer lasting happiness from doing things! Doing things, rather than buying things, will give you memories to reminisce about and create longer lasting feelings of happiness. So use your money wisely and plan an event. Dont have money? Look at the event calendar in your town… there are plenty of things to do!

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April 6, 2012

Updated Apr 6, 2012 at 5:11 PM EDT

(WBNG Binghamton) If youre out buying Easter gifts this weekend, you may be part of a growing spending trend.

A new Gallup Poll says spending across the country made a big jump in March.

According to the poll, Americans say they averaged about 74 dollars a day in buying things like food, clothes and gas.

Thats up from 63 dollars in February, and 64 dollars a year ago.

Gallup says warm weather and an Early Easter helped the spending trend.

The poll also shows its not just a certain income or region thats spending more.

Upper, middle, and lower income Americans all spent more this month.

Also,every region reported higher spending trends from February to March, and even over the past 12 months.

What gives Congress the ability to pass a law that requires people to purchase health insurance?

On its face, there is no language in the Constitution that talks about either health care (specifically) or the ability for the legislature to coerce people into buying things (theoretical). The government is trying to make the argument that even though there is no language regarding this kind of regulatory activity, there is precedent that comes close.

In Wickard v. Filburn, for example, the Supreme Court upheld a law that allowed Congress to limit the amount of wheat that farmers could produce. The thought was that by limiting the amount of wheat produced, prices would go up and help the farmers.

The case came about when Roscoe Filburn produced more wheat than was allowed by law, even though he was only using the extra wheat for his family’s personal consumption and not putting it on the market. The Court held that if all farmers grew more wheat to consume personally, the price would drop. He was coerced to not grow a certain legal product on his own property.

Was the Court out of bounds to side with Congress on that matter? Kermit Roosevelt (great grandson of Teddy), an established law professor at the University of Pennsylvania, and I have shared some emails on this matter. A weird or even bad decision is not the same as judicial activism.

Why do we care about this? If the Court takes the traditional understanding of the Constitution, it can easily strike down parts of the health care law that passed in 2010. It could, however, take the same reasoning that it did in Filburn.

The idea behind the Wickard v. Filburn case was that all farmers needed to follow the law in order for prices of wheat to go up. If only a few, who felt differently, went their own way and continued to produce wheat, the price would stay too low.

The health care law works in much the same way – it only works if everyone is in the same boat. This is the argument that I imagine the government is making on this issue, although it could still be struck down as many justices see the Filburn case as a bad decision. This case would be a way to address that after 70 years of debating that decision.

Whether requiring people to purchase health care is good policy or not is by no means the issue in front of the Court, which only answers constitutional questions, not political questions.

The Race in NY06

The upcoming race in the 6th Congressional District will definitely heat up in the coming months.

The top of the ballot will feature two well-financed candidates. The races that are going be close in the House and Senate are going to get some heavy financial attention.

The problem for a challenger like Republican Dan Halloran is that the national Democratic Party will do whatever they have to in order to hold the seat. Groups like SKD Knickerbocker, a DC-based PR firm, could get involved and run ads in the district like they have for other small races. The D in SKD Knickerbocker, incidentally, is Anita Dunn, former White House Communications Director.

Halloran has an uphill climb, but he might get some outside support from GOP interests. After seeing Anthony Weiner’s seat go Republican and the possibility of David Storobin winning the 27th Senate District seat, there may enough of an incentive for national donors to roll the dice on Halloran.

Whether Halloran or his eventual Democratic opponent is better for the district may take a back seat to the tide of the campaign. Voter turnout will most likely be very high. That might help Halloran if enough center-right voters come out in Queens. The top of the ticket could help the Democratic opponent, as the district may go to the president comfortably.

Also a factor in this race is what happened in Halloran’s last race for City Council: the Democrats were split. As small as the support is for the Republicans, it is a unified front.

So when will retail investors start buying stocks? One of the final legs propping up this rally is the belief that retail investors will finally pile into stocks. There is hope that all this money on the sidelines will find its way into the stock market. The Samp;P 500 (SPY) at 1,350 was supposed to do the trick. Certainly 1,400 on the Samp;P was going to be enough to chase retail investors into stocks. Basically the argument that retail will capitulate and finally invest in stocks is based on the assumption that higher prices increase demand – aka, a Giffen good.

Is it realistic to assume that investors will decide to purchase more of something just because the price has gone up? They did it in 2000 with internet stocks; that infatuation ended badly. They did it with housing in the mid 2000s, which ended even worse. If anything, Americans have become more focused on buying things on sale and getting things at a bargain. Why shouldnt that apply to stocks as much as it applies to anything else?

We have hit multi-year highs, yet most people seem to shrug it off. If the retail investor was about to increase their allocation to stocks, do you not think there would be more hype in the media about how well stocks have done? Expecting the masses to buy just because something is already up 20% seems a little silly, if not downright arrogant. The retail investors are not stupid. They can also see that the stock market has decoupled from the economy. While professional investors can easily accept that, retail investors still have some level of conviction that the stock market should reflect economic activity and not just central bank printing and government spending. Retail investors can see that the US debt has continued to grow and that in spite of lip service to deficit reduction, we are creating a bigger deficit. They are nervous about what will happen when finally the spending gets pulled in. They are also very nervous (as are many professional investors) that they will be the last purchase of stocks before the central banks stop pumping fresh money into the system in their never-ending attempt to inflate asset prices.

If there is one sector where the upward price movement is sucking in more money it is amongst corporations themselves. The number and size of buyback announcements seems to be increasing. That makes sense, since if any group has shown an ability to buy high and sell low, it is corporations themselves. In 2007 and the first half of 2008, companies, including AIG (AIG), were buying back their own stock aggressively. From the second half of 2008 and all of 2009, most companies couldnt afford to buy back shares and many had to issue. It is just wrong to expect individuals to be as frivolous with their money as corporations are.

I continue to believe that retail is reasonably allocated to equities, under the new allocation model. The new allocation model takes into account debt before determining what is investible. Then there is an actual allocation to ultra-safe rainy day money. That investible money is then allocated at a much more realistic percentage to equities and fixed income and other investments. A myriad of new investment vehicles have helped make it easier for investors to participate in the fixed income market and other asset classes, helping to ensure that the allocation to those remains higher than it was through the 90s and the first part of this century.

I do not believe stocks are a Giffen good, at least when it comes to retail, so expecting dumb money to come in and take out the smart money may be just as paradoxical as a Giffen good.

The market is a little weaker again this morning, so I better type quickly, since the Europe went home rally now starts before Europe goes home. Chinese service PMI came in strong, but no one really cares about China as a service economy, so that news was largely shrugged off. Eurozone PPI came in slightly higher than expected and last month was revised slightly higher as well. Nothing too earth shattering, but rising inflation with falling employment makes for a very bad combination.

Spanish bond yields are once again under pressure – as they should be. Italy is also feeling weaker again. In 10 years Spain is back to 5.40% and Italy is at 5.15%, out by 5 and 7 bps respectively. We have seen support, whether normal market support, or central bank purchase support around the 5.20% and 5.45% levels in the past few days, so need to keep a close eye on these levels.

Spain is underperforming more noticeably in the 5 year sector, but still trades at 4.19% compared to Italy at 4.32%. Yes, Spain yields more in 10 years than Italy, but less in 5 years. Spanish 5 year CDS is at 436, but Italian 5 year CDS is at 388. So the 5 year bond inversion is clearly an anomaly and a function of supply and demand and an obvious sign of how inefficient bond prices are.

There are so many technicals at work in the bond market that it is extremely hard to separate what part of price is reflecting risk as perceived by the market and what part is influenced by other non market factors. That is one reason CDS is so popular – it is fungible and not constrained by who holds what issue.

CDS indices are all a little bit better today. European ones were largely catching up to the afternoon move tighter here. IG18 is trading even richer to fair value. This shows a lack of conviction in the rally by the market as a whole since it looks like investors want to set their longs in the most liquid product giving them the greatest ability to exit if necessary. At 7 bps rich with a spread of 90, investors are overpaying for that liquidity. Look for IG18 to continue to lag.

Other anecdotal evidence of this tentative conviction can be seen in the bond markets, where once again, new issue trading is dominating daily flows. Investors have their core longs in bonds, add beta via the index, and look for alpha on new issue allocations and flipping. While not bad in of itself, it is not a sign of a truly healthy market. The ETFs continue to get some inflows, but the pace has slowed dramatically and much of it can be accounted for by dividend re-investment and arb activity.

While the ETFs remain at a premium, arbs are buying the bonds that the ETF is willing to accept and exchanging them for new shares, which they then sell into the market. That form of share creation is far less indicative of strength in the market, than when people are truly just buying shares and leaving dealers and ETF managers scrambling to find bonds. That is a subtle, but important, difference.

MORRISVILLE – Against the advice of the town manager, the Morrisville Town Council rejected a 4.2 percent proposed tax hike to pay for firefighters, roads and other infrastructure projects in the upcoming year.

At a recent budget workshop, the majority of the town council was unwilling to increase the budget, citing there were savings to be found within the existing $23.2 million base amount.

About $1.5 million is needed to pay for new firefighters, road maintenance, pool repairs at the aquatics center and pedestrian crossings.

The council also unanimously approved a new stormwater fee but cut the amount in half. Staff had requested $33 per equivalent residential unit to pay for federally mandated upgrades; a $15 fee was approved instead.

Monday#x2019;s meeting was to give Town Manager John Whitson guidance on the budget, so the decisions aren#x2019;t final. The council has until June 30 to approve a budget. A first draft is expected to appear before the council on May 8, and a public hearing is scheduled for May 22.

Divided over taxes

The council was divided over the tax proposal, and Whitson was visibly frustrated.

#x201C;You will never raise taxes,#x201D; Whitson told the council. #x201C;We#x2019;ve shown you in the (long-range financial) model, it#x2019;s not sustainable. We keep showing it to you year, after year, after year. The staff can#x2019;t keep doing this. We#x2019;re tired.#x201D;

If the council raised the tax rate #x2013; from 36.65 cents to 38.18 cents per $100 of assessed value #x2013; the owner of a $300,000 house would see their taxes increase by $50.40.

Whitson called the council#x2019;s fixation on the 36.65 cent rate #x201C;unfortunate.#x201D;

#x201C;It#x2019;s wanting to be the lowest tax rate in the county when there is no basis for that,#x201D; he said at the workshop. #x201C;It should be based on meeting the need. This fixation to me is costing the community.#x201D;

For the past few months town staff has been telling the council that needs are outpacing revenue.

Morrisville has been unable to meet federal stormwater regulations, according to officials. The fire department can#x2019;t respond to a house fire without mutual aid. Roads continue to deteriorate. The town continues to take on additional obligations without supplying maintenance funds, according to officials.

Councilman Mark Stohlman didn#x2019;t buy those arguments.

#x201C;We can do a lot of what#x2019;s on the wish list without raising taxes,#x201D; Stohlman said. #x201C;I think with the growth we have right now and the way things are increasing, we should be able to do it with our existing (funds).#x201D;

Councilman Steve Diehl argued residents want quality service.

#x201C;I don#x2019;t think our citizens want a cheap town with minimal services,#x201D; Diehl said. #x201C;If you say #x2018;Do you want a tax increase?#x2019; people say #x2018;no.#x2019; If you ask #x2018;Do you want good fire service?#x2019; they say #x2018;yes.#x2019;#x2009;#x201D;

Suggested cuts

Diehl said the council shouldn#x2019;t accept a salary, while refusing to provide adequate fire protection. He asked the council to consider giving up pay and benefits which totals about $90,000 a year. His proposal did not gain any support.

Stohlman told Diehl he was being #x201C;dramatic.#x201D;

Councilman Michael Schlink said there may be room for some efficiencies. Volunteers could be used to bridge the fire department staffing gap instead of hiring three to nine firefighters over the next five years.

Schlink said the town could boost revenue by attracting more quality development. An additional $20,000 for economic development had been included in Whitson#x2019;s tax increase, which Schlink voted against.

Schlink said that major road resurfacing projects could be paid through a bond referendum the council is considering for the fall ballot. However, the bonds would not pay for recurring maintenance.

#x2018;Best cheap town#x2019;

Mayor Jackie Holcombe, who supported the tax increase, said she regularly hears from residents who are willing to pay for better facilities and services.

#x201C;I want a safe community,#x201D; Holcombe said. #x201C;I don#x2019;t want a firefighter going into my house without the proper backup. … I don#x2019;t want to have my car realigned every time I go down Morrisville streets because it#x2019;s not maintained well. … I do want to do everything for (36.65) cents, but it#x2019;s just not possible.#x201D;

She said in order to make the upcoming budget work, the council would need to narrow its focus on service areas and stop buying things, like new parks, it can#x2019;t afford to maintain.

#x201C;Let#x2019;s be the best cheap town we can be,#x201D; Holcombe said.

Paying for games or for goodies within games using plastic isnt so popular anymore. (Well, at least personal plastic.) A study by research firm NewZoo found that consumers paying up for games with credit cards fell to 20 percent last year. In 2010, 26 percent of gamers used a credit card to pay for new games. MCV reports that the amount spent on prepaid cards, at least in the UK, had jumped from pound;90m in 2010 to pound;125m in 2011.

And Ukash, a prepaid card specialist, came to a similar conclusion. The prepayment provider found that nine out of 10 of its customers preferred cash alternatives over credit when buying things. While youd expect the customers of such a service to prefer that method, it does raise an interesting question: Just how do you pay for your games and in-game content (ie virtual goods, like energy or power-ups)?

Youd think that more gamers would use credit cards, the easier and near-frictionless alternative to hitting up the local game store every once in a while to pick up some Facebook Credits or what have you. Then again, increasing concerns of privacy and security could be reason enough to avoid credit cards online as much as possible, So, we ask you:

Have something unique to add to the discussion? Share with us in the comments. Add Comment.

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Tampa, Florida — The City Council on Thursday approved spending $1.4-million for more police equipment thatll be used during the Republican National Convention.

The items approved today include 200 new police bikes, 4×4 Bobcat utility vehicles and new software and technology communication programs.

See Also: Clean Zone protecing lives or trampling liberty?

Previously the council has signed off on spending money for a new SWAT Tank, a helicopter video link, new surveillance cameras as well as portable radios.

I can promise the taxpayers we are being stewards of the money and were putting our heads together and buying things we absolutely need, said Assistant Police Chief Marc Hamlin.

Tampa was given $50-million in federal money to help pay for the security items needed for the convention. That money was used to cover the items approved on Thursday.

The historic event is scheduled for the week of August 27^th.

Making a $500 a month grocery budget work for a family can be daunting, as one of our Lubbock Savvy Shopper Coupon Forum members pointed out this week. She has three children to take care of and she only has $500 in her grocery budget.

So, how do you make that work? How do you buy all the food and toiletries you’ll need for your family on a $500 budget?

The answer is not an easy one. You have to put time and effort into couponing, deal finding, and price matching.

If I had to start over with nothing; no inventory and no stockpile, here’s how I would do it.

First, I would buy a Sunday newspaper; use the coupons, inserts and Savvy Shopper deal breakdown to find the cheapest staples I could. On my list of staples would be the cheapest toiletries and cleaning products I could find.

My goal would be to buy enough clothes detergent to last at least 60 days. This week the 84-96 loads All detergent is on sale at Walgreens for $10.99. That would take me into 60 days and it’s very affordable, plus there was a $1/1 coupon in the 4/1 RP.

Next, I would buy toothbrushes, toothpaste, and floss. CVS and Walgreens have Colgate and Crest products on sale this week. If you use coupons with them, you’ll save even more.

Paper products are always pricey, especially if you buy the kinds that are super soft and fluffy. However, sometimes you have to do what you have to do to get by, so buying the cheapest toilet paper in enough bulk to last 60 days would be my next move. Along with that, I would buy paper towels, tissue, and ear swabs. These products will hold you over, regardless of the quality, for 60 days.

Everybody needs garbage bags, and garbage messes require cleaning products and sometimes paper towels too, so I’d buy bags that would fit correctly and not rip or tear. This is no place to skimp on brand quality. Don’t go overboard, you don’t need a huge box, but an $8 one should do. You’ll also need foil and some kind of sandwich bag probably, so get the cheapest you can find. (I personally don’t use saran wrap. I prefer foil. It holds better and doesn’t make my food taste like plastic.)

Cleaning products are a must buy. But, there are products you can buy that will multi-task for you. First of all, dishwashing detergent is important. Use a trusted brand so you don’t use extra water and time rewashing. Also, use a coupon. I like to buy Dawn with Olay Hand Renewal dish detergent because I can put a small amount into my foaming hand soap dispenser, fill it up with water and shake and, voila!, I have dishwashing detergent and hand-friendly foaming soap. I have saved so much money with this little trick. I use the same dispenser for washing hands as I do when I need to wash a dish. You can put these foaming soap dispensers in your bathroom too.

You can also purchase vinegar, baking soda, salt, baking powder, bleach and a lemon and do a wonder of other cleaning duties with those simple ingredients. For cleaning floors or heavy duty jobs, I like to use bleach water. It sanitizes and can be used on multiple hard surfaces. It will leave a deposit when used regularly, so save it for deep cleaning occasions and use your foaming dish detergent with a wet towel to clean counters, dishes, and spills.

Feminine products can be purchased for free or nearly free with coupons at most stores. Again, the 60 day stock-up is a must. Always be prepared.

I’ve estimated pricing on each of these items based on my knowledge of current msrp’s and sales prices and so far, $75.99 has been spent. That leaves us with $424.01 to spend.

I usually buy the same shampoo, conditioner, deodorant, etc. because I like it and it works for me. Therefore, I would do the same in this situation. There’s no point in couponing yourself to death so you can feel weird and look weird when you use some product that leaves your hair flat and makes you smell funny. So, I’d buy three bottles of shampoo, conditioner, and shower gel, plus two deodorants and one face wash. Altogether, that brings us to around $401 dollars left.

Here’s when it gets fun. The point now is to purchase food in bulk. Again, the plan is to buy for 60 days of meals. And, if I was starting from scratch, I would be in survival mode until I built up my stockpile, so the beans and rice/rice and beans policy would be in effect.

First things first, I buy meat in bulk. Find the cheapest ground beef, ham, hot dogs, and ribs you can find. Be sure to only buy ground beef with low fat content (otherwise it will all cook off and your meatloaf will be half the size it was before it went into the oven – see Tuesday’s dinner at my house for a reference). Generally, you can count on one pound of meat per dinner. If you plan to eat beef or pork three times a week, then you’ll need to buy 24 pounds.

Chicken is also a staple in most kitchens. To buy enough for 60 days, I’d buy leg quarters in bags. Usually leg quarters are on sale somewhere every week. Buy enough to cook three meals a week. You’ll need approximately 24 pounds.

There is one meal a week still unclaimed. Generally, a good rule of thumb is to make that night leftovers night and clean the fridge out. If you prefer, you can purchase Red Baron pizzas for $3 and make it pizza night. You’d need 8 of them, so it would cost around $24.

At this point $161.39 has been spent. That leaves 338.61.

There are some products you just can’t buy 60 days out; like bananas, broccoli, tomatoes, spinach, etc. So, I recommend setting aside two $20 envelopes for perishables to be spent on week three and week six. Spend $20 now to buy these same items.

Bread is definitely a must have. We use a lot in our house, so when it goes on sale we stock up and freeze it. If there’s not a $.49 loaf around, then head to Mrs. Baird’s bakery outlet and stock up there. Plan for one loaf a week and freeze 7. (If you don’t have a deep freezer, leave about $8 in your grocery envelope to buy it weekly.)

Milk is another freezable item. But, I’ve been told you can’t keep it frozen for more than 6-12 months in a deep freezer or 3-6 months in a refrigerator freezer. Either way, you should stock up when it goes on sale. Estimate about 1 gallon a week depending on your use. It’s $3.19 at CVS this week, so almost $26.

You’ll need cereal with that milk and you can get it for $1.50-$2.00 when it’s on sale. If you use a coupon, you can often get it for $1.00. I’m estimating $1.50 a box. That doesn’t mean it will all be chocolate sugar bombs or fruity tooty hoopy o’s. It may be one or two kinds that are just “OK” tasting, but it will nourish you and you only have to live this way for 30 days.

The rest of your groceries will be juices (get the frozen canned kind), salty snacks, canned fruits, dried fruits, baking mixes, dinner sides, beans, rice, etc. And, you are should buy peanut butter. It will be a big part of your lunches for the next 30 days. I’m estimating the cost to be around $100 for it all.

Yes, I said 30 this time. Here’s why. So far, $368.43 has been spent, which leaves $131.57. Out of that $131.57 will come $31.57 in juices, water, soda, etc. That leaves you with $100 for dairy and miscellaneous which will include yogurts, cheeses, and any other miscellaneous items not covered thus far.

The idea is to buy 60 days worth of groceries in the beginning and in 30 days your new $500 grocery budget will kick in and you will be able to start buying things you like to eat and like to use, not just the cheapest kinds. This is where stockpiling would really begin. The trick is to take care of your needs first, get the sale items in bulk, and not be miserable in the process. Savvy shopping is definitely a fine art!

RACHEL HARDY is one of The A-J’s Savvy Shoppers. Read her columns Sundays, and catch Sean Fields on Wednesday.

A couple of years ago, Chris Woehrle grew sick of corporate life and decided to become an artisanal food craftsman — any kind of artisanal food craftsman. “I spent a month making every item I could think of: kimchi, harissa, salsa, every kind of pickle imaginable, a bunch of different herb mustards,” says Woehrle, who worked for a music conglomerate. And every time, he quickly discovered, “there were eight companies already doing it well.”

Deep thoughts this week:

1. The craft economy is the fulfillment of Adam Smith’s notion of capitalism.

2. And it extends to all kinds of industries.

3. With luck, someone is already studying the I.P.A. tastes of middle-class Chinese.

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This is because Woehrle lives in Brooklyn, ground zero of the artisanal-food universe, where competition is intense. Eventually, though, he and his partner stumbled upon a hole in the market: handcrafted, all-natural beef jerky. And so Kings County Jerky was born. Woehrle expects that the company will be profitable in a year or two, which is pretty good for a new small business.

Like many successful entrepreneurs in the United States, Woehrle followed what seems like an ancient business model: making things by hand. He rejected the high-volume, low-margin commodity business in which ConAgra and Pepsi­Co compete against each other with their Slim Jim and Matador jerky products. Instead, Kings County found a niche in which engaged consumers will pay a premium for a specialty product.

Contrary to popular belief, the revival of craft manufacturing isn’t just a fad for Brooklyn hipsters. (Woehrle resists the term. His beard is too short, he says.) Jason Premo, an entrepreneur I recently met in Greenville, S.C., is also studying the unmet needs of his customers and carefully making the things they most value, albeit on a more industrial scale. Premo, a former corporate manager, learned that many large companies faced challenges getting their hands on precision parts (like rocketry propulsion housings for ICBMs or rotor hardware for Black Hawk helicopters) that must be made of high-performance metal alloys and cut to exacting standards. So he and a partner bought a tiny metal-machining shop, invested in some precision machines and hired a few advanced machining experts. Their company, Adex Machining Technologies, now has contracts with Boeing and G.E.

It’s tempting to look at craft businesses as simply a rejection of modern industrial capitalism. But the craft approach is actually something new — a happy refinement of the excesses of our industrial era plus a return to the vision laid out by capitalism’s godfather, Adam Smith. One of his central insights in “The Wealth of Nations” is the importance of specialization. When everyone does everything — sews their own clothes, harvests their own crops, bakes their own bread — each act becomes inefficient, because generalists are rarely as quick or able as specialists.

For most of human history, though, people needed to do a bit of everything to survive. The result was a profoundly inefficient economy that required almost everyone to work very hard just to create enough of the essentials for survival; even then, famines were still disturbingly common. Efficiency, Smith explained, comes when individuals focus on specific tasks. The miracle of the Industrial Revolution was that through specialization, humankind became far more productive.

In the United States, this works so well that, despite all the economic pain we’re enduring, the average American leads a shockingly good life by any historical or international standard. As other countries move into mass production, the United States, even in the depths of economic doldrums, has a level of wealth that translates to fewer people willing to do dreary, assembly-line work at extremely low wages. More significant, we’re entering an era of hyperspecialization. Huge numbers of middle-class people are now able to make a living specializing in something they enjoy, including creating niche products for other middle-class people who have enough money to indulge in buying things like high-end beef jerky.

Economically, this was an expected outcome. The hot field of happiness economics argues, rather persuasively, that once people reach some level of comfort, they are willing — even eager — to trade in potential earnings at a lucrative but uninspiring job for less (but comfortable) pay at more satisfying work. Some research by the Chicago economist Erik Hurst suggests that half of entrepreneurs start businesses as much to pursue happiness as to make money.

When it comes to profit and satisfaction, craft business is showing how American manufacturing can compete in the global economy. Many of the manufacturers who are thriving in the United States (they exist, I swear!) have done so by avoiding direct competition with low-cost commodity producers in low-wage nations. Instead, they have scrutinized the market and created customized products for less price-sensitive customers. Facebook and Apple, Starbucks and the Boston Beer Company (which makes Sam Adams lager) show that people who identify and meet untapped needs can create thousands of jobs and billions in wealth. As our economy recovers, there will be nearly infinite ways to meet custom needs at premium prices.

Meanwhile, the idea (or at least the hope) is that as China and other emerging nations develop, the United States can stay on the profitable forefront, delivering specific high-tech parts to their factories and the latest upmarket foods to their middle class. According to this view, the fracturing of industrial manufacturing, however painful, has helped prepare parts of the economy for this new course.

The transition to an increasingly craft-centered economy will not be without agony. Woehr­le and Premo succeeded because both had access to investors and the innate ability to segue from the salaried confines of corporate life to a much riskier, entrepreneurial world. A craft economy is far less stable: those who succeed this year may fail the next, as their once-unique products become commodities made cheaply overseas. Still, this new world seems, to some extent, inevitable. Instead of rolling our eyes at self-conscious Brooklyn hipsters pickling everything in sight, we might look to them as guides to the future of the American economy. Just don’t tell them that. It would break their hearts to be called model 21st-century capitalists.

Adam Davidson is the co-founder of NPR’s Planet Money, a podcast, blog and radio series heard on “Morning Edition,” “All Things Considered” and “This American Life.”

Tiffany RanIf Seattle had a culinary hall of fame, Chef Mike Robertshaw of Local 360 would be the quiet contender. Many who walk past the windows of Local 360 on Bell Street–where Robertshaw (known amongst his chef friends as Mikey) works on the days pastries– are oblivious to the chef on the other side who has his fingerprints on many restaurants across town. Aside from having cooked at restaurants like Restaurant Zo, Union, and Quinns, Robertshaw helped open Seattle favorites like Big Marios New York Style Pizza, Toulouse Petit, Where Ya At Matt, Bastille, and La Bte, before opening Local 360, where his varied culinary experience plays out under one roof.

SW: How did you start cooking?

Robertshaw: I was born and raised in the Northeast; worked over in Portland, Maine for a while and worked for a while in Boston for a bunch of pompous James Beard chefs that liked to throw pans. I didnt go to culinary school. I came up hard knocks; started washing dishes at 14 years old where my brother was a line cook and fell in love with the hustle and bustle of the hot line, watching all the insanity, and thats when I decided thats what I want to do. Before that, I wanted to be a lawyer, to follow in my uncles footsteps. I went my own route, decided to cook, went to Seattle and got a job at Union working for Scott Staples. Then got a job at Zo, Quinns, Bastille, and the rest is history.

How did you handle trying to open many restaurants in a short span of time?

When you run a place, its all encompassing. You dont get much of a life outside of that. It seems like everybody kind of goes through their mercenary stage where you bounce around 20 hours here, 30 hours there. Its kind of nice to be that guy that everyone calls on. It clears your head for a bit.

You dont ever say no?

Never say no, never say no. I grew up in the Northeast. Its important to love thy neighbor, scratch your neighbors back. It opens up a world of possibilities. People call on me and I know that I can call on them if I ever need it.

Despite your experience with starting up other restaurants, did you encounter unexpected difficulties when starting up Local 360?

Local 360 was kind of a new venture for me. Ive run kitchens before, but this is a concept that I hadnt really been involved in; with this whole commissary type thing going on–the mercantile, the butcher shop, the bakery, being open from 6am to midnight. It felt like my whole career led me to this point. I had butchered, I used to be a pastry chef. That put me in the position to know how to do all this stuff, but to do it all under one roof, it was a little insane. We didnt really know what to expect from the opening, and weve been very fortunate to have it all pan out. I would say the scope of business has changed a little; no more mercantile, no more 6am coffee call. I think we finally found who we are as a restaurant. It has blossomed into this kind of neighborhood joint.

Has sticking to the philosophy of sourcing ingredients from a 360 mile radius been difficult?

There has been a lot of difficulties, personal ones at that. You get used to buying things for how great they are, not just their location. Its been a matter of trying to find the best that is close. You might get used to finding beautiful Arbequina olives in Spain but who knew there was an Arbequina farm in Oregon? Its nice being able to do the research to find out where all this stuff is and try to grab it.

Certainly I would love to have much more foie gras available, and lots of other things. For the most part, the Northwest is such a beautiful place. There is so much great stuff to be had. You get a lot of things in whole form: whole pigs, whole lambs. Youve got to be able to know how to use all of it. Our menu is riddled with pig head and everything else because youve got to be able to utilize the whole product for what it is. Right now, were doing pretty good. Its been a mild winter so were still pulling Brussels sprouts from Full Circle, kale, collards and all the hearty green vege. Id say were pretty close to about 75 to 80 percent right now. Its more that the produce shifts with the seasons rather than things being unavailable.

The rich meat and Southern inspired dishes at your restaurant has gotten most of the attention. Are these the type of dishes that you like to cook?

For the most part, it is. I come from comfort food roots. We live in a society where people like to go out and feel full for what they get. You also read a lot of restaurants that are doing much lighter fare and people complain that they had to go get food after. Nobody says theyre hungry when they leave my restaurant. Thats what they want. Thats what I enjoy cooking. I like food that resonates with you, I like food that sticks with you. I like food that takes time to let the flavors build; its just delicious.

The space of the restaurant looks like something that could be on Capitol Hill, but how did the restaurant come to be in Belltown?

The owner, Marcus [Charles], hes a Belltown guy. He used to be a Capitol Hill guy, but now he owns a couple of businesses here. Marcus philosophy and dedication is to rebuilding Belltown. He grew up in Seattle in an era where Nirvana and Pearl Jam was rocking the Crocodile, back when 2nd Avenue was the place to hang out for the rock stars and everybody else in the city. Belltown has kind of fallen off in the last couple of years. Its turned into this place where nobody really wants to be at after 1am. His dedication is to help better this neighborhood. Weve been fortunate to be here because weve seen from the time weve come in to now, a lot of the unsavories, so to speak, kind of dwindle away and go elsewhere. Were bringing some business to Belltown, which is nice.

Your location places you at the heart of the nightlife in Belltown. Whats the craziest thing youve encountered here?

Ill say, that one night I thought somebody dropped something in my office. We didnt
really think of it. We were on the line and thought, Huh. Wonder what that was. Then we come out the back door to find the entire street was roped off because some dude
fired 12 rounds up the street, shot up about five cars and shot the side of a building next
door. It was kind of amusing to walk out into the middle of a crime scene and go,
WHOA! What the hell happened out here? There has been a lot of really crazy antics
that happen around here. Things happen. Its part of the excitement of living in the
big city. You have to take them as they come.

Since youre working until late hours, where do you go for late night eats after service?

I go La Bte a lot. Its like a second home to me.Typically if I go out Id go to [Cafe] Presse or Ill go to Ballard. I go up to Bitterroot BBQ a lot. Some friends of mine opened this place in Ballard. They have a fantastic American whiskey list, great barbeque. Its the perfect thing for a chef at the end of the night.