A Growing Deficit, Missing Millionaires, Red Hot China and More American Ingenuity

*Record-setting federal deficits. Thanks to the recession, the Federal government is collecting far less in taxes than it expected. And thanks to all of the bailouts, buyouts and stimulus packages, it’s spending more than ever. As a result, for every dollar the IRS collected in July the Obama team spent $2.15. The deficit for the month was a record $180 billion. Maybe like the tailor who lost money on every suit he made, they hope to make it up on volume?

*Millionaires become an endangered species. According to the 2009 World Wealth Report, the number of millionaires around the world fell at a record rate in 2008. Some 15 percent of the world’s wealthy no longer qualify as millionaires. The total worth of the world’s high-net-worth individuals dropped $7 trillion. Oh, by the way, the hardest hit was the United States, which lost 600,000 millionaires last year.

*Red China is red hot. Need more evidence that the rulers of Communist China have learned how to enjoy the fruits of capitalism? Consider this: Four of the top-performing initial public offerings on Wall Street this year are from China-based firms. Almost one-third of new listings on Nasdaq are also Chinese companies.

*American ingenuity strikes again. Over the past century inventors and innovators in the United States have been responsible for more inventions, more patents, and more technical advances than the rest of the world combined. And it’s just happened again. A computer whiz in Los Angeles has created the website “runpee.com,” which tells you the best time during a movie to head to the bathroom. Dan Florio says his creation was inspired by the movie King Kong. “It’s a three-hour movie, and by the end of it there was a huge queue waiting to use the bathroom.” Now you’ll know when you can leave your seat without missing any of the action.

—Chip Wood