The U.S. Economy

• The Source of Federal Tax Receipts: 1934-2011. Valeo Financial Advisors
• Ben Bernanke says he won’t rule out further bond buying Bloomberg
• Real GDP grew at an annual rate of 1.7% in the second quarter, up from initial estimate of 1.5% St. Louis Federal Reserve

The American Consumer

• Consumer Sentiment Hits Three-Month High in August CNBC
• Total consumer debt fell by $53 billion in the 2nd quarter, continuing the downward trend in outstanding household debt New York Federal Reserve
• Consumer confidence lowest in nine months in August Reuters

Jobs

• Only 33% of respondents expect to retire before they turn 65 and 43% plan on retiring between ages 65 and 70. Yahoo! Finance
• One Of The Fastest-Growing Careers Is In Desperate Need Of Young Talent Forbes
• Chart: 374,000 people filed initial claims for unemployment benefits last week, the same as last week St. Louis Federal Reserve

Miscellaneous

• The Smartest Spenders in Sports Businessweek
• Elkhart resident leaves $125 million to his hometown. City officials put gift on par with town’s founding. Indianapolis Business Journal