On Sun, 28 Mar 2004 18:40:25 -0500, in message
MuJ9c.1853$9g.1662@lakeread04
Glenn Ashmore wrote:

I have delivered 3 boats for owners. One to some big wig Houston lawyer
who was happy as a pig in s**t. Couldn't stop talking about what a
great deal it was. The other two, one in Mobile and the other in
Jacksonville, thought they had been screwed. Both were upside down on
their loans and faced with laying out a chunk of cash just to get rid of
the boat.

It could make a big difference on the financials whether one had the
cash in hand to invest or had to borrow and what kind of rate one
could borrow at. An investment that loses money and provides hearty
perks can look really good in a high tax bracket while it looks lousy
if you borrow at premium rates.