This Job Pays $40,000 - $50,000

This article in the New York times -- about a blogger who wrote that a recent murder in Pensacola, FL was not a robbery gone sour but was, in fact, a contract killing -- got me thinking. The hitmen in the case were allegedly paid between "$20,000 and $50,000." I was thinking, is this the market price for this sort of thing?

Simplyhired.com says (chillingly) yes: the average salary for a hire-to-kill job is $44,000. It also notes that "average hire to kill salaries can vary greatly due to company, industry, experience, and benefits."

Worth How Much? (Part 2)

The two men named as the executors of Michael Jackson's will hold the rights to videotape footage of Michael Jackson's rehearsals for the "This Is It" tour. The video could be made into a DVD or film. It is rumored that Sony Pictures Entertainment would pay between $50 million to $60 million for the footage.

Desperately Seeking Susan's Ad Revenue

Following the Susan Boyle thread, the New York Times ran an interesting article on the difficulty of monetizing internet fame.  Although hundreds of millions of people have watched Susan Boyle perform "I Dreamed A Dream" via the internet - mainly YouTube - this has not translated directly into money for the producers or distributors of "Britain's Got Talent".  And surprisingly, not even YouTube (a unit of Google) has profited from Susan Boyle's fame: commercials were not placed on the videos of her singing due to a failure of Fremantle Media and YouTube to see eye to eye on a way to split the potential ad revenue.

Incidentally, here is a link to Susan's second performance, in which she sings "Memories" from the musical "Cats."

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The Glass Ceiling

There is a growing chorus that says put women in leadership positions and you'll make more money. Some experts go as far as saying women could have prevented the current financial crisis. On the whole, women tend to be more risk averse and do a better job of monitoring potential problems.
Apparently women at the top of large companies are jumping ship.

What would a world run by women look like?

ARE RICH MEN BETTER LOVERS?

Relationship gurus often say couples fight about money and sex. Could lots of money prevent fights about about sex? A survey of 5,000people finds that women enjoy sex more with wealthy partners. This is all based on self-reporting so we have no idea how many people are telling the truth. You have to wonder how much of it is psychosomatic. We know money can buy sex, just ask prostitutes. So, what can't money buy?

BEWITCHING

We've all seen enough mob movies to know how the mafia collects money. That plot is so passe. Maybe that's why a Lithuanian firm hired a witch to go after people who fail to pay up. They didn't just get any witch, they got a famous Witch, Vilija Lobaciuviene. I wonder if she stalks you, then at the right moment swoops down and collect. In all seriousness though, what's her rate of return?