Widespread cracks found on Southwest jet-NTSB [Reuters]
Evidence of widespread fuselage cracks and fatigue were found on a Southwest Airlines Co (LUV.N) jet that made an emergency landing in Arizona with a hole in the cabin, a U.S. safety investigator said on Sunday. The incident on Friday prompted Southwest, the largest domestic airline by passengers flown, to ground planes and cancel hundreds of flights over the weekend so it could inspect its older model 737-300s. Small subsurface fuselage cracks were found on two other planes, which may require repairs, Southwest said.

Bring Donors Out of the Shadows [NYT]
The billionaire industrialist brothers Charles and David Koch have drawn sharp criticism for their extensive giving to libertarian causes. Though some of their organizational ties are public, many are unknown, thanks to a provision in the tax code that allows the Koch brothers and other donors, on both the left and the right, to conceal the recipients of their largess, even as they get to write it off on their taxes. Fortunately, there is a solution to this problem: require all nonprofit organizations that engage in political advocacy to reveal their donors.

You’re not writing me another big check? You tax hiker! [Tax Update Blog]
Refundable tax credits draw the ire of Joe Kristan.

Lil Wayne falls in deeper tax hole [Tax Watchdog]
Perhaps this is why he was working so hard while in prison.

Disintegrating accounting firm LECG down to 70 employees [PBJ]
LECG Corp., which listed 1,200 employees just three months ago, said it now has fewer than 70 employees, the majority of whom management expects to leave within the next 30 days. The Devon, Pa.-based accounting firm has been selling off practice groups and paying down its $30 million debt. These transitions will not result in any proceeds to LECG’s common stockholders and it is not anticipated that future operations will, either.

Rich Are Targeted in IRS Audit Offensive [WSJ]
According to the agency’s latest statistical report for the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, the percentage of taxpayers who were audited increased in every category of adjusted gross income above $500,000, compared with a year earlier. The biggest jumps came at the top of the income ladder. About 18% of Americans earning at least $10 million were audited in fiscal 2010, up from 11% in fiscal 2009, according to the IRS. For those earning $500,000 to $1 million, the audit rate rose to 3.4% from 2.8%.

How You Can Pull a GE on Taxes [SmartMoney]
Without paying for all the lobbyists and tax lawyers.

Schapiro SEC Seen Ineffectual Amid Dodd-Frank Funding Curbs [Bloomberg]
Today, Schapiro, 55, faces challenges a good bit nastier than a muddy lacrosse game. As she hits the halfway point of her five-year term as head of the SEC, she must deal with a sprawling legislative mandate to rewrite regulations affecting the financial industry while, at the same time, trying to erase the stain of the SEC’s failure to uncover Bernard Madoff’s Ponzi scheme.

Openly Gay Workers Have Better Careers [FINS]
Abntifying lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees are open about their preferences at work, according to the survey of 2,800 LGBT finance workers conducted by Sylvia Ann Hewlett, director of the Center for Work-Life Policy. Only a third of those who are not out are satisfied with the rate of advancement in their careers, compared with the almost-two thirds of those who are out who said they are satisfied.

Buffett’s Handling of Deputy Baffles Some Experts [DealBook]
Warren E. Buffett is an old-school capitalist with a rock star’s aura, a global celebrity who is revered like a small-town hero. Yet that carefully cultivated image — the envy of nearly every top executive — risks being tarnished by a disclosure that he knew one of his right-hand executives had bought shares in a company before Mr. Buffett’s company announced a deal for it.

The House of Lords — Experienced with “Disconcerting Complacency” — Looks at the Market Concentration and Role of the Auditors [Re:Balance]
Jim Peterson isn’t as impressed with House of Lords report.

Less Would be More from Auditors [The Accounting Onion]
Tom Selling tees up next week’s subcommittee hearing and gives everyone a warning, “[SEC Chief Accountant] Kroeker and Leslie Seidman have been so IFRS-fixated for so long, and have had so little to say on the Subcommittee’s topic, it’s doubtful they are in a position to do little more than defend and deflect. If they actually testify under oath that adoption of IFRS should be part of the solution, I think I might become sick.”

Nasdaq, ICE Top Deutsche Boerse With $11.3 Billion NYSE Bid [Bloomberg]
Nasdaq OMX Group Inc. (NDAQ) and IntercontinentalExchange Inc. offered to buy NYSE Euronext (NYX) for about $11.3 billion as the companies teamed up in an attempt to snatch the New York Stock Exchange from Deutsche Boerse AG. The companies offered $42.50 in cash and stock for each NYSE Euronext share, according to a statement released today. The bid is a 19 percent premium to Deutsche Boerse’s February offer, based on the German exchange operator’s closing share price as of yesterday, Nasdaq and IntercontinentalExchange said. The bid is 27 percent higher than NYSE Euronext’s stock price on Feb. 8, the day before the company’s announcement of discussions with Deutsche Boerse.

When a Job Is So Bad It Hurts [WSJ]
Some jobs are so bad that they are actually worse for employees’ psychological well-being than not having a job at all, according to a new study in the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine. Researchers from the Australian National University analyzed annual data over several years from 7,155 adults, evaluating links between the nature of their jobs and their mental health. They found “the mental health of those who were unemployed was comparable or superior to those in jobs of the poorest” quality.

AICPA Introduces IFRS Certificate Program Based on Comprehensive, Integrated Curriculum, Online Study [Business Wire]
The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants introduced a new course of study leading to a Certificate of Educational Achievement in International Financial Reporting Standards. The new IFRS Certificate Program is a comprehensive, integrated curriculum of online courses for CPAs and other accounting professionals that provide a measurable standard for evaluating competence in understanding and applying international accounting standards.