The Senate Transportation Committee has a very important Toll Road Vote on Wednesday. Its VERY instructive to look at these videos again about the promises vs the reality of Toll Roads in Tennessee.
1- Will the Tolls ever be removed? Even after the bonds for a particular project are paid off? the answer: NO, the tolls will never be removed, they will simply become another tax. In fact, Ed Cole from TDOT says they will identify very popular projects to toll so they can pay for less popular projects. (toward the end of the video.)
2- Will we try a few toll road projects and see how those work? NO, that was discussed when the bill was passed but now, according to Rep. Pinion, the very powerful Chairman of the House Transportation Committee, any local official who wants a toll road "bad enough" can have one.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Sweet Home Alabama like you have never seen it
Finnish rock band The Leningrad Cowboys and the Soviet Red Army Choir.
250+ exemptions to TN Open Records Law
Link
"Any special interest who has a friend in the legislature can get records closed fairly easily," said Frank Gibson, executive director for the Tennessee Coalition for Open Government. "It's a slippery slope — you close one piece of information on a file, and then two years later you close something else.''
Big School districts are unmanageable...period
Large school districts are unmanageable, period. They are governed by a politically charged school board, harassed by a hostile teacher's union, and pulled apart by demands from federal and state governments. The result? The few people willing to apply to be superintendents are able to demand outrageous employment contracts. Most of those hired will last only a few years so they must get while the getting is good.
To come to work here in Clayton County, a failing school district in Georgia, former Pittsburgh superintendent John Thompson wants $275,000 in salary, a $2 million consulting budget, a Lincoln Town Car with a driver, and money to pay a personal bodyguard.
Sound a bit hefty for someone likely to pull a power lunch in a junior high cafeteria? Maybe not.
Fewer qualified candidates, rising expectations, and a near-impossible job description are creating a new breed of superintendents: Call them central office rock stars. These candidates say that, for the right price, they're willing to do an unpopular job that can take a heavy personal and professional toll to whip underperforming districts into shape.
Linda Noe: Public documents reveal more than...
newspapers and news media and more than government officials are willing to reveal. Easy access to public documents by average citizens is absolutely essential to the maintenance of democracy. Linda has copies of all the documents posted.
Link
Link
Lynn Wolfe filed a lawsuit against Sheriff Esco Jarnigan in federal court in January 2008 because Sheriff Jarnigan would not promote him to road deputy. Click on the first images above to read the 5-page complaint.
Wolfe was Hamblen County's chief detective under former Sheriff Otto Purkey. Chief Detective Wolfe was driving a county cruiser in December 2000 returning home from an out-of-county "party" when he totaled the county's 1999 Ford Crown Vic in a one-vehicle accident.
According to reports, a blood test was administered at M-H Hospital showing that Mr. Wolfe was legally drunk at the time of the accident. Wolfe resigned after the accident and received a severance package that was agreed to by County Mayor David Purkey (former Sheriff Otto Purkey's brother). Click on the Feb. 2, 2001, letter above.
WPLN: Predators subsidy will increase by 75%
The lease is so complex that only a few lawyers understand it.....this can NOT end well.
Link
Link
The Metro (Nashville) Council has to approve the lease agreement which also raises the city’s subsidy for the Sommet Center from about 4 million to over 7 million dollars. Councilman Mike Jameson, who will be shepherding the proposal through the Council, says the 156-page lease is extremely complex which could pose problems in the future.
Sunday, March 30, 2008
How TN should promote Economic development
Nevada is competing for new businesses the way that TN should compete. NOT tax giveaways or corporate welfare or film industry credits but by touting the overall low level of taxes.As you might expect California doesn't like it one bit.
Bredesen rural development dog and pony show
Phil Bredesen should expand this shtick to include other events. He could bring along a traveling troupe from Cirque du Soleil and maybe a few WWE wrestlers or maybe even a few Ultimate Fighters to really stir things up.
The arrogance and chutzpa of politicians is impossible to over estimate. If making tours of rural areas was the way to help their economy, these rural counties would be boom areas.
This is pure politics that will result in ZERO economic development. This may be a good way to keep Commissioner Kisber off the streets but it accomplishes little else.
Link
The arrogance and chutzpa of politicians is impossible to over estimate. If making tours of rural areas was the way to help their economy, these rural counties would be boom areas.
This is pure politics that will result in ZERO economic development. This may be a good way to keep Commissioner Kisber off the streets but it accomplishes little else.
Link
At 9 a.m., Bredesen, joined by Matt Kisber, commissioner of the state Department of Economic and Community Development, will sign a project agreement with county leaders at the Covington-Tipton Chamber of Commerce.
Earlier this month, Bredesen announced plans to bring site selection consultants to five rural Tennessee regions. One of the regions includes Lauderdale, Haywood and Tipton counties.
The Orange Carpet project involves a two-day visit to communities in each region. The consultants will tour potential industrial sites.
The region leaders will present "action plans" to the site selection consultants. The experts will offer advice about improvements the communities can make to draw industries.
British Government healthcare will issue Vouchers
Well, although the bureaucrats will probably make this a short term experiment since it threatens their power to micro manage the lives of citizens, the British Government health care system, NHS, will begin issuing vouchers so.....drum roll, patients will have more control.
Of course this won't address the REAL problem and that is government healthcare itself...but hey, its a begrudging admission of the obvious. Ironically, one objection is that it will highlight the fact that some patients still have to struggle with "more bureaucracy."
Link HT: Tim Worstall
Of course this won't address the REAL problem and that is government healthcare itself...but hey, its a begrudging admission of the obvious. Ironically, one objection is that it will highlight the fact that some patients still have to struggle with "more bureaucracy."
Link HT: Tim Worstall
It will mean patients can shop around for care, arrange visits when they want, swap one type of treatment for another or buy their services from the voluntary and private sectors.
But the proposals, which mirror plans to give the elderly power over funds for services such as home help, caused controversy last night. Some charities welcomed them, but others said they could leave the most sick struggling with more bureaucracy.
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Hospital building boom...in Mexico
Link
While Mexican authorities declined to estimate how much the country's health-care industry is expanding to handle medical tourism, companies are building new hospitals, clinics and surgical centers.
You say you want an Operation....one word. INDIA
I wonder how many of those who oppose free trade would pass up the opportunity to cut their surgery costs by 90%?"Free Trade" is simply the right to buy goods and services from whomever you choose...whether it be in the next county or the next continent.
Link
150,000 medical touristsLast year, the South Asian giant attracted 150,000 medical tourists from the United States, Britain, Africa and elsewhere in South Asia, largely by offering an enticing trio of advantages: highly trained English-speaking doctors, quick appointments and bargain-basement prices. In India, a heart bypass goes for $10,000 and a hip replacement for $9,000, compared with $130,000 and $43,000 respectively in the United States, the AMA said.
Friday, March 28, 2008
There is NO reasonable justification for the Predators
taxpayer subsidy. This Vanderbilt economist (via Michael Cass) says the economics just don't add up...he is right. Davidson County Taxpayers should NOT be paying one dime to subsidize the Predators.
Link
Link
"In general, sports teams do not generate much, if any, local economic impact," he wrote. "The reason is simple. Sports teams, and especially those in leagues that play weekday evening games, attract insufficient 'new money' into an area to overcome the large leakages created by players and owners who live outside the local area during the off-season and spend a large portion of their income elsewhere. ... If there is a reasonable justification for public subsidies to privately owned sports entertainment businesses, it must derive from something other than their expected local economic impact."
TN Higher Ed will RIP YOU OFF but be happy...
they are doing you a BIG favor because it could be much worse. so stop your whining...they could be ripping you off even worse than they are.
These folks are a bunch of educated highway robbers. As noted earlier, tuition has increased much faster than gasoline!!
Link
These folks are a bunch of educated highway robbers. As noted earlier, tuition has increased much faster than gasoline!!
Link
NASHVILLE — A spokeswoman for the Tennessee Board of Regents says higher education officials are committed to keeping tuition hikes below 10 percent this fall.
The heads of Tennessee’s public colleges and universities told lawmakers earlier this month that they’re trying to keep the hikes in the single digits.
Board of Regents spokeswoman Mary Morgan reiterated that proposal today following a quarterly board meeting in Chattanooga. She says the tuition hike will be under 10 percent, “but where under 10 I don’t know.”
Why can't we be like Georgia?
Link
The Georgia House & Senate passed Senate Resolution 1246, an adjournment resolution, today that sets the last day of the session, Sine Die Day, for next Friday, April 4th.
Court will rehear CA Homeschool Ban
Link
(03-26) 18:00 PDT LOS ANGELES -- A state appeals court has agreed to reconsider its decision last month that barred homeschooling by parents who lack teaching credentials, raising the possibility that the judges will change a decision that has infuriated homeschool advocates nationwide.
The Second District Court of Appeal in Los Angeles granted a rehearing Tuesday at the request of a couple who have taught their eight children at home without credentials.
It is not unusual for appeals courts to reconsider decisions, and the result is often a minor revision that leaves the original conclusion unchanged. But the three-judge panel in the homeschooling case hinted at a re-evaluation of its entire Feb. 28 ruling by inviting written arguments from state and local education officials and teachers' unions.
It said it will hold a new hearing in June."Another look at this case will help ensure that the fundamental rights of parents are fully protected," said attorney Gary Kreep of the U.S. Justice Foundation, the father of the homeschooled children.
Last month's ruling, if upheld, could put many parents at risk of prosecution for violating the state's compulsory-education law. Homeschooling advocates say 166,000 children in California are taught by at home, most of them by parents who lack teaching credential.
Would Congressman Cohen intervene for YOU?
I wonder how many other prisoners have had the benefit of Congressman Cohen's influence in changing their place of imprisonment? My guess: zero.
Link
Link
WASHINGTON -- Former state senator John Ford is going to the big house next month, but after the intervention of U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen, it will be much closer to Memphis.
Cohen confirmed Thursday that his office made a request to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons to look into changing Ford's incarceration from a minimum-security federal-prison camp at La Tuna, Texas, to a similar facility in central Louisiana.
Ford, 65, is to surrender to federal authorities next month to begin serving a 5 1/2-year sentence after his conviction last April for taking $55,000 in bribes as a state legislator.
Cohen said former congressman Harold Ford Sr. told his brother to seek Cohen's office's assistance as a constituent. Cohen said Bureau of Prisons guidelines suggest that a prisoner should be within 500 miles of his former home unless other factors are present.
New Hampshire joins Montana defying Real ID
Link
The legislators in the Live Free or Die state, like those in Montana, banned the state from complying with the Real ID mandates, citing state's rights, the inequity of unfunded federal mandates, and privacy issues. Under the rules, almost all license holders will have to return to the DMV with notarized "breeder documents" like birth and marriage certificates, and states will have to interlink their databases of digital photos and personal information. Citizens of states that opt out can't use their licenses for federal purposes, such as entering airport screening lines or going to a Social Security office.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Make Tax Cuts Permanent? Poll
CNN/Opinion Research Corporation Poll. March 14-16, 2008. N=1,019
adults nationwide. MoE ± 3.
"As you may know, the federal income tax cuts passed into law since George W. Bush became president are set to expire within the next several years. Would you favor or oppose making those tax cuts permanent?"
Favor Oppose Unsure
% % %
3/14-16/08 54 40 6
5/4-6/07 57 37 6
adults nationwide. MoE ± 3.
"As you may know, the federal income tax cuts passed into law since George W. Bush became president are set to expire within the next several years. Would you favor or oppose making those tax cuts permanent?"
Favor Oppose Unsure
% % %
3/14-16/08 54 40 6
5/4-6/07 57 37 6
Daughter of Legendary Sheriff Buford Pusser to run
for Randy Rinks House Seat.
Link
Link
Pusser-Garrison said that she decided to run because she feels she "can really help out the town of Adamsville and counties in the district more" if she is elected.
"I do feel I could do a good job," Pusser-Garrison said. "I feel I can represent our communities well."
Frank Cagle: Pre-K is another Tenncare
Link
TennCare was like a flesh-eating virus that consumed the state budget, destroyed the Sundquist administration, and, in seeking an income tax to pay for it, left Sundquist a failure, his reputation in tatters.
Gov. Phil Bredesen used draconian cuts to get the TennCare budget under control, and he has had a booming economy to generate revenue for his projects and to increase spending for such big-ticket items as education. But Bredesen has his own hobby horse, his own TennCare. He plans on leaving it to the next governor, gift-wrapped with a bow.
[...]
Bredesen has suggested, in his typical dismissive way, the Republicans are just trying to find something to oppose and he wishes it weren’t his wonderful pre-K program. He seems disinclined to study data from other states or notice the faint praise for the program in his own study.
I honestly don’t understand people who think putting four-year-olds in school is a good idea. But if you insist on doing it, pay for it yourself.
Switching to HSAs saves big Health Care money
What!! Turning health care over to patients saves money? Whoodathunkit. Hey, we ought to try this with education and let PARENTS make the decisions about where their children go to school.
Link HT: American Shareholders
Link HT: American Shareholders
The most successful employers are aggressively pushing consumer directed health plans (CDHPs), which put more control in the hands of workers, usually by combining a high deductible insurance policy with a tax advantaged health savings account. Some firms are setting the premiums for such plans at 30% below traditional plans to encourage participation, and it seems to be working. Employers that offer them as an option report that participation hit 15% this year, up from 10% in 2007 and likely to hit 20% next year.
Your Tax Slavery will end on April 23 this year
LinkThe Tax Foundation computes Tax Freedom day each year. meaning that day when you stop working to pay your taxes. This year its April 23.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Housing affordability Index improves
LinkThe Housing Affordability Index has gone from 103.6 in July 2007 to 130.3 in January 2008, and will maybe go even higher in February, given the 3% drop in median home price from $205,000 in January to $198,700 in February. A composite HAI of 130.3 means that a family earning the median family income had 130.3% of the income necessary to qualify for a conventional loan covering 80% of a median-priced existing single-family home in January 2007.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
"Etiquette police" to start patrolling Japanese Metro
Kind of like Wal-Mart greeters with an attitude.
Link
Link
Badly behaved commuters riding on Yokohama's public transport will soon be risking a dressing-down.Newly appointed "etiquette police" will be asking travellers to turn down their headphones and give up their seats for their elders and betters.
[...]
The team is mostly made up of over-60s, well acquainted with the standards of conduct associated with the "old Japan".
But many of these enforcers will be accompanied by younger bodyguards, should their etiquette advice - diplomatically given, of course - not prove welcome.
The team members, who will be identifiable by their bright green uniforms, will have no legal powers to insist that their advice is accepted by recalcitrant passengers.
But backers of the scheme hope their refined social skills mean they will be able to charm - or shame - culprits into reforming their ways.
Useless Health Care
Stuart Buck blogs about recent articles that reveal many common treatments to be ineffective.
This highlights another aspect of the disaster that government health care would become. Governments are masters at stifling innovation and fossilizing the otherwise highly efficient system of information evolution that is the free market.
This highlights another aspect of the disaster that government health care would become. Governments are masters at stifling innovation and fossilizing the otherwise highly efficient system of information evolution that is the free market.
The Congress/Agriculture/Ethanol Taxpayer Ripoff
The US Congress has pulled off something thought impossible.
They are, at once, 1-ripping off the taxpayers, 2-significantly decreasing the food supply, 3-raising the cost of fuel and 4-making the air dirtier. Only the US Congress could be this monumentally stupid and destructive.
Link
They are, at once, 1-ripping off the taxpayers, 2-significantly decreasing the food supply, 3-raising the cost of fuel and 4-making the air dirtier. Only the US Congress could be this monumentally stupid and destructive.
Link
My daughter, who owns a feed and farm supply business in Bosque County, Texas, 40 miles west of Waco, reports that corn is being grown in Texas where corn has never grown before. This corn is destined for the ethanol craze.
The agricultural programs supporting corn make it a sure winner for growers. If the crop fails for any reason, federal crop insurance covers the losses. If a bumper crop and a glut tend to depress prices, there is compensation for that, too.
A corn grower cannot lose money. How would you like to be in a business that can't lose money? And 51 cents per gallon federal subsidy for ethanol production sweetens the deal, further distorting grain markets.
The new corn planting in Texas is replacing soybean planting creating a thin supply of soybeans and escalating prices. Soybeans and corn, among other things, are the favored feed for chickens, eggs and dairy production. Cottonseed meal is the second choice. It is not in short supply, but it is chasing the price of soybeans.
Before this crop cycle is completed, grocery shoppers can expect to see breathtaking prices for eggs, chicken and dairy products. Beef and pork won't be far behind, but there are some substitute feeds for them.
The ethanol farce behind all this is promoted by two misrepresentations by the Bush White House.
Mayor Herenton: I resign...if I get school super job
On the bizarre scale this has got to be an 8.5 at least. Herenton has been Mayor for 16 years and just got re-elected. Memphis Daily News speculates that his resignation may have more to do with upcoming tough budget decisions.
Link
Link
Willie Herenton said Monday that he would stay on as mayor of Memphis if his push to become superintendent of schools fails.
And there appears to be no language in the city charter that would prevent him from doing so.
Associate professor Stephen Wirls, chairman of the political science department at Rhodes College, said the charter provides no "form" to follow regarding "planned" retirement letters and that Herenton could remain as mayor if he wanted.
Herenton said Thursday that he plans to retire in July after 161/2 years as mayor and wants to return to the job at Memphis City Schools he held from 1979 to 1991.
Herenton, who joined the city's division directors Monday morning for photographs inside the Hall of Mayors at City Hall, said citizens had pleaded with him over the years to return to MCS, which is struggling with failing schools, management scandal and high dropout rates.
"I meet people all over the city and they are very concerned about the school system," said Herenton, 67. "That is a common occurrence."
Monday, March 24, 2008
Craigslist hoax shows fragility of "private property"
Link
JACKSONVILLE, Ore. -- A pair of hoax ads on Craigslist cost an Oregon man much of what he owned.
The ads popped up Saturday afternoon, saying the owner of a Jacksonville home was forced to leave the area suddenly and his belongings, including a horse, were free for the taking, said Jackson County Sheriff's Detective Sgt. Colin Fagan.
But Robert Salisbury had no plans to leave. The independent contractor was at Emigrant Lake when he got a call from a woman who had stopped by his house to claim his horse.
[...]The trespassers, armed with printouts of the ad, tried to brush him off. "They honestly thought that because it appeared on the Internet it was true," Salisbury said. "It boggles the mind."
Jacksonville police and Jackson County sheriff's deputies arrived but by then several cars packed with Salisbury's property had fled.
He turned some license plate numbers over to police.
Michelle Easley had seen the ad that claimed Salisbury's horse had been declared abandoned by the sheriff's department and was free to a good home.
"I can't stand to see a horse suffer so I drove out there and got her," Easley said. "The horse didn't look abandoned. She is in good shape for being 32 years old.
Harold Ford Jr jumps from Fox to MSNBC
Reports TV NewserLink
First on TVNewser: Former U.S. Rep. Harold Ford Jr. is now a political analyst for NBC News. He is appearing on MSNBC for the first time tonight on David Gregory's Race for the White House. Ford had been an analyst for Fox News Channel since March 2007. He appeared on FNC during primary coverage, most recently on March 11.
Is Federal Govt trying to Change VA Open Govt Laws?
Link
This past Friday, the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) filed a Freedom of Information Act suit against the Virginia Department of State Police in an effort to uncover whether the federal government has been interfering in the state's open government legislation. EPIC suspects that the feds are trying to use the state police to pressure the Virginia legislature into passing a bill that will put limits on the state's open government laws and will encourage citizens to inform on one another by protecting anonymous tipsters from defamation and invasion of privacy lawsuits.
Why do the feds care about HB1007, the Virginia bill that open government advocates have decried as a major affront to privacy, civil liberties, and government accountability? In a word, it comes down to "fusion."
California's Community College disaster
A very thorough investigative report series from the ContraCosta Times.
Part 1
Part 2
Part 1
Part 2
Consider the sheer magnitude of California's problem:
Nearly 670,000 California college students were enrolled in basic English and math courses last year, with additional students in remedial reading courses and English-as-a-second-language classes. It's estimated that far more students need remedial work but don't enroll, and half the remedial and second-language students leave school after their first year.
One in 10 students at the lowest remedial levels -- community colleges sometimes have up to five courses below the lowest college-level course -- reaches a college-level course in that subject. The numbers are worse for black and Latino students.
Nearly three-quarters of the students who take placement tests are directed to remedial math courses, compared with 9 percent being placed in college-level courses.
Super Lobbyists-Keeping your hand in many pockets
Link
A small number of lobbyists are super insiders. They don’t just donate money to their favorite congressional causes — they serve as treasurers of the lawmakers’ campaign committees.
One of them is Janice Enright, a registered lobbyist who is also treasurer of HillPAC, one of the political committees of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton , D-N.Y.
Cleta Mitchell of the Foley & Lardner lobbying firm is treasurer for two congressional political action committees: Wyoming Values PAC, affiliated with Sen. John Barrasso , R-Wyo., and Fund for a Conservative Future, affiliated with Sen. James M. Inhofe , R-Okla.
Those in the business of seeking favors and those in a position to grant favors can be intertwined in such ways without running afoul of lobbying or ethics laws or congressional rules.
Congressional Quarterly’s examination of campaign finance, lobbying and legislative records found 18 members of Congress who entrusted registered lobbyists with responsibility for the record-keeping of their re-election campaign committees or leadership PACs during 2007.
Republican lawmakers want more secrecy
Senator Ketron wants to allow anonymous complaints against businesses who hire illegals and Senator Finney wants to make secret the contact information for State Employees.
What the heck is going on? Senator's Kyle is absolutely correct, you have a right to confront your accuser, this is basic civil liberties 101. And making State Employee contact information secret? This would make investigation of public corruption practically impossible.
Link
What the heck is going on? Senator's Kyle is absolutely correct, you have a right to confront your accuser, this is basic civil liberties 101. And making State Employee contact information secret? This would make investigation of public corruption practically impossible.
Link
Sen. Raymond Finney said his proposal is aimed mostly at state employees.
"It's a concept of whether we protect our employees against harassment or potential harm if an irate citizen tries to take out their frustration on an employee," said Finney, R-Maryville.
But Herron argued that the measure casts too wide a net by including elected officials.
"Every county commissioner, every county official, every city councilman, every mayor, every state official, every one of them will now have this information confidential," Herron said. "The idea, I think, is not ideal."
Finney took the unusual step of refusing requests from three Democratic senators to delay a vote before finally agreeing to a fourth request by Republican Sen. Tim Burchett, of Knoxville.
"I don't believe that we understood fully the implications of this," Burchett said.
[...]
The proposal to allow elected officials to anonymously lodge complaints against businesses drew the ire of Senate Democratic Leader Jim Kyle, of Memphis.
"The right to confront your accuser is a pretty basic American right," said Kyle. "If someone is saying that you are committing a crime and you're not allowed to know who does that, that's pretty serious."
Sen. Bill Ketron, R-Murfreesboro and sponsor of the anonymity measure, said he's concerned about retaliation from business owners.
"Because if you do turn someone in who broke the law … then they (can) come by and shoot up your house, or torch your house, or kidnap your kids, because you did something that put them out of business because they broke the law," he said.
China suspends taxes on stock market
Link Corporate taxes due on Chinese mutual funds have been temporarily suspended as the government attempts to give the nation's sagging stock market a fillip. According to a statement released by the Ministry of Finance and the Administration of Taxation on Wednesday, income from stock and bonds trading by securities investment funds will be free from enterprise income tax for an indeterminate period. Gains from mutual fund dividends, as well as fund managers' income from mutual fund trading, are also now exempted from income taxes, the notice explained. The preferential policies are aimed at promoting China's stock funds, but the notice did not stipulate how long the tax exemption will be in place. The latest piece of fiscal intervention in the stock market by the Chinese government is in contrast to its recent policies, which were designed to cool a raging bull market with measures such a tripling in stamp duty. However, since hitting a historic peak in October 2007, the Chinese market has shed 40% of its value.
Internet Archive, an amazing resource-Archive.org
The Internet archive digitizes more than 1,000 books each day.
Link
American Libraries
9-11 video archive
Link
American Libraries
9-11 video archive
Sunday, March 23, 2008
More Large Retailers willing to NEGOTIATE Price
The Free Market is getting a little free-er.
Link
Link
Savvy consumers, empowered by the Internet and encouraged by a slowing economy, are finding that they can dicker on prices, not just on clearance items or big-ticket products like televisions but also on lower-cost goods like cameras, audio speakers, couches, rugs and even clothing.
The change is not particularly overt, and most store policies on bargaining are informal. Some major retailers, however, are quietly telling their salespeople that negotiating is acceptable.
“We want to work with the customer, and if that happens to mean negotiating a price, then we’re willing to look at that,” said Kathryn Gallagher, a spokeswoman for Home Depot.
In the last year, she said, the store has adopted an “entrepreneurial spirit” campaign to give salespeople and managers more latitude on prices in order to retain customers.
This is a NEWS article...thats refreshing
"New Jersey has built one of the most complex, voracious and extensive tax machines in the nation to support its spending."Thats the truth and its a valid news story but hardly ever reported. As a government grows bigger and bigger the vested interests that benefit from the growth install statutory poison pills that make reducing spending almost impossible.
These same vested interests and their legislative allies are also masters of spending PR where they portray any spending cuts as affecting the most vulnerable populations and most popular programs.
The only practical way for citizens to escape the resulting over-spending is, unfortunately, to move.
It is instructive that the liberal, big government think tank, Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, says that yes, New Jersey has plenty of room to raise taxes....no problem.
This is like a leech encouraging a blood transfusion for its victim.
HERE is the article.
New Zealand bans some forms of political satire
Holy mackeral...this REALLY is scary. This is he stuff that political revolts are made of....politicians don't like to be satirized?? Choose another profession but don't rob citizens of their freedoms.
Link HT: Copious Dissent
Link HT: Copious Dissent
Apparently, Kiwi politicians were upset at the media for broadcasting images of government ministers appearing to sleep at their desks or making rude gestures. But it wasn't just members of the governing party who were saying "no humor allowed" -- only six members of the 121-seat parliament voted against the measure.
This seems like one of those things that politicians do because they can but often come to regret mightily later.
Not only is the move unpopular with the people of New Zealand (in a recent poll, 71 percent said they opposed the ban), but it probably won't help the country's image in the larger world. I can just imagine what the Australians (who make fun of Kiwis endlessly anyway) will do with it -- or someone like Jon Stewart or those great British comedy shows.
Gail Kerr's Wilderisms Collection
Cosmic Wisdom from retiring State Senator and former Lt. Gov John Wilder:
Link
Link
On seeking his 10th term as lieutenant governor: "People know who I am. I don't know who I am, but I know what I'd like to be."
On Tennessee senators' resolve to stop drinking vodka from Donald Duck juice cans during sessions: "Senate used to go quack quack. Senate don't go quack quack no more."
On running for governor: "I have thought about it, I have weighed it, thought about it, walked up to it, touched it, felt it, walked away from it, and thought about it."
On former Gov. Ned McWherter: "He stands tall. He stands big. He stands wide. He stands firm. He knows how to ease along. He doesn't get his gown over his head too much. He's got big feet."
On love: "We understand that you are the law of the universe. We understand that law is love. That is the strongest force in the cosmos. And that's good. It is not bad."
On being the Senate's leader: "The speaker does not like to hunt. The speaker does not like to play golf. The speaker does not like to fish. The speaker likes to be the speaker."
On the Senate: "We know that our body functions. We know we are loyal party people, but we feel good with each other. We're not mad. We're glad. And we're glad we're not mad. It's not good to be mad."
On his push to put organ donation forms back on Tennessee driver's licenses: "You don't have to use these organs once you check out. There are a lot of organs, but not many donors."
On the law: "Back in England, they said due process was the law of the land. I say it's the law of the cosmos, the law of the universe."
On Texas prison inmates: "They operate computers. They build houses. They grow cotton. They pick cotton. They gin cotton. They spin cotton. They weave cotton. They sew cotton. They dig dirt. They make bricks. They lay bricks. They lay bricks on top of each other to build houses. Got a contracting firm down there. Five hundred people are in it. They build houses. They kill pigs. They skin the pigs. They tan the hides. They make shoes."
On his colleagues: "The Senate is the Senate. The Senate is good."
On getting out of politics: "I don't like to quit. When I quit, I'll be dead. But it'll be a short funeral. Don't expect to find me standing around the grave."
Home Is Where the School Is: An Excellent Op/Ed
There's no denying that the modern home-schooling movement was born of the desire to shake off stultifying school bureaucracies and to sidestep the uncertain mission of public schools, which is set by adults with often conflicting priorities for children. A century of ideological struggles has defined the hodge-podge taught in schools, and they persist to this day. Will schools teach evolution or intelligent design? Offer safe-sex or abstinence-only instruction? Encourage art and dance or treat them as distractions from No Child Left Behind tests? Home-schoolers can make our own decisions based on what's best for our children.
But "home-schooling" is a misnomer, really. Most of it doesn't even take place at home, and the schooling has little in common with what goes on in school. The legal definition varies from state to state, as do registration and other requirements. In New Jersey, the law only requires parents to see that their children get an education "equivalent" to public instruction.
What home-schoolers most readily reflect are the virtues of the old American frontier settlement or the Amish barn-raising -- we co-operate in self-reliance. My wife and I have been teaching our children ourselves for more than 15 years, and we've found that home-schooling opens doors that schools leave closed.
Six more Tenncare arrests in McMinn Cnty
Most involve reselling pain killers. Tennessee now has the second highest per capita prescription drug use in the nation, almost 17 per person per year for ALL 6 million people.
Link
Link
Back Room Secret Meetings on Cable Bill
Jimmy Naifeh hosting secret meetings with many powerful lobbyists. OUR State Government at work?
NO, it is
1- Big business seeking protection from competition.
2- Local government officials protecting "their" franchise fees (which we pay as cable fees.)
3- Lobbyists seeking big bucks from the special relationships they have that 99.9% of normal taxpayers have no hope of matching.
Link
NO, it is
1- Big business seeking protection from competition.
2- Local government officials protecting "their" franchise fees (which we pay as cable fees.)
3- Lobbyists seeking big bucks from the special relationships they have that 99.9% of normal taxpayers have no hope of matching.
Link
A small group of lobbyists gathers outside the office of House Speaker Jimmy Naifeh each week, checking BlackBerries and chatting as they wait to be invited through the doors of the speaker's office and into a conference room in the back.
The subject of those meetings is an issue that could touch every corner of the state: whether telephone giant AT&T will receive statewide permission to offer television service in competition with cable companies like Comcast and Charter, and how widely available AT&T's service will be.
The meeting participants come from a wider cast of characters: dozens of lobbyists, lawmakers and others on Tennessee's Capitol Hill whose relationships and loyalties make a potent stew of politics. They include numerous former members of Gov. Phil Bredesen's administration and two married couples.
"I think every lobbyist in Nashville's been hired on one side or the other," said House Commerce Committee Chairman Charles Curtiss, the Sparta Democrat who sponsored the AT&T legislation last year.
The quiet negotiations in Naifeh's office, which participants are reluctant to discuss, stand in stark contrast to last year's knock-down public fight over the legislation, which would allow AT&T to franchise its new service statewide instead of negotiating with each individual city, town or county.
Many parties say they're close to sealing a deal.
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Patriot Act snagged Spitzer, he was on a SAR
When Congress passed the Patriot Act in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, law-enforcement agencies hailed it as a powerful tool to help track down the confederates of Osama bin Laden. No one expected it would end up helping to snag the likes of Eliot Spitzer. The odd connection between the antiterror law and Spitzer's trysts with call girls illustrates how laws enacted for one purpose often end up being used very differently once they're on the books.
The Patriot Act gave the FBI new powers to snoop on suspected terrorists. In the fine print were provisions that gave the Treasury Department authority to demand more information from banks about their customers' financial transactions. Congress wanted to help the Feds identify terrorist money launderers. But Treasury went further. It issued stringent new regulations that required banks themselves to look for unusual transactions (such as odd patterns of cash withdrawals or wire transfers) and submit SARs—Suspicious Activity Reports—to the government. Facing potentially stiff penalties if they didn't comply, banks and other financial institutions installed sophisticated software to detect anomalies among millions of daily transactions. They began ranking the risk levels of their customers—on a scale of zero to 100—based on complex formulas that included the credit rating, assets and profession of the account holder.
Roberston Cnty Residents want to VOTE on Bond
If you live in Robertson County (Springfield, Greenbier, Whitehouse, Ridgetop, Adams, Coopertown) you will soon owe $70.5 million of new debt. However, you can petition for the right to vote on this new bond issue which will result in a significant new property hike.
HERE is the petition form (PDF), just print, sign, and then get as many other people to sign as possible and return to the address on the form.
Time is VERY short, PLEASE HELP if you live in Roberston County or you know anyone.
HERE is the petition form (PDF), just print, sign, and then get as many other people to sign as possible and return to the address on the form.
Time is VERY short, PLEASE HELP if you live in Roberston County or you know anyone.
Sumner County Residents Fight Annexation
Quote of the week highlighted below.
Link
Link
"It's not right for you to walk over us because the law gives you the right to. I ask that you not turn us into collateral damage."
Chuck Gross of St. Blaise Trail suggested homeowners in the subdivision could take the estimated $17,380 the city would collect in property taxes each year to use to fight the annexation in court.
Gross, like many of his neighbors, said he's already paying for services the city wants to provide in exchange for his taxes. St. Blaise Estates wanted the city to wait three years before bringing the subdivision into Gallatin.
"In three years, that's $57,000 we can spend without losing any money on our part," Gross said.
"If we go to court, we both lose. I just want you as city council members to consider such a challenge to the city of Gallatin."
Friday, March 21, 2008
BestDoctors.Com-Review your doc's diagnosis
Link
Best Doctors provides a unique combination of information and access to the best medical care to members faced with a serious illness or injury. Services include a comprehensive review of a patient’s medical records to reaffirm or redefine the original diagnosis and to recommend treatment protocols, as well as access to the most qualified specialists and facilities worldwide.
Bob Barr as Libertarian Presidential Candidate?
LinkAn aide to Ron Paul, the Texas congressman who remains in the Republican race, said his boss likes Mr. Barr and has talked to him about his prospects with Mr. Paul"s supporters. Mr. Paul broke Internet fundraising records in his run for the Republican nomination and has an e-mail list of 400,000 committed donors and activists that would be helpful to a general-election run by Mr. Barr.
Mr. Barr declined to say whether he has approached Mr. Paul.
The possible entry of another general-election candidate on the right presents a further challenge to the Republican National Committee, which has been working overtime on opposition research for the twin contingencies of an Obama or a Clinton nomination on the Democratic side.
Asked for a response, Republican National Chairman Mike Duncan did not mention Mr. Barr's name, saying instead that "John McCain is the presumptive nominee, and the Republican Party is uniting behind his vision for low taxes, strong national and fiscal responsibility."
"We look forward to engaging all elements of the electorate and working toward a victory this fall that will move our nation forward," Mr. Duncan said.
European Library-Portal for European Online Libraries
An extraordinary portal for searching and linking to digital online collections for hundreds of European Libraries.
Link
Link
Alert for TN, New Push for State Income Tax in NH
Heads up for Tennessee, this bogus effort for "fair taxation" in New Hampshire is something we have heard many times before. This effort at "fair taxation" will be supported by all the groups that support bigger government. This is about growing government, period.
Link
Link
New Hampshire is a study in tax contrasts — the lack of broad-based income or sales taxes gives it the lowest overall tax burden in the nation, but the property tax burden is the country’s third highest. The only other state without a state income tax or a statewide sales tax is Alaska, said Gerald Prante, a senior economist at the Tax Foundation, a nonpartisan tax research group.
“New Hampshire is an oddball in the Northeast,” he added. “They’re just a low-tax state in general, and in New England, it’s an anomaly.”
The property tax here is allocated toward local government and schools, as well as a state education fund. The state taxes various things, including meals and rooms, business profits and personal dividends. That revenue goes into the state budget.
More Creepy Robot Video
Super Fast Industrial Arm Robot with super fast visual discrimination and sorting
Military Microdrone
Military Microdrone
Thursday, March 20, 2008
NC Legislature boots out one of it's own
Link
RALEIGH (AP) — The state House voted overwhelmingly Thursday to remove Rep. Thomas Wright from office, the first such expulsion of a lawmaker from North Carolina's General Assembly in 128 years.
The House voted 109-5 in favor of booting the Wilmington Democrat, who is accused of mishandling or hiding about $340,000 in loans and campaign and charitable contributions. At least 80 votes were needed to kick him out of office.
Wright was immediately escorted from the chamber by the House sergeant at arms. His attorney later promised to file a legal challenge to the House's action.
Wright, who faces a criminal trial later this month on similar charges, has denied wrongdoing and called the proceedings a rush to judgment by his peers. Wright asked his colleagues not to expel him, arguing that he couldn't adequately defend himself without revealing to prosecutors his criminal defense strategy.
"I am innocent of the criminal charges before me," Wright said. "However, I need an opportunity to prove that. This is less than the appropriate setting to do that."
AP-Ophelia Ford to return to TN Senate
Link
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- State Sen. Ophelia Ford is expected to return to the Legislature next week after being absent with an unspecified illness since the session started in January.Ford's temporary assistant, Sherwine Lucien, told The Associated Press on Thursday that the Memphis Democrat had contacted her about booking a flight to Nashville on Monday."As far as we know, she should be here Monday," Lucien said.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- State Sen. Ophelia Ford is expected to return to the Legislature next week after being absent with an unspecified illness since the session started in January.Ford's temporary assistant, Sherwine Lucien, told The Associated Press on Thursday that the Memphis Democrat had contacted her about booking a flight to Nashville on Monday."As far as we know, she should be here Monday," Lucien said.
Two items for the "Nanny State" Category
RFID Tags enable tracking without your knowledge
Scotland Yard wants DNA testing of children who "may become criminals in later life"
Scotland Yard wants DNA testing of children who "may become criminals in later life"
Recall Petitioners subjected to Thug tactics in MI
MichiganRecalls.com has even established a website to document the thug tactics of petition blockers who harass citizens wishing to sign a recall petition.
New tax Free Savings Account for all Canadians
Link HT: American Shareholders Assoc.
OTTAWA - A new tax-free savings account was a groundbreaking surprise in the federal budget that experts predict will be attractive to middle- and upper-middle income Canadians who can afford to set aside up to $5,000 a year.
Starting next year, Canadians aged 18 and older can save up to $5,000 a year in a registered Tax-Free Savings Account, a new vehicle that essentially allows people to enjoy the benefits of a tax-free offshore account as long as they want without sending their money out of the country.
Unlike the registered retirement saving plan, contributions each year will not be deductible for income tax purposes. But interest and investment income - including capital gains - earned in the account will not be taxed when it is withdrawn, as is the case with RRSP withdrawals.
House web server overloaded by earmark requests
The pigs are at the trough.
Link
Link
In a sure sign that earmarks remain as popular as ever, an overload of pork requests clogged the House Appropriations Committee’s Web site Wednesday, forcing an extension to the request deadline to next week.
States’ Data Obscure How Few Finish High School
One team of statisticians working at the state education headquarters here recently calculated the official graduation rate at a respectable 87 percent, which Mississippi reported to Washington. But in another office piled with computer printouts, a second team of number crunchers came up with a different rate: a more sobering 63 percent.
The state schools superintendent, Hank Bounds, says the lower rate is more accurate and uses it in a campaign to combat a dropout crisis.
“We were losing about 13,000 dropouts a year, but publishing reports that said we had graduation rate percentages in the mid-80s,” Mr. Bounds said. “Mathematically, that just doesn’t work out.”
Like Mississippi, many states use an inflated graduation rate for federal reporting requirements under the No Child Left Behind law and a different one at home. As a result, researchers say, federal figures obscure a dropout epidemic so severe that only about 70 percent of the one million American students who start ninth grade each year graduate four years later.
New NY Gov against tax hikes on wealthy
Link
March 20, 2008 -- Raising taxes isn't the way to go right now, Gov. Paterson said yesterday, joining Mayor Bloomberg in opposing a plan by Democrats in the Assembly to boost taxes on the rich.
"I think that the foremost area that we want to address is to tighten our belts, not to drive up taxes for a constituency that has been - I would say - battered over the past number of years," Paterson said during a City Hall press conference with Bloomberg.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
"estimated taxes don't account for behavioral responses"
or Why the Federal Government always overstates the revenue from a tax increase.
CA Repub wants to make Office Pools less illegal
Under Jeffries proposal, CA Govt won't throw you in jail for betting on the NCAA tournament but they can fine you $500 (down from $5,000.).
Politicians and moral fine tuning just don't mix.
For every Californian who has celebrated March Madness or a Super Bowl by popping a few bucks into an office betting pool, proposed new state legislation is designed to help you sleep easier.
Passage of the measure would remove the possibility of jail time for organizing or participating in nonprofit, all-in-fun office pools.
"Folks making a friendly wager with friends or co-workers should not have to worry about committing a crime," said Assemblyman Kevin Jeffries, who proposed the measure.
The Lake Elsinore Republican said his goal is to make the punishment fit the offense – not to legalize office betting.
In a state where residents can gamble daily on Indian casino games, Lotto and horse racing, Jeffries sees no reason to hammer them for friendly betting on major sporting events.
Under Assembly Bill 1852, violators would be guilty of an infraction, punishable by a $500 fine. Current law allows first offenders to be jailed for up to one year and fined $5,000.
1/2 of Brits distrust Govt Stats, according to Govt Stats
More than half of Britons think politicians interfere with official data, according to a survey by the government’s own statisticians.
The figures from the Office for National Statistics suggest efforts by the government to improve public confidence have had little effect.
Jerry Seinfeld's immutable law of money applies
A Gem of knowledge from the Seinfeld episode where Jerry lends money to Elaine. Jerry observed that:
"People don't turn down money."
This applies especially to taxpayer money.
Apparently, the Metro Council is surprised that the Predators new owners will take all the taxpayer money that has been offered to them.
"People don't turn down money."
This applies especially to taxpayer money.
Apparently, the Metro Council is surprised that the Predators new owners will take all the taxpayer money that has been offered to them.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
"incomprehensible" but lets vote on Preds deal anyway
I can't tell you how many times I have listened to presentations and then watched votes in County Commissions where it was very clear that only one or two people had ANY CLUE what they were voting on....looks like this is another sterling example. HELLOOO, its not the attorneys who have the ultimate responsibility to protect taxpayers.
The Sports Authority’s most vocal member, Steve North, was the only dissenting vote.
“The main concern I have about this agreement is that it is so complex, that unless you are a lawyer who specializes in this particular kind of deal, it is virtually incomprehensible.”
North, himself, is an attorney.
Other Sports Authority members agree that the contract is overly-complex but say they trust that the city’s attorneys are looking out for tax payers.
The new lease agreement now goes before the Metro Council for final approval.
They actually said these words out loud
Link
“A primary purpose of the educational system is to train school children in good citizenship, patriotism and loyalty to the state and the nation as a means of protecting the public welfare.”
Marsha joins Cooper and Corker-NO MORE EARMARKS
Thank you Marsha!!!
Link
Link
U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Brentwood) became the latest Tennessee politician today to say that she would not be filing any earmark requests, joining Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) and Rep. Jim Cooper (D-Nashville). Wednesday is the deadline for filing earmark requests, and Blackburn says she won’t be filing any. ”Wednesday is the first day of what has become the great feeding frenzy known as the earmark process. The majority of my colleagues participate because they are dutifully tending to the needs of their districts. Unfortunately, many others are vying behind closed doors for wasteful pork.”"This is not a decision I came to easily, but I believe that the process has been fatally corrupted. In my opinion, the current process has proven to be disrespectful of the taxpayer and of the true and valid needs of our districts.”
Ga State Rep pleads guilty to money laundering
Link HT: Turnbow
Sailor, 33, of Norcross, pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal district court to a felony criminal information charging him with laundering and attempting to launder what he believed to be drug proceeds, after taking possession and agreeing to launder a total of approximately $375,000 of cash from the purported sale of cocaine.
Sailor was arrested in December and prosecutors said he has been cooperating with an "active public corruption investigation".
“This case did not start as a public corruption matter, but rather as a drug money laundering investigation -- part of our diligent efforts to identify, investigate, and prosecute significant drug traffickers and money launderers, whomever they may be,” said United States Attorney David E. Nahmias. “Rep. Sailor’s actions in that regard were very disturbing, because he was a person entrusted by his community with enacting the law, who instead violated the law in a serious way, seeking to assist the drug traffickers who sell their poison in our communities.
"Federal prosecutors told WSB-TV Channel 2 reporter Tiffani Reynolds that Sailor laundered $75,000 from an undercover FBI agent and was attempting to launder an additional $300,000 when he was arrested.
Soc Sec nums determine stimulus payout order
Link
The IRS said it plans to deliver 130 million checks between May 2 and July 11 based on the last two digits of the recipient’s Social Security number.
According to the IRS, direct deposit payments will be made May 2 to recipients whose Social Security numbers end in 00-20.
Direct deposit payments will be made a week later, May 9, to people whose numbers end in 21-75. The final round of direct deposit payments will be made May 16 to people whose numbers end in 76-99.
Those who will receive paper checks are on a longer schedule.
Checks will be mailed May 16 to those whose numbers end in 00-09. A second round of checks will be mailed May 23 to those whose numbers end in 10-18. A May 30 mailing will be made to people whose numbers end in 19-25.
Subsequent mailings will be made June 6 to those whose numbers end in 26-38, June 13 to numbers 39-51, June 20 to numbers 52-63, June 27 to numbers 64-75, July 4 to numbers 76-87, and July 11 to those whose numbers end in 88-99.
The payments of $300 each to certain low-income recipients and $600 or $1,200 to single or married taxpayers, plus additional money for families with qualifying children, will be calculated from tax returns filed by April 15. Filers also can indicate on those returns whether they want money directly deposited in a bank account or mailed to them.
Robertson Cnty Taxpayers in Debt by $70.5 Mil more
The Robertson County Commission voted last night to put $70.5 million in new debt on the taxpayers credit card. There may be a petition drive to try to get this bond indebtedness on the ballot so taxpayers can have their say. With credit markets in turmoil and the economy maybe going into recession taxpayers may not be in a good mood for more debt and the resulting tax hikes. Developing...
Monday, March 17, 2008
Taxpayer Ripoff at the Governor's Mansion
Tennessee Center for Policy Research has looked further into the cost figures for the Governor's mansion renovation and it ain't pretty.
Link
Link
Renovating the kitchen – $321,39
Hanging accent lighting – $53,85
Replacing dimmer switches with brass cover plates – $14,43
Installing a wet bar – $10,930
Refurbishing wash stand legs – $7,511
Egads!! Life without an iPod is unbearable
Link
A few weeks ago I gave a talk on the state of the economy to a group of college students -- almost all Barack Obama enthusiasts -- who were griping about how downright awful things are in America today. As they sipped their Starbucks lattes and adjusted their designer sunglasses, they recited their grievances: The country is awash in debt "that we will have to pay off"; the middle class in shrinking; the polar ice caps are melting; and college is too expensive.
I've been speaking to groups like this one for more than 20 years, but I have never confronted such universal pessimism from a young audience. Its members acted as if the hardships of modern life are making it nearly impossible for them to get out of bed in the morning. So I conducted a survey of these grim youngsters. How many of you, I asked, own a laptop? A cellphone? An iPod, a DVD player, a flat-screen digital TV? To every question somewhere between two-thirds and all of the hands in the room rose. But they didn't even get my point. "Well, duh," one of them scoffed, "who doesn't have an iPod these days?" I was way too embarrassed to tell them that I, for one, don't. They thought that living without these products would be like going back to prehistoric times.
Photog harassed trying to take DC Pics
Link
Like I said, I figured there would be a big rally there, so I made my way down there and was snapping pictures of the crowd when I noticed that someone had thrown red paint at the embassy earlier. I crossed the street to get a few pictures of that and was approached by two uniformed Secret Service officers who informed me that I was not allowed to photograph the embassy or even be on that side of the street.
I have been through this before with other law enforcement officers. The difference this time was that the lady and her male partner were polite when they stopped me, even if they did lie about my rights.
I explained that I was on public property, it being a sidewalk, and that I was within my rights to be there and photograph the building. After about a minute of back-and-forth, they could see that I was not budging and after examining my press credentials, they determined that I really was a journalist, or perhaps that I simply knew my rights, and left me alone, but not without some huffing and puffing about crowd control. They were determined to have the last word, even if the words were ultimately empty.
Okay, I get that the police need to keep order and make sure that nobody does stupid stuff and to ensure that a peaceful rally like this does not turn violent, but to me, photography is not a very threatening activity. If there had been a “do not cross” tape set up, that would be different.
Spitzer is an amateur compared to Hefner, Inc.
LinkHow much is Playboy (PLA) spending to provide food, housing and other “personal benefits” for Holly Madison, Bridget Marquardt and Kendra Wilkinson, Hugh Hefner’s live-in girlfriends and the stars of The Girls Next Door on the E! Network? About $400K according to the 10-K that Playboy filed on Friday.Although according to Wikipedia, The Girls Next Door has been around since 2005, this is the first time that Playboy is disclosing these costs in a filing, so it’s hard to say whether the $400K is more or less than in previous years. If you’re as familiar with this show as I was before I began working on this post, you can find more information about its three stars here.
Dallas Redlight Cams not producing enough Green
Oh, the tangled web government weaves.
Link
Link
Dallas City Hall has idled more than one-fourth of the 62 cameras that monitor busy intersections because many of them are failing to generate enough red-light-running fines to justify their operational costs, according to city documents.
Initial gross revenue estimates for the red light camera system during Dallas' 2007-08 fiscal year were $14.8 million, according to city records. The latest estimate? About $6.2 million. City Manager Mary Suhm on Friday estimated net revenue will fall $4.1 million under initial estimates.
That leaves Dallas government with a conundrum. Its red-light camera system has been an effective deterrent to motorists running red lights – some monitored intersections have experienced a more than 50 percent reduction. But decreased revenue from red light-running violations means significantly less revenue to maintain the camera program and otherwise fuel the city's general fund.
Exacerbating the drain is a new state law requiring that municipalities send half of their net red-light-running camera revenue to Austin and post signs alerting drivers of upcoming camera installations. Also, city records indicate Dallas has lengthened yellow-light intervals on 12 of its 62 monitored traffic signals, giving motorists more time to beat a red light.
Sunday, March 16, 2008
"Private Property" is so much more than property
Our right to own property and be secure in that ownership is not about greed or accumulating "things", it is about security and dignity and mutual respect. It is absolutely essential for any claim we make to being sovereign as individual citizens.Ask 83 year old Bernie Garcia. Here is what she said:
"'Hell no,' I told him. That was my purse. I was fighting for what was mine."Link
"They got caught and I'm so glad," Garcia said.
She said she felt fine after the attack, and police say she declined medical attention at the scene. But when she got home, she said, she felt faint and went to bed and woke up Thursday very sore. Her son, a former firefighter, checked her out and found no broken bones.
"My son said, 'Why didn't you just give (the purse) up?'" Garcia said. "'Hell no,' I told him. That was my purse. I was fighting for what was mine."
Mr. Mayor, my heart just skipped a beat.
When a Mayor talks like this, I get all fluttery inside. He is actually talking about "opportunity cost", thats pretty sophisticated stuff. He is actually talking about the taxpayer's money as if the taxpayer might have a better use for it. He is telling us that he believes taxpayers actually have a brain and might decide that more government is not the best way to spend their money.
YES, this elected official GETS IT!!
Link
YES, this elected official GETS IT!!
Link
Getting more space without building a $5 million city hall is what we're working on. The key is always not to put the burden on taxpayers when you're working on projects. Any kind of project you can do if you're willing to raise property taxes, but the citizens of La Vergne would rather keep that money in their pocket and let the officials figure out another way of doing it. This board has been excellent about that. I'm very proud of the elected officials we have.
Tax hikes are a tough sell? Duh
In Mass HT: TWR
In Main:As homeowners across the region struggle to balance their checkbooks, municipal leaders are leery of asking them to shoulder higher tax bills to help balance their communities' finances, especially in cities and towns where proposed increases were resoundingly defeated last year.
"I get a sense of a more hunkering down across the board this year than in past years," said John Robertson, a deputy director at the Massachusetts Municipal Association, which is tracking tax increase proposals statewide.
"I think ultimately it will be a tough year to win increases," he said.
AUGUSTA — The Legislature is in the process of reviewing some tough cuts proposed by Governor John Baldacci to fill a $190 million hole in the budget.
The temptation to raise taxes, however, appears to be a non-starter in the Senate, where several Democrats are joining with their Republican colleagues and saying “no.”
“No. Period,” said Sen. Bill Diamond (D-Cumberland County), when asked if he would vote for a tax increase to help balance the budget.
Sen. John Nutting (D-Androscoggin County) had a similar response, adding he might support a few fee increases, but no serious tax hikes.
“I can’t vote for new taxes when there’s fat in the budget,” Nutting said, using the opportunity to take another shot at Governor John Baldacci for not cutting what he calls “political appointees.”
“What are the Governor’s priorities?” Nutting asked. “He’s protecting political appointees at the expense of the most vulnerable.”
Text messages are public records? YES
LinkCourts, lawyers and states are increasingly treating these typed text messages as public documents subject to the same disclosure laws — including the federal Freedom of Information Act — that apply to e-mails and paper records.
"I don't care if it's delivered by carrier pigeon, it's a record," said Charles Davis, executive director of the National Freedom of Information Coalition at the University of Missouri. "If you're using public time or your public office, you're creating public records every time you hit send."
A Texas judge agreed in December, ordering the city of Dallas to turn over e-mails written by some city officials as well as messages sent on handheld devices such as cellphones.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Gov Phil Bredesen wants choices for his mother
This sound clip is from the excellent program, Legislative Report. Our Governor, Phil Bredesen, clearly cares very deeply about his mother having choices when it comes to her long term care.
He says that his decision to offer more options for long term care is driven by concerns about his mother. She wants to stay in her home as long as possible and he wants TN citizens to also have the same range of options so THEY can choose the option best suited to their needs.
He says that his decision to offer more options for long term care is driven by concerns about his mother. She wants to stay in her home as long as possible and he wants TN citizens to also have the same range of options so THEY can choose the option best suited to their needs.
"well respected" TN moonshine expert gets busted
Link
Officers say they found all the ingredients and tools needed to make moonshine, including three stills and more than 800 gallons of moonshine that was being stored in a shed.
"He's well-respected among us moonshiners," says Jimmie Frank Hill, a Cocke County resident.
Sutton has written a book and starred in several instructional videos to teach others how to make moonshine.
Julie Johnson, a friend of Sutton, says, "All over the U.S. you can go out of town with him and people come up to him and say, 'Didn't I see you on the History Channel?"
Perhaps his celebrity caught up with him.
Capitol Hill Reporter gets pink slip
in Connecticut after 28 years. Governing has the story. Newspaper coverage of legislatures continues to diminish.
All Legislators, including ours in Tennessee, now have an even larger burden to make their proceedings more easily accessible and transparent to the citizens they serve.
All Legislators, including ours in Tennessee, now have an even larger burden to make their proceedings more easily accessible and transparent to the citizens they serve.
Bunker Busting Amendment from Beth Harwell
Rep. Beth Harwell will offer an amendment to the State Appropriations bill that will cut off funding to the Bunker at the Governor's mansion. Kudos to Beth. This project is a boondoggle on so many levels. There are MANY, MANY other ways to better use this money:
State Highway projects being delayed
But the most offensive aspect of this project is the fact that it will be totally inaccessible to the public. All of the events at the bunker will be underground, behind a steel security fence, and totally isolated from the taxpaying public. This is wrong. This project should be stopped NOW!
State Highway projects being delayed
But the most offensive aspect of this project is the fact that it will be totally inaccessible to the public. All of the events at the bunker will be underground, behind a steel security fence, and totally isolated from the taxpaying public. This is wrong. This project should be stopped NOW!
Friday, March 14, 2008
NY Gov "passionately in favor of school choice"
John Fund at WSJ
But on at least one issue, Mr. Paterson breaks from liberal orthodoxy. He is passionately in favor of school choice and has even spoken at two conferences held by the Alliance for School Choice. At one, he pulled off the rare feat of quoting both Martin Luther King Jr. and individualistic philosopher Ayn Rand approvingly in the same speech.
Three more Congressmen say NO to earmarks
Club for Growth has the story. This means that 32 members of Congress have sworn off pork barrel spending. A Big Thank YOU to every one of them.
'Faith care' will probably be killed on the operating table
In spite of 1-crusading progressives who want to kill private health care, 2-power hungry regulators who don't believe people can make decisions about their own welfare without bureaucratic "oversight", and 3-large insurance companies that would like to regulate their competition out of business, faith based health ministries have survived. How much longer? It will be an uphill battle. Medi-Share and Christian Healthcare are mentioned in the article.
Link
Link
Wendy Sweet rarely visits the doctor. But in October, after Blue Cross Blue Shield increased her family's monthly health insurance premium to $1,150, she sure felt like she needed one.
Sweet, 46, owns South Street Mortgage. As a small business owner, she has no one to help offset her health care costs.
So Sweet joined a small but growing number of people enrolled in faith-based alternatives to health insurance.
The Sweets are new members of Christian Care Medi-Share, a charitable ministry that collects monthly contributions and disburses them among members to pay medical bills. For $459 a month, the family receives help on costs greater than $250, up to $1million.
"We feel like this protects us in case of catastrophic events," the Charlotte mother of three said. "We can cover the other stuff with the money we save."
In a decade in which premiums have nearly doubled and the number of uninsured has grown from 38 million to 47 million, many people are searching for help.
This sounds promising-maybe
"Performance Based Budgeting" can be just another way for bureaucrats to evangelize for more money but any effort to simplify and clarify budget documents is worth trying. Most County Commissioners go glassy eyed when reviewing the budget.
Link
Link
With the opening of a new school, as well as facing rising gas and electricity costs, County Mayor Carolyn Bowers said the county will have to have to act conservatively when approving budget requests.
"We hope with strategic planning, it'll make department heads look at what's important for the public," Bowers said.
She said Budget Committee members will scrutinize each budget line by line, but the strategic planning may make it easier to understand the need for certain requests.
Rather than presenting pages of dollar amounts associated with generic line items, department leaders will be required to list everything they want to purchase, said Accounts and Budgets Director Betty Burchett.
With personnel, for example, the budget will include a narrative summary justifying the need for each requested position and possible effects if a position is rejected.
Burchett said performance-based budgeting will be applied to 2009-10 budget cycle to determine how each department fared with the added and cut items from the 2008-09 budget.
"This is just a tool to look at the efficiency of each department," Burchett said.
Govt Agency that can't spend money fast enough?
The Memphis Area Career Center can't spend all the taxpayer money they have been allocated because people keep finding jobs on their own. Damn these self reliant people!!
Center executive director Isaac Garrett said his staff tried its best to alert organizations and individuals that help was available, but some workers just didn't want to take advantage of the training.
"The challenge we have is when someone is laid off, either they try to find a job right away or they have severance pay and try to live off their severance," he said. "At the point they lose their severance pay, instead of going to training, they need money and they go to work.
Corker and Alexander BOTH vote YES
for a one year moratorium on earmarks. Kudos and many thanks to them both.
21 Republicans voted against the moratorium and to continue Pork Barrel spending. What a damn shame.
21 Republicans voted against the moratorium and to continue Pork Barrel spending. What a damn shame.
| SENATOR | SENATOR | SENATOR |
| Bennett (UT) | Domenici (NM) | Smith, G. (OR) |
| Bond (MO) | Gregg (NH) | Snowe (ME) |
| Brownback (KS) | Hagel (NE) | Specter (PA) |
| Bunning (KY) | Hatch (UT) | Stevens (AK) |
| Cochran (MS) | Hutchinson (TX) | Vitter (LA) |
| Coleman (MN) | Lugar (IN) | Voinovich (OH) |
| Collins (ME) | Murkowski (AK) | Warner (VA) |
| Craig (ID) | Roberts (KS) | Wicker (MS) |
| Crapo (ID) | Shelby (AL) |
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Charges Dropped against "neglectful" Mom
This mom was arrested because she was acting in a rational way in the best interest of her children. The arresting officer was an idiot. Now, the DA has recognized as much and has dropped all charges.
The woman, Treffly Coyne, was charged with misdemeanor child endangerment and obstructing a peace officer after a Crestwood police officer spotted her sleeping daughter alone in the vehicle Dec. 8. The mother claimed she was close by at all times and was gone for just minutes.
Coyne's trial was supposed to begin Thursday, but prosecutors could not meet the burden of proof and decided to drop the charges, Cook County State's Attorney spokesman John Gorman said.
Her husband reacted with relief and anger. If convicted, his wife faced up to a year in jail and a fine of $2,500.
"We shouldn't have had to fight this long and this hard when my wife never did anything wrong," said Timothy Janecyk. The planned dismissal of the charges "only shows they tore my family apart for no reason."
UT Libraries Guide to TN Legislative Materials
Link to Main Page
Especially Helpful, The TN General Assembly "Daily Service", a record of each day's proceedings:
Especially Helpful, The TN General Assembly "Daily Service", a record of each day's proceedings:
The "Daily Service is an abbreviated account of all actions taken by the House and Senate and their committees on each day of session and each day set aside as "committee days ". The actions are grouped, by house of activity, under headings such as "Introductions," "Second Consideration," "Committee Actions," Committee Calendars for (date)," "Approved by Governor," etc.
Teacher Union: Parents should have NO choice
TEA, the Tennessee Teacher's Union, wants to maintain their government sanctioned monopoly on education.
They oppose more charter schools but they happily approve of more Pre-K as long as they have a monopoly on providing teachers for the program.
As long as some members of the General Assembly continue to represent the TEA instead of their constituents, Tennessee parents will have NO choice except home schooling and private schools.
Phil Bredesen and Karl Dean, both of whom chose NOT to send their children to Metro Nashville public schools, are quite happy for the TEA to continue their tyranny of parents who don't have the ability to pay for private schools.
They oppose more charter schools but they happily approve of more Pre-K as long as they have a monopoly on providing teachers for the program.
As long as some members of the General Assembly continue to represent the TEA instead of their constituents, Tennessee parents will have NO choice except home schooling and private schools.
Phil Bredesen and Karl Dean, both of whom chose NOT to send their children to Metro Nashville public schools, are quite happy for the TEA to continue their tyranny of parents who don't have the ability to pay for private schools.
Maybe he should just buy the kid a video game
LinkHe started decorating his 2007 Ford Mustang last summer to look like the police cruiser in the "Transformers" movie because his 7-year-old son, Thomas, was fond of the film.
"My intent was to re-create the movie car," said Vigil, a 35-year-old disabled veteran from the war in Iraq. "When I came back from Iraq, I tried to spoil him. I wasn't the best dad before."
He said he called the district attorney's office beforehand and spoke to Chief Deputy District Attorney Joe Ulibarri, who tried to discourage his decorating scheme but couldn't find anything in the law that would stop Vigil as long as he didn't impersonate an officer.
Ulibarri said a state law prevents people from mimicking state police cars, which are painted black and white. But he also said the state police sell their old cars to private citizens without changing the colors.
"Are we violating our own law by not repainting them?" he asked.
When Skittles are outlawed...
Link
Michael Sheridan was stripped of his title as class vice president, barred from attending an honors student dinner and suspended for a day after buying a bag of Skittles from a classmate.
School spokeswoman Catherine Sullivan-DeCarlo says the New Haven school system banned candy sales in 2003 as part of a district wide school wellness policy.
Michael Sheridan was stripped of his title as class vice president, barred from attending an honors student dinner and suspended for a day after buying a bag of Skittles from a classmate.
School spokeswoman Catherine Sullivan-DeCarlo says the New Haven school system banned candy sales in 2003 as part of a district wide school wellness policy.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Freedom Dem Blogger has thoughts on Prostitution
1- Why is it illegal to sell sex, but legal to give it away?
2- Why is it illegal for person X to pay person Y to have sex with them, but it is legal for person Z to pay the two of them to have sex with each other and film it so person A, person, B, and person C can buy it and view it.
Reporters without Borders ID "Internet Enemies"
Link HT: BeSpacifc
"Reporters Without Borders calls on Internet users to come and protest in virtual versions of countries that are Internet enemies...There are 15 countries in this year’s Reporters Without Borders list of “Internet Enemies” - Belarus, Burma, China, Cuba, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Vietnam and Zimbabwe. There were only 13 in 2007. The two new additions to the traditional censors are both to be found in sub-Saharan Africa: Zimbabwe and Ethiopia...There is also a supplementary list of 11 “countries under watch.” They are Bahrain, Eritrea, Gambia, Jordan, Libya, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Thailand, United Arab Emirates and Yemen."
"Reporters Without Borders is making a new version of its Handbook for Bloggers and Cyber-Dissidents available to bloggers today to mark Online Free Expression Day. The handbook offers practical advice and techniques on how to create a blog, make entries and get the blog to show up in search engine results. It gives clear explanations about blogging for all those whose online freedom of expression is subject to restrictions, and it shows how to sidestep the censorship measures imposed by certain governments, with a practical example that demonstrates the use of the censorship circumvention software Tor."
Unnecessary Liver Transplants mean Big Bucks
Link
The Trib investigation found:
The Trib investigation found:
- Despite a federal rule designed to limit the number of liver transplants in patients who aren’t critically ill, four of the nation’s 128 programs have done half of the 846 such transplants since 2005. The programs, by volume of transplants, are Clarian Health in Indianapolis, Pittsburgh’s UPMC, Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville and Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester, N.Y. Most other centers do not give livers to less-critically ill patients, except in rare cases.
- Transplants among least ill patients mean big money for medical centers facing increased competition. By doing transplants no one else will do, centers tap into a pool of some 8,500 patients worth an estimated $4 billion in potential charges. They typically get paid the same, no matter how sick the patients are.
- No federal rules exist on the use of marginal or inferior livers for transplantation. Individual surgeons decide whether an organ is suitable. However, when an organ comes from a high-risk donor, physicians are required by federal regulation to make that clear to the patient.
- Liver transplant programs sometimes bypass the sickest patients because their reduced survival odds can hurt overall center success rates.
- Of the 16,000 people on the national liver transplant waiting list, only about 3,400 are so sick that having a transplant would increase their odds of surviving.
- People at the bottom of waiting lists rarely get sicker quickly. Only five percent of the 5,800 people in the lowest segment of the list get so sick within a year that they absolutely need a transplant.
TN is a "Saint" when it comes to Tort Law
Link
Main Study Page
By merging the output and input results, we can divide states into four groups: saints, sinners, salvageables, and suckers. The saints are states that have relatively low monetary tort losses and/or few litigation risks and relatively strong tort rules on the books. These states are well positioned to contain their tort liability costs in the future if the rules are implemented as written. These states include Alaska, Mississippi, Ohio, Tennessee, and Utah.
Main Study Page
By merging the output and input results, we can divide states into four groups: saints, sinners, salvageables, and suckers. The saints are states that have relatively low monetary tort losses and/or few litigation risks and relatively strong tort rules on the books. These states are well positioned to contain their tort liability costs in the future if the rules are implemented as written. These states include Alaska, Mississippi, Ohio, Tennessee, and Utah.
Mother arrested for...being a good mother??
This is an unbelievable story of abuse of power.Link
Even as she buckled 2-year-old Phoebe into the car, the girl was asleep. When Coyne arrived at the store, she found a spot to park in a loading zone, right behind someone tying a Christmas tree onto a car.
"It's sleeting out, it's not pleasant, I don't want to disturb her, wake her up," Coyne said this week. "It was safer to leave her in the safety and warmth of an alarmed car than take her."
So Coyne switched on the emergency flashers, locked the car, activated the alarm and walked the other children to the bell ringer.
She snapped a few pictures of the girls donating money and headed back to the car. But a community service officer blocked her way.
"She was on a tirade, she was yelling at me," Coyne said. The officer, Coyne said, didn't want to hear about how close Coyne was, how she never set foot inside the store and was just there to let the kids donate money, or how she could always see her car.
Coyne telephoned her husband, Tim Janecyk, who advised her not to say anything else to police until he arrived. So Coyne declined to talk further, refusing even to tell police her child's name.
When Janecyk pulled up, his wife already was handcuffed, sitting in a patrol car.
Crestwood Police Chief Timothy Sulikowski declined to comment about the case. But he did not dispute the contention that Coyne parked nearby or was away from her car for just a few minutes.
He did, however, suggest Coyne put her child at risk.
"A minute or two, that's when things can happen," he said.
Spitzer the latest of 22 govs removed from office
Link
New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer (D), who earned a national reputation fighting white-collar crime, Wednesday (March 12) became the 22nd governor in U.S. history to leave office early under a cloud of scandal.He is the 12th governor to resign in the face of political or legal problems; 10 others tainted by scandal were removed from office before the end of their terms after being impeached or legally removed.
Fla Republican wants to legislate toilet paper????
Yesterday it was the jerk in Kentucky that wanted to outlaw anonymous blog comments, today a Florida Republican wants to legislate toilet paper. What is going ON!!!!????
Link HT: Division of Labour
Link HT: Division of Labour
A proposed law currently making its way through the Florida legislature might help you with what can be an embarrassing problem. Here's the bottom line, the bill would be a mandate that all eating establishment must have enough toilet paper when you go into the restroom.
The only problem is the bill doesn't dictate how much toilet paper is "enough."
State Senator Victor Crist, a Republican from Tampa, felt the problem was so important, a law must be passed to protect the backsides of anyone in Florida. The measure will also try to regulate the cleanliness of restrooms in eating establishments.
Crist, says in the bill, restaurant inspectors, "should also check the restrooms along with the kitchens to make sure that basic cleanliness necessities are in place."
Red Light Cameras cause MORE accidents
Thats whats they say.
Link HT: DrX
Link HT: DrX
Cameras that catch drivers who blow through red lights are there to improve safety, by discouraging light running. But such cameras actually increase the likelihood of car crashes. Because more drivers jam on the breaks in an attempt to make a late stop at red-light camera intersections. That’s the finding of a study done by researchers at the University of South Florida College of Public Health.
They decided to look into the issue because Florida officials are considering installing many more such cameras around the state. The researchers contend that other studies associating cameras with fewer crashes and injuries are flawed—those studies were linked with the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, an industry group. But insurers may profit from red light cameras, because revenues go up with increased citations and accidents.
The new report notes that North Carolina, Virginia and Ontario all had increased crash rates and injuries associated with red light cameras. In Florida, injuries related to red light running are down anyway. So drivers needing to make a quick decision at a yellow light may be better off not seeing red.
No more pork for Jim Cooper-Hot damn!!
Adam is reporting that my Congressman, Jim Cooper, has pledged not to submit any earmark (aka pork barrel spending) requests for FY09.
This is stupendous news. Thank YOU Congressman Cooper.
Thats 1 down and 10 to go....come on Tennessee Senators and Reps.....lets make it unanimous and show the people of Tennessee you actually care about the taxpayers.
This is stupendous news. Thank YOU Congressman Cooper.
Thats 1 down and 10 to go....come on Tennessee Senators and Reps.....lets make it unanimous and show the people of Tennessee you actually care about the taxpayers.
Back up tapes are not public records?
Don't want reporters seeing public records? No problem, just delete them and claim backup tapes are not public records.
Link HT: FOI FYI
Link HT: FOI FYI
A judge wants a closer look at why the Harris County Sheriff's Office believes its mass deletion of 750,000 e-mails from employees' computer inboxes makes the correspondence exempt from the Texas Public Information Act.
The mass e-mail deletion — six months' worth — was ordered Jan. 9 but executed on Jan. 12, one day after television reporter Wayne Dolcefino of KTRK (Channel 13) requested e-mails from the Sheriff's Office.
Dolcefino received some e-mails from the Sheriff's Office but his station contends they are not sure if they got all of them because the order to delete messages more than 14 days old coincided with requests he had made, the station's attorney says.
"There is some coincidental issue," said John Edwards, attorney for KTRK.
The station obtained a temporary injunction against the Sheriff's Office to halt the deletions once KTRK learned of them and requested copies of the e-mails deleted from employees' inboxes, which occurred between Jan. 12 and Jan. 19.
School Choice = Parental Power
Our current public education system is a result of a power shift away from parents. George Bush and Phil Bredesen and Karl Dean and the School Board and Teacher Unions should NOT have more power over education they should have much less. Their role should be to serve parents, not dictate to them. Their role should be to expand choices for parents, not diminish them.
What do parents want? They want more options. They want the same range of options that Phil Bredesen and Karl Dean had when they BOTH CHOSE NOT to have their children attend Metro Public Schools.
How many Tennessee public school parents would choose some other option given the chance. According to a new survey, LOTS of TN parents would choose other options.
New York's new Governor-to-be supports school choice.
What do parents want? They want more options. They want the same range of options that Phil Bredesen and Karl Dean had when they BOTH CHOSE NOT to have their children attend Metro Public Schools.
How many Tennessee public school parents would choose some other option given the chance. According to a new survey, LOTS of TN parents would choose other options.
New York's new Governor-to-be supports school choice.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Clinton, Obama, and Corker
Senator Jim DeMint's amendment to ban earmarks for a year is attracting fiscal conservatives like our own Senator Bob Corker I am pleased to say but also Clinton and Obama....whodathunkit? And McCain.
Senator Alexander, I know you are on the Appropriations Committee and all, but we need your help on this amendment.
Senator Alexander, I know you are on the Appropriations Committee and all, but we need your help on this amendment.
Cleveland Clinic spent $1.36 mil on lobbying
Can you imagine how corrupt healthcare would become if government had complete control? It boggles the mind to consider a world where the US Congress decides who gets healthcare.
Here is one small example of the millions of influence flowing into Congress...just consider how many lobbyists would be in DC kissing the backsides of Congress is they had complete control?
Here is one small example of the millions of influence flowing into Congress...just consider how many lobbyists would be in DC kissing the backsides of Congress is they had complete control?
Sharesleuth.com investigation of China Fire
A tedious but interesting investigation following ownership of a Chinese Company by Sharesleuth.com. A good example of what can be done via online sources.
Link
Link
Huiwen Liu is part owner of a natural food store in the Vancouver suburbs. The business has only a few employees and is sandwiched between a sex shop and a clinic for drug addicts.
According to Securities and Exchange Commission filings, Liu also is sole shareholderof an offshore investment company that got 10.1 percent of China Fire & Security Group Inc. (Nasdaq: CFSG) when it went public through a reverse merger in 2006.
That offshore company, Worldtime Investment Advisors Ltd., notified the SEC on Dec. 4 that it planned to sell 600,000 of its 2.58 million China Fire shares, for estimated proceeds of $9.6 million.
The business address listed for Liu in Worldtime’s initial disclosure form corresponded to her food store. The unlikely scenario of a shop owner in Canada holding more than $30 million of stock in a little-known Chinese manufacturer, through an investment company in the British Virgin Islands, was just one of the reasons that Sharesleuth decided to take a closer look. The quintupling of China Fire & Security’s share price in the 12 months following the reverse merger also got our attention. So did the company’s murky ownership and the mounting casualties among other “hot” Chinese stocks that have gained listings on U.S. exchanges through reverse mergers.
Sharesleuth’s investigation turned up questions about transparency and disclosure at China Fire, which has headquarters in Beijing and makes fire detection and protection systems for steel mills, oil refineries and other industrial customers. For starters, we found that Huiwen Liu is the sister-in-law of China Fire’s chief executive officer, Bin “Brian’’ Lin – a fact not mentioned in any SEC filing.
Domestic spying effort, once killed, now expanded
Link
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Five years ago, Congress killed an experimental Pentagon antiterrorism program meant to vacuum up electronic data about people in the U.S. to search for suspicious patterns. Opponents called it too broad an intrusion on Americans' privacy, even after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
But the data-sifting effort didn't disappear. The National Security Agency, once confined to foreign surveillance, has been building essentially the same system.
The central role the NSA has come to occupy in domestic intelligence gathering has never been publicly disclosed. But an inquiry reveals that its efforts have evolved to reach more broadly into data about people's communications, travel and finances in the U.S. than the domestic surveillance programs brought to light since the 2001 terrorist attacks.
Emails from the Gov's office-A Good experience
I received a package in the mail on Saturday from the Governor's office which contained copies of emails which I had requested as part of an open records request.
Kudos to the Governor's office and Lydia Lenker especially, the process was smooth and efficient.
Requesting Public records can be very frustrating and sometimes takes much longer than it should. Not in this case. Thanks to the Governor's Office for respecting my rights as a Tennessee citizen to access public records.
Kudos to the Governor's office and Lydia Lenker especially, the process was smooth and efficient.
Requesting Public records can be very frustrating and sometimes takes much longer than it should. Not in this case. Thanks to the Governor's Office for respecting my rights as a Tennessee citizen to access public records.
Oberstar holds a hearing to get donations?
Majority Accountability Project is an unapologetically Republican based investigative effort to hold House Democrats accountable. Like their Democratic equivalents one must take into account MAP's bias but this article on Congressman Oberstar is well researched and documented and appears to establish a clear link between trial lawyer money and the hearings:
Link
Link
Majorityap.com research also found that Oberstar, who formed a new political fundraising committee at the time of the hearing (his first such committee in more than 30 years in Congress), received $12,000 in campaign donations from lobbyists and firms whose representatives testified at that same hearing.
JUNGBAUER ASKS FOR, GETS HEARING
William Jungbauer, a personal-injury lawyer specializing in claims by railroad workers, was a lead witness in a hearing Oberstar convened October 25, 2007, entitled “The Impact of Railroad Injury, Accident, and Discipline Policies on the Safety of America's Railroads.”In an earlier letter to Oberstar, Jungbauer complained that rail companies are actively discouraging employees from filing personal injury claims. “Railroad workers who file personal injury reports are being harassed by their employers on a nationwide basis,” Jungbauer charged on July 24, 2007.
Similarly, Oberstar said the hearing would “examine allegations…suggesting that railroad safety management programs sometimes either subtly or overtly intimidate employees from reporting on-the-job injuries.”
Jungbauer followed up his letter with a $1,000 contribution to Oberstar on July 31, 2007, the latest in a series of $16,100 in donations Jungbauer and his associates gave Oberstar in 2006 and 2007.
Monday, March 10, 2008
Stagnant Middle Class Income Myth
LinkBottom Line: As the graph above shows, the average household size has declined by 21% from 1967 to 2006, while real, median household income increased by 31% over the same period. Result? A significantly, much, much higher standard of living for the average household member, i.e. the typical member of the middle class!
Isn't it time that we bury many of the myths forever about the "middle-class squeeze," "the war on the middle class," "the American middle class is fighting for its life," "Two Amercias," etc.
The New Jersey Economic Meltdown continues
Link
Corzine might have noted that from 2000 to 2006 - after the Wall Street tech-stock meltdown and the economic fallout from 9/11 - a succession of NJ governors added 10,000 workers to the state's executive workforce, a 17 percent rise, even as the state's population grew by only 4 percent.
The hiring spree didn't stop there. State agencies and authorities not directly controlled by the governor were rapidly boosting their own payrolls, adding about 13,000 more full-time (or full-time-equivalent) workers to the state's payrolls, reports the Census Bureau. Only a few other states increased their public payrolls as quickly; all were far larger than Jersey and had more rapidly growing populations. By contrast, even New York was a model of efficiency, growing its workforce by less than 1 percent during the same period.
Propelled by the hiring (as well as higher-than-average government pay and fat benefits), New Jersey hiked state spending by almost 6 percent a year from 2000-08, nearly double the inflation rate. To pay for that spree, the state's politicians rapidly ramped up taxes.
Though he lasted just three years in office, ex-Gov. James McGreevey hiked taxes and fees 33 times. Corzine's first year in office featured a whopping $1.2 billion sales-tax hike, with half the money going into property-tax relief and the rest into a bulging state budget.
The taxing and spending has transformed New Jersey into one of the nation's most inhospitable places to do business. Once a low-tax state (a study in the early 1960s placed it 40th among the states in tax burden), it's now ranked the second-worst business-tax environment in the country by the Tax Foundation.
Other surveys of state business climates consistently rank Jersey among the worst places to operate - one reason why the state's economy, which for years outperformed the national average, has lagged since 2000.
ShowMetheSpending.org-Transparency Watchdog
Great website that shows the status of spending transparency legislation in each State.
HERE is the report for Tennessee.
HERE is the report for Tennessee.
Teacher Union delegates to decide DEM pres?
Link
IF the Democratic race is settled at the party’s convention this summer — not unlikely, given Hillary Clinton’s victories over Barack Obama in Ohio and Texas — certain delegate constituencies are going to be the object of much affection from the candidates. Most prominent among these is the delegate and superdelegate bloc affiliated with the National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers, the nation’s two largest teachers’ unions. In 2004, more than 400 regular delegates to the convention were members of the two unions, making up a group bigger than every state delegation except California’s.
IF the Democratic race is settled at the party’s convention this summer — not unlikely, given Hillary Clinton’s victories over Barack Obama in Ohio and Texas — certain delegate constituencies are going to be the object of much affection from the candidates. Most prominent among these is the delegate and superdelegate bloc affiliated with the National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers, the nation’s two largest teachers’ unions. In 2004, more than 400 regular delegates to the convention were members of the two unions, making up a group bigger than every state delegation except California’s.
Good news for the unions, however, might not be good news for education. The union agenda has often run counter to the interests of students and teachers alike.
Take those collective bargaining agreements that the unions have negotiated in school districts across the nation. As Terry Moe, a professor of political science at Stanford, demonstrated, these agreements have hampered student performance in California. Why? Because they protect ineffective teachers — at the expense of everyone else.
Will tuition be reduced because of this savings? NO
Arizona State, Clemson University, the University of Texas at San Antonio, Arkansas State University and Kennesaw State University have all adopted Google's Gmail, saving millions over in house mail systems, outsourcing part of their IT dept to Google.
Wonder if they will pass on the savings to parents and students by lowering tuition? Yea right.
Wonder if they will pass on the savings to parents and students by lowering tuition? Yea right.
Sunday, March 09, 2008
AngryJournalist.com-Where reporters rant and rave
Link
AngryJournalist.com is for the underpaid, overworked, frustrated, pissed off and ignored media professionals to publicly and anonymously vent their anger.
AngryJournalist.com is for the underpaid, overworked, frustrated, pissed off and ignored media professionals to publicly and anonymously vent their anger.
Tuition Gouging, Big Education is ripping us off
Big Education is making Big Oil look like a choir boy.Big Education is ripping us off and smiling all the way to the bank as parents and students struggle to pay student loans.
Prof Mark Perry
Saturday, March 08, 2008
Governor Bredesen "destroyed" 1,000 jobs?
Politicians always claim to "create jobs" when they give away our taxpayer money, in the form of legal bribes known as corporate welfare, to entice companies to locate in TN.
What do you call it when we don't bribe them with enough money and they chose another State...should the headline read:
to be fair, No. The BEST he can do is run the State government as efficiently as possible and keep taxes as low as possible. Hardworking Tennessee citizens, the real engines of economic development, can then create more jobs and economic development.
What do you call it when we don't bribe them with enough money and they chose another State...should the headline read:
Bredesen destroys 1,000 new jobs
to be fair, No. The BEST he can do is run the State government as efficiently as possible and keep taxes as low as possible. Hardworking Tennessee citizens, the real engines of economic development, can then create more jobs and economic development.
Ex NY Assemblyman/Union Boss pleads Guilty
Link
A seven-term Democratic state assemblyman who also is a former president of the nation's largest municipal labor council has pleaded guilty to a racketeering charge.
Brian McLaughlin admitted accepting tens of thousands of dollars in cash and personal services over a decade. He admitted using union money to pay personal expenses, including car payments and home improvements.
He pleaded guilty today to racketeering and making false statements in U.S. District Court in Manhattan for crimes committed between 1995 and 2005.
As part of his plea, he agreed to be imprisoned between 8 and 10 years when he is sentenced on September 12.
The million-member labor council is an umbrella group of unions that has supported Mayor Bloomberg.
A seven-term Democratic state assemblyman who also is a former president of the nation's largest municipal labor council has pleaded guilty to a racketeering charge.
Brian McLaughlin admitted accepting tens of thousands of dollars in cash and personal services over a decade. He admitted using union money to pay personal expenses, including car payments and home improvements.
He pleaded guilty today to racketeering and making false statements in U.S. District Court in Manhattan for crimes committed between 1995 and 2005.
As part of his plea, he agreed to be imprisoned between 8 and 10 years when he is sentenced on September 12.
The million-member labor council is an umbrella group of unions that has supported Mayor Bloomberg.
Political contributions like "mob protection money"
for corporate bigwigs. Really!! And they are very perceptive. Many lobbyists will raise the spectre of government regulation to get business for themselves and contributions for their favored members of Congress.
Corporate board directors are cynical of spending on lobbying and political donations, according to new polling sponsored by the nonprofit Center for Political Accountability.
“It’s sort of like mob protection money,” Mason-Dixon’s Larry Harris said at a conference on “Money, Politics and Corporate Risk” Thursday in New York. “They’re going to pay it not because anything great is going to happen as a result, but because something bad will happen if they don’t.”
“They’re going to pay it not because anything great is going to happen as a result, but because something bad will happen if they don’t.”Link
Corporate board directors are cynical of spending on lobbying and political donations, according to new polling sponsored by the nonprofit Center for Political Accountability.
The survey, conducted by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research in early February, took an in-depth look at 255 corporate board directors’ attitudes about company political spending.
The survey comes as the country heads into the most expensive election cycle in history. Costs for the presidential race alone are expected to exceed $1 billion. And with the economy ranked as a top concern, business will certainly be a major political player. In January, the U.S Chamber of Commerce announced plans to spend more than $60 million on this year’s elections.
The board members saw donations and lobbying as a necessary but ineffective business tactic. Almost two-thirds described active political advocacy as “essential,” but only 29 percent said it resulted in favorable legislative, regulatory or tax treatment for their company and industry.“It’s sort of like mob protection money,” Mason-Dixon’s Larry Harris said at a conference on “Money, Politics and Corporate Risk” Thursday in New York. “They’re going to pay it not because anything great is going to happen as a result, but because something bad will happen if they don’t.”
Perjury is OK in Italy if you are lying about an affair
Link HT: Textually
Italy's highest appeal court has ruled that married Italian women who commit adultery are entitled to lie about it to protect their honour.
The court gave its landmark ruling after hearing the case of a 48-year-old woman, convicted of giving false testimony to police by denying she had lent her mobile phone to her lover.
The appeal court did not agree that she had broken the law.
Italy's highest appeal court has ruled that married Italian women who commit adultery are entitled to lie about it to protect their honour.
The court gave its landmark ruling after hearing the case of a 48-year-old woman, convicted of giving false testimony to police by denying she had lent her mobile phone to her lover.
The appeal court did not agree that she had broken the law.
Friday, March 07, 2008
Eye Glasses are overpriced, even at Wal-Mart
But there are places on the web where you can buy them cheap....but, Shsssh.....Don't tell the Tennessee General Assembly about this, the optometrist lobby will get a law passed VERY quickly to prevent you and I from buying eye glasses from whomever we damn well choose....just like liquor lobbyists prevent us from buying wine online.
The mad professor has all the links and tells about his experience.....glasses from $35. Great information from MP but I sure would have picked another frame style.
The mad professor has all the links and tells about his experience.....glasses from $35. Great information from MP but I sure would have picked another frame style.
George McGovern: Let's preserve freedom
WOW!! Is this refreshing or WHAT!! A revered Liberal Democrat interested in preserving individual freedom even though some may misuse it.
The nature of freedom of choice is that some people will misuse their responsibility and hurt themselves in the process. We should do our best to educate them, but without diminishing choice for everyone else.
Since leaving office I've written about public policy from a new perspective: outside looking in. I've come to realize that protecting freedom of choice in our everyday lives is essential to maintaining a healthy civil society.
Why do we think we are helping adult consumers by taking away their options? We don't take away cars because we don't like some people speeding. We allow state lotteries despite knowing some people are betting their grocery money. Everyone is exposed to economic risks of some kind. But we don't operate mindlessly in trying to smooth out every theoretical wrinkle in life.
The nature of freedom of choice is that some people will misuse their responsibility and hurt themselves in the process. We should do our best to educate them, but without diminishing choice for everyone else.
Civil War in Fla: Letters fm a New Hampshire Soldier
The Calvin Shedd Papers
The Archives and Special Collections Department at the University of Miami Library houses a series of remarkable letters written by Calvin Shedd, a carpenter from New Hampshire, who enlisted in the Seventh Regiment, New Hampshire Volunteers and served the Union Army during the Civil War from 1862 - 1863. In these letters to his wife and three young daughters, Shedd recorded the debilitating physical hardships, the incredible tedium and the ever-present dangers of military life in Key West, Fort Jefferson and St. Augustine, Florida. Shedd wrote these fifty-three letters with great love, painstaking attention to detail, and a calm, reassuring hand. These documents convey the extraordinary circumstances that life in the Union Army offered one New Hampshire solider during the early years of the Civil War. Calvin Shedd has left us a lengthy commentary on a soldier's life in a sub-tropical military camp, with observations on the political and social implications of military decisions, and thoughtful discourses on the people, terrain, animals, fruits, climate, culture and the vagaries of life in the southernmost regions of Florida.
The Archives and Special Collections Department at the University of Miami Library houses a series of remarkable letters written by Calvin Shedd, a carpenter from New Hampshire, who enlisted in the Seventh Regiment, New Hampshire Volunteers and served the Union Army during the Civil War from 1862 - 1863. In these letters to his wife and three young daughters, Shedd recorded the debilitating physical hardships, the incredible tedium and the ever-present dangers of military life in Key West, Fort Jefferson and St. Augustine, Florida. Shedd wrote these fifty-three letters with great love, painstaking attention to detail, and a calm, reassuring hand. These documents convey the extraordinary circumstances that life in the Union Army offered one New Hampshire solider during the early years of the Civil War. Calvin Shedd has left us a lengthy commentary on a soldier's life in a sub-tropical military camp, with observations on the political and social implications of military decisions, and thoughtful discourses on the people, terrain, animals, fruits, climate, culture and the vagaries of life in the southernmost regions of Florida.
Collection of Patriotic Songs from Lib of Congress
Link
Two of my favs:
Fanfare for the Common Man by US Marine Band MP3
Eternal Father, Strong to Save MP3 (Naval Hym)
Two of my favs:
Fanfare for the Common Man by US Marine Band MP3
Eternal Father, Strong to Save MP3 (Naval Hym)
TN Center for Policy Research files Ethics Complaints
Drew Johnson and the Tennessee Center for Policy Research are again acting to protect the interests of Tennessee Citizens. Several months ago they filed a complaint against Senator Cooper regarding his illegal use of more than $100,000 of campaign contributions for personal expenses.
Now, they are calling attention to the fact that over 1,000 local elected officials have failed to file a disclosure form by filing ethics complaints against eight of these local officials. Every TN citizen owes a debt of gratitude to Drew and TCPR.
Link
From Memphis to Mountain City, More than 1,200 Public Officials Fail to File with Ethics Board
Tennessee Center for Policy Research President files complaints against a cross-section of local leaders
Now, they are calling attention to the fact that over 1,000 local elected officials have failed to file a disclosure form by filing ethics complaints against eight of these local officials. Every TN citizen owes a debt of gratitude to Drew and TCPR.
Link
From Memphis to Mountain City, More than 1,200 Public Officials Fail to File with Ethics Board
Tennessee Center for Policy Research President files complaints against a cross-section of local leaders
NASHVILLE – Tennessee Center for Policy Research President Drew Johnson today filed ethics complaints against eight local public officials who failed to file required financial disclosure statements intended to expose potential conflicts of interest.
Johnson filed the complaints with the Tennessee Ethics Commission in order to send a message to the hundreds of others who have failed to file. According to the Commission, more than 1,200 local officials, including mayors, sheriffs and commissioners, have not yet submitted financial disclosure statements.
“These eight are just the beginning. We will continue file charges until every local official in the state is transparent and open with their constituents about possible conflicts of interest,” said Johnson.
State law requires that public officials disclose, in general, where they get their income, what investments they hold and any major loans they have outstanding. This information allows the public to determine if conflicts of interest may impact votes and decisions made by local elected officials.
These disclosure rules came in the wake of the Operation Tennessee Waltz, a 2005 FBI sting leading to the arrest and conviction of a nearly a dozen state and local officials on various bribery and corruption charges. Fines for failing to file the disclosure statements can be, in extreme cases, as high as $10,000.
All local elected officials, candidates and appointees must file a disclosure each year by January 31. This year, the Ethics Commission extended the deadline to February 15 after a problem with the Commission’s electronic filing system.
“It’s now nearly three weeks past the extended deadline,” Johnson said. “Local officials have had ample time to file their disclosure statements. Now the public must begin to wonder if officials who have not yet filed have something to hide.”
Johnson has filed complaints against:
- Gregory Beck
Commissioner, Hamilton County
- Charles “Pepper” Bray
Councilman, Jackson City Council
- Henri Brooks
Commissioner, Shelby County
- John Brookshire
Commissioner, Johnson County Commission
- Beverly Burger
Alderman, Franklin
- Ronnie Erwin
Mayor, La Vergne
- Jimmy Jones
Sheriff, Knox County
- Michael Surgenor
Commissioner, Sullivan County Commission
Big New York State Tax Hike to be paid by NYC
for the most part.
Link
Link
The vast bulk of the $1.5 billion income-tax increase being proposed by Assembly Democrats would be paid by residents of Manhattan and suburban counties, including Westchester, according to a review of state Tax Department records.
"There's no doubt that the bulk of the high-wage workers are in Manhattan and the suburbs," Tax and Finance Department spokesman Tom Bergin said yesterday.
Progress on Open Records in Tennessee..maybe
Of course the bill hasn't been passed and signed by the Governor and rest assured that our taxpayer money will be used to try to block it but at least there is a bit of momentum.
The "taxpayer money" I am referring to are the dues paid, by the taxpayers, to the County Mayors Association, The County Commissioners Association and others, that are used to hire lobbyists to lobby against the interests of taxpayers.
These lobbyists have been the main obstacle to improvements in open meetings and open records laws. This is an absolute outrage.
Link
The "taxpayer money" I am referring to are the dues paid, by the taxpayers, to the County Mayors Association, The County Commissioners Association and others, that are used to hire lobbyists to lobby against the interests of taxpayers.
These lobbyists have been the main obstacle to improvements in open meetings and open records laws. This is an absolute outrage.
Link
The measure advancing in the Senate would tighten open-records laws, but make no changes to current requirements for public meetings.
"They met most of the things we wanted," said League of Women Voters Chairwoman Margie Parsley, who added the bill has been the group's top legislative priority. "The league was very pleased."
Sen. Randy McNally, the main sponsor of the legislation, said Thursday the new version of the measure reflects ongoing disagreements between local governments and open-government advocates on how to change meetings laws.
"There seemed to be a universal agreement on (records) items, and we were able to work with the affected parties to come to some consensus," said McNally, R-Oak Ridge.
Another "economic development" taxpayer ripoff
Knoxville Councilwoman Belot is asking questions. That is good but it probably won't be enough to stop the ripoff of taxpayers.
Take a look at the highlighted text below and it becomes increasingly clear that this is about MONEY!! More specifically, taxpayer money. It is not about "economic development." The only "economic development" taking place is in the bank accounts of those receiving the money.
Why are Chambers of Commerce such enthusiastic cheerleaders for tax hikes? Because they get a big chunk of the taxpayer's money.
Knoxville Chamber President Mike Edwards said the city's and county's participation should be somewhere in the same $400,000-per-year ballpark, although "The work level is three times what the other program was."
Councilwoman Barbara Pelot noted that constituents often still ask what exactly they got for the city's annual contributions to Jobs Now!, a joint marketing effort among the Knoxville Chamber, the East Tennessee Economic Development Agency and the Oak Ridge Economic Partnership aimed at job recruitment and expanding existing businesses.
Thursday, March 06, 2008
When they came for the homeschoolers...
This is too far.
Link HT: Michael Silence
Link HT: Michael Silence
Parents who lack teaching credentials cannot educate their children at home, according to a state appellate court ruling that is sending waves of fear through California's home schooling families.
Advocates for the families vowed to appeal the decision to the state Supreme Court. Enforcement until then appears unlikely, but if the ruling stands, home-schooling supporters say California will have the most regressive law in the nation.
Bureaucracy without a mission is still a bureaucracy
The Belgium Central Bank lost every possible reason to exist after Belgium adopted the Euro in 1999. Did this cause those, now useless, bureaucrats to be reassigned or seek other employment making goods and services that are actually USEFUL? NO!!
Link
Link
THANKS TO Alain Destexhe, a Belgian senator (and that rarest/loneliest of beings, a Belgian free market liberal), for today's fact of the day. Mr Destexhe reports on his blog that the Belgian central bank still employs more than 2,000 people, even though it has not had a currency to oversee since 1999, when Belgium joined the euro.
The senator, a medical doctor who used to be a big wheel with Médecins Sans Frontières, notes that the survival instinct of Belgian civil servants is especially impressive when you compare the National Bank of Belgium's headcount with that of central banks which still have currencies to attend to. Belgium employs twice as many central bankers as Britain, he reports, and four times as many as Sweden. Belgian readers may complain at this point that their central bank still has various tasks to perform, including the collection of statistics and whatnot, printing banknotes and its role as a member of the Eurosystem.
The bank's website clearly recognises it may have an image problem, stressing at some length its tasks, which include: "operation of the Central Balance Sheet Office and the central credit offices, the State Cashier service and the management of the interbank payment systems."
In short, the bank's website concludes: "The National Bank has lost none of its usefulness since the Eurosystem was established." None of it?
Students protest hugging ban by...hugging!!
LinkMESA, Ariz. -- A school policy banning student hugging prompted dozens of east Valley students to protest with a giant group hug across the street from campus.
"I think it's ridiculous," said Chelsea Branham, a 14-year-old student at Shepherd Junior High School in east Mesa.Branham said she got detention this week for hugging her friend after school.
"It's not like it's supposed to mean anything," she said. "It's not like I was making out with him or something.
"Branham joined her classmates on Friday for a 20-minute, public hug-a-thon."She's taking a stand and I'm standing behind her to do it," said Stephanie Wiegold, her mother.
Blount County puts Vehicle info online
This is a good start. Mayor Cunningham needs to put ALL county financial information online.
Link
County Mayor Jerry Cunningham has issued the last word on the number of vehicles in the Blount County Sheriff's Office inventory.
In response to continuing requests for information related to the vehicle inventory for the Blount County Sheriff's Office, Cunningham has ordered all vehicle inventory data for the entire county to be placed online. He informed the Blount County Commission in a Feb. 28 letter that also outlines new procedures for requesting information from the county departments under his authority.
"I have also decided to place all information which my Accounting Department has relative to the sheriff's vehicles together with all other county vehicles online," Cunningham wrote.
Link
County Mayor Jerry Cunningham has issued the last word on the number of vehicles in the Blount County Sheriff's Office inventory.
In response to continuing requests for information related to the vehicle inventory for the Blount County Sheriff's Office, Cunningham has ordered all vehicle inventory data for the entire county to be placed online. He informed the Blount County Commission in a Feb. 28 letter that also outlines new procedures for requesting information from the county departments under his authority.
"I have also decided to place all information which my Accounting Department has relative to the sheriff's vehicles together with all other county vehicles online," Cunningham wrote.
Sen Crowe: "Its pork barrel, just done differently"
WHAT???? The so-called Community Grants are PURE pork barrel spending. They are designed for one thing and one thing only, to re-elect those handing out the taxpayer funded checks. Both State Reps and the Senator cited in this story are Republicans who gleefully and gladly hand out pork barrel checks.
Link
Link
State Reps. Dale Ford and Matthew Hill and Sen. Rusty Crowe began traversing the county in late December, awarding piecemeal Community Enhancement Grants totaling $500,000 to organizations ranging from the Boys & Girls Club to the Veterans Memorial Committee.
They picked up the pace of their check presentations in January and February and were still giving the money away as recently as this week.
“Almost all the checks have been written,” Crowe said on Friday.
“It’s pork barrel, just done differently this year because of the surplus.”
Part of $20 million in CEG funding allocated from surplus revenues at the end of last year’s legislative session, the funds have gone to support services ranging from historic preservation to transportation for the mentally ill.
Some the grants uses include:
• New radios to improve communication between Emergency Medical Service units from one end of Washington County to the other.
• Helping launch an orthopedic sports medicine program for athletes at Science Hill High School.
• Helping the Dawn of Hope Development Center improve its computer technology.
• Allowing the Interfaith Hospitality Network to expand its day center programming.
Taxpayer funded "economic development" Scam
The Columbia City Council is finally asking hard questions about throwing away more taxpayer money in the name of economic development.
Ok, lets take this slowly so the politicians can understand...Politicians do not create jobs or "economic development." Politicians can stupidly and arrogantly give away our taxpayer money to "create jobs" but the only thing they accomplish is to make taxpayers poorer. Jobs are created by hard working Tennesseans , not by politicians. The only way that politicians can create jobs is to run government efficiently as possible and keep taxes as low as possible. Study after study shows that people and economic development are attracted by low taxes.
Link
Ok, lets take this slowly so the politicians can understand...Politicians do not create jobs or "economic development." Politicians can stupidly and arrogantly give away our taxpayer money to "create jobs" but the only thing they accomplish is to make taxpayers poorer. Jobs are created by hard working Tennesseans , not by politicians. The only way that politicians can create jobs is to run government efficiently as possible and keep taxes as low as possible. Study after study shows that people and economic development are attracted by low taxes.
Link
During the opening item at the meeting, Maury Alliance President Frank Tamberrino presented his organization’s upcoming 2008-2009 fiscal year budget.
The president was requesting the city fulfill its regular annual payment of $100,000 to the organization when the time came.
But Councilman Dean Dickey said he wanted to see an improvement in the city’s retail business horizon before he approved such a request.
“This time next year, if we don’t have some movement made in retail, I won’t vote to fund that,” Dickey said of the $100,000 sum. “And I’ll second that,” Councilwoman Debbie Matthews added.
Cell texting affecting baby name spelling?
Link
Social analyst Mark McCrindle looked at Australian births in 2007 and discovered that the name Jayden was registered spelt in 12 ways, Aidan in nine ways, and Amelia and Tahlia in eight ways.
The name Lachlan had five other versions - Lochlyn, Lochlin, Lochlen, Lochlain and Lauchlan.
"The use of a 'y' instead of an 'i' has hit epidemic proportions, as has the use of 'k' over 'c' like in the names Jaykob and Lynkon, double letters like Siimon and Chriss and hyphens like Emma-Lee," News.com.au quoted McCrindle, of private research agency McCrindle Research, as saying.
Poll from Mass on ending State Income Tax
This is pretty amazing stuff. On the first poll since Carla and Michael's successful petition drive to get the question on the Mass Nov ballot, the numbers are neck and neck....this is in Massachusetts!!
5. INCOME TAX REPEAL BALLOT QUESTION TRIAL HEAT RUNS EVEN
If there were a question on the ballot in the general election in November that, if approved, would repeal the state income tax in
TOTAL MEN WOMEN HS
NO 46% 43% 49% 31% 48% 59% 59% 44% 33%
YES 45% 49% 41% 56% 44% 36% 36% 45% 58%
Undecided 8% 8% 9% 13% 8% 4% 4% 10% 10%
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
NY State Dems plan $1.5 billion tax hike
ALBANY _ Assembly Democrats plan to pass a budget next week that includes a $1.5 billion income-tax surcharge on New Yorkers who make more than $1 million a year, a spokesman said Wednesday.
The announcement came a few hours after the leader of the state Senate ruled out any tax hikes this year.
Dan Weiller, a spokesman for Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, said the Assembly plan would raise the top income-tax rate on wealthy taxpayers from 6.85 percent to 7.7 percent.
He said this year all of the extra receipts would be used to help balance the state budget. Next year the proceeds would be split between general expenses and transportation projects. Then all of the money for the next two years would be used for transportation. The extra charge would be taken off after four years.
Ban small plastic bags because druggies use them?
How utterly and completely ridiculous!! A Chicago city councilman wants to ban small plastic bags because they might be used by drug dealers. This is way beyond idiocy, this is getting into crazy as hell territory.
Politicians with good intentions will be the death of our freedoms.
Link
Politicians with good intentions will be the death of our freedoms.
Link
Ald. Robert Fioretti (2nd) persuaded the Health Committee to ban possession of "self-sealing plastic bags under two inches in either height or width," after picking up 15 of the bags on a recent Sunday afternoon stroll through a West Side park.
Lt. Kevin Navarro, commanding officer of the Chicago Police Department's Narcotics and Gang Unit, said the ordinance will be an "important tool" to go after grocery stores, health food stores and other businesses. The bags are used by the thousand to sell small quantities of drugs at $10 or $20 a bag.
Ouch!! Forced catheterization after DUI arrest
Link
KELSO, Wash. -- When a man who was suspected of drunken driving in Longview refused to give blood and urine samples he was taken to a hospital.
His lawyer says he was held down kicking and screaming for a blood draw. And a tube was inserted into his bladder to withdraw the urine.
He sued Cowlitz County. A settlement was reached Friday in which he was paid $15,000, without authorities admitting they did anything wrong.
The 37-year-old man, Matthew Clifford Arthur, was on probation at the time of the arrest in November and was required to undergo screening for drugs and alcohol. When he refused, his lawyer says he should have been taken to the jail instead of the hospital.
Marsha Blackburn's Budget School-Great Project
Marsha has started posting lessons for her Budget School, a project to educate citizens all about the Federal Budget process. Kudos to Marsha.
Welcome to Budget School
Lesson 1
Welcome to Budget School
Lesson 1
The Bottom Line Up Front: How Much We Take In, How Much We Spend:
In our first session we, reviewed how Washington spent the taxpayers money last year, breaking it down by household. I would like to thank the Heritage Foundation for helping us with the research on this project.
- Washington spent $24,106 per household in 2007 the highest total since World War II.
- The federal government will collected about $21,992 per household in taxes.
The remaining $2,114 represents the year's budget deficit per household, which, along with all prior government debt, will be dumped in the laps of our children.
$24,106 per household breaks down this way:
- Social Security/Medicare: $8,301. This system can remain sustainable only if there are enough workers to support all retirees, which is why it risks collapsing under the weight of 77 million retiring Baby Boomers.
- Defense: $4,951.
- Anti-poverty programs: $3,550.
- Interest on the federal debt: $2,071. The federal government is $9 trillion in debt. It owes $5 trillion to public bond owners, and the rest to other federal agencies.
- Federal employee retirement benefits: $907.
- Health research/regulation: $664.
- Veterans' benefits: $627.
- Education: $584.
- Highways/mass transit: $418.
- Justice administration: $392.
- Natural resources/environment: $305.
- International affairs: $304.
- Unemployment benefits: $299.
- Community and regional development: $282.
A number of these items are discretionary, congress decides how much to spend on them every year. These items will be discussed when Budget School takes up appropriations bills later in the year.
Other items, like Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security are entitlement programs. They grow based on the amount Americans are entitled to each year. Unlike discretionary spending, how much Washington spends on these programs is not determined by how much we take in.
Unless we reform this sector of the budget, Congress and the American people will be faced with a stark choice in the not too distant future: unprecedented budget cuts or staggering Income Tax hikes.
Google Books is a Treasure Trove of History
The misnamed "free government info" blog cites some interesting historical research she is doing on Google books.....all sorts of interesting titles including this funny gem from 1915 , How it Feels to be the Husband of a Suffragette.
Out of curiosity, I did a Google Book search for other types of government publications and found these gems:
Trial of the Conspirators, for the Assassination of President Lincoln
Illustrations of the Gross Morbid Anatomy of theBrain in the Insane (isn't that a Cypress Hill song? Nevermind...) by the Government Hospital for the Insane.
How it Feels to be the Husband of a Suffragette (not published by the Government Printing Office, but it is a book housed in the National American Woman Suffrage Association Collection in the Library of Congress).
Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion
Kill the Farm Bill, Kill, Kill Kill the Farm Bill
The farm bill is wrong on so many levels it is difficult to list them all. Marginal Revolution cites a few. This is legal taxpayer robbery by lobbyist.
Link
Link
In this op/ed, a Minnesota farmer complains that he cannot increase production of garden crops by growing them on former-program crop land because these acres will lose their corn subsidy forever if non-program crops are grown on the land for a year.
Why? Because national fruit and vegetable growers based in California, Florida and Texas fear competition from regional producers like myself. Through their control of Congressional delegations from those states, they have been able to virtually monopolize the country’s fresh produce markets.
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
LATimes: CA Dems determined to raise taxes
Link
Asked how Democrats propose to make up the difference, Perata said: "Raise taxes. That clear enough? Raise taxes."
Given the state's dire finances, he said, "no one is going to tell me . . . the average Californian would not be willing to pay pennies on the dollar more for an education system . . . that is worth what we believe California is about."
Perata said Democrats want about $5 billion in tax increases and will spend the next few months devising their plan for which taxes to raise. He said they are considering sales taxes, and taxes on the rich.
"The public knows what needs to be done," he said. "They are waiting for the leaders to step up and do it. So we are going to do it."
Asked how Democrats propose to make up the difference, Perata said: "Raise taxes. That clear enough? Raise taxes."
Given the state's dire finances, he said, "no one is going to tell me . . . the average Californian would not be willing to pay pennies on the dollar more for an education system . . . that is worth what we believe California is about."
Perata said Democrats want about $5 billion in tax increases and will spend the next few months devising their plan for which taxes to raise. He said they are considering sales taxes, and taxes on the rich.
"The public knows what needs to be done," he said. "They are waiting for the leaders to step up and do it. So we are going to do it."
Man sues agencies over public records
Not in Tennessee, Ohio but he is a real model for citizens who work to hold our government accountable in any State.
Link
Link
A man specializing in public records law is taking the county by storm and suing local agencies at will.
Brian Bardwell, 26, of
His mission is simple: If public agencies don’t give him the records the public’s entitled to, he sues.
“It’s something I really, really care a lot about,” he said. “The government is never going to do the right thing if nobody is making sure they are, and nobody can make sure they are if they don’t give up their records.”
The Ohio Public Records Law refers to a citizen’s right to prompt inspection of public records and, upon request, the right to copies of those public records within a reasonable period of time.
Agencies must also adhere to recent additions to the law, which include not asking why the records were requested or who is requesting them, and the agency in question must cite specific legal justifications if the records can’t be reviewed.
Bardwell, a former Chronicle reporter, has filed 10 lawsuits in
The Gender Gap in Religion
Link
So we have a situation in which both gender and race are correlated with church attendance. Black men and women attend church more regularly than white men and women. But within each racial group, women attend more than men. The spread goes from a high of 62% of black women who are regular church attenders down to 37% of white men who are regular church attenders.
What is the basis for the gender gap in religiosity? Well, that's the interesting question. There is no shortage of interest and speculation in answering it. There are websites devoted to the challenge of getting more men in church (which so far appear to have failed). There is a book "Why Men Hate Going to Church". There are scholarly articles focusing on the causes for the gender gap, and the hypotheses to explain the gap are many, focusing broadly on those explanations derived from biology (genetics, evolution) and those derived from socialization (men watch football, go hunting and fishing). Whatever the reason, the gap is alive and well. Women in America today -- at least based on this one measure of church attendance -- remain more religious than men.
So we have a situation in which both gender and race are correlated with church attendance. Black men and women attend church more regularly than white men and women. But within each racial group, women attend more than men. The spread goes from a high of 62% of black women who are regular church attenders down to 37% of white men who are regular church attenders.
What is the basis for the gender gap in religiosity? Well, that's the interesting question. There is no shortage of interest and speculation in answering it. There are websites devoted to the challenge of getting more men in church (which so far appear to have failed). There is a book "Why Men Hate Going to Church". There are scholarly articles focusing on the causes for the gender gap, and the hypotheses to explain the gap are many, focusing broadly on those explanations derived from biology (genetics, evolution) and those derived from socialization (men watch football, go hunting and fishing). Whatever the reason, the gap is alive and well. Women in America today -- at least based on this one measure of church attendance -- remain more religious than men.
SCOTUS affirms taxpayer's right to avoid taxes
Link
For tax nerds, the most interesting part of the Boulware opinion may be the Court’s resurrection of the so-called “right” to avoid taxes. See Boulware, n.7: "We have also recognized that ‘[t]he legal right of a taxpayer to decrease the amount of what otherwise would be his taxes, or altogether avoid them, by means which the law permits, cannot be doubted.’” (citing Gregory v. Helvering, 293 U. S. 465).
TN College Fee Hikes are ridiculous...
but not completely outrageous...its all a matter of perspective. We are apparently supposed to be happy about tuition increases that are only single digits even though they continue the pattern of far exceeding the income growth of Tennesseans.
Higher Education funding is a run away train in Tennessee and Governor Bredesen should step in and give the Board of Regents an attitude adjustment.
Link
Higher Education funding is a run away train in Tennessee and Governor Bredesen should step in and give the Board of Regents an attitude adjustment.
Link
Tennessee Board of Regents Chancellor Charles Manning also promised to keep tuition hikes to less than 10 percent in light of the slowing economy and lower-than-expected state revenue growth.
No taxpayer health insurance for lawmaker felons
If you commit a felony related to your official duties as a Tennessee elected official then the taxpayers should not be forced to pay for your health insurance....sounds reasonable to me.
Link
Link
State lawmakers and governors convicted of felonies would lose their health benefits under legislation under consideration in the General Assembly, closing a loophole left open after the Tennessee Waltz scandal.
The ethics reform package enacted after the scandal ended pension benefits, but it left out health benefits, allowing lawmakers who had been convicted to keep receiving state-funded health insurance, according to Sen. Jim Tracy.
Tracy, a Shelbyville Republican, proposed to end those benefits after a constituent pointed out the loophole.
"My intent was that if you have a legislator who committed a felony — malfeasance while in office — they should not be able to keep their health insurance benefits," he said.
Denver Teacher unions loosen strangle hold
Denver schools are making it easier for some schools to hire good teachers. This is creating a "hiring scramble" among principals for good teachers.
Hiring good teachers so children can get a good education? What a concept!
Link HT: Intercepts
Hiring good teachers so children can get a good education? What a concept!
Link HT: Intercepts
Diane Kenealy interviewed for a teaching job at West Denver Preparatory
Charter School on Jan. 9, received a job offer within 24 hours and accepted the
position three days later.
Compare that rapid hiring to this spring's staffing calendar in
traditional Denver Public Schools, which dictates principals can't schedule
interviews with teaching candidates until the middle of March.
Even then, they can only talk to candidates already working in a city
school.
A DPS principal who wants to talk to a college senior such as Kenealy,
who spends her summers teaching poor children in Denver, has to wait another
full month, until mid-April.
Monday, March 03, 2008
South Carolina joins the spending transparency bandwagon
Here is their new site for South Carolina taxpayers.
Its time for Tennessee to join the growing number of States that have a special website dedicated to complete spending and revenue disclosure, the taxpayers of Tennessee deserve no less.
Its time for Tennessee to join the growing number of States that have a special website dedicated to complete spending and revenue disclosure, the taxpayers of Tennessee deserve no less.
TN Charter Schools in Jeopardy
Rep. Joe Towns has opposed virtually all attempts to reform public schools. True to form, he is leading the opposition to the reauthorization of Charter Schools which expires this year unless TN legislators act.
Charter Schools represent an extraordinary opportunity for thousands of TN students whose public schools have utterly and completely failed them.
Charter Schools represent an extraordinary opportunity for thousands of TN students whose public schools have utterly and completely failed them.
Passenger ship arrival records 1830-1900
The National Archives added the following passenger ship arrival records:
Data Files Relating to the Immigration of Russians to the United States,
Data Files Relating to the Immigration of Germans to the United States,
Data Files Relating to the Immigration of Italians to the United States
These three series consist of some records of passengers who arrived at the ports of Baltimore, Boston, New Orleans, New York, and Philadelphia.
Data Files Relating to the Immigration of Russians to the United States,
Data Files Relating to the Immigration of Germans to the United States,
Data Files Relating to the Immigration of Italians to the United States
These three series consist of some records of passengers who arrived at the ports of Baltimore, Boston, New Orleans, New York, and Philadelphia.
