Tennessee
Jimmy Duncan and Zach Wamp (Votes where they differed are in purple)
Lincoln Davis and Steve Cohen
Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker
Others
Harry Reid vs. Mitch McConnell
Nancy Pelosi vs. John Boehner
Joe Biden vs. Barack Obama
Ron Paul vs. Dennis Kucinich
Friday, October 31, 2008
Hot Sites for Election Night
Tennessee
TN Online Newspapers
TN Major Market TV Stations
National
ProPublica VoteWatch
CNN Election Center
Politweets
Pollster
FoxNews
RollCall
C-Span
Historical Returns
Election 1998
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TN Online Newspapers
TN Major Market TV Stations
National
ProPublica VoteWatch
CNN Election Center
Politweets
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FoxNews
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Historical Returns
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Election 2006
ObamaCard - Accepted everywhere, or else
After Nov 4, Every non-rich citizen will get one.No limit, charge as much as you want. What do you care?
When you get the bill...don't worry. Check the website
WWW.RICHPEOPLE.GOV
to find a list of rich people near you. Send the bill to the nearest rich person. They will pay the bill because Barack has "asked" them to...wink, wink.
Nudists want a clothing optional voting precinct
Link
LAND O' LAKES, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35, Orlando) -- A nudist community on Florida's west coast wants to be allowed a clothing-optional polling site.
The Caliente Resorts, located in Pasco County north of Tampa, has approached election officials about the idea.
Nothing in state law would prohibit it, but the supervisor of elections says he is opposed to creating any new precincts before redistricting in 2010.
Memphis Councilwoman arrested 3rd time in 6 mos
Link
Fullilove has a troubled past when it comes to driving, mainly in Mississippi, where she's been arrested twice, accused of Driving Under the Influence. She was also involved in a bad crash that injured a young girl.Her latest arrest, grew out of an application for a Tennessee driver's license dated March 25, 2008 where authorities say she lied about losing her license. Fullilove said her driver's license was 'lost', when in reality, it was taken away in DeSoto County after she refused a breathalyzer test.
Tuesday, the Tennessee Highway Patrol put out a warrant for her arrest saying in an Affidavit of Complaint, "... she understood that it is a criminal offense to knowingly submit false information on this application to receive a duplicate license."
Punished for buying a house you can afford?
Of course. Why would ANYONE pay their mortgage when the government will take money from others and make your payment for you??
Link
Link
An airline pilot who lives outside Norwich, Conn., Mr. Lawrence has a traditional 30-year mortgage that he has no trouble paying every month. But, thanks to the plunging real estate market, he owes more on his house than it is worth, like millions of other people.
If the banks, which frequently lent irresponsibly, and many homeowners, who often borrowed irresponsibly, are getting government assistance, Mr. Lawrence says he believes sober souls like himself are also due a break.
“Why am I being punished for having bought a house I could afford?” he asked. “I am beginning to think I would have rocks in my head if I keep paying my mortgage.”
Politicians get relevancy, we get a bloody mess
Our Tennessee members of Congress who voted for the bailout may actually believe they can make these god-like decisions about our lives. However, my best guess is that privately they will admit to being as clueless as we suspect.
Link
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A recession is coming (or has already arrived) no matter what happens in Washington. The question is whether the attempt to forestall it is going to make it worse and turn it into another Great Depression.
By acting without rhyme or reason, politicians have destroyed the rules of the game. There is no reason to invest, no reason to take risk, no reason to be prudent, no reason to look for buyers if your firm is failing. Everything is up in the air and as a result, the only prudent policy is to wait and see what the government will do next. The frenetic efforts of FDR had the same impact: Net investment was negative through much of the 1930s.
The next administration is unlikely to do any better. Mr. Bernanke is perhaps the greatest living authority on the Great Depression, yet he has failed to stem the damage. Messrs. Paulson and Bernanke are confronted with a sick patient. They have antibiotics. They have a scalpel. But is there any evidence from the last seven months that they understand the underlying cause of the illness, or how to cure it?
Worst of all are the political incentives that are unleashed when Washington promises to spend a trillion dollars (and counting). No one can spend such money wisely even if they want to. The information about who needs to be bailed out and who needs to fail is too complicated. Inevitably, such decisions will begin to be more about politics than economics.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Coercion and Peanut Butter: Sarah Moore nails it
If Obama and Biden really embraced the idea of sharing their peanut butter sandwiches, they could donate enough money to make millions of them. I am getting a sudden craving for a glass of milk …
The members of the Obama/Biden ticket don’t really want to share their own peanut butter sandwiches. They want to gather up all of your sandwiches and hand them out as they see fit.
Senator Obama — Kindly offering to share your lunch with a friend in the school cafeteria does not make you a re-distributionist. Being a bully who removes the choice of goodwill from others does.
Exxon Pays Record Taxes: $11.3 bil for qtr, $41 bil for yr
LinkIn other words, just a single U.S. corporation (Exxon Mobil) will pay more in income taxes this year to various governments ($41.5 billion) than the total amount of all federal taxes paid by the residents (more than 5 million) and businesses of those six states in 2007. In 2007, Exxon paid almost as much in income taxes ($30B) as the total federal tax revenue collected in those six states ($32 billion).
Uphold the Constitution? Not likely says the Judge
Two questions for anyone running for Federal Constitutional office:
1- How would the Constitution limit your powers?
2- Which decisions about the lives and property of your constituents can you make, better than your constituents can make?
1- How would the Constitution limit your powers?
2- Which decisions about the lives and property of your constituents can you make, better than your constituents can make?
Rhode Island to eliminate Income Tax?
Link
PROVIDENCE — Governor Carcieri told a radio talk show audience yesterday that he would “love to find a way” to eliminate the state income tax.
But he stopped short of saying he will ask the General Assembly to eliminate a tax that provides a third of the state’s general revenue — more than $1.1 billion, at a time when the state is already struggling to pay its bills amid plunging tax receipts, a mounting deficit and the highest unemployment rate in the nation.
Asked in a later interview if what he said on radio — a week before Election Day — amounted to a pledge to seek repeal of the tax, Carcieri said: “No. It’s not going to happen in the year that begins January 1. OK? What I am trying to do is precipitate a conversation about tax policy... [because] we are where we are right now because of bad tax polic
“We’ve made some changes,” he said in reference to recent moves to cap year-to-year property tax increases, reduce the state’s capital gains tax and provide a flat-tax option that cuts the income tax rate for the state’s wealthiest taxpayers. “But clearly they are not having an impact fast enough … We’ve got to do more dramatic things from a tax policy standpoint to hang out the sign that we’re open for business … because we’ve got to grow jobs.”
Lobbyists want a piece of 2nd Stimulus Bill
Link
A diverse collection of interests — from city transit officials to labor unions to “clean tech” advocates — are clamoring to be added to the second stimulus package Congress may consider after the election.
Largely left out of the debate over the $700 billion rescue package directed at Wall Street’s teetering financial sector, lobbyists for other interests now believe it’s their turn to benefit from massive amounts of new government spending intended to avert a protracted recession.
The Bailout Bandwagon gets crowded
Why should small banks be excluded from this gravy train? Do you really think members of Congress will miss this opportunity to extend their butts for kissing and their hands for political contributions to small banks and anyone else who wants some taxpayer lucre.
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The government's offer to buy shares in the country's financial firms sounds enticing to many of the Charlotte area's community banks.
It's the cheapest way to raise capital right now, they say, and the stigma originally associated with the plan – which has morphed in the public's vernacular from “bailout bill” to “capital injection” – has largely disappeared.
Kim Price, who is chief executive of Gastonia's Citizens South Banking Corp. and chairman of the N.C. Bankers Association, estimated Wednesday that 70-80 percent of the state's roughly 125 banks will apply for the program, which allows the federal government to directly purchase preferred shares in the banks.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Republican cloture train about to come to a STOP?
LinkThe frequency of cloture motions this session has really focused attention on whether or not the Democrats will reach a 60-vote majority in the Senate after next Tuesday’s elections. Right now, the general feeling seems to be that it’s within reach. What this would mean, assuming that their is a sympathetic President in the White House, is that Democrats would be able to fairly easily pass a lot of their policy priorities that have been blocked by Republicans this session.
Here are just a handful of the kinds of bills that have been filibustered this session, but could be passed by Democrats next session if they reach, or come near, 60:
S.3036 – Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act of 2008
H.R. 800 – Employee Free Choice Act of 2007
S. 1348 – Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007
H.R. 2831 – Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2007
S. 1257 – District of Columbia House Voting Rights Act of 2007
"Education reform" = spend more on status quo
Joanne links to some helpful translations of politician-speak on education.
Link
Link
Governor’s proposal: Our schools must become collaborative continuous learning organizations that build a culture of strong relationships, professionalism, collaboration, and common purpose for all students.
Gadfly translates: Our schools will be leaderless, directionless centers of feel-goodism.
[...]
Governor’s proposal: Improving our technology system to meet the needs of our students in the 21st Century.
Gadfly translates: We still don’t know how to use the computers that we have but we’ll get some more.
58% say keep your stimulus, gimme a tax cut
Link
Fifty-eight percent (58%) of U.S. voters say more tax cuts will better stimulate the economy than new government spending, even as Congress considers a second stimulus plan that could cost as much as $300 billion.
Only 32% think the government should pass another economic stimulus package, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey. Forty-three percent (43%) disagree, and 24% are undecided (see crosstabs).
Move along Barack, nothing to see here
We are already a socialist country. Way to go, Don Quixote, you picked a fight that has already been won.
Link
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But a new study on inequality by researchers at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in Paris reveals that when it comes to household taxes (income taxes and employee social security contributions) the U.S. "has the most progressive tax system and collects the largest share of taxes from the richest 10% of the population." As Column 1 in the table below shows, the U.S. tax system is far more progressive - meaning pro-poor - than similar systems in countries most Americans identify with high taxes, such as France and Sweden.
Even after accounting for the fact that the top 10 percent of households in the U.S. has one of the highest shares of market income among OECD nations, our tax system is second only to Ireland in terms of its progressivity for households.
We are important and busy...back off taxpayers!
Ok, Tennessee Taxpayers, Listen UP. We are busy and we are important, we don't have the time to explain this twice. We are TN Higher Ed and we need a plane, see. I know, I know...you taxpayer types usually drive when you take a trip inside Tennessee but lets face it, you are not as important as us executive types...live with it, suckers.
Link
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“We are conscious of all savings ideas these days,” he said. “We are focused on more conference calls and, when we travel, we try to drive instead of flying.”
Eleven round trips were made from Knoxville to Chattanooga in fiscal year 2008 and 33 round trips were made between Knoxville and Nashville, said Sylvia Davis, vice president for strategic planning and operations at UT.
With gasoline for cars hovering below $3 a gallon in the Southeast, Dr. Petersen’s assigned vehicle, a 2006 Chrysler 300, could make the round trip to Nashville for $38, a savings compared to the hundreds of dollars spent on fuel for a 40-minute plane ride to Nashville, according to AAA fuel calculations.
However, Ms. Davis said using the plane, which seats nine, instead of a car saves busy administrators hours on the road. A trip to Nashville and back takes six hours out of the day and would prevent officials such as Dr. Petersen from attending to university business, she said.
“The people who use the plane have hectic schedules,” Ms. Davis said. “It is a matter of convenience and accessibility.”
Private Girls School helping start all-girl charter school
Interesting, these girls and their parents could have raised money to donate to the main public school system but they chose, instead, to help start a charter school. Sounds like Mayor Karl Dean. He also raised money to work outside the status quo public school system. Sure makes a taxpayer wonder why we are forced to pay more each year for a system that others choose not to help and in the case of the Mayor, choose not to use for their own children.
Link
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When Girls Preparatory School students learned a second all-girls school was headed for Chattanooga, they were so excited they decided to help pay for it.
So all the earnings from their annual Robin Hood fundraiser week will go to the Chattanooga Girls Leadership Academy — a public charter school scheduled to open in July. The $62,000 they made from last year’s fundraiser paid for an all-girls school in Pakistan through best-selling author Greg Mortenson’s Central Asia Institute.
“If we can build a school halfway around the world, why not build one right here?” asked senior Natalie Berg, Robin Hood chairwoman. “I’ve always wanted to do something big locally.”
82% of Canadians support cutting spending, 17%
support tax hikes.
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Toronto, ON – As the Federal Finance Minister considers his various options due to a slowing economy, a new Ipsos Reid poll conducted exclusively for CanWest News Service and Global Television indicates that most Canadians (82%) would be ‘supportive’ (41% very/41% somewhat) of spending cuts (18% would be ‘not very’ (11%) or ‘not at all’ (7%) in favour), compared with just four in ten (43%) who support running a deficit (6% very/37% somewhat).
Bob Corker tries to shut barn door after
entire herd has escaped and stands in the back 40 laughing and having a beer.
Link
Link
“I’m going to show some cards here: I hope they’re way, way on the back burner some place,” Corker said of any other rescue ideas. “That may disappoint you. I read an article this morning where there was some discussion about an injection into GM and Chrysler.
“Once you start down that path, what industry is it that we do not deal with? To be honest, that’s what my conversation with Hank was about this morning – that I don’t think that was the spirit with which (the bailout) was put forth.”
Mass Pol Stuffing bribes into her Bra
LinkAn FBI affidavit includes a series of still photographs from video recordings allegedly showing Wilkerson accepting money from undercover agents, in one case stuffing cash under her sweater and inside her bra.
Some meetings to discuss her assistance in obtaining a liquor license and pushing legislation on behalf of a developer took place in the Statehouse, according to the complaint. Wilkerson also allegedly took the write-in payment earlier this month outside her district office in Roxbury.
One less stupid, silly law in Houston
Link
Mayor Bill White breaks this law. Thousands of innocent children could be implicated. You, dear reader, may be in violation and not even know it.
The city finally is cracking down on bicyclists' rampant disregard of the registration law — by getting rid of the law.
City officials and bike enthusiasts all seem to agree that it's a silly, outdated ordinance that is all but impossible to enforce.
The City Council could vote to strike the law from the books on Wednesday.
The law requires owners to register their two-wheelers at a local fire station for $1 and place a little license sticker on the bike.
"This is something that I think is sporadically done," said Randy Zamora, the city's chief prosecutor. "And I think the firemen have better things to do."
Why the law was passed in 1968 remains a mystery, though city officials guess it was meant to deter theft and track stolen bicycles.
That's unnecessary because bicycles have unique serial numbers, said Alessandro De-Souza, assistant manager of the Bike Barn in Rice Village.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Members of Congress get Richer
LinkWASHINGTON — Times are tough, but don't worry about most members of Congress making ends meet.
Their collective wealth grew by 13 percent last year, leaving them in better shape than most Americans to make it through an economic downturn, according to a new analysis of personal financial reports.
Overall, nearly two of every three senators are millionaires. That includes presidential candidates Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill. In the House, 39 percent of all members belong to the exclusive club.
Only 1 percent of all Americans are considered millionaires.
"With a median net worth of $746,000, most members of Congress have a comfortable financial cushion to ride out any recession," said Sheila Krumholz, executive director of the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics, which conducted the study.
Ka-ching 26 times and counting
Link
| Bank Name | Date Announced | Details | Bailout Amount (in Millions) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank of America (incl. Merrill Lynch) | 10/14/08 | details | $25,000 |
| Bank of New York Mellon | 10/14/08 | details | $3,000 |
| BB&T | 10/27/08 | details | $3,100 |
| Capital One | 10/27/08 | details | $3,550 |
| Citigroup | 10/14/08 | details | $25,000 |
| City National | 10/27/08 | details | $395 |
| Comerica | 10/27/08 | details | $2,250 |
| Fifth Third | 10/27/08 | details | $3,450 |
| First Horizon National | 10/24/08 | details | $866 |
| First Niagara | 10/27/08 | details | $186 |
| Goldman Sachs | 10/14/08 | details | $10,000 |
| Home Federal Financial | 10/27/08 | details | $25 |
| Huntington Bancshares | 10/27/08 | details | $1,400 |
| JP Morgan Chase | 10/14/08 | details | $25,000 |
| KeyCorp | 10/27/08 | details | $2,500 |
| Marshall & Ilsley | 10/28/08 | details | $1,700 |
| Morgan Stanley | 10/14/08 | details | $10,000 |
| Northern Trust | 10/27/08 | details | $1,500 |
| Old National Bancorp | 10/27/08 | details | $150 |
| PNC | 10/24/08 | details | $7,700 |
| Provident Bankshares | 10/27/08 | details | $??? |
| Regions Financial | 10/24/08 | details | $3,500 |
| Saigon National | 10/27/08 | details | $1.2 |
| State Street | 10/14/08 | details | $2,000 |
| SunTrust | 10/27/08 | details | $3,500 |
| UCBH Holdings | 10/27/08 | details | $298 |
| Umpqua | 10/28/08 | details | $214 |
| Valley National | 10/24/08 | details | $330 |
| Washington Federal | 10/27/08 | details | $200 |
| Wells Fargo | 10/14/08 | details | $25,000 |
| Zions Bancorp | 10/28/08 | details | $1,400 |
Good Political Contribution Analysis for State Races
House
Senate
| Candidate | Party | District | Status | ↓Amount↓ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ODOM, GARY | DEMOCRAT | 055 | Pending | $108,450 |
| HARWELL, BETH | REPUBLICAN | 056 | Pending | $103,600 |
| MUMPOWER, JASON E | REPUBLICAN | 003 | Pending | $101,021 |
| STEWART, MIKE | DEMOCRAT | 052 | Pending | $84,750 |
| NAIFEH, JIMMY | DEMOCRAT | 081 | Pending | $80,950 |
Senate
| Candidate | Party | District | Status | ↓Amount↓ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HERRON, ROY B | DEMOCRAT | 024 | Pending | $349,195 |
| TRACY, JIM | REPUBLICAN | 016 | Pending | $328,781 |
| YAGER, KEN | REPUBLICAN | 012 | Pending | $233,215 |
| CAMP, RANDY | DEMOCRAT | 026 | Pending | $218,781 |
| OVERBEY, DOUG | REPUBLICAN | 008 | Pending | $210,208 |
Bird Watching Tax on the way, thanks TWRA
True to form, TWRA doesn't consider reducing their spending. No, that's too easy. They try to find a new way to tax. The welfare of taxpaying families simply doesn't enter into their thinking.
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But wildlife watching in Tennessee – which doesn’t require a license – is on the rise. TWRA is pitching an idea to tax non-hunters through small fees for trailer license plates, new fees to visit managed lands or by taxing products like bird seed.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Don't cry for Ted Stevens, he will keep his pension
Senator Ted Stevens was convicted on all 7 counts today by a jury.
But as NTU reported earlier the taxpayers will still have to pay him a full pension.
But as NTU reported earlier the taxpayers will still have to pay him a full pension.
Stevens was indicted earlier this week on seven counts of falsifying financial information on his mandatory Senate financial disclosure forms. A bill signed by President Bush in September 2007 deprives a lawmaker of his or her pension only for final conviction of certain offenses committed after the bill's enactment. Most of the charges against Stevens are for offenses he allegedly committed before that time. Moreover, none of the charges for violations he may have committed after September 2007 are among the 10 specific felony offenses (including bribery, conspiracy, and racketeering) that constitute pension removal under current law.
1/4 of UK businesses leaving over taxes?
Where would they go?
Link
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One-quarter of the UK's business owners are thinking about relocating overseas in the next three years as a result of the UK's unfavourable tax and regulatory environment, according to a recently-published survey.
The poll by the accounting and advisory firm Tenon Group found that 26% of respondents are mulling plans to leave the UK, whilst 1 in 20 have already made plans to set up shop overseas. This rises to 30% among those business owners who have had prior experience of steering a company through a recession.
Corporation tax is the area of legislation most highly disliked by entrepreneurs, with 37% of those considering leaving the country citing this tax as the main factor. Capital gains tax and the abolition of taper relief was a key motivation for 16%. Entrepreneurs also continue to feel over-burdened by increasing employee rights, with 24% thinking about leaving the country for this reason.
Time for Republicans to return to Core principles?
What Republican core principles?
Barack Obama has a very clear vision for the U.S. He believes that government is the real civilizing force in society, not individual citizens. He believes the rich are greedy and exploitative. He believes the poor are incompetent to make decisions about their own welfare and are victims of forces beyond their control.
Ok, Zach....the ball is in your court...what are your core principles (please don't point to your voting record) ?
Link HT: ACK
Barack Obama has a very clear vision for the U.S. He believes that government is the real civilizing force in society, not individual citizens. He believes the rich are greedy and exploitative. He believes the poor are incompetent to make decisions about their own welfare and are victims of forces beyond their control.
Ok, Zach....the ball is in your court...what are your core principles (please don't point to your voting record) ?
Link HT: ACK
Rep. Zach Wamp, R-Tenn., said this down cycle for Republicans may force the party to retrench around its core principles.
“If we lose, and I suspect we will lose more seats, it will allow us, through two election cycles, to burn out the impurities and burnish ourselves as the party of limited government,” he said.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
DC growth business: lobbying for bailouts
"Thank you" to everyone in the TN Congressional delegation and Senators Corker and Alexander who voted for the bailout. You have turned MY government into a bribe factory worthy of any third world dictatorship. Want to be successful in business? Just kiss the behind of every politician in D.C. To my politicians: please don't waste your breath telling me this is legal...that became a distinction without a difference long ago.
Hey Congressmen Cohen, Tanner, L. Davis, Cooper, Wamp, Gordon and Senators Corker and Alexander...I am sure you will refuse to accept any contributions from anyone remotely connected to the bailout?? SURE you will.
Link
Hey Congressmen Cohen, Tanner, L. Davis, Cooper, Wamp, Gordon and Senators Corker and Alexander...I am sure you will refuse to accept any contributions from anyone remotely connected to the bailout?? SURE you will.
Link
WASHINGTON (AP) - The bailout is now the hottest lobbying game in town.
Insurers, automakers and American subsidiaries of foreign banks all want the Treasury Department to cut them a piece of the largest government rescue in U.S. history.
The betting is that many with their hands out will be successful, especially with financial markets in a stomach-churning dive and predictions the economy is about to tumble into a deep recession.
These groups argue that the credit squeeze is so severe and the risks to the economy so dire that their industries need financial support as well.
Contributors in Fed Govt Favor Obama 2 to 1
Link
"People who work in government believe in government, and they want a president who can inspire people to believe in government again," said David Osborne, a senior partner at Public Strategies Group, a consulting firm for government executives. "When they look at these two (candidates), they come to the conclusion that it's Obama."
Timeless, simple, loving solution to foreclosure problem
Compassion, Conservative or otherwise,should be aimed at teaching people to live their lives independently. Barney Frank or George Bush do NOT help people by encouraging them to buy a home when they don't have a down payment. They are in fact destroying their ability to live independent lives.
Sandra Williams with Chattanooga Neighborhood Enterprise, testifying on 7-21-08 before the TN House Utilities and Banking Committee, knows how to solve the mortgage foreclosure problem AND to show real love and compassion at the same time. Its timeless and simple:
Sandra Williams with Chattanooga Neighborhood Enterprise, testifying on 7-21-08 before the TN House Utilities and Banking Committee, knows how to solve the mortgage foreclosure problem AND to show real love and compassion at the same time. Its timeless and simple:
Aussie Govt: "dryness" much better than "drought"
Link
GOVERNMENT experts say the word "drought" is making farmers feel bad and want people to use the word "dryness" instead.
Farmers also needed to accept that drier weather was here to stay, said a report by the Government's hand-picked Drought Policy Review Expert Social Panel.
"Words like drought ... have negative connotations for farm families," the report said.
"There needs to be a new national approach to living with dryness, as we prefer to call it, rather than dealing with drought."
The report criticised the Government's $1 billion annual drought program, under which drought-stricken farmers are paid Exceptional Circumstances (EC) funding.
"For all the assistance provided, farm families, rural businesses and communities currently living with dryness in rural Australia do not feel or perceive they are measurably better off," the report said.
Farming families in drought-declared areas can get an EC payment of up to $21,000 a year.
The report quoted some farmers as saying EC payments rewarded unproductive and irresponsible farmers and were of no help to good operators.
Is Mark Perry every civics teacher's worst nightmare?
for pointing out that higher voter turnout probably would not change election results?
Link
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But I have never heard anyone say "More people should vote because low voter turnout leads to unreliable results," or "more people should vote because that would change the outcome/results of the election. " Mostly, I think people would simply "feel better" if we had the same results with 80% turnout, compared to having those same election results with 40% turnout.National Voter Turnout in Federal Elections: 1960–2006
But think about it this way - would you feel any better about a blood test if they took two pints of your blood compared to 20 ccs? Probably not.
| Year | Voting-age population | Voter registration | Voter turnout | Turnout of voting-age population (percent) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 220,600,000 | 135,889,600 | 80,588,000 | 43.6% |
| 2004 | 221,256,931 | 174,800,000 | 122,294,978 | 55.3 |
| 2002 | 215,473,000 | 150,990,598 | 79,830,119 | 37.0 |
| 2000 | 205,815,000 | 156,421,311 | 105,586,274 | 51.3 |
| 1998 | 200,929,000 | 141,850,558 | 73,117,022 | 36.4 |
| 1996 | 196,511,000 | 146,211,960 | 96,456,345 | 49.1 |
| 1994 | 193,650,000 | 130,292,822 | 75,105,860 | 38.8 |
| 1992 | 189,529,000 | 133,821,178 | 104,405,155 | 55.1 |
| 1990 | 185,812,000 | 121,105,630 | 67,859,189 | 36.5 |
| 1988 | 182,778,000 | 126,379,628 | 91,594,693 | 50.1 |
| 1986 | 178,566,000 | 118,399,984 | 64,991,128 | 36.4 |
| 1984 | 174,466,000 | 124,150,614 | 92,652,680 | 53.1 |
| 1982 | 169,938,000 | 110,671,225 | 67,615,576 | 39.8 |
| 1980 | 164,597,000 | 113,043,734 | 86,515,221 | 52.6 |
| 1978 | 158,373,000 | 103,291,265 | 58,917,938 | 37.2 |
| 1976 | 152,309,190 | 105,037,986 | 81,555,789 | 53.6 |
| 1974 | 146,336,000 | 96,199,0201 | 55,943,834 | 38.2 |
| 1972 | 140,776,000 | 97,328,541 | 77,718,554 | 55.2 |
| 1970 | 124,498,000 | 82,496,7472 | 58,014,338 | 46.6 |
| 1968 | 120,328,186 | 81,658,180 | 73,211,875 | 60.8 |
| 1966 | 116,132,000 | 76,288,2833 | 56,188,046 | 48.4 |
| 1964 | 114,090,000 | 73,715,818 | 70,644,592 | 61.9 |
| 1962 | 112,423,000 | 65,393,7514 | 53,141,227 | 47.3 |
| 1960 | 109,159,000 | 64,833,0965 | 68,838,204 | 63.1 |
Jump to a specific point in a YouTube Video
HT: TechCrunch
To specify a point, append a tag to the end of your video link with the following syntax: “#t=1m45s” (you can change the numbers before the ‘m’ and ’s’ to edit the minutes and seconds, respectively.
Here’s an example:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1bibCui3lFM#t=1m45s
Saturday, October 25, 2008
$1 Trillion Federal Deficit if we are lucky
Link
The budget picture looking forward is even bleaker. While the deficit is projected to be about $550 billion for the fiscal year that began Oct. 1, budget analysts have yet to figure in the effects of a recession, which could easily tack on another $100 billion. They also have not included the first $250 billion being spent on the bailout plan, which the White House budget office said this week must be added, even though much if not all of the money is eventually expected to be returned to the Treasury.
Healthcare Freedom Amendment-Great Idea
George Will reports on a great amendment on the ballot in Arizona.
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On Election Day, Arizonans can give the nation the gift of a good example. They can enact a measure that could shape the health-care debate that will arrest or accelerate the nation's slide into statism. Proposition 101, the Freedom of Choice in Health Care Act, would put the following language into Arizona's Constitution:
"Because all people should have the right to make decisions about their health care, no law shall be passed that restricts a person's freedom of choice of private health care systems or private plans of any type. No law shall interfere with a person's or entity's right to pay directly for lawful medical services, nor shall any law impose a penalty or fine, of any type, for choosing to obtain or decline health care coverage or for participation in any particular health care system or plan."
Card carrying liberal to vote against Mass income tax
Mass voters will decide on the fate of their State Income Tax on Nov 4. A far left liberal says (below) she will vote in favor of repealing the income tax because, although she favors big government, she believes the current big Mass government is too wasteful and corrupt.
I have often wondered why so many liberals choose big government to be the weapon of choice in implementing their moral vision. Big government is inherently wasteful, inefficient, and corrupt and invites abuse of power by whoever is in power. Private foundations and other entities are so much more efficient in helping the poor.
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I have often wondered why so many liberals choose big government to be the weapon of choice in implementing their moral vision. Big government is inherently wasteful, inefficient, and corrupt and invites abuse of power by whoever is in power. Private foundations and other entities are so much more efficient in helping the poor.
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I am a card-carrying, unrepentant, far-left goody-two shoes bleeding heart liberal. Radical, even.
Yet I plan to vote for Q1.
I am not a "small government" advocate. Nor is my aim to keep a few thousand more dollars in the taxpayers’ pockets (including mine) because "times are tough." Nor do I claim that taxpayers "know how to spend that money better than the government does." Nor do I believe we should force poor people to "pull themselves up by their own bootstraps."
My motives are the reverse. I think our government is too small for the services we need, and must be funded to do all the socially necessary things individuals, and the so-called (until recently) "free markets," cannot do. But without some big change, we won’t get the government we need, no matter how much money we put into it.
Friday, October 24, 2008
All together now, "I am changing my name to Fannie Mae"
Singing for a bailout, Arlo Guthrie says "I am changing my name to Fannie Mae...What they did for Freddie Mac will be perfectly acceptable to me." Lyrics below.
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Lyrics by Tom Paxton
Oh the price of gold is rising out of sight
And the dollar is in sorry shape tonight
What the dollar used to get us now won’t buy a head of lettuce
No the economic forecast isn’t right
But amidst the clouds I spot a shining ray
I can even glimpse a new and better way
And I’ve devised a plan of action worked it down to the last fraction
And I’m going into action here today
CHORUS:
I am changing my name to Fannie Mae
I am going down to Washington D.C.
I'll be glad they got my back
'Cause what they did for Freddie Mac
Will be perfectly acceptable to me
I am changing my name to Fannie Mae
I am headed for that great receiving line
So when they hand a trillion grand out
I’ll be standing with my hand out
I’ll get mine
When my creditors are screaming for their dough
I’ll be proud to tell them all where they can go
They won’t have to scream and holler
They’ll be paid to the last dollar
Where the endless streams of money seem to flow
I’ll be glad to tell them all what they can do
It’s a matter of a simple form or two
It’s not just remuneration it’s a liberal education
Ain’t you kind of glad that I’m in debt to you
CHORUS
Since the first amphibians crawled out of the slime (of the slime!)
We’ve been struggling in an unrelenting climb
We were hardly up and walking before money started talking
And it’s sad that failure is an awful crime
It’s been that way for a millennium or two
But now it seems that there’s a different point of view
If you’re a corporate titanic and your failure is gigantic
Down in Congress there’s a safety net for you
Chorus
Link
Lyrics by Tom Paxton
Oh the price of gold is rising out of sight
And the dollar is in sorry shape tonight
What the dollar used to get us now won’t buy a head of lettuce
No the economic forecast isn’t right
But amidst the clouds I spot a shining ray
I can even glimpse a new and better way
And I’ve devised a plan of action worked it down to the last fraction
And I’m going into action here today
CHORUS:
I am changing my name to Fannie Mae
I am going down to Washington D.C.
I'll be glad they got my back
'Cause what they did for Freddie Mac
Will be perfectly acceptable to me
I am changing my name to Fannie Mae
I am headed for that great receiving line
So when they hand a trillion grand out
I’ll be standing with my hand out
I’ll get mine
When my creditors are screaming for their dough
I’ll be proud to tell them all where they can go
They won’t have to scream and holler
They’ll be paid to the last dollar
Where the endless streams of money seem to flow
I’ll be glad to tell them all what they can do
It’s a matter of a simple form or two
It’s not just remuneration it’s a liberal education
Ain’t you kind of glad that I’m in debt to you
CHORUS
Since the first amphibians crawled out of the slime (of the slime!)
We’ve been struggling in an unrelenting climb
We were hardly up and walking before money started talking
And it’s sad that failure is an awful crime
It’s been that way for a millennium or two
But now it seems that there’s a different point of view
If you’re a corporate titanic and your failure is gigantic
Down in Congress there’s a safety net for you
Chorus
Tennessee has 928, US has 89,476
Governments and they (we) employ 16.4 million full time.
From latest Census of Governments. HT: BeSpacific
From latest Census of Governments. HT: BeSpacific
One wife, many husbands
LinkTypically the marriages are arranged and women have two husbands. But some wives have three or four depending on how many brothers there are in a family.
Polyandry is illegal in India but socially acceptable here. No one from the government seems to bother the villagers about the law.
"It's been going on for ages. My sister in law has two husbands, my mother in law also has two husbands," Indira says.
And as to the question of which husband is the biological father of the children -- the Pundir's don't know and don't care.
"For me everyone is the same, my mother and my fathers are the same. My mother and my fathers are like God to me," 17-year old daughter Sunita Singh Pundir says.
Most expensive part of bailout bill may not be housing
The mental health "parity" provision stuck in the bailout bill had absolutely nothing to do with subprime mortgages but it may well turn out to be the most expensive item in the bill. Mental health providers will pour millions into lobbying and lawsuits to expand their "right" to more taxpayer money.
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There are other problems with the parity argument. Consider:
•The American Psychiatric Association claims that more than 50 percent of Americans are now or will at some point be mentally ill. This estimate, a major increase from years ago, is virtually unlimited since there is no way to accurately confirm or disconfirm "mental illness."
•Supporters of parity celebrate the new law as signaling the end of "stigma," but they fail to consider that stigmatization is a marvelous negative reinforcer for undesired behavior, some of which is called "mental illness."
•Substance disorders are arguably a function of behavioral choices and in no way constitute diseases to which insurance should apply. Such self-destructive behavior is best explained by mindset, personal values and how a person copes with his or her environment. Incidence varies by cultural context, and people can clearly stop or control their addictions through an exercise of free will. Not so when it comes to bodily illness; one can no more will away cancer, heart disease or diabetes than he or she can will their onset.
•Severe conditions such as schizophrenia have been used to typify "mental illness," when it in fact constitutes no more than 1.5 percent of those labeled "mentally ill." A more prototypical mental illness, "adjustment disorder," is a name given by psychiatrists to people who have problems in living - hardly worthy of health insurance and an inducement against confronting one's problems and choices. The same could be said for "impulse-control disorders" such as gambling too much (called "pathological gambling") and other supposed mental disorders.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
New work place rules under Obama Presidency
A Neal Boortz listener emails the new workplace rules that will take effect in his company should Barack Obama be elected (audio from Neal Boortz radio show below):
As of November 5, 2008, when President Obama officially becomes president-elect, our company will instill a few new policies which are in keeping with his new, inspiring issues of change and fairness:
1. All salespeople will be pooling their sales and bonuses into a common pool that will be divided equally between all of you. This will serve to give those of you who are under-achieving a "fair shake".
2. All low level workers will be pooling their wages, including overtime, into a common pool, dividing it equally amongst you. This will help those who are "too busy for overtime" to reap the rewards from those who have more spare time and can work extra hours.
3. All top management will now be referred to as "the government." We will not participate in this "pooling" experience because the law doesn't apply to us.
4. The "government" will give eloquent speeches to all employees every week, encouraging its workers to continue to work hard "for the good of all".
5. The employees will be thrilled with these new policies because it's "good to spread the wealth around". Those of you who have underachieved will finally get an opportunity; those of you who have worked hard and had success will feel more "patriotic".
6. The last few people who were hired should clean out their desks. Don't feel bad, though, because President Obama will give you free healthcare, free handouts, free oil for heating your home, free food stamps, and he'll let you stay in your home for as long as you want even if you can't pay your mortgage. If you appeal directly to our democratic congress, you might even get a free flat screen TV and a coupon for free haircuts (shouldn't all Americans be entitled to nice looking hair?)!!!
6 yr old Girl draws pic with chalk...City says its graffiti
LinkA 6-year-old Park Slope girl is facing a $300 fine from the city for doing what city kids have been doing for decades: drawing a pretty picture with common sidewalk chalk.
Obviously not all of Natalie Shea’s 10th Street neighbors thought her blue chalk splotch was her best work — a neighbor called 311 to report the “graffiti,” and the Department of Sanitation quickly sent a standard letter to Natalie’s mom, Jen Pepperman.
Can somebody stop these bureaucrats before they Kafka again?
“PLEASE REMOVE THE GRAFFITI FROM YOUR PROPERTY,” the Sanitation Department warning letter read. “FAILURE TO COMPLY … MAY RESULT IN ENFORCEMENT ACTION AGAINST YOU.”
Holy Mackeral...the ethanol industry wants a bailout
Ok, I am now officially pissed. The ethanol "industry" which is an artificial life form planted and fertilized with OUR taxpayer dollars by Congress now wants their own bailout....for the love of pete...why the hell would anyone want to earn taxable income????
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U.S. Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer said the federal government is considering outlays of as much as $25 million to help ethanol plants, which have been hit by volatile commodity prices.
Flake, a fiscal conservative, panned the plan Wednesday saying federal promotion of ethanol production is the problem. “The federal government’s ethanol policies have driven up the price of corn,” said Flake. “But rather than reforming the policies that have caused a spike in corn prices, the federal government wants to bail out ethanol producers who speculated on the price of corn. Only the U.S. Department of Agriculture could dream up a policy like this.”
Tennesseans think State and Local Govt Secretive
Yes, they do and their skepticism is increasing, not diminishing. I speak to groups across the State and that is a major concern of every group I speak with.
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Sixty-two percent of respondents in a poll commissioned by the Chattanooga Times Free Press said they believe the state government conducts much of the public’s business in secret, compared to 50 percent in 2004.
The Mason-Dixon Polling and Research Inc. telephone survey of 625 registered Tennessee voters was conducted from Sept. 22 through Sept. 24 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.
The increased opposition to how state and local governments conduct business comes three months after the state open records law was rewritten.
September Foreclosures down 12%
from last month. Up 21% over last year. Still concentrated in a few states. TN doing better than most.HERE is the TN map (scroll down)
Charlie Rangel gets tax break for Yankees
Charlie Rangel, the most powerful tax policy legislator, using his influence to get tax breaks for mega wealthy sports franchise owners...our tax system has left the realm of "tax breaks"...we are now into full blown corruption.
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The IRS has issued a ruling allowing the Yankees to use PILOTS to float an additional $300 million of bonds to finance the New Yankee Stadium. Interestingly, the Daily News suggests the IRS may be giving the Yankees a special deal that won't be available to other franchises. "The tax agency imposed tough new national regulations aimed at tightening up the use of tax-exempt financing for private businesses, including sports teams." Of course, the IRS also had some nudging from the politically influential Rep. Charles Rangel (D-Harlem), head of the House Ways and Means Committee, who submitted a letter to the IRS advocating the Yankees' position.
But that isn't all. Regular readers may recall having seen the story about the city of New York allegedly falsifying the assessment of the stadium to give the Yankees a larger benefit. That issue is still alive and well, as this article in the New York Daily News makes clear. New York State Assemblyman Charles Brodsy had this to say about the city's assessment, "This assessment was cooked. It was done in violation of sworn promises to the IRS. That, in and of itself, requires more investigation."
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Will the "rich" stand still while getting dumped on?
Not likely.
The overwhelming majority of "rich" are NOT greedy, uncaring, uncharitable people who victimize those below them on the economic ladder. They are, in fact, rich because they produce proportionately more goods and services; goods and services which are then available to everyone.
The overwhelming majority of "poor" are not immoral, lazy laggards who are looking for a handout or are the victims of a class conspiracy. They are, in fact, poor because they are proportionately less productive.
The key to prosperity for everyone is to learn the skills, and have the capital available, to be more productive.
Income inequality has increased worldwide but it is not the result of class warfare. It is the result of fast changing technology and highly mobile capital and a global marketplace that quickly rewards efficient production and penalizes inefficiency. NOW is the time to respond with world class education, not bureaucracy and teacher union driven mediocrity. NOW is the time to encourage risk taking and innovation, not to destroy incentives.
EVERYONE is penalized when you penalize productivity. This resurgence of class envy politics will kill our productivity and destroy our economy.
The economic tides will not stand still while Washington experiments with European-type social democracy, even though the dollar's role as the global reserve currency will buy some time. Our trademark competitive advantage will be lost, and once lost, it will be hard to regain. There are too many emerging economies focused on prosperity and not redistribution for the U.S. to easily recapture its role of global economic leader.
Tomorrow's children may come to question why their parents sold their birthright for a mess of "fairness" -- whatever that will signify when jobs are scarce and American opportunity is no longer the envy of the world.
New Source of power: Profound or utter nonsense?
It is probably a pipe dream at best or at worst an outright hoax. But what if... If it is profound we will all benefit. If it is a hoax, the investors who put up $60 mil will have to write it off as a mistake or sue for breach of contract. Its called risk and its how you deal with an uncertain world.Link
It’s difficult to get one’s hopes up, though. Scientific history is littered with ambitious, revolutionary theories that turned out to be groundless. But Blacklight is an interesting case. Its “hydrino” theory isn’t put forth by a single crackpot. Instead, the company employs a good handful of high-level scientists who would presumably rebel if the idea was totally false. It has also taken over $60 million in venture funding. Despite a hearty rejection by the scientific mainstream, and being ignored for years on end, its founder, Randell Mills, has plugged on. We covered the company extensively back in May, when it started saying it had a prototype 50 kilowatt reactor.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Extraordinary speech by JFK to press on secrecy
JFK gave this speech before the American Newspaper Publishers Association in 1961. He lays out his vision of an open society and government's responsibility to keep society open and citizens free.
:...there is little value in insuring the survival of our nation if our traditions do not survive with it..."
:...there is little value in insuring the survival of our nation if our traditions do not survive with it..."
Taiwan slashes estate tax from 50% to 10%
How novel...politicians who understand that government does NOT create jobs. Taiwan actually wants to be economically competitive with the rest of the world.
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The new government is losing no time in implementing financial reforms, despite the global financial crisis now wreaking havoc around the world. It wants to regain its regional standing against Hong Kong and Singapore, and has its sights set on turning Taiwan into a regional asset management hub.
According to finance minister Lee Sush-der, the bill will cost the government NT$20 billion in lost tax revenue each year. But the loss will pay for itself in the form of a more vibrant economy.
Voluntarily paying more taxes...it does happen
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Montgomery County Animal Control and Adoption Service received a $100,000 cashier’s check last week from an anonymous donor.
"Curing" teen unemployment with higher min wage
Lets see....we have "fixed" the problem of "affordable" housing. Now, we see strong evidence that we have"fixed" the problem of teen unemployment.
I just can't wait until we "fix" the healthcare crisis.
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If you are "rich" you have a bullseye on your wallet
Barney Frank: "Yes, I believe later on there should be tax increases, speaking personally, I think there are a lot of very rich people out there whom we can tax at a point down the road and recover some of this money."
Monday, October 20, 2008
WHAT?? They are already covering up the bailout
BailoutSleuth.com is a blog trying to make some sense of the bailout. Turns out they have found the Treasury ALREADY hiding vital details from TAXPAYERS!!! Click on the LINK to see the redacted text.
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When the Treasury Department's bailout czar provided an update this week on the government's $700 billion plan to rescue troubled financial institutions, he vowed that it would be an "open and transparent program with appropriate oversight.''
The next day, the Treasury Department put out an announcement about a major bailout-related contract with Bank of New York Mellon Corp. that fell short in the transparency department.
The copy of the agreement that was made public had blacked-out paragraphs in the section covering Bank of New York Mellon's compensation. If the Treasury Department is unwilling to disclose the particulars of that contract -- or even the general outline of the compensation scheme -- that raises questions about how it will treat disclosure of other bailout transactions.
ANOTHER $700 bil for Taxpayers to worry about
While taxpayers watch their 401k's decline they should remember they will ALSO will have to make up any shortfalls in Government pensions. Most government pensions are guaranteed....by whom? The taxpayers of course. Estimated cost...about $700 billion. Time Magazine has more:
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They are public employees in state and local governments, ranging from teachers to cops. Most collect guaranteed pensions provided through state and local taxes and their own contributions and investment returns. Overall, 90% of public employees enjoy a defined-benefit pension, compared with only 20% (and falling) of the private work force.
Even though the commitment is there, the money isn't. A study by analysts at Barclays Global Investors in San Francisco estimates that public-employee pension funds in the U.S. are short $700 billion. That's more than all state and local governments collected last year in property, sales and corporate income taxes combined. As a result, many employees in the private sector will get hit with a double whammy: while their pensions erode, increasingly they will be hit with cuts in government services and forced to pay higher taxes to cover the pensions of public employees, the kind they can only dream about. In three-fourths of the states, public pensions even come with annual cost-of-living increases, a fringe benefit absent from private pensions.
Bredesen gets a "B" from CATO for fiscal responsibility
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Tennessee
Phil Bredesen, Democrat Legislature: Divided
Grade: B Took Office: January 2003
Governor Bredesen has generally avoided tax increases. After a four-year battle to impose an income tax inTennessee ended in 2002with the state remaining income tax-free, Bredesen wisely sided against the idea when he came to office. The only substantial tax increase under the governor was a 2007 increase in the cigarette tax. The governor has not proposed any major tax cuts, but he has supported modest breaks such as reducing the sales tax on groceries.
When state budget gaps have appeared, Bredesen has focused on budget restraint,
including efforts to reduce state employment and rein in health care spending. Per capita spending, however, has risen quickly at about 6 percent annually during his tenure.
Beware of Middle Class Tax Cut promises
An article from 1993:
Link HT: Makiw
Link HT: Makiw
WASHINGTON: Seeking to explain why he is backtracking on a campaign promise to cut taxes for the middle class, President-elect Bill Clinton said Thursday that the plan was never a major theme in his race for the White House.
Mr. Clinton, speaking at a news conference a day after saying he would have to "revisit" his tax-cut plan, said Americans voted for him because of the "big things" he wanted to do.
The middle-class tax cut, he said, was not among them.
He said he was "absolutely mystified" that the news media had perceived it as a major pledge. In interviews Wednesday, Mr. Clinton said that, because of worsening deficit projections,"I have to put everything back on the table."
Mr. Clinton spoke throughout the campaign of the need to redress declining middle-class incomes during the 1980s. He proposed a tax cut for the middle class nearly a year ago, in New Hampshire, and repeated the pledge frequently.
Wine buying freedom for Tennessee? Maybe
A Federal judge says Michigan can't bar out of State retailers from selling wine in the State. Sounds like that should apply to Tennessee.
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The court ruling overturns a law banning out-of-state wine retailers from shipping direct to in-state consumers -- unless the retailers have a location in Michigan and are part of the structure that includes beverage manufacturers and wholesale distributors. The judge said requiring a business to open a bricks-and-mortar location in Michigan violates the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits states from discriminating against interstate trade.
Govt corruption in the name of Charity
Defense contractors find a way to funnel money to their patrons...even in the name of charity.
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They do not seem the most likely classical music patrons: Northrop Grumman, General Dynamics, Boeing and Lockheed Martin.
But together, these defense contractors are donating hundreds of thousands of dollars to the symphony orchestra in Johnstown, Pa., underwriting performances of Mozart and Wagner in this struggling former steel town. A defense lobbying firm, the PMA Group, even sprang for a Champagne reception at the symphony’s opera festival last month.
Company representatives say they are being generous corporate citizens. But the orchestra is also a beloved charity of Representative John P. Murtha, Democrat of Pennsylvania, whose Congressional committee hands out lucrative defense contracts, and whose wife, Joyce, is a major booster of the symphony.
“She just loves knowing that we have an orchestra that is the quality of a larger city orchestra,” the symphony executive director, Patricia Hofscher, said of Mrs. Murtha. “Her friends have come here and been impressed by the quality of the orchestra in a geographic and economic region that, let’s face it, are not on the beaten path.”
For the first time, corporations and their lobbyists are being required to disclose donations they make to the favorite causes of House and Senate members, and a review of thousands of pages of records shows the extent — and lavishness — of this once hidden practice.
ALERT: The Sky will fall Tomorrow
Just wanted to alert you to news reports that will appear on Wed that life as we know it will soon end. An alien attack? No, just Gerald Nicely will be telling us on Tuesday that civilization will cease to exist without a gas tax increase.
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On Tuesday, lawmakers and transportation industry experts will begin looking at how Tennessee might pay for future road projects beyond the current 21.4-cents-per-gallon tax on gasoline.
Options include raising the rate on the gas tax by tying it to the rate of inflation, adding fees to transportation-related items like driver's licenses or vehicle registration, building toll roads and bridges, and borrowing money by selling bonds.
The Transportation Funding Option Committee has the task of researching alternative sources of income and reporting its findings to lawmakers in February. During the first meeting, its 20 members will hear from the chief of the Tennessee Department of Transportation about the current funding situation and what other states are doing.
Bredesen lays foundation for a TAX HIKE
Gov Bredesen has made the choice to make taxpaying families cut their family budgets by increasing taxes instead of cutting the State Government budget. When the rainy day fund is gone, he will be forced to propose a tax hike.
Gov. Bredesen recently said he would not dip into the rainy day fund to make up for a soft economy:
Gov. Bredesen recently said he would not dip into the rainy day fund to make up for a soft economy:
Now, he is saying that despite not knowing how long the economic downturn will last, he is going to dip into the rainy day fund:The governor said he would not, however, approve using the reserves to balance the budget.
"I'm very serious about finding some ways to cut back on our spending over the next few months so that we don't build ourselves a big hole," Bredesen said.
"You never can do it quite as fast as revenues dip, just because it takes time to make these changes," Bredesen said.
Bredesen said he can likely find ways to make the cuts necessary to fill up to a $300 million spending gap.
"But when you get much above $300 million you're talking either about legislative action, or dipping into reserves somewhat," Bredesen said.
The governor has previously expressed reluctance about tapping the state's $750 million rainy day reserves until an end to the downturn was in sight.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
T Boone just wants the best...but for whom?
T Boone wants the taxpayers of California to borrow $5 billion...and guess who will benefit?Link
Billionaire T. Boone Pickens, who earned his money as a Texas oilman, has now topped $10 million in contributions to Proposition 10, the alternative energy bond on the Nov. 4 ballot.All the money has come through Pickens' company Clean Energy Fuels Corp., which has donated $10.75 million to the ballot effort after a $3 million donation on Thursday.
Pickens' company provides natural gas for vehicles -- the types of vehicles that would be eligible for rebates should Proposition 10 pass.
Clean Energy gave another $4 million to the campaign earlier this month.
Watching Titans while Blogging on new Dell Mini 9
Been using the Dell mini 9 for about a week and it is SWEET!!! Highly recommended. Think about a laptop about the size of a thin hardback book. Very light and battery life is a solid 2 hours...maybe more. And only $450ish fully decked out.
Principal U.S. Federal Statistical Agencies
- Bureau of Economic Analysis
- Bureau of Justice Statistics
- Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Bureau of Transportation Statistics
- Census Bureau
- Economic Research Service
- Energy Information Administration
- National Agricultural Statistics Service
- National Center for Education Statistics
- National Center for Health Statistics
- Statistics of Income (IRS)
Bankrupt Calif. City May Be a Harbinger
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Employee unions, meanwhile, displayed impressive focus. They helped make the "City of Opportunity" the first in California to send arbitration issues to an outside party, which frequently ruled for the unions. Police and firefighters routinely won contracts so bountiful that in 1993 a panel of citizens predicted that, absent an interruption of the upward cycle of raises and benefits, Vallejo would go bankrupt in 2010.
The reckoning was bumped forward two years by the housing crash and a dip in sales taxes that accompanied the closure of a car dealership and a Wal-Mart. Fiscal 2008 found the city with no reserves and 80 percent of the general fund obligated to police and fire services.
"They should be well paid. There's a risk to the job," said Marc Garman, a local watch repairman who, seeing what was coming, started a Web site called Vallejo Is Burning. "But there comes a point where it just becomes abusive."
The salaries come with extravagant benefit packages. For every $100,000 paid in salary, the city must send $29,000 to California's public pension program. Firefighters earning any kind of degree -- literature, dietetics -- get a raise. Public safety personnel retire after 30 years with 90 percent pay. And after five years on the job, the employee has health coverage for life. So does every member of the employee's family.
UK to require passport for cell phone purchase
Link HT: Tim Worstall who has some advice for UK Govt
Everyone who buys a mobile telephone will be forced to register their identity on a national database under government plans to extend massively the powers of state surveillance.
Phone buyers would have to present a passport or other official form of identification at the point of purchase. Privacy campaigners fear it marks the latest government move to create a surveillance society.
A compulsory national register for the owners of all 72m mobile phones in Britain would be part of a much bigger database to combat terrorism and crime. Whitehall officials have raised the idea of a register containing the names and addresses of everyone who buys a phone in recent talks with Vodafone and other telephone companies, insiders say.
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Many prescription drugs simply don't DO anything
That is the problem. Ezra Klein talks about "using" the placebo effect in modern medicine. Seems like the more important conclusion is that many prescription drugs simply are NOT that effective.Link HT: Marginal Revolution
Rich non-farmers getting farm subsidies
And, of course, Senator Corker thinks this is outrageous BUT he will never quite find the time to follow up on the unintended consequences of Congress' past good intentions because he is too busy implementing so many of his new good intentions.Great report by Jeremy Finley
As part of the farm bill, which was just renewed again this year, if someone owns farm land but never works an acre of it, they can get subsidies. It's how all the landowners in the city got their big chunk of the money."Farm subsidies are going to the largest, wealthiest landowners in the country," said Michelle Perez of the Environmental Working Group. “Why should they get taxpayer support when there's no farm bill equivalent for business owners? Or farm bill equivalent for dry cleaners?"Jim Bill McInteer runs a successful publishing company in Nashville and owns land in Kansas and Kentucky. He said it is fair that he receives the money.
Time for a Skybox Bailout
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Because the federal government has already committed itself to bailing out Wall Street, it will soon find itself obligated to bail out many of the ancillary enterprises that depend upon Wall Street for survival. One of these is sports franchises. The government will be forced to lease the skyboxes at stadiums that were previously occupied by brokerage houses, commercial banks and investment banking firms. This is not an eventuality that either Henry Paulson or Ben Bernanke had envisioned when they first floated the subject of a bailout. These guys just can't keep their eye on the ball.One can readily imagine the hue and cry that will greet the announcement that the Treasury Department has taken over a dozen skyboxes at Arrowhead Stadium and another dozen at Coors Field. Yet the alternative is unacceptable. Without the cash generated by luxury boxes, numerous sports franchises will go under. This would further undermine the public's mood, particularly in smaller cities, where watching ice hockey is literally the only way to have fun on a cold Friday night in February.
Was Emily Dickinson writing about politicians?
Found this poem here. Did a bit of research and some say it is a love poem, some say religious. Maybe she had politicians in mind?
He fumbles at your spirit
He fumbles at your spirit
He fumbles at your spirit
As players at the keys
Before they drop full music on;
He stuns you by degrees,
Prepares your brittle substance
For the ethereal blow,
By fainter hammers, further heard,
Then nearer, then so slow
Your breath has time to straighten,
Your brain to bubble cool, --
Deals one imperial thunderbolt
That scalps your naked soul.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Hawaii dropping children's health coverage
Why pay for your child's health insurance when the "government" will do it?
Why pay your mortgage when it is the "government's" responsibility to provide affordable housing?
Why should we pay for anything when the "government" will pay for it?
Link
Why pay your mortgage when it is the "government's" responsibility to provide affordable housing?
Why should we pay for anything when the "government" will pay for it?
Link
Gov. Linda Lingle's administration cited budget shortfalls and other available health care options for eliminating funding for the program. A state official said families were dropping private coverage so their children would be eligible for the subsidized plan.
"People who were already able to afford health care began to stop paying for it so they could get it for free," said Dr. Kenny Fink, the administrator for Med-QUEST at the Department of Human Services. "I don't believe that was the intent of the program."
Memphis City Directories: 1859-1901
An amazing history resource.HERE is the directory from 1868. Simply use the drop down menu to go to other years.
Mexican Teachers strike to preserve right to inherit
or sell their job.
Link
Link
CUERNAVACA, MEXICO — Tens of thousands of teachers are blocking highways and seizing government buildings across Mexico to protest a federal education reform ending their longtime practice of selling their jobs or giving them to their children.
In central Morelos state, where opposition is centered, about 20,000 teachers have been on strike for more than 50 days. Though a few thousand children study in cantinas and makeshift classrooms, nearly 500,000 others have yet to start the school year.
Since the strike erupted in Morelos in late August, protests have spread to at least a dozen other states and are threatening to go nationwide. In Baja California, about 700 teachers in Tijuana lay down on the world's busiest border crossing and blocked San Diego-bound traffic for hours. In Mexico City, protesters set up a sprawling tent city near the federal Education Secretariat, which oversees the country's public education system.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Circular Fundraising-Earmarks OUT, Contributions IN
First, an explanation and then, below, a database of these earmarks by TN Reps and Senators:
Rep Jeff Flake explains in his most recent email about "circular fundraising":
Here is the database entry for each TN Rep and Senator:
Lamar Alexander
Bob Corker
David Davis
John Duncan
Zach Wamp
Lincoln Davis
Bart Gordon
Jim Cooper
Marsha Blackburn
John Tanner
Steve Cohen
Rep Jeff Flake explains in his most recent email about "circular fundraising":
Of all the 10,000+ earmarks approved by the U.S. Congress each year, none are more expensive, pernicious, and corrupting as the more than 2,000 earmarks in the defense bill. I suppose it's because Members of Congress assume no one will question their motives when it comes to defense spending. This attitude allowed former Congressman Duke Cunningham to earmark tens of millions of dollars in defense contracts to his buddies over a number of years. Gratefully, Duke now sits in federal prison for accepting cash payments in exchange for these earmarks.The Seattle Times has constructed a database of these circular earmarks:
In addition to being reprehensible, of course, the type of activity Duke Cunningham was involved in was illegal. It may surprise you to know what is not only legal, but actually quite common, when it comes to defense earmarks.
Members of Congress can earmark funds in the defense bill to go directly to companies in their state or district. No bidding or competition is required, as these are essentially no-bid contracts. Executives in these companies (and the lobbyists who represent them) can then turn around and make campaign contributions to the Member of Congress who secured the earmark. It's a practice I call "circular fundraising."
In the past, I've been able to raise concerns about circular fundraising when the defense appropriations bill came to the House floor for debate. Not this year. For the first time since I've been in Congress, the defense appropriations bill didn't even receive consideration from the appropriations committee, let alone come under scrutiny on the House floor. The 2,000+ earmarks in the defense appropriations bill were simply added to a "continuing resolution" that passed last month. No challenge or discussion of any of the earmarks was allowed. None.
Here is the database entry for each TN Rep and Senator:
Lamar Alexander
Bob Corker
David Davis
John Duncan
Zach Wamp
Lincoln Davis
Bart Gordon
Jim Cooper
Marsha Blackburn
John Tanner
Steve Cohen
East TN Man/Woman face 3rd Tenncare charge
Link
Strange was indicted by an Anderson County Grand Jury on two counts of TennCare fraud and one count of obtaining a controlled substance by fraud.
Police say Strange presented an Oak Ridge pharmacy with forged prescriptions for the painkiller Hydrocodone and Clonidine HCL, a drug used to treat methadone withdrawal. He used TennCare to pay for the prescriptions.
Strange was indicted in June of this year in Loudon County on three counts of TennCare fraud and three counts of identity theft - and he was charged again in September in Knox County with one count of TennCare fraud and four counts of forgery.
In all these incidents, police say Strange was using TennCare benefits to pay for forged prescriptions of Ultram, a narcotic-like painkiller, and the sleeping pill Lunesta.
Watson was indicted in Anderson and Knox Counties.
In Anderson County, Watson is charged with two counts of TennCare fraud and two counts of obtaining a controlled substance by fraud for allegedly presenting a pharmacy with a forged prescription for the painkiller Oxycodone, using TennCare to pay for the medication.
In Knox County, Watson was charged with six counts of TennCare fraud, two counts of acquiring or obtaining a controlled substance by fraud, for allegedly presenting forged prescriptions for the painkiller Percocet, using anther person's TennCare card as payment.
Watson was first arrested this past January on charges in Morgan for TennCare fraud, identity theft, and obtaining a controlled substance by fraud for using the personal ID of a TennCare member to obtain a prescription for Percocet.
Young people are such SUCKERS!! Nananana
Hey young folks....go get a job, you are going to need it to pay all my benefits.
Link
Link
WASHINGTON (AP) — Social Security benefits for 50 million people will go up 5.8 percent next year, the largest increase in more than a quarter century.The increase, which will start in January, was announced Thursday by the Social Security Administration. It will mean an additional $63 per month for the average retiree.
It's the largest increase since a 7.4 percent jump in 1982 and is more than double the 2.3 percent rise that retirees got in their monthly checks starting in January of this year.
How can politicians have this much gall? HOW?
LinkPoliticians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them.
Have you ever wondered why, if both the Democrats and the
Republicans are against deficits, WHY do we have deficits?
Have you ever wondered why, if all the politicians are against
inflation and high taxes, WHY do we have inflation and high taxes?
You and I don’t have the Constitutional authority to vote on
appropriations. The House of Representatives does.
You and I don’t write the tax code, Congress does.
You and I don’t set fiscal policy, Congress does.
You and I don’t control monetary policy, the Federal Reserve Bank does.
One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one president, and nine
Supreme C ourt justices. 545 human beings out of the 300 million are directly, legally, morally, and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.
TN Shoppers saved $9 mil during fall tax holiday
Link
According to new figures released by the Tennessee Department of Revenue, sales tax holiday shoppers’ habits apparently changed very little.
While official totals will take more time, records show shoppers saved around $9 million in sales tax over the three-day exemption period at the beginning of August. The total is right in line with totals from the state’s previous three holidays. Shoppers saved $8.5 million in April 2008, $8.5 million in August 2005 and $9 million in April 2007, according to a department release Friday. During Tennessee’s first tax holiday in August 2006, shoppers saved about $15 million, records show.
“It’s been pretty consistent,” said Glen Page, deputy commissioner for the revenue department.The consistency probably stems from the nature of the exemptions, Mr. Page said. Most of the tax-free items are annual necessities for schoolchildren such as binders, book bags and pencils.
“You have to have those. It’s not very discretionary,” Mr. Page said.
"Sure I stole...I stole for you."
Jennifer Peebles, formerly with Tennessean and now in Texas with Trent and Lee Ann, relates funny stories.
+ The best part of this story in this morning’s McAllen Monitor, datelined Edinburg, is the headline: “Lawyer: Constable earned money he is accused of stealing.” Reminds me of the old stories they used to tell when I was growing up in Georgia about the notorious Gov. Eugene Talmadge — he’d get up on the stump at some rural county courthouse and address the accusations against him, saying, “Sure I stole … I stole for you!”
$1 bil to discourage drugs actually encouraged
drug use among teens says a study. Thank YOU suckers...er, Taxpayers.
Good intentions + taxpayer money = waste.
Link HT: Don Fenley
Good intentions + taxpayer money = waste.
Link HT: Don Fenley
A congressionally mandated study released today concluded that the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign launched in the late 1990s to encourage young people to stay away from drugs "is unlikely to have had favorable effects on youths."
In fact, the study's authors assert that anti-drug ads may have unwittingly delivered the message that other kids were doing drugs, inadvertently slowing measured progress that was being made to curb marijuana use among teenagers.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Raul Castro: Poverty, Misery and Tyranny Forever!!
Long Live the Devolution!!
Link
Link
Cuba's foreign minister warned Tuesday that President Raul Castro will never renounce socialism, just days before Havana holds landmark talks with European Union leaders.
"There has not been reform in Cuba, but a deep social revolution" and "this process has to be continually perfected," Felipe Perez Roque told a press conference in Madrid when asked about reforms undertaken by Raul Castro since he replaced his ailing brother Fidel two years ago.
If the reforms imply that "Cuba is renouncing socialism, we have to say that they are not," he said, following a meeting with his Spanish counterpart Miguel Angel Moratinos.
Metro Nashville Govt wants to count your calories
Is there no limit to the moral and intellectual superiority of our govt? NO, there is not. They are so wonderful.
We are currently witnessing how wonderfully affordable they have made housing. Soon, they will achieve the same wonderful results with healthcare. NOW, they want to count our calories. Their cup of political good intentions runneth over.
Link
We are currently witnessing how wonderfully affordable they have made housing. Soon, they will achieve the same wonderful results with healthcare. NOW, they want to count our calories. Their cup of political good intentions runneth over.
Link
If adopted, the calorie count requirement would begin Jan. 31, with a 90-day grace period.
Obesity is at an epidemic level in Nashville, with more than 60 percent of residents overweight or obese, Dr. William Paul, the health department's director, told the board.
Even more alarming, the most recent survey shows 13 percent of the city's youths are obese, Paul said.
The same survey showed 35 percent of youths in the state overweight or obese.
Many people don't realize how many calories are in some foods, such as 600 in a large soda, he said.
The Three Star Taxpayer Shuffle and Bamboozle
The so-called three star designation is "awarded" by the TN Department of Economic Development to cities and counties who have achieved a high level of skill in advanced political photo ops and PR palooza. These local officials must learn how to stand up straight and smile for the camera and say stuff that means absolutely nothing. It is very demanding but, unfortunately for taxpayers, has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with economic development because POLITICIANS don't create jobs!!!Link
"This designation is a sign of Anderson County's tremendous hard work, and I am proud to offer my congratulations," Kisber said in a news release.
"Strong community development is the basis for sustainable economic growth, and Anderson County has demonstrated their commitment to improvement by accepting and meeting Three-Star's challenging requirements. This dedication has yielded progress, and Anderson County is more prepared than ever for long-term success in the economic, and every other, arena," Kisber added.
France bans boos during sports events....really
Link
Any football match in France before which the country's national anthem is booed will now be "immediately stopped", French Sports Minister Roselyne Bachelot said Wednesday after meeting with President Nicolas Sarkozy.The dramatic move followed the booing of "La Marseillaise" during France's 3-1 friendly win over Tunisia at the Stade de France in Paris on Tuesday.
"Any match when our national anthem is whistled will be stopped immediately," Bachelot said after talks with Sarkozy and French Football Federation president Jean-Pierre Escalettes.
"Government members will immediately leave the arena where our national anthem has been whistled.
The panic explained...very well
Short version:
1-Lend money to people who can't pay it back
2-Hope rising home prices bail you out
3-When home prices fall, PANIC!!!
Link
1-Lend money to people who can't pay it back
2-Hope rising home prices bail you out
3-When home prices fall, PANIC!!!
Link
Subprime mortgages are a financial innovation designed to provide home ownership opportunities to riskier borrowers in the U.S. Such borrowers are indeed riskier (also poor and disproportionately minority), and lending to this group involved a particular mortgage design feature, that resulted in linking the outcome to house price appreciation. Subprime mortgages were then financed via securitization, which in turn has a unique design, reflecting the subprime mortgage design. Subprime securitization tranches were then often sold into CDOs. Tranches of CDOs were, in turn, often purchased by market value off-balance sheet vehicles, and money market mutual funds. Additional subprime risk was created (though not on net) with derivatives.
This nexus of off-balance sheet vehicles, derivatives, securitization, and, in addition, the growth of the repo (repurchase agreement) market constitute what has come to be known as the "shadow banking system." When the U.S. housing prices did not rise as expected, this chain of securities, derivatives, and off-balance sheet vehicles could not be penetrated by most investors or counterparties in the financial system to determine the location and size of the risks. Faced with this lack of information, financial intermediaries refused to deal with each other and began to hoard cash. The panic of 2007 began.
Bredesen says NO to tapping State reserves
Link and Photo from Greeneville SunBredesen said in spite of the sluggish revenue collections the state is in sound financial shape because of substantial reserves.
The governor said he would not, however, approve using the reserves to balance the budget.
"I'm very serious about finding some ways to cut back on our spending over the next few months so that we don't build ourselves a big hole," Bredesen said.
In a previous visit to Rogersville, the governor said that during 2001 state officials had not reacted to a recession and declining revenues, forcing the state to deplete reserves.
Earlier this year Bredesen proposed an early-retirement incentive for state employees in an effort to trim personnel expenditures.
"We got most of the way home. I wanted to save $64 million in state money and we ended up about $16 million short of that," Bredesen said, adding that the remainder of the savings might come from leaving positions vacant.
"I would really like to avoid, especially in these kind of economic times, any involuntary layoff," the governor said.
Bedford Cnty/Shelbyville discuss spending freeze
Link
Municipalities across Tennessee are reacting to the nation's economic crisis, as well as a recent report from the governor's office that projected a 3 percent decrease in sales tax revenue.At the Bedford County Board of Commissioners meeting Tuesday night, County Mayor Eugene Ray proposed fiscal caution to "buying things we don't need, until the first of the year... This means no raises, no promotions."
Shelbyville's City Council had a similar freeze brought before it at the Oct. 9 meeting and will be discussing at the next study session.
Let the Bailout Begin...kiss your first $350bil goodbye
Link
Dear Madam Speaker: (Dear Mr. President:)
Pursuant to section 115(a)(2) of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (Public Law 110-343)(the “Act”), I hereby certify that it is necessary for the Secretary of the Treasury to exercise the authority granted under the Act to purchase, or commit to purchase, troubled assets up to the limit of $350 billion outstanding at any one time.
Sincerely,
GEORGE W. BUSH
The Credit "Crunch" is not evident here:
Professor Perry asks the obvious question....the Fed's own stats show expanded lending. Where's the crunch?Link
We keep hearing news reports that describe U.S. credit markets as being "tight," "frozen," "seized-up," "ultra-tight," "drum tight," etc. Why isn't that much-publicized credit tightness showing up in commercial bank loan data, which keeps setting record highs, and is now more than $7 trillion?
Convention Centers = Red Ink for Taxpayers
If the Nashville Metro Council allows the convention center to proceed, they will be committing fraud against the taxpayers.
Good post by Nate Rau at the CityPaper.
Link
Good post by Nate Rau at the CityPaper.
Link
Convention Center advocates keeping an eye on the how the current economic climate will impact the industry might take note of the situation in Orlando. That’s where the city’s convention center earned a hearty $56 million this past fiscal year, an increase of 17 percent.
Unfortunately, expenses for marketing and operating the Orlando center came in at $60 million, leaving a disappointing shortfall of $4 million. Those funds will come out of the city’s hotel/motel tax. That’s the same tax Metro will use to finance debt issued to build the proposed $635-plus million Music City Center.
It’s also interesting to note in light of the fact Metro is currently trying to firm up what the operating cost will be for the new convention center. The current convention center receives an annual $1.03 million subsidy to operate. Some have said that number could more than double in the new facility.
Elsewhere, Philadelphia’s $700 million convention center was projected to come in so far over budget that Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell said in August the proposal almost didn’t make sense any more.
In Dallas, it’s more of the same. Convention Center developers there are asking the city for an additional $5 million as their new facility is behind schedule and over budget. Citizens there are so angry, they’ve started a petition to stop development.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
TN Private colleges at record high enrollment
Link
The number of students attending a private college or university in Tennessee has reached a total enrollment of 68,920 — 2,237 more students than this time last year, according to the Tennessee Independent Colleges and Universities Association.
Last year’s enrollment numbers were at 66,683 for the fall semester. This year’s number is a record high for students, with an increase of 3.4 percent compared to last year.
TICUA reports that the growth trend has lasted more than a decade.
Pay for your own TV ad with unlimited contributions
on VoterVoter.com. The FEC may approve it according to OMB watch.
Link
Link
During an open meeting FEC commissioners indicated some approval for the advisory opinion (AO 2008-10) for the VoterVoter.com request, but a final vote was put off. The new model would allow individuals to fund messages on their own without a contribution limit. [. . .] An individual could use VoterVoter.com to pay for placing a favorite video on television as a paid advertisement. VoterVoter.com would make arrangements with television stations to place an ad, in line with the wishes of the person paying for the air time. If this activity is not coordinated with a candidate, it may be considered an "independent expenditure" not subject to any spending limit. The ads funded also would not have to avoid any so-called magic words but could expressly advocate the election or defeat of a candidate. Brad Smith, a former FEC commissioner, submitted comments on the draft advisory opinions, concerned that a person wishing to create or pay for a campaign ad may be subject to regulation as part of a "political committee." "For example, Smith objected to the draft's suggestion that coordination between a creator and funder of an ad could bring the FEC political committee rules into play."
UK Govt healthservice calls in private care for staff
Link
The money was used to bring in physiotherapists to help workers recover from muscular-skeletal injuries at West Suffolk Hospital in Bury St Edmunds.
Bosses said it prevented them from leapfrogging NHS patients and enabled them to return to work more quickly.
However, the private treatment, which amounted to £12,116 for 271 appointments over the past year, was described by critics as "shocking".
Mark Wallace of the TaxPayers' Alliance said: "Their staff should have to wait like everybody else.
"Perhaps if they experienced it as their customers - that is the taxpayer - experienced it, they might be a little keener to improve their waiting times."
Webcasts of operating rooms-ContEd for docs
Interesting site: webcasts of live operations.HERE is a non surgical repair of an aortic aneurysm. You can move the progress button around to any point.
Yes, I know this is not abut taxes but there is so much interesting stuff going on around the web.
Snakebite pics: ALERT, NOT for the squeamish
As a wanna be herpetologist while in my long ago teen years, this story is fascinating. It is an account of a snake bite which occurred on a hike in a remote region and the treatment. If you are squeamish about seeing bloody or gory pictures, DO NOT click on the link.
House Dems talk abolishing 401k Tax breaks
Link
Powerful House Democrats are eyeing proposals to overhaul the nation's $3 trillion 401(k) system, including the elimination of most of the $80 billion in annual tax breaks that 401(k) investors receive.
House Education and Labor Committee Chairman George Miller, D-Calif., and Rep. Jim McDermott, D-Wash., chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee's Subcommittee on Income Security and Family Support, are looking at redirecting those tax breaks to a new system of guaranteed retirement accounts to which all workers would be obliged to contribute.
Monday, October 13, 2008
Economic Stabilization = 1,000 new bureaucrats
Link
The new legislation has created an Office of Financial Stability within the Treasury Department and charged it with implementing the Troubled Asset Relief Program. That effort will entail buying distressed mortgages and investing in failing financial institutions. It may require hiring more than 1,000 federal workers and at least that many more in the private sector, in part because this unprecedented task will demand skills and experience that current civil servants do not possess. Punishing those whose abuses triggered the financial meltdown and ensuring that the bailout process itself is not corrupted will also become high government priorities. And everyone will look to Congress for better oversight of the financial services sector.
Unlike Congress, Seattle Schools say failure is OK
Link
For the first time in seven years, Seattle public high-school students who do poorly can receive a failing grade on their report cards.
Since 2000, not a single student has received an E, a mark more commonly known as an F. High schools instead handed out N's for "no credit," which didn't affect a student's grade-point average and took much of the sting out of failure.
But the E is back — effective immediately.
The reason, the district says, is a technical one. In a larger review of high schools, a district committee recently realized that the exclusive use of N's violated School Board policy.
The change, however, has been welcomed by many principals and teachers who believe that students should face more consequences for failure.
Taxpayers RIPPED OFF by film "incentives"
Lets STOP calling them film or movie production "incentives." They are bribes in every sense. Bribes paid by corrupt politicians to companies who want to rip off taxpayers, plain and simple. They DO NOT produce jobs. They DO NOT produce "economic development."
This craziness has GOT TO STOP!!
Link
This craziness has GOT TO STOP!!
Link
In Rhode Island, the rules have toughened considerably. That happened after The Providence Journal reported in March that producers of a straight-to-DVD picture called "Hard Luck" had picked up $2.65 million in state tax credits on a budget of $11 million even though it had reported paying only $1.9 million of the total to Rhode Islanders.
In Texas, lawmakers approved the state's first film incentive program last year. It offers a 5 percent rebate on money spent in the state. However, a group called the Texas Motion Picture Alliance is preparing to lobby the Legislature to increase that figure to 10 to 15 percent. Organizers say the change is needed because states with higher incentives are luring projects from Texas. Recently, "Whip It," a film directed by Drew Barrymore, completed its primary interior filming in Michigan even though much of it is set in Austin. The crews did film a couple of exterior shots in Austin.
[...]However, critics have challenged the notion that state subsidies for the film business can buy more than momentary glitter.
"There's no evidence yet that this is a particularly efficient or effective way to create jobs," said Noah Berger, executive director of the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center.
The nonprofit center reviews budget and tax policies in Massachusetts, which is spending about $60 million a year on producer credits. A recent study by the center found that the state's film credit, at 25 percent, is five times what is offered to those who build in designated economic opportunity areas and more than eight times the state's standard investment tax credit.
Until two years ago, Louisiana's program offered a 15 percent credit for virtually the entire budget of a qualified film. Mark Smith, who oversaw the program, pleaded guilty last year to taking $67,500 in bribes to inflate budgets for a company that authorities did not name.
Dallas City Govt ignores 60,000 petition signatures
opposing a taxpayer funded Convention Center.
Link
Link
With a collective shrug, Dallas City Council members employed them all in dismissing the Citizens Against the Taxpayer-Owned Hotel's submission Thursday of nearly 60,000 petition signatures to the Dallas city secretary's office – signatures designed to trigger a public referendum in May on whether Dallas may construct a publicly owned convention center hotel.
From District 12 council member Ron Natinsky in Far North Dallas, to District 8 council member Tennell Atkins in the deep southern sector, to Mayor Tom Leppert himself, most elected city leaders say Dallas remains primed to begin building the hotel they consider critical to the city's economy by early next year.
Playing Banjo during Vanderbilt Surgery
Link with videoA musician who underwent brain surgery to treat a hand tremor played his banjo throughout to test the success of the procedure.
Eddie Adcock is one of the pillars of Bluegrass Music and realised his tremor could threaten his ability to perform professionally.
Surgeons placed electrodes in Mr Adcock's brain and fitted a pace maker in his chest which delivers a small current which shuts down the region of his brain causing the tremors.
A surgeon filmed the operation at the Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee.
Socialmention.com social content search engine
Link HT: Zillman
Social Mention is a social media search engine that searches user-generated content such as blogs, comments, bookmarks, events, news, videos, and micro-blogging services. It allows you to easily track what people are saying about you, your company, a new product, or any topic across the web’s social media landscape in real-time. Search results are aggregated from numerous popular social media sources, including Google blog search, Twitter, Delicious, FriendFeed, Flickr, Digg, YouTube etc. and remixed as a single stream of information. The data is fresh, which means you can track conversations as they are happening in real-time. In addition to web-based search results, Social Mention also features email alerts and personalized RSS feeds for automatic and instant updates.Also Twing.com, for searching discussion forums.
Twing is dedicated to the world of online communities and forums. Their intent is to enable you to quickly find highly relevant communities and discussions pertaining to your interests, as well as keep you informed on the latest trends influencing communities. Members of Twing also can track activity on their favorite forums and stay informed on updates via custom alerts.
Homemade cookies banned at school..too risky
These California school administrators think citizens, acting without supervision, can't be trusted.
Link
Link
Food prepared in home kitchens violates federal health laws, according to school rules handed down last month.
"If you wish to violate this order, your club will be disbanded," reads one provision.
Also banned are club meetings without a teacher present. "NO exceptions," say the rules.
And students can no longer accept cash at charity fundraisers – only checks – to avoid accounting irregularities.
The rules have raised a ruckus on campus. Students call them new and unfair.
They are protesting, including through a page on the social networking Web site Facebook titled "Petition to retract the new rules for clubs."
So far, 181 students have signed up.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
24 page summary of the 451 page monstrosity
HERE is an good 24 page summary of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 from The TaxBook via Kerry Kerstetter. "Good" as in comprehensive, not "good" as in good policy.
Not ONE of the 535 people in Congress predicted, or knows why we are in, the current panic and not one knows how to "fix" it.
This bill is a politicized mess.
Not ONE of the 535 people in Congress predicted, or knows why we are in, the current panic and not one knows how to "fix" it.
This bill is a politicized mess.
Friday, October 10, 2008
Taxpayer funded credit card+exotic dancer=$280k
For stealing $280k..."Under federal sentencing guidelines, Brown is likely to face 18 to 37 months in prison."
Link
Link
The pair met in various restaurants and parking lots in St. Louis County and elsewhere so she could use a portable terminal to run his government-issued credit card, court documents state. They kept the transactions under the $3,001 level that would require a supervisor's approval.
At times, Brown also gave Shrum the card to use, court documents state.
Brown and Shrum first met in the summer of 2004 while she was working as an exotic dancer at a Metro East club and developed "a personal relationship" that lasted into 2006, court documents say. She had also modeled for the adult magazine Hustler, court documents state.
Shrum attempted to get the evidence against her thrown out by claiming that she was under the influence of two prescription drugs when agents got copies of business records and interviewed her last year. She also claimed that they threatened to derail the musical career of her blues singer son unless she cooperated.
Mayor Daley says loafing workers will be fired
Yeah, right. Daley says the worker (see previous post) will be fired but when asked if he will fire the Streets and Sanitation Commissioner Michael Picardi he said no because he has "done a good job." Chicago politics is a bizarre mix of absurd Orwellian doublespeak.
Link
Link
Streets and Sanitation Commissioner Michael Picardi has said he has no plans to resign, in spite of Hoffman's claim that "extremely poor supervision" is the "principal cause" for the waste and fraud.
And the mayor is not about to demand the commissioner's resignation.
"Picardi's done a good job. Everybody knows that. He's worked very hard. You're talking about 200 employees or something. Those 200 employees are significant. But, he's done a good job, Picardi has," the mayor said.
Pressed on who was to blame for the rampant waste and fraud that taxpayers can ill afford, Daley said, "Maybe, individual people just don't care. You need discipline. [But] it's hard to discipline people. You know that. Look at your [media] industry. You can't discipline anyone."
Now Jackson wants a CONVENTION CENTER
but it won't be as big as the Memphis CONVENTION CENTER and of course not even close to Nashville's. Nashville taxpayers will have the largest convention center debt by far so, as these other TN cities get in the convention center business, Nashville taxpayers will have the most to lose.
Link
Link
Diamond Jaxx owners or other developers could build a convention center and an accompanying hotel adjacent or connected to Pringles Park if city and county officials agree to create a special tax district, Jackson Mayor Jerry Gist said Thursday.
"That is what they said they would like to see as one development theory," he said. "It would help in attendance at the ball park and every establishment constructed at the interchange."
Thursday, October 09, 2008
How to link directly to Federal Legislation
Link HT: FGI
How to create a Legislative Handle
Begin the URL with the handle domain name -- http://hdl.loc.gov/ -- then add loc.uscongress. Add a slash and the name of the collection, legislation, followed by a period and the congress number, 110. Finally, add the bill type abbreviation and the bill number.
http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.uscongress/legislation.110s254
http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.uscongress/legislation.110sconres33
http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.uscongress/legislation.110hr4544
http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.uscongress/legislation.110hres655To learn the specifics for building any Handle, see Syntax below.
Chicago: 6 hours of work for 8 hours pay
Link
Between May and September, investigators for Inspector General David Hoffman spied on 77 garbage truck drivers and 145 laborers in 10 wards. They reported what they called "systemic, pervasive" waste and fraud.
In 10 weeks of surveillance, they "did not see a single laborer doing a full day's work," according to the report.
"The investigators found a remarkably consistent pattern throughout all the wards," the report said. "Although the crews were well paid to work 8 full hours a day, on average they only worked less than six hours a day."
Pay my mortgage? No, housing is a RIGHT!
Link HT: Mark Perry
Dear Wells Fargo:
I'm writing to inform you that I have decided not to make my next eight (8) mortgage payments. There are nine (9) rooms in my home; I only have one (1) high-definition television. You do the math. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson. He is responsible for keeping me in my home. Whatever that means.
Best Regards,
Pay for health insurance? NOOO, Its a RIGHT!!
This blogger informs his insurance company that he expects to continue to be provided coverage but doesn't intend to pay a dime because its a RIGHT!!
Dear UHC:
As you may know, health care coverage is now a right. Barack Obama said so in last night's debate.
The purpose of this letter is to inform you that I have decided to stop paying monthly insurance premiums. I don't pay a dime for any of my other rights - life, liberty, pursuit of happiness, blah blah blah... - why should I pay you guys for health insurance?
Of course, I expect you to continue to provide your services for me and my family. If you don't, I'll sue you. For violating my rights.
Best Regards,
Jeff Lehner
Bush admin wants to own banks AND houses
...this must be the ownership society they were talking about.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Bush administration is considering taking ownership stakes in certain U.S. banks as an option for dealing with a severe global credit crisis.
An administration official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because no decision has been made, said the $700 billion rescue package passed by Congress last week allows the Treasury Department to inject fresh capital into financial institutions and get ownership shares in return.
Wednesday, October 08, 2008
IRS allows corporations to borrow offshore money
The IRS is allowing corporations to borrow money held by foreign subsidiaries without paying the corporate income tax. How did they do this without Congressional approval?
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The IRS has temporarily expanded the 1988 ruling, allowing corporations to borrow money held by foreign subsidiaries without having to pay the 35 percent corporate income tax.
The revision extends the period for paying back such loans from 60 to 180 days.
The money cannot be used for dividends or other distributions.
There is always hope in the human spirit
"I know of no more encouraging fact than the unquestioned ability of a man to elevate his life by conscious endeavor."
Henry David Thoreau
Henry David Thoreau
Tuesday, October 07, 2008
Closet US envy at 52% in France
Link
Here is the proportion who would be interested in moving to America if economic and political barriers were non-existent:
Here is the proportion who would be interested in moving to America if economic and political barriers were non-existent:
Germany 20%
Brazil 31%
Spain 32%
France 52%
Netherlands 55%
South Africa 65%
India 73%
A deposit on paper Coffee Cups?
Yup, says a Canadian "waste diversion consultant."
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Companies that sell takeout coffee must create their own deposit-return system that keeps disposable cups out of litter and landfill, or governments will do it for them, says a waste diversion consultant.
Coffee cups are the latest target of Toronto planners who want to divert 70 per cent of the city's garbage away from its shrinking landfill sites by 2010.
Clarissa Morawski, an environmental advocate who has written extensively on waste policy, said the industry is facing a "paradigm shift" in the way its disposable cups are viewed, littering Toronto's streets and filling garbage cans instead of being recycled.
"If they don't act, then the risks are very big. That is the writing on the wall," Morawski said.
Creeping privatization in Canadian Healthcare
and it must be STOPPED of course...as laid out in a study very probably paid for by people who want to keep the spigot of taxpayer money open.
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Since the first private MRI clinics opened their doors in Canada 10 years ago, there has been a national explosion of private health facilities with little policing by the federal or provincial governments, a report says.
Across Canada, there are 42 for-profit magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT) clinics, 72 private surgical hospitals (excluding cosmetic surgery facilities) and 16 "boutique" physician clinics, the Ontario Health Coalition says in a report, entitled Eroding Public Medicare: Lessons and Consequences for For-Profit Health Care Across Canada, being released today.
Monday, October 06, 2008
Public Meetings can be held ONLINE
according to the Arizona AG.
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The AG said it would not violate the law as long as it provides "clear notice to the public," takes minutes, provides clear instructions for the public to access the meeting online, and provides reasonable accommodations for anyone with a disability or people without Internet connection, including providing online access at the agency's own offices.
Poker game can't continue if taxpayers are stingy
Great article by Arnold Kling on why the bailout is not as bad as you think, its worse.
Link via Insty
Link via Insty
I think of the mortgage securities market as a poker game, being played in a stateroom on a ship called the U.S. Economy. Because so many players have lost most of their chips, the poker game is in danger of grinding to a halt. The players have rushed out of the stateroom, screaming, "Emergency! Emergency! If the poker game doesn't revive, the ship is going to sink! All the passengers need to give money to the ship's Bursar so that he can get join the game and get it going again!"
Putnam (Cookeville) Anti-wheel Tax Rally
Thanks to Steve Moore for all the help organizing the rally last week. HERE is the newspaper coverage. And Thanks to Matt Strain for his enthusiastic but highly nuanced portrayal of the "screwed" taxpayer, picture HERE. And thanks to the Putnam County Commission for placing this decision in the hands of the ONLY people in Putnam County who know if they are willing and able to afford more taxes, THE TAXPAYERS via referendum on the November ballot.
Sunday, October 05, 2008
Bi-partisan taxpayer funded campaigning
Thank you Tom Humphrey and the Knoxville News Sentinel for this extraordinarily complete report on how "postage and printing" funds are transferred to TN State Reps and Senators with challengers....this practice has got to stop and stop NOW!!! This is taxpayer funded campaigning plain and simple.
Here is the list of transfers.
Here is the list of transfers.
We can't give the stuff away-unclaimed Stimulus
Kingsport TN Govt has the numbers:
| City | Number Remaining to File as of 9/7/08 | Value of Unclaimed Payments |
| Memphis | 10,508 | $3,152,400 |
| Nashville | 6,113 | $1,833,900 |
| Knoxville | 5,328 | $1,598,400 |
How do you starve a European Farmer?
Mark Perry has the answer (which of course could also apply to many US farmers):
Weld his mail box shut so he can't get his government checks.
Weld his mail box shut so he can't get his government checks.
Dog breed developed by tax collector: Doberman
LinkDid You Know?...The Doberman Pinscher has a very interesting origin. Back in the late 1860's a German tax collector named Herr Louis Dobermann was getting tired of the disrespect and violence that he regularly faced while performing his appointed tax collection duties.
Being a dog fancier in his own right, he set out to develope a breed of dog that was strong, intelligent, loyal and that had a lot of fight in it if needed. He wanted a dog whose mere appearance would cause the hooligans of the time to think twice before giving him a problem.
Herr Louis breed a dog which contained part Rottweiler, German Pinscher, Great Dane, Manchester Terrier and German Short Haired Pointer.
Will the NY State Budget crisis be "solved"?
Are you kidding? Of course it won't be solved. Taxpayers simply don't have enough political power to pressure the NY State Legislature to stop spending their money. The Gov. says this year's budget is in "crisis" and he may only be able to increase the budget at the rate of inflation...that's his definition of a budget crisis.
But will the growth rate in spending decline...NOOOO! All of the self serving groups that receive the billions in taxpayer money, and DO have the political power, would have to agree to give up their money and power....ain't gonna happen.
Link
But will the growth rate in spending decline...NOOOO! All of the self serving groups that receive the billions in taxpayer money, and DO have the political power, would have to agree to give up their money and power....ain't gonna happen.
Link
It’s abundantly clear that our governors, legislative leaders and rank-and-file state legislators have never been committed to “take whatever actions” to stabilize state finances. For decades.
Paterson must know that state legislators are opposed to discussing any cuts in the bloated $124 billion budget during an election year.
Moreover, these profiles in courage can’t even bring themselves to use the word “cut.” Unfortunately, Paterson has done nothing but dither while Empire State finances crumble. He speaks unctuously about what needs to be done, but demonstrates no ability to follow through and finally achieve fiscal restraint.
For example, our governor ordered a hiring freeze. Good. That’s one of the easiest belt-tightening measures to implement. But two weeks ago 78-year-old retired Assemblyman Ivan Lafayette was handed a $140,000-a-year plum patronage job at the Insurance Department. Lafayette became a deputy for “community affairs.”
What a joke.
Saturday, October 04, 2008
ACORN leadership battle continues
Link
ACORN is facing tough times after Dale Rathke, the brother of ACORN founder Wade Rathke, was accused of embezzling in 1999 and 2000 $948,507 in faulty credit card charges while working as comptroller of an organization that kept the books for all of the ACORN-affiliated groups across the country. When Wade Rathke was alerted of the fraud in 2001, he set up a formal schedule for his brother to repay the debt at a rate of about $30,000 a year. After $214,000 had been repaid, a California donor stepped in this summer and paid the rest.
But not everyone on the board knew of the arrangements, and when an ACORN donor raised questions this spring about the incident, the board smelled a coverup and asked Rathke to step aside. The situation has since disintegrated into leadership fights at the organization.
ACORN leaders from across the country assembled at the New Orleans court Thursday morning after two members of an interim management committee filed suit to make sure that financial records at Citizens Consulting Inc. , where Dale Rathke worked, would be preserved and made available to the board. In their suit, they also sought to enforce a board resolution directing Wade Rathke to step aside from all ACORN organizations, after he left his post as chief organizer of the group's domestic operations but went to work for ACORN International .
59% agree: Government IS the problem
Rasmussen asked respondents if they still agree with Reagan that Government IS the problem, not the solution. Here is Reagan's original quote from 1981.
“In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem. From time to time we've been tempted to believe that society has become too complex to be managed by self-rule, that government by an elite group is superior to government for, by, and of the people. Well, if no one among us is capable of governing himself, then who among us has the capacity to govern someone else? All of us together, in and out of government, must bear the burden. The solutions we seek must be equitable, with no one group singled out to pay a higher price.”Link
Support is found across a wide range of political and demographic groups. Sixty-seven percent (67%) of men agree with Reagan, as do 52% of women. A majority of voters in all age and income groups agree.
The only demographic group to disagree with Reagan’s statement are those who identify themselves as politically liberal. Just 35% of liberals agree that government is the problem, but 46% disagree. Moderates embrace the Reagan view by a 61% to 25% margin, and conservatives are even more enthusiastic.
Republicans overwhelming embrace Reagan’s view, and 55% of unaffiliated voters agree as well. Democrats are a bit less enthusiastic, but 49% agree with Reagan while 34% disagree.
Those who plan to vote for Barack Obama this November are evenly divided: 44% agree with Reagan, and 40% do not. Supporters of John McCain agree by a 74% to 16% margin.
Bailout already judged too stingy by credit markets
There is no fool like a Congressional fool. They are all full of good intentions and benevolent hubris believing they are the backstop for all humanity. But best of all they never have to admit mistakes...to hell with unintended consequences and unforeseen circumstances, to hell with the notion that citizens can make better decisions about their lives and businesses than Congress can make...I am Congress, hear me roar.
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After the House's vote Friday afternoon, the yield on the three-month Treasury bill slipped to 0.50 percent from 0.70 percent late Thursday. There has been no decrease in demand for T-bills, seen as the safest assets around, even though they are offering extremely low returns. The discount rate on the three-month was 0.47 percent.
There was little change in the strained credit default swap market, either, according to data from Phoenix Partners Group. Credit default swaps are essentially insurance policies against bond defaults; when rates are high, it means the market is betting on a higher probability that a company will fail to pay back its loan.
The stock market sank after the House passed the plan, sending investors back into longer-term Treasurys.
Singing Presidential Candidate Dolls pulled from shelves
not sure why, they are pretty creative. Barack finishes his song with "I promise if you choose me your taxes will be free."
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McCain Doll
Hillary Doll
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McCain Doll
Hillary Doll
Friday, October 03, 2008
Bailout info you may have missed
Its part of a bailout splurge that may reach $1.8 trillion (and that doesn't include the $25 billion auto bailout)...and there is LOTS more...click on the LINK to read it all.
Link
Link
| Bailout type | Cost to taxpayers (Source: Reuters) |
|---|---|
| Financial bailout package approved this week | up to or more than $700 billion |
| Bear Stearns financing | $29 billion |
| Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac nationalization | $200 billion |
| AIG loan and nationalization | $85 billion |
| Federal Housing Administration housing rescue bill | $300 billion |
| Mortgage community grants | $4 billion |
| JPMorgan Chase repayments | $87 billion |
| Loans to banks via Fed's Term Auction Facility | $200 billion+ |
| Loans from Depression-era Exchange Stabilization Fund | $50 billion |
| Purchases of mortgage securities by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac | $144 billion |
| POSSIBLE TOTAL | $1.8 trillion+ |
| NUMBER OF HOUSEHOLDS PER U.S. CENSUS | 105,480,101 |
| POSSIBLE COST PER HOUSEHOLD | $17,064+ |
The Strategery Fund may need more money
The Strategery Fund (see post below), whose motto is:
Link
"we don't compound your interest, we compound your crisis"may need some more of our money. To borrow a phrase from Jurassic Park, "hold on to your ass."
Link
"Absent a clear resolution to this financial crisis," Schwarzenegger wrote in a letter Thursday evening e-mailed to Paulson, "California and other states may be unable to obtain the necessary level of financing to maintain government operations and may be forced to turn to the federal treasury for short-term financing."
America's Newest Hedge Fund: Strategery Fund
The nations newest hedge fundHT: Don Luskin
Sellers of Distressed Assets
We are only looking for your absolute worst assets so that we can purchase them at fair market value and prevent a global financial collapse. We are in the process of making a list of the worst assets. Ben currently has the notebook and pen so please track him down to make sure your institution and assets are on there.Distressed Taxpayers
The rogue minority who oppose this plan are permitted to contact their elected representatives a single time by certified mail, return receipt requested, referencing "Strategery Capital." Specify your Social Security number, enclose your 2007 returns and a copy of your license and passport, attach a printout of this page, and notify the postal employee that you are responding per the 2008 Distressed Taxpayer Enhanced Communication Act. A modest delivery surcharge will apply.Interested Investors
If you are interested in investing in Strategery, you are in luck. The elegance of our approach is we do not need the high cost of marketing or investor relations departments. Rest assured that your capital and assets will be discreetly seized on your behalf.
Charter Amendments: Knox Cnty, City of Memphis
Charter amendments have been certified to appear on the November ballot for 1-The City of Memphis and 2- Knox County.
1-City of Memphis: 6 Charter amendments on November Ballot
http://www.cityofmemphis.org/framework.aspx?page=949
Referendum No. 1 - Term Limits (pdf)
Referendum No. 2 - Staggered Terms (pdf)
Referendum No. 3 - Sale of MLGW (pdf)
Referendum No. 4 - Suspension from Official Duties (pdf)
Referendum No. 5 - Instant Run-off (pdf)
Referendum No. 6 - Filling Vacancy in the Office of the Mayor (pdf)
2-Knox County: 7 Charter Amendments
http://www.knoxcharterpetition.com/charter.html
• Prohibits any elected or appointed Knox County official from doing anything to help the employment of a relative in Knox County Government (hiring, promotion, transfer or advancement).
• Requires a Knox County elected official or employee who has a conflict of interest on a matter on which he or she is responsible to vote to disclose the conflict in the meeting before the vote takes place, and to recuse himself/herself from any discussion or voting on the matter.
• Commission would be restructured so that each voter votes for 3 of 11 Commissioners (1 for each of 9 Districts; 2 At Large), rather than 2 out of 19 (District only) for most voters now. The terms of Commissioners would be staggered so that every two years some but not all County Commissioners would be up for election.
• County Commissioners could no longer be employed by any other branch of Knox County Government.
• Establishes an independent Office of Inspector General to detect and prevent fraud, waste and abuse; to increase financial and ethical accountability; and to review efficiency and responsiveness of County departments and programs. Documented fraud would be forwarded to the Attorney General for prosecution. The Inspector General would be chosen through a process that begins with a Request for Qualifications issued by the County Purchasing Department; review of the submitted qualifications from candidates by the County Ethics Committee; and ultimate appointment of the Inspector General by County Commission. The Inspector General would serve a 6 year term, could be reappointed, and could only be removed for cause by 2/3's vote of County Commission. The Inspector General's salary would be fixed at the level of the County Law Director to ensure the highest professional standards.
• Requires a Knox County official who has a conflict of interest on any administrative matter over which he/she must exercise discretion (make a decision) to disclose the conflict in writing on a form filed with the Knox County Law Director, and to remove him/herself from the decision on the matter.
• Starting in 2010, after the current County Mayor is term limited, the duties of the frontier-era non-policy making fee offices (County Clerk, Trustee and Register of Deeds) and the advisory position of Law Director (in 2012) would become functions of department directors appointed by the Mayor, subject to approval by majority vote of Commission, and subject to removal for cause by a 2/3's vote of Commission. This results in $9 million in fees becoming a part of the regular County budget each year
1-City of Memphis: 6 Charter amendments on November Ballot
http://www.cityofmemphis.org/
Referendum No. 1 - Term Limits (pdf)
Referendum No. 2 - Staggered Terms (pdf)
Referendum No. 3 - Sale of MLGW (pdf)
Referendum No. 4 - Suspension from Official Duties (pdf)
Referendum No. 5 - Instant Run-off (pdf)
Referendum No. 6 - Filling Vacancy in the Office of the Mayor (pdf)
http://www.
• Prohibits any elected or appointed Knox County official from doing anything to help the employment of a relative in Knox County Government (hiring, promotion, transfer or advancement).
• Requires a Knox County elected official or employee who has a conflict of interest on a matter on which he or she is responsible to vote to disclose the conflict in the meeting before the vote takes place, and to recuse himself/herself from any discussion or voting on the matter.
• Commission would be restructured so that each voter votes for 3 of 11 Commissioners (1 for each of 9 Districts; 2 At Large), rather than 2 out of 19 (District only) for most voters now. The terms of Commissioners would be staggered so that every two years some but not all County Commissioners would be up for election.
• County Commissioners could no longer be employed by any other branch of Knox County Government.
• Establishes an independent Office of Inspector General to detect and prevent fraud, waste and abuse; to increase financial and ethical accountability; and to review efficiency and responsiveness of County departments and programs. Documented fraud would be forwarded to the Attorney General for prosecution. The Inspector General would be chosen through a process that begins with a Request for Qualifications issued by the County Purchasing Department; review of the submitted qualifications from candidates by the County Ethics Committee; and ultimate appointment of the Inspector General by County Commission. The Inspector General would serve a 6 year term, could be reappointed, and could only be removed for cause by 2/3's vote of County Commission. The Inspector General's salary would be fixed at the level of the County Law Director to ensure the highest professional standards.
• Requires a Knox County official who has a conflict of interest on any administrative matter over which he/she must exercise discretion (make a decision) to disclose the conflict in writing on a form filed with the Knox County Law Director, and to remove him/herself from the decision on the matter.
• Starting in 2010, after the current County Mayor is term limited, the duties of the frontier-era non-policy making fee offices (County Clerk, Trustee and Register of Deeds) and the advisory position of Law Director (in 2012) would become functions of department directors appointed by the Mayor, subject to approval by majority vote of Commission, and subject to removal for cause by a 2/3's vote of Commission. This results in $9 million in fees becoming a part of the regular County budget each year
Thursday, October 02, 2008
TN Comptroller Morgan-If only we were taxed more
"staggered"?
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Turning to taxes, Mr. Morgan said he knew Tennessee was a low-tax state. He was staggered to see just how low-taxed Tennessee is, he said. Tennessee is the lowest for 2007 state and local tax burden as a share of personal income for all southern region states. If Tennesseans were taxed at just the average of the southern region states, an additional $3.4 billion in revenue would be realized.
Fear was the weapon of choice yesterday.
Alexander and Corker and Bush and Reid used it like a sword to destroy any resistance to the bailout bill. Jim DeMint was one of the few members of the Senate asking them to put down their weapon of fear and look in the mirror.
Wednesday, October 01, 2008
New Business Opportunity: Voter Anger Management
Members of Congress reside in a bubble of arrogance called Washington DC. They have absolutely no idea how angry voters are about this bill. This is a tipping point issue.
The Senate Bailout bill has become a monster of what they are euphemistically calling "sweeteners" when in fact they are major legislative add-ons. So, not only do we have really bad bill, they are adding new layers of fresh crap to what John Boehner yesterday called a crap sandwich.
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The Senate Bailout bill has become a monster of what they are euphemistically calling "sweeteners" when in fact they are major legislative add-ons. So, not only do we have really bad bill, they are adding new layers of fresh crap to what John Boehner yesterday called a crap sandwich.
Link
The Senate substitute now runs over 450 pages. And tucked away in the tax provisions is a landmark health care provision demanding that insurance companies provide coverage for mental health treatment—such as hospitalization—on parity with physical illnesses.
Really a bill onto itself, the mental health parity measure has been a bipartisan priority for top lawmakers in both chambers but has stalled because of disagreements again over how to pay for its estimated $3.8 billion five-year cost. In the current climate, that seems to be no longer a stumbling block, and if the Treasury plan becomes law, it will also.