Socialism here we come. On numerous occasions and most recently on October 3rd, 2008 and on November 1st, 2008 I predicted the bailout of State governments. Governments need to learn how to cut spending because that is what we the taxpayers will need to do when they start taxing us to pay for all of these bailouts.
As far as I am concerned we could get all forms of governments out of debt by the governments taking the money from their employees (aka taxpayer funded workers) and their retired employees pensions. Here is a list of my suggestions.
1. From here on out all government employees must retire no earlier than 67 and government employees can no longer double, triple or even quadruple dip into government pensions.
2. No government employee salary can exceed 75,000 dollars (this would be adjusted for inflation over time) with the exception of the President and Vice-president.
3. Governments employees can no longer receive taxpayer funded medical plans once retired they must use Medicare like those in the private sector.
4. Either all pensions funds must be turned over to social security and all governments workers must receive social security like the rest of us schmucks or all pensions must now longer exceed 40,000 dollars annually (that is a heck of a lot more money than they would receive if they received social security). Some Government Pensioners are receiving pensions well over 200,000 dollars a year. These pensions start at age 55 so these retired government employees are getting millions of dollars in retirement.
5. All currently retired employees under age 67 can no longer receive pensions.
6. Government employees must no longer be allowed to be unionized.
7. We must enforce term limits not to exceed 8 years in all levels of the government. Without term limits we often have nepotism, patronage, corruption and wasteful spending.
Corrected for typos and clarity 1/4/09.
Cathy
The following piece appeared on Reuters.com.
U.S. governors seek $1 trillion federal assistance
Fri Jan 2, 2009 5:48pm EST
By Jon Hurdle
PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) - Governors of five U.S. states urged the federal government to provide $1 trillion in aid to the country's 50 states to help pay for education, welfare and infrastructure as states struggle with steep budget deficits amid a deepening recession.
The governors of New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Ohio and Wisconsin -- all Democrats -- said the initiative for the two-year aid package was backed by other governors and follows a meeting in December where governors called on President-elect Barack Obama to help them maintain services in the face of slumping revenues.
Gov. David Paterson of New York said 43 states now have budget deficits totaling some $100 billion as tax revenues plunge.
"It's clear that the federal government needs to step in and jump-start the economy," said Gov. Deval Patrick of Massachusetts.
The latest package calls for $350 billion to create jobs by building or repairing roads, bridges and other public works; $250 billion to maintain education; and another $250 billion in "counter-cyclical" spending such as extending unemployment benefits and food stamps, which are typically a responsibility of the states.
The remainder would be used to fund middle-class tax cuts, stimulate the embattled housing market, and stem the tide of home foreclosures through a loan-modification program.
Gov. Jon Corzine of New Jersey said he hoped some of the $700 billion authorized by Congress in the Troubled Asset Relief Program would be available to help the housing market.
The governors said during a conference call with reporters that the plan had been discussed with Congressional leaders and the incoming administration, which had indicated its willingness to help.
"The Obama team has been very receptive in listening to us," said Gov. Jim Doyle of Wisconsin. He said "quite a number" of other governors back the initiative.
The Republican Governors Association, however, said the level of federal aid being sought would create a burden for the future.
"The proposal by the Democratic governors goes beyond things like 'shovel-ready' infrastructure projects and is essentially a bailout of these states' general funds," Nick Ayers, executive director of the Republican Governors Association, said in a statement. "Now is the time to focus on finding cost-effective ways to provide essential services without burdening future generations with ever greater debt."
Doyle of Wisconsin said the plan would allow states to maintain essential services at about the current level until 2010, when the national economy is expected to begin a recovery.
The proposal comes amid expectations that the Obama administration, which takes office on January 20, will provide hundreds of billions of dollars in economic stimulus to boost the shrinking U.S. economy and halt the loss of jobs.
Paterson of New York said his state's budget deficit has surged to $15.4 billion currently from $5 billion in April 2008, despite a 3.2 percent cut in the education budget.
Corzine said the money called for represents about 3 percent to 3.5 percent of the economy, equivalent to the amount that the economy is expected to contract by over the next two quarters.
In light of the $700 billion provided to bail out the financial industry, "It's not shockingly large," he said.
(Editing by Leslie Adler)
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Will The Tax Eaters Be A Part of the Problem or a Part of the Solution
The article below titled "Employee contracts eyed for tax relief" is one that I wanted to comment on but have been to busy as of late to do so. The article appeared in the Union Leader.
My hope is that the Citizens of New Hampshire come to see how greedy government and school employees are, but unfortunately I don't think that they will. In November 2006, New Hampshire changed for the worse; with newspaper readership down, voter apathy up and tax eaters in control at many levels of government and on school boards taxpayers will continue to be taken to the cleaners.
These greedy acts by unions are not uncommon and just go to show you that they care only about themselves and don't give a darn if they bankrupt states. Irresponsible legislators, governors and school boards are also to blame for allowing such insane contracts to be put in place over the last twenty years.
Cathy
Employee contracts eyed for tax relief
By GARRY RAYNO
Friday, Dec. 26, 2008
MANCHESTER – Gov. John Lynch wants state employees to forgo a contractual raise. The Bedford School Board recently asked teachers to reopen their contract.
Rumblings in other cities and towns about renegotiating contracts are heard as local officials attempt to keep expenses down and taxpayer revolts to a minimum.
The economic meltdown is on Main Street.
State and local governments are facing a financial crisis like they haven't seen since the late 1980s and early 1990s, when revenues were in free fall, the five largest banks in the state failed and many buildings along Elm Street in Manchester were owned by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
This month, Lynch publicly asked the State Employees Association to defer a scheduled 5.5 percent raise, saying, "Our nation is facing an unprecedented economic downturn with serious ramifications for our state budget."
Lynch called his proposed deferral of the state pay raise "reasonable and responsible."
Lynch wants the concession to help close an estimated $75 million budget shortfall as a result of a $250 million revenue deficit.
To date, the state employees union has been reluctant to go along with the governor, saying there are other ways to reduce expenses besides forgoing the 5.5 percent raise. Instead, the union suggests a four-day work week among other ways to reduce costs.
Union officials also said it would be difficult to take all the necessary votes to reopen the contract and agree to a wage freeze by the end of the 2009 fiscal year, June 30.
New Hampshire Municipal Association general counsel Maura Carroll said that while she has not heard of any communities asking public employees to reopen contracts, everyone is watching the SEA to see what the union does.
She said many communities currently negotiating contracts must address increasing costs resulting from new laws. She cited as an example a law under which provisions of an expired contract are maintained until a new agreement is in place.
Another law significantly increases retirement costs for communities that allow employees to collect large payouts for unused vacation or sick time to increase their benefits, Carroll said.
"People are really struggling with what it is they can afford at this point and how to keep the budget process moving along," Carroll said. "It's very difficult for everybody right now at all levels of government and into the private sector."
The Bedford School Board asked the teachers union to reopen a three-year contract that is in its second year, but school administrators doubt the union will go along with the request.
Superintendent Tim Mayes said the board this week reduced the proposed budget to less than what the default budget would be.
Other boards, including the Raymond School Board and the Londonderry Town Council, have taken similar actions.
The Goffstown School Board proposed a budget that would be less than the default budget, only to have the budget committee cut an additional $1.3 million.
This month, the Newport School Board approved a proposed budget that would be the same amount as the current-year default budget, resulting in the elimination of 10 teaching and six paraprofessional positions.
New Hampshire AFL-CIO President Mark MacKenzie said that while he has not heard of specific unions being asked to reopen contracts, "that does not surprise me at all . . . There are probably a slew of those waiting in the wings. As the pressure increases, that's going to be an option they're going to look at."
Laura Hainey, state president of the American Federation of Teachers, said no community has asked her union members to renegotiate a contract, leading her to believe her organization has negotiated some reasonable pacts.
Some of the open contracts have been settled and some have not, Hainey noted.
"It is tough going. Everyone knows we're in hard economic times, and people aren't expecting huge raises," she said.
Mike Roche, president of the union that represents Manchester Water Works employees, doesn't believe Manchester will try to renegotiate existing contracts.
"I don't see that happening here," Roche said, although he noted the upcoming fiscal year, which is the last in the current contract, has the highest raise for employees.
If other communities are trying to reopen contracts, Manchester might not be immune, Roche said, though he knows of no other time the city had ever asked to renegotiate.
Ted Comstock, executive director of the New Hampshire School Boards Association, said he had heard that some communities are asking not only teachers but also police and fire unions to renegotiate.
"We are encouraging our members to explore every feasible options they have to maintain services at the current level," Comstock said. "Schools are a labor-rich environment at a significant cost, and our boards are doing everything they can to control those costs.
"Generally, one of the dilemmas school boards have is to . . . ask unions to renegotiate wage increases. But if they refuse, the only realistic alternative is to look at layoffs, which is not a happy prospect for anyone," Comstock said.
Thought of the Day - I read the following headline on CNN "Woman, 88, yanks nude intruder's testicles." We have dial up so I never go to the videos, but my first thought was "Bravo!" If confronted with the same situation in my home I would do the same but I would probably detach them if someone tried that on me.
Cathy
My hope is that the Citizens of New Hampshire come to see how greedy government and school employees are, but unfortunately I don't think that they will. In November 2006, New Hampshire changed for the worse; with newspaper readership down, voter apathy up and tax eaters in control at many levels of government and on school boards taxpayers will continue to be taken to the cleaners.
These greedy acts by unions are not uncommon and just go to show you that they care only about themselves and don't give a darn if they bankrupt states. Irresponsible legislators, governors and school boards are also to blame for allowing such insane contracts to be put in place over the last twenty years.
Cathy
Employee contracts eyed for tax relief
By GARRY RAYNO
Friday, Dec. 26, 2008
MANCHESTER – Gov. John Lynch wants state employees to forgo a contractual raise. The Bedford School Board recently asked teachers to reopen their contract.
Rumblings in other cities and towns about renegotiating contracts are heard as local officials attempt to keep expenses down and taxpayer revolts to a minimum.
The economic meltdown is on Main Street.
State and local governments are facing a financial crisis like they haven't seen since the late 1980s and early 1990s, when revenues were in free fall, the five largest banks in the state failed and many buildings along Elm Street in Manchester were owned by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
This month, Lynch publicly asked the State Employees Association to defer a scheduled 5.5 percent raise, saying, "Our nation is facing an unprecedented economic downturn with serious ramifications for our state budget."
Lynch called his proposed deferral of the state pay raise "reasonable and responsible."
Lynch wants the concession to help close an estimated $75 million budget shortfall as a result of a $250 million revenue deficit.
To date, the state employees union has been reluctant to go along with the governor, saying there are other ways to reduce expenses besides forgoing the 5.5 percent raise. Instead, the union suggests a four-day work week among other ways to reduce costs.
Union officials also said it would be difficult to take all the necessary votes to reopen the contract and agree to a wage freeze by the end of the 2009 fiscal year, June 30.
New Hampshire Municipal Association general counsel Maura Carroll said that while she has not heard of any communities asking public employees to reopen contracts, everyone is watching the SEA to see what the union does.
She said many communities currently negotiating contracts must address increasing costs resulting from new laws. She cited as an example a law under which provisions of an expired contract are maintained until a new agreement is in place.
Another law significantly increases retirement costs for communities that allow employees to collect large payouts for unused vacation or sick time to increase their benefits, Carroll said.
"People are really struggling with what it is they can afford at this point and how to keep the budget process moving along," Carroll said. "It's very difficult for everybody right now at all levels of government and into the private sector."
The Bedford School Board asked the teachers union to reopen a three-year contract that is in its second year, but school administrators doubt the union will go along with the request.
Superintendent Tim Mayes said the board this week reduced the proposed budget to less than what the default budget would be.
Other boards, including the Raymond School Board and the Londonderry Town Council, have taken similar actions.
The Goffstown School Board proposed a budget that would be less than the default budget, only to have the budget committee cut an additional $1.3 million.
This month, the Newport School Board approved a proposed budget that would be the same amount as the current-year default budget, resulting in the elimination of 10 teaching and six paraprofessional positions.
New Hampshire AFL-CIO President Mark MacKenzie said that while he has not heard of specific unions being asked to reopen contracts, "that does not surprise me at all . . . There are probably a slew of those waiting in the wings. As the pressure increases, that's going to be an option they're going to look at."
Laura Hainey, state president of the American Federation of Teachers, said no community has asked her union members to renegotiate a contract, leading her to believe her organization has negotiated some reasonable pacts.
Some of the open contracts have been settled and some have not, Hainey noted.
"It is tough going. Everyone knows we're in hard economic times, and people aren't expecting huge raises," she said.
Mike Roche, president of the union that represents Manchester Water Works employees, doesn't believe Manchester will try to renegotiate existing contracts.
"I don't see that happening here," Roche said, although he noted the upcoming fiscal year, which is the last in the current contract, has the highest raise for employees.
If other communities are trying to reopen contracts, Manchester might not be immune, Roche said, though he knows of no other time the city had ever asked to renegotiate.
Ted Comstock, executive director of the New Hampshire School Boards Association, said he had heard that some communities are asking not only teachers but also police and fire unions to renegotiate.
"We are encouraging our members to explore every feasible options they have to maintain services at the current level," Comstock said. "Schools are a labor-rich environment at a significant cost, and our boards are doing everything they can to control those costs.
"Generally, one of the dilemmas school boards have is to . . . ask unions to renegotiate wage increases. But if they refuse, the only realistic alternative is to look at layoffs, which is not a happy prospect for anyone," Comstock said.
Thought of the Day - I read the following headline on CNN "Woman, 88, yanks nude intruder's testicles." We have dial up so I never go to the videos, but my first thought was "Bravo!" If confronted with the same situation in my home I would do the same but I would probably detach them if someone tried that on me.
Cathy
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Happy New Year
I admit it I am 44 and a sucker for fart humor and anything related to farts. When I read the article on the Union Leader by Charles M. Arlinghaus titled "These Plans for Tax Hikes are Just Hot Air" and the comments, I knew I had to look at the picture linked in the comments.
Cathy
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
When Will People Wake Up"
The following piece appeared at The Independent.com. More disturbing to me is how so many average citizens listens to glitterati tripe as if what the say is true. Personally I see this in part as a failure of our public education system. If students were taught science, problem solving skills and logic so many people would not believe in some of the garbage that some entertainers spew.
My biggest beef has to be with the whole global warming scam. Along with the link I just provided you can either google global warming scam or visit a series of articles at The Heartland Institute. What is scary is that some public schools are teaching that global warming is fact. The earth if anyone has studied the earth has gone through periods of warming and cooling for millions of years long before man even existed also there is no greater influence over earth than the sun and the solar activity on the sun.
Cathy
Scientific illiteracy all the rage among the glitterati
When it comes to science, Barack Obama is no better than many of us. Today he joins the list of shame of those in public life who made scientifically unsupportable statements in 2008.
Closer to home, Nigella Lawson and Delia Smith faltered on the science of food, while Kate Moss, Oprah Winfrey and Demi Moore all get roastings for scientific illiteracy.
The Celebrities and Science Review 2008, prepared by the group Sense About Science, identifies some of the worst examples of scientific illiteracy among those who profess to know better – including top politicians.
Mr Obama and John McCain blundered into the MMR vaccine row during their presidential campaigns. "We've seen just a skyrocketing autism rate," said President-elect Obama. "Some people are suspicious that it's connected to the vaccines. This person included. The science right now is inconclusive, but we have to research it," he said.
His words were echoed by Mr McCain. "It's indisputable that [autism] is on the rise among children, the question is what's causing it," he said. "There's strong evidence that indicates it's got to do with a preservative in the vaccines."
Exhaustive research has failed to substantiate any link to vaccines or any preservatives. The rise in autism is thought to be due to an increased awareness of the condition.
Sarah Palin, Mr McCain's running mate, waded into the mire with her dismissal of some government research projects. "Sometimes these dollars go to projects that have little or nothing to do with the public good. Things like fruit fly research in Paris, France. I kid you not," Ms Palin said. But the geneticist Ellen Solomon takes Ms Palin to task for not understanding the importance of studies into fruit flies, which share roughly half their genes with humans. "They have been used for more than a century to understand how genes work, which has implications in, for example, understanding the ageing process," she said.
Hollywood did not escape the critical analysis of the scientific reviewers, who lambasted Tom Cruise, for his comments on psychiatry being a crime against humanity, and Julianne Moore, who warned against using products full of unnatural chemicals.
"The real crime against humanity continues to be the enduring misery caused by the major mental illnesses across the globe, and the continuing lack of resources devoted to supporting those afflicted," said the psychiatrist Professor Simon Wessely.
In answer to Moore, the science author and chemist John Emsley said that natural chemicals are not automatically safer than man-made chemicals, which undergo rigorous testing.
"Something which is naturally sourced may well include a mixture of things that are capable of causing an adverse reaction," Dr Emsley said.
Other mentions went to the chefs Nigella Lawson, who said "mind meals" can make you feel different about life, and Delia Smith, who claimed it is possible to eliminate sugar from the diet. The dietician Catherine Collins said that Lawson's support for expensive allergy foods is a wasted opportunity and too costly for those on limited incomes, while Lisa Miles of the British Nutrition Foundation said that sugars are part of a balanced diet.
Kate Moss, Oprah Winfrey and Demi Moore all espoused the idea that you can detoxify your body with either diet (scientifically unsupportable) or, in the case of Moore, products such as "highly trained medical leeches" which make you bleed. Scientists point out that diet alone cannot remove toxins and that blood itself is not a toxin, and even if it did contain toxins, removing a little bit of it is not going to help.
But top prize went to the lifestyle guru Carole Caplin for denouncing a study showing that vitamin supplements offer little or no health benefits as "rubbish" – it is the third year on the run that she has been mentioned in the review. Science author and GP Ben Goldacre pointed out that the study Ms Caplin referred to was the most authoritative yet published. "Carole should understand that research can often produce results which challenge our preconceptions: that is why science is more interesting than just following your nose," Dr Goldacre said.
Talking sense: Two who got it right
*The writer Jilly Cooper gets nine out of ten for making a stab at why alternative treatments might work: "If you believe them, then they work." That describes the placebo effect, where a harmless but useless remedy seems to work because the patient feels as if it is working.
*The vocal coach and singer Carrie Grant is applauded for raising the profile of Crohn's disease without abusing the science. "There are so many therapies available, but none of them are going to cure you," she said.
My biggest beef has to be with the whole global warming scam. Along with the link I just provided you can either google global warming scam or visit a series of articles at The Heartland Institute. What is scary is that some public schools are teaching that global warming is fact. The earth if anyone has studied the earth has gone through periods of warming and cooling for millions of years long before man even existed also there is no greater influence over earth than the sun and the solar activity on the sun.
Cathy
Scientific illiteracy all the rage among the glitterati
When it comes to science, Barack Obama is no better than many of us. Today he joins the list of shame of those in public life who made scientifically unsupportable statements in 2008.
Closer to home, Nigella Lawson and Delia Smith faltered on the science of food, while Kate Moss, Oprah Winfrey and Demi Moore all get roastings for scientific illiteracy.
The Celebrities and Science Review 2008, prepared by the group Sense About Science, identifies some of the worst examples of scientific illiteracy among those who profess to know better – including top politicians.
Mr Obama and John McCain blundered into the MMR vaccine row during their presidential campaigns. "We've seen just a skyrocketing autism rate," said President-elect Obama. "Some people are suspicious that it's connected to the vaccines. This person included. The science right now is inconclusive, but we have to research it," he said.
His words were echoed by Mr McCain. "It's indisputable that [autism] is on the rise among children, the question is what's causing it," he said. "There's strong evidence that indicates it's got to do with a preservative in the vaccines."
Exhaustive research has failed to substantiate any link to vaccines or any preservatives. The rise in autism is thought to be due to an increased awareness of the condition.
Sarah Palin, Mr McCain's running mate, waded into the mire with her dismissal of some government research projects. "Sometimes these dollars go to projects that have little or nothing to do with the public good. Things like fruit fly research in Paris, France. I kid you not," Ms Palin said. But the geneticist Ellen Solomon takes Ms Palin to task for not understanding the importance of studies into fruit flies, which share roughly half their genes with humans. "They have been used for more than a century to understand how genes work, which has implications in, for example, understanding the ageing process," she said.
Hollywood did not escape the critical analysis of the scientific reviewers, who lambasted Tom Cruise, for his comments on psychiatry being a crime against humanity, and Julianne Moore, who warned against using products full of unnatural chemicals.
"The real crime against humanity continues to be the enduring misery caused by the major mental illnesses across the globe, and the continuing lack of resources devoted to supporting those afflicted," said the psychiatrist Professor Simon Wessely.
In answer to Moore, the science author and chemist John Emsley said that natural chemicals are not automatically safer than man-made chemicals, which undergo rigorous testing.
"Something which is naturally sourced may well include a mixture of things that are capable of causing an adverse reaction," Dr Emsley said.
Other mentions went to the chefs Nigella Lawson, who said "mind meals" can make you feel different about life, and Delia Smith, who claimed it is possible to eliminate sugar from the diet. The dietician Catherine Collins said that Lawson's support for expensive allergy foods is a wasted opportunity and too costly for those on limited incomes, while Lisa Miles of the British Nutrition Foundation said that sugars are part of a balanced diet.
Kate Moss, Oprah Winfrey and Demi Moore all espoused the idea that you can detoxify your body with either diet (scientifically unsupportable) or, in the case of Moore, products such as "highly trained medical leeches" which make you bleed. Scientists point out that diet alone cannot remove toxins and that blood itself is not a toxin, and even if it did contain toxins, removing a little bit of it is not going to help.
But top prize went to the lifestyle guru Carole Caplin for denouncing a study showing that vitamin supplements offer little or no health benefits as "rubbish" – it is the third year on the run that she has been mentioned in the review. Science author and GP Ben Goldacre pointed out that the study Ms Caplin referred to was the most authoritative yet published. "Carole should understand that research can often produce results which challenge our preconceptions: that is why science is more interesting than just following your nose," Dr Goldacre said.
Talking sense: Two who got it right
*The writer Jilly Cooper gets nine out of ten for making a stab at why alternative treatments might work: "If you believe them, then they work." That describes the placebo effect, where a harmless but useless remedy seems to work because the patient feels as if it is working.
*The vocal coach and singer Carrie Grant is applauded for raising the profile of Crohn's disease without abusing the science. "There are so many therapies available, but none of them are going to cure you," she said.
Sunday, December 28, 2008
If you write they will come.
I noticed every time I miss posting I lose readers. Both of our cars broke down at the same time, I have been oh so tired as of late and my Mother came for a visit. I had high hopes that my Mother would not want to get out and about so much and that she would entertain Anastasia and Alexander so I could get some long put off tasks completed.
I have been reading interesting articles that I have wanted to comment on but just have not had the time. When I get the time I just may back date some posts because I found the articles so worthy of comment.
A while back I kind of hijacked our Citizens for Reasonable And Fair Taxes as a soap box of my own. I have been wondering if I should relinquish the BLOG back to its original purpose and start a separate BLOG of my own.
Regular posting and more pertinent posting to resume soon.
Cathy
Thought of the Day "PSNH to send adjusted bills."
I have been reading interesting articles that I have wanted to comment on but just have not had the time. When I get the time I just may back date some posts because I found the articles so worthy of comment.
A while back I kind of hijacked our Citizens for Reasonable And Fair Taxes as a soap box of my own. I have been wondering if I should relinquish the BLOG back to its original purpose and start a separate BLOG of my own.
Regular posting and more pertinent posting to resume soon.
Cathy
Thought of the Day "PSNH to send adjusted bills."
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