The Supreme Court has ruled that Corporations and Unions can spend freely to support or oppose a candidate. This overturns a 20-year-old ruling that prohibits corporations from using money coming directly from their general account. With this ruling, the Supreme Court has once again manipulated the Constitution to work for special interests.
Critics of campaign finance limits have for years argued that these laws were a restraint of freedom of speech. On what planet does a corporation get the right of freedom of speech? Corporations and Unions are not citizens of this coun-try. They do not get to hold up the Bill of Rights and claim them. There are laws that clearly give corporations rights, but freedom of speech isn’t one of them. What’s next? Will corporations make false claims about a products and when sued they can just say that it was their opinion under freedom of speech?
We have just given the keys to the kingdom to the wrong gatekeeper. The amount of money that goes into a political campaign has already gotten out of control. The MA Senatorial race saw over $10M spent in the last 9 days alone. Now what is to stop GE from using all of their NBC stations ad time to support specific candidates? What is to stop FOX from doing the same thing? What is to stop a foreign corporation from funding billions of dollars to elect the next President? This appears to be just another way to create international influence on our elected officials.
- Reference Article -
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
When Does Accountability Start?
I have been posting on this blog and others. I've posted video blogs and been on over 30 radio shows over the past year and everytime there is a question about Pres. Obama and his administration I get the same response,
"Look what Pres. Bush left for him, it takes time to clean up the mess."
OK, I'm tired of arguing this point. Here's what I propose. Tell me exactly when we can start holding this President and his staff accountable. It has been a year, since they took over. What is the actual date, that I can circle on my calendar, at which time all American's can look and say, "Enough time has gone by, now what have you done for us?"
Please let me know when the excuse of the failure of past leaders no longer will be a good enough answer.
"Look what Pres. Bush left for him, it takes time to clean up the mess."
OK, I'm tired of arguing this point. Here's what I propose. Tell me exactly when we can start holding this President and his staff accountable. It has been a year, since they took over. What is the actual date, that I can circle on my calendar, at which time all American's can look and say, "Enough time has gone by, now what have you done for us?"
Please let me know when the excuse of the failure of past leaders no longer will be a good enough answer.
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Senate Bill Hurts Construction
by the Small Business Owner
Under the new provisions in the Senate Healthcare Reform Bill, Senator Merkley (D-OR) singled out small construction firms for harsher treatment than any other industry. Most employers with fewer than 50 workers who don’t offer health coverage are exempt from fines and the new regulatory regime that applies to larger employers. The newly added provision aims at construction firms employing as few as five workers. They will be subject to health care coverage fines and regulatory requirements.
All construction firms (and only construction firms) with more than five employees will now face fines if they don’t offer health care benefits or if the benefits do no not meet a minimum requirement. Employers must cover 60 percent of the actuarial value of an employee’s premium. If an employee’s share of the premium exceeds 9.8 percent of their household income, then the employee can opt out of the employer provided coverage and receive government subsidies to help offset the costs. The employer can face penalties of $750 per full time employee if the coverage does not meet these requirements.
The construction industry has one of the largest unemployment rates and both residential and commercial contractors are desperately trying to stay afloat. Why punish small business? It’s all about Union control, which wants to put the small non-union shops out of business. Shame on Congress for manipulating our laws to satisfy the greed and the desire for power of Union leadership!
Under the new provisions in the Senate Healthcare Reform Bill, Senator Merkley (D-OR) singled out small construction firms for harsher treatment than any other industry. Most employers with fewer than 50 workers who don’t offer health coverage are exempt from fines and the new regulatory regime that applies to larger employers. The newly added provision aims at construction firms employing as few as five workers. They will be subject to health care coverage fines and regulatory requirements.
All construction firms (and only construction firms) with more than five employees will now face fines if they don’t offer health care benefits or if the benefits do no not meet a minimum requirement. Employers must cover 60 percent of the actuarial value of an employee’s premium. If an employee’s share of the premium exceeds 9.8 percent of their household income, then the employee can opt out of the employer provided coverage and receive government subsidies to help offset the costs. The employer can face penalties of $750 per full time employee if the coverage does not meet these requirements.
The construction industry has one of the largest unemployment rates and both residential and commercial contractors are desperately trying to stay afloat. Why punish small business? It’s all about Union control, which wants to put the small non-union shops out of business. Shame on Congress for manipulating our laws to satisfy the greed and the desire for power of Union leadership!
Monday, December 21, 2009
We've Lost Our Way
I think I finally get it. See, I was under the impression that our elected officials in Congress were supposed to be creating and modifying laws to keep this country safe and healthy, both physically and economically. I was clearly wrong.
It’s now apparent to me that the states within the Republic, we call the United States, have become nothing more than bureaucratic administrators for distributing the finances of the social welfare nation we call America. The Senate version of the Healthcare Reform bill, which was passed at 1:00am on 12/21/09, will go down in infamy as the moment in which it truly became obvious that this is all about money and not the welfare of the people.
The passing of this bill required many special deals. Here are just a few that we know about:
Sen. Snow’s (R-ME) vote allowed it to come out of committee, and in trade her home state of Maine will be receiving special financial treatment.
Sen. Nelson (D-NE) leveraged being the 60th vote to insure that Nebraska got more than their fair share of Medicaid.
Sen. Baucus (D-MT) has received special treatment for one small town’s health issues and an exemption on how Medicare will pay doctors and hospitals in his state. Only three other states received this exemption because those were the votes they needed.
Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) was able to acquire between $100M and $300M in extra aid for the state of Louisiana for her vote.
David Axelrod said it perfectly, “…the provisions benefiting specific states, like Nebraska, and favored constituencies were a natural part of the legislative process. “
So, we have moved from arguing points of law and the general welfare of the United States citizens to negotiating federal tax dollar distribution for the benefit of a small subset of the constituency. If that’s the case, I suggest that my home state of Florida stop sending lawyers to Washington. I think we should start sending car salesmen. If it’s all about getting the best deal then there is no one better at cutting you for a dollar than an experienced car guy. Also, let’s eliminate the suits, and the formalities, and run it like an auction. It will be Votes for dollars. That way we could save the citizens a lot of time and drama listening to rhetoric on issues that really don’t matter. Congress should love this auction idea, since it will allow them more time to campaign, write books, and go on world wind junkets for private contributors.
The real issue here is that the federal government has become the overlord of the states, and this is in direct contradiction to the U.S. Constitution. Most states look like welfare crack addicts waiting for their monthly check, so they can support their habit of too many social programs and too much bureaucratic waste.
- Reference Article -
It’s now apparent to me that the states within the Republic, we call the United States, have become nothing more than bureaucratic administrators for distributing the finances of the social welfare nation we call America. The Senate version of the Healthcare Reform bill, which was passed at 1:00am on 12/21/09, will go down in infamy as the moment in which it truly became obvious that this is all about money and not the welfare of the people.
The passing of this bill required many special deals. Here are just a few that we know about:
Sen. Snow’s (R-ME) vote allowed it to come out of committee, and in trade her home state of Maine will be receiving special financial treatment.
Sen. Nelson (D-NE) leveraged being the 60th vote to insure that Nebraska got more than their fair share of Medicaid.
Sen. Baucus (D-MT) has received special treatment for one small town’s health issues and an exemption on how Medicare will pay doctors and hospitals in his state. Only three other states received this exemption because those were the votes they needed.
Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) was able to acquire between $100M and $300M in extra aid for the state of Louisiana for her vote.
David Axelrod said it perfectly, “…the provisions benefiting specific states, like Nebraska, and favored constituencies were a natural part of the legislative process. “
So, we have moved from arguing points of law and the general welfare of the United States citizens to negotiating federal tax dollar distribution for the benefit of a small subset of the constituency. If that’s the case, I suggest that my home state of Florida stop sending lawyers to Washington. I think we should start sending car salesmen. If it’s all about getting the best deal then there is no one better at cutting you for a dollar than an experienced car guy. Also, let’s eliminate the suits, and the formalities, and run it like an auction. It will be Votes for dollars. That way we could save the citizens a lot of time and drama listening to rhetoric on issues that really don’t matter. Congress should love this auction idea, since it will allow them more time to campaign, write books, and go on world wind junkets for private contributors.
The real issue here is that the federal government has become the overlord of the states, and this is in direct contradiction to the U.S. Constitution. Most states look like welfare crack addicts waiting for their monthly check, so they can support their habit of too many social programs and too much bureaucratic waste.
- Reference Article -
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
No Justice and No Reason
On November 29th, 2009, four Lakewood Police Department officers were gunned down in a coffee shop near Tacoma, WA. Often the act of a mad man is so heinous that it makes us want to point blame irrationally, but in this case there are people at fault and laws should be changed to ensure that this never happens again.
In 1990, Maurice Clemmons was convicted and sentenced to 108 years in prison. After serving 10 years, then Arkansas governor Huckabee commuted his sentence to 47 years. This allowed an Arkansas Parole Board to release him on parole in July of 2000.
In 2001, Clemmons, violated his parole by committing aggravated robbery and was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison. If you’ve lost track this should have him going back to jail to finish his 47 year term plus another 10 for his latest crime, but Arkansas judicial system ignored the parole violation and after only 4 years he was once again paroled.
He moved to Washington and placed under the supervision of the Washington State Department of Corrections. In May of 2009, there was a bench warrant issued when he escaped police after having raped his 12 year old female relative. In July, he was finally arrested. Arkansas did not request extradition which would have put him behind bars for 57 years. On November 23, 2009 Clemmons paid $15,000 for a $190,000 bail bond and was released. Less than a week later he murdered officers Mark Renninger, 39; Ronald Owens, 37; Tina Griswold, 40; and Greg Richards, 42.
Who’s to blame: Maurice Clemmons and Arkansas Correctional for being plain lazy.
In 1990, Maurice Clemmons was convicted and sentenced to 108 years in prison. After serving 10 years, then Arkansas governor Huckabee commuted his sentence to 47 years. This allowed an Arkansas Parole Board to release him on parole in July of 2000.
In 2001, Clemmons, violated his parole by committing aggravated robbery and was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison. If you’ve lost track this should have him going back to jail to finish his 47 year term plus another 10 for his latest crime, but Arkansas judicial system ignored the parole violation and after only 4 years he was once again paroled.
He moved to Washington and placed under the supervision of the Washington State Department of Corrections. In May of 2009, there was a bench warrant issued when he escaped police after having raped his 12 year old female relative. In July, he was finally arrested. Arkansas did not request extradition which would have put him behind bars for 57 years. On November 23, 2009 Clemmons paid $15,000 for a $190,000 bail bond and was released. Less than a week later he murdered officers Mark Renninger, 39; Ronald Owens, 37; Tina Griswold, 40; and Greg Richards, 42.
Who’s to blame: Maurice Clemmons and Arkansas Correctional for being plain lazy.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Tax Stock Trades
Reps. Peter Defazio (D-OR) and Ed Perlmutter (D-CO) are proposing a 0.25 percent tax, or $0.10 per share tax, on the sale and purchase of financial instruments such as stocks, options, derivatives, and futures. The real problem is that the tax would effectively end U.S. dominance of financial markets.
We live in a highly competitive financial world where initial public offerings (IPOs) migrate to London when the process becomes prohibitively expensive or lengthy here. Do you really think this tax wouldn't drive trading to a location that was less expensive to transact business? Major U.S. financial institutions are already planning. The NYSE, EuroNext, OMX, and CME all have developed relationships in areas outside the jurisdictional reach of the U.S. Congress. If it means $50billion to $200 billion per year in cost differential between staying put or going overseas, do you think that the exchanges will sit by as their business is stolen offshore?
If this bill is approved, Congressmen Defazio and Perlutter will not be adding to our economy, but instead will be killing jobs and tax revenues. Can you say unintended consequences?
We live in a highly competitive financial world where initial public offerings (IPOs) migrate to London when the process becomes prohibitively expensive or lengthy here. Do you really think this tax wouldn't drive trading to a location that was less expensive to transact business? Major U.S. financial institutions are already planning. The NYSE, EuroNext, OMX, and CME all have developed relationships in areas outside the jurisdictional reach of the U.S. Congress. If it means $50billion to $200 billion per year in cost differential between staying put or going overseas, do you think that the exchanges will sit by as their business is stolen offshore?
If this bill is approved, Congressmen Defazio and Perlutter will not be adding to our economy, but instead will be killing jobs and tax revenues. Can you say unintended consequences?
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Breast Cancer Diagnostic Rationing
Has politics already gotten in the way of good healthcare? On Monday, a government task force said that most women don't need mammograms in their 40’s and should get one every two years starting at 50. This is a break with the American Cancer Society's long-standing position. What's more, the panel said breast self-exams do no good, and women shouldn't be taught to do them.
At a time when more and more women are finding early diagnosis of breast cancer the difference between life and death, this government task force’s findings seem insane. Is the plan to let women in their 30’s and 40’s go virtually unchecked, potentially missing any chance of early detection? If mammograms are not an effective tool, then where is the prescription of another diagnostic method? There is no mention of other scans or DNA/RNA cataloging.
False positives, and cost per life, are not a good enough reason for sticking our heads in the sand. This is politics at its worst. If this diagnostic technology doesn’t work, then why keep it for women in their 50’s? Once again, this is about conservation and reduced consumption, but this time it isn’t about light bulbs or gasoline. It’s about the lives of our mothers, sisters, wives, and daughters. Washington, spend more time funding and approving better diagnostic technology and less time on rationing.
AP article
At a time when more and more women are finding early diagnosis of breast cancer the difference between life and death, this government task force’s findings seem insane. Is the plan to let women in their 30’s and 40’s go virtually unchecked, potentially missing any chance of early detection? If mammograms are not an effective tool, then where is the prescription of another diagnostic method? There is no mention of other scans or DNA/RNA cataloging.
False positives, and cost per life, are not a good enough reason for sticking our heads in the sand. This is politics at its worst. If this diagnostic technology doesn’t work, then why keep it for women in their 50’s? Once again, this is about conservation and reduced consumption, but this time it isn’t about light bulbs or gasoline. It’s about the lives of our mothers, sisters, wives, and daughters. Washington, spend more time funding and approving better diagnostic technology and less time on rationing.
AP article
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