"The Little Red Hen: in the Obama Era"

Who will help me plant my wheat?" said the little red hen.

"Not I," said the cow.

"Not I," said the duck.

"Not I," said the pig.

"Not I," said the goose.

"Then I will do it by myself," said the little red hen, and so she did. She planted her crop, and the wheat grew very tall and ripened into golden grain.

"Who will help me reap my wheat?" asked the little red hen.

"Not I," said the duck..

"Out of my classification," said the pig.

"I'd lose my seniority," said the cow.

"I'd lose my unemployment compensation," said the goose..

"Then I will do it by myself," said the little red hen, and so she did.

At last it came time to bake the bread.

"Who will help me bake the bread?" asked the little red hen.

"That would be overtime for me," said the cow.

"I'd lose my welfare benefits," said the duck.

"I'm a dropout and never learned how," said the pig.

"If I'm to be the only helper, that's discrimination," said the goose.

"Then I will do it by myself," said the little red hen.

She baked five loaves and held them up for all of her neighbors to see. They wanted some and, in fact, demanded a share. But the little red hen said, "No, I shall eat all five loaves."

"Excess profits!" cried the cow.
(Nancy Pelosi)

"Capitalist leech!" screamed the duck.
(Barbara Boxer)

"I demand equal rights!" yelled the goose.
(Jesse Jackson)

The pig just grunted in disdain.
(Ted Kennedy)

And they all painted 'Unfair!' picket signs and marched around and around the little red hen, shouting obscenities.

Then the farmer (Obama) came. He said to the little red hen, "You must not be so greedy."

"But I earned the bread," said the little red hen.

"Exactly," said Barack the farmer. "That is what makes our free enterprise system so wonderful. Anyone in the barnyard can earn as much as he wants. But under our modern government regulations, the productive workers must divide the fruits of their labor with those who are lazy and idle."

And they all lived happily ever after, including the little red hen, who smiled and clucked, "I am grateful, for now I truly understand."

But her neighbors became quite disappointed in her. She never again baked bread because she joined the 'party' and got her bread free. And all the Democrats smiled. 'Fairness' had been established.

Individual initiative had died, but nobody noticed; perhaps no one cared...so long as there was free bread that 'the rich' were paying for.

Then the bread stopped coming.

When the GOP is stupid: No numbers in their budget?

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Back in the days before electricity and running water, I took a Poli Sci 101 course and discovered the textbook meaning of the phrase "glittering generality."

Now, the messiah's entire campaign was one, giant, glittering generality; vague and with few specifics. As time has gone by, the basic strategy of the campaign was inarguably brilliant in conception and execution. They were able to take a wholly unqualified, far left individual puppet; package him like gum (FABulous! Ding!) and get the ignorant, the gullible, the illegal and those insidious forces who believed they could control this clown to literally buy into his shtick.

I won't go into the fact that most of his campaign was a lie, or the level of disaster this man has brought us to, the uncounted decades of fiscal pain... the massive expansion of government on the backs of the next several generations of America.

What I WILL do is point out the following: In the war of clashing "glittering generalities," we do not have a warrior who comes close to the polished, empty perfection of The One. When we send up Christian Jindals, they're going to be eaten by Lion Obamatons. Last weeks debacle, orchestrated by an apparently clueless John Boehner (House Minority Leader) and the House GOP Leadership, did nothing positive to enhance the budding issue of financial destruction The One is wreaking on this country.

Timing is a critical element in the world of politics. Utterly crucial, in fact. You set the table, which they did by setting up the word of an "alternative spending plan" (When it should have been called an "alternative budget plan" where cuts were the order of the day.) AND THEN YOU DELIVER BY PROVIDING THE SPECIFICS, SPECIFICS WITH DEVASTATING EFFECTIVENESS THAT GIVE THE RANK AND FILE SOMETHING TO GO TO WAR WITH.

Here's what you DON'T do:

You DON'T set the table in the restaurant, pull out a menu for the customer that seems to vaguely say "food," shows no meals, has no prices and then come out and tell you that "we'll have all that for you... next week, and none of that matters anyway."

After weeks of promising a comprehensive alternative to the president’s budget that Republicans have painted as excessive, bloated and wasteful, Boehner was unable to provide specific information about their proposal.

His colleagues were unable to answer line-items questions as well. Boehner dismissed those details as “just a bunch of numbers.”

Even though aides insist that GOP leaders had no intention of releasing their full budget substitute, the press event was a public relations disaster.

“It looked like a disorganized blunder,” one GOP aide said. “It’s the worst messaging snafu at a time when the party can’t afford one.”

Meanwhile, the restaurant with thousands of patrons across the street, with at least the sheen of respectability, laughs its collective ass off at the ineptitude and incompetence of GOP leadership... not scaring the leftist leadership nor increasing the stature of the Republicans, but instead, reinforcing the idea that they can do whatever they want to us and our best response if to cry "wolf."

And frankly, I can't argue.

Clearly, before we embark on the "Republican Road to Recovery," House leadership needs to embark on "The Republican Road to Rehab." With "leadership" like this, even with the golden opportunity the Moron in Chief hands us every day, we can expect to remain in the minority for a long, long, time.

Leading The News

House GOP goes from united to fractured

By Molly K. Hooper

Posted: 03/28/09 09:03 AM [ET]

House Republicans, who put Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on her heels as they voted unanimously to reject the economic stimulus bill two months ago, are now pointing fingers. The unity of the GOP Conference was strong when all Republicans voted, on two separate occasions, to oppose the stimulus championed by President Obama, who had approval ratings in the 60s at the time. While many Democrats touted the passage of the stimulus, they privately acknowledged that the extent of the Republican opposition surprised them. But that harmony has been fractured, days before a special election in New York that some Republicans characterize as a must-win. Some of the differences appeared Thursday over how they handled the rolling out of a much anticipated budget alternative, “The Republican Road to Recovery.”

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Card Checkin' and Unions: Their time is past.

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BIG Hat Tip to Big Hollywood.

This YouTube is by Alfonzo Rachel, who puts it into words FAR better than I EVER could.

Leave the lights on: Celebrate Human Achievement Hour

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All from Michelle Malkin:

I mentioned earlier this week that my friends at CEI are leading a counter-movement today to answer the enviro-nitwits’ “Earth Hour” with Human Achievement Hour.

Leave the lights on between 8:30pm and 9:30pm and watch this video with your friends and family!

Queensrÿche video for the troops.

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Heavy metal band Queensrÿche has today released a new video that goes a long way in illustrating some of the important aspects of "soldier guilt;" the guilt frequently felt by combat survivors... particularly when they've lost friends.

Some survivors wonder how it is that they made it... while others didn't.

This is the alblum in its entirety from VH1.com. Yes, it's metal... and yes, it's Queensryche... I don't give a rip. I'm buying this as soon as I can find it. These guys have affiliated and are raising money for the National Military Family Association and that makes it all good for me.

For President Obama, I urge you to remember: It's the soldiers (and the sailors, Marines, Navy, Coasties and Air Force), stupid.

Browse > Home / News /

Honoring the American Soldier

Queensrÿche, Rhino Entertainment and JamsBio.com have joined together in a special project honoring the AMERICAN SOLDIER. Whether you’re an active duty soldier, a reservist, a veteran or a loved one, help us celebrate the strength and courage of those who serve our country by sharing (1) stories of service and sacrifice, (2) song dedications to military personnel at home and abroad, and (3) your list of top-5 songs related to war and life on the frontlines.

You can now enjoy early access to HONORING THE AMERICAN SOLDIER. As an important member of the military or metal community, we’re letting you know first about this exciting opportunity for your community to contribute to this unique project and pay tribute to our servicemen and woman by sharing music memories, song dedications and top-5 lists.

JamsBio.com is already host to dozens of touching memories and dedications to soldiers, from servicemen and women and their loved ones about service, sacrifice, life on the frontlines and home front. Here are just a few:

• My Soldier, a memory from armywife704 of Fort Bragg, NC
• My Brother Comes Home, a memory from kwalz of Kansas City, MO
• Radar Love, a memory from wedge of Redmond, WA
• 3-9-66, a dedication from Dave030966 of Inverness, FL
• Far Away in Korea, a dedication from lovelogan of Olney, IL
• Songs about Soldiers & Service, a JamsBio user-generated top-5 list
• Songs about Freedom, a JamsBio user-generated top-5 list

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And so it starts: Heavy cuts coming in Wash. budgets next week

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The jockeying has begun in the first round of "woah-is-me" efforts to jack up our taxes in the midst of a horrific recession.

Our democrat State Auditor, Brian Sonntag, identified over $3 BILLION in misspent, lost, or illegally spent taxpayer dollars over 5 years ago... and has a similar report prepared for 2008... a report that if fully implemented, would save $3.6 BILLION, but none of his initiaitives have been acted on. If the legislature would just use his report and his audit findings as a blueprint, many of the more painful cuts could be borne with little discomfort, and this nonsensical concept of jacking up our taxes in the midst of a recession would normally be off the table.

Well, as normally as avoiding taxes can be when fringe-leftists are in charge of the government's purse strings.

Democrats have already positioned themselves to relieve their typical union masters of a great deal of the financial burden required to shill this tax increase vote, instead, prefering to use OUR TAX DOLLARS to campaign for this idiocy.

So... what gets cut?

"That includes about $500 million less in higher education spending. Schools would be given latitude in deciding where to find the savings, but here's one way to put it in perspective: That half-billion pays for about 10,000 students."

HHhhmmmm.... that's kinda odd. I'm not 100% sure, since I'm a Seattle Public Schools student, but isn't 10,000 divided into $500,000,000 something like... well, $50,000.... per student?

How can we POSSIBLY be spending that much on each student? How is that even in the realm of this dimension?

Brown said the Senate likely will seek to cut the Basic Health Plan for poorer Washingtonians by about $250 million, close to the level envisioned in Gregoire's budget.

With The One demanding cradle-to-grave "free medical" care for everyone from the Fed, this probably isn't a bad move. Of course, implementing restrictions against illegal expenditures for illegal aliens might save a few million or so.

That "safety net" program, commonly called GA-U, gives cash and medical care to disabled people who can't work. It likely will be cut by about $200 million under the Senate plan, Brown said, with the savings spread between the cash payouts and medical care.

Bull. This is a non-starter, and just the first shot fired across the bow for the hearts and flowers "jack your taxes" campaign.

For those truly in need of GA-U, not one dime should be cut. ALL of this money should come out of state employees (lay offs an pay reductions). That it isn't...

Let's remember: The $8 BILLION growth in the budget over the past 4 years has been unsustainable from the get-go... Republicans in the Leg have been warning through each and every budget that the huge increases in spending our democrat leaders have imposed have not been sustainable.

Expect much deeper and much more painful cuts than the one's announced in this article... there are many more to come.

Because if there isn't, there is no way in hell they can shill this enough to get people to buy off on it.

I'm reminded of the recent local school bonds and levies that went down to abysmal defeat like dominoes.

There is nothing compelling here to risk the massive economic impacts to a fragile economy.

But I would bet there will be. Because this isn't enough pain. I know it, and they know it.

Politics & Government

State's higher-ed system to get $500M budget cut
Washington's higher education system would see almost $500 million in cuts and public school teachers likely would face layoffs under the Senate's proposed budget, the Senate's top Democrat said.

By Seattle Times staff and wire

Related

• Archive State budget comes down to unpleasant choices
• Archive $8 billion shortfall forecast for Washington state budget

OLYMPIA — The state would cut almost $500 million from Washington's higher-education system, and public-school teachers likely would face layoffs under the Senate's proposed budget, the Senate's top Democrat said.

Depending on how colleges and universities handle those cuts, "it guarantees enrollment reductions that are fairly significant," Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown, D-Spokane, said Thursday, just days before the Senate's budget is formally unveiled.

In a separate interview, Brown said the proposed two-year budget would eliminate pay increases for teachers and state workers, and would leave around $850 million in reserve in case the economy gets even worse.

Overall, the budget would reduce state spending by $3.7 billion below what's needed to maintain existing services and pay for caseload increases and other costs, she said.

The cuts would be felt by the general public, Brown said, noting that "people will definitely notice fewer (higher-education) slots, more intense competition to get into universities. I believe there will be, unfortunately, teacher layoffs."

Brown's comments, paired with separate statements Thursday from House Speaker Frank Chopp, D-Seattle, provided some of the most detailed glimpses yet of how the Legislature's long-awaited budgets may look.

In her no-new-taxes budget proposal in December, Gov. Chris Gregoire suggested about $342 million in cuts to higher education.

That amounted to net state spending cuts of about 13 percent across the board for four-year schools, and about 6 percent for community and technical colleges, after factoring in higher tuition.

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Every once in a while the leadership of the United States military can be utter, complete, blithering idiots: - Murtha Award Sparks Vet Outrage

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H/T to BlackFive and others.

The democrat leadership of Congress consist primarily of political scum and bottom feeders. Among them are the usual suspects: Pelosi, Reid, Durbin... and Murtha.

Congressman John Murtha is scum.

Although a former Marine, Murtha sold his soul in the name of fringe leftist politics.

He sold out his fellow Marines in an abortive attempt to become House Majority
Leader.

The primary reason for their ire stems from the congressman's statements in May, 2006, that a squad of Marines who responded to an IED ambush and short firefight in Haditha, Iraq, rampaged through the village, murdering civilians "in cold blood."

Murtha made those comments in the heat of the 2006 congressional mid-term election campaign, in a move some political analysts saw as an attempt to stoke the anti-war vote for a Democratic takeover of the House.

The former Marine and distinguished Vietnam veteran continued his accusations in
follow-up media appearances before an official Pentagon and Naval Criminal Investigative Service investigation had been completed.

When the dust settled more than two years later, six of the eight Marines and Sailors accused of crimes in the Haditha incident had their cases dismissed, one was found not guilty and the last has been continued indefinitely.

How "distinguished" this despicable buffoon's Vietnam service may be is up for some debate.

That he sold out his fellow Marines, provided aid and comfort for our enemies, and worked very hard to destroy the lives of some of the finest young men our country can produce, however, is beyond discussion.

*******************************************
But his actions now should be decried for what they are...John Murtha is partnering with Code Pink seditionists who are demoralizing our wounded soldiers while they recover at Walter Reed Army Medical Center! They are actually trying to get into the hospital (and have gotten in) to meet with our wounded soldiers.

In addition to the flowers, Murtha requested that we use additional donations for the wounded at Walter Reed. DC CODEPINK along with Veterans for Peace, Military Families Speak Out, US Labor Against the War and other peace groups involved in the weekly vigil at Walter Reed recently delivered baskets of goodies to the wounded at Walter Reed. Together, with Murtha's office, we will be continuing this outpouring of kindness and support to the wounded soldiers from CODEPINK.
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CodePink are leftist scum, precisely like Murtha.

MURTHA'S ANTI-SURGE PLAN

Posted: Thursday, February 15, 2007 12:05 PM by Mark Murray
Filed Under: Congress, Security

From NBC's Mike Viqueira
Rep. Jack Murtha (D) says that he has figured out a way to stop Bush's so-called troop "surge" before it is completed, while still maintaining Speaker Nancy Pelosi's pledge not to cut off funding for "troops in the field." He tells MoveCongress.org in a Web cast this morning that he plans to attach strings to the president's $100 billion war funding bill that will effectively force the Administration to stall the troop increase.

The provisions he proposes include:
-- prohibiting the Pentagon from sending people back into battle until they have had a year at home after being deployed. He says he has figured out that in order to fulfill the surge requirements, the Defense Department would have to send people back after seven months at home;
-- prohibiting the Pentagon from extending tours;
-- ending the Pentagon's "stop loss" policy;
-- and prohibiting the establishment of permanent U.S. military bases in Iraq.

He says that the Pentagon would have to "certify" that any units deployed in the future were "combat ready." In addition, Murtha says that he is "considering" adding provisions to close Guantanamo and "bulldoze" Abu Ghraib. If his measures are enacted, he says, "they won't be able to continue, they won't be able to do the deployment." Murtha's defense appropriations subcommittee is the first stop in Congress for the president's $100 billion request for the remainder of this fiscal year. He says that it will be reported out of committee on March 15 and taken up by the House shortly thereafter.

***************************************************

So, this moron, like Reid ("The war is already lost") did all they could for pure political gain to strengthen our enemies and harm our military for purposes of political expediency. Their politics demanded a sea of American blood be spilled to keep them afloat, and they did all they could to make that happen.

Their words generally, and Murtha's particularly, emboldened and strengthen terrorists and wounded the morale of the very military THESE clowns (and yes, they ALL voted to send troops over to Iraq) sent in the first place.

Instead of Mr. Murtha actually rating the Navy's Distinguished Public Service Award, he rates our scorn and our pity. But for the Department of the Navy to award this stain on the military ANYTHING besides the Alfred E. Neuman Award for the Non-Jumping of Fire Hydrants is a disgrace and an insult to Service Members and veterans everywhere, and certainly an insult to all past and future recipients of this now worthless "award."

Murtha is one of the few individuals I know that make me ashamed to have worn the uniform. And he rates NOTHING but our contempt.

Murtha Award Sparks Vet Outrage

March 26, 2009

Military.com by Christian Lowe

In one of his last moves before leaving office March 13, then-Navy Secretary Donald Winter quietly awarded 19-term Democratic congressman John Murtha (Pa.) with the service's highest civilian honor.

Citing Murtha's "courageous leadership, vision, and loyalty to the men and women of the Department of the Navy," Winter presented the influential chairman of the House Appropriations Committee's defense panel with the Navy's Distinguished Public Service Award, an honor bestowed in "those extraordinary cases where individuals have demonstrated exceptionally outstanding service of substantial and long term benefit to the Navy, Marine Corps, or the Department of the Navy as a whole," a Murtha release stated.

The award generated little publicity when it was given to Murtha in early March, but as news of the honor trickled out, some veterans groups ignited a firestorm of protest.

Poll: Should the Navy reconsider Murtha’s award

The primary reason for their ire stems from the congressman's statements in May, 2006, that a squad of Marines who responded to an IED ambush and short firefight in Haditha, Iraq, rampaged through the village, murdering civilians "in cold blood."

Murtha made those comments in the heat of the 2006 congressional mid-term election campaign, in a move some political analysts saw as an attempt to stoke the anti-war vote for a Democratic takeover of the House. The former Marine and distinguished Vietnam veteran continued his accusations in follow-up media appearances before an official Pentagon and Naval Criminal Investigative Service investigation had been completed.

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Here's a concept: Force welfare recipients to take drug tests and limit their lottery winnings.

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I'm sure that liberal haters would disagree. After all, it's NEVER a welfare recipient's fault that they're actually ON welfare, and we should be grateful for the opportunity to shovel billions of dollars down that particular rat hole.

As something of a fiscal conservative, I take the opposite view: since the vast majority of these recipients of our largess are in their situation because of decisions THEY made, THEY should actually be grateful they were born into a society that gives a damn enough to keep them from starving.

As a society, we've made the decision that there are certain items welfare recipients cannot buy with our money: alcohol comes to mind.

That is, they can't buy it at a store with their welfare card, or food stamps.

Well guess what?

If they've got money from ANYWHERE to buy booze, beer or drugs, then they shouldn't get a DIME in welfare.

If they've got the money to buy lottery tickets, then they shouldn't get a DIME in welfare.

Ideally, welfare is a temporary state (Aside from the empty suit's efforts to make it permanent)

It even USED to be call TANF, or "Temporary Aid for Needy Families.") (It still may be, but given The One's PC bent lately, it's liable to be called "Permanent Gifting for Misunderstood Cash Recipients" or some such nonsense.) so, the ideas here are, allegedly, two-fold:

First, that this aid is temporary, until such time as the recipient gets:

Second, a job.

How likely is it that someone doing drugs will get, or keep, a job?

And why would any welfare recipient believe they have enough money to buy lottery tickets?

A West Virginia Delegate to their House of Delegates, Craig Blair, has opened up his own website, the aptly named http://www.notwithmytaxdollars.com/ that HE'S paying for out of his own pocket, explains it all on the drug issue.

Question: Is this bill constitutional and does it violate my Fourth Amendment Rights?

Answer: In examining the Constitutionality of random drug testing for public assistant recipients, it is important to remember that the U.S. Supreme Court has not addressed this issue directly. The Supreme Court has heard matters regarding suspicionless drug tests in other settings, but the test for determining the Constitutionality of such tests all falls on the reasons behind the testing, or more specifically, the “compelling state interest.” It would be premature and improper to extrapolate all previous rulings to the random drug testing system established in this bill.

Any time the government, or any agent thereof, conducts a search, such as a drug test, the search must be examined in the context of our Fourth Amendment privacy protections against unreasonable searches and seizures. Considering there are no criminal implications in this bill, the Supreme Court would most likely question the search’s reasonableness. A search is “reasonable” when supported by “special needs” beyond the normal need for law enforcement. In the most recent cases before the Supreme Court regarding suspicionless searches (i.e. random drug tests) the Court has held that public schools have the right to test athletes and participants of extracurricular activities because the public school’s custodial and educational duties, a finding of individual suspicion was not necessary. Arguably, the State has a compelling interest in curbing the drug use of citizens in general, maximizing the benefit of every dollar expended, and specifically, deterring drug use of persons receiving public assistance, because (a) the State cannot rationally justify the incompatible policies of criminally policing drug use while simultaneously providing money for persons to purchase drugs, and (b) the preeminent interest of protecting low-income families from the ravages of addiction and abuse.

Second comes the question of an “expectation of privacy.” The average citizen has the greatest expectation of privacy under the Fourth Amendment. Various activities or conditions affect this expectation; for example, prisoners, students and military personnel all have a diminished expectation of privacy. In the recent Supreme Court cases mentioned above, the Court held that students involved in athletics and extra-curricular activities have a diminished expectation of privacy because of the rules, procedures and activities inherent in participation. Similarly, a person accepting public assistance may have a diminished expectation of privacy due to the fact that as a condition precedent to receiving assistance a person must submit to the government private information such as name, address, social security number, income, number of dependents, etc., and this information is checked and rechecked to ensure the eligibility for public assistance. This bill provides no criminal recourse for anyone testing positive for illicit use of controlled substances and ensures the confidentiality of all test results. One could argue that it treads on the Fourth Amendment in the lightest way possible.

Lastly, the Supreme Court will probably require that a drug testing program be “tailored” (possibly narrowly) to fit the State’s “compelling interest.” This bill provides for random testing, and prohibits the use of any other criteria, including but not limited to, suspicion of drug use, previous drug use or criminal conviction for drug use or possession. Again, the results are completely confidential and cannot be distributed to a public or private person or entity. Additionally, following a positive test, the recipient will not lose any benefits until failing a second drug test 30-60 days later. If a person twice fails a drug test and is determined ineligible, the person can reapply in two years. Both of these provisions are aimed at deterring drug use while allowing self-help and providing a remedy, and are less stringent than alternative policies the State could implement in dealing with the dilemma.

Again, the Supreme Court has yet to directly address the issue of drug testing of public assistance recipients which was actually provided for in the Welfare Reform Act of 1996, and the unique nature of the issue would require a specific analysis. The bill has been drafted in a way to navigate the constitutional waters and provide a limited solution to a definitive problem.

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There's a bill out there in Tennessee that addresses the lottery ticket issue:


Bill Summary

*HB 0818 by *Campfield. (SB 1240 by *Bunch.)

Lottery, Corporation - As introduced, prohibits certain persons who receive state or federal assistance from being awarded lottery prizes over $600; prohibits persons incarcerated from being awarded lottery prizes. - Amends TCA Title 4, Chapter 51, Part 1.

Fiscal Summary

Decrease State Revenue - $54,000/Human Services Other Fiscal Impact - Decreases net lottery proceeds earmarked for scholarships and grants by an amount estimated to exceed $6,472,500 per year. An increase of after-school funding estimated to be no more than $1,318,500 per year.

Bill Summary

Present law requires that unclaimed lottery prize money be deposited in the after school programs special account; provided, however, that, if the unclaimed prizes in any fiscal year total more than $18,000,000, then the excess accrues to the fund balance of the lottery for education account.

This bill prohibits issuance of lottery prizes in the amount of $600 or more to any person who receives state or federal economic or medical assistance due to indigency and any such prizes otherwise payable to any such persons would be declared unclaimed prizes. The prohibition would not apply to recipients of lottery scholarships or higher education tuition assistance, recipients of benefits from programs administered by the Tennessee housing development agency, and persons receiving other state and federal financial assistance that is not based upon the recipient's indigency.

This bill prohibits convicted criminals who are incarcerated from redeeming winning lottery tickets and any winnings otherwise payable to any such persons would be declared unclaimed prizes.

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Washington State Democrats CONTINUE to rip us off on the gas tax theft: 31 more projects face the axe.

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About 60 seconds after the gas tax package passed, WADOT whacked 30% or so of the project list, having known in advance that dozens of the promised projects would not be built.

They lied to us... and they knew it. In advance. They knew when we took the vote that many of these projects would disappear, and that the much more gullible among us and their useful idiots, the newspapers, would actually support this extortion.

Well, in continuing their rampant fraud, the democrats on the Senate Transportation Committee, Chaired by Mary Margaret Haugen, have made the decision to whack and additional 31 projects PROMISED TO THE VOTERS off the project list... and 19 other projects "outside outside the budget horizon as of last year’s supplemental transportation budget, officials said."

We're told:

The Senate plan also continues paying for about 400 other projects, but the original 16-year gas tax-financed construction plan is now short about $6 billion, due to dropping tax revenue and construction cost inflation, officials said.

That means the money for new projects is now projected to run out in 2015, putting 31 more planned highway projects on a list to be “delayed” pending a new source of money.

“You’ll see in this budget, we’re not able to fully fund any new transportation construction after 2015,” Haugen said.

Examples of the newly shuttered projects were transit and car pool lane improvements to Interstate 90 between Seattle and Bellevue, and a proposed “cross-base” highway in the Tacoma area. That list could change in the future, though, transportation leaders said.
Underlying the newly delayed projects are another 19 that won’t be built before money from the nickel and 9.5-cent gas-tax plans expire. Those 19 projects were outside the budget horizon as of last year’s supplemental transportation budget, officials said.

Odd, isn't it, that apparently the concepts of "...dropping tax revenue and construction cost inflation..." were unknown to those lying to us about all the wonderful benefits we would receive as a result of this rip off. Truthful and ethical planners would have factored these two strange new aspects of fiscal planning into the package and TOLD US THE TRUTH.

But that would have, again, required trust on the part of those who would govern us, and an innate belief that THEIR judgment is NOT superior to ours, and does not supersede ours.

Clearly, like the major tax increase we have confronting us soon, these scum wouldn't know the truth if it bit them in the ass.

Remember this when they come around again real soon, and tell us we have to vote for this, and they REALLY had "no choice" but to screw us.

I'LL believe them... won't you?

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State Senate releases transportation plan

Wednesday, March 25, 2009 7:16 PM PDT

By Curt Woodward
The Associated Press

Printable version E-mail this article 0 comment(s)

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OLYMPIA — State senators unveiled a $4.3 billion transportation plan Wednesday that would continue paying for several of the state’s highway mega-projects and purchase four ferries while shelving 31 projects that rely on dwindling gas tax revenue.

The Senate’s Democratic and Republican transportation leaders also called for a study of new ways to bankroll highways, bridges and ferries in the future, as high-efficiency cars and periodically high pump prices drive down state gas tax collections. Various kinds of tolling seemed to be early favorites.

Under the Senate’s proposed transportation budget, a half-dozen major highway projects would continue drawing money based on the project list developed last year. They include the Alaskan Way Viaduct in Seattle, the State Route 520 bridge over Lake Washington, and the State Route 395 North Spokane Corridor.

Some of the policy details of those mega-projects still aren’t settled. For instance, the earthquake-damaged viaduct may be replaced by a tunnel, but that decision still hasn’t been totally finalized. What exactly to do about the 520 bridge is still not fully resolved.

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Our democrat legislators doing what democrats do: a new law ALLOWING them to use state facilities to campaign for their massive, upcoming tax increase

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Look, we all know what they've got coming. The leftists infesting the legislature will do what their union masters tell them to do, which means these clowns will get their pay raises and the leftists will do everything they can to avoid state employee reductions... in either numbers, or wages.

The result? Massive cuts in core services, little to no change in taking care of their buddies, and a massive tax increase to put on the ballot, so the democrats can avoid any blame for their misfeasance in office.

It's bad enough that these neo-comms would advocate for a huge tax increase during a recession... but to make it legal to use state facilities and assets to campaign for such a socialist move?

I get that it's totally unrealistic to expect the fringe-leftists running the show in Sodom-on-the-Sound to do the RIGHT thing, which is to focus entirely on reducing the size of government and avoiding crippling impacts on an economy teetering on the brink thanks to the empty suit in DC.

But to use taxpayer dollars to CAMPAIGN for a tax increase... and ONLY for referenda... and NOT initiatives... well, that is just, plain, despicable.

Rep. Maralyn Chase, D-Shoreline, and any other democrat thug in favor of this steaming pile should be ashamed of themselves. They won't be, of course, because getting the tax passed is all they're concerned about... ethics, morality and common sense be damned.

Thanks to Joe Turner of a REAL newspaper, the Tacoma News Tribune, for spilling the beans.

Political Buzz

Let's talk politics.

Tuesday, March 24th, 2009

Are legislators trying to clear the way to use their newsletters to campaign for a tax increase this fall?

Posted by Joe Turner @ 08:37:55 am

It sure looks that way. But it's not just for the upcoming tax packages.

House Bill 2322, which was introduced yesterday, would change the state ethics laws to allow legislators to advocate in favor (or against) a ballot measure. They already are free to say what they think of something on the ballot, but this bill appears to go one step further. It would let them use their newsletters to constituents, press releases, correspondence to constituents and other state resources to make their views known far and wide.

UPDATE: I'll just talked to Rep. Maralyn Chase, D-Shoreline, the prime sponsor, to see what she had in mind. First, her bill would apply only to referenda that are put on the ballot by the Legislature. "You oughta get out there and stand by what you did," she said.

(But if Tim Eyman or someone else managed to get an initiative on the ballot, legislators still could not use their office newsletter to campaign for or against those measures. Only a legislative referendum, she said.)

Chase said she didn't introduce this bill only for the upcoming tax package (or packages) that lawmakers are likely to put before voters, although that is part of the reason. She said she also signed onto a similar bill sponsored in 2002 by then-Rep. Ruth Fisher.)

"If we refer a measure to the voters, then we sure as hell better talk about it, tell them why we did what we did," Chase said.

More:

More Congressional Corruption: TARP dollars going to campaign coffers.

Man... this just makes me all warm and fuzzy inside. Doesn't it do the same for you?

Snatched in its entirety from NW Republican.

Forget AIG, look at TARP money going to campaign coffers

Newsweek has a potential time bomb of a story running today. It shows that many companies who have taken BILLIONS in bail-out money are now turning around and giving some of those bail-out dollars back to politicians as campaign contributions.

If the politicians can retroactively tax AIG people for 100% of their bonuses why can't Congress also pass a law that says ANY COMPANY getting bail-out cash must refrain from ANY political contributions until that money is paid back to the American people.

This is far worse than giving bonuses and buying company jets. This goes to the very underpinnings of American Democracy. Who will stand up against it?

While a few big firms, such as Wells Fargo and JP Morgan Chase, have curtailed their campaign giving, others are quietly doling out cash to select members of Congress, particularly those who serve on committees that oversee TARP. In recent filings with the Federal Election Commission, the political action committee for Bank of America (which got $15 billion in bailout money) sent out $24,500 in the first two months of 2009, including $1,500 to House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and another $15,000 to members of the House and Senate banking panels. Citigroup ($25 billion) dished out $29,620, including $2,500 to House GOP Whip Eric Cantor, who also got $10,000 from UBS which, while not a TARP recipient, got $5 billion in bailout funds as an AIG "counterparty." "This certainly appears to be a case of TARP funds being recycled into campaign contributions," says Brett Kappel, a D.C. lawyer who tracks donations. (A spokesman for Cantor did not respond to requests for comment. A spokeswoman for Hoyer said it's his "policy to accept legal contributions.")

The cash flow is already causing angst inside the Beltway. "The last thing I want to do is wake up one morning and see our PAC check being burned on C-Span," said one bank lobbyist, who asked not to be identified because of the issue's sensitivity. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Financial Services chair Rep. Barney Frank both said recently they won't take donations from TARP recipients. But House Democratic fundraisers have quietly passed the word that the party's campaign committee will resume accepting them—but down the road, not right now. Said one fundraiser, who also requested anonymity, "These are treacherous waters."

And now, a few words from Congresswoman Corrine Brown (D-FL) Be afraid. Be very afraid.

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Today is Medal of Honor Day (March 25, 2009)

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Today is National Medal of Honor Day. We respect and honor the service of the courageous individuals who’ve EARNED this award (As opposed to "WON" this award... believe me, it's not a contest), many of whom sacrificed their lives for their fellow soldiers. These are the best of our nation, and their examples inspire us all.

I have, at one time, or another, read every Medal of Honor Citation I can find... because I never cease to be amazed by the common threads that run through these exploits.

A love of country... a love of their fellow soldiers, as many died sacrificing themselves so that others in their unit might live... an almost ethereal sense of commitment and duty.

I defer to the remarks of President Harry S Truman, presenting the Medal to 15 recipients in October of 1945:

167 - Remarks on Presenting the Congressional Medal of Honor to Fifteen Members of the Armed Forces.
October 12, 1945

WELL, once again I have had a very great privilege. I would rather do what I have been doing this morning than any other one of my arduous duties. This one is a pleasure.

When you look at these young men, you see the United States of America, the greatest republic on earth, the country that can meet any situation when it becomes necessary.

These young men were doing their duty. They didn't think they were being heroes. They didn't think they were doing anything unusual. They were just doing what the situation called for.

As I have told the rest of these young men who have been here before me, I would much rather have that Medal around my neck than to be President of the United States. It is the greatest honor that can come to a man. It is an honor that all of us strive for, but very few of us ever achieve.

Now these young men will go back and become citizens of this great country, and they will make good citizens; and you won't find any of them bragging about what they have done or what they propose to do. They are just going to be good citizens of the United States, and they are going to help us take this Republic to its leadership in the world, where it belongs, and where it has belonged for the past 25 years.

Thank you very much for giving me this pleasure and this privilege.

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Note: The presentation was made by the President in a ceremony on the South Lawn at the White House. The Congressional Medal of Honor was awarded to the following members of the Armed Forces from the European and Pacific theaters: Cpl. T. A. Atkins, Cpl. Edward A. Bennett, Cpl. M. E. Biddle, Capt. J. M. Burt, Cpl. C. B. Craft, Cpl. Desmond T. Doss, T. Sgt. F. V. Homer, T. Sgt. C. H. Karaberis, Sgt. T. J. Kelly, Sgt. D. J. Kerst

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Citation: John T. Woolley and Gerhard Peters,The American Presidency Project [online]. Santa Barbara, CA: University of California (hosted), Gerhard Peters (database). Available from World Wide Web: http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=12316.
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Is this the future of our local fishwrapper?

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For quite awhile now, our local daily has been circling the drain. It started with their over-extension on the new Columbian Building, built based on a theory that flew in the face of reality in a location akin to a ghost town... the heart of the Downtown Vancouver Mafia.

Our local rag's inability to innovate, inflexibility on a far left perspective, insistence on an-ignore-the-people-to-the-point-of-suing-them-into-silence agenda, the many times they've lied or exaggerated concerning the massive waste of an unwanted and unneeded bridge complete with loot rail that no one wants around here... and there is no incentive for anyone but a union hack or fringe left-nut job to actually buy this newspaper and consider it's contents to be anything but fiction.

They are so desperate that they've gone, hat-in-hand, to our own legislature, stuck in the doldrums of a soon-to-be $10 BILLION deficit, and are in the midst of attempting to persuade them that as a business, newspapers are somehow worthy of special consideration and tax breaks that, for example, MY business does not rate.

Newspapers generally, and ultra-leftist rags particularly, are in their death throws. The competition of the Internet and a failure to adapt, a complete lack of fairness, a total inability to grasp the pules of the entirety of the community they're alleged to serve. All of these things combine to hammer this newspaper like a nail.

So, what happens today?

The Leftist Payback Bill is introduced in the US Senate, so that newspapers may CONTINUE to further the leftist cause... and to do so on the taxpayer dime.

This leads me to a quote from a columnist at crosscut.com:

What if a newspaper folded and nobody cared?

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer's print edition dies, and while it's a shock to Seattle's sense of specialness, a new study shows that most people don't really care whether their local daily lives or dies. The real buzz is about what's next.

By Knute Berger

No one likes to see the underdog get beaten, but the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, long the David against the Seattle Times newspaper Goliath, just got clobbered. The Blethens are the last men standing in this long-time grudge match, but they're staggering too.

Seattle likes to regard itself as an exceptional place, and staying a two-newspaper town fed our sense that we're something special, a literate, world-class city that could buck the trend that saw most major cities become one-daily burgs. We buy more books, we have more education, we're paragons of the creative class. Members of
Committee for a Two Newspaper Town often made it sound as if having two
daily newspapers was somehow the Platonic ideal of civic enlightenment.

More:

Those obsessing on continuing a failed business model need to get a reality check. Using taxpayer dollars... resulting in an editorial policy set by government loons is not going to appreciably do anything but increase our massive waste of dollars as it is.

Nevertheless, A US Senator (Benjamin Cardin?) that, frankly, I've never heard of, introduced just such a bill.

Lyingly code named the "Newspaper Revitalization Act," it has zero co-sponsors, which tends to show this as a trial balloon by a back-bencher, just to gauge public reaction... which will be, for the most part, condemnatory.

Newspapers are a business. They've been superseded by a new paradigm, much like buggy manufacturers were superseded by those building automobiles.

In the over all scheme of things, vehicle manufacturers are much more important than newspaper publishers. And neither one of them should receive a damned dime in bailouts from the taxpayers.

*I* don't WANT ANY of MY money to go to The Columbian. And based on their abysmal circulation figures, most in this community agree with me.

U.S. bill seeks to rescue faltering newspapers

By Thomas Ferraro

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - With many U.S. newspapers struggling to survive, a Democratic senator on Tuesday introduced a bill to help them by allowing newspaper companies to restructure as nonprofits with a variety of tax breaks.

"This may not be the optimal choice for some major newspapers or corporate media chains but it should be an option for many newspapers that are struggling to stay afloat," said Senator Benjamin Cardin.

A Cardin spokesman said the bill had yet to attract any co-sponsors, but had sparked plenty of interest within the media, which has seen plunging revenues and many journalist layoffs.

Cardin's Newspaper Revitalization Act would allow newspapers to operate as nonprofits for educational purposes under the U.S. tax code, giving them a similar status to public broadcasting companies.

Under this arrangement, newspapers would still be free to report on all issues, including political campaigns. But they would be prohibited from making political endorsements.

Advertising and subscription revenue would be tax exempt, and contributions to support news coverage or operations could be tax deductible.

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Dear Congressman Baird: tell me again why *I* should bail out other homeowners?

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I checked my "in box" and found the following sitting in my bin, so to speak:

Help For Homeowners March 24, 2009 Dear Friends, We're facing some of the most trying times since the Great Depression. Many families in Southwest Washington find themselves one mortgage payment away from disaster; you might be one of them. However, help is on the way. President Obama has introduced his plan to assist homeowners with their mortgages during this economic downturn. The Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan will offer assistance to homeowners in Southwest Washington and across the country who are making a good faith effort to keep current with their mortgage payments. You can learn more about President Obama's plan and find out if you qualify at the Department of Housing and Urban Development's page. You can also see a list of foreclosure avoidance counselors in Washington State by clicking here. It's truly an honor to represent and serve you. If you ever need anything, or just want to let me know about an issue that concerns you, please feel free to contact my office. Sincerely, Congressman Brian Baird Representing Washington's 3rd District * CONTACT MY OFFICES * Vancouver Office O.O. Howard House 750 Anderson Street, Suite B Vancouver, WA 98661 Phone: (360) 695-6292 Fax: (360) 695-6197 Olympia Office 120 Union Avenue, Suite 105 Olympia, WA 98501 Phone: (360) 352-9768 Fax: (360) 352-9241 Washington, D.C. Office 2350 Rayburn HOB Washington, DC 20515 Phone: (202) 225-3536 Fax: (202) 225-3478

Nice piece of work. Now, Mr. Baird is my Congressman. He's had the job since 1998. I've had some concerns with how he uses his power, detailed here, here and here, among others.

Mr. Baird has voted for all of these programs and expenditures. No stranger to earmarks, Mr. Baird has taken particular pride in "bringing home the bacon" for the Downtown Vancouver Mafia.

That said, Mr. Baird, I've got to tell you: why is it again that *I* should use MY money to bail someone else out for YOUR political expedience?

I bought my home 3.5 years or so ago. We settled on a home at least one-half to 40% the cost we were pre-qualified for.

As a result, we aren't having any problem paying our still-substantial, but quite reasonable house-payment.

In arriving at this position, when we pre-qualified, we didn't lie about our income. We have pretty good credit. We didn't try to buy a mansion based on our income. We make our payments on time EVERY month.

Now, Mr. Baird... tell me again how it is that I bear ANY responsibility of ANY kind for those who lied about their income? Or got too greedy when it came to not having the income to support their house payment... or who received a mortgage not on their ability to pay... but instead, on their ability to breathe.

Why am I responsible for that?

And, as I gaze into the future that you and Our President have provided, where massive, bottomless deficits are the order of the day... how is it that *I* need to pay for the decisions and actions of OTHERS?
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