Paying Peter Back

Obama won the presidency and that’s remarkable.  But who knew that it might come down to Georgia to decide what happens in Washington and the country as a whole?  The democrats are possibly 1 away from having 60 seats in the house.  That makes them filibuster proof.  Which puts little in the way to stop legislation that conservatives aren’t in favor of.

Saxby Chambliss did not have quite enough votes to win his seat.  Thanks to a third party candidate he was a hair below 50%.  That forces the senate race here into a run-off.  His opponent is Jim Martin.

Now I’ll admit I wasn’t heavily following the senate race here as far as campaigns go.  I knew it was important but had no idea it might be this important.  Here is what it comes down to for me:

Jim Martin is one of two things: a) incredibly stupid (which I doubt) or b) will say anything to get elected.  I am pretty sure it’s (b).  Why?  One word; FairTax (OK that’s two words put together but whatever).

Why FairTax?  I saw Jim Martin’s ad about FairTax and I was speechless.  If you’ve read my blog for any amount of time you’ll have seen my mentions of the FairTax.  I understand for the very most part how it works and how it would work to be a boon to our country as a whole.  Jim Martin does not understand this or at least his campaign advisers don’t.  Perhaps they do but they no one thing that motivates people and that is FEAR.

One of the first things you’ll ever read about FairTax is 23% tax rate.  If people are smart they keep reading and get the whole story.  Jim Martin assumes people are too stupid to investigate on their own?  His ad says FairTax would ADD 23% to everything we buy.  I’ll be blunt here; he’s out of his frapping mind.  Saxby Chambliss supports the FairTax.  Now tell me, what politician in his right mind would support an additional 23% tax on everything?  Answer? Zero.

Martin is not telling the whole story.  He throws 23% out there and scares the hell out of people.  Red Foreman says it best but “He’s a dumb-ass.”  23% is NOT added on to everything.  In a nutshell the IRS is gone, federal with-holdings end and you get your entire paycheck.  You fund the federal government through a progressive sales tax.  So it does not come out of your paycheck.  Period.  It just restructures the way the governement is funded.  Shifts things around so to speak.  This “additional 23%” garbage is bullcrap.

If you’ve never heard of FairTax let me elaborate a tad on FairTax.  I’ll take straight from the website as they’re better at wording this stuff than I am so here we go:

• Enables workers to keep their entire paychecks
• Enables retirees to keep their entire pensions
• Refunds in advance the tax on purchases of basic necessities
• Allows American products to compete fairly
• Brings transparency and accountability to tax policy
• Ensures Social Security and Medicare funding
• Closes all loopholes and brings fairness to taxation
• Abolishes the IRS

I whole-heartedly encourage anyone to visit the FairTax website and educate themselves.  So in short, Jim Martin is lying and it’s not a matter of saying he’s lying just to say it.  He is actually 100% legitamately lying in that campaign ad.  FairTax is non-partisan but people like Martin choose to make it partisan and divide people on it.  IT IS NON-PARTISAN, JIM.  Leave it alone and run on the issues.  Or perhaps you could support it and tell people how it really works and possibly win that seat?

Come on, Jim.  Look at this long list of supporters. Why would they all support an additional 23% tax?  Oh right because it isn’t one.  Duh!  Scroll to the bottom for the list of economists.  Yes, economists!  People that actually know things about the economy!

So, if Martin wins the run-off it’s a blow to conservatives in the Senate and a blow to the FairTax.  Gee, who am I voting for?

oh and p.s.

I don’t really appreciate the random comments on my political postings.  Come on people, speak english or write something other than gibberish?  Thanks! (and thanks for reading

Tags: FairTax, Jim Martin, Saxby Chambliss

Apparently that’s what you do when you want to get a grassroots effort together to get something done or noticed.  Yes, you make a .org site.  There are a bajillion out there it seems!  There are plenty of legit ones and good ones.  It’s when the name gets crazy that bugs me.

That’s pretty much the blog for today.  Too busy to go into a rant.

Tags: .org, rant, WTF

Yes!  Well I don’t think you can get tickets to this particular launch but there is viewing all up and down the Indian River.  Even though I’ve never SEEN one go up I can assure you that if you’re anywhere in the area; you’ll know one is going up.  This launch will be shortly after nightfall and those are particularly dazzling.  I like day launches as you can see the vehicle a lot better but any successful launch is a good one.

That’s right, one week from today! W00t! I love launch day preparation.

Tags: KSC, launch, shuttle, Space, STS-126

Ok, woo, it’s over, now what?!

This:

Take your stickers off your vehicles. Regardless of who your candidate was.  If your guy won then it’s just tacky and/or you prove you’re forgetfulness.  No one likes gloating.  After the 2004 election was over I immediately removed our stickers from our vehicles.  If you want to be proud, just be proud.  Don’t wear the flag so to speak.  If your guy lost then you’re just making a pointless… point.  He lost, it’s over.  Get a new sticker in 2012 and hope he/she is a good candidate.  At which point if they are and they win then you’ll refer BACK to the first sentence.  Repeat as necessary.

Take the signs down. Again, why keep them up?  Tacky!  You know those people that keep their Christmas lights up all year?  Yes, if you keep your signs up you’re not different.  Be proud on the inside.

I don’t like sore losers and I don’t like people that insist on rubbing things in. Fuck both of those kinds of people.  If you won then Grats!  If you lost (sigh) then you figure out what you did wrong and fix it and try again.  If you won then hope your guy lives up to the expectations you have of him.  If you lost then respect the winner and hope you can at least compromise on things.  If you won, be proud, don’t be an asshole.  If you lost, suck it up and don’t be an asshole either.

I suppose I take after my dad on this kind of stuff.  The only time you’ll ever see my dad visibly emotional is if the Bulldogs lose a big game.  Then he’s just pissed off.  Other than that, win or lose he maintains just about the same composure.  That’s a fantastic skill for poker by the way.

So take the stickers off, the signs down and keep your poker faces. We elect human beings to be office.   If you put a man too high on a pedestal and he falls down then all the kings men will just have little pieces to pick up.  So be hopeful for your leaders but you must put the majority of your destiny if YOUR own hands.  If you can’t do that, then I’m so sorry.

Godspeed!

Tags: losers, signs, stickers, winners.

It’s over, finally.  I was pretty sure Obama had this in the bag especially in light of the financial crisis.  It couldn’t have happened at a worse time for the GOP ticket.  More than that though Obama ran a better more energized campaign.  Even Ben Stein said the McCain campaign was the worst he’d ever seen.  Republicans really dug into this hole the past few years.  First with spending like mad men.  Which of course will now continue with a largely Democratic Washington.  Second, the scandals.  There was a lot of broken trust and they did it to themselves. [ This is completely aside from the Fannie Mae BS that was largely stonewalled by democrats but that's neither here nor there]

I’d have to say my #1 complaint in the coming months/years will be the spending.  Frankly, no matter who won was going to have to raise taxes.  Lowering taxes is really a pipe dream.  Contrary to popular belief the Obama tax cuts aren’t cuts, they’re welfare.  When someone who doesn’t pay taxes gets a check from the government it’s welfare.  I said a while back that a lot of the programs are mathematically challenged as far as where the money will come from.

Back in 1994 Clinton was challenged on the “Hillary Care” program becauase of the same reasons.  The calculations were bust.  I can imagine that a lot of the Obama proposals will meet the same challenges which brings me to my final point.

I think that a lot of people are going to be disappointed with this presidency and here is why: Washington politics.  Candidates over the years run on these big platforms to get things done and if the general consensus of the country opposes it, it won’t get done.  Remember privatized social security?  I thought it was a good idea but don’t get me started in on Social Security.  I’ll say this though, it makes the current financial mess look like a minor clerical error in comparison.  People didn’t want it though.  It was rejected.  Things have to pass through the House and Senate.  Democrats have a majority but not enough to ram things through unchallenged.  The President doesn’t have a magic wand and ride a unicorn on a beam of dreams and wishes.  It’s a process.  It’s lots of processes.  He’ll also have to compromise and appeal to the other side when pushing certain items through.  A president should do that.

So things might not come in the form as promised during the campaign.  They’ll end up a little more moderate and appealing to a larger group.  That will probably not be enough for certain republicans.  And some democrats will feel it’s catering too much for the party that isn’t even in power.  Oh well it takes all kinds.

So a lot of things just simply aren’t going to get done or they’ll be revamped several times to get them done.  Obama will have all the intentions of pushing his proposals but they will undoubtedly meet opposition on the hill and the senate floor.  Basically a lot of people will get soured by the experience of seeing how things pan out in Washington.  I know I’ve been soured by it.

So the new tagline will be:  Yes we can, well maybe, sometimes…

Republicans?  You guys have to seriously step back and reevaluate where you stand and what you believe in.  No I’m not a textbook republican.  I’m technically Libertarian but that guy never wins so what’s the point? :)  GOP has a lot of soul searching to do to get back on the right track.  Reagan is a great place to start if anyone is listening.  Among the many great things he said, here is a tidbit:

Government does not solve problems; it subsidizes them.

So congratulations to President Elect, Barack Obama.  I will not agree with his agenda more than likely but he is our next president and it was the will of the American people.  This is the greatest country in the history of mankind in one of the greatest ages of mankind.  Godspeed.

edit:

Basically what this guy says sums it up

p.s. at least McCain won Georgia, sooo, neener!

Tags: election, final word, house, policy, president, senate

Well it’s been nearly 6 months to the day since I injured my shoulder.  It has taken that long for it to heal.  Let it be known that the shoulder takes LONGER than any other body area to heal!  That and the back, which I threw out last week.  That’s an entirely separate post.  Eh I’ll write it here.  Bottom line: shoulder is almost entirely healed.  I still favor it out of habit when doing certain things.  That was a hard hard lesson learned in how to correctly assume push-up position.  Still though, it was just the perfect, freak, circumstances that led to it.  Even the doctor said it was random and kind of freakish.  Well, it is true, I am a freak.

So my back.  Yes, I did something to my back last week and it hurt pretty solidly up until Saturday night.  I went to a gathering of friends that evening and proceeded to drink and get a little “wooo”.  That was fun but I noticed that no amount of inebriation helped my back.  I knew it was going to be a long night once I got home.

So we got home and took care of home things… At that point I tried to lay down.  My back was throbbing at this point.  Nothing helped.  I was on the verge of passing out at one point.  I finally got up and started walking around which seemed to help a tad.  I grabbed 4 advil and 2 benadryl and popped them all at the same time.  One for pain and the other to just plain knock my ass out.  I knew one or the other would have to happen.  It worked.  Finally, around 4am I drifted into sleep.  I’d already made me mind up (yes, me mind, yar! I’m a pirate!) that I was headed to the family medical center over near Belks.

I walked in at 1pm sharp.  Filled all the paperwork out and then waited.  After about 20 minutes got called back.  Waited about 10 more minutes and the doc came in.  We went over the routine.  He poked around, pushed around, tested reflexes, etc.  He concluded that nothing seemed serious.  It’s just that a back will protest very highly if thrown out of whack.  So he ordered some shots.  Big, fat, steroid shots.  The needles were 3″ long.  I couldn’t look.  Needles don’t bother me but geez!  Anyhow, it was actually painless minus some burning.  I got some pills for the road and for help with sleep … mmm zzzz.

I’d say within the hour the back was noticeably feeling better.  Today it’s still a little stiff but it’s vastly better than it was a couple of days ago.  I am certainly not getting any younger!   I told the doctor that I’m reminded on a weekly basis that time doesn’t run backwards.

Tags: back, oh noes!, shoulder

So very tired of politics.  So, I’m taking a break from that bantering.

Now, On to something far more fascinating: Space!  Lots of things going on in the next few months so lets get to one of them now.

There is a new show that will be showing on NatGeo this Sunday (11/02/08) at 8pm EST.  It’s called Five Years on Mars.  It chronicles the adventures of two tiny rovers that have been present, on Mars, for a combined 10 years (between the two of them).  They hold a special place in my heart since they were both launched the year my first son was born.  What is amazing about this?

They were sent to Mars on a 90-day mission, but almost five years later the rovers Spirit and Opportunity have traveled farther, seen more, and survived longer than anyone imagined possible, earning a place among the most prolific explorers in history.

These rovers were supposed to last 90 days or thereabouts.  That’s all that was required of them.  Hubble is to deep space as these rovers are to Mars.  That is of course in conjunction with  thr MRO (Mars Recon Observatory).  Having far exceeded their lifespan, Opportunity and Spirit have provided simply invaluable data about the red planet.

Leaving on a Delta II never to return to Earth again, these tiny ambassadors of Earth made the months long journey to endure the loneliest of missions.  In a place where most or all life would perish, the little robots pressed on.  Through a barrage of technical difficulties they pressed on, still.  They are still pressing on, to this day.  How long until they are rendered frozen by the inhospitable frozen desert?  I can only guess.

Perhaps one day, in the distant future, when man begins his travels to Mars, our paths with these rovers will cross again.  Imagine coming face to face with history.  Something our distant future ancestors will have to remind them of how far humanity has come.

 

 Five Years on Mars: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Tags: Explorers, History, mars, Opportunity, Spirit

(note: Jackie Chan is not running for pulic office.  You are more than welcome to write anyone in though)

Tags: Chan

Well, now, finally there is a graphical representation of current tax law vs Obama tax law.

Because Mr. Obama’s tax credits are phased out as incomes rise, they impose a huge “marginal” tax rate increase on low-income workers. The marginal tax rate refers to the rate on the next dollar of income earned. As the nearby chart illustrates, the marginal rate for millions of low- and middle-income workers would spike as they earn more income.

How does that help the economy?  I also heard a sound clip of him addressing a tax question.  I’ll paraphrase of course but it was something to the effect of ’spread it around’.  Karl Marx anyone?

From each according to his ability, to each according to his need

That’s kinda sorta maybe how we ended up in a financial crisis eh?  People forcing institutions to make loans to people who couldn’t afford them?  Meh, I’m going to wash my hands of it.

If you haven’t already, I’d read into the proposed tax plans of Senator Obama (linked below).  I would read what economists say, not what his (or even McCain’s) website says.  He and his campaign (like all campaigns) are out to win.  Which is another gripe I have, both sides sounding like godamn parrots reading off their little talking point cue cards.  Jesus H. Christ people learn to think for yourselves!  Meh, ok, seriously, washing hands now *looks for soap*.

You can read the Wall Street Journal story here entitled “Obama’s 95% Illusion”

And, seriously, FairTax would blow both plans into a Jovian orbit.  SORRY, washing hands, applying soap *hum de hum*

Tags: blah, karl marx, socialism, taxes

I can’t think of a better way to give the economy a kick in the pants than changing out tax code.  Not change it so much as put it out in a pasture and put it down *click click boom*.  Yes, kill it.  All 60,000 pages of that garbage full of ins/outs/holes/gophers/boogers/nasties/confusions and well you get the idea.

Time for a little backstory.  This is taken from the FairTax site:

The federal income tax was established in 1913. It actually required an amendment to the United States Constitution to make it legal. Why? Our Founding Fathers believed that taxing individuals on their private income was economic folly. They were right. The absence of an income tax, a tax on productivity, allowed our economy to grow and individuals to prosper for 124 years.

The original income tax legislation affected only individuals earning $4,000 or more per year, at a time when the overwhelming majority of Americans earned far less. The 16th Amendment was eventually ratified and added to the Constitution, and a national income tax was born.

That 16th Amendment was simply worded, the tax return consisted of only one page, and the entire tax code itself consisted of only 14 pages. No one could have imagined the vast impact it would have on the lives of their children, grandchildren, and future generations of Americans.

Since then, the federal income tax system has become so complex that it requires tens of millions of Americans to seek professional help to comply with it, not to mention the enormous, expensive federal bureaucracy required to enforce and administer the tax. The Internal Revenue Service employs more investigative agents than the FBI and the CIA combined, and with 144,000 employees, employs more people than all but the 36 largest corporations in the United States.

In addition to the $10 billion needed to operate the IRS, at least $265 billion (that is $900 for every man, woman, and child in this country) must be added to account for the cost of complying with the tax code. Massive amounts of our national wealth are consumed merely by measuring, tracking, sheltering, documenting, and filing our annual income.

Tax Origins

So there you have it.

Going to post some more snippets from the website.  Why type it when it’s already there?

• The FairTax rate of 23 percent on a total taxable consumption base of $11.244 trillion will generate $2.586 trillion dollars $358 billion more than the taxes it replaces.  [1]
• The FairTax has the broadest base and the lowest rate of any single-rate tax reform plan.  [2]
• Real wages are 10.3 percent, 9.5 percent, and 9.2 percent higher in years 1, 10, and 25, respectively than would otherwise be the case.  [3]
• Disposable personal income is higher than if the current tax system remains in place:  1.7 percent in year 1, 8.7 percent in year 5, and 11.8 percent in year 10.  [4]
• The economy as measured by GDP is 2.4 percent higher in the first year and 11.3 percent higher by the 10th year than it would otherwise be.  [4]
• Consumption increases by 2.4 percent more in the first year, which grows to 11.7 percent more by the tenth year than it would be if the current system were to remain in place.  [4]
• The increase in consumption is fueled by the 1.7 percent increase in disposable (after-tax) personal income that accompanies the rise in incomes from capital and labor once the FairTax is enacted.  [4]
• By the 10th year, consumption increases by 11.7 percent over what it would be if the current tax system remained in place, and disposable income is up by 11.8 percent. [4]
• Over time, the FairTax benefits all income groups.  Of 42 household types (classified by income, marital status, age), all have lower average remaining lifetime tax rates under the FairTax than they would experience under the current tax system. [5]
• Implementing the FairTax at a 23 percent rate gives the poorest members of the generation born in 1990 a 13.5 percent improvement in economic well-being; their middle class and rich contemporaries experience a 5 percent and 2 percent improvement, respectively.  [6]
• Based on standard measures of tax burden, the FairTax is more progressive than the individual income tax, payroll tax, and the corporate income tax.  [7]
• Charitable giving increases by $2.1 billion (about 1 percent) in the first year over what it would be if the current system remained in place, by 2.4 percent in year 10, and by 5 percent in year 20.  [8]
• On average, states could cut their sales tax rates by more than half, or 3.2 percentage points from 5.4 to 2.2 percent, if they conformed their state sales tax bases to the FairTax base.  [9]
• The FairTax provides the equivalent of a supercharged mortgage interest deduction, reducing the true cost of buying a home by 19 percent.  [10]

Read the full plan here (plain English)

You’ll often hear opponents say nothing more than “IT WILL RAISE TAXES TO 23% FOR EVERYONE!”.  You can educate the ignorant.  For stupidity, there isn’t much you can do.  Even the stupid could be educated to realize screaming “23!” is nothing more than pandering for votes.  On the whole, the opposition is mostly from Democrats.  That is sad because this shouldn’t be partisan in the least.  This IS about EVERYONE in America.  It’s right-wing to left-wing to hot-wing.  This affects us all.  That said, Republicans aren’t getting off the hook so easy.  There is some opposition there too.  It comes down to votes, lobbyists and special interest who thrive on the current tax code like the leaches they are.  Doing away with it would end their way of life.  Good riddance, I say.

Tags: FairTax, Tax Code, United States