According toTaxdayteaparty.com, so far there are five tea parties scheduled in Massachusetts on April 15th.  They will be in Boston, Worcester, Lowell, Pittsfield, and Springfield.  Follow the link above for further information. 

Just a reminder to anyone planning to attend the tea parties.  This is not a Republican/Democrat issue–it’s a tax issue.  Both parties have overspent and grown government more than it needed to grow.  This is a time for everyday people to say that they are overtaxed and need tax relief–not more spending.

Yesterday’s Wall Street Journal Online ran an editorial by Michael Boskin, a professor of economics at Stanford University and a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, explaining how President Obama’s budget will impact American families.  It is a rather complex article, complete with charts, but I will attempt to highlight it here.

President Obama’s characterization of the budge is misleading.  According to the editorial:

“He claims to reduce the deficit by half, to shave $2 trillion off the debt (the cumulative deficit over his 10-year budget horizon), and not to raise taxes on anyone making less than $250,000 a year. While in a Clintonian sense correct (depends on what the definition of “is” is), it is far more accurate to describe Mr. Obama’s budget as almost tripling the deficit. It adds $6.5 trillion to the national debt, and leaves future U.S. taxpayers (many of whom will make far less than $250,000) with the tab. And all this before dealing with the looming Medicare and Social Security cost explosion.”

The impact of the debt being incurred by the government will not be felt until President Obama leaves office (isn’t that convenient?), but theoretically, the cost will be $34,000 per family in tax increases.  Mr. Boskin describes the level of peacetime debt as three times above what he considers the safety limit.  I hope this budget will be changed in the coming years by voting in a new congress that will do away with the unnecessary expansion of the federal government. 

Investor’s Business Daily ran an editorial yesterday about Defense Secretary Robert Gates’ interview on Fox News recently.  When asked if America would shoot down a North Korean missle, Mr. Gates stated, “I think if we had an aberrant missile, one that was headed for Hawaii, that looked like it was headed for Hawaii or something like that, we might consider it, but I don’t think we have any plans to do anything like that at this point.” 

Might consider it?  Before of after it landed in Hawaii?  This doesn’t sound like a man who is concerned with defending his country.  This is not a good message to send to the people who are currently plotting nasty things against us.  Well, if I feel like it, I may react.  I don’t think so.

The article further quotes Mr. Gates:

Regarding Iran, he took what amounts to a “don’t worry” demeanor, expressing confidence that “they don’t have the capability at this point to enrich” uranium to the level needed to construct an atomic bomb.

“We do not believe they are . . . enriching beyond a low level at Natanz,” where Iran’s uranium enrichment facility is located, “and the IAEA is in there,” Gates added, in reference to the United Nations’ often incompetent atomic watchdog agency, “so we will know if they try to do that.”

Have we put Alfred E. Newman in charge of defense?  “What, me worry?”

Breitbart.com has a comment on President Obama’s broken promise on no tax increases on people who make less than $250,000 a year.  President Obama, who stopped smoking but has admitted he slips now and then, signed a law raising the tobacco tax nearly 62 cents on a pack of cigarettes, to $1.01. Other tobacco products saw similarly steep increases.  Somehow I suspect that many of the people who smoke make less than $250,000 a year; and their taxes just went up!

Meanwhile–the graph below shows how much money the government spends on tobacco subsidies.  I copied the graph from the Farm Subsidy Database from the Environmental Working Group website.  I don’t have any later figures than 2003, so I don’t know if the government has changed its policy.  I do find it interesting that they are raising taxes on a product that they are subsidizing–why not just end the subsidies and save the money?

Tobacco Subsidies by year, U.S. Total

Year Tobacco Subsidies 1995 $0 1996 $0 1997 $0 1998 $0 1999 $0 2000 $345,123,312 2001 $129,247,286 2002 $4,990,960 2003 $51,121,183 2004 $5,281 2005 $0 2006 $0 Total $530,488,022

NASA has released information on solar activity during the year 2008.  Just for the record, nothing we as people do on earth effects solar activity.  The bottom line on this is that the sun is emitting less heat than it has for a while.

We reached our peak of sun heat emissions in 2001 and have been going down ever since.  The article pointed out that 2008 was one of the quietest years for sun activity (sunspots, etc.) since we have measured.  According to the article:

“There were no sunspots observed on 266 of the year’s 366 days (73%). To find a year with more blank suns, you have to go all the way back to 1913, which had 311 spotless days: plot. Prompted by these numbers, some observers suggested that the solar cycle had hit bottom in 2008.”

As I said in the heading for the article, I am not a scientist, but it seems to me that if we are going to study climate change, it might be wise to start with solar activity.

This arrived in my email today.  I have no idea who wrote it–it just arrived.  Enjoy!

A woman in a hot air balloon realizes she is lost. She lowers her altitude and spots a man fishing in a boat below. She shouts to him, “Excuse me, can you help me? I promised a friend I would meet him an hour ago, but I don’t know where I am.”

The man consults his portable GPS and replies, “You’re in a hot air balloon, approximately 30 feet above a ground elevation of 2346 feet above sea level. You are at 31 degrees, 14.97 minutes north latitude and 100 degrees, 49.09 minutes west longitude.

She rolls her eyes and says, “You must be a Republican!”

“I am,” replies the man. “How did you know?”

 “Well,” answers the balloonist, “everything you tell me is technically correct, but I have no idea what to do with your information, and I’m still lost. Frankly, you’re not much help to me.”

The man smiles and responds, “You must be a Democrat.” 

“I am,” replies the balloonist. “How did you know?” 

“Well,” says the man, “You don’t know where you are, or where you’re going. You’ve risen to where you are, due to a large quantity of hot air. You made a promise that you have no idea how to keep, and now you expect me to solve your problem. You’re in exactly the same position you were in before we met. But, somehow now……. it’s my fault.”

According to the New York Post, Mayor Bloomberg has a goal of creating a green taxi fleet.  The idea is commendable — but limiting the solution to hybrids and diesels is wrong for New York according to Ron Sherman, president of the Metropolitan Taxicab Board of Trade, which represents about a quarter of the taxicabs in New York City. 

Mr. Sherman points out the the size of the hybrids puts the partition between the driver and the passenger much closer to the passenger’s face, creating a safety issue.  The hybrids are also not designed for the 24/7 use that a taxicab gets in New York City.

The Metropolitan Taxicab Board of Trade has offered an alternative proposal for the New York City taxis that includes, but is not limited to, hybrids.  The Ford Transit Connect is one cab he suggests as an alternative to hybrids.  It is larger than the hybrids, fuel efficient and safe.  Hopefully, his suggestions will be listened to.  Being sensitive to pollution is good, but we need to look at the total picture before we take actions that may have unintended consequences.

As Congress of railing against bonuses paid in private industry, the Wall Street Journal Online is reporting on bonuses paid to Congressional staff members. 

According to the article:

“Capitol Hill bonuses in 2008 were among the highest in years, according to LegiStorm, an organization that tracks payroll data. The average House aide earned 17% more in the fourth quarter of the year, when the bonuses were paid, than in previous quarters, according to the data. That was the highest jump in the eight years LegiStorm has compiled payroll information.”…

“Payments ranged from a few hundred dollars to $14,000. Lawmakers, at their own discretion, gave the money to chiefs of staff, assistants, computer technicians, and more than 100 aides who earned salaries of more than $100,000 a year.”

It’s nice to know that in this time of economic hardship for the country, congress and its aides are doing well.  Just for the record, I would like to remind people that in addition to the raise congress took this year, they voted themselves an increase in petty cash of $93,000 each.  These people are not doing a very good job of managing taxpayer money, why in the world should they be managing corporations?

National Public Radio is reporting that the Justice Department on Wednesday asked a federal judge to drop all charges against former Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska.  Since his conviction in last fall, charges of prosecutorial misconduct have delayed his sentencing and prompted defense motions for a new trial.  U.S. District Court Judge Emmett Sullivan set an April 7 hearing on the motion to dismiss the case.

According to the article:

“With more ugly hearings expected, Holder is said to have decided late Tuesday to pull the plug. His decision is said to be based on Stevens’ age — he’s 85 — and the fact that Stevens is no longer in the Senate. Perhaps most important, Justice Department officials say Holder wants to send a message to prosecutors throughout the department that actions he regards as misconduct will not be tolerated.”

There is no need to follow through on the case, the Democrats got what they wanted–the seat in the Senate.  I am not accusing Ted Stevens of being the world’s most ethical Senator, but this whole thing does not pass the smell test.  The trial was planned to run during the campaign season and the conviction came just a few days before the election.  There are stories about evidence being withheld from the defense and other irregularities.  There does seem to be some doubt about the fairness of the whole trial process.  I am concerned that there are elements within our political system who do not care about laws–they want to win at any cost.  I hope the people of Alaska pay attention to this when they elect the officials in charge of their justice system; it seems as if this was a total ‘set up’.