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912 Patriots of Lower Bucks - Daily E-Mail March 2, 2011, 2011
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 Quote:
"There is no good government but what is republican. That the only valuable part of the British constitution is so; for the true idea of a republic is 'an empire of laws, and not of men.' That, as a republic is the best of governments, so that particular arrangement of the powers of society, or in other words, that form of government which is best contrived to secure an impartial and exact execution of the law, is the best of republics."
-John Adams, Thoughts on Government, 1776 |
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PUTTING THE 14th AMENDMENT TO THE TEST
SATURDAY, March 5, 2011, 5:30 p.m. Admission is free. Reservations required. Please call 215.409.6700 or order online.
F.M. Kirby Auditorium
National Constitution Center
Independence Mall
525 Arch Street
Philadelphia, PA
The National Constitution Center presents a timely conversation addressing the issue of immigration reform and the birthright citizenship clause of the 14th Amendment. Jeff Greenfield, senior political correspondent for CBS News, moderates this highly-interactive program featuring fellows of the Peter Jennings Project for Journalists and the Constitution, who will represent various stakeholders in the immigration debate and a panel of distinguished guests.
FOR FURTHER INFO GO HERE:
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Public Employee Unions
By Walter E. Williams · Wednesday, March 2, 2011
With all of the union strife in Wisconsin, Indiana and New Jersey, and indications of more to come, it might be time to shed a bit of light on unions as an economic unit.
First, let's get one important matter out of the way. I value freedom of association, and non-association, even in ways that are not always popular and often deemed despicable. I support a person's right to be a member or not be a member of a labor union. From my view, the only controversy regarding unions is what should they be permitted and not permitted to do.
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About Imprimis
Imprimis is the free monthly speech digest of Hillsdale College and is dedicated to educating citizens and promoting civil and religious liberty by covering cultural, economic, political and educational issues of enduring significance. The content of Imprimis is drawn from speeches delivered to Hillsdale College-hosted events, both on-campus and off-campus. First published in 1972, Imprimis is one of the most widely circulated opinion publications in the nation with over 1.9 million subscribers.
January 2011
Brian T. Kennedy
President
The Claremont Institute
It's Never Just the Economy, Stupid
BRIAN T. KENNEDY is president of the Claremont Institute and publisher of the Claremont Review of Books. He has written on national security affairs and California public policy issues in National Review, the Wall Street Journal, Investor's Business Daily, and other national newspapers. He sits on the Independent Working Group on Missile Defense and is a co-author of the recent book Shariah: The Threat to America.
The following is adapted from a speech delivered on January 7, 2011, in the "First Principles on First Fridays" lecture series sponsored by Hillsdale's Kirby Center for Constitutional Studies and Citizenship in Washington, D.C.
WE ARE OFTEN TOLD that we possess the most powerful military in the world and that we will face no serious threat for some time to come. We are comforted with three reassurances aimed at deflecting any serious discussion of national security: (1) that Islam is a religion of peace; (2) that we will never go to war with China because our economic interests are intertwined; and (3) that America won the Cold War and Russia is no longer our enemy. But these reassurances are myths, propagated on the right and left alike. We believe them at our peril, because serious threats are already upon us.
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The billionaire brothers who are waging a war against Obama
Patriots, this is an older article, however, very important for you to read. This article shows the relationship of the Koch brothers and their agenda to that of the Tea Party movement by using certain organizations. An important discovery if you have not made the connection to ensure the movement is NOT co-opted! Darla
Covert Operations
The billionaire brothers who are waging a war against Obama.
GO HERE:
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The following is from Aaron Proctor, an American Citizen and Internet journalist who has been silenced by CAIR lawfare. This is not only a disgrace, it is a threat to all of us. Aaron Proctor has been reinstated although I think his comments on Radical Islam and CAIR will be muted.
The Intimidator Here is link to CAIR's letter of intimidation
From Aaron Proctor, American Citizen, Independent, Internet journalist:
Hi, I'm Aaron Proctor, a Conservative/Libertarian and a Patriot from Philadelphia, PA. I've been writing for Examiner.com since April of last year and I also host the weekly "Aaron Proctor Show" on blogtalkradio.com. I have been highly critical of the CAIR organization for months and only after I received a statement from Republican Congressman Pat Meehan about their upcoming banquet did they issue the following statement. I thought that was the end of it. Later, I was notified by my employers at Examiner.com that I've been "Temporarily suspended" while they review the legalities of my anti-CAIR articles. However, if you read the letter above, you know that CAIR won't be satisfied until my contract with the Examiner is completely terminated.
So, obviously because I'm small-time, CAIR is gonna threaten my employer with boycotts and harassing their sponsors unless I'm let go. So much for that writing gig. You can read CAIR's statement to Examiner where they call me an "Anti-Muslim bigot" and say that they've sent my picture to the local police as well as basically state they won't be satisfied until I no longer work for Examiner.com. Please forward this to your friends and true Patriots to let them know about what is going on. Thanks for the time you've taken to read this.
Aaron Proctor
The Bob
dr. bob and Guzzardi
[two minds, one voice]
-independent of any candidate, campaign or organization-
promoting Truth, Justice and the American Way.
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Government The Failure of Multiculturalism Explained
Earlier today The Blaze reported on a planned rally for Thursday of this week in support of Shariah Law replacing the U.S. Constitution:
Some say that the rise of protests like this one are the fruits of "multiculturalism." For decades, Americans have been told that we have to be more open and accepting of the various cultures of people immigrating to our country. We do not have an official language and do not demand that people learn English.
However Europe has shown us that the concept of multiculturalism has more to do with fracturing a nation than diversifying or enriching it. Leaders in England, Germany, and Spain have all come forward and made the bold statement that the concept of "multiculturalism" just doesn't work.
British Prime Minister David Cameron spoke to the European Union:
SEE VIDEO HERE:
Faith 'Burn the Koran' Pastor Will Lead Shariah Counter-March in D.C.
Terry Jones, the small-time pastor known for stirring up big-time controversy, is at it again. The controversial Florida preacher first lit a spark when he called for people around the world to burn copies of the Muslim Quran to protest the construction of the Ground Zero mosque in New York, a call he later rescinded. A former hotel manager, Jones, who worked as a missionary in Europe for 30 years, took over as head of the Dove World Outreach Center, a fundamentalist Christian church in Gainesville, Fla., in 1996. GO HERE: |
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Metcalfe Delivers Solutions to Pennsylvania's Costly Illegal Alien Invasion
3/1/2011
National Security Begins at Home package could save PA taxpayers
more than $1.4 billion annually
Pennsylvania State Representative and State Legislators for Legal Immigration (SLLI) founder Daryl Metcalfe (R-Butler County) joined with several other state lawmakers today to officially introduce the National Security Begins at Home illegal immigration reform package for the 2011-12 legislative session.
"Just like any other national policy, America's immigration laws must protect the lives, liberty and property of American citizens, rather than foreign invaders," said Metcalfe. "Since the federal government remains AWOL in fulfilling its constitutional obligation to defend the states against foreign invasion, Pennsylvania state lawmakers have no choice but to stand together to advance the National Security Begins at Home package."
Designed to restore safety and security to Pennsylvania communities by shutting off public benefits, employment access and all other economic incentives that continue to fuel Pennsylvania's ever-increasing illegal alien invasion, Metcalfe's comprehensive legislative contributions to the National Security Begins at Home package specifically target:
READ MORE:
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Obama Adviser Loves Sharia
by Robert Spencer
10/13/2009
Dalia Mogahed, Barack Obama's adviser on Muslim affairs, appeared on British television last week, where she said: "Sharia is not well understood and Islam as a faith is not well understood." How have we misunderstood Islamic law? We have associated it with "maximum criminal punishments" and "laws that... to many people seem unequal to women." The Western view of Sharia was "oversimplified," said Barack Obama's adviser on Muslim affairs; most Muslim women worldwide, she said, associate it with "gender justice."
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Sabaditsch-Woolf Trial Verdicts
Help support our Open the Koran Day project!
Two weeks ago the Austrian judge ruled.
Elisabeth Sabaditsh-Woolf, one of ACT! for America's international chapter leaders, was acquitted on the charge of incitement to hatred.
That's the good news.
The bad news is she was found guilty of "denigrating" the teachings of a religion.
You can read more in a column by Henrik Clausen.
Clausen's column notes that punishing someone for "denigrating" Islam is problematic, precisely because of what is contained in Islam's holy books:
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Having a legal ban on denigrating the teachings of Islam can be problematic, for many unpleasant points are made in the Quran, including those concerning Jews, the position of women, 'hypocrites' who call themselves Muslims but refuse to go to war for the Cause of Allah, and not least statements against 'infidels', who do not consider Muhammad a prophet or Allah worthy of their devotion. |
This illustrates why it is so important for Americans to become familiar with what is actually in the Koran and the Hadith (the sayings and traditions of Mohammed).
This is why our Open the Koran Day event is so important.
In a few weeks we will set up a sign-up page on our website where you can sign up to host an information table. Already dozens of ACT! for America chapter leaders and members have contacted us offering to host these tables.
Please help us make our Open the Koran Day event a reality by making a monthly Patriot Partner contribution or a single Contributing Member contribution today!
If you prefer, you can print out a reply form and mail us a check.
One thing that sets America apart from a country like Austria is we have a First Amendment that guarantees us the right to have an event like this. We have a constitutionally protected marketplace of ideas where people can freely examine and discuss religious and political beliefs without fear of being prosecuted.
Let's not take that freedom for granted.
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RedState Morning Briefing
For March 2, 2011
1. Christians Now Considered Unfit For Foster Parenting
Citing your values to overturn your values; that's precisely what a court in the UK has done. They've cited the values that the country was founded on - Judeo-Christian ones - to rule against holding to those values.
2. Greg Sargent Encourages Unions To Commit Violence Then Demands We Look At His Record on Palin and Arizona
Greg Sargent is whining at the Washington Post, not that I pointed out his calls for union violence in Wisconsin, but that at the very end, after all was said and done, I besmirched his journalism.
Sargent says he went out of his way to not blame Sarah Palin for causing the violence in Arizona. Let's ignore Sargent's whining and instead look at his record.
Sargent wants us to ignore that when conservatives began defending Sarah Palin from those who blamed her, Greg Sargent himself wrote . . .
3. Duplicative Programs Cost More than GOP Cuts
Yesterday, we dinged Senator Coburn for his involvement in the 'Gang of Six'. Today, we commend him for initiating a GAO report which exposes the contempt in which the statists view taxpayers.
Conservatives have always known that the promulgation of government programs was not conceived from some genuine conviction of Keynesian economics, or a professed concern for the recipients. Most government programs serve the function of a circuitous campaign financing operation for the Democrat Party. Taxpayer funds are expended indiscriminately for redistribution programs that create dependency and are administered by special interest groups. The dependency constituents are to reciprocate the taxpayer-funded favor by voting for Democrats, while the special interest groups are to recompense with campaign donations.
4. More Hackery at Politico Courtesy of Andy Barr
After reading this ridiculous "gotcha" hit job by Politico's Andy Barr, let me tell you what I know.
- During the course of an inteview on the Obama administration's record on protecting the border, Texas Governor Rick Perry referred to Juarez, Mexico as "the most dangerous city in America."
- After speaking with an aide, Perry indicated (correctly) that Juarez is in fact in Mexico, not the United States.
That is it. Those are literally the only two pieces of factual information conveyed by Andy Barr's ridiculous story. Barr doesn't even have the basic journalistic decency to quote anything Perry said to the assembled reporters about the administration's border enforcement efforts. Just an arguable slip of the tongue by someone who - beyond the shadow of a reasonable doubt - knows exactly where Juarez is and the problems it poses for the jurisdiction for which he has been responsible for over a decade.
5. As The Saudi Tanks Roll To Bahrain
Secretary of The Interior, Ken Salazar, has long advocated on behalf of the continued moratorium on drilling for oil in the Gulf of Mexico. He has argued that more time was needed to insure these operations could be done safely. He has questioned the wisdom of rushing back into drilling before the completion of advanced research on ocean containment technology designed to mitigate the impact of future spill events similar to what befell British Petroleum earlier in President Obama's administration. Others less sympathetic to Salazar's environmental concerns point to statements by President Obama and Energy Secretary Chu that indicate that both men believe that America would be a better country if gasoline would just cost more. These regrettable statements have now come back to haunt the Obama Administration.
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Obama Offers Flexibility to Implement Single Payer Faster
Posted March 1st, 2011
Obamacare remains tremendously unpopular with the American people. According to the latest Kaiser Family Foundation poll, only 14 percent of Americans believe they have benefited from the law, compared to 17 percent who say the law has already harmed them. Only 28 percent of Americans believe Obamacare will help the nation's economy, compared to 45 percent who believe it will make it worse. Overall, 48 percent of Americans oppose Obamacare while only 43 percent favor it. Some provisions, like the individual mandate, are particularly unpopular, with a full 67 percent of Americans favoring its repeal.
Read More . . .
Estonia's Love Affair with Ronald Reagan
Posted February 28th, 2011
While members of Congress, former cabinet members, long-time aides and assorted VIPs were celebrating Ronald Reagan's 100th birthday at the Reagan Presidential Library in sun-baked Simi Valley, California, I was nearly 6,000 miles away in snow-bound Tallinn, Estonia, a small Baltic country bordering on the former Soviet Union.
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The Case for Entitlement Reform: Taxpayer Contributions Fall Dangerously Short of Received Benefits
Posted February 28th, 2011
Medicare and Social Security are important retirement security programs for millions of Americans. But they are ticking time bombs with trillions in future unfunded obligations that will bankrupt America if they are not changed. Though awareness of this critical situation continues to grow, Americans remain reluctant to support reform, understandably fearful of the prospect of paying into a program and then not receiving what they paid for. As Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar wrote for the AP, "You paid your Medicare taxes all those years and think you deserve your money's worth: full benefits after you retire."
Read More . . .
Raymond Davis Tension Perfect Time to Ramp up Pakistan Civil Society Dialogue
 Posted February 28th, 2011
In the midst of a tense bilateral dispute between the U.S. and Pakistan over the case of Raymond Davis-an American Embassy employee who shot and killed two armed Pakistanis in what he claims was self-defense-civil society leaders from both countries met in Lahore, Pakistan, February 17-19. The initiative, dubbed the U.S.-Pakistan Leaders Forum, was convened by the U.S.-Muslim Engagement Initiative (a non-governmental, non-partisan collaboration of four U.S.-based organizations) and hosted by the Lahore University of Management Sciences, a world-class educational institute started in 1985 by Pakistani industrialist Syed Babar Ali.
Read More . . .
North Korea Outbreak Offers Opportunity for U.S.-China Cooperation
 Posted February 28th, 2011
News sources are reporting that North Korea is confronting a major outbreak of hoof-and-mouth disease. This virulent disease can be dealt with only by destroying infected stock and quarantining farms that are suffering the outbreak. Given the condition of North Korea's food stocks, which have remained low, this additional disaster suggests that the North Korean situation may soon become even more dire.
At the same time, the potential for this disease spreading to China-and beyond-offers an opportunity for Sino-U.S. cooperation.
Read More . . .
Obama's Phony Obamacare Flexibility Offer
Posted February 28th, 2011
Speaking to the National Governors Association at the White House today, President Barack Obama endorsed legislation by Sens. Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Scott Brown (R-MA) that would allow states to request waivers from some Obamacare mandates in 2014 instead of the existing 2017 date. President Obama claimed: "It will give you flexibility more quickly while still guaranteeing the American people reform." Has President Obama even read the legislation? Because that is just plan false. Heritage Foundation Center for Policy Innovation Director Stuart Butler explained in the New England Journal of Medicine:
Read More . . .
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Casa D'ice Restaurant in North Versailles, Pennsylvania (near Pittsburgh)
The government doesn't like this man very much.
He changes the signs when he gets another idea.
He just wants to make a (political) statement and WOW!
Isn't freedom of speech wonderful!?
 
 
 
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A message to all members of Patriot Action Network
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Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Grassfire Nation Update
Dear Patriot,
Yesterday at noon, Grassfire Nation officials gathered up
60,620 petitions for delivery to embattled Wisconsin governor
Scott Walker and 19 Republican members of the state's
Senate in a dramatic grassroots show of support!
As is usually the case, when Grassfire Nation sets a goal,
the team responds in resounding fashion!
In this case, our goal was to bolster Walker and
his Republican Senators with 50,000 petitions. As
we drew near our deadline, we were still more than
13,000 shy of our goal...
That's when the magic that is Grassfire Nation took
hold. Over a 30-hour span, more than 24,000
conservative Americans picked up the banner against
Obama's statist uprising and added their name to
our petition, vaulting thousands past our stated goal!
And this late-hour grassroots support couldn't have come at
a better time as we learned that several Republican Senators
in Wisconsin were wavering due to the intense pressure being
exerted on them.
We believe these 60,620 petitions will strengthen their resolve!
If you have not signed the "Read My Lips" Cut Federal Spending
petition we hope you will join the tens of thousands that have. We
anticipate additional "Cut Federal Spending" petition deliveries in
the very near future, and would be honored to represent you.
Simply click here now to ensure that you are included in our
next delivery:
http://www.grassfire.com/149/petition.asp?ref_id=500064
+ + Battle to Cut Federal Spending Turns to Capitol Hill
As the Wisconsin uprising continues to grip the nation, we
cannot forget the intense battle that is heating up on
Capitol Hill over deep cuts in federal spending.
Like in the badger state, the Leftist controlled Senate
has no intention of cutting government spending, and are
maneuvering and scheming behind-the-scenes to silence the
will of the people.
The voice of the people cannot be drowned out.
That's why it is so important that you sign our "Read My Lips"
Cut Federal Spending petition now to have a voice in this
brewing debate:
Click below to sign:
http://www.grassfire.com/149/petition.asp?ref_id=500064
After adding your name, forward this message to 20-25 friends
letting them know that Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill
are being brutalized by the Big-government Left to cave on spending.
Grassroots citizens must continue beating the drum for fiscal
restraint and responsibility, and bolstering those who are
attempting to do the will of the people.
Urge them to click below to sign now:
http://www.grassfire.com/149/petition.asp?ref_id=500064
With your help, Grassfire Nation will deliver at least 100,000
petitions to key lawmakers in this spending debate. But we
must reach this important grassroots goal. The good work that
began in early November 2010 cannot end here. As citizens,
we are compelled to continue holding lawmakers accountable
for their actions!
Thank you again for your outstanding efforts and continued
commitment to all that Grassfire Nation is doing to give
you a real voice in these critical debates.
Grassfire Nation
P.S. After signing our petition, forward this message to your
friends. With your help we can quickly reach 100,000 petitions
and move forward with our delivery plans to Capitol Hill.
Have your friends click here to sign:
http://www.grassfire.com/149/petition.asp?ref_id=500064
P.P.S. In addition, will you add this message to your Twitter,
Facebook, and your other social networks? We needto bolster
as many signatures as possible, as soon as possible,to meet
our 100,000 goal!
Copy and paste this link:
http://www.grassfire.com/149/petition.asp?ref_id=500064
Patriot Action Network is the official
social network of Grassfire Nation!
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Tuesday, March 1, 2011
To: Friends & Supporters
From: Gary L. Bauer
Walker, Wisconsin Ranger
Barack Obama has been taking cheap shots at Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker ever since thousands of public employee union activists began protesting at the state capitol in Madison. The protests erupted after Walker proposed a budget that would reform collective bargaining rules and have state government workers contribute a modest amount toward their own pensions and healthcare premiums.
Obama is lashing out because Walker is trying to do in his state what Obama refuses to do at the national level: to get his fiscal house in order by proposing a responsible budget. Addressing governors from around the country at the White House yesterday, Obama criticized Republican governors who are taking their budget crises seriously. No doubt with Walker and Wisconsin in mind, Obama said, "I don't think it does anybody any good when public employees are denigrated or vilified or their rights are infringed upon."
But Walker's no push-over. He promptly released a statement that said:
"I'm sure the president knows that most federal employees do not have collective bargaining for wages and benefits while our plan allows it for base pay. And I'm sure the president knows that the average federal worker pays twice as much for health insurance as what we are asking for in Wisconsin. At least I would hope he knows these facts.
"Furthermore, I'm sure the president knows that we have repeatedly praised the more than 300,000 government workers who come to work every day in Wisconsin.
"I'm sure that President Obama simply misunderstands the issues in Wisconsin, and isn't acting like union bosses in saying one thing and doing another."
Don't you wish every Republican had that much fight?! I encourage you to call Gov. Walker's office to let him know that you appreciate his tough stance and hard work for fiscal responsibility. Email him here. Or call him at (608) 266-1212.
CEO Responds
President Obama's two years in office have been marked by crony capitalism. Certain industry leaders have made nice with Obama in exchange for exemption from harsh new regulations or other policy benefits. Most businesses, however, have suffered immensely under Obama's regulatory regime.
Yes, Obama has said some things about "reaching out" to the business community and has at times criticized the significant regulation businesses undergo that reduces economic growth and job creation. He even issued an executive order requiring a 120-day review of all rules on the books that might damage economic growth and jobs.
But there's no sign that Obama is serious about reducing burdens on business. A brave executive this week laid it all on the line and pushed back against Obama. 3M CEO George Buckley told the Financial Times yesterday:
"I judge people by their feet, not their mouth. We know what his [Obama's] instincts are - they are Robin Hood-esque. He is anti-business... Politicians forget that business has choice. We're not indentured servants and we will do business where it's good and friendly. If it's hostile, incrementally, things will slip away. We've got a real choice between manufacturing in Canada and Mexico - which tend to be pro-business - or America."
Of course, small businesses are damaged most by government overregulation. As an editorial today in Investor's Business Daily points out, according to the Small Business Association, for companies with fewer than 20 employees, the cost of regulation comes to $10,585 per worker, per year, a third higher than for large businesses of 500 or more employees. Obama's anti-business policies hurt the entire business community. But they hurt small businesses the most.
Gingrich Set To Run?
The rumors are swirling around Washington, D.C. that Newt Gingrich will announce this week whether he is setting up a presidential exploratory committee. Sources close to him say the decision will be "yes," which would make Newt the first high-profile Republican candidate to jump into the 2012 race.
Gingrich plans to be in Iowa on March 7th at an event sponsored by the Iowa Fath and Freedom Coalition. Also attending will be potential GOP presidential candidate and former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum and Herman Cain, former CEO of Godfather's Pizza. Meanwhile, Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey raised eyebrows when he gave a major speech here in D.C. aggressively taking on Obama's policies. In spite of Christie's frequent denials that he would run, Washington insiders thought the aggressive speech might be signaling that he is reconsidering. Ready or not, the 2012 GOP presidential competition is ready to begin!
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Yesterday, the Left-wing group "Anonymous" attacked AFP's website in an effort to silence the debate over the public union agenda in Wisconsin's budget battle.
Let's show these groups on the left that they cannot silence Americans with illegal attacks on your free speech rights! Please forward this email to your family and friends, let them what is happening, and ask them to sign the StandwithWalker.com Petition.
Update from Madison:
· Still no clear end in sight from Senate Democrats. Not only are they still missing, but they have painted themselves in to a political corner and don't know how to get out of it.
· The Department of Administration (who oversees operations at the Capitol building) locked the doors last night for the first time since this all started. The protests are losing steam and are made up of primarily students and professional protesters.
· The WI State Assembly passed the budget repair bill early Friday morning after 61 hours of debate.
· The State Senate took the bill up on Friday and moved it to the final passage portion of the process. Once Senate Democrats finally come back, it cannot be amended.
· Gov. Walker remains steadfast in his plan to eliminate collective bargaining on benefits because when he announces his budget plan tomorrow, it will have significant cuts to local governments that will need the flexibility to deal with those cuts.
· AFP remains a leader on the ground and the air...while the left is busy trying to crash our website we're working with tea parties around the state to coordinate rallies to show support for the Governor and conservatives in the State Legislature. We also continue to push our message on TV and radio.
We have some news that we will be announcing tomorrow, so keep an eye out for tomorrow's update!
Sincerely,
Matt Seaholm
Director, Americans for Prosperity - Wisconsin
P.S. This weekend we crossed 100,000 signers on the petition because of folks like you spreading the word to your friends and family. Please continue to spread the message through Facebook, email, and Twitter by going to StandwithWalker.com and using the share links at the top of the page! |
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Detroit and California: both ruined by liberals, both beyond saving
Mar 01, 2011 05:13 am | Coach Collins
By Kevin "Coach" Collins
In 1999 Detroit's Mayor Dennis Archer "went all in" in a gamble to pull his city out of the financial trouble he could see was roaring down upon it. He borrowed $2 billion to pay for both capitol and pension liabilities. He hoped interest rates would go up. He was wrong and now Detroit owes several large banks $408 million more than it ought to.
Two years ago Detroit's credit rating was cut and nothing has gone right for the Motor City since.
Detroit's unemployment rate is 13.5% and a fairy tale from the Brookings Institute says it will fall steadily to 4% in July 2015. Nevertheless, it is precisely this type of talk that will drive Detroit down even faster. No serous observer of the facts can make a case for Detroit's full recovery in the near or foreseeable future. The social cancer of liberalism has eaten away far too much of Detroit for that. ... Continue Reading:Detroit and California: both ruined by liberals, both beyond saving
comments |read more
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Socialist Mantra Hidden in Grade School Chants
Posted on March 2, 2011 | by Mike Opelka
The Promise Of America Is. . . Socialism? That's exactly what is being taught in many American public schools.
Under the guise of teaching children to read, the seeds of Socialism are being planted within the minds of young children. Do you believe that the Preamble to the Constitution of the United States mandates the following?
The People's basic needs must be met in a country. Needs for housing, education, transportation, and health care overseen by our government system.
Read More . . .
 Fact Not Beck Conspiracy: US Socialists & Union Activists Investigated By FBI for Providing Material Support to Islamic Terrorist & International Marxist Groups They Work With
Posted on March 2, 2011 | by Naked Emperor News
Video: Mob of Angry Protesters Corners Wisconsin GOP Senator
Posted on March 2, 2011 | by Meredith Jessup
US Young Madison Socialist Reveals Popular 'Noodles & Company' Restaurant Is Actually Harsh 'Dictatorship'
Don't be deceived. Noodles & Company may look like a friendly neighborhood "fast casual" restaurant, but there is something much more sinister going on.
GO HERE:
World THIS IS THE DAY OF YOUR DOOM: Farrakhan Says Mideast Uprisings Will Come to America's Door
SEE VIDEO HERE:
Media Beck TV: Hiroshima vs. Detroit - Which City Really Embraced the 'American Dream'?
SEE VIDEO HERE: |
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 Four and a half months after "ending" the unnecessary and arbitrary moratorium on deep water drilling for oil and gas, the Obama administration has finally issued its first permit according to a breaking news alert from Lisa Desjardins of CNN. Platts reports that the permit was issued to Noble Energy. The White House technically lifted its moratorium on deep water drilling on October 12, 2010, but has deliberately refused to issue any deep water drilling permits since then. The resulting "permitorium" added to the unnecessary economic hardship that the administration placed on the energy industry, particularly in the Gulf of Mexico, where states like Louisiana rely heavily on oil and gas production as the lifeblood of their economy. The permitorium caused at least one drilling company, Seahawk Drilling, to file for bankruptcy.
READ MORE:
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President Obama and Senate Democrats object to House-passed spending cuts. | |
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Don't Blink: Short Term Spending Measure | |
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On Friday, the legal authority to fund much of the government will expire, unless Congress and the President act.
President Obama and Senate Democrats continue to block the House-passed bill to fund the government for the remainder of the year. They oppose its $61 billion in cuts, even though the cuts are only a start on what's needed to reverse our nation's fiscal trajectory.
To avoid a "government shutdown," House Republicans will pass a short-term extension today, March 1st, with $4 billion in cuts. That's two week's worth of the earlier resolution's cuts. This short-term bill buys time for the Democrats to do the right thing. The extension is likely to pass the Senate and be signed into law.
The extension postpones the day of reckoning. President Obama and Senate Democrats must act on on the House's $61 billion in cuts and the "riders," such as provisions to defund Obamacare, end funding for Planned Parenthood, and stop the EPA's effort to enact a national energy tax.
It is vital that Republicans continue to insist that the final package include the full $61 billion in cuts and the legislative riders that were passed by the House of Representatives. Now is not the time to blink.
Sincerely, | |
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Michael A. Needham
Chief Executive Officer
Heritage Action for America | |
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Almost all of these facts are from federal gov't reports.
Election day is 20 months away---
Will voters favor facts & truth or more hope & change & smoke & mirrors???
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Two years ago last month (January), Barack Obama was inaugurated as president of the United States . Are you better off today than you were two years ago? Numbers don't lie, and here is the data on the impact he has had on the lives of Americans:
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January 2009 |
TODAY |
% chg |
Source | |
Avg. retail price/gallon gas in U.S. |
$1.83 |
$3.104 |
69.6% |
1 | |
Crude oil, European Brent (barrel) |
$43.48 |
$99.02 |
127.7% |
2 | |
Crude oil, West TX Inter. (barrel) |
$38.74 |
$91.38 |
135.9% |
2 | |
Gold: London (per troy oz.) |
$853.25 |
$1,369.50 |
60.5% |
2 | |
Corn, No.2 yellow, Central IL |
$3.56 |
$6.33 |
78.1% |
2 | |
Soybeans, No. 1 yellow, IL |
$9.66 |
$13.75 |
42.3% |
2 | |
Sugar, cane, raw, world, lb. fob |
$13.37 |
$35.39 |
164.7% |
2 | |
Unemployment rate, non-farm, overall |
7.6% |
9.4% |
23.7% |
3 | |
Unemployment rate, blacks |
12.6% |
15.8% |
25.4% |
3 | |
Number of unemployed |
11,616,000 |
14,485,000 |
24.7% |
3 | |
Number of fed. employees, ex. military (curr = 12/10 prelim) |
2,779,000 |
2,840,000 |
2.2% |
3 | |
Real median household income (2008 v 2009) |
$50,112 |
$49,777 |
-0.7% |
4 | |
Number of food stamp recipients (curr = 10/10) |
31,983,716 |
43,200,878 |
35.1% |
5 | |
Number of unemployment benefit recipients (curr = 12/10) |
7,526,598 |
9,193,838 |
22.2% |
6 | |
Number of long-term unemployed |
2,600,000 |
6,400,000 |
146.2% |
3 | |
Poverty rate, individuals (2008 v 2009) |
13.2% |
14.3% |
8.3% |
4 | |
People in poverty in U.S. (2008 v 2009) |
39,800,000 |
43,600,000 |
9.5% |
4 | |
U.S. rank in Economic Freedom World Rankings |
5 |
9 |
n/a |
10 | |
Present Situation Index (curr = 12/10) |
29.9 |
23.5 |
-21.4% |
11 | |
Failed banks (curr = 2010 + 2011 to date) |
140 |
164 |
17.1% |
12 | |
U.S. dollar versus Japanese yen exchange rate |
89.76 |
82.03 |
-8.6% |
2 | |
U.S. money supply, M1, in billions (curr = 12/10 prelim) |
1,575.1 |
1,865.7 |
18.4% |
13 | |
U.S. money supply, M2, in billions (curr = 12/10 prelim) |
8,310.9 |
8,852.3 |
6.5% |
13 | |
National debt, in trillions |
$10.627 |
$14.052 |
32.2% |
14 |
Just take this last item: In the last two years we have accumulated national debt at a rate more than 27 times as fast as during the rest of our entire nation's history. Over 27 times as fast! Metaphorically, speaking, if you are driving in the right lane doing 65 MPH and a car rockets past you in the left lane 27 times faster . . .. it would be doing 1,755 MPH! This is a disaster!
Sources:
(1) U.S. Energy Information Administration; (2) Wall Street Journal; (3) Bureau of Labor Statistics; (4) Census Bureau; (5) USDA; (6) U.S. Dept. of Labor; (7) FHFA; (8) Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller; (9) RealtyTrac; (10) Heritage Foundation and WSJ; (11) The Conference Board; (12) FDIC; (13) Federal Reserve; (14) U.S. Treasury
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 CHRIS FREIND
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What's Wrong With Pennsylvania's School Choice Bill?
Pretty much everything. Here's how to fix it-and get it passed
Posted on 3/1/2011 at 10:26AM |
The school choice bill in the Pennsylvania Senate is significantly flawed legislation which should never have been introduced. Rather than craft a new bill to reflect the positions of the current legislature and Governor-both far more receptive to comprehensive school choice than their predecessors-the prime sponsors didn't do their homework and jumped the gun by dusting off outdated legislation. As a direct result, Senate Bill 1 is effectively dead-on-arrival.
Since SB 1 was introduced a mere week after the new legislature was sworn in, no preliminary vote count was conducted during those seven days. Therefore, statements that SB 1 is "the best we can hope for at this time" and "school choice can be expanded incrementally in the coming years" are fallacies based on the musings of out-of-touch ivory-tower proponents naively setting the bar artificially low. Incomprehensibly, they are throwing in the towel before the fight has even begun. [SIGNUPS]
Here are the facts that show why statewide school choice is needed, and suggestions on how to accomplish that goal:
1) Pennsylvania students are 42nd in SAT scores, and rank low in literacy, graduation rates and rates of students continuing to college. Their performance on the National Assessment of Education Progress exam has not improved. And most startling, nearly half of all 11th graders are not proficient in math and reading. This cannot be attributed to just the poor-performing urban schools pulling down scores, but is a testament to an across-the-board educational failure.
Advocating school choice for only low-income students results in the default perception that education is adequate everywhere else, which, based on the results of PSSA standardized test scores, is not remotely accurate. We cannot afford to waste another decade, forsaking our children-our future-because some choose to ignore the widespread failure occurring on a daily basis.
2) Pennsylvania spends $26 billion per year on education-more per student than 39 other states-an amount which has doubled since 1996. Despite a drop of 27,000 students over the last 10 years, the public school system had added 33,000 employees in that time. Therefore, by definition, increased funding, added personnel and decreased class size have not improved student achievement.
3) Teachers' salaries and benefits rank among the highest in the nation, yet Pennsylvania leads the nation every year in school strikes-more than all other states combined.
4) The components in SB 1 were derived during a prior legislative session with a Democratic House and an anti-school choice governor (Rendell). But the current legislature has 13 more House Republicans than last session, giving the GOP a 10-seat majority. While education should never be partisan, it is no secret that Republicans are much more favorable to choice than Democrats. And Governor Corbett made school choice a cornerstone of his campaign. Combined with the pro-school choice positions of several Democrats, including Senator Anthony Williams, passage of comprehensive choice is eminently obtainable. (And if Williams and his colleagues won't support statewide school choice, but only a program only for low-income families, their motivations will be questioned and their credibility severely undermined).
5) With a legislature approximately 80 percent different (and one clearly less open to choice), no votes from the Black Caucus, and only a one-seat House Republican majority, the statewide school choice effort in 1995 failed by a mere three votes. Given the night-and-day differences between then and now, it is indisputable that political will from Governor Corbett and legislative leaders could, should and would result in the nation's most comprehensive and inclusive school choice program, one which will save taxpayer money.
6) The argument that school choice will take money away from the public schools is not just wrong, but irrelevant. The only thing we should EVER be concerned with is the children. Schools don't get jobs and lead nations; people do. The funding should follow the child, not the system-a brilliant aspect of SB 1, where parents designate the school to which the state subsidy will be applied.
Following are the steps necessary to ensure that meaningful school choice is passed in Pennsylvania:
A) SB 1 must be rewritten and introduced as a new bill or a separate bill needs to be introduced in the House. Grassroots organizations cannot support flawed legislation with the hope or "promise" that it will be amended at a future date.
B) The bill must make school choice available to all students, regardless of family income. This type of comprehensive program is the only way to bring accountability and competition to all schools, public and non-public alike. Our dire situation demands no less.
C) The provision for public schools to "opt out," as is permitted in SB 1, must be stricken. Opting out will result in the public school establishment's "Good Old Boys" network to kick in, guaranteeing that the vast majority of schools won't participate. If that occurs, school choice is meaningless.
D) The bill should contain strengthened language that no additional regulations may be imposed on non-public schools. Current government requirements are adequate and unobtrusive, such as core curriculum and length of school year. Vouchers or subsidies do not lead to additional regulation, as the highly successful post World War II GI Bill attests, but eternal vigilance is the price of liberty, so such language will alleviate this issue.
E) While government should not impose tuition mandates on non-public schools, the possibility of inflated tuition costs at these schools is an area of concern. Language can be written that limits the subsidy (which cannot exceed tuition cost) to a maximum two percent increase per year, based on the tuition charged in the first year that school choice is enacted. This common sense solution would keep tuition inflation in check while keeping government out of private school decision-making.
F) Expanding the Educational Improvement Tax Credit is a positive step, as the program has seen positive results. But to be clear, the EITC is not school choice since parents do not control their tax dollars; the scholarships, which average $1000, are doled out by organizations and schools. Parental control is significantly limited, unlike a true statewide school choice program.
Like any controversial issue, the school choice debate lends itself to misinformation, half-truths and personal attacks. Pennsylvanians should not be hypnotized by the complexities of education reform, but rather focus on what is indisputable: our government-run public school system is a monopoly with no incentive to change, and only competition can begin to reverse decades of educational failure.
Comprehensive school choice provides that free-market solution, and, when passed, will be a model for the nation. Failure to do so will destroy another generation's chances for success.
UPDATE: The Archdiocese of Philadelphia just announced that it will be closing seven more schools, a trend that has been occurring for decades. Despite some disingenuous critics who label any choice program as a "bailout of the Catholic Schools," it is no secret that non-public schools would significantly benefit from comprehensive school choice legislation. And the more non-public schools there are, the more competition there is.
These school closings - four of which are in Philadelphia -reinforce Freindly Fire's earlier-stated position that Senate Bill 1's effectiveness will be extremely limited, not just because it caters only to low income families, but for the simple reason that fewer and fewer schools remain as alternatives to the current monopolistic system.
And to repudiate yet another fallacious argument that school choice costs taxpayer money (when in fact it would save it), consider the following:
The seven schools had a cumulative projected enrollment of 857 students next year. Based on dwindling number of non-public schools, assume that half will attend public schools. At an average cost of $15,000 per student, per year to educate one student in the public schools, these 428 students will cost taxpayers an additional $6,427,500 per year. If each student has, on average, six years of grade school remaining, the cost rises to over $38 million.
And of course, that figure does not reflect inflation, nor the huge costs of hiring more teachers, funding additional pensions, building more classrooms, buying more textbooks, and increasing busing.
Pennsylvania can't afford NOT to enact school choice.
Chris Freind is an independent columnist, television commentator, and investigative reporter who operates his own news bureau, www.FreindlyFireZone.com. Readers of his column, "Freindly Fire," hail from six continents, thirty countries and all fifty states. His work has been referenced in numerous publications including The Wall Street Journal, National Review Online, foreign newspapers, and in Dick Morris' recent bestseller "Catastrophe." Freind, whose column appears regularly in Philadelphia Magazine and nationally in Newsmax, also serves as a frequent guest commentator on talk radio and state/national television, most notably on FOX Philadelphia. He can be reached at CF@FreindlyFireZone.com
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This was posted on Craig's List
Summer Jobs for Students - FIGHT THE TEA PARTY
Date: 2011-02-26, 9:24PM EST
Reply to: see below
- This is at a non-profit organization.
- Principals only. Recruiters, please don't contact this job poster.
- Phone calls about this job are ok.
- Please do not contact job poster about other services, products or commercial interests.
PostingID: 2236508206
No contact info? if the poster didn't include a phone number, email, or
other contact info, craigslist can notify them via email.
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New Common Sense
Applying First Principles to the Issues of Today |
Six Steps to Reining in the Administrative State
In many ways, Obamacare clarified the problem of the administrative state. Congress routinely writes vague laws, delegating its authority to bureaucrats who make detailed regulations covering every aspect of our lives: from the light bulbs we use to the health care coverage we purchase. In passing Obamacare, Congress transferred important aspects of its legislative authority to various administrative agencies. Obamacare created a multitude of new federal agencies and empowered unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats to write detailed rules controlling one-sixth of the economy. This terribly unpopular law led millions of citizens to ask of themselves and their neighbors: Are we citizens in a constitutional republic or subjects of the administrative state?
Then the elections came. Americans went to the polls and voiced their opposition to the health care overhaul. But is it too late for Congress to roll back the administrative state? Drawing on a recent Center for American Studies scholars' conference on that topic (look for more papers to come), Robert Moffit offers six steps for Congress to roll back the administrative state.
Step #1: Stop expanding the administrative state.
Legislative power is not Congress's to give away. The administrative state expands when Congress delegates its authority to an agency to create regulations. Congress can starve the administrative state by doing its constitutionally mandated job of writing legislation clearly and concisely.
Step #2: Bring back formal rule-making.
The process by which rules and regulations are made also deserves Congress's attention. The Administrative Procedures Act of 1946 categorized federal rule-making processes as formal or informal. The formal rule-making process requires the presentation of evidence, an oral hearing before an administrative law judge, the right of contending parties to present opposing cases, and that the public record of the proceedings be the exclusive basis for the regulatory decision.
By contrast, informal procedures simply require the agency to give notice of its intention to propose a rule, receive comments in writing from interested parties, and issue a statement of the rule's basis and purpose if one is issued. It is no surprise that the informal process of mere "notice and comment" creates opportunities for backroom deals and special-interest lobbying. Congress should, therefore, require formal rule-making in order to increase accountability to the people and to restore the public's trust in a process that is increasingly seen as arbitrary and abusive.
Step #3: REIN in regulation.
Congress currently has the power under the Congressional Review Act of 1996 to make rules null and void. Before a rule goes into effect, an agency must submit it to Congress. Congress may, in turn, enact a joint resolution of disapproval for an agency's rule, thereby vetoing the rule. In practice, federal agencies circumvent Congress's authority by failing to submit the appropriate rules to Congress.
Should the Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act pass, Congress would take a greater responsibility in enacting regulations. Regulations would only take effect if approved by both houses and signed into law by the President. Thus, any issue of controversy over the rules would become a highly visible public policy question to be settled in open debate and in broad daylight.
Step #4: Strengthen congressional oversight of rule-making.
Congress can exercise its oversight authority to investigate the regulations. The purpose of congressional hearings and investigations is to gather useful information to make substantive policy changes through legislation. They do not have to be about merely embarrassing public officials. Congressional oversight into the rule-making process restrains the arbitrary exercise of power by the administrative state.
Step #5: Establish internal mechanisms for regulatory review.
Congress could create an independent body to review regulations. Similar to the Congressional Budget Office, a Congressional Office of Regulatory Review (CORR) would report on the estimated costs and effects of the federal regulatory authority embodied in bills that come before Congress. Alternatively, Congress could establish a Joint Committee on Regulatory Review to monitor the regulatory activities of federal agencies and departments and independent agencies: a body that would hold hearings, hear testimony, and assess the effect of federal rules on business and the economy.
Step #6: Protect citizens against regulators.
Regulations harm individuals and organizations. Using its oversight authority, Congress can hold federal agencies responsible for enforcing faulty, abusive, or arbitrary applications of federal rules. Congress should waive sovereign immunity for federal agencies in certain areas of regulatory enforcement, enabling wronged citizens to recover damages from abusive or incompetent agency actions.
Since the 20th century, the rule of law has been eroded and replaced with the rule of regulators. But in 2010, voters gave Congress permission to roll back the administrative state that Obamacare greatly expanded. Congress does not need to wait for the judiciary or executive branches to act first in order to restore the rule of law. These proposed six steps may not raze the administrative state, but they can begin the process of restoring limited government under the Constitution.
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State Director Leo Knepper is holding events across Pennsylvania. | |
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Join Heritage Action in Your Neighborhood | |
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U.S. Senate
Government Waste By the Numbers: Report Identifies Dozens of Overlapping Programs
Published March 01, 2011
| FoxNews.com
The federal government hosts 47 job-training programs, 44 of which overlap. It runs 80 programs for the "transportation disadvantaged."
Another 82 programs spread across 10 separate agencies endeavor to improve teacher quality -- something hundreds of local school districts are already focused on.
These are just a few of the findings in a blockbuster report on government waste and inefficiencies released by the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office. The report identifies billions of dollars in potential savings if Congress just had the will to streamline initiatives that target politically popular causes.
READ MORE:
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Why does a Monopoly have to be advertised?
That's the benefit of a monopoly. No competition.
The Government Liquor Monopoly spent 90,000 Public Dollars PER STORE advertising liquor!!! - 4.9 % of retail sales!
This expenditure was to convince people to boy liquor from the state monopoly. No one has to be convinced to drink; that's why Liquor is regulated in the first place.
What's the point of a monopoly if you have to spending about 5% of gross promoting it?
Advertising for a government monopoly, particularly, of liquor seems beyond incomprehensible. Liquor sales are, purportedly, controlled because the public's need for liquor is, supposedly, uncontrollable by free market and reasonable government regulations
Privatizing the state's liquor monopoly is not only an idea whose time has come, it is a priority for both Majority Leader Mike Turzai and Governor Corbett. How this is done is of crucial importance. If process is like that of the sale of casino licenses, it will be a loss for The Forgotten Taxpayer. The licenses need to be auctioned off to highest, responsible bidder and not sold to a few "connected to the elected", getting rich on bad government
That was the point, originally, of having state monopoly control of liquor. In fact, the state spends money convincing people of the dangers of drunk driving, underage drinking, etc. and spent hundreds of thousands to upgrade its monopoly web site. and spending hundreds of thousands to upgrade its website, As Nate Benefield of the Commonwealth Foundation says : "the agency puts far more effort into pushing alcohol sales than in controlling the market. "
Benefits of Liquor Store Privatization for Pennsylvanians Nate Benefield's testimony
For more background information on Penna. Liquor Store, see Pennsylvania Newspaper Association Note that the Association is all tingly about the millions that the state can now spend on newspaper liquor advertising.
Good morning. I am Nathan Benefield, Director of Policy Research for the Commonwealth Foundation. We are a nonprofit, independent public policy research and educational institute based in Harrisburg.
My testimony will focus on three areas: an explanation of how to consider up-front and annual revenues from privatization, the social impacts of privatization, and the benefits of privatization for Pennsylvanians.
Some have questioned the amount of the upfront windfall the state would receive from auctioning off licenses for wine and spirit sales by citing the license prices in other states. This is not an apt comparison. For starters, Pennsylvania state stores sell both wine and spirits, or hard liquor; most other states had control only over spirits. Further, Pennsylvania has far fewer retail stores than most other states per capita, with just over 600 outlets. While last year's proposal from Rep. Mike Turzai would auction of 750 retail licenses, Pennsylvania would need about 3,000 liquor stores just to be at the national average.
The number of liquor licenses to be offered will undoubtedly affect the price of the licenses, as well as the degree of competition among stores and options for consumers-and therefore should be carefully considered by legislators debating privatization.
In 2010, West Virginia received bids as high as $675,000 for liquor licenses. The licenses were for spirit sales only, and expire after 10 years (Rep. Turzai's plan offered perpetual licenses, with annual processing fees). West Virginia also offers more than twice as many liquor outlets per capita as Pennsylvania; if Pennsylvania were to match West Virginia, the state would offer almost 1,500 licenses.
|
Potential Initial Revenue from Privatization* | |
Price of Licenses |
Number of Licenses |
Total | |
Retail Licenses | |
750 (Tuzai Bill) |
$450,000,000 | |
$600,000 (per license) |
1,482 (WV per-capita rate) |
$889,200,000 | |
(Based on WV 2010) |
3,000 (national average per-capita) |
$1,800,000,000 | |
Wholesale Licenses |
Based on prior valuations which estimate value to be equal to retail value |
100 (Turzai Bill) |
$450,000,000 | |
Inventory and Equipment |
PLCB Annual Report (6/30/2010) |
$320,356,421 | | |
Total (Low Estimate) |
$1,220,356,421 | | |
Total (Medium Estimate) |
$1,659,556,421 | | |
Total (High Estimate) |
$2,570,356,421 | |
* For illustrative purposes only, CF recommends a formal valuation. |
Privatization in Pennsylvania could also entail more than just licensing retail stores, but offer licensing for wholesale operations-that is, the distribution of wine and spirits to restaurants and bars. The value of wholesale licenses could be equal to that of the retail stores. Privatization would also involve selling off the entire inventory of the state liquor stores. As of June 30, 2010, according to the PLCB the inventory on hand plus the value of assets of the state stores was $320 million.
We will never know the true value of privatization until taking up competitive bids for licenses-and legislators should work to ensure that privatization involves an open and competitive bidding process-and we also recommend commissioning a financial assessment to get a clear estimate of the of the value.
There is the idea that state stores provide $500 million each year to the state. However, most of this revenue (about $400 million) is from state alcohol taxes and state sales taxes. The rest-considered "state stores profits"-is really just based on the markups of liquor, or an implicit tax on consumers at the government-run stores.
|
General Fund Revenue from State Liquor Stores, 2010-11 | |
|
Current |
Under Privatization | |
Johnstown Flood Tax (18%) |
$297,700,000 |
Discontinued? | |
State Sales Tax (6%) |
$92,489,000 |
Continued | |
State Stores "Profit" (consumer markup) |
$105,000,000 |
Discontinued | |
Gallonage Tax |
$0 |
Tax Shift? | |
CNI Tax and Other Businesses Tax Revenue |
$0 |
Additional | |
Annual License Fees for Liquor Stores |
$0 |
Additional | |
Total |
$495,189,000 |
??? | |
Source: Governor's Executive Budget, 2010-11, February 2010 |
This revenue would be replaced by taxes under a license plan. Lawmakers will set tax rates-either using the current liquor tax structure or replacing it with a different alcohol tax, such as a gallonage tax-and can set the rate to match current revenues from taxes and state store markups.
Additionally, by relying on private vendors, the state will collect corporate income taxes and other business taxes from operators, that government stores don't pay. And by improving service, selection, and reducing prices, Pennsylvania can recapture some of the revenue and economic activity lost to other states through "border bleed."
Second, there is the idea that Pennsylvania's control system provides the best protection against underage drinking and alcohol abuse. Yet data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health rank Pennsylvania middle-of-the-pack, or worse, on rates of underage drinking and binge drinking. According to Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), Pennsylvania ranks 30th in DUI-related accidents per capita (1 being best, or fewest DUI-accidents). In contrast, neighboring New Jersey, has three times the number of liquor stores (in a state two-thirds as populous and much more geographically concentrated than Pennsylvania) and only has about one-third the number of alcohol-related traffic fatalities.
In fact, the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board's own 2009 report to the General Assembly (ordered by Act 86 of 2006) concluded that the state's college-age student drinking rates are near the national average, and high school drinking rates are higher than the U.S. average. If state control of liquor sales were a driving factor in underage drinking, alcohol abuse, or drunk driving, Pennsylvania should be number one or two on every measure, but this is clearly not the case.
Dr. Antony Davies, an associate professor of economics at Duquesne University along with John Pulito authored a study commissioned by Commonwealth Foundation on the social impacts of liquor control.
In this study, Davies and Pulito looked at all states over sixteen years, and compared the incidence of underage drinking and underage binge drinking across states with different degrees of alcohol control. They found no relationship between alcohol control and underage drinking, no difference in the incidence of underage binge drinking among the four levels of control and found that states with the most stringent controls have higher DUI fatality rates.
Davies and Pulito conducted a separate study, currently under peer review, of forty-nine states over twenty-one years looking only at DUI fatalities, controlling for differences in other state alcohol laws. This study also concluded that control states had higher alcohol-involved fatality rates among the legal age population.
Dr. Davies also compiled a review of the existing academic literature on privatization. The studies detailed in the literature review submitted provide conflicting stories as to the relationship between privatization and social outcomes. Some studies link liquor control with lower consumption, underage drinking, and DUI rates. Others studies find the opposition relationship, and some find no relationship whatsoever.
Finally, the debate over privatization is a question of whether government should be in the liquor business, and what is in the best interest for Pennsylvania consumers and residents.
Privatization will give Pennsylvanians better services, lower prices and greater selection on alcoholic products. The current monopoly forces Pennsylvanians to pay up to 50 percent more for liquor than in other states-many of which offer a variety of wines not available in the Commonwealth, and allow wine bought online to be delivered to your door. Customers' selection is about to get even more limited, as the PLCB is in the process of cutting 400 wine and spirit products from its shelves.
The limited hours, limited selection, standardized stores, and limited number of stores are not providing the type of services customers want. It is no surprise that across the state borders in New Jersey, Delaware, Ohio, Maryland, and other states, there are liquor stores with better selection and prices catering to Pennsylvanians.
When the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB) was organized in 1933, Governor Gifford Pinchot stated that the purpose of the Board was to "discourage the purchase of alcoholic beverages by making it as inconvenient and expensive as possible." That is still the system we have today, and that is why Pennsylvanians want and desire better. The latest Quinnipiac University Poll found that 65% of Pennsylvania voters (including more than 60 percent of Republicans, Democrats, and Independents) favor privatizing the liquor stores to help balance the state budget.
Ironically, in response to the push for privatization, the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board has started to imitate the best practices of private retailers. From spending $90,000 per store in advertising last year, implementing an impractical "wine kiosk" program to sell wine in grocery stores, operating "wine boutiques" connected with BYOB restaurants and spending hundreds of thousands to upgrade its website, the agency puts far more effort into pushing alcohol sales than in controlling the market.
In fact, the Commonwealth Foundation recently obtained a PCLB proposal billed as an "alternative to privatization." This ill-advised scheme would allow the LCB to issue $1 billion in bonds, tied to its revenue. To generate revenue needed to pay for this new debt, the LCB would engage in "market-based pricing;" be exempt from state civil service laws and procurement rules; increase fees for bars, restaurants, hotels, clubs and the like; sell lottery tickets; issue coupons to customers; and expand the hours for wine kiosks.
In short, the PLCB wants to operate the way private retailers would.
Getting state government out of the sales business and allowing the PLCB to focus on enforcement of alcohol laws is a good fiscal policy, good social policy and good economic policy.
To download the full PDF version, please click here
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GAO Sees Huge Cost Savings in Reducing Duplication, Overlap in Federal Programs and Agencies
(CNSNews.com) - As directed by a new law, the Government Accountability Office on Tuesday released its first annual report to Congress on waste and duplication in the federal governments many programs, agencies, offices and initiatives. The conclusion: Given the amount of money involved in the various programs the GAO studied, even limited adjustments could result in significant savings.
Democratic Wisconsin State Senator on Lam in Illinois Is 'Paying for It All Himself'
(CNSNews.com) - At least one of the Wisconsin Democratic senators on the lam in Illinois says hes not getting help from anyone in paying for what has turned out to be a costly tour of northern Illinois. Jeff Burandt, spokesman for Wisconsin Sen. Bob Lauch (D-Poplar), told CNSNews.com on Monday that his boss is paying for it all himself.
Obama Tells Governors Not to Vilify State Employees -- But Froze Federal Worker Salaries Washington (CNSNews.com) President Barack Obamas criticism of Wisconsin's Republican Gov. Scott Walker makes little sense in light of a freeze in federal employee pay, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour said. The president told us today that he, unilaterally, froze federal pay for federal employees for two years, Barbour, a Republican, told CNSNews.com. So the idea that there is some constitutional right to collective bargaining is simply not accurate."
Gov. Walker Suggests Obama 'Simply Misunderstands' the Situation in Wisconsin
(CNSNews.com) Gov. Scott Walkers office released the statement after President Obama told a governors meeting in Washington, I don't think it does anybody any good when public employees are denigrated or vilified or their rights are infringed upon. In response, Gov. Walker said he hopes the president knows that most federal employees do not have collective bargaining for wages and benefits, while the Wisconsin plan allows it for base pay.
U.N. Human Rights Council Set to Retain Its Obsessive Focus on Israel
(CNSNews.com) Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told the U.N. Human Rights Council on Monday that it cannot continue to single out and devote disproportionate attention to any one country. However, a five-year review of how the council functions is set to reaffirm that Israel will remain the only country subject to a permanent agenda item. Well over half of all condemnatory resolutions taken by the body since its establishment in 2006 targeted Israel.
House GOP Leader Wont Rule Out Funding Planned Parenthood in Final CR (CNSNews.com) - House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) on Monday out would not rule out a final continuing resolution that permits federal funding of Planned Parenthood. This week, the Republican House leadership is trying to approve a short-term, two-week CR that would basically maintain the status quo on spending while they negotiate a longer-term CR with Senate Democrats and the White House.
Review of British Aid Spending Turns Spotlight on 'Poor-Performing' U.N. Agencies
(CNSNews.com) As Republican lawmakers seek ways to trim U.S. funding to the United Nations, a far-reaching review of British development aid spending due for release on Tuesday will make for interesting reading. At least four U.N. agencies reportedly are in the firing line, and will either lose their funding or be put on notice to improve their performance immediately.
Some Governors Not Keen on Adopting Wisconsin Plan to Allow Voters to Decide on Public Employee Pay Hikes Washington (CNSNews.com) Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire does not support allowing voters of her state to decide if public employees should have pay hikes that exceed the rate of inflation, part of the proposal being considered in Wisconsin to rein in the escalating cost of state workers salaries and benefits.
Majority of Unborn Babies Aborted in N.Y. Were African American; CDC Report Mirrors NYC Health Dep't Finding (CNSNews.com) The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently released abortion statistics for calendar year 2007, showing that a total of 827,609 abortions were performed in the majority of states reporting data to the CDC for that year. In New York City in 2007, 87,527 abortions were performed, with 43,568 or 49.8 percent of African American women having an abortion.
OTHER HEADLINES:
Fed Chief Bernanke Sees Danger in Prolonged Oil Price Hike
Yemeni President Says U.S. and Israel Behind Unrest
Wisconsin Governor to Outline the Rest of His Budget Plan Tuesday
House Taking Up GOP Stopgap Spending Bill Tuesday
Time Running Out on NFL's Labor Agreement
China Rolls Back Press Freedoms Amid Protest Calls
Oman Deploys Army Units As It Fears More Unrest
Pro-Gadhafi Forces Try to Retake Strategic City
Hugo Chavez Says He Won't Condemn Libya's Gadhafi
EU Court Bans Insurance Sex Discrimination
Geithner to Congress: Revamp Housing in Two Years
AT&T to Send Text Ads to Phones Based on Location
Russia's Foreign Minister Rejects No-Fly Zone for Libya
U.N. Says 67 Million Children Do Not Go to School
Iran Mum on Status of Missing Opposition Leaders
Jane Russell, Star of '40s and '50s Films, Dies at 89
NEWSPAPER ROUNDUP:
Black lawmakers blast budget plan as step back for civil rights
Interior approves first deepwater drilling permit since BP spill
Dems seek 5% cut in Senates office funds
Bias against blacks, Latinos alleged in money-saving Boston school closings
Obama talks up 'RomneyCare' amid GOP criticism of plan
FBI memo say Ted Kennedy tried to rent a brothel in 1961 trip to S. America
Financial terrorism suspected in 08 economic crash
Gun used to kill ICE agent in Mexico traced to Dallas, U.S. investigators say
DOMA move helps President Obama with gays, clears way for 2012 fundraising
Pizza shop owner accused of 'food terrorism' for releasing mice
Texas governor incorrectly identified Juarez as "most dangerous city in America
NH Abortion bill: Parents must be informed
Iran objects to 'racist' London 2012 Olympics logo; may boycott games
COMMENTARIES:
Why Gov. Scott Walker Must Win
By Patrick J. Buchanan
The anti-democratic methods President Obama's union allies are using in Wisconsin testify to the crucial character of the battle being fought. Such tactics cannot be allowed to triumph in a republic. Why is the left behaving with desperation? Because it senses what this battle is all about -- not just about pay, but about power. Gov. Scott Walker cannot lose this fight, because his country cannot afford to have him lose it.
Public Employee Unions
By Walter E. Williams
Close to 40 percent of public employees are unionized. As such, they represent a powerful political force in elections and thats a problem. The problem arises after a winning, union-backed politicians sits down to bargain over the pay and working conditions with the unions who voted for him. But with major states and cities on the verge of bankruptcy, we can no longer afford to do what we've done in the past. We must make large cuts in spending. And spending on public employee salaries is just a drop in the bucket.
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Some liberals have actually been shocked at the radical drift of Mr. Hope and Change. If your friend is one of these, make him a gift basket of aroma-therapeutic candles, a CD of healing nature sounds, and a copy of Welcome to Obamaland, and perhaps the light will finally dawn. If that doesn't work, buy a boom box and do break dances on your driveway while listening to Rush Limbaugh really loud.
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As tempers continue to flare in Wisconsin, Democratic Assemblyman Gordon Hintz exploded at conservative lawmaker Michelle Litjens saying, "You're dead!" Now, hear Litjens interview with Bill Hemmer about how "shaken up" she was.
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 March 01, 2011
On Tuesday's Program
Charlie Sheen: Bipolar? Try Biwinning!
In one of the more incredible 5 minute interview previews you will ever see, Charlie Sheen rants about his view on life, his recent claim to be drug free, and why he believes he won't relapse. When asked why he loved to party, Sheen responded "What's not to love? Especially when you see how I party. Man, it was epic, the run I was on..." and went on to claim that his 'run' made Sinatra, Richards, etc look like "droopy eyed armless children" in comparison. Pray Charlie gets help. Soon. Watch the teaser clip and get Glenn's reaction HERE.
Farrakhan: This is the day of your doom
'Minister' Louis Farrakhan delivered a chilling warning over the weekend, and video of his 'sermon' has surfaced that's even more disturbing than the initial headline suggested. He predicted that the unrest in the Middle East would come to America, but went on to say that the Mahdi is here and Obama and others should be careful because it's coming 'to your door' soon. But he said something even crazier than all of that -- Glenn has it on radio today.
Wisconsin socialist: Noodles & Company is a 'dictatorship'
Want to know what type of people are sleeping in the halls of the Capitol in Wisconsin? The Blaze has amazing video of a young Madison socialist who spends some time explaining that the popular Noodles & Company food chain he works for is actually a dictatorship, and laments the fact that they have no say in 'what they cook' or how long they work. Glenn reacts to the clip on radio today - watch the full video HERE (make it to the end of the video and watch this devout socialist make a transaction eerily similar to something that could be described as 'capitalism').
Coming this Thursday: Radical cleric hosts Shariah4America rally!
Shariah4America 'A call for revolution' is coming to Washington D.C. Thursday and they are coming with a mission - get Sharia law instituted here in America. The rally is being led by a controversial cleric who has said that Americans are 'the biggest criminals in the world' and also believes that stoning is an acceptable practice. Get the full story from The Blaze.
"The 7...Live" FREE TOMORROW: This Wednesday, New Jersey mom Beth Davis will be here with Dr. Ablow. She is the first page turner to turn a page in her life by taking the "7 Day Pledge" to help turn her life around. You will also meet New York artist Brian Farrell who continues to heal himself using the 7 Wonders. His amazing and inspirational story will show you regardless of how low you may feel you are never too low to pull yourself out of darkness and live your life the way God intended. Watch this week's inspirational episode for FREE tomorrow live at 2 pm ET and watch previous episodes HERE.
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And now for some cartoon's
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9/12 Patriots of Lower Buck County
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