Stanley Cup Finals start tonight (May 29)--but you already knew that. Right? (If not, click here.) So here is a joke for the occasion:
A True Hockey Fan -
It's Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final, and a younger man makes his way to his seat in the lower bowl near center ice. He sits down, immediately noticing that the seat next to him is empty. He leans over and asks an older gentleman on the other side of the empty seat if he knows if someone will be sitting there.
'No,' says the older man. 'The seat will be empty.'
'This is incredible', said the younger man. 'Who in their right mind would have a seat like this for the final game of the Stanley Cup playoffs and not use it?'
The older gentleman says, 'Well, actually, the seat belongs to me. I was supposed to come with my wife, but she passed away recently. This will be the first Stanley Cup game that we haven't gone together since we got married in 1967.'
'Oh ... I'm sorry to hear that. That's terrible. But couldn't you find someone else, a friend or a relative, or even a neighbour to take the seat?'
The man shakes his head. 'No. they all had to go to the funeral.'
Monday, May 24, 2010
Sunday, May 23, 2010
SPLOST
Some of you might not know what SPLOST is. It stands for "special purpose local option sales tax" and it is common in the state of Georgia.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special-purpose_local-option_sales_tax
Here in Cobb County, Georgia, we love SPLOST. In related news, we are sheep with sore anuses (or is that "ani"?).
http://www.whitlockavenue.com/2009/12/16/cobb-county-splost-update-dec-2009/
http://northatlantarealestatevoice.com/2009/02/13/cobb-county-splost-projects-update/
http://northatlantarealestatevoice.com/2009/05/19/cobb-county-splost-project-updates/
Why do I mention it here on my blog? Because it is one of the most insidious taxes I have ever seen, and it has been in the news here locally. It is also a good way to separate the men from the boys, so to speak. There are people who claim to want to reduce taxes but think it's okay to support SPLOST taxes in their own communities. You can tell that such a person is not at all serious about reducing taxes or the waste associated with big government.
Anyone with a brain realizes that money in any government treasury is fungible. In order to justify the increased taxation, government assigns SPLOST funds to the most popular projects or needs. Of course, these are the same projects that would (or should) be funded anyway, whether SPLOST funds were available or not. And whenever a project is done with SPLOST funds they love to advertise it, to show you that your money was well-spent. There are signs posted everywhere saying something like "your SPLOST money at work." For example, they did this when they widened a road near me that alleviated a significant amount of congestion at a heavily-traveled intersection (shouldn't have needed SPLOST to do this small but much-needed project). Yet they don't put signs on the government waste that also gets funded because the obvious stuff got funded with SPLOST....
You can say "this money will only go for this purpose" all you want. If so, you are stupid and you are an enabler of big government. Really no different than giving an alcoholic money and making him promise to use it "just for food." Even if he does, he's going to have money left in his pocket, money that he would have used for food, for ... wait for it ... alcohol.
Anyway, even though it's not true (or at best, it's a distinction without a difference), government officials claim that SPLOST funds won't be mixed with general funds. And, for the most part, when SPLOST approval is put on the ballot they dedicate it to popular projects.
So that's why the recent stories in the news were so interesting. It turns out that the above claims (funds are separate from the general fund, only used for popular projects) are simply not true. I know, shocking, isn't it? As I said, if you have a brain this is intuitively obvious. But some people still don't get it. They need proof. With that in mind, let's get to the following stories.
In the first story, we see that SPLOST being dedicated to specific purposes is absolute fiction. Not much to comment on here, the article speaks for itself. Maybe just a simple "I told you so" will suffice. I guess I should also mention my amusement as I read about school board officials wondering whether this was legal--the blind leading the blind over there.
http://www.mdjonline.com/view/full_story/7458728/article-Committee-OKs-use-of--23M-in-SPLOST-money-to-close-gap?instance=secondary_story_left_column
And now the second item, that SPLOST is used for popular items, stuff that would have been done anyway. Here in Cobb County, Georgia a recent SPLOST tax was approved for education. So here's what they did:
http://www.mdjonline.com/view/full_story/7411694/article-Turf-s-in-?instance=home_news_bullets
http://www.mdjonline.com/view/full_story/7107148/article-Judge--SPLOST-can-fund-artificial-turf?instance=lead_story_left_column
http://www.mdjonline.com/view/full_story/5903952/article-Citizen-sues-over-using-SPLOST-for-artificial-turf
That's right, "education" actually means improving athletic fields. Any bets as to whether they said that when they were pushing the tax?
That's okay, though. It's not like the schools need money. Oh, wait a minute.
http://www.mdjonline.com/view/full_story/7411698/article-Massive-cuts-included-in--819-4M--11-budget
It is possible that the way this particular SPLOST funding was structured prevents it from being used to address the budget shortfalls mentioned above, I'm not sure. But if so, that's another strike against SPLOST. Impose a tax whose funds can't be use where needed so that unnecessary projects get funded while more important services are cut? Sounds like a great idea--if you're an artificial turf vendor.
Back to the turf. Here is a Facebook group supporting the use of SPLOST money for athletic turf:
http://pt-br.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=356278303571&topic=14793
Here is one comment on this page: "Another big thing is the cost it curenty cost to groom the field (cut the grass),gas for the lawn mower paint the field every week, replacing the sod after each spring, the sprinklers to water the sod. when you look at it the expenses it takes into the upkeep of sod verus synthic terf, it is more cost efficent in the long run. it would also be enjoyed for many years to come"
Before you go any further, ask yourself the question you should ALWAYS ask yourself: "How does it benefit them if I believe what they say?" Then apply it to the situation at hand: "If this magic turf is so much more cost effective, why do we need SPLOST money to pay for it???"
Most of the "arguments" for using SPLOST for athletic fields boil down to, "The other guys have done it, why can't we do it? Wah, wah." And I love some of the other "arguments" on this page:
"1. It is well documented that a synthetic turf field would be used all day by our PE classes and other academic classes and natural turf fields cannot or will not be used near as much."
>> Fascinating. So why wouldn't you just use normal school funding to buy it?
"2. Cobb as well as every other school system uses SPLOST money to build new schools which include a gym (with bleachers) and athletic fields: game, practice, baseball and football. Grass is sodded or planted on those fields. Synthetic turf is just expensive grass that will last 10 years or more. Instead of going in and sodding a whole field we are installing synthetic grass."
>> Fascinating. If it's so cost effective, why wouldn't you just use normal school funding to buy it?
3. If we cannot use SPLOST money for synthetic turf on a PE/athletic field then we should not build a gym for the PE classes. If we cannot use SPLOST money for stadiums then we should not be able to use SPLOST money for bleachers in the gym.
>> This is the worst argument yet. Response 1: How did we ever manage to build bleachers, gyms, athletic fields, etc. in those barbaric days before we managed to bilk the public out of SPLOST funds? Response 2: Well no shit, Sherlock. Of course you shouldn't be able to use SPLOST funding for any of those things!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special-purpose_local-option_sales_tax
Here in Cobb County, Georgia, we love SPLOST. In related news, we are sheep with sore anuses (or is that "ani"?).
http://www.whitlockavenue.com/2009/12/16/cobb-county-splost-update-dec-2009/
http://northatlantarealestatevoice.com/2009/02/13/cobb-county-splost-projects-update/
http://northatlantarealestatevoice.com/2009/05/19/cobb-county-splost-project-updates/
Why do I mention it here on my blog? Because it is one of the most insidious taxes I have ever seen, and it has been in the news here locally. It is also a good way to separate the men from the boys, so to speak. There are people who claim to want to reduce taxes but think it's okay to support SPLOST taxes in their own communities. You can tell that such a person is not at all serious about reducing taxes or the waste associated with big government.
Anyone with a brain realizes that money in any government treasury is fungible. In order to justify the increased taxation, government assigns SPLOST funds to the most popular projects or needs. Of course, these are the same projects that would (or should) be funded anyway, whether SPLOST funds were available or not. And whenever a project is done with SPLOST funds they love to advertise it, to show you that your money was well-spent. There are signs posted everywhere saying something like "your SPLOST money at work." For example, they did this when they widened a road near me that alleviated a significant amount of congestion at a heavily-traveled intersection (shouldn't have needed SPLOST to do this small but much-needed project). Yet they don't put signs on the government waste that also gets funded because the obvious stuff got funded with SPLOST....
You can say "this money will only go for this purpose" all you want. If so, you are stupid and you are an enabler of big government. Really no different than giving an alcoholic money and making him promise to use it "just for food." Even if he does, he's going to have money left in his pocket, money that he would have used for food, for ... wait for it ... alcohol.
Anyway, even though it's not true (or at best, it's a distinction without a difference), government officials claim that SPLOST funds won't be mixed with general funds. And, for the most part, when SPLOST approval is put on the ballot they dedicate it to popular projects.
So that's why the recent stories in the news were so interesting. It turns out that the above claims (funds are separate from the general fund, only used for popular projects) are simply not true. I know, shocking, isn't it? As I said, if you have a brain this is intuitively obvious. But some people still don't get it. They need proof. With that in mind, let's get to the following stories.
In the first story, we see that SPLOST being dedicated to specific purposes is absolute fiction. Not much to comment on here, the article speaks for itself. Maybe just a simple "I told you so" will suffice. I guess I should also mention my amusement as I read about school board officials wondering whether this was legal--the blind leading the blind over there.
http://www.mdjonline.com/view/full_story/7458728/article-Committee-OKs-use-of--23M-in-SPLOST-money-to-close-gap?instance=secondary_story_left_column
And now the second item, that SPLOST is used for popular items, stuff that would have been done anyway. Here in Cobb County, Georgia a recent SPLOST tax was approved for education. So here's what they did:
http://www.mdjonline.com/view/full_story/7411694/article-Turf-s-in-?instance=home_news_bullets
http://www.mdjonline.com/view/full_story/7107148/article-Judge--SPLOST-can-fund-artificial-turf?instance=lead_story_left_column
http://www.mdjonline.com/view/full_story/5903952/article-Citizen-sues-over-using-SPLOST-for-artificial-turf
That's right, "education" actually means improving athletic fields. Any bets as to whether they said that when they were pushing the tax?
That's okay, though. It's not like the schools need money. Oh, wait a minute.
http://www.mdjonline.com/view/full_story/7411698/article-Massive-cuts-included-in--819-4M--11-budget
It is possible that the way this particular SPLOST funding was structured prevents it from being used to address the budget shortfalls mentioned above, I'm not sure. But if so, that's another strike against SPLOST. Impose a tax whose funds can't be use where needed so that unnecessary projects get funded while more important services are cut? Sounds like a great idea--if you're an artificial turf vendor.
Back to the turf. Here is a Facebook group supporting the use of SPLOST money for athletic turf:
http://pt-br.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=356278303571&topic=14793
Here is one comment on this page: "Another big thing is the cost it curenty cost to groom the field (cut the grass),gas for the lawn mower paint the field every week, replacing the sod after each spring, the sprinklers to water the sod. when you look at it the expenses it takes into the upkeep of sod verus synthic terf, it is more cost efficent in the long run. it would also be enjoyed for many years to come"
Before you go any further, ask yourself the question you should ALWAYS ask yourself: "How does it benefit them if I believe what they say?" Then apply it to the situation at hand: "If this magic turf is so much more cost effective, why do we need SPLOST money to pay for it???"
Most of the "arguments" for using SPLOST for athletic fields boil down to, "The other guys have done it, why can't we do it? Wah, wah." And I love some of the other "arguments" on this page:
"1. It is well documented that a synthetic turf field would be used all day by our PE classes and other academic classes and natural turf fields cannot or will not be used near as much."
>> Fascinating. So why wouldn't you just use normal school funding to buy it?
"2. Cobb as well as every other school system uses SPLOST money to build new schools which include a gym (with bleachers) and athletic fields: game, practice, baseball and football. Grass is sodded or planted on those fields. Synthetic turf is just expensive grass that will last 10 years or more. Instead of going in and sodding a whole field we are installing synthetic grass."
>> Fascinating. If it's so cost effective, why wouldn't you just use normal school funding to buy it?
3. If we cannot use SPLOST money for synthetic turf on a PE/athletic field then we should not build a gym for the PE classes. If we cannot use SPLOST money for stadiums then we should not be able to use SPLOST money for bleachers in the gym.
>> This is the worst argument yet. Response 1: How did we ever manage to build bleachers, gyms, athletic fields, etc. in those barbaric days before we managed to bilk the public out of SPLOST funds? Response 2: Well no shit, Sherlock. Of course you shouldn't be able to use SPLOST funding for any of those things!
Learn to Go Slow
From the incomparable Eddy Matzger (if you don't know who he is, you need to look him up):
http://www.inlineplanet.com/10/05/learn-to-go-slow.html
I think this applies to much more than skating...
http://www.inlineplanet.com/10/05/learn-to-go-slow.html
I think this applies to much more than skating...
Something to remember when you're trying to persuade someone
Don Dodge writes some very interesting articles. Here's a good one:
If they aren't ready to listen, it doesn't matter what you say
http://dondodge.typepad.com/the_next_big_thing/2010/05/if-they-arent-ready-to-listen-it-doesnt-matter-what-you-say.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+TheNextBigThing+(The+Next+Big+Thing)
If they aren't ready to listen, it doesn't matter what you say
http://dondodge.typepad.com/the_next_big_thing/2010/05/if-they-arent-ready-to-listen-it-doesnt-matter-what-you-say.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+TheNextBigThing+(The+Next+Big+Thing)
World Air Traffic 24 Hour Period
This e-mail (pasted below) was forwarded to me, along with a video. Rather than post the video, I found a YouTube link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1US_4uf4YE
Here is the text of the e-mail, presented in unedited form:
===========================================================
Amazing and interesting.....!
What you will see in the attached movie clip is the air traffic around the world over a period of 24 hours taken from a satellite.
It is a 24 hour observation of all of the large aircraft flights in the world, condensed down to just over a minute. From space we look like a bee hive of activity.
I'm sure that you won't believe this at first!!!
The yellow dots are airplanes in the sky during a 24 hour period. Stay with the picture or watch it over again, and notice the following:
→ See the light of the day moving from the east to the west, as the Earth spins on its axis.
→ See the flow of aircraft traffic leaving the North American continent and traveling at night to arrive in the UK in the morning.
→ Then see the flow changing, leaving the UK in the morning and flying to the American continent in daylight.
→ See if you realize that it was summer time in the north (by the sun's foot print over the planet).
→ See the daylight pattern moving across the earth's surface and that the sun didn't quite set in the extreme north and it didn't quite rise in the extreme south.
I have never seen anything as explanative as this before. We are taught about the earth's tilt, how it causes summer and winter, and also the movement of the daylight pattern. Until now we have had to just use our imagination to picture what is going on. With this 24 hour observation of aircraft travel on the earth's surface, we
get to see the above in actual action...
Remember to watch the day to night..... day is over in Australia when it starts.
===========================================================
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1US_4uf4YE
Here is the text of the e-mail, presented in unedited form:
===========================================================
Amazing and interesting.....!
What you will see in the attached movie clip is the air traffic around the world over a period of 24 hours taken from a satellite.
It is a 24 hour observation of all of the large aircraft flights in the world, condensed down to just over a minute. From space we look like a bee hive of activity.
I'm sure that you won't believe this at first!!!
The yellow dots are airplanes in the sky during a 24 hour period. Stay with the picture or watch it over again, and notice the following:
→ See the light of the day moving from the east to the west, as the Earth spins on its axis.
→ See the flow of aircraft traffic leaving the North American continent and traveling at night to arrive in the UK in the morning.
→ Then see the flow changing, leaving the UK in the morning and flying to the American continent in daylight.
→ See if you realize that it was summer time in the north (by the sun's foot print over the planet).
→ See the daylight pattern moving across the earth's surface and that the sun didn't quite set in the extreme north and it didn't quite rise in the extreme south.
I have never seen anything as explanative as this before. We are taught about the earth's tilt, how it causes summer and winter, and also the movement of the daylight pattern. Until now we have had to just use our imagination to picture what is going on. With this 24 hour observation of aircraft travel on the earth's surface, we
get to see the above in actual action...
Remember to watch the day to night..... day is over in Australia when it starts.
===========================================================
Google's biggest threat?
Here's an interesting article about arguable the largest obstacle Google now faces: Government.
"Can monopolies exist online, when competition is only a click away? What constitutes anti-competitive behavior in the complex networked economy, where the very size of big companies allows them to operate more efficiently, and thus grow even bigger? Are consumers harmed if various services are bundled together, but everything is free?
"Alan Davidson, head of United States public policy at Google: 'We know we have a giant bull’s-eye on our backs.'"
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/23/technology/23goog.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&pagewanted=al
"Can monopolies exist online, when competition is only a click away? What constitutes anti-competitive behavior in the complex networked economy, where the very size of big companies allows them to operate more efficiently, and thus grow even bigger? Are consumers harmed if various services are bundled together, but everything is free?
"Alan Davidson, head of United States public policy at Google: 'We know we have a giant bull’s-eye on our backs.'"
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/23/technology/23goog.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&pagewanted=al
Beagles Rock
Have you seen the latest Chik-Fil-A commercial? The "Sownd the Alarm Spicee Chikin" commercial? If not, go here...
http://www.chick-fil-a.com/?#thecows
...then choose the "TV Commershals" link, and the cartoon I just mentioned.
Or find it on YouTube here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74aC8arWT8k
You're probably wondering what the heck this has to do with Beagles. Pay close attention about half way through the commercial, around the 0:16 mark. Watch and listen to the howling beagle. It's priceless. It makes the whole commercial. And it reminded me of beagles.
Not sure what it is, but I love beagles. My family has had several great ones through the years. My mother had a dog, officially named Daisy (she picks some strange names for pets), but unofficially, and much more commonly, known as Beags. Beags was smart and, like most beagles, had a great nose. I still remember that day when she when she lifted her head, took a long sniff, and said to me, "There's something going on in L.A., isn't there." That was during the riots after the Rodney King beating. And we were in Milwaukee at the time! Like I said, smart dog.
Question: What is cuter, a baby beagle or a baby human? Be honest!
http://www.chick-fil-a.com/?#thecows
...then choose the "TV Commershals" link, and the cartoon I just mentioned.
Or find it on YouTube here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74aC8arWT8k
You're probably wondering what the heck this has to do with Beagles. Pay close attention about half way through the commercial, around the 0:16 mark. Watch and listen to the howling beagle. It's priceless. It makes the whole commercial. And it reminded me of beagles.
Not sure what it is, but I love beagles. My family has had several great ones through the years. My mother had a dog, officially named Daisy (she picks some strange names for pets), but unofficially, and much more commonly, known as Beags. Beags was smart and, like most beagles, had a great nose. I still remember that day when she when she lifted her head, took a long sniff, and said to me, "There's something going on in L.A., isn't there." That was during the riots after the Rodney King beating. And we were in Milwaukee at the time! Like I said, smart dog.
Question: What is cuter, a baby beagle or a baby human? Be honest!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
