Saturday, December 31, 2005
New Iowa Blog Worth Reading: Joe Says So
The Joe Says So blog started slowly in early December, but this post yesterday on the Greater Des Moines Partnership is interesting reading if you're in the anti-Kelo camp.
Slottery Machines To Be Challenged By Gambling Interests
A reader sent us this blurb from the Cedar Rapids Gazette's web site, which is closed to all but subscribers:
Related: Vile Slottery Expansion
A major fight is brewing during the 2006 legislative session between two of Iowa's most-powerful gambling interests over the state Lottery's TouchPlay machines. Representatives of Iowa's gambling casinos are asking Gov. Tom Vilsack and the Legislature to bring the lottery's 4,500 video pull-tab ticket dispensers -- found in convenience stores, bars and other venues --- under the same regulations as the casinos' slot machines. Lottery spokeswoman Mary Neubauer countered that the casino inquiry appears to be politically motivated.Gambling casinos vs the Iowa Lottery. Now that's a catfight we're looking forward to watching in 2006!
Related: Vile Slottery Expansion
Friday, December 30, 2005
Vilsack Appointee District Judge David Baker Shockingly Soft On Drugged Drivers Who Kill
This is a damn disgrace of justice. From Radio Iowa:
What did Governor Vilsack say about Baker when he was appointed to his job on November 18, 2004?
Here's more about the trial from the Cedar Rapids Gazette on November 17th via NewsBank:
From the Gazette on November 11th, before the trial, and via NewsBank:
News reports immediately after the crash mention marijuana.
It looks like the prosecutors and the State really fucked up on this one.
How bad was the accident that killed Abby Bowman? From the Gazette on November 15th via NewsBank:
Larry Zaruba was denied a driver's license and told not to consume alcohol during his three year probation. We can only hope that if Zaruba violates his probation that he'll be thrown in jail for the maximum amount of time.
We bet if Zaruba goes before Judge Baker again that he'll get little more than a slap on the wrist while the families and the public gets slapped in the face.
A 49-year-old Cedar Rapids man will not go to prison for driving the speeding car that killed a 19-year-old woman crossing a street in downtown Cedar Rapids. The accident happened in July of 2004 and last month Larry Zaruba was found guilty of vehicular homicide. But yesterday (Thursday), a judge suspended the 10-year prison sentence for that conviction and sent Zaruba to a half-way house for a year instead.District Judge David Baker bought the defense's bullshit at sentencing that Zaruba had a "seizure" behind the wheel, despite no evidence being introduced at trial.
What did Governor Vilsack say about Baker when he was appointed to his job on November 18, 2004?
“We are pleased to announce the appointment of David Baker to the 6th Judicial District,” Governor Vilsack said. “Not only has David proven himself to be an outstanding lawyer, he has also been an active member of his community serving Iowans as a volunteer and long-time professional. With his appointment, David will ensure the security of Iowans most critical judicial rights and protect our most vulnerable citizens.”What bullshit. Vilsack's never given a shit about protecting our most vulnerable citizens.
Here's more about the trial from the Cedar Rapids Gazette on November 17th via NewsBank:
Defense attorney Tyler Johnston weighed the odds and took a gamble with Larry Zaruba's future: exclude medical testimony from trial that could have supported Zaruba's claim a seizure caused him to lose control of his car, killing pedestrian Abby Bowman; or put it in and have it also show Zaruba was driving while under the influence of drugs.
Johnston opted to exclude the medical testimony and, as a consequence, Zaruba, of Cedar Rapids, now faces a maximum 10 years in prison instead of 35.
District Judge David Baker on Wednesday afternoon found Zaruba guilty of vehicular homicide for causing the death of Bowman, a Cedar Rapids resident, while driving recklessly. He found him not guilty of vehicular homicide while driving under the influence, a charge punishable by up to 25 years in prison...
The prosecution, he ruled, proved that on July 25, 2004, Zaruba was driving between 60 and 100 mph in downtown Cedar Rapids, which was sufficient to show recklessness. Prosecutors, he said, didn't prove Zaruba was driving under the influence of illegal drugs.
"We have believed from the beginning of the trial that this accident, although a tragedy, was not the result of marijuana or any kind of drug or any kind of purposeful behavior on the part of Mr. Zaruba," Johnston said after the verdict.
It would be a tragedy if Zaruba, 49, goes to prison for something he had no control over, Johnston said. He will ask for probation at sentencing and will appeal if Zaruba is sent to prison.
`'I don't think he broke the law. I think he had a seizure," Johnston said.
But First Assistant Linn County Attorney Jerry Vander Sanden, who prosecuted the case, doesn't believe that the medical tests presented Wednesday showed Zaruba suffered a seizure. Zaruba, he believes, combined prescription medication with an illegal drug, then drove.
"That's a deadly combination," Vander Sanden said.
From the Gazette on November 11th, before the trial, and via NewsBank:
The urine sample in question was obtained for medical purposes when an unconscious Zaruba was taken to St. Luke's Hospital after the accident. The state obtained a search warrant for the urine after a blood sample was tested for alcohol but did not leave enough blood to check for drugs.The urine sample was later thrown out.
Defense attorney Tyler Johnston argued that Zaruba didn't consent or waive doctor-patient privilege to allow the state to take the sample.
The prosecution wants to be excused for destroying the blood sample, which originally was supposed to be tested for drugs but wasn't, and for waiting a month to test Zaruba's urine, which affected the results, Johnston said.
Considering the margin of error, the test didn't yield a positive result for marijuana, Johnston said. The urine was then sent to another lab and those results showed an even lower level of marijuana, Johnston said.
First Assistant Linn County Attorney Jerry Vander Sanden said the state didn't need to get Zaruba's consent because the law allows officers to request a sample of blood or urine when a driver involved in a crash is suspected of being under the influence of drugs or alcohol or is involved in a fatal accident.
Vander Sanden also argued that the test results were positive for marijuana.
News reports immediately after the crash mention marijuana.
It looks like the prosecutors and the State really fucked up on this one.
How bad was the accident that killed Abby Bowman? From the Gazette on November 15th via NewsBank:
Larry Zaruba's car had to be going between 80 mph and 100 mph through downtown Cedar Rapids when it struck and killed 19-year-old Abby Bowman of Cedar Rapids with enough force to push a 1,500-pound planter about 100 feet and snap off three trees, three street lights and a parking meter.
That's what Cedar Rapids police officer Joseph Schmitz concluded after investigating the July 25, 2004, crash that he said involved "extremely reckless driving" at excessive speeds. He found no evidence that Zaruba, a Cedar Rapids resident, tried to brake or slow down after hitting Bowman and Kaneilyas Hamilton, 21, of Cedar Rapids, as they walked across the 300 block of First Avenue East...
Hamilton, 21, of Cedar Rapids, said he'd stopped by the Crowne Plaza Five Seasons Hotel to visit with Bowman, with whom he had once worked, just as she was ending her shift at the front desk.
He said they were crossing First Avenue East at about 11 p.m., walking from the hotel to their parked cars. Bowman was to his right and a half step behind him. They heard a car engine rev as if someone had a foot on the car's gas pedal, Hamilton said.
He said Bowman remarked, "Geez, that car's going fast," shortly before the car hit him. The force knocked him down, knocked off his left shoe and severely sprained his left foot.
As he crawled to the curb, he said, his first thought was, "Where's Abby?"
Anne Ranbarger, 33, and KaraJane Curl, 34, both of Des Moines, said they were stopped at the traffic signal at First Avenue and Fifth Street SE when they saw a car speed west past them, gradually veering toward the center turn lane.
They said they saw a young man rolling in the street and thought he had been tossed out of the car. As they continued down the street past debris from the crash, Curl thought it was odd to see a trash can in the street.
"I realized that was not a trash can," Curl said, crying as she recalled what she was seeing was Bowman's severed body.
Perry Walton, a retired Cedar Rapids police officer, testified that Zaruba's car was going "a good 70 mph" down the south sidewalk of First Avenue when it narrowly missed Walton's pickup as he was driving east.
Walton said he rushed to Zaruba's car, reached inside and turned off the ignition. The upper portion of Bowman's body, he said, was on the car's passenger side floorboard.
The driver had some blood on his face, and his actions "didn't seem normal," Walton said. "I figured he was intoxicated."
Cedar Rapids Fire Department Capt. Tom Mackey testified that when he arrived within minutes of the crash, Zaruba, still trapped in the severely damaged car, was conscious and had his eyes open but was looking straight ahead, giving "absolutely giving no indication that he heard me."
Mackey said he leaned in to make sure Zaruba was breathing and smelled marijuana.
Larry Zaruba was denied a driver's license and told not to consume alcohol during his three year probation. We can only hope that if Zaruba violates his probation that he'll be thrown in jail for the maximum amount of time.
We bet if Zaruba goes before Judge Baker again that he'll get little more than a slap on the wrist while the families and the public gets slapped in the face.
"If Bush is Christian, then the world is flat, water runs uphill and Adolph Hitler was a nice guy"
The tolerant, hinged centrists on display in the Waterloo Courier:
This is in response to the "Bush deserves respect" letter by Anne Jensen of New Hartford, published Dec. 22. It may be true that President Bush's military records were modified or misquoted, but this hardly exonerates him from his abominable malfeasance in office. Your closing line "Can't a known Christian get any respect anymore?" is what prompted my reply. George W. Bush is no Christian. He has favored the rich and disfavored the poor at every opportunity since his so-called election. Jesus was a man of the people. Bush is for rich people only!Hey, Perry. This one's for you:
If Bush is Christian, then the world is flat, water runs uphill and Adolph Hitler was a nice guy. Tax cuts for billionaires do not stimulate the economy, they widen the gap from rich to poor.
Respect is earned. Bush's complete disregard for regular people is obvious from his massive cuts in programs for poor and low income. His only concern is for his wealthy friends and campaign contributors.
He is not only incompetent, illiterate and inarticulate, he is uninformed and dangerous. I have heard that maybe he thinks he is doing the right things, but anyone who has seen him when he thought the cameras were off can see he is angry, bitter and scared.
Perry Wright, Waterloo
Vile Slottery Expansion
The above photo of "slottery" players on the Des Moines Skywalk (by Joe at the Tax Update Blog) shows just how prevalent these slot machines are getting in convenience stores and gas stations. We've all observed "roped off" sections filled with people who are pumping twenty after twenty into these machines.
In November, the Quad City Times had an article on the "slottery" machines. It quoted Mary Neubauer, the President of Lying for the Iowa Lottery - oh, we're sorry, "external relations" - as saying they weren't slot machines. Bull-loney.
Our opinion remains the same: This Shit's Gotta Stop. It is time to declare war on liars like Ed Stanek and Mary Neubauer and force our lawmakers to remove the slot machines from convenience stores. We doubt they'll ever have the balls to do it.
Ouch, That's Gotta Hurt
J. B. Johnson of Britt, writing to the Des Moines Register:
Before the people in Fort Madison get their hopes up about rebuilding the maximum-security prison, check with Bill Knapp. He'll have the final say on its location. Could be the check was already done, and that's why the price went from $40 million to $80 million.Snarky as hell. We love it!
Cracking Skulls
Deep within a Rekha Basu column about how nobody's been charged with a crime involving a motorcycle-related accident of a 13 year old this past summer is this:
Meanwhile, as of January 1, 2006, if a child is younger than 11 years of age they must be using a seat belt when riding as a passenger anywhere within a car, truck, or minivan. If caught, the driver faces a $63 fine.
What's the message that our brain-dead lawmakers are sending? That mom's minivan is significantly more dangerous than a motorcycle.
Not even close, bud.
Update: Although here's a sad story as to why your kids should be buckled up!
The crash happened at nearly 11 p.m. Neither person was wearing a helmet, though Iowa law doesn't require one. The road and weather conditions were fine, and blood tests ruled out alcohol or drug use.If you're 6, 13, 22, 45, or 69 years old, you aren't required to use a helmet when operating or being a passenger on a motorcycle within Iowa.
Meanwhile, as of January 1, 2006, if a child is younger than 11 years of age they must be using a seat belt when riding as a passenger anywhere within a car, truck, or minivan. If caught, the driver faces a $63 fine.
What's the message that our brain-dead lawmakers are sending? That mom's minivan is significantly more dangerous than a motorcycle.
Not even close, bud.
Update: Although here's a sad story as to why your kids should be buckled up!
Shit Happens
From the Des Moines Register:
It's also good to know that the Iowa Legislature has nothing else to do with their time than debate a proposed state constitutional amendment banning something that is already illegal.
State environmental officials knew for seven months that livestock manure was polluting several Carroll County creeks that feed the water supply for metro Des Moines and Ottumwa.And that's how shit happens in Iowa.
Yet until the past two weeks, when four separate manure spills were reported — including one that killed fish along 15 miles of Brushy Creek — state investigators said they were nearly powerless to do anything to stop the polluters. The spills have been traced to several small cattle feedlots suspected of not having adequate manure-holding structures.
State environmental inspector Dan Stipe described the Carroll County streams last week as being thick with frozen manure. "You can walk on it, there are so many solids in it," he said of Storm Creek, the site of the most recent manure flow.
It's also good to know that the Iowa Legislature has nothing else to do with their time than debate a proposed state constitutional amendment banning something that is already illegal.
Thursday, December 29, 2005
Followup On The Ku Klux Klan Story
The Globe Gazette has a followup story on the cracker-ass KKK member who wants to hold a protest in Des Moines next month regarding same-sex marriage:
This bit at the end of the followup probably sums it up best:
Update: The Globe Gazette also has an editorial on this issue
Persons who responded to the NewsLink poll were almost unanimous in condemning what they perceive as the message of the Klan.But naturally, this being a newspaper and all, it has to present the opinions of people who think the Klan have a right to exist and express their opinions:
“I guess it’s a free country and those guys have a right to their opinion just like everyone else,” wrote David E. Dunn of Mason City, “but I kind of feel about them like I do sex offenders — I don’t want one living in my neighborhood.”What would you do if a Klan member moved into your neighborhood? Burn a cross in his yard? Think that's going to scare him away? You spineless wimps.
Chris Petersen of Clear Lake wrote, “The Klan has a right to exist but I see no place in civilized society for the voice of these types in the policy agenda, especially in the United States of America.”
This bit at the end of the followup probably sums it up best:
Denny Murra of Buffalo Center wrote, “I really don’t think these people are members of the KKK. They use that moniker to make themselves feel important. But they should still be mocked and exposed for the fools they are.”If Douglas Sadler has any brains in his head, he'd ditch the KKK affiliation for something more palatable. You know, like the kind of stuff that Steve "The Combover" King files losing lawsuits about.
Update: The Globe Gazette also has an editorial on this issue
More Iowa Ethanol Stories
Tim Higgins and William Petroski have a big piece in the Des Moines Register today on how the Iowa Legislature is looking for ways to boost ethanol use in Iowa.
Iowans already choose ethanol-blended fuels more than 70% of the time. Short of mandating an E10 blend for all unleaded gasoline purchases, which would be probably be a good idea and free up a pump at most fuel stations for E85, we're not sure what more can be done.
We did notice this paragraph way down in the article and have some issues with it:
Brazil produces about the same amount of sugar-cane based ethanol [as Iowa]. But ethanol provides 40 percent of Brazilians' driving fuel compared with less than 5 percent in the United States, according to a recent Gannett News Service report. Statehouse Republicans and Democrats agree it's important to help gas stations install expensive equipment needed to sell E85, therefore encouraging more Iowans to buy cars that can use it.This paragraph really glosses over Brazil's past problems and current situations with regard to energy.
For starters, Petrobras is a state-owned oil company that has about 98% of the country's market share. What oil is produced by Brazil, about 55% of the country's needs, mainly comes from deep-sea drilling. Ethanol usually constitutes about 24% blend of fuel that Brazillians use in their cars along with gasoline, although cars running on 100% alcohol are available. No wonder, as it only costs about 50 to 60 cents a gallon to produce ethanol from sugar cane in Brazil. Also, an increasing number of vehicles in Brazil now burn diesel, which balances any pollution decreases that alcohol-burning cars have. All of these fuel prices are messed with by the Brazilian government for their own political reasons.
Even more interesting reading is the story that came out last year (see this piece that originally appeared in Salon.com) about how Cargill wanted to build an ethanol plant in El Salvador to essentially remove the water from cheaply-produced Brazilian sugar cane ethanol and to get around the 54-cent a gallon US import tariff that Brazil would have to pay but CAFTA-agreeing El Salvador doesn't.
It's all a mess, of course. Ethanol costs somewhere between $1.50 and $1.75 a gallon to produce in the United States from corn, three times that of sugar-cane based ethanol in Brazil. Tack on the 51 cent a gallon tax credit for ethanol and that makes this a really politically and economically sensitive issue.
Wednesday, December 28, 2005
Who Was President When Iowa Became State 29?
A letter attributed a Mr Linnell Flansburgh of the small Iowa town of Huron to The Hawk-Eye and Iowa Patriot from some time in the late 1840s:
Nice mullet, Mr President!
Update: One wonders what the anti-war types today would have said about Polk's massive expansion during his four years.
Polk continued on with President Tyler's plans to annex Texas, then attempts to buy California and New Mexico, nearly gets into war with England over the Oregon Territory, and finally declares war against Mexico. The US Army eventually takes over Los Angeles and occupies Mexico City. Some in Congress wanted the US to take all of Mexico.
After the war with finished, the US paid Mexico between $15-20 million for all the disputed land, but the war cost the US $100 million and the lives of nearly 14,000 soldiers (the vast majority from disease, not battle). All that in four years! Can you imagine how that all would be spun today?
In 1844, the Democrats were split(courtesy of the TMBG FAQ, with a hat tip for inspiration to the Tax Update Blog)
The three nominees for the presidential candidate
Were Martin Van Buren, a former president and an abolitionist
James Buchanan, a moderate
Louis Cass, a general and expansionist
From Nashville came a dark horse riding up
He was James K. Polk, Napoleon of the Stump
Austere, severe, he held few people dear
His oratory filled his foes with fear
The factions soon agreed
He's just the man we need
To bring about victory
Fulfill our manifest destiny
And annex the land the Mexicans command
And when the votes were cast the winner was
Mister James K. Polk, Napoleon of the Stump
In four short years he met his every goal
He seized the whole southwest from Mexico
Made sure the tariffs fell
And made the English sell the Oregon territory
He built an independent treasury
Having done all this he sought no second term
But precious few have mourned the passing of
Mister James K. Polk, our eleventh president
Young Hickory, Napoleon of the Stump
Nice mullet, Mr President!
Update: One wonders what the anti-war types today would have said about Polk's massive expansion during his four years.
Polk continued on with President Tyler's plans to annex Texas, then attempts to buy California and New Mexico, nearly gets into war with England over the Oregon Territory, and finally declares war against Mexico. The US Army eventually takes over Los Angeles and occupies Mexico City. Some in Congress wanted the US to take all of Mexico.
After the war with finished, the US paid Mexico between $15-20 million for all the disputed land, but the war cost the US $100 million and the lives of nearly 14,000 soldiers (the vast majority from disease, not battle). All that in four years! Can you imagine how that all would be spun today?
KKK Rally Against Gay Marriage In Des Moines Next Month?
From the Mason City Globe Gazette:
A Charles City man said Tuesday he intends to lead a Ku Klux Klan rally in Des Moines next month to publicly protest the possible sanctioning of gay marriages.Sadler better have a white sheet and hood that has extra lining. Des Moines can be rather cold in January.
Douglas Sadler, 41, who identifies himself as an imperial klailiff of the Klan, said he and other klansmen are reacting to published reports that six gay couples have filed a suit in hope of having gay marriages legalized in Iowa.
Sadler said he oversees a Klan contingent of about two dozen members in Cerro Gordo, Floyd and Mitchell counties who will hold a protest rally on a yet-to-be determined date in January, although he said it would be on a weekend.
“We don’t believe God’s law should be perverted any more than it already has been,” said Sadler. “The further we go away from God’s law, the further we get away from God.”
He also better have a white sheet and hood that can repel rotten eggs, tire irons, and steel-toed boots, because we predict he's going to get his ass kicked.
Buster Bloodvessel
Buster of In Muscatine is on fire:
5. The posturing, weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth coming from Democrats and Liberals over domestic spying is a prelude to striking at the President. Yes, this is a traitorous action, attacking the President in a time of war. The reader will kindly note as I have - not one single Democrat or Liberal has offered up one solitary suggestion on how to secure this country as an alternative to the strategy which Bush has enacted and is actively pursuing. If they are not actively offering up an alternative then what could they possibly be doing?...Ouch.
...No, as the days wear on the evidence only continues to mount the President has the right to warrantless searches where the security of the country is at stake. As the days wear on, the clueless tools like Political Sore-Ass look more like the terrorist apologists they appear to be. The more water flows under the bridge the more support for my initial opinions, and that makes Chris the Political Sore-Ass look more and more like a doofus.
Tax deadline approaching for College Savings Iowa
From Radio Iowa:
You have a few more days to make a contribution to the state-backed college savings plan and get a deduction on your 2005 state income taxes. State Treasurer Michael Fitzgerald's office oversees the "College Savings Iowa" plan.
Fitzgerald says you put up to two-thousand-375 dollars for each child and deduct that amount for each child from your income tax. He says the contributions have to be postmarked by December 31st to qualify for a deduction this year. Fitzgerald says if you already have an account, it's easy to check to see how much you've contributed.
He says you can call up your account on collegesavingsiowa-dot-com to see if you've contributed the maximum amount. Fitzgerald says your contributions have benefits beyond the state tax deduction. He says the money is invested professionally and grows tax-free from the federal government as well as the state.
Fitzgerald says the program has 12 options for investing. Fitzgerald says if you have a kid who's getting close to graduating high school, you'll want a more conservative plan for investing the money. If the child is a newborn, he says you'll want an investment plan that has a higher risk, but a bigger return. Fitzgerald says the money can be used for a variety of expenses once the child turns 18.
Buckle Your Kids Up After January 1st
From Radio Iowa:
If you've got kids under the age of 11, there are new rules of the road when they're riding in the car, truck or minivan. A new state law that goes into effect on January 1st lets cops ticket people who are driving around with a baby that's not in a rear-facing car seat or a child that's not buckled up.
The ticket for letting a child under the age of 11 ride in a car improperly is at least 63 dollars when you factor in court costs. So, here are the details of the new law. Babies -- up until they're one or they're over 20 pounds -- must ride in a rear-facing child safety seat.
Letter Of The Year
William Streff of Urbandale, writing to the Des Moines Register:
As if squandering more time and money to locate and build a rain forest in the city wasn't enough, now Des Moines' "city leaders" are spending taxpayer money to study the addition of a whitewater rafting channel along the so-called downtown riverwalk ("Downtown Whitewater Rafting?" Dec. 20).Oddly enough, Des Moines taxpayers may soon be on the hook for flattening a hill and then rebuilding it elsewhere. It's not exactly a mountain, but it'll certainly cost a mountain of debt!
Perhaps additional funds can soon be spent to study the feasibility of constructing a desert in the city limits or maybe even a mountain. I'm sure Des Moines residents would rather have their taxes pay for that instead of some necessary but boring old street or sewer-repair project.
Tuesday, December 27, 2005
But Al Sharpton Really Is A Race-Baiting, Jew-Hating, Liar, Hoaxer, and Former Candidate For President
The Diary of a Political Madman responds:
Race-baiter:
Jew-hater:
Liar:
Hoaxer:
Former candidate for the Democratic nomination for President: we all know that.
We have every right to slam race-baiters, Jew-haters, liars, and hoaxers all we want. We can back all that up. Follow the links. Can't you handle the truth?
Al Sharpton should be banished from the Democratic Party, not invited along to the debates or given a time to speak to the party faithful at the convention. Anytime we see his lying face on some TV channel, it gets changed. He makes all of us want to puke, especially now that he's taking money from LoanMax and selling out black people who are suckered into the 360% APR car-title loans...harks.
As wrong as Howard Dean has been about so many policy matters, Al Sharpton is a million times worse with all his baggage. The good thing is that Al Sharpton will probably never be elected to any political office, although CNN, FOX, MSNBC, and all the alphabets bend over and continue to treat him as some sort of "Head Negro In Charge" who "advocates" for black people in the United States.
Take, for example, your post about Sharpton from today.We'll take each Sharpton issue, one by one.
"Via Instapundit and via Ed Cone (nice job citing here) we discover that Al Sharpton, the race-baiter (slam 1), Jew-hater (slam 2), liar (slam 3), hoaxer (slam 4), and former candidate for the Democratic nomination for President (fact, with an implied slam) has been doing TV commercials for LoanMax.
LoanMax, run by the perfectly-named Rod Aycox (slam 5) (who also runs LoanSmart), owns the entire car-title loan industry in Iowa. This is the same car-title loan industry that charges up to 360% APR, something that Republicans Willard Jenkins of Waterloo and Christopher Rants of Hell find perfectly OK. (another fact with a slam buried in it)"
I hate car title loans and will continue to work against them. That's not the point. The point is that when you can't finish two paragraphs without 5 outright slams and two more implied ones, it's not informed political debate anymore. It's just a whole bunch of ranty crap.
Race-baiter:
Q: How you can explain not one black or brown working for your administration as governor?
DEAN: We do have African-American & Latino workers in state government.
SHARPTON: I said under your administration. Do you have a senior member of your cabinet that was black or brown?
DEAN: We had a senior member of my staff on my 5th floor.
SHARPTON: No, your cabinet.
DEAN: No, we did not. [But the cabinet has only] six members.
SHARPTON: Then you need to let me talk to you about race in this country.
DEAN: If the percentage of African-Americans in your state was any indication of what your views on race were, then Trent Lott would be Martin Luther King.
SHARPTON: But I don't think that that answers the question. If you want to lecture people on race, you ought to have the background and track record in order to do that. Governors import talent. Governors reach all over the country to make sure they have diversity
Jew-hater:
Sharpton’s rhetoric could also be rather less high-flown. “If the Jews want to get it on,” he said, “tell them to pin their yarmulkes back and come over to my house...”
In 1995-four years into the putative New Sharpton-there was another, fatal case in which Sharpton had a guilty hand: Freddy’s Fashion Mart. In Harlem, a white store owner — no, worse: a Jewish one — was accused of driving a black store owner out of business. At one of the many rallies meant to scare the Jewish owner away, Sharpton charged that “there is a systemic and methodical strategy to eliminate our people from doing business off 125th Street. I want to make it clear . . . that we will not stand by and allow them to move this brother so that some white interloper can expand his business.” Sharpton’s colleague, Morris Powell, said of the Jewish owner — Sharpton’s “white interloper” — “We’re going to see that this cracker suffers. Reverend Sharpton is on it.” Three months later, one of the protesters, Roland Smith, stormed Freddy’s with a pistol, screaming, “It’s on now: All blacks out!” In addition to shooting, he burned the place down. Eight people died. Sharpton now faced a PR problem, a bump on his road to full respectability. In a manner both Sharptonian and Clintonian, he denied having even spoken at a rally at all. When tapes surfaced, he asked, “What’s wrong with denouncing white interlopers?” Eventually, he decided to apologize-but only for saying “white,” not “interloper.”
Liar:
Former prosecutor Steven Pagones said Monday that his victory over the Rev. Al Sharpton and two other advisers to Tawana Brawley in his racially charged, $395 million lawsuit was bittersweet.
Speaking outside the Dutchess County Courthouse after the jury's decision, Pagones said Sharpton, Alton Maddox Jr. and C. Vernon Mason had "hurt a lot of people."
The jury found Sharpton liable for making seven defamatory statements about Pagones, Maddox for two and Mason for one. Pagones, a former assistant county prosecutor, is white; the defendants are black.
Hoaxer:
In 1987, a 15-year-old black girl named Tawana Brawley went missing and was found four days later covered in dog feces and with racial slurs written on her body. She claimed that at least two and possibly six white men, one of them carrying a badge, had repeatedly raped her in the woods in upstate New York. Sharpton took up Brawley's cause and defended her refusal to cooperate with prosecutors, saying that asking her to meet with New York's attorney general (who had been asked by Gov. Mario Cuomo to supervise the investigation) would be like "asking someone who watched someone killed in the gas chamber to sit down with Mr. Hitler." According to the Associated Press, Sharpton and Brawley's lawyers asserted "on 33 separate occasions" that a local prosecutor named Steven Pagones "had kidnapped, abused and raped" Brawley. There was no evidence, and Pagones was soon cleared. Sharpton then accused a local police cult with ties to the Irish Republican Army of perpetrating the alleged assault. The case fizzled when a security guard for Brawley's lawyers testified that the lawyers and Sharpton knew Brawley was lying. A grand jury investigation concluded in late 1988 that Brawley "was not the victim of forcible sexual assault" and that the whole thing was a hoax. The report specifically exonerated Pagones, and in 1998 Pagones won a defamation lawsuit against Sharpton, Brawley, and Brawley's lawyers. Sharpton was ordered to pay Pagones $65,000. Johnnie Cochran and other Sharpton benefactors subsidized the payment.
Former candidate for the Democratic nomination for President: we all know that.
We have every right to slam race-baiters, Jew-haters, liars, and hoaxers all we want. We can back all that up. Follow the links. Can't you handle the truth?
Al Sharpton should be banished from the Democratic Party, not invited along to the debates or given a time to speak to the party faithful at the convention. Anytime we see his lying face on some TV channel, it gets changed. He makes all of us want to puke, especially now that he's taking money from LoanMax and selling out black people who are suckered into the 360% APR car-title loans...harks.
As wrong as Howard Dean has been about so many policy matters, Al Sharpton is a million times worse with all his baggage. The good thing is that Al Sharpton will probably never be elected to any political office, although CNN, FOX, MSNBC, and all the alphabets bend over and continue to treat him as some sort of "Head Negro In Charge" who "advocates" for black people in the United States.
Al Sharpton Does TV Ad For LoanMax
Via Instapundit and via Ed Cone we discover that Al Sharpton, the race-baiter, Jew-hater, liar, hoaxer, and former candidate for the Democratic nomination for President has been doing TV commercials for LoanMax.
LoanMax, run by the perfectly-named Rod Aycox (who also runs LoanSmart), owns the entire car-title loan industry in Iowa. This is the same car-title loan industry that charges up to 360% APR, something that Republicans Willard Jenkins of Waterloo and Christopher Rants of Hell find perfectly OK.
The Iowa Senate Democrats have an excellent web page documenting the practices of LoanMax.
From EURWeb:
Folks in the New Mexico and D.C. metropolitan area can tell you – Al Sharpton’s LoanMax commercials were shady-looking enough before a New York investigative news crew found the company to be the target of consumer groups for alleged predatory lending.Bolkcom has a winning issue. His bill in the last Iowa Legislature passed the Senate by a vote of 50-0, only to be killed in the House by that idiot Republican Rants.
“When I’m out fighting for the little guy and I need quick cash I find comfort in knowing that LoanMax is here for me,” Rev. Al says in the spot, which comes off as a “Saturday Night Live” skit poking fun at a cheesy car dealer commercial. Throughout the ad, he gestures stiffly with his eyes slightly off to the side to read the cue cards, and he points to the camera for emphasis at the end – it’s one of those ads...
In Iowa, one of the states where LoanMax operates, 1,000 cars had been repossessed by last May.
“LoanMax is a bottom feeder, said Iowa State Sen. Joe Bolkcom. “They are taking advantage of people in our state. My goal is to put them out of business.”
So what does Sharpton have to say about touting LoanMax? He told CBS 2: “I don’t understand why it’s wrong for the little guy with no credit not to be able to get money.”
We advocate a takeover of the Iowa House by Democrats in the 2006 elections solely for this issue to get passed. Rants needs to pay for blocking Bolkcom's bill with total loss of political power. It's the right thing to do.
More Chain Letters To The Editor
Shoshana Edwards-Jemison of Mason City starts off a letter to the Globe Gazette like this:
Oddly enough, the Million Phone March web site has this text:
Back to plagiarist Shoshana Edwards-Jemison's letter:
Yep, it's all about the unhinged leftist anti-war kooks trying to find another way to impeach President Bush.
Did you hear that, Political Forecast?
Well, did ya?
The president of the United States made a shocking admission. He has systematically been authorizing domestic spying in defiance of the requirement to at least secure approval from a FISA (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act) judge before doing so.
Oddly enough, the Million Phone March web site has this text:
He has systematically been authorizing domestic spying in defiance of the requirement to at least secure approval from a FISA (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act) judge before doing so
Back to plagiarist Shoshana Edwards-Jemison's letter:
Mr. Clinton was impeached for a lie that hurt no one but his immediate family. How can we do less to Mr. Bush, a president whose lies have caused the death and/or incarceration of thousands?
Yep, it's all about the unhinged leftist anti-war kooks trying to find another way to impeach President Bush.
Did you hear that, Political Forecast?
Well, did ya?
FUBAR Letter Of The Day
Merwin H. Briggs of Waverly writes to the Waterloo Courier:
Related: A previous FUBAR Letter Of The Day
Iowans are not very diverse. Los Angeles is more so. My daughter is employed at Cedars of Sinai hospital there, the hospital of the stars. They are very Jewish. They also depend on gifts from donors who may be a bit eccentric, opinionated and wealthy. They do not wish to offend them. They request their staff not use Merry Christmas. Happy Holidays and Happy Hanukah are approved. Even though the country is 85 percent Christian, it would seem to be the prerogative of an employer to not ignore the sensitivities of their clients, patients or customers. Cedars also has a dress code. Even our local banks, UPS and the military have a dress code (partly to impress others).
I can imagine a potential donor being offended and "big money" being at stake. I have noticed that charities and even churches in Iowa being careful not to ruffle certain feathers. Not all Christians agree on everything.
I received a message from Jimmy Carter that said "Wishing you peace and joy this holiday season and throughout the year." I took no offense. It is a little long. I would recommend the simple "peace." Since Jesus was not born on Dec. 25, we could use "peace" or "joy" or "have a good day" every day of the year.
I think the "golden rule" might be even more simplified to "respect others" or just "be nice." I hope that is Jesus’ message.
Merry Christmas or peace.
Related: A previous FUBAR Letter Of The Day
It's A Fine Line Between Snarky And Rabid
A reader alerted us to this post from the Diary Of A Political Madman blog:
We guess we also stepped on his balloon when we criticized college students who don't know what the hell they're doing except racking up a shitload of debt:
That's right. You don't need money to be happy, but it certainly does help. And not everybody who gets a worthless degree ends up with a worthless career. But how many more stories must we endure about beginning grade-school teachers who are $60,000 in debt or a would-be social worker who may end up with $100,000 in loans?
If you can't manage your life properly during your college years, why is that the State or Federal taxpayer's fault? Why do these graduates feel the need to run to the big newspaper in town and unload about how horrible it is that they must pay back that big fat student loan at a rate of $450 a month until they're 45 years old?
Finally there's this:
There's a fine line between being snarky and just being a straight-out asshole, and State 29 is across it.He has some bone to pick with us on our posts about how Kwanzaa is a made-up "holiday" by black racists and criminals, the inability of anti-war types who claim to the "support the troops" to understand that the vast majority of the troops actually support the War in Iraq and President Bush's leadership, and the notion that the wiretap kerfluffle is all about finding a way to impeach President Bush. We don't know why he has a bone to pick about any of these opinions of ours since he doesn't explain why we're wrong.
We guess we also stepped on his balloon when we criticized college students who don't know what the hell they're doing except racking up a shitload of debt:
I started at Drake in 2001 as an open-journalism major. I figured I'd work in either radio or newspaper (with a starting salary under $20k, either way). By State's standards, I'd fall under the heading of "stupid," as I was spending more annually on college than I would make annually afterwards...
State, if you read this, and I hope you will, lay off these people. Not everyone needs money to be happy, not everyone who gets a worthless degree ends up with a worthless career, and furthermore, someone as snarky as you probably isn't qualified to evaluate happiness.
That's right. You don't need money to be happy, but it certainly does help. And not everybody who gets a worthless degree ends up with a worthless career. But how many more stories must we endure about beginning grade-school teachers who are $60,000 in debt or a would-be social worker who may end up with $100,000 in loans?
If you can't manage your life properly during your college years, why is that the State or Federal taxpayer's fault? Why do these graduates feel the need to run to the big newspaper in town and unload about how horrible it is that they must pay back that big fat student loan at a rate of $450 a month until they're 45 years old?
Finally there's this:
State 29's rabid hyperpartisanship...We are actually non-partisan. See posts about Chuck Grassley, Jim Ross Nussle, Jeff Lameberti, Willard Jenkins, Christopher Rants, Bob Vander Plaats, Lance Horbach, George Pataki, David Oman , and Steve "The Combover" King (aka "Iowa's Dumbest Congressman") to fully understand what we think of their views about certain matters.
Higher Education And Debt
The Register Editorial Board has an opinion about the increasing debt levels of college students:
While costs have gone up due to decreased support by the State of public universities in favor of such extravagances as corporate welfare, the biggest factor is that students are taking much longer to complete their degrees. This PDF from Texas talks about how only 23% of students complete an undergraduate degree in four years. Only 53% completed within six years. It's a problem that has been building throughout the United States over the past couple of decades.
Students are also taking longer to complete more worthless degrees. When you're racking up $60,000 in debt to obtain a teaching job that pays $34,000 a year or $100,000 in debt to become a social worker, you're a fool.
You think the buffet chef at the casino went $100,000 into debt for her job?
We also fault high schools and those running colleges and universities for refusing to deal with the issue.
Why high schools? Because career guidance counseling is terrible. So many kids get into college without an idea or a plan. That's disasterous. The trades are hurting for willing apprentices and experienced journeymen. Many students pushed into the direction of a state university should have probably considered a skilled trade instead.
As far as those people running colleges or universities, they could give a crap about an 18 year old's interests. All they care about is getting paid. These people know that whatever student loans the kid gets will have to be paid back - either in the form of payments over 15-20 years or via the IRS if defaulted. And if the kid charges his or her way through college, well then that's not their fault! Blame the credit card companies and America's obsession with materialistic consumer culture instead. Better yet, write a doctorate dissertation about it.
There was a time when Iowa prided itself on offering high-quality education that was also affordable. Now students graduating from Iowa's three public universities are leaving with an average of $22,405 in student-loan debt — hardly affordable by most Iowans' standards.That's bullshit and the Register Editorial Board knows it.
Students owe more because tuition is higher. Tuition is higher, in large part, because state support for universities has fallen over the past several years.
While costs have gone up due to decreased support by the State of public universities in favor of such extravagances as corporate welfare, the biggest factor is that students are taking much longer to complete their degrees. This PDF from Texas talks about how only 23% of students complete an undergraduate degree in four years. Only 53% completed within six years. It's a problem that has been building throughout the United States over the past couple of decades.
Students are also taking longer to complete more worthless degrees. When you're racking up $60,000 in debt to obtain a teaching job that pays $34,000 a year or $100,000 in debt to become a social worker, you're a fool.
You think the buffet chef at the casino went $100,000 into debt for her job?
State lawmakers need to figure out how to increase funding to universities. But it will take concerted effort from everyone to address the problem. Iowa's representatives in Congress need to push for an increase in Pell grants, to keep pace with the increase in the cost of college. Universities need to do all they can to control costs. Students need to borrow only what is absolutely necessary to fund their education.Where are the parents in all of this? Does anybody save money for their children's higher education costs anymore? Iowans have numerous options for saving that are coupled with tax breaks. Remember, from the moment you've got morning sickness to the time of high school graduation is about 19 years. Surely you can squirrel away a few dollars in that timeframe.
We also fault high schools and those running colleges and universities for refusing to deal with the issue.
Why high schools? Because career guidance counseling is terrible. So many kids get into college without an idea or a plan. That's disasterous. The trades are hurting for willing apprentices and experienced journeymen. Many students pushed into the direction of a state university should have probably considered a skilled trade instead.
As far as those people running colleges or universities, they could give a crap about an 18 year old's interests. All they care about is getting paid. These people know that whatever student loans the kid gets will have to be paid back - either in the form of payments over 15-20 years or via the IRS if defaulted. And if the kid charges his or her way through college, well then that's not their fault! Blame the credit card companies and America's obsession with materialistic consumer culture instead. Better yet, write a doctorate dissertation about it.
Monday, December 26, 2005
Ottumwa Wants A Public Access TV Channel
Ottumwa is currently renegotiating their contract with Mediacom for providing cable TV service to the community. Some of the demands of the Ottumwa Courier include:
Better equipment — The city needs modern equipment to broadcast council meetings, work sessions, possibly other city-related events that the entire community can see. Mediacom should provide that equipment.A video camera? A microphone? Some geeky intern from Indian Hills? What more could you possibly need?
Public access channel — Like Fairfield, Ames and other communities in Iowa, Ottumwa should have a public access channel to allow residents to air their views and produce local programming. This channel would give residents more of a voice when it comes to their local government.Ottumwa residents will be glued to their La-Z-Boys with riveting programming like these video clips of sand being pushed around by a backhoe, a bunch of high schoolers doing their "Broadway Players" dance routine, or an exciting tour of the Marharishi School of Management's Student Union.
More channels — Considering that Mediacom has recently announced a rate increase, there really should be more options when it comes to our television viewing — basic and/or basic expanded.What? You're not happy with just VH-1? How about VH1 Classic, VH1 Country, VH1 Soul, VH1 Uno, and LOGO? Will that make life better and bring jobs and industry to Ottumwa?
Iowa State Patrol Priorities
From the Washington Evening Journal:
Anybody reporter out there have the balls to ask Governor Vilsack why this sort of poor planning is happening?
Two area state patrolmen will be transferred from patrol duties to gaming enforcement in early 2006, leaving trooper manpower short...
Anybody reporter out there have the balls to ask Governor Vilsack why this sort of poor planning is happening?
Operation Coal Lump
From Iowahawk:
The New York Times reported today that Polar authorities are engaged in a secret program to conduct warrantless monitoring of private communications and activities among U.S. minors. Anonymous sources within the State Department and Central Intelligence Agency said the program, codename "Operation Coal Lump," dates as far back as 1879, and received approval at the highest echelon of Polar administration, including President Santa Claus himself.
The disclosure of the program sparked an immediate furor among civil libertarian organizations and brats right groups. ACLU spokesman Dan Knaggs said "that chill in the air isn't December -- it's Big Brother Kriss Kringle unconstitutionally watching, and following, and evaluating your every move."
...The Times announced it would be running a series of stories in the days ahead focusing on other illegal Polar administration programs, including unauthorized airspace violations and "no-knock" home invasions.
The Register Lies About Kwanzaa
The Des Moines Register has a big story about Kwanzaa that omits all the negative stuff about the huckster/criminal who invented it: Ron Everett Professor Maulana Karenga and his followers:
And also this about one of the biggest liars, race pimps, and hoaxers ever:
Kwanzaa is a "holiday" for black criminals, Marxists, racists, and liars.
"The victims said they were living at Karenga's home when Karenga accused them of trying to kill him by placing 'crystals' in his food and water and in various areas of his house. When they denied it, allegedly they were beaten with an electrical cord and a hot soldering iron was put in Miss Davis' mouth and against her face. Police were told that one of Miss Jones' toes was placed in a small vise which then allegedly was tightened by one of the defendants. The following day Karenga allegedly told the women that 'Vietnamese torture is nothing compared to what I know.' Miss Tamayo reportedly put detergent in their mouths, Smith turned a water hose full force on their faces, and Karenga, holding a gun, threatened to shoot both of them."
And also this about one of the biggest liars, race pimps, and hoaxers ever:
On December 24, 1971, the New York Times ran one of the first of many articles on a new holiday designed to foster unity among African Americans. The holiday, called Kwanzaa, was applauded by a certain sixteen-year-old minister who explained that the feast would perform the valuable service of "de-whitizing" Christmas. The minister was a nobody at the time but he would later go on to become perhaps the premier race-baiter of the twentieth century. His name was Al Sharpton...
Kwanzaa is a "holiday" for black criminals, Marxists, racists, and liars.
What Do You Do For A Living?
Thomas Bradfield has an excellent op-ed in the Iowa City Press-Citizen about being a correctional officer.
Sunday, December 25, 2005
The Military Times Polls And A Strange Juxtaposition
A year ago, the Military Times released the results of an annual poll concerning a variety of issues facing the military. You can read a synopsis of this poll by the Gannettoids, who naturally obsess on things like Abu Ghraib and body armor.
Here's a link directly to the 2004 Military Times poll concerning the war, Iraq, and the performance of President Bush. Notice how only 20% of troops surveyed in 2004 said they were against the war, and only 16% were disapproving of President Bush's performance. These numbers were reported to be consistent with 2003's polling.
Surely we'll see the results of the 2005 poll in the next week or so, but we have a question or two for the far-lefties who claim to "support the troops" but then endlessly complain about how about the war.
Last time we looked, the military was voluntary. It's a rare event when somebody signs up for the military, gets trained, gets shipped to some place like Iraq, and then wonders where all the private condo living quarters are.
If Bush is such a liar, and the Iraq war is all based on a lie, then how come reenlistment numbers are so high?
Isn't it a strange juxtaposition that the anti-war types who claim to "support the troops" are, in fact, supporting the very same troops who are not only putting their lives on the line for this war, but who have consistently shown support of the war and Bush's performance in numbers that are comparable to the reddest state in the USA.
Here's a link directly to the 2004 Military Times poll concerning the war, Iraq, and the performance of President Bush. Notice how only 20% of troops surveyed in 2004 said they were against the war, and only 16% were disapproving of President Bush's performance. These numbers were reported to be consistent with 2003's polling.
Surely we'll see the results of the 2005 poll in the next week or so, but we have a question or two for the far-lefties who claim to "support the troops" but then endlessly complain about how about the war.
Last time we looked, the military was voluntary. It's a rare event when somebody signs up for the military, gets trained, gets shipped to some place like Iraq, and then wonders where all the private condo living quarters are.
If Bush is such a liar, and the Iraq war is all based on a lie, then how come reenlistment numbers are so high?
Isn't it a strange juxtaposition that the anti-war types who claim to "support the troops" are, in fact, supporting the very same troops who are not only putting their lives on the line for this war, but who have consistently shown support of the war and Bush's performance in numbers that are comparable to the reddest state in the USA.
The Associated Press Rewrite Can't Stories Crap For
Take a look at this story in the DMR on Saturday concerning Principal Financial Group's plans to take two offices managed by third-party contractors in Mexico and India and merge them into one office in India that will be run by Principal itself.
Makes sense, right?
Now read the completely fucked-up version that went out over the Associated Press wire on Sunday and was picked up by the likes of WHO-TV and other television news stations. Here are the first two paragraphs:
With an anticipated worker shortage in Des Moines, Principal Financial plans to open an employment center in India.
The announcement comes as the firm juggles growing business opportunities and a work force it says isn't large enough to fill its needs.
The original Des Moines Register story clearly indicates that Principal's plans in India have absolutely nothing to do with local hiring.
Whoever was the nameless turd who rewrote that Register story for the AP needs to have their ass kicked for directly (because they meant to) or indirectly (because they're stupid) trying to whip up some sort of anti-Indian sentiment against Principal.
Update: The Iowa City Press-Citizen piles on
Saturday, December 24, 2005
Molly Ivins Repeats Hoaxes
Molly Ivins is carried in a lot of Iowa newspapers over the weekend, so watch out for this column by her. In particular:
As it turns out, it's all a big hoax according to this story by Aaron Nicodemus:
So if your local newspaper carries that Molly Ivins column over the weekend, call them up and bitch them out. Or email them this State 29 blog entry.
Update: Looks like Ted Kennedy wrote a big op-ed in the Boston Globe that mentioned this hoax. The Kennedy compound response:
Here is a curious fact about the government of this country spying on its citizens: It always goes wrong immediately. For some reason, it's not as though we start with people anyone would regard as suspicious and then somehow slip gradually into spying on the Girl Scouts. We get it wrong from the beginning every time. Never seem to be able to distinguish between a terrorist and a vegetarian.
The Department of Defense has just proved this yet again with its latest folly of mistaking a flock of Florida Quakers for a threat to overthrow the government. A few months ago, a student at the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth tried to check out a copy of Mao's "Little Red Book" and wound up being interviewed by two feds. Cointelpro and all those misbegotten Nixon-era spy programs were always making ludicrous mistakes.
As it turns out, it's all a big hoax according to this story by Aaron Nicodemus:
The UMass Dartmouth student who claimed to have been visited by Homeland Security agents over his request for "The Little Red Book" by Mao Zedong has admitted to making up the entire story.
The 22-year-old student tearfully admitted he made the story up to his history professor, Dr. Brian Glyn Williams, and his parents, after being confronted with the inconsistencies in his account.
Had the student stuck to his original story, it might never have been proved false.
But on Thursday, when the student told his tale in the office of UMass Dartmouth professor Dr. Robert Pontbriand to Dr. Williams, Dr. Pontbriand, university spokesman John Hoey and The Standard-Times, the student added new details.
The agents had returned, the student said, just last night. The two agents, the student, his parents and the student's uncle all signed confidentiality agreements, he claimed, to put an end to the matter.
But when Dr. Williams went to the student's home yesterday and relayed that part of the story to his parents, it was the first time they had heard it. The story began to unravel, and the student, faced with the truth, broke down and cried.
So if your local newspaper carries that Molly Ivins column over the weekend, call them up and bitch them out. Or email them this State 29 blog entry.
Update: Looks like Ted Kennedy wrote a big op-ed in the Boston Globe that mentioned this hoax. The Kennedy compound response:
Laura Capps, a Kennedy spokeswoman, said last night that the senator cited ''public reports" in his opinion piece. Even if the assertion was a hoax, she said, it did not detract from Kennedy's broader point that the Bush administration has gone too far in engaging in surveillance.Speaking of hoaxes, Senator Kennedy. How does your neck feel?:
The Annual Airing Of Grievances
A letter, by Andrew Dietz of Manly, in the Mason City Globe Gazette:
Entering the realm of being politically correct of this day and age, let’s hit some things on the head with the hammer.
How is it that government buildings are shut down in observance of Christmas? Where’s that non-existent “church and state separation” rage from the usual crowd of God-haters now?
How come more people don’t contend with the blatant lie of some merry guy in a sleigh riding around in the span of 24 hours delivering all the nice kids presents?
Why is it that so many want to attack the word “Christmas?” This word is nowhere to be found in the Bible. The obvious hate for God by some people is amplified unto the masses.
No specific date is mentioned about the birth of the Christ child. Perhaps it was a very cold and windy snowy night. Somewhere and some time ago the King of Kings, and Lord of Lords, Jesus Christ, the Savior, was born, a perfect gift from the father of lights above, eternal life to all who call on and believe in his only begotten son.
Are you drowned out from this “holiday” season and all the commercialism? In the beginning, God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. If you could put all of the lights hung on trees and the houses and in the yards into one vast display, the brilliance and aura of the array of energy could not come close to the glory that awaits you who choose to accept God’s son into your heart.
Unto us this child is born!
Fort Madison Prison Break Wasn't Because Of Budget Cuts After All
From the Associated Press:
An Iowa State Penitentiary officer said prison guards were not watching inmates working in an industrial shop when an escape occurred last month.
Chris Tripp, a 17-year officer at the prison, said officials were putting a priority on filling orders for the shop's furniture rather than public safety.
"That night more emphasis was placed on making money ... for producing furniture than completing our mission to protect the public, the staff and the inmates," said Tripp, who is also vice president of American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees local 2989.
About 20 inmates worked into the evening of Nov. 14 and were being watched by a prison industries manager after the two correctional officers assigned to the unit left at 2:30 p.m. at the end of their shift. Prison officials had not scheduled them to be relieved.
The guard in the tower that overlooks the prison industries building was not relieved when his shift ended at 7 p.m.
Prison officials would not say how often workers go unsupervised by regular officers.
Er, that's quite a bit different take than the Des Moines Register had in a copyrighted story by William Petroski in mid-November.
Friday, December 23, 2005
Dear Political Forecast
Dear Political Forecast:
Heh,
Howard Fineman and the State 29 Gang
Update: Mainsteam Iowan has our back. So does In Muscatine. And Iowa Voice calls the Political Forecast blog "some liberal I've never heard of..." Side Notes and Detours thinks the far-left is going to "milk it for as much as possible."
For months now, I have been getting e-mails demanding that my various employers (NEWSWEEK, NBC News and MSNBC.com) include in their poll questionnaires the issue of whether Bush should be impeached. They used to demand this on the strength of the WMD issue, on the theory that the president had “lied us into war.” Now the Bush foes will base their case on his having signed off on the NSA’s warrantless wiretaps. He and Cheney will argue his inherent powers and will cite Supreme Court cases and the resolution that authorized him to make war on the Taliban and Al Qaeda. They will respond by calling him Nixon 2.0 and have already hauled forth no less an authority than John Dean to testify to the president’s dictatorial perfidy. The “I word” is out there, and, I predict, you are going to hear more of it next year—much more.
Heh,
Howard Fineman and the State 29 Gang
Update: Mainsteam Iowan has our back. So does In Muscatine. And Iowa Voice calls the Political Forecast blog "some liberal I've never heard of..." Side Notes and Detours thinks the far-left is going to "milk it for as much as possible."
Thursday, December 22, 2005
That Damned Stuck Left-Turn Signal
The Political Forecast (No more blinking text - ever! - Ed.) thinks we're still wrong about the whole NSA/wiretaps kerfluffle.
Since we are not lawyers, we're going to leave this one to the mouthpieces.
We respect those Powerline guys in Mpls for catching that liar Dan Rather, even if they are politically to the right of us, but this lengthy post as well as this attempt by John Hinderaker to get a simple answer from a NY Times reporter cover a lot of ground.
We still think the ultimate point of this exercise, besides selling books and making political hay, is to find a reason for far-lefty Democrats to go forward with impeachment charges (or at least the appearance of an impeachable charge) against President Bush, Vice President Cheney, Rumsfeld, and every other slightly Republican sympathizer on the planet.
Since we are not lawyers, we're going to leave this one to the mouthpieces.
We respect those Powerline guys in Mpls for catching that liar Dan Rather, even if they are politically to the right of us, but this lengthy post as well as this attempt by John Hinderaker to get a simple answer from a NY Times reporter cover a lot of ground.
We still think the ultimate point of this exercise, besides selling books and making political hay, is to find a reason for far-lefty Democrats to go forward with impeachment charges (or at least the appearance of an impeachable charge) against President Bush, Vice President Cheney, Rumsfeld, and every other slightly Republican sympathizer on the planet.
The $25 Million Down Payment On The Rainforest
From the Lone Tree Reporter:
What kind of "facts" are you looking for, Mayor?
The fact that David Oman is hard to work with and impossible to contact.
The fact that Senator Chuck Grassley put $50 million on this country's charge card to pay off his Republican buddy Oman and then slipped legislation through Congress that changed the scope of where the Federal charge card money could be spent?
The fact that Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, and now Coralville don't want the project.
Or are you interested in hearing lies?
The lie that over a million people a year are going to visit.
The lie that the Rainforest will be built for $180 million.
The lie that Riverside and Washington County residents won't eventually have their taxes hiked into the stratosphere to pay for it when the casino balks at burning more and more money for what has always been a bad idea.
Mayor Poch, you run a town of 977 people. You're in over your head.
About a dozen government and business leaders from Washington and Johnson counties met Wednesday, Dec. 14, to hear more about the rainforest and discuss their proposal. Out of that meeting, it became clear that they would have to raise approximately $25 million by the end of February to have an attractive offer.
"That is going to be a really major obstacle," Patton said. "We need a total cooperative effort from everyone involved. I'm not sure if we can come up with it or not."
The casino will likely be the major supporter of the rainforest, he suggested. About 25 acres directly across Hwy 22 from the gaming and golf resort is being proposed for the museum, aquarium and learning center. Casino developers are excited about cooperating with the rainforest project leaders, though they are not seeking any sort of official relationship.
Actual dollar commitments have yet to be determined, according to casino general manager Joe Massa.
"It's way too early to determine that yet," he said. "We're looking at it from an economic development and business standpoint."
The city of Riverside will wait for more information and will conduct extensive hearings before taking any action, according to Mayor Bill Poch.
"Riverside isn't going to do anything until we get some kind of official request," he said. "We're going to make sure that we hear all the facts."
What kind of "facts" are you looking for, Mayor?
The fact that David Oman is hard to work with and impossible to contact.
The fact that Senator Chuck Grassley put $50 million on this country's charge card to pay off his Republican buddy Oman and then slipped legislation through Congress that changed the scope of where the Federal charge card money could be spent?
The fact that Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, and now Coralville don't want the project.
Or are you interested in hearing lies?
The lie that over a million people a year are going to visit.
The lie that the Rainforest will be built for $180 million.
The lie that Riverside and Washington County residents won't eventually have their taxes hiked into the stratosphere to pay for it when the casino balks at burning more and more money for what has always been a bad idea.
Mayor Poch, you run a town of 977 people. You're in over your head.
King James And King William
Mainstream Iowan has a couple of questions for the Des Moines Register.
Meanwhile, some people are too obsessed with impeaching Bush over something - anything. Their rabid hyperpartisanship extends all the way to disallowing our country to defend itself from all enemies, foreign and domestic. They can use their high school debate class skills and link around to try to score all the political points they want, but they'll always be in the permanent minority when it comes to the bigger issue of National Security. Talk about cutting off your nose to spite your face.
Meanwhile, some people are too obsessed with impeaching Bush over something - anything. Their rabid hyperpartisanship extends all the way to disallowing our country to defend itself from all enemies, foreign and domestic. They can use their high school debate class skills and link around to try to score all the political points they want, but they'll always be in the permanent minority when it comes to the bigger issue of National Security. Talk about cutting off your nose to spite your face.
All Democrats Except Ed Fallon Want To Piss Off 81% Of Iowans
This is an interesting DMR piece on Deacon Blouin's suggestion that Iowa's English-only law should be repealed.
The story goes on to say that fellow gubernatorial candidates Patty Judge and Chet "Kent Dorfman" Culver also support the repeal.
Amazingly, Ed Fallon does not support the repeal:
Ed Fallon is no dummy. Even he understands that 81% of Iowans supported the law.
The story goes on to say that fellow gubernatorial candidates Patty Judge and Chet "Kent Dorfman" Culver also support the repeal.
Amazingly, Ed Fallon does not support the repeal:
State Rep. Ed Fallon said revisiting the issue would be counterproductive. "Let sleeping dogs lie," said Fallon, a vocal opponent of the law during the 2002 debate. "Let's do something meaningful for the Latino community."
Ed Fallon is no dummy. Even he understands that 81% of Iowans supported the law.
Luckily The Propane Torch Was Also Out Of Fuel
Some people are really, really stupid:
They've got DVDs all over the damn place, but no batteries. Perhaps they should get one of these flashlights for Christmas. That, and maybe a fire extinguisher for next time.
You have a fire extinguisher in your house, don't you? If not, get one for Christmas. They're available at every hardware store.
Janie Cooley, 43, was trying to find some DVDs under her mother's bed Wednesday at 1615 Franklin Ave. The flashlight batteries were dead, so Cooley used a cigarette lighter to provide light. Her mother, Anna Buckner, was asleep in another room.
The mattress caught fire and Cooley batted it out, "but then I saw this glow coming from under the bed, and the whole underside of the mattress was on fire," she said.
Her son, Dominique, 19, filled three milk jugs with water as the fire grew, but "as soon as the water was gone, the smoke came up," he said. "It was too much for me. I said, 'forget it' and ran outside the house."
They've got DVDs all over the damn place, but no batteries. Perhaps they should get one of these flashlights for Christmas. That, and maybe a fire extinguisher for next time.
You have a fire extinguisher in your house, don't you? If not, get one for Christmas. They're available at every hardware store.
Wednesday, December 21, 2005
Stacking The Deck In Waterloo
Updated below:
We knew others would come out of the woodwork to comment on our post yesterday concerning the individuals named to the Waterloo Municipal Communnications Utility Board. Here's information uncovered on four of the five:
Doris Kelly - they couldn't have stacked the deck any better than appointing this Director of Business Development with Black & Veatch, who authored this fawning report (PDF) on the Cedar Falls municipal broadband utility that, in reality, has lost money and was subsidized heavily by the electric utility.
Jim Waterbury is also a member of a nonprofit, unpaid board of volunteers to distribute gambling revenues raised by a Waterloo casino dedicated to local governments, charities and projects.
A city telco financed in part from gambling revenues? This article makes it sound possible. Here's another DMR story from 2004 also on the gambling/business/infrastructure angle.
Waterbury was also against the unionization of nurses at Allen Hospital, which is probably one of the contributing factors as to why Iowa nurses rank dead last (PDF) in the US in pay.
Do you think that Randy Pilkington probably isn't cozy with Clark McLeod? Check out this Waterloo Courier story. Pilkington was also on Vilsack's Iowa Council of Economic Advisers, and is involved with a venture capital fund that supports - you guessed it - information technology companies. Pilkington is also a big proponent of taxpayer-financed corporate welfare via Vision Iowa.
Bob Heaton was the Treasurer for Opportunity Waterloo. Ross Christiansen, the Chairman of Opportunity Waterloo, wrote this dippy letter to the editor in the Waterloo Courier:
Update: Don't miss this juicy story in the Waterloo Courier today concerning the municipal telecommunications board of Waterloo attempting toget kickbacks raise money from Clark McLeod Fiber Utilities, Inc so that the Board have can funding.
A reader also uncovered this above photo of Jim Waterbury (second from right), flanked by Rick Young (left) and Ross Christensen (right). Young and Christensen wrote a stupid letter to the Waterloo Courier that we destroyed not once but twice.
The fix is totally in. This is going to be a lovely disaster to watch.
We knew others would come out of the woodwork to comment on our post yesterday concerning the individuals named to the Waterloo Municipal Communnications Utility Board. Here's information uncovered on four of the five:
Doris Kelly - they couldn't have stacked the deck any better than appointing this Director of Business Development with Black & Veatch, who authored this fawning report (PDF) on the Cedar Falls municipal broadband utility that, in reality, has lost money and was subsidized heavily by the electric utility.
Jim Waterbury is also a member of a nonprofit, unpaid board of volunteers to distribute gambling revenues raised by a Waterloo casino dedicated to local governments, charities and projects.
A city telco financed in part from gambling revenues? This article makes it sound possible. Here's another DMR story from 2004 also on the gambling/business/infrastructure angle.
Waterbury was also against the unionization of nurses at Allen Hospital, which is probably one of the contributing factors as to why Iowa nurses rank dead last (PDF) in the US in pay.
Do you think that Randy Pilkington probably isn't cozy with Clark McLeod? Check out this Waterloo Courier story. Pilkington was also on Vilsack's Iowa Council of Economic Advisers, and is involved with a venture capital fund that supports - you guessed it - information technology companies. Pilkington is also a big proponent of taxpayer-financed corporate welfare via Vision Iowa.
Bob Heaton was the Treasurer for Opportunity Waterloo. Ross Christiansen, the Chairman of Opportunity Waterloo, wrote this dippy letter to the editor in the Waterloo Courier:
2. If we pass the referendum, Waterloo will have a five person board that will be responsible for looking out for our interests and make sure the providers do as they promise. There should be no need for them to go any further than being a watchdog for us to see that we are getting the right service at competitive prices. It won't cost a thing to perform this function and no system has to be built.In summary: Waterloo's board of trustees is stocked with a phony report proponent, an IT start-up investor backed with taxpayer money, a union-busting former television executive, and a hotelier-apartment owner who stands to gain from artificially reduced mass television, telephone and cable rates. And all of whom seemed to be tied pretty closely to gambling interests. Talk about a stacked deck!
Update: Don't miss this juicy story in the Waterloo Courier today concerning the municipal telecommunications board of Waterloo attempting to
A reader also uncovered this above photo of Jim Waterbury (second from right), flanked by Rick Young (left) and Ross Christensen (right). Young and Christensen wrote a stupid letter to the Waterloo Courier that we destroyed not once but twice.
The fix is totally in. This is going to be a lovely disaster to watch.
The Kind Of Residency Restriction We Like Against Sex Offenders
From a reader, here is an opinion today (PDF) concerning an appeal by defrocked Des Moines lawyer Michael Blazek's conviction of soliciting a minor for sex in 2002.
Blazek had been busted before for improper sexual contact in 1996 with his then-11 year old nephew.
Prison is the best residency restriction for sex offenders.
Steve Alford In The Hot Tub
Dang.
First the Hawkeye Men's Basketball team loses to UNI and Iowa State.
Last night, Dr Tom's Drake Bulldogs nearly whipped Alford's favorites.
If Alford can barely squeak by Drake, that's not good.
First the Hawkeye Men's Basketball team loses to UNI and Iowa State.
Last night, Dr Tom's Drake Bulldogs nearly whipped Alford's favorites.
If Alford can barely squeak by Drake, that's not good.
Throwing The Book At Drunk Drivers Who Kill
In followup to our recent post about Coach Drunk is this from the Sioux City Journal:
Sioux City North High School activities director Boyd Thomas "Tom" Brazzell was charged Tuesday in Dakota County with vehicular homicide and drunken driving...
Brazzell faces one charge of motor vehicle homicide, which is enhanced from a Class IIIA to a Class III felony, because of a previous drunken driving conviction in Pottawattamie County, Iowa. It is punishable by up to 20 years in prison, $25,000 in fines and revocation of his driver's license for 60 days to 15 years.
The second charge, DUI resulting in serious bodily injury, is a Class IIIA felony, and carries penalties of up to five years in prison, $10,000 in fines and revocation of his license for 60 days to 15 years.
According to police reports, Brazzell was driving a full-size pickup truck east on U.S. Highway 20 west of Jackson, Neb., when it crossed the center line and struck the oncoming Geo Metro driven by Curry. Andrew Curry was taken by air ambulance to Mercy Medical Center -- Sioux City. Brazzell was also hospitalized with injuries. The accident happened at about 5 p.m.
State Patrol records show Brazzell's blood alcohol level was .149 at the time, close to twice the legal definition of drunk in Nebraska.
At the time of the crash, Brazzell was serving a one-year unsupervised probation on a charge of drunken driving near Council Bluffs, Iowa. That happened about 3 a.m. on June 10. Bruning said a sheriff's deputy found him asleep at the wheel in a ditch beside Interstate 80, with tire marks showing he had tried to drive out of the ditch several times. Brazzell was convicted and sentenced in October for first-offense drunken driving.
"Mr. Brazzell's made the decision to get behind the wheel after he's been drinking not once, but twice," Bruning said. "The second time he killed an innocent husband and father. His repeated disregard for the law cannot and will not be ignored."
The Unhinged's Roadblocks
Jane Norman has a piece in the Register today about how Iowa's two Senators are either waffling (Grassley) or against the President (Harkin) approving the wiretapping of conversations of suspected terrorists.
The Political Forecast tries to rake us over the coals concerning our support of the President on this issue.
Whatever.
You know, you far-leftists are so annoying. You're still pissed off about the 2000 and 2004 elections so you want something - anything - to try to impeach President Bush. Nevermind that there are people plotting and scheming to blow up this or hijack that in the United States in the name of Jihad or Allah or whatever gutter-sucking faction of a "religion" that boils down to nothing more than the celebration of violence against women and death of infidels in the name some child-fucker from the 7th century.
We are not all rah rah sis boom bah about President Bush. His inability to veto any pork is disturbing. He never uses his bully pulpit for any type of domestic agenda. And you'd think the guy would spend some time with Anthony Robbins so he could speak extemporaneously a little better. And a lot of other things.
But if Bush ever gets around to using wiretaps to spy on Howard Dean, George Clooney, or Al Franken, then by all means impeach his ass. Until then, we've got a war to fight against radical Islamofascists. You RINOs and far-leftist Democrats should get on board this fight. It's the right thing to do.
Update: Side Notes has an extremely long post about FISA with lots of links and back-and-forth real-time thinking about the issue.
The Political Forecast tries to rake us over the coals concerning our support of the President on this issue.
Whatever.
You know, you far-leftists are so annoying. You're still pissed off about the 2000 and 2004 elections so you want something - anything - to try to impeach President Bush. Nevermind that there are people plotting and scheming to blow up this or hijack that in the United States in the name of Jihad or Allah or whatever gutter-sucking faction of a "religion" that boils down to nothing more than the celebration of violence against women and death of infidels in the name some child-fucker from the 7th century.
We are not all rah rah sis boom bah about President Bush. His inability to veto any pork is disturbing. He never uses his bully pulpit for any type of domestic agenda. And you'd think the guy would spend some time with Anthony Robbins so he could speak extemporaneously a little better. And a lot of other things.
But if Bush ever gets around to using wiretaps to spy on Howard Dean, George Clooney, or Al Franken, then by all means impeach his ass. Until then, we've got a war to fight against radical Islamofascists. You RINOs and far-leftist Democrats should get on board this fight. It's the right thing to do.
Update: Side Notes has an extremely long post about FISA with lots of links and back-and-forth real-time thinking about the issue.
Whatever You Do, Don't Click This Link
NSFW picture
May scare young children and old ladies. May cause grown men to become impotent. May cause you to eat an entire bag of Cheetos or maybe run a marathon. You've been warned!!!!!!
May scare young children and old ladies. May cause grown men to become impotent. May cause you to eat an entire bag of Cheetos or maybe run a marathon. You've been warned!!!!!!
Tuesday, December 20, 2005
Waterloo Names Telecom Utility Commission Members
From KWWL-TV:
Doris Kelly - they couldn't have stacked the deck any better than appointing this Director of Business Development with Black & Veatch, who authored this fawning report (PDF) on the Cedar Falls municipal broadband utility.
Jim Waterbury is the vice president of institutional development for Allen Health Systems and former general manager for KWWL-TV.
Scott Crowley is a manager of agricultural applications for John Deere.
Randy Pilkington is the executive director of the University of Northern Iowa's Business & Community Services division.
Bob Heaton is an accountant from Waterloo.
As for Mayor Hurley's comments about who to talk to first, we suggest that Hurley consider finding out if residents are even interested in switching to a municipal communications utility. Won't the customers be the ones who will be supporting such a venture?
Oh, wait, no... as in all other cases around Iowa, either the costs are passed on through the local electric utility (Everybody except that crazy bearded freak living off the grid in the woods. - Ed.) or the local politicians threaten the town with tax increases if they don't switch.
Mayor Hurley says he has received numerous applications and sought out several potential candidates. But in the end, he says he picked the commission on their will to do the work and knowledge of the telecom buisiness. During Monday night's council meeting, the telecom board received unanimous approval.
The board consists of five people from the city of Waterloo, including Doris Kelly, Jim Waterbury, Scott Crowley, Randy Pilkington, and Bob Heaton. The commission must now meet, organize and delegate roles. Once that happens, the mayor says they will get right to work looking at what cable, internet and telephone services are currently provided to the city, and what services are still needed.
"I think the first folks that we talk to, that the commission will talk to are the current providers. That's the way it should work and if the current providers are unwilling or cannot full those gaps with their services that when we contemplate whether we build a system of our own," Mayor Hurley says.
Doris Kelly - they couldn't have stacked the deck any better than appointing this Director of Business Development with Black & Veatch, who authored this fawning report (PDF) on the Cedar Falls municipal broadband utility.
Jim Waterbury is the vice president of institutional development for Allen Health Systems and former general manager for KWWL-TV.
Scott Crowley is a manager of agricultural applications for John Deere.
Randy Pilkington is the executive director of the University of Northern Iowa's Business & Community Services division.
Bob Heaton is an accountant from Waterloo.
As for Mayor Hurley's comments about who to talk to first, we suggest that Hurley consider finding out if residents are even interested in switching to a municipal communications utility. Won't the customers be the ones who will be supporting such a venture?
Oh, wait, no... as in all other cases around Iowa, either the costs are passed on through the local electric utility (Everybody except that crazy bearded freak living off the grid in the woods. - Ed.) or the local politicians threaten the town with tax increases if they don't switch.
Skateboarding Is Not A Crime
From the Mt Pleasant News:
This sort of thing is so cool. You know those kids and parents are going to make that skate-park a reality. It'll probably happen quicker than Oman attempting to raise $127,000 in private money for that stupid Rainforest.
About two dozen Mt. Pleasant young people, all skateboarding enthusiasts, said last night at a public forum they are committed to raising the $127,000 needed to build an outdoors, concrete skate-park in Mt. Pleasant.
The forum, called to air concerns from the public about a skate-park built here, drew no public representatives other than three reporters and a few parents. But the kids spoke their minds and said they were committed to making the skate-park a reality.
On hand was city councilman Bob Griffith, who said the skate-park is not on the city's budget and will not commit funds for its construction. However, he added, if built, the city is prepared to take possession and provide for its maintenance.
This sort of thing is so cool. You know those kids and parents are going to make that skate-park a reality. It'll probably happen quicker than Oman attempting to raise $127,000 in private money for that stupid Rainforest.
The Problem With State 29
Some blog called Scuttle Buttin takes issue with our stance on Iowa's weird and arbitrary 2000-ft sex offender residency law.
Don't point fingers at us. Ask Lance Horbach, one of the legislators who originally co-sponsored the bill in the Iowa House. In October he came out with reservations about the law's unintended consequences.
The law didn't protect the two year old girl at the downtown Des Moines Public Library in October. It didn't protect the two boys who were allegedly molested in Des Moines recently. And it certainly wouldn't have protected Jetseta Gage.
The law is nothing but political lip service and an unfunded mandate on local police and sheriff's departments. Why not first pass tougher anti-sex offender laws that keep the worst and multiple offenders behind bars forever? Iowans would gladly pay millions for new prisons to put these scumbags away. We'll be the first in line to write a check. Maybe Dirty Knappy has some land he can sell the State for a new prison.
And, thanks to Governor Vilsack, a sex offender who can't live within 2000 feet of a school can now march right into one filled with kids on election day and cast a vote; preferably before taking some kid into a closet, touching their pubes, or fucking them in the ass. Isn't that wonderful? Iowa Democrats don't want to trample on a sex offender's civil rights when it comes to voting, y'know. But as far as where sex offenders can live, that's another matter entirely.
If such residency restrictions are OK, how come we don't have them for people on parole for murder, voluntary and involuntary manslaughter, armed robbery, burglary, multiple offense drunk drivers, wife beaters, embezzlers, and people who have unpaid parking tickets. When does it end?
Read this partial transcript of the Iowa Press show with Ed Fallon and "Governor" David Yepsen debating the law. Who sounds more reasonable and knowledgeable about the issue? If you think David Yepsen is, you're fucking crazy.
Update: Check out this Radio Iowa story today about a "minister" who copped a deal after being accused of abusing young girls who were in a daycare provided by his wife. He could face up to 15 years in prison. You know what that means. He'll be out by 2009 or 2010. Maybe even before then. What a fucking joke. Somebody like this should be dragged off to prison for the rest of his life, preferably with a rope tied around his neck and a car pulling him along at 55 mph.
Don't point fingers at us. Ask Lance Horbach, one of the legislators who originally co-sponsored the bill in the Iowa House. In October he came out with reservations about the law's unintended consequences.
The law didn't protect the two year old girl at the downtown Des Moines Public Library in October. It didn't protect the two boys who were allegedly molested in Des Moines recently. And it certainly wouldn't have protected Jetseta Gage.
The law is nothing but political lip service and an unfunded mandate on local police and sheriff's departments. Why not first pass tougher anti-sex offender laws that keep the worst and multiple offenders behind bars forever? Iowans would gladly pay millions for new prisons to put these scumbags away. We'll be the first in line to write a check. Maybe Dirty Knappy has some land he can sell the State for a new prison.
And, thanks to Governor Vilsack, a sex offender who can't live within 2000 feet of a school can now march right into one filled with kids on election day and cast a vote; preferably before taking some kid into a closet, touching their pubes, or fucking them in the ass. Isn't that wonderful? Iowa Democrats don't want to trample on a sex offender's civil rights when it comes to voting, y'know. But as far as where sex offenders can live, that's another matter entirely.
If such residency restrictions are OK, how come we don't have them for people on parole for murder, voluntary and involuntary manslaughter, armed robbery, burglary, multiple offense drunk drivers, wife beaters, embezzlers, and people who have unpaid parking tickets. When does it end?
Read this partial transcript of the Iowa Press show with Ed Fallon and "Governor" David Yepsen debating the law. Who sounds more reasonable and knowledgeable about the issue? If you think David Yepsen is, you're fucking crazy.
Update: Check out this Radio Iowa story today about a "minister" who copped a deal after being accused of abusing young girls who were in a daycare provided by his wife. He could face up to 15 years in prison. You know what that means. He'll be out by 2009 or 2010. Maybe even before then. What a fucking joke. Somebody like this should be dragged off to prison for the rest of his life, preferably with a rope tied around his neck and a car pulling him along at 55 mph.
Iowa Still Soft On Juvenile Reoffenders
From the QC Times comes a story via the AP about a Muscatine 13 year old who was charged with causing $80,000 worth of damage to a historic cemetary:
A quick scan of the Iowa Court Search (Trial Court) shows that Cory Leibbrand was charged on December 11, 2004, when he was barely 12 years old, with burglary in the third degree, which in Iowa is a Class D felony. Leibbrand was sentenced on February 4, 2005, after admitting to two counts of burglary in the third degree and criminal mischief in the second degree. He was placed on probation until age 18 and ordered to perform 100 hours of community service.
Whoever was the judge for that case needs to be publicly outed and moved into another line of work - preferably making french fries at Hardee's.
Cory Leibbrand, 13, of Muscatine, was charged with first-degree criminal mischief and placed in the custody of juvenile court officials.We think juvenile court records should be open to the public. There's no reason why these multiple offenders should get away with having their criminal past sealed solely because of their age. How else does the public know when there's a sociopath living in their neighborhood?
A quick scan of the Iowa Court Search (Trial Court) shows that Cory Leibbrand was charged on December 11, 2004, when he was barely 12 years old, with burglary in the third degree, which in Iowa is a Class D felony. Leibbrand was sentenced on February 4, 2005, after admitting to two counts of burglary in the third degree and criminal mischief in the second degree. He was placed on probation until age 18 and ordered to perform 100 hours of community service.
Whoever was the judge for that case needs to be publicly outed and moved into another line of work - preferably making french fries at Hardee's.
King George vs Hitlery and Sandy Burglar
We are amused by the Register Editorial Board's rant against "King George" in the DMR today.
Did the Register Editorial Board ever write such nonsense when Hillary was caught with those 900 FBI files when she was researching her political enemies?
Also, a quick scan of NewsBank for 2004 and 2005 shows that there was not a peep from the Register Editorial Board concerning former Clinton Administration National Security Advisor SandyBurglar Berger when he was being investigated for and then admitted to stuffing classified documents into his clothes and later destroying them.
Update: This WSJ editorial destroys the REB's column.
Did the Register Editorial Board ever write such nonsense when Hillary was caught with those 900 FBI files when she was researching her political enemies?
Also, a quick scan of NewsBank for 2004 and 2005 shows that there was not a peep from the Register Editorial Board concerning former Clinton Administration National Security Advisor Sandy
Update: This WSJ editorial destroys the REB's column.
Governor Yepsen Wants The Pickup Truck Tax Break Ended, But...
Governor David Yepsen advocates eliminating the tax break in Iowa whereby owners of pickup trucks are limited to a $65 registration fee.
For example, a new Dodge Ram Hemi owner pays $65 a year while somebody who has a new gas-sipping Toyota Corolla pays nearly $200. Yepsen said eliminating this old tax break originally intended for farmers would bring in $50 million to $70 million for new roads.
But four years ago, Governor Yepsen wrote a column (discovered via NewsBank) concerning Iowa's road fund money. Governor Yepsen complained about how Iowa had way too many roads. Kind of hypocritical, don't you think?
Also buried within that column was this nugget:
We rank third in per capita motor-vehicle and operators license fees. The average Iowan pays $113.32 in license fees. Nationally, that figure is $56.36.
Obviously, when those urban cowboys driving their gas-guzzlers start paying their fair share, it would be better to drive down license fees for those who buy automobiles - especially more fuel efficient cars.
A legislator, gubernatorial candidate, or even Governor Vilsack, should propose overhauling the license fee structure to be more fair with regard to a new vehicle's MSRP and EPA mileage figures. If you can afford a $40,000 truck that gets 14 mpg on the highway, then you can afford a higher license fee. Likewise, and especially if we want Iowans to be more fuel efficient, we should drastically lower the fees on more frugal cars.
We doubt that will ever happen. Politicians will never upset the "farmer" lobbyists who line their re-election coffers. We are more likely to get some watered-down bill proposing license fee breaks for vehicles that have FFV (E85 ethanol) capabilities, even though you couldn't find a station selling E85 in Iowa if your life depended on it.
Deer Poachers Are Worse Than River Polluters?
From WHO-TV comes this story about four young men who were caught with 12 poached deer and fined $63,000 by the Iowa DNR.
That seems rather excessive, especially since the deer population is a problem throughout Iowa.
Compare and contrast that fine with this $50,000 settlement with the Attorney General's office by a polluter who spilled 7000 gallons of pig shit into the West Nishnabotna River in late 2003.
That seems rather excessive, especially since the deer population is a problem throughout Iowa.
Compare and contrast that fine with this $50,000 settlement with the Attorney General's office by a polluter who spilled 7000 gallons of pig shit into the West Nishnabotna River in late 2003.
Monday, December 19, 2005
The Entire World Is Soft On High School Basketball Coaches Who Drive Drunk Repeatedly And Kill
From KTIV today:
Facing probation violations in Iowa for drunk driving, the activities director at Sioux City North High School is retiring.
School officials say Tom Brazzell sent them a letter saying he would be leaving his position. The retirement must be formally accepted by the school board. Until then, he's on medical leave.
Brazzell coached the North Star boys basketball team to the state tournament in 2004.
Court documents show Brazzell had a blood alcohol level of 0.149 during a November crash that killed Tom Curry, of Ponca, Nebraska, and seriously injured his teenage son. No charges have been filed in that case, but Dakota County officials say they will hold a news conference, Monday. Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning will also attend.
That's not all. This is from KITV just four days ago:
With a reported blood alcohol level of .149, almost two times the legal limit, a bondsman picked up Brazzell on Wednesday for violating his probation in Pottattwattmie County, Iowa. It all started this June when authorities say 61-year-old Brazzell drove drunk there. A judge ordered him to go through a chemical dependency program. He completed the treatment plan a week and a half before investigators say collided with Curry on highway 20.
It's difficult to comprehend why Brazzell wasn't thrown in the clink in November after he blew a .149, especially being involved in an accident that killed a man. Preferential treatment because he's some bigshot basketball coach?
Guess what, Coach Drunk? You killed a person. You fucked up and ruined many lives because of drinking and driving. You deserve nothing less than to be executed like all the other killers out there, but states are still too soft on drunk drivers who kill. You'll probably be out in a couple of years and given your driver's license back. Maybe the public will get lucky next time around and you'll wrap your car around a tree and kill yourself instead.
Update:
Here's the person Coach Drunk killed: Dr Tom Curry of Morningside College:
Dr. Tom Curry, Business Administration and Economics has ten years banking experience serving as an Assistant Vice President and manager of the consumer loan department of a large regional bank. He recently completed his work for his doctorate from the University of South Dakota, where his dissertation studied state prepayment tuition plans. His work is submitted for journal publications, and noted by faculty committee as significant research in the field. He teaches the finance courses, and has worked closely with students in understanding the corporate side of finance. Tom also advises the student business fraternity, Phi Beta Lambda.
3MTA3
From WHO-TV:
We tried searching for the list, but couldn't find anything other than numerous Google hits to the Yin Blog.
Iowa has a large number of personalized plates to choose from, including the "Love Our Kids" plate, which is probably not reserved for parents who choose to subject their children to Iowa's sex offenders (Examples here and here - Ed.).
State transportation officials have stepped up their review of vanity license plates, looking for hidden messages or inappropriate jargon among the letters and numbers.
The D-O-T says a growing popularity of rap and hip-hop music filled with salty language, the increasing number of languages in Iowa and the continuing evolution of slang creates special challenges.
...The D-O-T has compiled a list over almost 22-hundred items that have been excluded or rejected.
We tried searching for the list, but couldn't find anything other than numerous Google hits to the Yin Blog.
Iowa has a large number of personalized plates to choose from, including the "Love Our Kids" plate, which is probably not reserved for parents who choose to subject their children to Iowa's sex offenders (Examples here and here - Ed.).
Break Like The Wind
From Renewable Energy Access:
MidAmerican Energy's 360.5 MW wind project -- 257 wind turbines in north central and northwest Iowa -- is now online. According to the company, this project makes MidAmerican the third leading owner of wind energy in the nation, by total generation capacity. The wind project itself is also one of the largest in the nation.
The 122nd and final wind turbine was commissioned recently at the Intrepid site near Schaller in northwest Iowa. On Nov. 30, the 135th and final wind turbine was commissioned at the Century site near Blairsburg in north central Iowa. Together, the two sites have the capacity to produce enough electricity to power 100,000 homes.
Followup Story On That Prison Escapee
From the Burlington Hawk Eye:
One of two inmates who escaped Nov. 14 from the state penitentiary may never return to Iowa, according to authorities in Missouri.
"He (Robert Joseph Legendre) will have to answer for the crimes he committed here first," said Chris Hinckley, assistant circuit attorney for the city of St. Louis. "We have a good case against him. It seems unlikely he will ever be sent back to Iowa."
Legendre, 27, was arrested in Missouri after he assaulted two cab drivers in St. Louis. For those crimes, Hinckley said, Legendre has been charged with two counts of first–degree robbery and two counts of armed criminal action.
Read the whole thing. Quite a fascinating story. Looks like Legendre was outsourced to Iowa for incarceration.
Babysitting
From the Des Moines Register:
A 35-year-old man wanted since October for a violation of the Iowa Sex Offender Registry was located over the weekend but not before allegedly abusing two children.
James Alex Conway, 35, was not staying at the Randolph Hotel in downtown Des Moines last September when police knocked on his door to check to see if he was living where he had registered with the state. A warrant for his arrest was issued shortly thereafter.
On Saturday, a parent contacted police, accusing Conway of molesting two boys ages seven and 10.
"He was babysitting," Des Moines Police Sgt. Todd Dykstra said.
Here's Conway's entry in the Iowa Sex Offender database.
Isn't it great that Iowa has that weird 2000 foot sex offender residency law in effect? Sure is workin', ain't it?
Political Science
Chris at the Political Forecast says:
First of all, we're not making fun of you. You're a rare one who has entered higher education with a goal in mind. Just don't go $100,000 in debt getting there and then bitch about it to your local newspaper.
A political science degree is a perfectly valid degree as long as it is coupled with another or an advanced degree of some kind: public flunky, J-skool, MBA, or JD, and leading to a particular career goal. It's just that too many people complete a poli sci degree, graduate, and find that it was all for nothing when contemplating their job search options.
State 29 makes fun of my desire to get a political science degree…I wonder if he’d be glad to know that I plan on getting a masters in public administration or public policy. Does that make it any more admirable?
First of all, we're not making fun of you. You're a rare one who has entered higher education with a goal in mind. Just don't go $100,000 in debt getting there and then bitch about it to your local newspaper.
A political science degree is a perfectly valid degree as long as it is coupled with another or an advanced degree of some kind: public flunky, J-skool, MBA, or JD, and leading to a particular career goal. It's just that too many people complete a poli sci degree, graduate, and find that it was all for nothing when contemplating their job search options.
More Dirty Knappy-Like Behavior In Waterloo?
Dave Nagle writes to the Waterloo Courier:
Related: Dirty Bill Knapp
Several years ago, I was retained to represent several property owners who were opposed to the Ansborough Interchange. We argued in vain that studies showed it was not necessary and the costs were being wildly misrepresented.And people think the Rainforest can be built for only $180 million.
During the height of the debate, we were advised that Waterloo could afford this improvement because the cost was only going to be $3.5 million. Aside from the fact that the project seemed to benefit properties in which the city attorney has a significant financial interest, there did not seem to be a sound reason why the city of Waterloo was underestimating the costs.
I write only for purposes of historical footnote so that the next time our city officials assure us of a project's cost, we view their representation with some skepticism. I say this because the city just announced new cost figures for the city attorney's interchange: $4.8 million and rising.
Related: Dirty Bill Knapp
Your Monday Morning Dorman
Don't miss Todd Dorman's column in the QC Times this morning. Here's an excerpt:
Shopping days before Christmas are rapidly dwindling. Luckily, our annual Statehouse Gift Catalog still has many fine options available for the holiday procrastinators among us.
Here are a few selections sure to put a smile on the face of even the toughest Scrooge come Christmas morning...
Buffer-Zone Bingo – Players draw 2,000-foot sex offender-free zones around schools, playgrounds, churches, parks and swimming pools. First player to black out the entire state of Iowa wins. Hours of fun for the whole family…….$17.95
Dick Control
In the Des Moines Register, Dick Doak tries to persuade opponents of "socialized medicine" that it's not really socialized medicine:
Socialism is an economic system in which the government owns the means of production.You're wrong, Dick Doak. Look at this definition of the term "socialized" and you'll see the following:
In other words, the government owns the mines, the factories, etc. The workers are employees of the government.
Picture a health-care system in which all of the clinics, all of the hospitals and pharmacies and all of the medical-equipment factories are owned by the government. The government would manufacture all the drugs. There would be no private practice of medicine. All of the doctors would be government employees.
Now that would be socialized medicine.
1. To place under government or group ownership or control.
Dick, we're talking about control here.
We don't want the government controlling who is covered and how much is reimbursed and what is paid for and who has to pay for it.
We're almost there now, and guess what? It's a screwed up system.
And when did it become a mess? Decades ago when the government starting sticking their nose in everywhere.
Sunday, December 18, 2005
Laffer Curve In Effect, Y'All. Part Deux.
Drew Miller isn't sure whether we're sarcastic in this post yesterday concerning Iowa Hawkeye men's basketball season ticket sales to students and our attempt to explain it all simply as a Laffer Curve effect.
We're only sarcastic in the fact that it took AD Bob Bowlsby several years to try something - anything - in order to stop the sliding attendance figures ever since hiring the worthless and feckless Steve Alford for more than double Dr Tom's final salary.
Analogous to this example is that while Reagan and the Democrats who controlled Congress during the early 1980s cut tax rates, they didn't restrain spending worth a crap so we had all those big deficits.
Likewise, Steve Alford may have been hired and overpaid to win the Hawkeyes a Big Ten title, but we've had years and years of Alford's "favorites" choking when it came time to play fellow conference teams. Then there were the Pierre "I've Got Your F***ing Laptop" Pierce years that really soured Iowans on our rapist-defending coach and AD. So while cutting student season ticket prices will increase attendance and bring in slightly more revenue, the bigger problem of who's coaching and what's happening remains a fundemental problem that will eclipse any short-term gains.
We're only sarcastic in the fact that it took AD Bob Bowlsby several years to try something - anything - in order to stop the sliding attendance figures ever since hiring the worthless and feckless Steve Alford for more than double Dr Tom's final salary.
Analogous to this example is that while Reagan and the Democrats who controlled Congress during the early 1980s cut tax rates, they didn't restrain spending worth a crap so we had all those big deficits.
Likewise, Steve Alford may have been hired and overpaid to win the Hawkeyes a Big Ten title, but we've had years and years of Alford's "favorites" choking when it came time to play fellow conference teams. Then there were the Pierre "I've Got Your F***ing Laptop" Pierce years that really soured Iowans on our rapist-defending coach and AD. So while cutting student season ticket prices will increase attendance and bring in slightly more revenue, the bigger problem of who's coaching and what's happening remains a fundemental problem that will eclipse any short-term gains.
Ed Fallon Is Doomed
Rekha Basu essentially endorses Ed Fallon, along with DM Big Shot Mouthpiece Elizabeth Kruidenier.
We love Ed Fallon, but this sort of an endorsement is disturbing without some right-winger coming out of the closet and throwing some support for balance.
Higher Education Debt Hell In Iowa
The Des Moines Register has a major story today on the number of college graduates who are in debt hell.
Here's an example:
Why would you go $60,000 in debt at a private university to get a job that pays $34,000 a year? That's crazy.
The problem is that too many people are expected to go to college after high school, but few know which career direction they're headed when they start. Many parents have failed to save any money over the previous 22 years, despite numerous bull markets and increasing opportunities to invest.
If you have a child or a grandchild and do not have an account at College Savings Iowa, start one today. You may qualify for a tax break. Ask a competent CPA about your options.
Proper finanical planning and career counseling could eliminate this growing debt problem, but it's clear that the Socialists at the Des Moines Register just want more government funding for college and university students - something which has never solved the problem.
Students today have so many excellent tools on the Internet to plot their career course. Our favorite is Salary.com, which lists salaries on a local level across the US. If you knew in advance you wanted to be a middle school teacher in Des Moines, wouldn't you try to project your future starting salary and balance that against how much you're willing to pay or go into debt for your education to get there?
Related: UI Tuition Blog, University Students Are So Dumb, and It Might Have Something To Do With Your Political Science Degree.
Here's an example:
"After paying my college loans each month, I don't have a lot left," said Christine Maxwell, who received her bachelor's and master's degrees from Drake University and now teaches science at Des Moines' Hiatt Middle School, earning about $34,000 a year.
"I'm always aware of what's in my bank account and what I can buy," said Maxwell, 24, who has about $60,000 in college loans and a $450 monthly loan payment. "A lot of my friends can afford more."
Why would you go $60,000 in debt at a private university to get a job that pays $34,000 a year? That's crazy.
The problem is that too many people are expected to go to college after high school, but few know which career direction they're headed when they start. Many parents have failed to save any money over the previous 22 years, despite numerous bull markets and increasing opportunities to invest.
If you have a child or a grandchild and do not have an account at College Savings Iowa, start one today. You may qualify for a tax break. Ask a competent CPA about your options.
Proper finanical planning and career counseling could eliminate this growing debt problem, but it's clear that the Socialists at the Des Moines Register just want more government funding for college and university students - something which has never solved the problem.
Students today have so many excellent tools on the Internet to plot their career course. Our favorite is Salary.com, which lists salaries on a local level across the US. If you knew in advance you wanted to be a middle school teacher in Des Moines, wouldn't you try to project your future starting salary and balance that against how much you're willing to pay or go into debt for your education to get there?
Related: UI Tuition Blog, University Students Are So Dumb, and It Might Have Something To Do With Your Political Science Degree.
Dear State 29 Blog, Is Your Refrigerator Running? Better Go Catch It.
We got this letter last Wednesday from a reader:
You ever notice the ridiculous Kevin Schmidt blog on dmjuice.com and the amount of stuff he rips off from you? Uh, you aren't Kevin, are you?
Then on Saturday we got this email from Kevin Schmidt:
Hi! I’m one of the awful Juice bloggers you guys like to make fun of!
Anyway, I enjoy reading your blog as I’m a political junkie. I ran the blog ninedwarfs.com during the Iowa Caucuses last time around!
Anyway, I, like you, enjoy lambasting the morons who write letters to editor for the DMR. I particularly liked your comments on the Tax/Rich letters.
Nine Dwarfs, if we remember correctly, was a fairly humorous blog. Something about you being a tall guy who wanted to get his picture taken with all the Democratic Presidential candidates.
We've read some of your more recent posts. Your blog is certainly more readable than those other insipid Juicers.
Christ! What the fuck is this brain-dead tripe? It's bad enough that the Des Moines Register has columnists who forget why they come to work every day or who are allowed to pathetically lick ass in their columns until their dying day. At least those bitches are getting paid for hammering out that inbred/incestuous Gannettoid garbage. We bet you guys are lucky if you qualify for a 10% discount on classified ads. Taken as a whole, that's what the DM Juice blogs are worth.
"Losing a leg is no big deal. People who feel sorry for themselves need to grow up."
From the Trinidad and Tobago Express:
The infantry is not a place for the ordinary Joe. It is where heroes go beyond their pain, where character is ultimately defined. Brian Wilhelm, 22, of Manchester, Iowa, found himself in that zone.
It was 2:30 in the afternoon on Oct. 7, 2003. When he awoke that morning "stuff didn't seem right," he says now. The kind of stuff that causes nerves to wobble. You get a vibe like that, you'd better keep it to yourself. The Iraqis were playing it close to the chest, too. They were about to ambush his mechanized unit, a three-vehicle convoy from the 4th Infantry Division. His unit was en route to RPG Alley (a rocket-propelled grenade hellhole) on a beat-up road in Balad. A patrol was depending on them for security and replenishments.
"They opened up with a volley of RPGs. I got hit in my left calf. There was a big hole in my leg, but I wasn't feeling pain."
Adrenaline, the Army sergeant says, sparked his next move. "I got out of the truck and started firing. I'm in the middle of the road and my gunner is on the truck backing me up on the 50-cal machine gun."
Wilhelm is in no man's land for 20 minutes, blood draining the leg of color. He's firing clip after clip of ammo. Because there was no initial pain, "I thought I was dead, so I figured I better have some fun to keep my buddies alive," he says. Eventually, the gunner got him back on the truck and applied a tourniquet.
Doctors at Walter Reed tried to save the leg. He waved them away. "It was either that or a couple of years of surgery," he says. "I wanted to get on with my life."
A prosthesis got him walking two weeks after the amputation.
Wilhelm now chauffeurs a general and helps with reenlistments at Fort Carson, Colo.
After work, he goes home to his wife, Jennifer, an Army MP, and their 14-month-old daughter, Alison, in Fountain, Colo.
Does the war intrude? Does he have psychological scars?
"None," he shoots back. "Losing a leg is no big deal. People who feel sorry for themselves need to grow up."
He's counting on his new family, his own family back in Iowa, and the counsel of Vietnam veterans to forestall post-combat problems. He has been allowed to re-enlist.
Saturday, December 17, 2005
Chanukah On Ice
A profile of Rabbi Shneur Cadaner in today's Quad City Times.
Here's something we didn't know about the Quad Cities before:
Jews were among the first residents in what is know the Quad-City area during the 19th century and had established five synagogues at one point.
And don't miss Chanukah On Ice on December 27th in the Quad-City Sports Center:
“ ‘Chanukah on Ice’ is not just for skaters, it’s for all ages,” Rabbi Shneur Cadaner said. Cadaner, director of Chabad Lubavitch of the Quad-Cities, said the event is designed to be fun for everyone who attends. The celebration will include ice skating, Jewish music, latkes, doughnuts, dreidels, gelt and other traditional festival foods. One highlight will be the menorah carved of ice, which is expected to be at least 4 feet high.
Nonstop action and activities will provide a creative and educational outlet for children and adults, the rabbi said.
The event will be 5:15-7:15 p.m. The cost is $4 per person or $20 per family and includes skate rental, skating and all activities at the Sports Center, 700 West River Drive. For more information or to RSVP, call Chabad Quad-Cities at (563) 355-1065, or e-mail ChanukahOnIce@chabadquadcities.com. The Web site is www.chabadquadcities.org
We Hate It When The Rich Pay More In Taxes
Three letters by either Socialist assholes or economic morons (Take your pick - Ed.) adorn the DMR's Letters section today. Here they are in all their dumb, class-envy glory:
Here's the next one:
Finally, there's this:
It never ceases to amuse me when someone from the right trots out the old saw about the rich paying a high percentage of the total income taxes collected by our government. Even more pathetic is the statement that the total has increased since (pick a date) until now. Little do they know that they are pointing out just exactly how unjust the whole economic/tax system is.What a complete dumbass. Mr Runge wants some sort of Socialist/Communist utopia in the US. Hey, Mr Runge, that nightmare has failed everywhere it's been tried. Make incomes more "equitable" and you make everybody poor.
The wealthy are paying at that high level because they are making more than ever before, especially when compared to the average family wage-earner. The fact that the top 1 percent pays 34.3 percent of all federal income taxes should be this country's biggest shame.
It simply means they are making so much more than everyone else that they can't help but pay at that level. Wouldn't it be nice if income levels were more equitable?
That would make a prosperous country instead of one that is spiraling toward becoming another Brazil, with a tiny privileged class and widespread subsistence living. Maybe the top 1 percent should be paying 60 percent of the taxes the way things are going for the average family.
—Robert Runge, Des Moines.
Here's the next one:
Letter-writer Tom Quiner says, "Contrary to the multitude of letters about the greedy rich, it is the superproducers who pay our nation's bills far beyond their numbers. We owe them our thanks."Here's another bitter, angry, and unhinged Bush-hater who plays the class envy card because he's too much of a loser to get a job that pays more than $30,000 a year. Yo, buddy, check that attitude.
Oh, quit playing that violin already.
According to the IRS, the top 1 percent had incomes of at least $295,000 per year, while those of us in the bottom 50 percent had incomes that did not exceed $30,000 per year to spend on rent, food, transportation, etc.
Considering the rich are getting President Bush's tax-cut windfall while funding for student loans and public assistance is being slashed and kids from "the bottom half" are fighting an ill-planned pre-emptive war, the last thing the superproducers deserve is our thanks.
—Michael Nottingham, Coralville.
Finally, there's this:
The figures quoted in Tom Quiner's Dec. 8 letter on the proportion of taxes paid by the wealthy appear compelling ("Wealthy Pay the Bills"). For example: 1 percent pays a third of all taxes. But compare those taxes with the amount of wealth owned.Either Ms Leino is so obtuse that she doesn't know the difference between "income" and "wealth" or else she's one of these Commies who wants to confiscate "wealth" in order to redistribute it to all the losers in society who don't want to work and is just throwing the two terms together because she hates all rich people (You mean, anybody who earns more money than her, right? - Ed.)
Federal Reserve reports state that one-third of all wealth in this country is held by just 1 percent of the population while two-thirds of our nation's wealth is owned by the wealthiest 10 percent. That leaves 90 percent of us to share in the remaining third. Not much is trickling down, and Congress has now voted for tax cuts that will promote still more flowing up.
Currently, the taxes paid by the wealthiest among us merely reflect the extraordinary amount of wealth they have amassed. But cuts in the capital-gains tax, the complete elimination of the alternative minimum tax and the estate tax will not only decrease the taxes the wealthiest pay to maintain civil society by billions but will also promote accelerated accumulation and entrenchment of wealth within this group.
Tax policies that favor the concentration of wealth and therefore, power, into the hands of fewer and fewer people are surely not the policies that most of us desire. Surely we owe more to the generations of the 21st century than to "reform" our society into a 19th-century oligarchy or a 20th-century banana republic.
—Constance Leino, Des Moines.
Laffer Curve In Effect, Y'All
This Press-Citizen story is an excellent demonstration of how supply-side economics works:
1200 x $95 = $114,000, whereas 473 x $205 (last year's student price) = $96,965.
More people in the doors means more concession sales, too.
Surprise, surprise. Iowa may be poised to break a cycle of downward attendance and ticket buying for men's basketball. After several years of hand-wringing and finger-pointing, Iowa sold more season tickets to men's basketball games than it did the year before.
The caveat is that the biggest increase came in student sales, and it probably has a lot to do with the athletic department's decision to slash prices to $5 a game ($95 for the total season). General public sales increased slightly as faculty/staff sales fell slightly.
Student season tickets increased from 473 to nearly 1,200.
1200 x $95 = $114,000, whereas 473 x $205 (last year's student price) = $96,965.
More people in the doors means more concession sales, too.
Friday, December 16, 2005
Iowa Country Life In The 1930s and 1940s
The Centerville Daily Iowegian's web site has received a makeover, along with several other affiliated newspapers in Clinton, Oskaloosa, Ottumwa, and Pella. It's a nice format.
Duane Crawford, a correspondent from Unionville, Missouri, offers up some memories and stories of growing up in Southern Iowa during the 1930s and 1940s:
With invaluable input from my late parents, some 15-20 years ago I proceeded to jot down memories of growing up on an Iowa farm in the `30s and `40s. Rather than organize and polish those thoughts into short stories, which was my intention to do for at least my family, I stored them in a file and forgot about them until recently.
As I finally begin to compile those nostalgic recollections into short stories, many Daily Iowegian readers from my generation and earlier will have similar memories of life in an Iowa farming community during the Great Depression and the year America went to war. For our younger generations, I hope the stories serve as history lessons...
When I was born on Feb. 17, 1935 in my Grandpa Crawford's farmhouse between Richland and Keota, during one of Iowa's harshest winters on record, several anxious aunts and neighbors assisted an old country doctor with the delivery duties. Though my parent's small farm was only down the road a piece, the Spartan conditions of the home and the frigid weather would have threatened the lives of mother and baby.
Because poor farm families could not afford hospital expenses, babies were born in the homes under the care of midwives and a doctor. Dad used to say to me, "Somehow that old pill pusher got his Model T Ford through the storm to our house. I told him that I didn't have any money. He said we'd work something out. After you were born, we dickered a bit over the bill. We finally agreed on three of your mom's prize hens and a quart jar of my homemade wine. I figured it was a fair trade." My three younger brothers and two sisters would command a greater price.
I feel fortunate to have grown up on a typical Iowa farm in the `30s and `40s. I vividly recall how the lives of ordinary country folks were centered around family, neighbors, a country store, a church and a one-room schoolhouse. The two small cemeteries were stark reminders that life began and ended in the community.
Farm families did not drift far from their community roots, and their children were raised to participate in the sweat and toil of daily tasks and to appreciate the simple things in life. Few citizens of farming communities possessed wealth or even the means to acquire riches, but everyone took pride in believing that farm families were the very heart and soul of our nation.
Contrary to what many people may think, city folks suffered more from the Great Depression than their country cousins. Despite leading frugal lifestyles, without even basic luxuries in most households, every farming community knew how to survive the hard times by binding together and having fun in the process.
Even under the worst of conditions no one bellyached, because such responses would have fallen on deaf ears. In fact, farm families didn't consider themselves being in a depressed state. The recreational and social activities of individual families and whole communities may have been viewed as primitive by today's standards, but what we did was inexpensive, educational and enjoyable...
...Unlike our national leaders in the late `30s and early `40s, farm families paid little attention to the war clouds gathering over Europe and Asia. Most families could not afford the luxuries of radios, magazines and daily newspapers. Farmers' main concern was basic subsistence for the family. When the subject of those foreign troubles was brought up, most farmers said, "That ain't none of our business."
During the first week of December 1941, our community was looking forward to school and family Christmases. We had no way of knowing that America was about to be attacked and drawn into a world war.
These sorts of reminiscences are common in small-town newspapers and are fascinating to read.
It Might Have Something To Do With Your Political Science Degree
From Radio Iowa:
The Iowa Workforce web site has many resources for both victims of Katrina and Iowa employers seeking to hire them.
The unemployment rate in the Cedar Rapids Metropolitan Area was 4.2% for the month of October 2005. That's pretty low. 5% has always been the benchmark for what economists have historically considered to be "full employment."
Perhaps it may have something to do with Mrs Feltenberger's degree, which according to a Google search appears to be Political Science. Any Democrats want to hire her?
We wonder why anybody in their right mind would ever bother with a political science degree. With the exception of perhaps a communication studies degree, or somebody racking up $100,000 in debt in order to be a social worker, we think that being a political science major without going on to law school or getting a teacher's certificate is a fool who's going to have a very difficult time earning money.
Dozens of families fled to Cedar Rapids after Hurricane Katrina hit in August, but some of them say they still can't find jobs. The strong school system attracted John and Royce Feltenberger to bring their four children to Cedar Rapids. Royce has two degrees and plenty of experience as an administrative assistant. So far, she's applied for at least fifty jobs and no one has responded.
Feltenberger says "It's difficult to keep waking up every day and not hearing anything. You start to lose hope after a while." She says employers are avoiding Katrina victims.
The Iowa Workforce web site has many resources for both victims of Katrina and Iowa employers seeking to hire them.
The unemployment rate in the Cedar Rapids Metropolitan Area was 4.2% for the month of October 2005. That's pretty low. 5% has always been the benchmark for what economists have historically considered to be "full employment."
Perhaps it may have something to do with Mrs Feltenberger's degree, which according to a Google search appears to be Political Science. Any Democrats want to hire her?
We wonder why anybody in their right mind would ever bother with a political science degree. With the exception of perhaps a communication studies degree, or somebody racking up $100,000 in debt in order to be a social worker, we think that being a political science major without going on to law school or getting a teacher's certificate is a fool who's going to have a very difficult time earning money.
Vilsack Doesn't Have A Clue How Much Prisons Cost
A few weeks ago, after the prison break at Fort Madison, Governor Vilsack suggested that the prison be replaced and guessed that it would cost $40 million.
WHO-TV is reporting that a member of the Board of Corrections estimates that a new prison would cost at least $80 million.
WHO-TV is reporting that a member of the Board of Corrections estimates that a new prison would cost at least $80 million.
"I noticed right away it was missing some plumbing"
From the Des Moines Register:
We'd love to see a picture of it after it's been mounted.
Eric Weymiller, 25, of rural Harpers Ferry, was excited about shooting a large whitewall buck during Iowa's first shotgun deer season.
But the excitement grew when he started to field dress the animal.
"I noticed right away it was missing some plumbing," said Weymiller, who shot the animal Dec. 7 in Allamakee County.
What he thought was a buck was a doe sporting antlers with 14 tines, a big rack even for a buck.
"I stopped field dressing the animal and called a DNR biologist," Weymiller said. "I wanted them to document this."
Biologist Terry Haindfield with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources in northeast Iowa, confirmed the animal was a doe, not a buck.
"It is unusual to find a doe with antlers, but what makes this particularly unusual is that the antlers had hardened and grown so big," Haindfield said.
More research will be required to determine whether Weymiller's deer's antlers are large enought to set a record for doe antlers. So far Weymiller said the only other record he has found was a doe shot in another state in 1990, which is on record with North American Whitetail.
He'll have to wait about 60 days for the antlers to dry before he can have them scored to see how large they actually are. An early score, before drying places the antlers at just over 154 inches. The 1990 doe antlers measured about 152 inches.
We'd love to see a picture of it after it's been mounted.
FUBAR Letter Of The Day
Fred Crane of Stout, writing to the Waterloo Courier:
That's one of the funniest letters to the editor we've read in some time.
A short time ago, I listened to President Bush tell of his new plan for Iraq. It sounded very familiar. I soon realized that it was almost word for word what he has always said. Nothing new. We are still bogged down there and losing lives of Americans every day. It was wrong to begin with, and it is wrong now. The attacks by terrorists have not lessened but increased. Here in the United States, we are no safer now than we were before. Illegal aliens continue to come here without any let up. Any one of them could be a potential terrorist.
Bush said that the purpose of the Iraq invasion was to free the people there, to let them decide by a majority vote what they wanted. Why then do we here not have that same right? I am referring to the ability of a slim minority taking away the rights and wishes of the vast majority. Taking away prayer in schools, trying to take away the words "Under God" from the pledge to our flag, trying to take "In God We Trust" from our money. We here in America are supposed to have a majority rule. We should let our feelings be heard. Let's put a stop to this trend before it goes beyond the point of no return. We are losing our freedoms more each day.
As far as saying happy holidays instead of merry Christmas, I say if anyone does not like to celebrate the birth of Christ get out and go some place else or else leave us alone to do as we want. We know that we are in the majority.
That's one of the funniest letters to the editor we've read in some time.
Get An Unlisted Phone Number, David Oman's Calling For Your Wallet
This is just crass as hell:
Someone has a $113 million secret.
Is it Aunt Nancy? The delivery man who never showed up today? Or Norman who failed to come to work, not even calling to fake a cold?
The rumor mill is abuzz as Iowans try to discern the winner of Wednesday's $113.2 million Powerball jackpot. The winning ticket was purchased at Dahl's Food Mart at 1819 Beaver Ave. in Des Moines. No one had contacted Iowa Lottery officials Thursday to claim the prize.
"Get me that name, and I hope it's someone with a biology B.A.," said David Oman, a spokesman for the group trying to raise millions of dollars for an indoor rain forest in Iowa. "We could probably find an extra seat on our board for the winner."
Notice how Chief Con Man Oman can be found by the Des Moines Register for a quote concerning Oman's attempt to steal money from the winner of the Powerball jackpot for his taxpayer-fucking scam.
Too bad one of us didn't win the Powerball. We'd use our quickie fame at the press conference to drill Con Man Oman, Filthy Ray, Dirty Knappy, Vilsack, Lameberti, Steve "The Combover" King, Jim Ross Nussle, and the Gannettoids at 715 Locust a few new holes.
Thursday, December 15, 2005
70 Years Of Goodnight Kisses
From the Ames Tribune:
For the last 70 years, two Mid-Iowa couples have never gone to bed without giving each other a kiss goodnight.
"That's just something we've always done," said Frances Holmes, 91, who celebrated her 70th wedding anniversary with her husband, Vernon, 90, on Dec. 8.
Warren, 91, and Nina Mount, 88, of Grand Junction, who celebrate their anniversary today, have done the same thing.
Read the rest of the stories...
Backflow Valves
This story in the Des Moines Register about sewage backup problems in Council Bluffs prompted us to remind everybody that this situation can be prevented with the installation of a backflow valve. The cost is usually around $500. More at the FEMA web site.
Snow Days
Cousins Taylor Pollock (left) of Manly and Dakota Clayton of Mason City soar down the sledding hill in Mason City's East Park Wednesday. (Globe Gazette photo by Sarah Schutt)
There's many more excellent winter photos at Globe Gazette photographer Arian Schuessler's photo blog.
The Light Rail Scam
The Iowa City Press-Citizen encourages that $130,000 be spent to study the feasibility of light rail in the Cedar Rapids, Amana, Coralville, and Iowa City areas.
There have been countless studies of light rail over the past 25 years. San Jose, in the early 1980s, offered pie-in-the-sky benefits and ignored excessive costs. When it was actually built, ridership was a disaster.
Here's a web site that details the fraud with Charlotte, North Carolina's light rail scam, along with links to other failed systems.
Light rail failed in super-lefty and super-crowded Austin, Texas, in 2000.
There is a huge amount of evidence that light rail is nothing but an expensive disaster.
We suspect that proponents will offer up a whitewashed, fluffed-up report like Rochester, New York, did. Probably something akin to the lies that Con Man Oman, Filthy Ray, Weasel Grassley, and all the other fraudsters offer up to the media about how the stupid rainforest can be built for $180 million and will get over a million visitors a year by being placed anywhere in Iowa.
There have been countless studies of light rail over the past 25 years. San Jose, in the early 1980s, offered pie-in-the-sky benefits and ignored excessive costs. When it was actually built, ridership was a disaster.
Here's a web site that details the fraud with Charlotte, North Carolina's light rail scam, along with links to other failed systems.
Light rail failed in super-lefty and super-crowded Austin, Texas, in 2000.
There is a huge amount of evidence that light rail is nothing but an expensive disaster.
We suspect that proponents will offer up a whitewashed, fluffed-up report like Rochester, New York, did. Probably something akin to the lies that Con Man Oman, Filthy Ray, Weasel Grassley, and all the other fraudsters offer up to the media about how the stupid rainforest can be built for $180 million and will get over a million visitors a year by being placed anywhere in Iowa.
Wednesday, December 14, 2005
Happy Birthday Taylor Krueger
From Taylor Krueger's mom's blog (link and history):
Monday, December 12, 2005 7:48 PM CST
Day 319 Post Transplant
Yes I am taking time from our wonderful vacation to check in with all of our Taylor fans... I haven't forgotten you!
First off let me say that Give Kids The World Village is absolutely amazing... I can't even begin to explain this place! Let's just say this... I think one of Taylor's favorite parts about the village is the unlimited ice cream! Our first day here we had ice cream and then dinner and then more ice cream... what an amazing treat!
...Today we went to Animal Kingdom, had lunch at the RainForest Cafe and spent the afternoon at Epcot... I'm tired already and it's only Monday!
Tomorrow there is a special surprise for Taylor... breakfast with Cinderella at the castle!
Wednesday is Taylor's special day as she will be turning 4 here at Disney... now how many kids can say they spent their birthday at Disney World?
Related: Older stories on Taylor Krueger's battle with cancer
Leonard Boswell, Military Genius
From Radio Iowa:
Do they allow gay marriage? Where's the corporate welfare czar? Who's going to pay the heating bills during the brutal Iraqi winter? Why don't we build the Rainforest in Baghdad as a worldwide tourist attraction in order to get the economy propped up there?
Contrast the former Lt Col. Boswell's ramblings with Major Ben Connable's thoughts, written as he begins his third tour in Iraq:
Who are you going to believe? A soldier who's currently in Iraq and has signed up to go back a couple of times, or some old politician trying to make some political hay against Bush and who has spent the last three months in the hospital recovering from major surgery?
Congressman Leonard Boswell says the situation in Iraq is so precarious, a civil war may break out if the U.S. doesn't take the right steps to help establish a credible government. "I don't see how we can participate in a civil war," Boswell says. "I think that's a no-win situation." Boswell, a retired military officer, was one of 15 Democrats who met privately today (Wednesday) with President Bush, Vice President Cheney and other key members of the Bush Administration involved in decisions about Iraq. "The attack phase is over...we're now an occupation force. We've got to face up to it," Boswell says.
Boswell says he asked the Secretary of State, who was sitting in on the meeting, to do more to make sure Iraqis have the right tools to form a democratic government.
"Do they have a department of agriculture? Do they have a department of energy? Do they have a department of transportation and on and on? They can't succeed if they don't have that," Boswell says. "I got the impression that's yet to be done so they're going to have a lot of pressure on them in the next four or five months and if they don't succeed, I suspect they'll end up with civil war."
As many as 70 percent of Iraqis are expected to vote in their nationwide December 15th elections, and Boswell says there are enough trained Iraqi soldiers and police now that it's time to start bringing some U.S. soldiers home. Boswell says if the Iraqis don't adjust their constitution and make it "all-inclusive" so minorities have a voice in the government, the Iraqis will have a civil war on their hands.
Do they allow gay marriage? Where's the corporate welfare czar? Who's going to pay the heating bills during the brutal Iraqi winter? Why don't we build the Rainforest in Baghdad as a worldwide tourist attraction in order to get the economy propped up there?
Contrast the former Lt Col. Boswell's ramblings with Major Ben Connable's thoughts, written as he begins his third tour in Iraq:
The impression of Iraq as an unfathomable quagmire is false and dangerously misleading.
It is this false impression that has led us to a moment of national truth. The proponents of the quagmire vision argue that the very presence of U.S. troops in Iraq is the cause of the insurgency and that our withdrawal would give the Iraqis their only true chance for stability. Most military officers and NCOs with ground experience in Iraq know that this vision is patently false. Although the presence of U.S. forces certainly inflames sentiment and provides the insurgents with targets, the anti-coalition insurgency is mostly a symptom of the underlying conditions in Iraq. It may seem paradoxical, but only our presence can buffer the violence enough to allow for eventual stability.
The precipitous withdrawal of U.S. troops would almost certainly lead to a violent and destabilizing civil war.
Who are you going to believe? A soldier who's currently in Iraq and has signed up to go back a couple of times, or some old politician trying to make some political hay against Bush and who has spent the last three months in the hospital recovering from major surgery?
Eric Stratton, Damn Glad To Meet Ya
From WOI-TV:
The state may loosen trapping restrictions on otters and bobcats, whose populations have boomed across Iowa in recent years.
The Iowa Natural Resource Commission will address the proposal tomorrow, though a decision is months away.
River otters and bobcats were once rare in Iowa, but some state biologists say their populations are large enough now to allow for limited trapping.
That's So Gay
From the QC Times:
Republican state lawmakers say they will push for a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage in Iowa after six same-sex couples filed legal action Tuesday claiming they should have the right to marry...While we're a fairly gay-friendly bunch, it really looks like these people want a bunch of free shit from their employers. Or they're unable to call a lawyer who will write up the appropriate legal papers granting certain rights to those life partners.
One of the couples suing is Jason Morgan, 35, and Chuck Swaggerty, 33, of Sioux City, who have been together nearly eight years. Morgan said he was not allowed to take paid bereavement time from his job at a bank when his partner’s mother died.
Somebody Call Erin Buzuvis
The drunk tank in the Jackson County Jail in Maquoketa has been painted pink.
Borsellino's Pathetic Column On Dirty Knappy
Nothing could be more pathetic than Rob Borsellino's column on Bill Knapp in the DMR this morning.
Bend over and lube up, Rob!
Better yet, get on your knees boy!
Press-Citizen Hammers The Rainforest
We are so glad that the Iowa City Press-Citizen keeps hammering the Rainforest project, especially since the con artists running the project continue to want to finance this boondoggle entirely on the backs of taxpayers.
Rosa Parks, Mother Teresa, or DeForest Kelley?
Buried deep within this NY Times piece about how Spineless Frist is going to keep the absurd Alternative Minimum Tax going, is this delicious chunk:
Isn't that great? The Tom Harkin building is going to be renamed for two people who had absolutely nothing to do with disease control or prevention.
Why not name it after a doctor? DeForest Kelley, also known as Dr Leonard "Bones" McCoy from Star Trek, was originally from Atlanta. Bones did some pretty wild stuff in the future:
Better yet, why not name it after Dr Martin Luther King Jr? He was from Atlanta, plus he was a doctor. That guy never gets anything named after him. Damn racists all over this country...
The testy atmosphere in the waning days of the session was reflected in some gamesmanship. The House, angry over a health spending measure that named two buildings at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta for Senators Arlen Specter, a Republican, and Tom Harkin, a Democrat, the authors of the measure, voted to rename the buildings for Rosa Parks and Mother Teresa. The Senate is not expected to consider the measure speedily.
Isn't that great? The Tom Harkin building is going to be renamed for two people who had absolutely nothing to do with disease control or prevention.
Why not name it after a doctor? DeForest Kelley, also known as Dr Leonard "Bones" McCoy from Star Trek, was originally from Atlanta. Bones did some pretty wild stuff in the future:
During an investigation in time disturbances over an ancient planet, McCoy accidentally injected himself with an overdose of cordrazine. Experiencing severe delusions and paranoia, he beamed himself down to the planet's surface. When Kirk, Spock, and a landing party followed him into the ruins of an ancient civilization, they discovered the Guardian of Forever, an ancient time portal device. Still delusional, McCoy entered the device, transporting himself into Earth's past where he somehow altered history and erased the Enterprise and the Federation from existence. Kirk and Spock followed him back to rescue him and restore history to normal, a mission that became personally very traumatic for Kirk.We're certain a lot of Democrats are upset that Bones didn't transport himself back to 2000, specifically to Florida, where he could have persuaded some Monica Moorehead voters to choose Al Gore instead. Maybe that's why the building didn't get named for him?
Better yet, why not name it after Dr Martin Luther King Jr? He was from Atlanta, plus he was a doctor. That guy never gets anything named after him. Damn racists all over this country...
Tuesday, December 13, 2005
Air Pork
From Radio Iowa:
The Federal Aviation Authority is also sending 53-Million dollars to airports around the state for expansion, upkeep and repairs. It's not "free money" but [Iowa DOT Aeronautics Division spokesman Tim] McClung explains it's a great deal for local towns. The local towns have to put up five to 10-percent of the total amount to get those federal grants, which come from money raised by aviation-generated user fees -- things like passenger facility fees, cargo taxes and fuel taxes. McClung says 77 airports qualify to get some of that FAA funding for their projects.
It's not "free money" because airports have to pony up 5% to 10% of the costs?
Yeah, whatever.
Here's another scam to rip off Federal taxpayers and keep that Deficit Charge Card going. Bush hasn't bothered to veto any of this pork out - and never will.
Similar-styled grants exist for towns with populations as little as 409 residents so they can get $170,000 from the Feds for a new fire engine.
We also see Tom Harkin getting Federal credit card pork so that all the fat kids on food stamps in Lee County can maybe get slim.
And nevermind the $50 million in pork that Grassley has procured for all his political buddies.
I'm Surrounded By Idiots
We know this post by Iowahawk is a few days old, but it's a classic. Here's a short clip:
ZARKMAN_385:dude sup
SPIDEYHOLE_999: zup bizich howz da jihad lol
ZARKMAN_385: its ok
SPIDEYHOLE_999: fokkin liar yalls r pwn3d!!!!!!! PIMP LOL
ZARKMAN_385: fokk u homes u r da one in jail
SPIDEYHOLE_999: dude least i get 2 eat
SPIDEYHOLE_999: how r da recruits
ZARKMAN_385: fokkin dumb azzholezzzz
SPIDEYHOLE_999: hear ya dude they r teh suck
Waterloo Sets Land Speed Record In Establishing A Broadbandit Utility
From a reader. Damn, this is so brilliant:
Also remember that it was all the rich bastards in Waterloo who wanted to pass this thing so they could save $6 a month when downloading porn, Young Jeezy MP3s, and bittorrents of wAreZ. The measure failed in all the poorer districts.
When residents are pissed about their taxes being hiked further in order to subsidize Filthy Ray and Clark McLeod's greed, they can point their anger in the direction of such clueless local "leaders" as Waterloo developer Rick Young, orthodontist/hotelier Russ Christensen, and Gary Chambers, the CEO of Advance Systems, who offered up some of the most preposterous bullshit to Waterloo residents in spite of a ton of evidence that the communications utility in Cedar Falls was playing "hide the salami and all the bills" with the electric utility.
Rich people fucking the poor. It's the way we do things here in Iowa!
Thought you might be interested that Waterloo has approved a board of supervisors for their "proposed" communications utility. The board will be named on Dec. 19. This is the beginning of the end. Once this (most likely pro-utility) board approves it, revenue bonds will be issued, and construction will begin. Then, when Waterloo is losing its ass, the city will propose using GO bonds to pay for the defaulting revenue bonds. The threat of the city losing its bond rating will spark citizens to pass the GO bond referendum by 90%. Fucking morons.
Anyway, I thought you might be interested.
Also remember that it was all the rich bastards in Waterloo who wanted to pass this thing so they could save $6 a month when downloading porn, Young Jeezy MP3s, and bittorrents of wAreZ. The measure failed in all the poorer districts.
When residents are pissed about their taxes being hiked further in order to subsidize Filthy Ray and Clark McLeod's greed, they can point their anger in the direction of such clueless local "leaders" as Waterloo developer Rick Young, orthodontist/hotelier Russ Christensen, and Gary Chambers, the CEO of Advance Systems, who offered up some of the most preposterous bullshit to Waterloo residents in spite of a ton of evidence that the communications utility in Cedar Falls was playing "hide the salami and all the bills" with the electric utility.
Rich people fucking the poor. It's the way we do things here in Iowa!
Richard Pryor's Son Lives In Altoona
From a reader and via the WQAD web site we learn that the late Richard Pryor's son lives in Altoona:
Richard Pryor Jr., who lives in Altoona, Iowa, plans to attend a memorial service in California on Saturday. But he'd like to see something similar in Peoria, where his father was born.In the past, there had been legal troubles between father and son.
Weasel Grassley Defends Rainforest Pork Change
From Radio Iowa:
Critics are questioning the timing and motives behind Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley's move to change the wording in a spending bill so an indoor rainforest and educational center may be built not just in Coralville but anywhere in the state. Grassley will not comment about what he called "anonymous" critics on web-logs or "blogs" on the Internet, but he defends the 50-million dollars in federal funding for the project -- which still has no home.
Grassley says: "Where the rainforest was going to be was never an issue about the Congressional appropriation. That obviously came because of the strong support the project had in Iowa and the value of the project to economic development in Iowa, the creation of jobs, the educational benefits of it and the environmental benefits of it." Developers of the rainforest project broke off negotiations last week with Coralville leaders and are considering other locations. Grassley's changes in the bill were made and signed by President Bush last month, before Coralville was out of the running.
Grassley explained why he made the changes. "I wanted to make sure that the private money was going to be raised and so recently, I put restrictions on the use of the federal tax dollars to make sure that there (were) incentives and people would follow through with the promise of donating of private funds," Grassley says. Under those restrictions, backers of the rainforest project have to raise 50-million dollars over the next two years or they'll lose whatever remains of another 50-million being put up by the federal government.
Grassley says: "My relationship with it has been entirely related to the wise expenditure and the matching expenditure aspect of the federal dollars." Rainforest project officials say as many as nine Iowa communities are now in the running for the proposed 200-acre, 180-million dollar facility. Former Iowa Governor Robert Ray and Ray's former chief of staff, David Oman, are leading the push for the rain forest project. Ray, Oman and Grassley are all Republicans.
Naturally, Radio Iowa is talking about us and this post which featured the change in language that Weasel Grassley engineered for Con Man Oman and Filthy Ray:
Isn't it strange that no major media outlet in Iowa had a story about the language change by Grassley? It took this blog to carry on about it until anybody noticed. And thank you, Radio Iowa, for noticing.
As for fauxscal conservative Grassley's comments about it being a big economic development and job creation vehicle, that's simply a joke. This project won't be built for $180 million and it won't get over a million visitors a year. Good luck with them ever raising any private money, since Oman and his gang of fraudsters have had six years to raise money and done jack squat. It's going to be a giant boondoggle for all taxpayers in one form or another, but Grassley seems hell-bent on padding his buddy David Oman's pockets. A hungry reporter or two needs to find out why.
The Quad City Times also harshly questions the continuation of this project.
And also note that Waterloo can't do a minor stadium upgrade without a 75% cost overrun. What happens when you apply that to a $180 million project?
Show Me The Money
The Press-Citizen continues to ask the most important question that the Des Moines Register always pushes off onto "private donors" who are, ultimately, the taxpayers.
Monday, December 12, 2005
Even Iowa Liberals Weep For Tookie The Killer
Chase Nordengren at the Political Forecast:
As I write, a few hours remain in the life of Stanley Williams. The topic of this man’s morality, his possible redemption and his final legal attempts to stay alive are discussed in several places elsewhere at great length. However, it is disappointing that his case will not bring about the substanative and lasting conversation needed on the use of the death penalty in the United States.
Yeah.. when you've got a former leader of the Crips who was convicted of murdering four people and who has the usual gang of lefties in his corner like Tom Harkin, Jim McDermott, Mario Cuomo, Jesse Jackson, Bianca "I've fucked every leftist Senator on the East Coast" Jagger, BJ Honeycutt, George Costanza, Dr John Carter, Calvin Broadus, Lou Grant, Sam Malone, Ebby Calvin LaLoosh, Janet Weiss, Meathead, Margaret Cho, and Jessica Simpson, then America isn't going to sympathize with any calls for clemency, much less demand the end of capital punishment.
67% of Iowans want the death penalty. 30% are opposed to it. You're in the minority, bud.
Maybe your religion maintains that killing another human being for reasons other than self defense is amoral, but isn't that the same bunch of patriarchal pedophile-enablers who spent years denying and covering up reports of sexual abuse over the past few decades? What-ever.
Will Senator Harkin Have Original Or Extra Crispy Tookie?
Looks like The Governator denied clemency for convicted multiple murderer and Crips gang founder Stanley Tookie Williams today, so in all likelihood they'll finally be strapping him to a table and serving justice later tonight.
We're sure that Tom Harkin, our Tookie-supporting Senator, is just heartbroken.
The Des Moines Public Library is also going to be heartbroken, considering that they will no longer be able to buy any more new Tookie's Children's Books with taxpayer dollars. What a shame. Now what are the kids going to read?
Anti-Crime Cameras In Davenport
From the QC Times:
The City of Davenport is going to install surveillance cameras as a test and may put one of them in place on a high-rise building to monitor activity in the 600 block of West 3rd Street. Police have been called there about 1,200 times over the past 12 months on reports ranging from shots fired and robbery to vice crimes and noise disturbances.
Read the whole story.
We think this is an excellent idea whose time has come.
Some civil libertarians may cringe, but we think stringing up a butt-load of cameras and aiming them at the homes of suspected drug dealers, drug buyers, and other people who constantly disturb the peace makes a lot of sense.
Manatt's To Fund The Iowa Speedway In Newton
From a reader, we were pointed to the Newton Daily News web site (closed to all but subscribers) which has a story today that says Manatt's Construction Company of Brooklyn, IA, will provide funding for the completion of the Iowa Speedway in Newton. Iowa taxpayer-financed corporate welfare recipients Well Fargo will secure the loan.
The Des Moines Register has also issued a story on this development.
Related: "This Project Has Got So Many Red Flags..."
The Des Moines Register has also issued a story on this development.
Related: "This Project Has Got So Many Red Flags..."
Dirty Knappy, The Pragmatic Capitalist
From a reader, this is from Cityview DM's December 1st issue and was authored by Kent Carlson:
Read the whole thing. Especially the part about the Des Moines Register.
All the more reason to support Ed Fallon!
...There is no doubt that a portion of the success people like Bill Knapp enjoy is attributable to the weakness of the politicians they associate with - politicians who know up front what is expected of them from their financial benefactors, politicians like Tom Vilsack, Chet Culver and Mike Blouin.
No individual has given more money to Tom Vilsack than Bill Knapp. According to "Follow the Money" (followthemoney.org), Vilsack has received $107,000 since March 2003 from his benefactor. Any idea why a developer gives a politician $107,000 after announcing he or she isn't going to run, and then follows it up with another $50,000 for Vilsack's Heartland PAC?
Chet Culver's election committee is co-chaired by Bill Knapp and Bonnie Campbell, while Ed Campbell serves on the "Leadership Team." Culver's Finance Committee includes Bill Knapp's brother, Paul, his nephew, Bill II, his lawyer Gerry Neugent, and Steve Wandro, the brother of the embattled former state transportation director Mark Wandro and Vilsack appointee who is at the center of the wreaking Ankeny land deal. "To raise $652,000 this early is unprecedented in Iowa Democratic politics," Knapp said recently. So is it any wonder Culver says Knapp "has done incredible things for the Democratic Party"? Perhaps, but as the recent controversy suggests, Knapp has made incredible profits doing incredible things for Iowa's Democratic Party.
Vilsack appointed democratic gubernatorial candidate Mike Blouin director of the Iowa Department of Economic Development in 2003. Blouin's department had $700 million in Iowa Values Funds to distribute. Coincidentally, Bill Knapp raised $645,000 to subsidize Blouin's salary and others in the department. Vilsack decided $50,000 would be used as a bonus for Blouin. You may remember this information was gleaned from Vilsack only after threat of a lawsuit. When Charlie Smithson, executive director of the Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board, got wind of the deal, he couldn't believe anyone was stupid enough to give the idea a second thought.
Read the whole thing. Especially the part about the Des Moines Register.
All the more reason to support Ed Fallon!
Greg Wilcox Of Des Moines Thinks Stealing From Wal-Mart Is OK
From the Des Moines Register's Letters section:
Wilcox is obviously one of those unhinged leftists who has completely lost his mind. He created a short documentary film a couple years ago called "Fortunate Son" that, well, you can just guess what it's about.
Still, some questions need to be asked of this letter:
1. If Wal-Mart is so evil, what are you doing at their store?
2. If you saw somebody stealing, why didn't you report it?
3. Is stealing only OK against people who own successful businesses?
4. What does Iraq and Enron have to do with any of this?
Since the whole letter seems so ridiculous, we're guessing that Greg Wilcox is a liar who made this story up just to get in some anti-capitalist, anti-war, and anti-Bush rhetoric printed in the Des Moines Register's Editorial page.
We could be wrong, of course, but then Greg Wilcox would just be a hypocritical leftist asshole who doesn't report crimes being committed.
Sunday, at Wal-Mart, I saw a person try to put an item in their jacket. At first I thought this person was a jerk. I was buying and they were stealing. I paid for my purchase without notifying anyone.
But after I returned home, I became convinced that it was OK to steal. Perhaps this person lost their job due to the cascading effects of the superstore's dominance of other businesses. Perhaps this person has a minimum-wage, part-time job without health care. In any case, the Walton family certainly has enough money to cover the loss.
When I compare the theft of a $15 item to the grand larceny by corporate America, which ran Enron into the ground, which reaps record oil profits, which passes out cash to God knows who in Iraq, and which occupies the seats of government and takes bribes, I now see the act of stealing a small gift for a poor child as heroic.
I dare say that the treatment by Wal-Mart and the police of this person would be harsher than for those who do not steal their millions in the bright fluorescent light of a store.
-Greg Wilcox, Des Moines
Wilcox is obviously one of those unhinged leftists who has completely lost his mind. He created a short documentary film a couple years ago called "Fortunate Son" that, well, you can just guess what it's about.
Still, some questions need to be asked of this letter:
1. If Wal-Mart is so evil, what are you doing at their store?
2. If you saw somebody stealing, why didn't you report it?
3. Is stealing only OK against people who own successful businesses?
4. What does Iraq and Enron have to do with any of this?
Since the whole letter seems so ridiculous, we're guessing that Greg Wilcox is a liar who made this story up just to get in some anti-capitalist, anti-war, and anti-Bush rhetoric printed in the Des Moines Register's Editorial page.
We could be wrong, of course, but then Greg Wilcox would just be a hypocritical leftist asshole who doesn't report crimes being committed.
Sunday, December 11, 2005
University Students Are So Dumb
From the Waterloo Courier:
Dena Sult only buys cheap. She splits rent, groceries and bills with five roommates.
She survives on less than $600 a month --- less money than what she could make working full-time at minimum wage.
Sult baby-sits on occasion. But at $5 an hour, debt is mounting. In a year and a half, she has taken on $20,000 in loans.
When Sult is ready to become a professional social worker in four years, she could owe $100,000 --- or about $650 a month for 20 years.
"I try not to think about it," Sult said. "It's like a mortgage."
The 19-year-old from Marble Rock is a college student. And she's paying her own way at the University of Northern Iowa.
Most of Sult's debt is indeed similar to a mortgage. Instead of using borrowed cash from the federal government --- the traditional source for college aid --- Sult had to turn to a bank.
What she borrowed, among financial aid officials, is called an alternative or private source loan.
This is such an unbelievably bad idea. What sort of idiot bank would approve this type of loan to such an obvious moron?
$100,000 in debt to become a frickin social worker? If you have your master's degree in social work and are working in Waterloo, expect to earn in the low 40's.
We've blogged about these sorts of idiots in the past. Last month we lambasted a communication studies major at the University of Iowa who was complaining about the cost of tuition. Considering all the jobs currently available in Iowa where a simple bachelor's degree and passing a state board exam could snag you a job earning near $100,000 in a city like Des Moines, why do these people want to be miserable all their lives?
Dirty Knappy Is Confused
Dirty Knappy has a lengthy response in the DMR's op-ed section today regarding the IDOT scandal. Here's a key portion:
I can state with full confidence that the price we paid for the Air Expo land was at the fair market value at the time of the purchase (August 1999). We have numerous comparable sales in Ankeny and surrounding areas that are on or near existing interchanges. These comparables are for similar or like parcels of land that we purchased from Air Expo. It is important to remember the Air Expo land was undeveloped at the time and there was not infrastructure or utilities to this site. In fact the only access to the site was through a 40-foot easement drive. At the time of our purchase there had been public discussion about an interchange but it was not planned, approved or funded.
That's real shifty. But that's how people act when they're making windfall profits off of insider information.
Take a look at this timeline of events in the DMR.
We wonder if Bill Knapp's defense will eventually become the Uncle Leo Defense:
JERRY: (Being frank) Leo, I saw you in Brentano's yesterday.
LEO: Why didn't ya say hello?
JERRY: Because you were too busy stealing a book.
LEO: (Giving a courtesy lesson) You still say hello.
JERRY: (Showing that it's a problem) Leo, I saw you steal.
LEO: Oh, they don't care. We all do it.
JERRY: Who, criminals?
LEO: Senior citizens. No big deal.
JERRY: You could get arrested.
LEO: Arrested? Come on! (Goes into a routine explaination for his stealing) I'm an old man. I'm confused! I thought I paid for it. What's my name? Will you take me home?
JERRY: (Pleading) Leo..
LEO: Alright, alright. Mr. Goody Two-Shoes. You made your point.
Howard Dean Is A Wimpy Loser
From the Des Moines Register:
A Democratic commission voted Saturday to preserve the first-in-the-nation status of Iowa's presidential caucuses in 2008, turning aside a last-ditch attempt by opponents to shake Iowa's traditional spot at the front of the line.
New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation primary, which follows the caucuses, also should be kept, the commission said.
Gee, if Howard Dean can't get rid of the Iowa's first-in-the-nation status like he promised, then he really can't do shit for the Democratic Party other than run his big fucking mouth.
Saturday, December 10, 2005
Emily Hauser And Her Moral Abortion That You Can't Judge
The Des Moines Register couldn't have had a bigger dunce write an op-ed on abortion today than Emily Hauser, a freelance writer out of Chicago. This mess is full of contradictions:
A few questions for Ms Hauser:
1. What did the father of the child think? You said your friends and family supported whatever decision you made, but what about the man who got you pregnant? Did you even tell him?
2. You wish you didn't have to do it, but you did. Were you physically unable to carry it to term and then adopt it to a loving family?
3. You say only you alone can only judge whether it was a moral choice. Again, what about the father? What about people who don't agree with your choice?
4. If the reasons for your abortion were personal, why are you writing this op-ed?
Abortion does kill a baby. An unborn baby. Saying anything else is just BS.
And it should continue to be safe, legal, and rare in the first trimester... and in the second and third trimester for only reasons that, without it, would endanger's the mother's own life.
Update: Emily Hauser has children! She's also one of those converted Jews who can't stand Israel and weeps for the Palestinians. More here.
I had an abortion a long time ago, and so have a great number of women you know. But many wives, daughters or mothers don't tell the men they love, because they fear the response. Will he see me differently? Will he — figuratively or literally — kill me?
I was lucky. I knew ahead of time that my family and friends would support whatever decision I made, and then as now, my abortion was a thing of which I was neither ashamed nor proud. I wish that I hadn't had to do it, but I did...
When I terminated my first pregnancy, I asked myself, did I kill a baby? I honestly don't think so. Did I stop the potential for life? Absolutely. Insofar as life itself is simultaneously the most mundane and most divine fact on our planet, this means something.
But I'm willing to say that I don't know what that something is. I can only function in the cold reality of my own world — and as such, I alone can judge whether my abortion was a moral choice. It wasn't easy, it wasn't happy, but it was the least-bad of two bad choices. It was moral...
The reasons for my abortion were personal, and I don't need to defend them.
A few questions for Ms Hauser:
1. What did the father of the child think? You said your friends and family supported whatever decision you made, but what about the man who got you pregnant? Did you even tell him?
2. You wish you didn't have to do it, but you did. Were you physically unable to carry it to term and then adopt it to a loving family?
3. You say only you alone can only judge whether it was a moral choice. Again, what about the father? What about people who don't agree with your choice?
4. If the reasons for your abortion were personal, why are you writing this op-ed?
Abortion does kill a baby. An unborn baby. Saying anything else is just BS.
And it should continue to be safe, legal, and rare in the first trimester... and in the second and third trimester for only reasons that, without it, would endanger's the mother's own life.
Update: Emily Hauser has children! She's also one of those converted Jews who can't stand Israel and weeps for the Palestinians. More here.
Friday, December 09, 2005
Rainforest Kneepads
The Des Moines Register is reporting that Riverside (pop. 977) and Iowa City bedroom community Tiffin (pop. 1417) are both seeking the zillion-dollar Rainforest scam now that Coralville has clearly given up after being frustrated with being lied to and fucked around by Chief Con Man Oman and his hatchet man, former Governor "Filthy" Ray.
Concerning the Riverside location: if some Washington County residents are pissed that county taxpayers will be footing the bill for a TIF district that contains the new Riverside casino, imagine how pissed they'll be when Oman and Ray come around demanding that $40 million be raised from the 20,670 residents that live within the county.
As for Tiffin, this is the same plot of land that a bunch of over-eager sprawl merchants wanted to develop this past summer into a mall, water park, restaurants, and so forth even though it's only four miles west of Coral Ridge Mall and 20 miles east of Tanager Outlet Center in Williamsburg.
Concerning the Riverside location: if some Washington County residents are pissed that county taxpayers will be footing the bill for a TIF district that contains the new Riverside casino, imagine how pissed they'll be when Oman and Ray come around demanding that $40 million be raised from the 20,670 residents that live within the county.
As for Tiffin, this is the same plot of land that a bunch of over-eager sprawl merchants wanted to develop this past summer into a mall, water park, restaurants, and so forth even though it's only four miles west of Coral Ridge Mall and 20 miles east of Tanager Outlet Center in Williamsburg.
Des Moines Public Library System Has At Least Nine Tookie Books
Convicted multiple murderer, Crips founder, and hopefully-soon-to-be-lethally-injected children's book author Stanley "Tookie" Williams has at least nine of his books in the Des Moines Public Library's catalog.
Tuba Christmas In Iowa
Via Radio Iowa: There are Tuba Christmas events in Cedar Rapids, Creston, Mason City, and Ottumwa this weekend. Don't miss it!
Senator Chuck Grassley Is A Weasel - Confirmed
Thanks to the reader who emailed us these scans.
This is from HR 2419, which the 109th Congress passed then Bush signed on November 19th. It's a change in the location for where the $50 million in pork that Grassley secured for the Rainforest Scam a couple of years ago can be spent. Instead of just the City of Coralville, it's now covers the entire State of Iowa.
Senator "Bought And Paid For" Grassley slipped this amendment in clearly as a favor to Republican buddy David Oman:
From Opensecrets.org: Look at how little David Oman had to spend in order to buy Chuck Grassley's influence.
Where's the Des Moines Register on this? They could give a crap about reporting the news, except trumpeting the possibility that the Rainforest might move to Des Moines in order to be part of a larger and more expensive zoo. This is a significant change that demonstrates that the fix has been in for a long, long time and was partially engineered by Chuck Grassley himself!
A bunch of damn puppets live at 715 Locust.
Side Notes Hates The Country, Loves Her Neighbors
Don't miss Side Notes complaining about living in the country in this post and then appreciating the kindness of her neighbors in this post.
Too bad we're going to lose her to Chicago.
Yet... Somehow He Won Iowa In 2004
Gotta love this hit piece on President Bush in the DMR today based on a "paid for" poll.
Bush won. Get over it.
There's Nothing Like Bad Publicity For The Giant Carbuncle
From the Des Moines Register's Letters section:
Your Dec. 2 story about the Wells Fargo Arena fell abysmally short of the obvious. It's going to take more than new management to make that boondoggle profitable.
I visited the arena for the Mannheim Steamroller concert. Getting to my seat rivaled a medical stress test (somewhat akin to rock-wall climbing).
Once seated, or rather shoehorned, into a seat too narrow for a super-model's fanny, I tried reading the program before the show, but alas, there were no house lights.
Our after-the-show exit took 20 minutes to get out of the building (a fire marshal's worst nightmare), and another hour to get out of the parking lot.
The three-hour drive home in a snowstorm was a welcome relief.
-Myron Amdahl, Eagle Grove.
Excellent letter, sir!
Related: It's The Little Things At The Carbuncle, Like $6 Beers And Weird-Ass Toilet Paper and The Giant Carbuncle
Des Moines Is Doomed
Well, well, well, look at who's been to England in the past year:
[Des Moines City Council Member Christine] Hensley and her husband, Steve, in March visited the Eden Project in Cornwall, England, something of a model for the Iowa project. Eden turned an economically depressed area and former vacation spot into a renewed tourist attraction, English business leaders told Hensley.
"It was absolutely stunning," Hensley said of Eden, a Millennium Project supported by the British government. "It's in the middle of nowhere and its effect on the local economy was way beyond my imagination."
...Cownie and Hensley said Des Moines soon will review the rain forest business plan to see if city support is warranted. Cownie said the educational elements of the project, and the prospect of adding to other developments in the resurgent downtown, are particularly interesting.
It's clear from this DMR story that the project has been planning to come to Des Moines for a while.
How convenient that Hensley went to England to visit the project earlier in the year. Who paid for that?
No mention in the DMR yet that Senator Grassley seems to be changing the language in the $50 million grant to make it applicable only in Johnson County to all of Iowa. Why would the Des Moines Register not tell us that? Because those elitist and monopolisitic Gannettoids have their nose too far up the asses of local, county, and state government to be objective, much less a watchdog.
Des Moines, you're doomed.
The Biggest Lie From The Biggest Liar
The Iowa City Press-Citizen published a statement from the con artists running the Rainforest Scam. Here's the biggest doozy:
Over the past few months, the Environmental Project has received overtures – including firm offers of sites – from many communities, institutions and developers in the state of Iowa.
“We’ve had good people reach out to us, people in communities who clearly understand the potential of the project with regard to both its environmental and educational missions,” said Oman. “They also readily understand the economic lift that would accrue from creating a large signature destination attraction in our state.
Economic lift, my ass.
Here's a question for Chief Con Man Oman: How many people do you think would have been travelling to the Coralville Rainforest this week, what with all the numerous snowfalls, icy roads, and sub-zero temps? Your projected 4100?
Probably a couple hundred. If that.
At what point do you make that up? Spring? Summer? Autumn?
It's tough getting 13,000 people into the UNI Dome for a UNI/Iowa Hawkeyes basketball game, much less making up the tens of thousands in weekly projected attendance losses for the Rainforest during the winter.
Thursday, December 08, 2005
Cityview DM Speculates On Register Editorial Board Silence Concerning Dirty Knappy Scandal
Via Midwest Mesopotamia, here is Cityview DM's take:
Insider: 'Stier killed IDOT editorial'Wouldn't surprise us in the least.
Despite sagging readership numbers, The Des Moines Register has enjoyed some success with its investigative reporting (see Clark Kauffman's Cass County corruption piece), which in turn has been followed up by sometimes a nauseating number of self-congratulatory editorials where the publication's leaders get to hop on their high horse and preach to the populace about what should be done to right the wrongs. So when the recent three-day series by reporters Bert Dalmer and Tim Higgins on Bill Knapp, Dennis Elwell, Mark Wandro and the rest of the seemingly shady Ankeny Interchange deal that left the citizenry calling for heads and some lawmakers pushing for an investigation by A.G. Tom Miller didn't warrant any ink by the Register Editorial Board, employees there got to talking - and the rumors as to why are not pretty. "I think it's logical that a follow-up editorial would run. We've done so with regularity in the past; but while you can't kill the news, you can kill editorials," an angry staffer there told Cityview. When asked to elaborate, this individual said, "at the end of the day, one vote counts more than all of the others," while another individual who contacted Cityview stated bluntly, "Mary Stier killed it." Why? Well, that's what no one we've spoken to seems to be sure about. Neither Knapp nor Elwell are major advertisers with the paper, but speculation of Stier (who did not return Cityview's call) wanting to stay tight with the "upper crust Partnership types" might have weighed in on why an editorial was either killed or simply not written. "She's not a news person. She's a business person," one source said. "And she'll deny anything not above board taking place until she's blue in the face, but the fact remains the same that there was no follow-up. Ken Fuson jokingly mentioned it, and there was a Duffy cartoon, but that's about as much as she wants to rock the boat... I guess we'll never know who actually pulled it or stopped it or whatever, but (Editorial Page Editor) Carol Hunter couldn't pick Bill Knapp out of a line-up, so I'm not sure what the true news people would have to gain by doing so... This took months of hard work and digging. Did it cut too close for our usual patting ourselves on the back?"
This is also why you hear practically no criticism from the Register Editorial Board concerning the Rainforest scam that con-men David Oman and Robert "Filthy" Ray are involved with.
Hey, Yepsen, why don't you look in the mirror? You monopoly corporate newspaper types are just as much of the problem as the Republicrats and the Demicons who push this crap.
Matt Hoover: The Biggest Loser
Last week, Matt Hoover of Marion won The Biggest Loser weight-loss contest on NBC. This story in the Elgin Echo from his best friend's perspective sheds a lot of light on what Hoover went through.
Buying Local In SE Iowa
An excellent, lengthy piece in the Fort Madison Daily Democrat on businesses in the area that offer locally-produced foods.
Rainforest Scam Is Officially Looking For Other Iowa Cities To Fuck With
The Register is reporting today that the con artists involved with the Rainforest Scam are now going to start dating other communities. Full story over at the Porkforest web site.
Odd thing how the Register couldn't get ahold of Chief Con Man David Oman for a quote. If a statement was released to the media, wouldn't he be available in some capacity? Where's Filthy Ray?
Odd thing how the Register couldn't get ahold of Chief Con Man David Oman for a quote. If a statement was released to the media, wouldn't he be available in some capacity? Where's Filthy Ray?
David Yepsen Forgot Why He Comes To Work
Updated below:
David Yepsen's column from today discusses the problem in Iowa with "independently" investigating scandals.
Hey, Yepsen, what the fuck do you do all day long at 715 Locust? Aren't you a journalist? Are there not reporters sitting around you waiting to be the nextJanet Cooke, Stephen Glass, Jayson Blair, Patricia Smith, Jay Forman, Jack Kelley, or Bob Woodward? Get off your fat asses and investigate these bastards yourself. Isn't that your job? For chrissakes!
Update: Chris at the Political Forecast has a post about today's Yepsen column and is still pushing his "Why Isn't Republican Dirty Elwell Being Mentioned?" agenda while performing some yeoman's work by digging through the massive PDFs that comply with our state's rotten political disclosure law but are a pain in the ass to search through.
It is interesting to note that the bigger taxpayer-fucking scams in Iowa (the Coralville Rainforest, the Newton Speedway, Clark McLeod's attempt to create taxpayer-financed municipal communications utilities, and the Ankeny DOT site controversy), are all bi-partisan efforts. There's a lot of blame to go around when taxpayers are being dp'd and we're not into that sort of thing.
David Yepsen's column from today discusses the problem in Iowa with "independently" investigating scandals.
Hey, Yepsen, what the fuck do you do all day long at 715 Locust? Aren't you a journalist? Are there not reporters sitting around you waiting to be the next
Update: Chris at the Political Forecast has a post about today's Yepsen column and is still pushing his "Why Isn't Republican Dirty Elwell Being Mentioned?" agenda while performing some yeoman's work by digging through the massive PDFs that comply with our state's rotten political disclosure law but are a pain in the ass to search through.
It is interesting to note that the bigger taxpayer-fucking scams in Iowa (the Coralville Rainforest, the Newton Speedway, Clark McLeod's attempt to create taxpayer-financed municipal communications utilities, and the Ankeny DOT site controversy), are all bi-partisan efforts. There's a lot of blame to go around when taxpayers are being dp'd and we're not into that sort of thing.
Scott Cawelti Is A Shitty Columnist, But We Knew That Already
We read Scott Cawelti's latest column this past weekend and it was so awful that we weren't even going to bother mentioning it until Drew Koopmeiners had this letter to the editor printed it the Waterloo Courier today:
I am writing in regard to Scott Cawelti's column "Letter from the Rancids helps lighten holidays" in the Dec. 4 issue of the Courier. I have two questions for Cawelti. First, what is your motivation in writing this column? Second, what do you hope to accomplish with this particular article? There was nothing constructive about this column. It was just an insult to conservatives and those who value legitimate political discourse. Cawelti could use his space to propose answers to the many problems that are facing this country. We can all benefit from legitimate political commentary and policy suggestions from both the liberal and conservative perspectives. His cheap insults, however, only contribute to the widening political fissure that threatens to destroy this country. His columns seem like an attempt to feed his ego and to give himself a false sense of purpose. However, pointless trite is still pointless trite, even if it is read by thousands of people each week. If Cawelti cannot offer anything constructive, his column should be given to someone who has the ability to use the space more effectively.
You never read anything as poorly written as Cawelti's latest column in any small-town Iowa newspaper. Mike Corum in the Pella Chronicle tried that for a while, but eventually he was canned.
History Of John Deere Health Care
John Deere plans to sell off their health care unit to UnitedHealthcare of Minnesota for half a billion dollars in the next few months. The QC Times has a timeline of this business. Isn't it interesting that John Deere, the company, started their health care plan after trying to deal with "skyrocketing employee health-care costs" back in 1971? Some things never change.
Taxpayer-Financed Corporate Welfare In Davenport
Davenport taxpayers are being asked to contribute more of their own money for corporate welfare for existing companies.
Wednesday, December 07, 2005
Ouch, Rants, That's Gotta Hurt
Drew Miller really rakes Iowa House Speaker Christopher Rants (R-SUX) over the coals for his support of car-title loans. Follow his links. Ouch!!!
Related: Democrats want to curb car title loan industry
Amtrak Update
A reader corrects us on a post last week involving Rekha Basu's letter to Santa Claus:
Thanks for the email.
Upgrading the track through Des Moines would probably cost a lot of money.
One of the problems with routing Amtrak through the central Iowa towns of Davenport, Iowa City, Des Moines, etc. is the fact the railroad lines that connect these cities directly is a single line. The next area to have access to double-tracks goes through Clinton, Cedar Rapids and Ames and goes north of Omaha.
Running a passenger route on a single track would be delayed more than it currently is. The central route would also require the tracks to be significantly upgraded to allow faster speeds for the trains.
The better "central" route would be through the Clinton, Cedar Rapids and Ames area.
Thanks for the email.
Upgrading the track through Des Moines would probably cost a lot of money.
Democrats want to curb car title loan industry
From a Charlotte Eby piece in the QC Times:
That's just the dumbest statement Rants could possibly make.
If Rants want people to believe that Republicans are heartless, cruel bastards who only care about monopoly businesses invading Iowa in order to screw the dumbest of the dumb and the poorest of the poor, then Democrats need to jump all over this. Besides, getting rid of these loansharks is the right thing to do.
Related: Willard Jenkins Won't Run For Re-Election
Statehouse Democrats say they’ll push for legislation to put the brakes on the car title loan industry in Iowa after a homeless veteran who lived in his car saw his only shelter repossessed when he couldn’t repay the loan.
Critics of car title loans say they allow consumers with bad credit and low incomes to receive short-term loans at high-interest rates. Those who take out the loans put their vehicles up as a security, but in some cases aren’t able to repay them with interest rates that can in some cases hit 360 percent.
Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller said the car title loan industry brings “unconscionable social costs” to Iowa and is fundamentally unfair...
The car title loan industry had cropped up in Iowa in the last two years. Attempts to cap interest rates at 21 percent stalled in the Legislature last session when House GOP leaders refused to take up the issue after it passed the Senate.
Iowa House Speaker Christopher Rants, R-Sioux City, said he still sees no reason to put new restrictions on car title loans.
“Nobody has to take out these loans,” he said. “As long as people are being fully informed, I think you ought to let people make a judgment as to what they can and cannot do.”
That's just the dumbest statement Rants could possibly make.
If Rants want people to believe that Republicans are heartless, cruel bastards who only care about monopoly businesses invading Iowa in order to screw the dumbest of the dumb and the poorest of the poor, then Democrats need to jump all over this. Besides, getting rid of these loansharks is the right thing to do.
Related: Willard Jenkins Won't Run For Re-Election
Juicy Rainforest Story In The CR Gazette?
From the Cedar Rapids Gazette's home page:
This pretty much explains it all, doesn't it? We'll grab the entire story once it shows up on NewsBank since the Gazette's web site is only open to subscribers.
City and area economic development leaders here wanted the $180 million Environmental Project rain forest's executive director to resign quietly in April after they saw no tangible progress in fundraising and project planning, according to a copyrighted story in The Gazette. A document The Gazette obtained reveals the request that David Oman resign as executive director came from leaders of the Iowa City/Coralville Convention and Visitors Bureau, Iowa City Area Chamber of Commerce and Iowa City Area Development Group and was supported by Coralville City officials. Though The Environmental Project quickly dismissed the request, local leaders said this week complaints prompting their request haven't been resolved.
This pretty much explains it all, doesn't it? We'll grab the entire story once it shows up on NewsBank since the Gazette's web site is only open to subscribers.
Congratulations Leonard Boswell
Congratulations go out to Leonard Boswell for being the most absent member of the 109th Congress when it came to voting.
We can only hope that Boswell will be re-elected in his race against Dirty Lamberti so that he can continue to miss even more votes. We love politicians who fail to show up for work. The more they stay away, the less damage they do to us taxpayers.
Thanks to the reader who contributed this!