Thursday, September 10, 2009
Go, Tea Parties and 912ers!!
We are approaching two very special dates to remember: September 11 and 12.
If you want a real view of your life under Statism vs. Capitalism, check out this great blog.
For a view of what true free-market healthcare could be like, check out this posting at John's Ponderings on Townhall.com: Understanding True Free-Market Medical Health Insurance.
My best wishes to all those tea party goers and those who will be in DC for the 9/12 events.
And a shake of my head in sheer puzzlement to those "911 truthers" such as Van Jones and Charlie Sheen. Do they also believe the Earth is flat?
- September 11, 2001
When our nation watched a horrorific attack on our soil - both in New York City and in Washington, DC, plus the plane that went down in Pennsylvania thanks to the efforts of brave passengers who loved this country and were smart enough to know what to do and brave enough to do it. - September 12, 2001
When our nation rallied as one to show the world we were still strong, that the lives taken by murdering terrorists would not go unnoticed and without response.
If you want a real view of your life under Statism vs. Capitalism, check out this great blog.
For a view of what true free-market healthcare could be like, check out this posting at John's Ponderings on Townhall.com: Understanding True Free-Market Medical Health Insurance.
My best wishes to all those tea party goers and those who will be in DC for the 9/12 events.
And a shake of my head in sheer puzzlement to those "911 truthers" such as Van Jones and Charlie Sheen. Do they also believe the Earth is flat?
Labels: 9/12ers, 911 truther, capitalism, healthcare, statism, tea party
Go to full article...
Monday, March 16, 2009
Dear Congressman: A Virtual 'Boston Tea Party'
Rather than sending you a real tea bag -- something that will just get dumped by the mail screeners, I am sending you this image of a tea bag. This tea bag is a symbol of how you have been letting us down, how you think you can get away with excessive taxation without listening to us, how you use such tactics as promoting wealth envy to get many of us stirred up to vote for you. As Rick Santelli said, enough is enough. It's time for a new Boston Tea Party. Along with throwing tea in the harbor (metaphorically speaking), we need to toss all of you in with them, along with Obama, Geithner, Soros, and the whole rotten bunch. It won't make a very good cup of tea, but it will improve life for all the rest of us.Labels: bag, Congress, tea, tea party, teabag
Go to full article...Thursday, March 05, 2009
Taking Action at the Local HOA
A lot of talk is bandied about these days regarding starting at the local level – contacting mayors, town council members, etc., about controlling spending. Sounds good, but…
We can’t even get our Homeowners Association (HOA) to listen.
People think an HOA helps preserve their property value and neighborly quality of life. Whether they do or not is a matter of opinion. The facts, however, are that they can use force to collect the homeowner dues (also called “regular assessments” according to our HOA President) and impose late fees and liens on our houses if these dues aren’t paid. (Sort of a mini-IRS.)
Usually, people who get elected as officers have such low self-esteem that they need to have power over others, whom they fear – in this case their hapless neighbors whom would run totally amok without the omnipresent authority of the HOA. They spend the dues money on things that they think are crowd-pleasers, such as kid-oriented events (about 80 out of 197 households in our HOA have children) then wonder why more and more owners stop paying their dues. The basic principle of capitalism – getting value for the value given – seems to totally escape these people. They live by the platitude of “doing it for the community.”
My husband and I got fooled into thinking that an HOA would help in dealing with difficult neighbors, like the renters who lived on both sides of our previous house (in a cul-de-sac). They held parties where plenty of alcohol consumption took place, in the front yards (which were tiny) instead of the back yards (which were large). They were illegal Hispanics, and the landlords cajoled us with the statement that their tenants’ disruptive behavior was just a “cultural difference” and that we “should get used to it.”
Unfortunately, our HOA falls far short of the expectation of having someone to help when there are neighbor issues like these. We still have to deal with them ourselves. In fact, our neighbors impose on us. One got a school bus stop arranged in front of our house. They have also acquired a young dog that is turning into quite a barker. Other neighbors harass workmen who happen to park outside of our property while doing repairs.
Of course, the HOA did its part by forcing a neighbor to throw away the shingles he got at a discount and then buy other shingles. Why? The ones thrown away were brown. Our bylaws/covenants specify using only black. We have yet to understand how this improves our property value and maintains a pleasant neighborhood. Sounds like just a bunch of petty, small-minded thugs flexing their puny muscles.
One thing we’re thankful for: the HOA is not in charge of our household budget. My hubby and I would be in bankruptcy court in a year or less.
Here’s a sample of what they are doing (remember that this is a small HOA of 197 houses, a tennis court, a pool, and a sorry excuse for a clubhouse – amounts are rounded off):
Management/admin: $16,300/year*
Grounds care: $13,000/year
Pool expenses.: $17,500/year**
Clubhouse/tennis courts: $3,000/year**
Newsletter/social events: $2,350**
* They wanted more but settled for a decreased amount; I’m certain they will get the rest through the back door. Our HOA officers are complete Socialists.
** Approximately 10% of the owners use the pool regularly. Approximately 1% use the tennis courts and clubhouse regularly (mostly Girl Scout meetings). All for “the community.” The newsletter is a waste of paper and postage, filled with “fluff” pieces.
The budget total is $61,000 ($310 per year per house, which is $10 more than we pay in fees per house per year – that’s a deficit of $1,970 per year). Meanwhile, our pool has been estimated to cost $150,000 to replace in a few years. Guess we better get ready to bend over and take it when a large “special assessment” comes our way.
To top off all of this, our budget income amount included items such as fees for statements on the HOA’s finances issued to buyers (we tried to get one of these before buying, but the management company refused). These statements are rarely done. That’s like finding a $10 bill on the sidewalk one year and including in your projected income for the next year the certainty of finding another $10 bill. Chances are pretty slim. Our HOA officers don’t seem to be able to grasp this basic concept. Of course, our HOA doesn’t have to worry about it. They can just raise that “regular assessment” or issue a “special assessment” to cover the shortfall they irresponsibly created with their expenditures on Easter Egg Hunts, etc. Sigh, it’s all in the name of “the community.”
With an HOA like this, how does one start at local level to undo the mess of overspending in the trillions at the national level? Just be glad these people aren’t part of the DC spendthrift crowd.
Copyright © 2009 A.C. Cargill
A.C. Cargill resides on the East Coast for now, has lived in several locations, including Europe, and uses her background in technical writing, including researching topics online, along with her degree in Philosophy and English, to point out good ideas that aren’t so good after all. (And don't forget to check out her blog site: Sounded Good.) She and her hubby also have a fun blog that takes a little lighter look at the issues: Break Time Topics (things to read while you take a break to enjoy your morning coffee of afternoon tea). Also, don’t miss her on Townhall.com.
We can’t even get our Homeowners Association (HOA) to listen.
People think an HOA helps preserve their property value and neighborly quality of life. Whether they do or not is a matter of opinion. The facts, however, are that they can use force to collect the homeowner dues (also called “regular assessments” according to our HOA President) and impose late fees and liens on our houses if these dues aren’t paid. (Sort of a mini-IRS.)
Usually, people who get elected as officers have such low self-esteem that they need to have power over others, whom they fear – in this case their hapless neighbors whom would run totally amok without the omnipresent authority of the HOA. They spend the dues money on things that they think are crowd-pleasers, such as kid-oriented events (about 80 out of 197 households in our HOA have children) then wonder why more and more owners stop paying their dues. The basic principle of capitalism – getting value for the value given – seems to totally escape these people. They live by the platitude of “doing it for the community.”
My husband and I got fooled into thinking that an HOA would help in dealing with difficult neighbors, like the renters who lived on both sides of our previous house (in a cul-de-sac). They held parties where plenty of alcohol consumption took place, in the front yards (which were tiny) instead of the back yards (which were large). They were illegal Hispanics, and the landlords cajoled us with the statement that their tenants’ disruptive behavior was just a “cultural difference” and that we “should get used to it.”
Unfortunately, our HOA falls far short of the expectation of having someone to help when there are neighbor issues like these. We still have to deal with them ourselves. In fact, our neighbors impose on us. One got a school bus stop arranged in front of our house. They have also acquired a young dog that is turning into quite a barker. Other neighbors harass workmen who happen to park outside of our property while doing repairs.
Of course, the HOA did its part by forcing a neighbor to throw away the shingles he got at a discount and then buy other shingles. Why? The ones thrown away were brown. Our bylaws/covenants specify using only black. We have yet to understand how this improves our property value and maintains a pleasant neighborhood. Sounds like just a bunch of petty, small-minded thugs flexing their puny muscles.
One thing we’re thankful for: the HOA is not in charge of our household budget. My hubby and I would be in bankruptcy court in a year or less.
Here’s a sample of what they are doing (remember that this is a small HOA of 197 houses, a tennis court, a pool, and a sorry excuse for a clubhouse – amounts are rounded off):
Management/admin: $16,300/year*
Grounds care: $13,000/year
Pool expenses.: $17,500/year**
Clubhouse/tennis courts: $3,000/year**
Newsletter/social events: $2,350**
* They wanted more but settled for a decreased amount; I’m certain they will get the rest through the back door. Our HOA officers are complete Socialists.
** Approximately 10% of the owners use the pool regularly. Approximately 1% use the tennis courts and clubhouse regularly (mostly Girl Scout meetings). All for “the community.” The newsletter is a waste of paper and postage, filled with “fluff” pieces.
The budget total is $61,000 ($310 per year per house, which is $10 more than we pay in fees per house per year – that’s a deficit of $1,970 per year). Meanwhile, our pool has been estimated to cost $150,000 to replace in a few years. Guess we better get ready to bend over and take it when a large “special assessment” comes our way.
To top off all of this, our budget income amount included items such as fees for statements on the HOA’s finances issued to buyers (we tried to get one of these before buying, but the management company refused). These statements are rarely done. That’s like finding a $10 bill on the sidewalk one year and including in your projected income for the next year the certainty of finding another $10 bill. Chances are pretty slim. Our HOA officers don’t seem to be able to grasp this basic concept. Of course, our HOA doesn’t have to worry about it. They can just raise that “regular assessment” or issue a “special assessment” to cover the shortfall they irresponsibly created with their expenditures on Easter Egg Hunts, etc. Sigh, it’s all in the name of “the community.”
With an HOA like this, how does one start at local level to undo the mess of overspending in the trillions at the national level? Just be glad these people aren’t part of the DC spendthrift crowd.
Copyright © 2009 A.C. Cargill
A.C. Cargill resides on the East Coast for now, has lived in several locations, including Europe, and uses her background in technical writing, including researching topics online, along with her degree in Philosophy and English, to point out good ideas that aren’t so good after all. (And don't forget to check out her blog site: Sounded Good.) She and her hubby also have a fun blog that takes a little lighter look at the issues: Break Time Topics (things to read while you take a break to enjoy your morning coffee of afternoon tea). Also, don’t miss her on Townhall.com.
Labels: association, budget, hoa, homeowner, overspending
Go to full article...Sunday, December 21, 2008
Caroline is ‘Present’
The next “ruler” of our nation will be sworn in come January 20th of the fast-approaching New Year. The “B.O.”zo man is wasting no time, however, getting things lined up for his grab at the brass ring. He and “the Missus” have selected a private school for their little ones, executive orders have been lined up along with a few fresh pens full of ink, and his arch enemy, “That Hillary Woman,” has been tapped for her next political gig as his Secretary of State. Sounds good, but…
Who will fill the Hillarybeast’s shoes in Congress?
We finally have a “Kennedy-free” zone in D.C. A political dynasty that began with the “Camelot-ish” reign of “Jack” and “Jackie” is now faltering as Ted “Chappaquiddick” Kennedy puts his health in the hands of the best medical professionals in the land and absents himself from his Senatorial seat.
But, wait – that’s very BAD! We have to have a Kennedy in D.C., and not just passing out punch and cookies as a D.C. “hostess” – we’re talking about having a “real” role in governing us bunch of unruly individuals that run amok without regulations and “oversight.”
Gee, how about Caroline Kennedy? Didn’t she do such a SUPER job as part of the BOzo's V.P. selection team? On the experience scale that MUST rank higher than Palin being a Mayor and then a Governor. Not to mention Her Royal Clintoness being an ex-First Lady and then carpetbagger-turned-New-York-Senator.
The final test of Caroline’s qualifications would sound something like this:
Me: “Hi, Ms. Kennedy.”
CK: “Please, call me Caroline. I’m a Kennedy but want to be treated just like you humble people.”
Me: “Uh – ok – well, I was just going to ask you about your qualifications to be Senator from New York.”
CK: “Oh, I’m so flattered to be asked. Here, have some punch and cookies. Gee, first I got to help pick the V.P. That was so exciting. Biden wasn’t my first choice, but he won’t be too bad. The press just has to stop reporting his gaffes. And he’s studying hard so he can get up to speed on some things like…”
Me: “Sorry to interrupt, but I just wanted to ask you one thing.”
CK: “Oh, sure. I’m always glad to answer anything you people in the media…”
Me: “I’m not a journalist. I write opinion columns.”
CK: “Oh, the sort of things that the Fairness Doctrine will address.”
Me: “That’s radio. My question is…”
CK: “More punch?”
Me: “No, I’m good. Actually, it smells a bit ‘strong.’”
CK: “Of course. It’s Ted’s secret recipe.”
Me: “Ok…” (I set glass gently aside) “Well, I just wanted to ask you to say something.”
CK: “That sounds easy. Shoot.”
Me: “Say ‘present.’”
CK: “‘Present.’”
Me: “Great. You passed.”
CK: “Really? That’s it? I’m qualified.”
Me: “Sure. That’s about all our President-elect said while in office. Piece of cake.”
CK: “Cool. More cookies?”
Sounds like a good idea to read up on the importance of individual rights and what we could be losing with people like this running the government.
Ho, ho, ho! Everyone!
Copyright © 2008 A.C. Cargill
A.C. Cargill resides on the East Coast for now, has lived in several locations, including Europe, and uses her background in technical writing, including researching topics online, along with her degree in Philosophy and English, to point out good ideas that aren’t so good afterall. She and her hubby also have a fun blog that takes a little lighter look at the issues: Break Time Topics (things to read while you take a break to enjoy your morning coffee of afternoon tea). Also, don’t miss her on Townhall.com. Get confused about the difference between Capitalism and Statism? This blog lays it all out for you.Go to full article...
Who will fill the Hillarybeast’s shoes in Congress?
We finally have a “Kennedy-free” zone in D.C. A political dynasty that began with the “Camelot-ish” reign of “Jack” and “Jackie” is now faltering as Ted “Chappaquiddick” Kennedy puts his health in the hands of the best medical professionals in the land and absents himself from his Senatorial seat.
But, wait – that’s very BAD! We have to have a Kennedy in D.C., and not just passing out punch and cookies as a D.C. “hostess” – we’re talking about having a “real” role in governing us bunch of unruly individuals that run amok without regulations and “oversight.”
Gee, how about Caroline Kennedy? Didn’t she do such a SUPER job as part of the BOzo's V.P. selection team? On the experience scale that MUST rank higher than Palin being a Mayor and then a Governor. Not to mention Her Royal Clintoness being an ex-First Lady and then carpetbagger-turned-New-York-Senator.
The final test of Caroline’s qualifications would sound something like this:
Me: “Hi, Ms. Kennedy.”
CK: “Please, call me Caroline. I’m a Kennedy but want to be treated just like you humble people.”
Me: “Uh – ok – well, I was just going to ask you about your qualifications to be Senator from New York.”
CK: “Oh, I’m so flattered to be asked. Here, have some punch and cookies. Gee, first I got to help pick the V.P. That was so exciting. Biden wasn’t my first choice, but he won’t be too bad. The press just has to stop reporting his gaffes. And he’s studying hard so he can get up to speed on some things like…”
Me: “Sorry to interrupt, but I just wanted to ask you one thing.”
CK: “Oh, sure. I’m always glad to answer anything you people in the media…”
Me: “I’m not a journalist. I write opinion columns.”
CK: “Oh, the sort of things that the Fairness Doctrine will address.”
Me: “That’s radio. My question is…”
CK: “More punch?”
Me: “No, I’m good. Actually, it smells a bit ‘strong.’”
CK: “Of course. It’s Ted’s secret recipe.”
Me: “Ok…” (I set glass gently aside) “Well, I just wanted to ask you to say something.”
CK: “That sounds easy. Shoot.”
Me: “Say ‘present.’”
CK: “‘Present.’”
Me: “Great. You passed.”
CK: “Really? That’s it? I’m qualified.”
Me: “Sure. That’s about all our President-elect said while in office. Piece of cake.”
CK: “Cool. More cookies?”
Sounds like a good idea to read up on the importance of individual rights and what we could be losing with people like this running the government.
Ho, ho, ho! Everyone!
Copyright © 2008 A.C. Cargill
A.C. Cargill resides on the East Coast for now, has lived in several locations, including Europe, and uses her background in technical writing, including researching topics online, along with her degree in Philosophy and English, to point out good ideas that aren’t so good afterall. She and her hubby also have a fun blog that takes a little lighter look at the issues: Break Time Topics (things to read while you take a break to enjoy your morning coffee of afternoon tea). Also, don’t miss her on Townhall.com. Get confused about the difference between Capitalism and Statism? This blog lays it all out for you.Go to full article...
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Pouncin' on Palin
All’s fair in love and politics – or so some bloggers think. The right to free speech is also being exercised with gleeful abandon. Their target-du-jour? Sarah Palin – Governor of Alaska, Republican, VP running mate to McCain and – gasp! – a woman! The Dems are having a field day, working hard to bring out into the harsh light of public scrutiny anything and everything they can find and blowing those things up out of all proportion. All in the name of running a campaign. Sounds good but…
Does any of this “pouncin’ on Palin” have validity? Is there any dirt (other than under the sofa) to find?
My theory:
The Dems, with Pelosi leading the fracas from behind the scenes (she couldn’t stand the thought of not being the most powerful female in D.C.), virtually ganged up on Hillary during the campaign for the Democrat Party nomination, and then ignored the 18+ million who voted for her by not naming her as Lord-on-high Obama’s running mate. (After all, can’t have THREE presidents – Hillary, Bill, and Barack – simultaneously.) Now, the Republicans have named a woman Veep candidate, and the Dems are sputtering, “But…but…we’re the party that advances equality for women!”
But, that’s just my humble theory.
So, all the libs are fuming and foaming at the mouth that a woman dares to go out there and compete with the “big boys” yet is not a member of the Democrat Party. (The Republicans have the “sex card” in their hand and the Dems don’t like it one bit.)
Of course, they are missing the point about women’s equality. It’s not really women’s equality. It’s gender equality.
Individuals – both women and men – should be able to live their life as they choose without restrictions due to their gender. Only in the matter of giving birth is there an exception. (Sorry, guys, but you just aren’t equipped.) However, once the baby is born, to tell a man that due to his gender he cannot be the primary caregiver is just as ludicrous as telling a woman that she has to set aside any thought other than the care of that child until the child “launches” (to use the term from the movie “Failure to Launch”).
From who can be in the kitchen, who should mow the lawn, who should drive the kids to hockey practice, etc., these decisions are up to the people directly involved, not the government, bloggers, or a bunch of do-gooding busybodies. (Remember the scene from “The Music Man” where the townswomen were gossiping in a barnyard henish manner?)
Hey, all you Dems, keep yelling about the Republicans having the “sex card.” It’s good for the country.
Copyright © 2008 A.C. Cargill
A.C. Cargill resides on the East Coast for now, has lived in several locations, including Europe, and uses her background in technical writing, including researching topics online, along with her degree in Philosophy and English, to point out good ideas that aren’t so good after all. (And don't forget to check out her blog site: Sounded Good.) She and her hubby also have a fun blog that takes a little lighter look at the issues: Break Time Topics (things to read while you take a break to enjoy your morning coffee of afternoon tea). Also, don’t miss her on Townhall.com.
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Anti-Oil Message Oozes into the Movies
The “Bourne” movies successfully transformed Matt Damon from a Hollywood actor with an image of a wimpy punk, fit only to play genius janitors (“Good Will Hunting”) or crazed rich-kid-wannabees (“The Talented Mr. Ripley”), to a real gosh-darn action hero, by golly! Sounds good, but…
He can’t seem to leave the whacko, “PC” (politically correct), anti-oil message behind.
The message in “The Bourne Supremacy” is subtly woven into the plot. As we learn more and more about amnesiac Bourne’s past, we find that he was assigned by our CIA as part of the Treadstone team to assassinate a Russian who was critical of – you guessed it – “Big Oil,” specifically, the privatization of Russia’s oil fields after the collapse of the – gasp! – U.S.S.R. (it collapsed? yes, but not forever, as recent actions in the former SSR of Georgia attest). The newspaper headlines slide by pretty fast, almost like a subliminal message, as Bourne scans for information at the local library, so it took me a couple of viewings to piece everything together. (Since I rarely go to theaters, I just caught this recently while watching the movie for the second time – the first time was about a year ago.)
It seems that, according to the movie, a Russian interested in oil field leases, teamed with his CIA buddy to arrange the assassination of someone standing in his way and trying to build up public opinion against him. They targeted this naysayer. This was Bourne’s first non-training mission. Once in his target’s hotel room, he discovered that the target’s wife was there. Surprise! He has to do some quick thinking. Aha! Kill the target, then make it look as if the wife killed him then committed suicide. (No matter that there was a young daughter who would forever live with the false knowledge that her parents died like this. Oh, well – collateral damage. Few assassinations go exactly as planned, I guess. Wouldn’t know since my career has taken another path.)
Oil is quickly replacing money as “the root of all evil” in Hollywood-controlled movie productions and from them into people’s minds.
Unfortunately, nothing reliable and without side-effects has yet replaced oil to make the fuel to run my car. Ethanol is a pipe dream that, if fully realized, could result in massive food shortages. Electric cars won’t run without electricity, and since the anti-nuke/anti-windmill/anti-anysensiblesolution crowd is still going strong, there may not be enough both to charge up our cars and maintain our modern lifestyle in our homes (refrigerators, cooking ranges, microwaves, washers, dryers, TVs, computers, etc.). Of course, we’re all just a bunch of energy hogs that need to stop using such a huge chunk of the world’s resources – not!
Matt Damon better be investing his income wisely. If he keeps up his anti-oil stance, there won’t be enough energy in any form to make movies nor to show them – whether it’s in theaters or at home.
By the way, this movie came out in 2004, and the Russian government, led by then-President Vladimir Putin, began the process of nationalizing the oil fields in 2004. Gee, what a coincidence! Here’s another: One of the “crimes” that YUKOS, the largest oil company and Putin’s first takeover target, was convicted of was “nonpayment of a tax bill far exceeding the company’s profits.”
Sound familiar? It should.
Exxon, the current whipping boy for the anti-oil crowd, will pay out $40 billion (worldwide) in taxes for 2008. They paid $19.828 billion so far this year while earning $11.68 billion in their second quarter this year (assuming that the first quarter was about the same, they paid about $14 billion in taxes MORE than the profits they earned). Yet, Congress and Presidential-wannabee Obama are calling for more taxes to cut down those “obscene profits.” Exxon earns much of those profits outside of the U.S. and pays taxes to the respective governments. (Get more details at Mark J. Perry’s blog.) But, again, Congress and Obama don’t care. Exxon pays more in taxes than the bottom half of the income earners in the U.S., but that also doesn’t matter.
How long would your local grocery store stay in business if, for every dollar they took in above their expenses (i.e., profit), they paid out $1.50? How long could you survive if, for every dollar you earned above what you need for the basics (food, housing, utilities, healthcare, clothes), you had to pay out $1.50?
It’s time for all of us to get some sense. We are following in Putin’s footsteps. Our Congress is coming closer and closer to trying to nationalize our oil companies. Don’t believe me? Check out this FoxNews item. It seemed to have slipped by the other news outlets unnoticed. Yeah, right!
Gotta go hog some energy now.
Copyright © 2008 A.C. Cargill
A.C. Cargill resides on the East Coast for now, has lived in several locations, including Europe, and uses her background in technical writing, including researching topics online, along with her degree in Philosophy and English, to point out good ideas that aren’t so good afterall. She and her hubby also have a fun blog that takes a little lighter look at the issues: Break Time Topics (things to read while you take a break to enjoy your morning coffee of afternoon tea). Also, don’t miss her on Townhall.com.Go to full article...
He can’t seem to leave the whacko, “PC” (politically correct), anti-oil message behind.
The message in “The Bourne Supremacy” is subtly woven into the plot. As we learn more and more about amnesiac Bourne’s past, we find that he was assigned by our CIA as part of the Treadstone team to assassinate a Russian who was critical of – you guessed it – “Big Oil,” specifically, the privatization of Russia’s oil fields after the collapse of the – gasp! – U.S.S.R. (it collapsed? yes, but not forever, as recent actions in the former SSR of Georgia attest). The newspaper headlines slide by pretty fast, almost like a subliminal message, as Bourne scans for information at the local library, so it took me a couple of viewings to piece everything together. (Since I rarely go to theaters, I just caught this recently while watching the movie for the second time – the first time was about a year ago.)
It seems that, according to the movie, a Russian interested in oil field leases, teamed with his CIA buddy to arrange the assassination of someone standing in his way and trying to build up public opinion against him. They targeted this naysayer. This was Bourne’s first non-training mission. Once in his target’s hotel room, he discovered that the target’s wife was there. Surprise! He has to do some quick thinking. Aha! Kill the target, then make it look as if the wife killed him then committed suicide. (No matter that there was a young daughter who would forever live with the false knowledge that her parents died like this. Oh, well – collateral damage. Few assassinations go exactly as planned, I guess. Wouldn’t know since my career has taken another path.)
Oil is quickly replacing money as “the root of all evil” in Hollywood-controlled movie productions and from them into people’s minds.
Unfortunately, nothing reliable and without side-effects has yet replaced oil to make the fuel to run my car. Ethanol is a pipe dream that, if fully realized, could result in massive food shortages. Electric cars won’t run without electricity, and since the anti-nuke/anti-windmill/anti-anysensiblesolution crowd is still going strong, there may not be enough both to charge up our cars and maintain our modern lifestyle in our homes (refrigerators, cooking ranges, microwaves, washers, dryers, TVs, computers, etc.). Of course, we’re all just a bunch of energy hogs that need to stop using such a huge chunk of the world’s resources – not!
Matt Damon better be investing his income wisely. If he keeps up his anti-oil stance, there won’t be enough energy in any form to make movies nor to show them – whether it’s in theaters or at home.
By the way, this movie came out in 2004, and the Russian government, led by then-President Vladimir Putin, began the process of nationalizing the oil fields in 2004. Gee, what a coincidence! Here’s another: One of the “crimes” that YUKOS, the largest oil company and Putin’s first takeover target, was convicted of was “nonpayment of a tax bill far exceeding the company’s profits.”
Sound familiar? It should.
Exxon, the current whipping boy for the anti-oil crowd, will pay out $40 billion (worldwide) in taxes for 2008. They paid $19.828 billion so far this year while earning $11.68 billion in their second quarter this year (assuming that the first quarter was about the same, they paid about $14 billion in taxes MORE than the profits they earned). Yet, Congress and Presidential-wannabee Obama are calling for more taxes to cut down those “obscene profits.” Exxon earns much of those profits outside of the U.S. and pays taxes to the respective governments. (Get more details at Mark J. Perry’s blog.) But, again, Congress and Obama don’t care. Exxon pays more in taxes than the bottom half of the income earners in the U.S., but that also doesn’t matter.
How long would your local grocery store stay in business if, for every dollar they took in above their expenses (i.e., profit), they paid out $1.50? How long could you survive if, for every dollar you earned above what you need for the basics (food, housing, utilities, healthcare, clothes), you had to pay out $1.50?
It’s time for all of us to get some sense. We are following in Putin’s footsteps. Our Congress is coming closer and closer to trying to nationalize our oil companies. Don’t believe me? Check out this FoxNews item. It seemed to have slipped by the other news outlets unnoticed. Yeah, right!
Gotta go hog some energy now.
Copyright © 2008 A.C. Cargill
A.C. Cargill resides on the East Coast for now, has lived in several locations, including Europe, and uses her background in technical writing, including researching topics online, along with her degree in Philosophy and English, to point out good ideas that aren’t so good afterall. She and her hubby also have a fun blog that takes a little lighter look at the issues: Break Time Topics (things to read while you take a break to enjoy your morning coffee of afternoon tea). Also, don’t miss her on Townhall.com.Go to full article...
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Free Houses Aren’t Free
The show “Extreme Makeover” takes some dilapidated house, fixes it up in an obscenely short time, and turns it over to the owners. They make for some very exciting TV viewing and bring a warm glow to the hearts of their audience while lifting up the standard of living of their benefactorees. Sounds good, but…
The recipients of this largesse do not always live happily ever after. Case in point: The owners of the mini mansion in Atlanta, GA, that was built in six days in 2005, are about to undergo foreclosure. Possibly due to being inspired by the show, they decided to start up a construction business, except that they didn’t have any money with which to start such a company. Hmm, what to do, what to do? Ah! They had a house worth $450,000 – voilà, loan collateral! Unfortunately, they weren’t very good businesspeople, as evidenced by the fact that their business failed and the beautiful 4-bedroom house will go up for auction on August 5th.
My first impression when reading this was: There was a reason these people were living in a house so bad that the “Extreme Makeover” team demolished it, namely poor money management, either due to their lack of knowledge or having fallen on hard times (or, as the liberal whackos say, having been downtrodden by the evil rich). In either case, building them a huge new house is not a solution. If they have fallen on hard times, they probably don’t have the funds to keep up the new house. If they don’t know how to manage money, how will they manage the finances this new house requires? This includes the managing of the $250,000 in contributions, scholarships, and a home maintenance fund. Where did that money go?
But, gee, maybe they were an exception, not the rule.
Of course, there are the winners of the HGTV Dream Homes. These poor saps clearly are not usually aware that they are liable for income tax (state and federal) on the market value of the house and other prizes, as well as property taxes, utilities, any HOA fees, and maintenance costs. With the house being worth over $1 million, plus additional prizes such as an SUV and $250,000 in cash, the tax bill alone would be hefty, to say the least. Don and Shelley Cruz certainly found this out the hard way. Not only did they find that this splendid house was too much for them, but the financial burden was rather onerous.
Ever take a slice of cake that was way too large because the cake just looked so gosh darn yummy? Sure, we all have – either cake or pie or something else equally scrumptious. The same goes for people who grab at too much house. The Cruz’s aren’t the only winners to opt out of the “dream” after a short time.
I’m not saying that people should not enter the HGTV Dream Home sweepstakes. They should just read all of the fine print. I have and, therefore, will never enter for fear that I would win. Besides, I like the house we live in now. We resisted the loan officer’s gently persuasive techniquest to try to get us to go for more house. (“With your credit rating and financial status, you could qualify for a much higher loan.” Yeah, right, you make the monthly payment, lady.) Thus, we ended up with a house that not only suits our lifestyle but our financial goals. We don’t care to be house poor.
That brings me back to being financially responsible. Whether you win your home, get one built for you by the Ty Pennington gang, get a government-sanctioned bundle of booty to bail you out of a bad mortgage you signed on to, or just plain overbuy, you are financially responsible. Unfortunately, Bush signed that bailout bill, so all of you who didn’t read the fine print before signing, you can pop that champagne cork now. Your neighbor is going to have a gun pointed at his/her head while the politicians reach into his/her wallet and pull out a wad of money to keep your butt off the street and seated in that La-Z-boy.
Yipee – not!
Copyright © 2008 A.C. CargillGo to full article...
The recipients of this largesse do not always live happily ever after. Case in point: The owners of the mini mansion in Atlanta, GA, that was built in six days in 2005, are about to undergo foreclosure. Possibly due to being inspired by the show, they decided to start up a construction business, except that they didn’t have any money with which to start such a company. Hmm, what to do, what to do? Ah! They had a house worth $450,000 – voilà, loan collateral! Unfortunately, they weren’t very good businesspeople, as evidenced by the fact that their business failed and the beautiful 4-bedroom house will go up for auction on August 5th.
My first impression when reading this was: There was a reason these people were living in a house so bad that the “Extreme Makeover” team demolished it, namely poor money management, either due to their lack of knowledge or having fallen on hard times (or, as the liberal whackos say, having been downtrodden by the evil rich). In either case, building them a huge new house is not a solution. If they have fallen on hard times, they probably don’t have the funds to keep up the new house. If they don’t know how to manage money, how will they manage the finances this new house requires? This includes the managing of the $250,000 in contributions, scholarships, and a home maintenance fund. Where did that money go?
But, gee, maybe they were an exception, not the rule.
Of course, there are the winners of the HGTV Dream Homes. These poor saps clearly are not usually aware that they are liable for income tax (state and federal) on the market value of the house and other prizes, as well as property taxes, utilities, any HOA fees, and maintenance costs. With the house being worth over $1 million, plus additional prizes such as an SUV and $250,000 in cash, the tax bill alone would be hefty, to say the least. Don and Shelley Cruz certainly found this out the hard way. Not only did they find that this splendid house was too much for them, but the financial burden was rather onerous.
Don, a stay-at-home dad, and Shelly, an administrative assistant who’s gone back to school to become an accountant, are quickly running through their winnings as they struggle to pay thousands a month for electricity, household help and other outsize bills for their outsize home.Seems that they suddenly found themselves in a tax bracket reserved for those evil rich people, the ones that Democrats are declaring they will sock it to when they regain the White House (as if Obama’s coronation – uh, er, inauguration were a foregone conclusion). They finally had to put the house up for auction, selling it for $1,325,000 to Rick Mullins. The Cruz family has returned to Chicago and put this two-year fantasy experience behind them. They are probably very happy to do so, since they are no longer faced with an annual property tax bill of $25,000 (many people’s annual salary). They know what they can handle financially to feel comfortable.
On top of that, they had to take out a loan to pay off a $672,000 tax bill on their winnings.
Ever take a slice of cake that was way too large because the cake just looked so gosh darn yummy? Sure, we all have – either cake or pie or something else equally scrumptious. The same goes for people who grab at too much house. The Cruz’s aren’t the only winners to opt out of the “dream” after a short time.
I’m not saying that people should not enter the HGTV Dream Home sweepstakes. They should just read all of the fine print. I have and, therefore, will never enter for fear that I would win. Besides, I like the house we live in now. We resisted the loan officer’s gently persuasive techniquest to try to get us to go for more house. (“With your credit rating and financial status, you could qualify for a much higher loan.” Yeah, right, you make the monthly payment, lady.) Thus, we ended up with a house that not only suits our lifestyle but our financial goals. We don’t care to be house poor.
That brings me back to being financially responsible. Whether you win your home, get one built for you by the Ty Pennington gang, get a government-sanctioned bundle of booty to bail you out of a bad mortgage you signed on to, or just plain overbuy, you are financially responsible. Unfortunately, Bush signed that bailout bill, so all of you who didn’t read the fine print before signing, you can pop that champagne cork now. Your neighbor is going to have a gun pointed at his/her head while the politicians reach into his/her wallet and pull out a wad of money to keep your butt off the street and seated in that La-Z-boy.
Yipee – not!
Copyright © 2008 A.C. CargillGo to full article...
