Buckyballs

Who is responsible the company or the parents?  Our government believes it can save us from life!

Random Thoughts

I don't like flying for a lot of reasons, the extra fees for baggage, etc. the intrusion of the airport security.   This cartoon is what is coming next, along with disembark fees!

*****

My post on Chick-fil-a was not a post against gay marriage, but to show the actual quote of the president.  He supports traditional marriage, he did not say that gay marriage was evil.

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According to a report by the WSJ, electricity plants that burn biomass as their energy source (organic materials that qualify as biomass can range from wood chips to animal waste) have received at least $700 million in federal and state subsidies since just 2009, even though they often fail to meet the environmental standards imposed upon their traditional fossil-fuel counterparts.  (http://hotair.com/archives/2012/07/25/surprise-subsidized-green-energy-source-isnt-actually-all-that-green/)

Picking winners and losers via political clout seems to not work!

Don't Understand Greece

I don't understand how come Germany is expected to bail out every EU country.

Global stock markets are way down this morning because of new fears over the stability of the Eurozone. And the worries can be traced to Athens, where a national default is looking like more of a possibility. There's reluctance from Germany to step in again with another bailout of Greece. And the health of big European banks is in question because of their exposure to Greek debt.(http://www.marketplace.org/topics/world/greece-trouble-yet-again-euro-loses-value)


A German court today ruled it was legal for Germany to help bailout European neighbors Ireland and Greece. But as part of the ruling, it'll now be harder for other countries who might be looking for financial help. Germany is Europe's biggest economy, and so bears the biggest burden of any bailout. (http://www.marketplace.org/topics/world/bbc-world-service/court-rules-german-bailout-eurozone-be-legal)



Moody's Investors Service is lowering its outlook for the credit ratings of Germany, the Netherlands and Luxembourg, citing the mounting uncertainty over the debt crisis in Europe and the possibility that those stronger countries would have to provide aid to Spain or Italy.
The rating agency said that it is revising its outlook to "Negative" from "Stable" for the three countries' top Aaa ratings. The increasing likelihood that Greece could withdraw from the group of countries that use the euro currency deepens the crisis, Moody's said.
The region's debt debacle flared anew Monday as fears intensified that Spain, the fourth-largest economy in the euro group, would be next in line for a government bailout. (http://businesstoday.intoday.in/story/moodys-lowers-outlooks-on-germany/1/186578.html)


They must be getting tired of it.  Riots in Greece and other countries as they are required to slim down to get the aid.  It seems to me that the Euro is not long for this world!

Chick-fil-A

I have never eaten at Chick-fil-A.  I always thought it was a fried chicken place similar to KFC.  But if the Boston mayor is against it maybe I should try it.  I get a little tired of political correctness.

Mayor Thomas M. Menino is vowing to block Chick-fil-A from bringing its Southern-fried fast-food empire to Boston — possibly to a popular tourist spot just steps from the Freedom Trail — after the family-owned firm’s president suggested gay marriage is “inviting God’s judgment on our nation.”
“Chick-fil-A doesn’t belong in Boston. You can’t have a business in the city of Boston that discriminates against a population. We’re an open city, we’re a city that’s at the forefront of inclusion,” Menino told the Herald yesterday.   ...

Chick-fil-A did not respond to multiple requests for comment. But the company released a statement yesterday saying it has a history of applying “biblically-based principles” to managing its business, such as closing on Sundays, and it insisted it does not discriminate.
“The Chick-fil-A culture and service tradition in our restaurants is to treat every person with honor, dignity and respect — regardless of their belief, race, creed, sexual orientation or gender,” the statement read. “Going forward, our intent is to leave the policy debate over same-sex marriage to the government and political arena.” (http://www.bostonherald.com/news/regional/view.bg?articleid=1061147182&srvc=home&position=emailed)



"We don't claim to be a Christian business," Cathy told the Biblical Recorder in a recent visit to North Carolina. He attended a business leadership conference many years ago where he heard Christian businessman Fred Roach say, "There is no such thing as a Christian business."

"That got my attention," Cathy said. Roach went on to say, "Christ never died for a corporation. He died for you and me."

"In that spirit ... [Christianity] is about a personal relationship. Companies are not lost or saved, but certainly individuals are," Cathy added.

"But as an organization we can operate on biblical principles. So that is what we claim to be. [We are] based on biblical principles, asking God and pleading with God to give us wisdom on decisions we make about people and the programs and partnerships we have. And He has blessed us." ...

he company invests in Christian growth and ministry through its WinShape Foundation (WinShape.com). The name comes from the idea of shaping people to be winners.

It began as a college scholarship and expanded to a foster care program, an international ministry, and a conference and retreat center modeled after the Billy Graham Training Center at the Cove.

"That morphed into a marriage program in conjunction with national marriage ministries," Cathy added.

Some have opposed the company's support of the traditional family. "Well, guilty as charged," said Cathy when asked about the company's position.

"We are very much supportive of the family -- the biblical definition of the family unit. We are a family-owned business, a family-led business, and we are married to our first wives. We give God thanks for that

  (

http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38271)

There aren't many businesses that close on Sunday any more, except car dealers in IL (another story).

Bike hazards

Intersting (to me) things that happened while bicycling to and from the Y.

Early in the morning, the other day, a skunk ran across the road just ahead of me. I moved to the right off of the road to avoid it. You can not win in a confrontation with a skunk, he can spray faster and smellier than a biker!

While bicycling on the bike trail with my light on early in the dark morning, another biker with no light on pasted very close to me!

Today, while biking back home, two women were walking on the path next to each other covering the entire path, as I approached them ( they were coming towards me not me oner taking them) the women on my side of the path did not move causing me to have move off the path into the rough.

Not only are cars dangerous to bicyclists, but people and animals can also cause accidents.

Marriage

Estimates vary widely, but scholars have said that changes in marriage patterns — as opposed to changes in individual earnings — may account for as much as 40 percent of the growth in certain measures of inequality. Long a nation of economic extremes, the United States is also becoming a society of family haves and family have-nots, with marriage and its rewards evermore confined to the fortunate classes.
“It is the privileged Americans who are marrying, and marrying helps them stay privileged,” said Andrew Cherlin, a sociologist at Johns Hopkins University.
About 41 percent of births in the United States occur outside marriage, up sharply from 17 percent three decades ago. But equally sharp are the educational divides, according to an analysis by Child Trends, a Washington research group. Less than 10 percent of the births to college-educated women occur outside marriage, while for women with high school degrees or less the figure is nearly 60 percent.  (http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/15/us/two-classes-in-america-divided-by-i-do.html?_r=2)

What’s most troubling about these figures is that marriage is good for children.

“Researchers have consistently found that children born outside marriage face elevated risks of falling into poverty, failing in school or suffering emotional and behavioral problems,” write Mr. DeParle and Ms. Tavernise. Most births outside of a marriage are to couples who are living together, but marriages last longer than alternative arrangements. Tax-saving economists Betsey Stevenson and Justin Wolfers may be the exception, but statistically, co-habitation arrangements in the United States are more than twice as likely to dissolve than marriages.  (

http://parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/19/for-younger-mothers-out-of-wedlock-births-are-the-new-normal/)

But that’s a mantra, and a stigma, that’s unfair to the reality of many families. Parents who choose single parenthood (mostly women, but far from all) at an established stage of their lives face different challenges than those who parent as a couple, but theirs is a different story than that of the single parent in less-secure circumstances.

In other words, the problem isn’t Murphy Brown (the television character criticized by Dan Quayle for choosing single motherhood) but the arguable Murphy Brown effect: What works for Michelle Williams, Minnie Driver and Sandra Bullock is a whole lot harder for Jessica Schairer, the single mother of three children featured in “Two Classes, Separated by ‘I Do’.” Jason DeParle’s profile of two Michigan mothers lays out stark differences in family experiences for the children of two very similar women, one married, the other raising her children alone after a failed relationship that never led to marriage,

differences come not just from the absence of a second parent. They also come from the economics of a family of four living on a single income that’s not large enough to replicate the income of most two-parent families. From there, the inequalities branch out into those very different childhoods: fewer activities, less help with homework, fewer vacations, less time to read and a far smaller margin for error.

It’s hard to separate the economic impact from the impact of the absence of that second parent, but regardless of causation, results appear to be far-reaching: lower scores on standardized tests, poorer grades and an increased likelihood of dropping out of high school or failing to attend college.(For a deeper view of the numbers, read Mr. DeParle’s Economix blog post “Economic Inequality and the Changing Family.”)(

http://parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/07/16/is-it-i-do-or-i-plan-that-divides-us/)

Abstinence is a major part of the solution here. Despite contraception use by the vast majority of Americans, as well as 1.2 million abortions annually, 41% of births are outside of marriage, and 53% of births to women under 30 are out of wedlock. While both contraception and abortion are immoral, they are usually symptoms of the overall problem of a lack of abstinence until marriage. (

http://hotair.com/archives/2012/07/17/marriage-the-growing-class-divide-in-america/)

I am glad that my LW and I waited to have our children after marriage.  It was not really an option to do otherwise.  Fortunately my kids also waited.
Kids have a hard enough life without having extra burdens placed on them of a single parent. 

Out of Touch

President Obama’s bizarre marriage-theme fund-raising scheme — where he asks couples to request campaign donations from their guests in lieu of wedding gifts — has been a total flop.

The desperate initiative, dubbed “the Event Registry,” is being mocked by event planners and couples — and shows how desperate the Obama campaign is to keep up with GOP contender Mitt Romney’s fund-raising. ...

“It’s a gift that we can all appreciate — and goes a lot further than a gravy bowl,” said campaign staffer Laura Wilson while announcing the initiative.

The Obama campaign didn’t return requests for comment.

But wedding industry pros called the ploy tasteless and divisive.

“This is absurd. Republican or Democrat, you shouldn’t bring politics into a wedding,” said Kristin Koch, a senior editor with weddingchannel.com. “We found that nearly everyone found this to be a bad idea.”

Brides-to-be commenting on her site’s message board called the initiative “gross!” and “tacky” — with one writing, “Hell no!”

“Politics and my personal celebrations should not be mixed,” another bride wrote. (http://www.nypost.com/p/news/national/wedder_to_obama_we_don_ImgCEHSdrILeVj5VlN0EFJ)

I can't imagine who would do this.  Weddings are suppose to be (mainly) about the bride not politics!

Bread

My favorite bread recipe is as follows:

2 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour
1/2 cup of oatmeal (I use Old Fashioned but Quick should work)
2/3 cup of dried cranberries (you could use other fruit to change the flavor)
1/2 cup of raw sunflower seeds
1/4 cup of brown sugar
1 tsp of cinnamon
1 1/2 tbsp of vital wheat gluten (sometimes I don't add this but the bread is denser, though it still tastes good to me)

1 1/8 cup of water
1 1/2 tbsp of canola oil (you could probably use any kind or even butter but it is easier for me to just add the oil)
1 1/2 tsp of yeast

Notes : the recipe calls for 1 1/2 tsp of salt and 1 tbsp of dried milk, but since I am trying to reduce milk products I don't add the milk ( before I used to just use skim milk for the water and dried milk and it worked well ). Also, I don't add the salt for my wife. But in my opinion it tastes good without it. Our bread maker has a beep to add the seeds and berries but I just add them with the dry stuff and it works well.

The bread has a nice crunchy taste from the sunflower seeds and a sweet taste from the cranberries. Plus it has only whole grains which are theoretically good for you.

Ignorance Reins

Most people want the rich to pay more in taxes.  But most people have no idea how much they actually pay.(http://townhall.com/tipsheet/katiepavlich/2012/07/12/people_who_want_rich_to_pay_more_have_no_clue_how_much_rich_actually_pay_in_taxes)

This is an intersting video with normal people showing that they don't have the time or energy to do more than listen to the 30 second sound bites.

Coal

Almost immediately after taking office, the Obama Administration began rewriting a recently completed coal regulation, the 2008 Stream Buffer Zone Rule (Rule). This unnecessary action, carried out through the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) at the Department of the Interior, proposed to dramatically alter a regulation that that took over five years of environmental analysis and careful scientific consideration to complete.
Despite the fact that a thorough Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) was conducted for the 2008 Rule, OSM hired another contractor to write an entirely new EIS for the Obama Administration’s efforts to rewrite the Rule. An Associated Press story revealed that this draft EIS concluded that the Obama Administration’s regulation could cost over 7,000 mining jobs and cause economic harm in 22 states. Shortly after this information was made public, the Obama Administration criticized and dismissed the contractor it had selected to conduct this analysis. (http://naturalresources.house.gov/Issues/Issue/?IssueID=56687)


Our country has probably the greatest coal reserves (The People's Republic of China is the largest producer of coal in the world, while the United States contains the world's largest 'recoverable' coal reserves (followed by Russia, China, and India)).  The Obama administration does not believe that coal can be used cleanly.  The cost of coal plants now is mainly the emissions control.

According to the 2010 report "Impact of EPA Rules on Power Markets," by Credit Suisse, tougher federal air pollution rules that will be coming in the next few years could prompt electricity companies to close as many as 1 in every 5 coal-burning power plants in America, primarily facilities more than 40 years old that lack emissions controls.

The regulations being crafted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), expected to go into force in April and November 2011 in accordance with the Clean Air Act, are aimed at reducing mercury, acid rain, and smog-forming emissions from utility smokestacks. The study found that the EPA rules, combined with a recent drop in the price of natural gas, could over the next four to five years cause the utility industry to accelerate retirement of old coal-fired power plants rather than spend to upgrade the plants' emissions controls.

After expected emissions upgrades, the coal fleet will continue to have plants, producing about 103,000 megawatts, that are still "lacking any major emission controls," the study says. The oldest, smallest coal plants with few emissions controls make up an "at-risk" of closure portion that account for about 20 percent of total US coal-fired generating capacity, or 69,000 megawatts. The cost to cut sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and mercury emissions could run $50 billion to $70 billion, not counting the oldest plants. Upgrading those would cost another $80 billion to $110 billion.(http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Existing_U.S._Coal_Plants)

It is a  cost comparison, jobs vs. coal emissions controls.  Energy independence vs. less energy.

Rain

We actually had a little rain today. Of course, I am pretty sure the fact that I had the wash outside on the line helped to bring the rain.

Since my LW likes to go to the Courtyard Concert at the library on summer Fridays, we went to the Y together, later than I like to go when I go by myself ( which is around 0420 so I get there before it opens at 0500, so I can get my workout done and back home by 0730).

We bicycled and the weather was nice and not too hot. I only did 20 laps since I wanted to get back so I could get the laundry done and on the line by 1030 or so. I assumed that that was early enough to get it dry before it was too late.

I decided to listen to the Chicago Cubs game on the radio, it was supposed to start at 1320. So I turned on the game around that time. And they said that there was a rain delay (remember our air conditioner is closing the drapes and trying to get the cool air into the house via fan in the morning) so I decided to look outside and to my great surprise there was some drops falling.

So I got the dog and went outside to take in the laundry. Actually, the wash was dry except for a little wet where the raindrops fell on it. Fortunately my LW was inside a store when it was raining on her way home. It rained a little after she got home, but not when she was biking.

It was actually nice to be out in the rain after getting in the wash, since I had the dog I needed to walk him a bit.

Ironic Stories

A professor at an Iowa college says as a Christian, he has to say that Jesus was a Muslim
Ignoring the historical timeline in which Jesus taught some 2,000 years ago in the Middle East and the advent of Islam is dated six centuries later, after Christianity had impacted much of the known globe, Robert F. Shedinger, who wrote “Was Jesus a Muslim?” said his research convinced him of Jesus as aligning in thought with Islam.(http://www.wnd.com/2012/07/christian-prof-says-jesus-was-muslim/)


I guess it could it could have been worst, he could have concluded that Jesus was an atheist.


Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) on Wednesday rejected a Republican request to vote on President Obama’s income tax plan amid defections within his caucus on tax policy. ....

Reid was responding to a request by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to vote on Obama’s tax plan, which would extend the Bush tax rates for families earning less than $250,000, alongside a Republican proposal to extend the 2001 and 2003 tax rates for one year.
“The Senate should make itself clear which policy it supports. This is our chance to do it,” said McConnell.
Sen. Orrin Hatch (Utah), the senior Republican on the Finance Committee, accused Democrats of filibustering the president’s tax plan.
"They are filibustering their own bill. So what does that tell us? Here’s what it tells us. It tells us that the president’s tax increase plan is not just an economic disaster; it is a political loser,” Hatch said. (http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/237217-reid-rejects-gop-request-to-vote-on-obamas-tax-plan)


It's hard being the democratic head of the senate, when President Obama's proposals are proposed!


Earlier today, Attorney General Eric Holder addressed the NAACP Nation Convention at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, Texas. What did media need in order to attend? That's right, government issued photo identification (and a second form of identification too!), something both Holder and the NAACP stand firmly against when it comes to voting. Holder's DOJ is currently suing Texas for "discriminatory" voter ID laws. (http://townhall.com/tipsheet/katiepavlich/2012/07/10/naacp_requires_photo_id_to_see_holder_speak)



Attorney General Eric Holder on Tuesday compared the new Texas voter ID law to the post-slavery efforts to keep blacks from voting known as a “poll taxes.”
The law was passed last year by the GOP-led state legislature, then signed by Gov. Rick Perry, in an effort to curb voter fraud.0

(http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/07/10/holder-tells-naacp-texas-vote-id-law-harmful-to-minorities/?test=latestnews)

This is the same atty.gen. who refused to prosecute black militants who were intimidating voters last presidential election.  It is obvious that voter fraud is not a high priority to the Obama administration.  ID's are required for most things but obviously it is too hard for the dems to get.  Here in IL, many dead people raise on election day and vote democratic!  

Tax the Rich

http://townhall.com/political-cartoons/

Wealthy Americans earn about 50 percent of all income but pay nearly 70 percent of the federal tax burden, according to the latest analysis Tuesday by the Congressional Budget Office — though the agency said the very richest have seen their share of taxes fall the last few years.

CBO looked at 2007 through 2009 and found the bottom 20 percent of American earners paid just three-tenths of a percent of the total tax burden, while the richest 20 percent paid 67.9 percent of taxes.

The top 1 percent, who President Obama has made a target during the presidential campaign, earns 13.4 percent of all pre-tax income, but paid 22.3 percent of taxes in 2009, CBO said. ...

“Specifically, between 2007 and 2009, the share of taxes paid fell for the bottom three income quintiles, was close to flat for the fourth quintile, but rose for the highest quintile,” CBO said. “Within the top quintile, however, the shift was uneven; the share paid by the top percentile fell, and the share paid by the rest of the top quintile rose.” (http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/jul/10/cbo-rich-pay-outsized-share-taxes/)

I am not in the top 1% (or top 20%), but if you worked hard to get there maybe you should be able to enjoy your wealth.  I am not very ambitious and did not work hard enough to make the big bucks, but I am not particularly jealous of those that did.  Some of the wealth is inherited (Kennedy's) or married (Kerry) but much of it is earned through hard work and long hours.

*****

For a long time recently we wished the temperature would go below 80F, then it actually (Alleluia!) went below 70 and this morning it actually made it to below 60F!  These are temperatures I am better able to cope with!

Higher Taxes Lead to ....

A new report says wealthy Maryland residents may be moving out due to recent tax hikes – a finding that is sure to escalate the battle over taxing the American rich.
The study, by the anti-tax group Change Maryland, says that a net 31,000 residents left the state between 2007 and 2010, the tenure of a "millionaire's tax" pushed through by Gov. Martin O'Malley. The tax, which expired in 2010, in imposed a rate of 6.25 percent on incomes of more than $1 million a year.
The Change Maryland study found that the tax cost Maryland $1.7 billion in lost tax revenues. A county-by-county analysis by Change Maryland also found that the state’s wealthiest counties also had some of the largest population outflows.
In total, Maryland has added 24 new taxes or fees in recent years, Change Maryland says. Florida, which has no income-tax, has been a large recipient of Maryland's exiled wealthy. (http://www.cnbc.com/id/48120446)


One of the many problems that states have is that when they tax the wealthy the wealthy have the means to move.  In general, if you are wealthy, you can and do take advantage of "loop holes" or legal means to not pay taxes.


When you have a job and depend on it for your income, you can't move to a cheaper tax environment.  Plus you can't sell your home if you could find work elsewhere.


In many ways, a "fair tax" or flat tax with no or few deductions is fairer.  People want services from their local, state or federal governments, but don't want to pay for them.  If I didn't live in IL, I would prefer to pay more at the local and state level since theoretically they are more responsive to the individuals (not in IL since the dems control the state without any real opposition).


In many ways, government has gotten too big because :



"When the people find they can vote themselves money that will herald the end of the republic." Ben Franklin



“A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most benefits from the public treasury with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy, always followed by a dictatorship. The average age of the world's greatest civilizations has been 200 years.”
― Alexis de Tocqueville

Spam

From Congratulations : Someone may have run a background check on you - view results.
From Marriedbutlonely : Date real cheating wives in your area Today.
From Sexual Married Women: Topless wife wants to hook up.

****

Who in their right mind would open any of those emails?

*****

We are watching a PBS series called "Downton Abbey" about a 1900's British noble family.  The only problem is that many of the parts seemed to be played by the same person.  There are a lot of characters and it seems like most of them are played by look a likes.  As I get older (not old mind you), I find that more and more actors look the same!

****

For some reason my 0420 bike trip to the Y seemed very spooky.  There was a partial moon with dark clouds (not rain clouds mind you) and it seemed rather quiet.  As I approached a major road, I noticed a bunch of small creatures near the street (raccoon size).  My bike light is not very bright, but it seemed today to cast a large shadow and at dips in the road reflected off signs giving the impression that there was someone behind me coming up.

I'm such a wimp sometimes!

Having Fun

My LW and I went to a singing convention for fun.

My kids go to Lake Superior or all over CO for fun.

There are times when I envy my kids.  They go to exciting places and do exciting things!

When we were younger and had the kids around (and I was in the military) we use to go to exciting places and do exciting things.  We camped in the Olympics and swam in the Pacific. We drove cross-country and visited Mt. Rushmore and some National Parks.

Now we seem to not be able to go away for long since the dog needs walking (OR ELSE).

I sure have been in a whiny mood recently, first about the weather and now this!

At least the extremely hot weather has stopped for a day or two!


The sun'll come out
Tomorrow
Bet your bottom dollar
That tomorrow
There'll be sun!
Just thinkin' about
Tomorrow
Clears away the cobwebs,
And the sorrow
'Til there's none!
When I'm stuck with a day
That's gray,
And lonely,
I just stick out my chin
And Grin,
And Say,
Oh!
The sun'll come out
Tomorrow
So ya gotta hang on
'Til tomorrow
Come what may
Tomorrow! Tomorrow!
I love ya Tomorrow!
You're always
A day
A way!
(Tomorrow from ANNIE)

Modern v. Old

For some reason I was thinking about the new features on my new car vs. the old car, this morning while on my early morning dog walk.  It isn't like there was any reason for it, that is just how my (intersting, strange) brain works.

New: electric windows - advantages can control all the windows (even the back ones since now there are usually no kids in the back) from the driver's seat. dis: I always forget to open them when we are parked when one of is still in the car; not good if in an accident and need to get out of the car.

Old: manual windows - adv : can operate them when car is off, easy to get out of the car if in an accident; dis: need to get others to open other windows when moving.

New: key nob (electric locks)- adv : can unlock remotely, don't need to put key in ignition, neat feature that just be close to door with nob in pocket or bag can open driver's door; dis: when in parked all doors are unlocked (can actually change this feature but it is also convenient most times) could be an attacker problem, also sometimes forget to lock it.

Old : key - had more keys,  doors stay locked until opened.

New : smaller easier to park / drive but smaller.

Old: minivan - so more room.

New: better mileage.

Old: easier for others to see, higher seats gave better view.

So like most things in life, nothing is perfect and there are compromises!

Back to Politics

Even though the temps are still up, I found some intersting (back to the big C so the iPad correction isn't in) articles (to me).

The Health and Human Services Department “was given a billion dollars implementation money,” Republican Rep. Denny Rehberg of Montana said. “That money is gone already on additional bureaucrats and IT programs, computerization for the implementation.”

“Oh boy,” Stan Dorn of the Urban Institute said. “HHS has a huge amount of work to do and the states do, too. There will be new health insurance marketplaces in every state in the country, places you can go online, compare health plans.”

The IRS, Health and Human Services and many other agencies will now write thousands of pages of regulations — an effort well under way:

“There’s already 13,000 pages of regulations, and they’re not even done yet,” Rehberg said.

“It’s a delegation of extensive authority from Congress to the Department of Health and Human Services and a lot of boards and commissions and bureaus throughout the bureaucracy,” Matt Spalding of the Heritage Foundation said. “We counted about 180 or so.”

There has been much focus on the mandate that all Americans obtain health insurance, but analysts say that’s just a small part of the law — covering only a few pages out of the law’s 2700.

“The fact of the matter is the mandate is about two percent of the whole piece of the legislation,” Spalding said. “It’s a minor part.”

Much bigger than the mandate itself are the insurance exchanges that will administer $681 billion in subsidies over 10 years, which will require a lot of new federal workers at the IRS and health department. (http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2012/07/lawyers-have-already-drafted-13000-pages-of-regulations-for-new-obamatax-law/)

It is bad enough to pass a bill "that we need to pass it to see what is in it",  but to leave most of the work to government bureaucrats to actually write the implementation is unconscionable!

  ******

A geothermal energy company with a $98.5 million loan guarantee from the Obama administration for an alternative energy project in Nevada — which received hearty endorsements from Energy Secretary Steven Chu and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid — faces financial problems, and the company’s auditors have questioned whether it can stay in business.
Much like Solyndra LLC, a California solar-panel manufacturer with a $535 million federal loan guarantee that went bankrupt, Nevada Geothermal Power (NGP) has incurred $98 million in net losses over the past several years, has substantial debts and does not generate enough cash from its current operations after debt-service costs, an internal audit said.(http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/jul/4/lights-go-dim-on-another-energy-project/)


Alternative energy sounds great but it is still unproven and a waste of our money so far!

Rain, rain go away, come back another day!

Rain, rain go away, come back another day!

Well it is another day! We actually got about 15 seconds of rain today, enough to wet the street but not our sidewalk. We have not had rain for what seems like months. I was talking to someone at the Y and he said that a few miles away from us had over 3 inches of rain over the weekend, but of course except for the few seconds of rain ( which I would have missed if I wasn't watching the radar on the tablet and checked outside that the road was "wet") we just got we have had none.

I guess we are lucky that we are not like the east with loss of power, etc., and we don't have as many mosquitoes as we usually do.

I have been able to bike early to the Y twice this week. It has been too hot to bike in the morning or afternoon. But today I was only able to swim 22 laps, actually, I could have done more, but I was unusually tired at that time so I decided to just take a nice long shower and bicycle home using low gears so I wouldn't get too sweaty.

As you can tell, I lead rather boring life ( though it does suit me).

If it ever cools down I can start ranting again about politics.

Energy Sapping

I sure whine a lot about the weather! It is hot again today. I don't feel like doing anything.

Here are the weather advisories via weather channel:

Lake Heat Advisory in effect until 11PM EDT FRI/10PM CDT FRI HEAT ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 PM CDT /11 PM EDT/  FRIDAY TEMPERATURES HIGHS TODAY THROUGH FRIDAY WILL LIKELY TOP OUT  BETWEEN 97 AND 103.   HEAT INDICES AFTERNOON HEAT INDICES WILL GENERALLY BE IN THE  105 TO 110 DEGREE RANGE EACH AFTERNOON. A FEW LOCATIONS MAY PEAK  OUT AT 115.   OTHER AN AIR QUALITY ALERT HAS BEEN DECLARED BY THE ILLINOIS  ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY FOR TODAY AND THURSDAY FOR  NORTHEAST ILLINOIS AND FAR NORTHWEST INDIANA. EXPOSURE TO  ELEVATED OZONE AND PARTICULATE LEVELS WILL ONLY SERVE TO  INCREASE STRESSES ON THE BODY ESPECIALLY FOR THE VERY YOUNG  AND VERY ELDERLY AS WELL AS PEOPLE WITH PULMONARY OR  RESPIRATORY DISEASE. ANYONE IN THESE GROUPS SHOULD LIMIT  EXPOSURE TO OUTDOOR AIR.  PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS TAKE EXTRA PRECAUTIONS IF YOU WORK OR SPEND TIME OUTSIDE. WHEN  POSSIBLE RESCHEDULE STRENUOUS ACTIVITIES TO EARLY MORNING OR  EVENING. KNOW THE SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF HEAT EXHAUSTION AND HEAT  STROKE. WEAR LIGHT WEIGHT AND LOOSE FITTING CLOTHING WHEN POSSIBLE  AND DRINK PLENTY OF WATER.  TO REDUCE RISK DURING OUTDOOR WORK THE OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND  HEALTH ADMINISTRATION RECOMMENDS SCHEDULING FREQUENT REST BREAKS  IN SHADED OR AIR CONDITIONED ENVIRONMENTS. ANYONE OVERCOME BY  HEAT SHOULD BE MOVED TO A COOL AND SHADED LOCATION. HEAT STROKE IS  AN EMERGENCY CALL 9 1 1.  A HEAT ADVISORY MEANS THAT A PERIOD OF HOT WEATHER IS EXPECTED.  HIGH TEMPERATURES AND HIGH HUMIDITY WILL COMBINE TO CREATE A  SITUATION IN WHICH HEAT ILLNESSES ARE POSSIBLE. DRINK PLENTY OF  FLUIDS STAY IN AN AIR-CONDITIONED ROOM STAY OUT OF THE SUN AND CHECK UP ON RELATIVES AND NEIGHBORS.  CHILDREN AND PETS SHOULD NEVER BE LEFT UNATTENDED IN VEHICLES  UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES. THIS IS ESPECIALLY TRUE DURING HOT  WEATHER WHEN THE CAR INTERIOR CAN REACH LETHAL TEMPERATURES IN A  MATTER OF MINUTES!

I really like the tablets, you don't have to wait for the computer to start up, just unlock and go. You can do almost everything on it that you can do the big C. I need to figure out how to get pictures from the tablet to blogger and Facebook yet without going thru the big C.

When we went to New Haven for the AUSS convention we took the tablets, which were much lighter and more convenient. It allowed us to both use the Internet at the same while waiting in the airport ( I think it is great that the airports have Internet access, those 2 hour waits can go faster with the Internet ) or when we were in the room.

One disadvantage when I have the tablet next to my belly, is that sometimes it ( my belly) causes letters or spaces to be typed; this happened when I was trying to bold a large section of this blog and the blogger is so quick to save that I had to retype it.

But in general I am very glad that we have the tablets! Plus they have a 10 hour battery life much longer than our laptop.

One interesting thing is that I can't get chrome to show the preview, I have to use safari!

More Hot

When the outside temperature gets below the inside temp, we open the windows and turn on a fan to try to get the hot air out. So we look at our weather station ( actually just the out and in temps) to determine if it is time to open windows. Usually this after 6, but today at 0602 the inside temp is 86 F and the outside is 12 degrees hotter. So obviously, it is not time to open windows.

This year has been extremely hot, normally we get only a few hot days in the year, so A/C is not a necessary. But we certainly thinking of a portable A/C this year.

Last year we bought some Fly Paper ( you know curly sticky paper that you hang up and the flying insects get caught) and it really works. It has an advantage of not having pesticides or having to spray stuff. The only problem is that it is very sticky putting it up.

I just inadvertently pushed the publish button instead of the preview button. Sorry for doing that but I need to go.

Photos of AUSS time

The first three are from a walk around the Yale campus.  The second picture is my LW reading the various ads for psychological studies, alas most wanted 18-29 year olds, we thinking of suing for age discrimination!  The last one shows a parking meter near a no parking sign.

My LW talking to follow Chorus members in the lobby of the hotel.

More from the Yale walk.

My LW in our room.

Views from my seat in the Grand Concert during the last rehearsal.  The last 2 you can see my lovely wife sort of in the middle horizontally and about 2 rows from the back!

Hot Day

My dog and I are sitting outside in the shade.  I'm too far from the house to get connected with our WiFi.  You have to be right next to it to see the signal.

He enjoys sitting outside in the shade because the wind makes it feel cooler then it really  is.  For some reason I caused the keyboard to split (on the iPad you can split the keyboard, I guess to make it easier for competent typists to be more efficient, not that it helps me because the size is smaller and I am not a good typist) but I was able to get it back.  I took a picture of him at the top.

( I just tried mindlessly to use a browser to see if I could add a photo from the iPad to a blog entry, remember the beginning?)

Actually I found some grass I could cut in the backyard it is over the septic tank so it must be getting water from that, but it is too hot to cut it.  See the green sections of yard, they are long "grass" ( many people call them weeds, but we like to be more positive then most people!)

Time to go in and get the dog some water!

AUSS 2012 Concert video

It is fortunately difficult to see me or my LW( not in her case of course).

More Boring

Well we made it back and are now waiting for our car at the Toyota dealer. It is the 6000 mile checkup, we have about 2600 miles, but fortunately it also is a 6 month checkup. They have free WiFi but it is not very good, coming in and out, so I decided to add to the boring blog entries!

The dog survived with our nice neighbor watching him! We got home around 2200 and basically fell into bed. I actually slept better in our bad bed then in the wonderful hotel bed!

I think the next trip will be to CO to visit the CO Shepards. We have to workout the details. It will be a driving trip so no airport problems.

I was expecting to have to cut the grass when we got home, but we have still not had any rain so the "grass" is just brown and not growing. Actually the weeds in the driveway are getting long but I don't think it is worth while cutting alone. My poor neighbors having such a lazy bum around them.

It is very hot and my poor dog is panting and not very happy. I suspect he was glad to see that we came back from the car maintenance ( it was nice the Toyota's comes with 2 years of free maintenance, which I think was a result of all the Prius brake problems a couple of years ago so it was free, the next service will be in another 6 months the 12000 checkup)and did not leave him for almost a week again!

Travel Fun

Presently we are umpteen thousand feet in the air! We are on our way to O'hare field in a US Air plane with about an hour to go till we are there ( of course when you are reading this I'm probably, I hope, at home since I can't upload this until then being cheap and only having WiFi on my iPad and not paying to use WiFi in the plane).

We got up late and lounged around the hotel room and desperately trying to get all of our stuff into the bag to be checked into the plane. On the trip out to New Haven, we were able to get all of our stuff into one checked bag and the two each carry on bags thereby saving $25 which it would have cost for the second bag ( have I mentioned how cheap I am?).

At 1300 NH time, one of our group had arranged for 7 taxis to be at the hotel for our group for the trip to the airport. The hotel people called out that the taxis were there, one of our group called out to me that I was to make sure that they waited for him and his wife because she had gone to the restroom. So I went out and resisted the urge to grab a taxi even though urged by some people. Of course, the people I was waiting for came out and got the last taxi leaving us and another Person to wait. But soon after, another taxi came and we got to Tweed Airport. We got to the airport in plenty of time, as a matter of fact, we got there before the airline people and to wait a while to check in.

(This sure seems pretty boring, I hope you are still awake, not that it is going to get more interesting any time soon.)

We had a great time singing and the hotel was nice, not having to clean it ourselves. The hotel had a loyalty program that got us free WiFi ( have I mentioned I like free things?) and a choice of juice, or coffee ( I don't drink coffee) or tea, so usually we had just juice. They gave the option of in room service or knock at the door and leave it outside ( the option we picked) plus they had various 15 minutes intervals in which to have it bought ( like 0615-0630). It was very nice plus there is a drawing for a new ( latest) iPad which I'm sure we will win, I mean out of umpteen thousand or million entries our chances of winning are tremendous!

Hopefully for the next couple of conventions we should be able to drive. I am not a very good flyer and I prefer to be on my own schedule. They will be in Minneapolis and then the Chicago area. I don't like going through security at airports, I always feel guilty even though I'm not. Plus I always get flustered when I have to take off my shoes and all my stuff in the little trays. Plus I seem to always forget something in the trays. Well time sure goes fast when writing a boring blog entry. We are getting ready to land!