Sales Tax Holidays : More Smoke And Mirrors

What a great example of smoke and mirrors. Politicians on their collective soap boxes proclaiming what an achievement for the citizens while the whole time nothing is being accomplished other then the air ways are cluttered with nonsense.

Real reform means having to take a principled stand that make sense but is difficult to explain to the taxpayers. Little wonder it is never done.

Sales Tax Holidays: Politically Expedient but Poor Tax Policy 2015
Source: Scott Drenkard and Joseph Henchman, "Sales Tax Holidays: Politically Expedient but Poor Tax Policy 2015," Tax Foundation, August 17, 2015.

August 21, 2015

18 states will hold tax holidays in 2015. Most tax exemptions target items such as school supplies and clothing. These events enjoy a lot of popular support because it is believed they help low income households. Politicians back tax holidays as well and claim that they promote economic growth, create jobs and increase sales. A key motivation to implement tax holidays was to stop cross-border shopping (e.g. NY to NJ) and attract shoppers from other states.

However, in spite of their popularity, tax holidays are poor tax policy because they distract stakeholders from a more beneficial tax reform and introduce distortions into the economy. Here is what the authors of this article found:

• Tax holidays do not stimulate the economy, they simply shift the timing of sales. Shoppers will wait until the holiday to purchase the desired goods but sales before and after the holiday will slow down.
• Job creation is another argument in favor of tax holidays but any increase in employment will be temporary. Moreover, these temporary increases in employment are costly for businesses and discourage long-term job      creation.
• Tax holidays discriminate between types of products and also between types of consumers, thereby not benefiting everyone equally.
• In many cases retailers raise prices during tax holidays, thus, retailers are the ones absorbing the benefits.
• Tax holidays add complexity to tax codes which result in additional compliance and administrative costs.
• Tax holidays might not provide relief to low-income consumers because many of them might not be able to shop during the designated time.

Ideally, sales tax reform should broaden sales tax bases while lowering sales tax rates, resulting in a system that collects stable revenue with little economic distortion. Sales tax holidays are an example of the opposite: they narrow the base.
 

Joe Biden Considers Leading the Free World to Greatness

What? Joe Biden entering the race to be the leader of the free world?

The democrat collective - "I know nothing" and 'Why would Joe challenge me? Doesn't he know who I am?'

Biden The Best Alternative for Hillary? : America On The Ropes

Goodness, has it come to this? Biden is the best alternative to Hillary that the progressive democrat collective can come with?

Worse, millions of American citizens are okay with this situation no matter the consequences.

Have we fallen this far to consider electing people that have no idea what this country is all about and never have?

No one would ever have believed it would be this easy to completely destroy a free nation. Rome was destroy over centuries, the progressive democrats are destroying America and the free world in a matter of decades.

Obama Claims for Iranian Deal Found False : But Why Lie?

Again - just what are Mr Obama's true intentions for America's national security? By his own words that have been shown to be false, it appears he intends to make sure Iran will obtain a nuclear weapon and that Iran's neighbors will do the same making nuclear war in the middle east inevitable.

Why would he do this unless he wants this of happen?

4 Misleading Claims Obama Made About Iran Deal In New Remarks
Michaela Dodge / @MichaelaTHF          

President Obama addressed the nation in a continued effort to reverse Americans’ declining support for the Iran deal. In the past few days alone, more than 900 rabbis have voiced their opposition to the deal. In addition, a group of almost 200 retired generals and admirals have signed a letter urging Congress to reject the deal (the White House mustered a group of 30 retired generals to come out in support of it).

The administration wouldn’t be having such a hard time achieving consensus if it had done a better job negotiating. A majority of Americans, and even Israelis, favor a diplomatic solution to the problem. Nevertheless, the president has continued to try to sell the bad deal. Here are some of the Obama’s most misleading claims.

1. “This deal blocks every pathway Iran might take to obtain a nuclear weapon.”

This statement is untrue. A piece of paper cannot stop a determined country from obtaining a nuclear weapon. The cash-strapped regime in North Korea is a great example. To make matters worse, the deal does not dismantle Iran’s uranium enrichment infrastructure, which was developed in defiance of Iran’s international obligations. The deal effectively rewards years of Iran’s violations of its international obligations with billions of dollars to fund terrorism and lifts sanctions on advanced technologies and materials usable in Iran’s nuclear program, including Tehran’s ballistic missile program. The deal even opens a path for Iran to buy functioning parts of a nuclear weapon.

2. “It ensures that centrifuges are removed except for a handful.”

Usually, a handful does not mean thousands, as is the case with the number of Iranian centrifuges the deal leaves untouched. Additionally, the deal allows Iran to continue research and development of more advanced types of centrifuges, including letting Iran operate them by hundreds. None of the centrifuges will be destroyed. And they are only a part of the problem. Maintaining skilled people who know how to manage the centrifuges is just as serious. Should Iran decide that the deal is no longer in its interest, it will be in an excellent position to restore its capabilities fast.
The United States will not be able to impose a sanctions regime that would be as rigorous as the existing regime, which is a result of years of labor and hundreds of trips of U.S. officials to foreign banks. Once cash starts flowing, it will be immensely difficult to re-impose these sanctions. Sanctions relief is front-loaded, further reducing Iran’s incentive to not follow through with all its obligations.

3. “But this deal does not rely on trust. It relies on verification.”

How will members of Congress know if Iran is cheating, let alone the American people, since the administration has failed to provide documents outlining details of verification? In fact, neither Secretary of State John Kerry nor Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz has read these documents.
Just last week, it became clear that Iran will be allowed to use its own inspectors to investigate sites suspected of conducting nuclear weapon work. This is akin to letting a fox guard a chicken coop. The verification regime is particularly weak when it comes to undeclared/covert activities and activities that do not involve radioactive material.

Iran can hold up inspectors for months and will be provided information about where covert activities are occurring, making it easier to cover them. Iran has been lying, cheating, and covering up its nuclear activities for years.

Americans and the International Atomic Energy Agency, responsible for deal’s verification, have been surprised more than once in the past regarding Iran’s illicit nuclear activities.

4. “We are not giving away anything in this deal in terms of our capacity to respond if they chose to cheat.”

Obama will be putting future American presidents in a tough position. This is because Iran will be able to spend billions of dollars on terrorist activities—and the United States and allies will be on the receiving end of these activities. Tehran will be able to obtain advanced weaponry from Russia and China, certainly complicating U.S. options should Iran decide to cheat.

Hillary Losing, Biden & Warren Plan B : America Doomed

Joe Biden , Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton, all in the mix to lead our country. These candidates advocate the destruction of the very institutions that gave them their collective seats of power. Who would vote for this to happen?

This isn't for real, right? This is just a nightmare that will end when we wake up, right?

Well, the truth is, it is a nightmare and we, as a nation, have to wake up or this nightmare we are actually living right now will never end.

Colorado EPA Disaster : What Disaster? (Mark Levin Audio)

Has anyone heard or seen some progress on an investigation into the EPA's attack on the mine in Colorado that caused an environmental disaster? See the attached Audio URL of the Mark Levin show and how he describes this unholy event.

It's said they "accidentally" knocked a hole in the containment pond that allowed the mine waste to escape into the adjoining river that polluted this river in three states. What? An accident? Those waste pit ponds are huge.

Why has this catastrophic event been relegated to the spike instead of headline news? Oh wait, it was a progressive democrat organization that designed it and the made it happen and therefore nothing to see, except it's the taxpayers that will pay the tab for the clean up.

I know how to clean this up, us EPA funds, they get 8+ $billion each year to grease the palms of their friends and workers. All 70 thousand of them.

Even more outrageous, where the hell are the Republicans? Why aren't they on the floor of congress everyday demanding action? You know if it was a Republican administration that was involved here, the democrats and their buddies in the press would be on a rampage to make sure the world knows who was responsible. But oh no, not the Republicans, don't make waves, don't say anything bad about the democrats, they might get mad and not invite us to their next party. Heaven forbid!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=q7z7CXrBJFg

America 'Fundamentally Changed" : His Promise Comes True

If there was one thing we know is that Obama kept his promise to "Fundamentally change America". We are in decline.

How does it feel knowing that millions of our fellow citizens voted twice to make sure his promise comes true, Americas next several generations can enjoy the benefits of being a third world country.

Gruber knew exactly what he was taking about? Maybe not - maybe the average voter didn't need any encouragement to do the bidding of the progressive socialists, the lies probably only speeded up the process.

Mexico Built A Wall On Guatemalan Boarder? : Say It Aint So

Wait a minute - Mexico built a wall on it's boarder but didn't tell us? And now they say we can't?

Air Travel Progress : Forward or Backward?

Air travel then and now - have we really made any strides worth discussing?

Canada's Middle Class A Success : Trouble Coming?

In any free market, when demand increases so will the price. The problem in Canada, as the United Sates, the government will step in and begin the downward spiral into recession or worse just like here in the US.

Once the progressives democrats took absolute power in 2009, the decline took on new meaning and speed. 'Never let a crisis go to waste' was the motto in the Obama administration, ala Rohm Enamel, chief of staff for Obama. The recession that started in 2007 and 2008 was a perfect storm for the progressive socialists to begin their attack on the economy and the country's Constitution.

But it wasn't just Mr Obama and his cohorts in seats of power that destroying the American dream of a free society to chose ones own destiny, don't forget it was the voters that put them there, twice, and will likely do it again in 2016. Only this time it will be the Clinton crime family foundation that will calling the shots

Canada's Affluent Middle Class At-Risk
 Source: Wendell Cox, "Canada's Affluent Middle Class At-Risk," Huffington Post, August 26, 2015.

August 28, 2015

The American middle-class continues its losing streak. In a remarkable achievement, the Canadian middle class has surpassed their American counterparts in per capita median income. While households in the U.S. struggled along during the Great Recession, Canadian households fared much better in large part due to the notable stability of their banking system.

In the last decade, Canadian incomes grew nearly 20 percent, while U.S. incomes grew only 0.3 percent. Much of the difference is attributable to U.S. fiscal policies that propelled the destructive housing bubble and subsequent bust. Toronto area house prices have increased 95 percent in the last decade, more than three times the earnings increase rate of Ontario workers.

Vancouver City Savings Credit Union (Vancity) indicates that present trends could drive Vancouver detached house prices to $2.1 million by 2030, double current prices. However, some economic indicators suggest that Canada\'s newfound distinction may be short-lived.

In some parts of Canada, particularly those concentrated around metropolitan centers, skyrocketing house prices are chipping away at discretionary income. House prices in Toronto and Vancouver have exploded in recent years. Rising house prices threaten socioeconomic stability: lower income households lose a greater share of discretionary income to higher housing prices while middle income families are shut out of homeownership, a useful tool for building wealth through equity.

In order for all income levels to enjoy the benefits of homeownership while preserving discretionary income, policy reform must target current urban containment legislation and prevent similar programs from being implemented elsewhere.

Arctic Energy Rush for Development : Obama Say 'Net' and ' لا'

Oil, actually any fossil energy type exploration and development is not in the best interests of Mr Obama and the progressive liberal democrats and therefore the country must suffer the consequences. Why the democrats believe America must suffer decline is still puzzling in that they, the progressive socialists benefit by skimming $billions from corporations that do business in the energy field.

I guess it comes down to the old saying, 'do like I say not what I do'. Again, like a scratched CD, when it's about the ideology and the money, then it's about the power to control. And you have to know when it's the Mr Obama ideology drives him, brokers with absolute power are his partners for the tyranny of the few over the many.

In the Race for Arctic Energy, the U.S. and Russia are Polar Opposites
Source:  Gary Roughead, "In the Race for Arctic Energy, the U.S. and Russia are Polar Opposites," Wall Street Journal, August 25, 2015.

August 28, 2015

While the cost of energy is currently in a lull, the United States still imports 40 percent of crude oil needs at the cost of $23.5 billion a month. With almost half of all imported oil purchased from OPEC members, the need to develop alternative energy resources in Alaska is apparent, especially as the natural resources of the Arctic are beginning to draw international attention.

• The Royal Dutch Shell′s approved drilling permit is the only energy exploration currently allowed in U.S. Arctic waters.
• In 2014, Russia produced roughly 2.2 million barrels of offshore oil from the Prirazlomnaya field in the Arctic's Pechora Sea.
• From 2009-2013 Chinese companies were the largest buyers of international oil assets, many of which were in Arctic regions.
• Russia recently submitted a claim for a 200 nautical-mile exclusive economic zone for continental-shelf area of the Arctic.

The current leadership position as chairman of the Arctic Council could be beneficial to the U.S. for ensuring favorable positions on shipping, resources and fisheries standards, and constructive regional engagement. Alaska's outer continental could be ready to produce in 10 to 15 years, right as experts predict shale-oil production and crude-oil production to plateau and possibly decline.

However, if policy makers continue to thwart energy companies attempts to develop this strategic reason, Russia and China′s development of the Arctic could pose serious problems for the United States in the future.
 

Export / Import Bank : Good Ol' Boy Club Closed

Bottom line for t he Export/Import bank is and always has been, politics as usual. That congress actually did the right thing by not reauthorizing it staggers the imagination.

Ex-Im's Working Capital Programs Benefit Big Businesses and Banks
Source: Veronique de Rugy, "Ex-Im's Working Capital Programs Benefit Big Businesses and Banks," Mercatus Center, August 26, 2015

August 28, 2015

On July 1, Congress failed to reauthorize the U.S. Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im Bank), and although the bank has many staunch supporters, large, politically connected firms were the primary beneficiaries of its policies, says Veronique de Rugy of the Mercatus Center. Small businesses did benefit from the Ex-Im Bank's working capital programs but overall these programs were a small component of the agency's operations.

• Large firms benefited from the Supply Chain Finance (SCF) program to the tune of $1.28 billion.
• During the same seven years 36 percent of working capital programs directly and indirectly benefitted large firms.
• Ford Motor Credit Company LLC, Caterpillar Inc, and Boeing Co. were the top three beneficiaries of the Ex-Im Banks's working capital programs from 2007-2014.

Small business did receive $11.3 billion in capital working programs from 2007-2014 with peak amounts of funding in 2012 at $1.85 billion. However, the working capital program transfers the risk of lending to taxpayers from the lenders, who are often big banks or individual corporations.

Lenders such as PNC Bank, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo can be reimbursed up to 90 percent of the outstanding loan amount through the Ex-Im Bank. Although Ex-Im Bank supporters maintain that the bank enables small business, policymakers need to remember that it is actually the large, politically connected businesses that are benefiting.
 

School Lunch Program : Eat Your Veggies or Else

Is the feds school lunch program a good thing, a workable solution to reduce fat and improve physical fitness is up for debate, and the best way to find out the answer is to stop the federal government from interfering in the lives of children and their parents by demanding they toe the socialist line of 'we know what's best for you'.

If the feds are eliminated, the parents will have to decide what should happen at the lunch counter. If the parents are footing the bill, things will be very different.

Impact of the National School Lunch Program on Fruit and Vegetable Selection
Source: Sarah A. Amin, MPH et al., "Impact of the National School Lunch Program on Fruit and Vegetable Selection in Northeastern Elementary Schoolchildren, 2012-2013," Public Health Reports, Sept-Oct 2015.

August 28, 2015

The U.S. Department of Agriculture mandated that the nearly 31 million school children fed by the National School Lunch Program each school day select either a fruit or vegetable at lunch. Researchers at the University of California -Davis and the University of Vermont studied the effects of this requirement in two northeastern elementary schools by collecting data from random samples of lunch trays from third through fifth-grade students. The student bodies at both schools had forty percent to sixty percent of children qualifying for free or reduced-priced meals. The results indicated that when required to select a fruit or vegetable with their lunch students do comply, but the amount of fruits and vegetables consumed decreased and waste increased.

• When fruits and vegetables were optional for students in 2012, over fifteen percent of lunch trays did not contain either a fruit or vegetable.
• Comparing when fruits and vegetables were required in 2013 to when they were optional in 2012 the percentage of unconsumed fruit and vegetables increased by eight percent in 2013.

Findings did indicate that younger children, first-grade through third-grade, consumed more fruits and vegetables when required compared to fourth and fifth grade students. Time may simply be necessary for students to adjust to the new mandate as older children were accustomed to optional and not required selection of fruits and vegetables. Repeated exposure to new foods will also be helpful for familiarizing students with fruits and vegetable offerings.

Suggestions for increasing the amount of fruits and vegetables students consume include:

• Slicing fruits and vegetables which increases accessibility and appeal.
• Implementing policies such as "Smart Snacks in Schools," which limits the calories, salt, sugars and fat contained in school snacks.
• Exploring programs such as Farm to School, which is associated with increasing fruit and vegetable consumption among participants who had the lowest fruit and vegetable intake initially.

 

Mr Obama Ensures Iran's Path for Domination : Why?

The question that remains is what is the true intent of Mr Obama's purpose when it comes to national security and the Iranians?

Unfreezing Assets Will Sanction-Proof Iran
Source: David A. Grantham, "Unfreezing Assets Will Sanction-Proof Iran," Daily Caller, August 19, 2015.

August 27, 2015

The main concern about the Iran nuclear deal is that unfreezed assets and oil revenues after lifting the sanctions will find their way to Iranian-sponsored terrorist organizations and will energize Iran's economic aggression, says senior research fellow David A. Grantham of the National Center for Policy Analysis.

This deal was based on two faulty assumptions: first that the sanctions can be reapplied and second that other nations are interested in seeking Iran's compliance. Before the deal and despite the sanctions Iran was already carrying out actions that undermine U.S. interests in the area, such as purchasing gold to trade with India and China. Lifting the sanctions will also allow Iran to become more interconnected with other economies and to trade with those that desire to weaken America.

The Iranian government will sanction-proof its economy through several measures. Smuggle embargoed good through places like Dubai. Channel finances through covert investment partnerships with Russia. Mask oil revenue. Become intertwined with other economies so that sanctions are harder to apply.

The more revenues Iran obtains, the greater its power will be. Instead of opting for a plan by which assets were released in small amounts, the federal government decided to allow full access to the frozen financial resources. Therefore, Congress must reject this deal.

Insurance COOP's Fail : ObamaCare Moves Forward

Where or when does this nightmare end? Every where one turns, ObamaCare has shown to be a failure, but yet many states continue to support it even when they are plunging into this debt ridden program that they will perhaps never recover from.

Why is common sense so hard to apply?

Another Health Insurance COOP Bites the Dust
 Source: Devon Herrick, "Another Health Insurance COOP Bites the Dust," Townhall, August 25, 2015.

August 27, 2015

 The Louisiana Health Cooperative is ceasing its operations at the end of the year. Earlier this year, CoOportunity Health, the largest health COOP, went out of business. In addition, a recent report found 21 of 23 COOPs had net losses in 2014, says senior fellow Devon Herrick of the National Center for Policy Analysis.

The COOPs (Consumer Operated and Oriented Health Plans) were created to function as a so-called "public plan option" under Obamacare. Their proponents hoped COOPs would function like nonprofit mutual insurance companies that would focus on the needs of people ahead of profits. They assumed health insurance COOPs could direct more of the premiums towards plan members' medical needs but that's not what has happened.

Self-dealing and conflicts-of-interest among the management team brought down the Louisiana COOP.

This COOP had signed a multi-year contract for millions of dollars to pay consulting fees to a firm owned by the CEO. COOPs have been plagued by various flaws: They do not have a competitive advantage. They did not possess historical actuarial data to set plan premiums. They did not have access to capital markets to back up losses. They started their operations with borrowed funds from the government (taxpayers' money). They have been plagued by cronyism.

These organizations were clearly started to gain support from progressives, as many of them believe for-profit insurers are too profit-oriented. But every business, including non-profit ones, needs to earn a profit in order to thrive.

Natural Gas Production Brings Prosperity & Independence

The key ingredient here is fossil energy brings prosperity for everyone and therefore independence of action and thought. Little wonder why the progressive socialist democrats must stop all fossil energy production. If the individual has the option to chose how their future is determined, this makes individuals a threat to the socialist ideology where government will make all decisions.

The push for renewable energy alternatives has nothing to do with carbon reduction to save the planet, this is about control. That natural gas fracking has shown to be a God send for everyone bringing prosperity for the entire country is our way to the future. The progressives are fully committed to stopping it.

Fracking Is Our Clean Power Plan
Source: Jacki Pick, "Fracking Is Our Clean Power Plan," Forbes, August 25, 2015.

August 27, 2015

The U.S. already leads the world in carbon emissions reduction thanks to the increased use of natural gas obtained through fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, says executive vice president and chief operating officer Jacki Pick of the National Center for Policy Analysis.

Natural gas has not only helped reduce carbon emission but it has also contributed to the economic growth of the U.S. (50% in a 27 year period). This impressive economic growth was the result of cheap fossil fuels and fracking was key to their production. The economy as a whole has benefited by having lower energy costs resulting in a manufacturing renaissance and estimates predict that in the near future it will be less expensive to manufacture goods in the U.S. than in China.

However, the federal government's initiative contained in the Clean Power Plan aims to achieve carbon emission reduction through an ineffective approach. It relies on costly and inferior energy production methods. It forecasts unrealistic numbers of green jobs. It would be the most expensive regulation ever imposed upon the power sector. Could easily force manufacturers overseas again, killing jobs.

Fixed-income Americans would be the hardest hit by these soaring energy bills. Fracking, making use of advanced technology, has already achieved what environmental advocates have failed to achieve: to make America the top carbon emissions reducer in the world, along with the strengthening of the U.S. economy.

Males Trapped in A Female Body, but then - - What Hppened?

WOW - Interesting concept and a virtual reality that brings common sense to the argument.

Too Many Lawyers, Not Enough Jobs : Justice Lost

Ever wonder why the justice system is so screwed up? Why everyone is suing everyone else at the drop of the hat? Too many lawyers and not enough justice.

Supply and demand should be the rule of the day, that is let the free market take care of students and schools accountability. What was inevitable  was the student loan business went out of control when the Mr Obama's administration took over the student loan business from the banks.

The student loan debt is now more then $1.3 trillion and rising. That Mr Obama took over this business is not by accident or miscalculation, this was by design. What better way to control millions of people, especially the young, then to drive them into debt and make them dependent on others for years to come. And, of course, to vote for those that promise they will take of them into the foreseeable future.

Need some proof? Hillary is on track when she's promising $350 billion more taxpayer monies for student loan relief. Now if you are a student in serious debt, who will you vote for?

Too Many Law Students, Too Few Legal Jobs
Source: Steven J. Harper, "Too Many Law Students, Too Few Legal Jobs," New York Times, August 25, 2015.

August 26, 2015

Law school graduates are having a difficult time finding long-term employment in their field. Nevertheless, law schools have been able to keep raising tuition in spite of producing many more graduates than the market can absorb, writes Steven J. Harper for the New York Times.

The main reason lies in the availability of federal loans regardless of the prospect of employment. Law school students now accumulate debt ranging from $88,000 for public schools to $127,000 for private ones. Law schools obtain a great percentage of their revenues from tuition so they have an incentive to maintain large student bodies but they have no responsibility for the debt the students have incurred even when the possibilities of finding a job are grim.

These conditions have led to schools operating without any accountability and students and taxpayers bearing the price. A task force created by the American Bar Association suggested the following:

Require schools to share in the responsibility for repaying the loans.
Capping law student loans.
Even eliminating the federal student loan program in its current form.

The task force, however, claimed that the market would take care of this situation and although enrollment decreased from 2010 to 2014, it didn't declined at a pace required to reach equilibrium. Instead, the task force recommended other less effective measures (such as offering better debt counseling) that will not solve this crisis.

Unless student loans bear a realistic relationship to employment outcomes, law schools will take advantage of their lack of accountability and the legal education market will continue generating a supply and demand imbalance.

Interest Deductions on Mortgages Explained : Winners & Losers

This is interesting in that mortgage interest deduction influences the size of the home the individual will buy. The question that still remains is do mortgage interest deductions actually benefit the borrower at all if they could get a better rate by the government eliminating the deduction for everyone?

Who Benefits from Mortgage Deductions?
Source: Pamela Villarreal, Matt Cafrelli and Joshua Latshaw, "Who Benefits from Mortgage Deductions?" National Center for Policy Analysis, August 24, 2015

August 26, 2015

 Deductions of home mortgage interest are a popular measure; supporters claim that it benefits low and middle income families, however, not all income groups benefit equally.

Homeowners have access to three types of deductions: interest paid on a loan, points earned when finalizing a home purchase, and private mortgage insurance (for those who made a down payment for less than 20% of the home's value). Pamela Villarreal, senior fellow at the NCPA, carried out a study to find who benefits from each type of deduction.

 Mortgage interest: In 2012 about 66% of these deductions were claimed by the top 40% of households with incomes of $100,000 or more. Additionally the average deduction for the top quintile was $13,824 while the average for bottom quintile was $6,964.

 Points deduction: Likewise, this deduction was claimed by higher earners. 27% of the value of those deductions, were claimed by those making more than $200,000 a year, and 60% of all claims for a points deduction were by taxpayers with incomes of $100,000 or more.

PMI deductions: This is the deduction that most benefits those with a lower income. Those in the bottom quintile receive 22% of the total value, higher than the 18 percent claimed by those in the top quintile.

The study concluded that mortgage-related deductions tend to benefit more those homebuyers who itemize, who are more likely to be middle and upper income earners. Other findings indicate that these types of deductions had no significant effect on the decision to buy a home, however, they influenced the size of the home purchased.

Stories Told That Have A Moral : (Humor)

A teacher gave her 5th grade class an assignment: Get their parents to tell them a story with a moral at the end of it. The next day, the kids came back and, one by one, began to tell their stories.

 There were all the regular types of stuff: Spilled milk and pennies saved. But then the teacher realized, that only Janie was left.  "Janie, do you have a story to share?"

 "Yes ma'am. My daddy told me a story about my Mommy. She was a Marine pilot in Desert Storm, and her plane got hit. She had to bail out over enemy territory, and all she had was a flask of whiskey, a pistol, and a survival knife.

 She drank the whiskey on the way down so the bottle wouldn't break, and then she parachuted right into the middle of 20 Iraqi troops. She shot 15 of them with the pistol, until she ran out of bullets, killed four more with the knife, till the blade broke, and then she killed the last Iraqi with her bare hands."

 ''Good Heavens, 'said the horrified teacher. What did your Daddy tell you was the moral to this horrible story'?"

...."Don't Screw with Mommy when she's been drinking."  I love these stories that touch your heart ! ! !

Democrats Protest Stars & Bars Flag BUT Honor Margaret Sanger, A Racist?

Why is it that the progressive socialist liberal left democrats demand the Confederate Flag had to be taken down because it represented slavery and racism, but they defend Margaret Sanger, a confessed life long racist being honored in the National Portrait Gallery?

Oh wait, there's more.  Remember Robert Bird, A Grand Dragon in the Klu Klux Klan all the while he was in congress? This wasn't a secret. Where was the outrage? Never mind, he was a democrat. Nothing to see here, move on.

More questions - why weren't the Republicans outraged all those years?

Pro-Life Leaders Demand Removal of ‘Racist’ Margaret Sanger Bust From National Portrait Gallery
Kate Scanlon / @scanlon_kate

A group of pro-life leaders will hold a press conference Thursday in Washington, D.C., to demand that a bust of Margaret Sanger, the founder of Planned Parenthood, be removed from the National Portrait Gallery. The bust of Sanger is currently displayed in the National Portrait Gallery’s “Struggle for Justice” exhibit.

In an interview, ForAmerica Chairman Brent Bozell, who will attend the conference, told The Daily Signal that the bust “doesn’t belong in a taxpayer-funded museum.”For her image to stand alongside the likes of Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks, he said, “is an insult.”

 

Bozell called Sanger an “unequivocal racist,” who attended Ku Klux Klan rallies.
Bozell said the pro-abortion movement has become “so militant, so radicalized,” that they “celebrate her as their patron saint.” “In a very real way, Margaret Sanger symbolizes Planned Parenthood,” Bozell said.

The exhibit website hails Sanger’s “crusade” against “laws forbidding dissemination of contraceptive information.” The website acknowledges her “association with the eugenics movement” but asserts that eugenics was a philosophy “that for a time was endorsed by many of the era’s prominent thinkers.”

Upon learning that Sanger was included in the exhibit alongside figures such as Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and Susan B. Anthony, Bishop E.W. Jackson, the president of STAND, enlisted fellow pastors and launched a petition to request that the museum remove the bust from the exhibit. More than 13,000 people signed the petition, but the museum declined the request. In a statement, Jackson called the National Portrait Gallery’s initial response “unserious and disrespectful.”

“They say they are simply acknowledging Sanger’s contribution to making contraceptives—and later abortion—available to poor women, not making her a hero,” Jackson said. “But displaying her bust in a ‘Struggle for Justice’ exhibit alongside Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks is calling her a hero. Sanger was no hero. Her motive was not to help poor women, but to stop them from having children that she didn’t believe were fit to live. She saw them as defective.”

Bozell, Jackson, and pastors will be joined at the press conference by Lila Rose, the founder and president of Live Action, and Marjorie Dannenfelser, the president of the Susan B. Anthony List, among others.

Sanger, a proponent of eugenics, founded the American Birth Control League in 1921, which became part of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America in 1942. In an article titled “Birth Control and Racial Betterment,” published in 1919, Sanger wrote that the “diseased and incompetent masses” threaten to “overwhelm all that eugenics can do among those whose economic condition is better.”
“Birth Control, on the other hand, not only opens the way to the eugenist, but it preserves his work,” Sanger wrote.

Sanger wrote in her book “Woman and the New Race” that the population control methods she advocated would bring about the “materials of a new race.” “Birth control itself, often denounced as a violation of natural law, is nothing more or less than the facilitation of the process of weeding out the unfit, of preventing the birth of defectives or of those who will become defectives,” Sanger wrote.
On its website, Planned Parenthood calls Sanger one of the pro-choice movement’s “great heroes.” The organization holds annual award ceremonies in her honor.

Wishes That Can't Be Granted : Living Forever (Humor)

I met a fairy today who said she would grant me one wish.

"I want to live forever," I said.
"Sorry" said the fairy, "I'm not allowed to grant wishes like that!"

"Fine," I said, "I want to die after the Democrats get their heads out of their asses!"

"You crafty bastard," said the fairy.

Profiling Not Dead : Even Bears? (Humor)

Is this just more profiling? What next?'You wouldn't have stopped me if I were a Polar Bear!'

Solar Companies Selling Snake Oil : "A Sucker Born Every Minute'

P.T. Barnum said it best, 'there's a sucker born every minute and two to take him', and there seems to no end the suckers willingly to be taken. The field is wide open for enterprising individuals that have gallons of snake oil to sell.

It seems the consuming public is either to ignorant or they have too much money as they continually become victims. Just look how easily it was to sell Mr Obama as the savior of us all, even after four years of disastrous programs that caused, and is still causing, moral and economic damage to our country, he was elected again.

So it wasn't just Barnum, it's Gruber as well that tells the tail of foolish and ignorant voters. Suckers for the flimflam man, promising them everything their hearts desires, all they have to do is vote like they are told.

It was easier than anyone believed it could be.

California Has 15 Years to Hit a 50% Renewable Energy Goal. Will It Happen?
Rob Nikolewski / @Watchdogorg          

Solar contractors, including SolarCity and Sunrun, are in the crosshairs of both Republicans and Democrats in Congress who seek an end to what they call “potentially deceptive sales tactics” associated with the companies’ zero-down, 20-year lease business model.

Spurred by consumer complaints that the massive savings they were promised never materialized, 12 Republicans and four Democrats have asked two federal regulatory agencies to investigate concerns that “these leases are not offered in good faith or with accurate disclosures.”
 Congressmen Put Heat on ‘Deceptive’ Rooftop Solar Leases

Recent letters by the GOP to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and by Democrats to the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau come on the heels of a year-long investigation by journalists into SolarCity, one of the nation’s largest solar contractors.

 

Owned largely by billionaire Elon Musk, SolarCity pioneered the leasing business model to take advantage of state and federal tax breaks paid to solar-energy owners. “I do not want the future of solar energy harmed if there are consumer scams going on that will cause thousands of people to question the entire solar industry based on their own bad experience,” said U.S. Rep. Paul A. Gosar, R-Ariz. “A free market depends on fairness, openness and honesty.”

Gosar, an advocate of solar, initiated the GOP probe after receiving complaints from constituents.
“Someone brought in an actual brochure SolarCity uses in a sales pitch, and the savings were based on utility rates increasing by 4 percent annually,” said Jeff Small, Gosar’s legislative director. “At least in Arizona, this has never happened. The highest it has ever been was 3 percent. Usually it’s 1 percent.

“Every little thing we looked into raised the hairs on the back of (Gosar’s) neck, so he asked us to dive into it more and wasn’t pleased with what we found.” The letters by Gosar and U.S. Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick, D-Ariz,, contain several pointed questions with the same theme:

• What protections exist for customers entering into a solar contract?
• What safeguards are in place to ensure customers have full disclosure pertaining to the contract?
• What is being done about consumer complaints?

“Customers are quoted savings each month on their utility bills,” Kirkpatrick wrote. “However, who calculates those estimations, and are they accurate? Also, it is my understanding that early solar lease payments are teaser rates that make solar energy payments seem affordable.”
Read more at Watchdog.org

Student Debt Innovation : Income-Sharing Contracts

Great idea - innovation for future prosperity for the next generations that will produce more great ideas. Given that student debt is more then $1.3 trillion and is growing, someone has to show some common sense to off-set the government officials that are using student debt for political advantage.

Could Income-share Agreements Help Solve the Student Debt Crisis?
Source: Mitchell E. Daniels, "Could income-share agreements help solve the student debt crisis?" Washington Post, August 20, 2015.

August 25, 2015

It is well known that student debt is extremely high: $1.3 trillion and rising. There are nearly 43 million indebted students and former students with an average debt of $27,000. A potential solution for this problem is to utilize Income-Share Agreements (ISAs) under which a student contracts to pay investors a fixed percentage of his or her earnings for an agreed number of years after graduation.

Terms for this type arrangement tend to range from 5 percent to 10 percent of the student's income for 10 to 15 years, or somewhat higher for shorter contracts. They also shift the risk of career shortcomings from student to investor; thus, providers will price that risk accordingly when offering their terms.

It is likely that an ISA market will develop and will signal clearly which fields are most likely to be rewarded economically. Moreover, ISAs have gained support from a variety of experts and institutions.

On the other hand the student debt run-up has led to some truly bad ideas such as:

• Handing out even more public funds.
• Shifting the burden to taxpayers by borrowing more money to aid students.
• Creating another entitlement program that would harm young people.

ISAs would be a novel way for students to make their way through college without the excessive burden of student loans and at the same time reduce the potential risk that student debt represents for the financial system.
 

Berkeley Soda Tax A loser : Overreaching Bureaucrats

WOW - the tax didn't produce results as expected - who knew? It appears that retailers relied on the free market to explain the negative results expected from Berkeley government overseers. It was free market competition that decided the outcome, not progressive overreaching bureaucrat regulations.

Apparently these bureaucrats leaned nothing from the soda tax that the progressives in New York City forced on it's citizens.

Berkeley Soda Tax Falls Flat
Source: Ted Boscia, "Study: Berkeley soda tax falls flat," Cornell Chronicle, August 24, 2015.

August 25, 2015

An ordinance in Berkeley, California that intended to impose a tax on distributors of sugar-sweetened beverages, has so far failed to raise the prices of those drinks by what was expected. The purpose of this tax was to discourage soda consumption by raising retail prices.

A study conducted by John Cawley of Cornell and David Frisvold of the University of Iowa found that prices for those beverages affected by this law rose by less than half of the tax amount and for Coke and Pepsi, only 22 percent of the tax was passed on to consumers. The results surprised the scholars because previous research had predicted that the tax would be fully passed through to consumers.

Taxes like this are designed to improve public health by discouraging people from purchasing unhealthy products. Smoking rates in the U.S. have declined partly because taxes have driven up the price of cigarettes. The study offers several advantages over previous research on soda taxes: The research team visited nearly all Berkeley retail outlets and gathered prices for a variety of products.

They collected data on prices before and after the tax hike on regular and diet drinks. They collected data from a comparable sample in nearby San Francisco to account for trends in prices over time. Cawley and Frisvold believe the reason this initiative didn't work as expected was because it's a city tax and store owners were concerned about the ability of consumers to shop at stores outside of Berkeley.

They agree that taxing only sugar-sweetened beverages is a narrow form of internalizing the external costs of obesity because there are many other processed foods that cause this health issue.

Education Winning With Free Market Agenda : Privatization

More evidence that the free market works the best for economic prosperity, but also for the free market of ideas. Public education will have to rethink it's stand on 'our way or the highway' agenda or parish.

Annual Privatization Report 2015: Education
Source: Lisa Snell and Aaron Smith, "Annual Privatization Report 2015: Education," Reason Foundation, June 2015.

August 25, 2015

Across the U.S. much progress has been made to guarantee school choice; 53 school programs are now available to students and their families across the country. Additionally, a study by the Friedman Foundation found that over the past 20 years, school vouchers that help pay private tuition have saved more than $1.7 billion in public dollars for education.

Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) is one of the programs that has been gaining traction and several states have implemented a version of it. Under this model state and local education funds go directly to parents, who use the money to customize their child's education.

Charter Schools represent another fast growing school choice option. As of 2015, there are 6,700 public charter schools enrolling more than 2.9 million students throughout the U.S. and according to the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools (NAPCS) 12 districts have at least 30% of their public school students enrolled in charter schools. Several studies have concluded that charter schools produce better results and boost the performance of disadvantaged students: Urban charter schools are significantly outperforming the traditional district peers in reading and math.

Researchers found that for every $1,000 in school funds, charters on average produced higher scores in both reading and math. Additionally, urban charter schools are offering on average the equivalent of 40 extra days of learning in math and 28 extra days in reading per year.

Minority students who participated in a privately funded school voucher program were 10% more likely to enroll in college and 35% more likely to graduate than their public schools peers. Therefore, it's important that the budget follows students wherever they choose to study.

Manufacturing Jobs Gone : Government Policy Failures

The biggest reason for job loss in this country is the abject lack of leadership. When our own government is dedicated to the proposition America is the cause of all problems here and around the world , it leaves little to wonder why our economy is in free-fall.

Manufacturing Job Loss
Source: Robert E. Scott, "Manufacturing Job Loss

August 24, 2015

Between January 2000 and December 2014 the U.S. lost 5 million manufacturing jobs. There is a common perception that increases in productivity caused this decline, but the real reason is a growing trade deficit. Exports increase demand for U.S. manufactured goods while imports reduce this demand.

Unfortunately since 1997 the trade deficit has been widening (it only experience a temporary decrease during the financial crisis in 2009 due to lack of short term trade financing). In 2014 it reached 514.6 billion or 3% of GDP.

According to Robert E. Scott, the main cause of this trade deficit is currency manipulation which lowers the costs of U.S. imports and raises the costs of its exports. He suggested steps to promote manufacturing job growth: End currency manipulation and advocate for an international organism that regulates China and about 20 other countries that consistently purchase foreign assets to suppress the value of their domestic currencies. Enforce U.S. fair trade laws to reduce the flood of illegally dumped and subsidized imports. Upgrade and expand the infrastructure.

The American Society of Civil Engineers estimates that the U.S. needs to invest nearly $3.6 trillion rebuilding its infrastructure. All these steps taken together could easily generate sufficient demand for manufactured products to recover most or all of the 5 million manufacturing jobs lost between 2000 and 2014. Growing trade deficits and the shortfall in demand caused by the Great Recession, and not productivity growth, have been the major causes of manufacturing job loss in this period.

University of Wisconsin Offical : Shoplifting Not A Crime (Video)

Have we actually crossed over that thin line between sanity and insanity? Maybe this is so outrageous that it defies any definition that anyone that has a grip could produce. Little wonder the black population has a hard time to prosper that have leaders with such unhinged ideas, and to make things even worse, there always many whites ready and willing to allow them to implode. What in the world is happening to leadership?

UW Official: Shoplifting Is Not A Crime
By Jeremy Carpenter | Media Trackers (Right Wisconsin)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=T2OQF8tjUTU

Denver Decides Moral Rights : Starbucks, Ben & Jerry's V Chick -fil-A

Why is this even a question of hypocrisy on the part of progressive socialist liberal democrat governments, especially one in Colorado? How long has this state been governed by democrats?

Given the history of this state and the moral monsters that it has spawned, Ward Churchill for one, a professor of ethics at the University of Colorado, Boulder, and how disastrous the governing bodies that have created such chaos, why would anyone think banning a fast food restaurant for having religious beliefs is not just more of the same nightmare hypocrisy, but all the while high fiving Starbucks and Ben and Jerry's for accepting Planned Parenthood's agenda contributing money for the murder and out right butchery of another human being?

Who cares about morality for those in the mirror, it's not about them, it's about those other people that have to be stopped. Moral outrage, you bet, get those that believe they have a right to free markets and first amendment rights. Go figure.

The Hypocrisy of Denver’s War on Chick-fil-A
Katrina Trinko / @KatrinaTrinko

In Denver, city council members are weighing whether Chick-fil-A will be allowed to open in the Denver International Airport.

Denver council member Paul Lopez “called opposition to the chain at DIA ‘really, truly a moral issue,'” according to the Denver Post, while council member Robin Kniech is alarmed about Chick-fil-A’s “corporate profits used to fund and fuel discrimination.” “Ten of the 13 [Denver city council] members attended Tuesday’s meeting, and none rose to defend Chick-fil-A, although some didn’t weigh in,” reported the Post.

Chick-fil-A’s crime? Well, back in 2012—when 48 percent of Americans opposed gay marriage, according to Gallup—Chick-fil-A CEO Dan Cathy spoke out about his opposition to gay marriage, setting off a firestorm. The fact that the CEO of a company so committed to Christian values that it’s not even open on Sundays opposed gay marriage was somehow shocking.

 

But Cathy, while not changing his views (at least publicly), has changed his tone in the ensuing years. “I’m going to leave it to politicians and others to discuss social issues,” Cathy told USA Today in 2014. Campus Pride executive director Shane Windmeyer told USA Today that he had a “friendship” with Cathy and was “appreciative for the common ground we have established in treating all people with dignity and respect — including LGBT people.” What a hater.

If the Denver City Council is concerned about the morality of the businesses at the airport, they should take a closer look at two current occupants: Ben and Jerry’s and Starbucks.

According to 2nd Vote, Starbucks Foundation has donated to Planned Parenthood, while Starbucks has been “listed as a company that matches employees’ gifts to Planned Parenthood.” Ben and Jerry’s parent company, Unilever, has donated to Planned Parenthood. Neither Starbucks nor Ben and Jerry’s responded to The Daily Signal’s request for comment in July when asked about their support for Planned Parenthood.

Maybe that’s because even the best PR whizzes are hard-pressed to explain why a corporation would donate to a company whose executives have been caught on camera cavalierly discussing the sale of fetal body parts. (Planned Parenthood has denied the organization profits from selling fetal body parts or tissue, and has said the organization follows all laws.) Some of the videos’ highlights suggest that Planned Parenthood, which performs around a third of abortions in the United States, hardly represents American values:

–In  the first video, Dr. Deborah Nucatola, senior director of medical services at Planned Parenthood, makes statements suggesting Planned Parenthood may perform partial-birth abortions, despite such procedures being illegal.
— Former StemExpress employee Holly O’Donnell told the Center for Medical Progress that it did not appear all women whose children’s fetal tissue was used gave consent: “If there was a higher gestation, and the technicians needed it, there were times when they would just take what they wanted. And these mothers don’t know. And there’s no way they would know.”
— In the second undercover video released by the Center for Medical Progress, Dr. Mary Gatter, president of the Medical Directors’ Council for Planned Parenthood, joked that “I want a Lamborghini” when discussing prices for fetal tissue.

Liberals, for all their talk about tolerance, have long shown they have no interest in coexistence with Chick-fil-A. In 2012, mayors of major cities across the country denounced Chick-fil-A. “Chick-fil-A’s values are not Chicago values,” said Chicago’s Rahm Emanuel. San Francisco Mayor Edwin Lee tweeted, “Closest #ChickFilA to San Francisco is 40 miles away & I strongly recommend that they not try to come any closer.” Then-Washington, D.C., Mayor Vincent Gray wrote, “Given my long standing strong support for LGBT rights and marriage equality, I would not support #hatechicken.”
Just try to imagine what the reaction would be if say, a Texas town tried to ban Starbucks or Ben and Jerry’s.

Liberals are free to boycott Chick-fil-A, just as conservatives can boycott companies who support organizations who donate to groups advocating stances they find immoral or wrong. But it’s another matter entirely to bring in the government to ban Chick-fil-A entirely. It should be consumers, not government officials, who decide which businesses thrive and which don’t.
Denver, it’s time to try a little tolerance.

China's Economy : Smoke and Mirrors?

Take a minute to watch this video to understand why this disaster has taken place before making any conclusive decisions on what actually happened with the melt down of the market.

Why China’s Economy Is Scaring the World, Explained in 90 Seconds
Josh Siegel / @SiegelScribe          


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GU7TpaU0wDY&feature=player_embedded

Food Stamp Recipients : Working Adults AND Seniors

First the assumption that the economy is improving is wrong - with 93 million people unemployed or underemployed, a reasonable person would say things are not going well for prosperity in America. And that there are more then 49 million individuals receiving food stamps does not bode well for the program ever being reformed any time soon.

The popular stand of most politicians today is 'leaving sleep tigers alone'. Let others do  the heavy lifting as they are busy grabbing for the brass ring.

Majority of Food Stamp Recipients Are Now Working Age Adults, Not Children or Seniors
Maura Corrigan               

The nation’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly food stamps) experienced mixed results in 2014. Participation and average benefit amounts fell slightly from the previous year, but the program remains much larger than it was a decade ago, despite an improving economy. And far too few working-age adults receiving SNAP are in fact working, even years into the recovery. The program may appear to be on the right track—but it is far from perfect and traveling much too slowly.

First, some background: SNAP provides food assistance to low-income individuals and households, with the goal of preventing hunger and malnutrition. These benefits are transferred to a recipient’s Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card once per month and can be used in most grocery stores and establishments that sell unprepared food. With some exceptions, only households making 130 percent of the federal poverty level or less are eligible.

In 2014, participation fell to 46.5 million from 47.6 million people the year before. The average monthly payment for all SNAP households fell to $257 in FY 2014, from $275 in FY 2013. Households with children typically receive more (around $400 per month), while elderly recipients receive less (just over $100). These numbers are moving in the right direction, but not fast enough.
One out of seven Americans received SNAP benefits in 2014, and the program cost $74.1 billion—the second largest means-tested welfare program. Participation remains twice as high as it was a decade ago (24 million in 2004), even as the unemployment rate has dropped in recent years.

 

Participation demographics have also changed substantially. A slight majority of recipients are now non-elderly adults; before the 2008 recession, 55 percent of SNAP households consisted of children and the elderly. Additionally, the number of nonworking, nondisabled, working-age recipients has risen rapidly. Some of this change is due to the waiving of work requirements for able-bodied working-age adults without dependents during the recession.

As a former state human services director who administered more than 70 federal means-tested welfare programs, I believe that one track is especially important for reforming welfare programs. Our nation’s simple three-word mantra should be “Better Off Working.” Social safety-net programs, including SNAP, should expect and encourage work—and the dignity and responsibility that accompany it—from those who are able to do so.

The Agricultural Act of 2014 (the “farm bill”) provided for a 10-state pilot that allows states to experiment with work requirements. This is a promising development, but more needs to be done.
Rather than promoting self-sufficiency, SNAP’s predominant track record over the past decade has been to add participants to its rolls. Also, its eligibility definitions are in many cases vague, allowing it to deny fraud, waste, and abuse in the program, despite the reports of such behavior from citizens and caseworkers.

Also, SNAP is administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, but it is not an agriculture program and is too often divorced from anti-poverty programs run by the Department of Health and Human Services.

Moving forward, these issues need to be addressed more directly. Many of the benefit increases and eligibility expansions in SNAP associated with the recession seem to have peaked and are on their way down. Participation in SNAP is falling as the economic prospects of Americans improve, yet participation rates and program spending are projected to remain near historically high levels into the foreseeable future (and labor force participation remains worrisomely low).

The question now is whether SNAP will be effectively reformed to promote work, the most effective anti-hunger and anti-poverty solution available.

Originally published in The Heritage Foundation’s 2015 Index of Culture and Opportunity.

School Loans Surging : 1.2 Trillion Student Loan Debt Bubble?

Why is this rocket science? This isn't about education, it's about capturing a huge section of new voters that will have no choice but to vote for politicians that will keep the good times rolling. The country be dammed.

The popular slogan of the progressive socialist liberal elite is, 'pull up the rope, I'm aboard'.

Grad-School Loan Binge Fans Debt Worries
Source: Josh Mitchell, "Grad-School Loan Binge Fans Debt Worries," Wall Street Journal, August 18, 2015.

August 21, 2015

 A growing number of Americans owe more than $100,000 in student debt and are having difficulty paying it back. Most are paying less than the interest on their balance taking advantage of a federal income-based repayment program, says Josh Mitchell in the Wall Street Journal.

Student debt has doubled since the recession to $1.19 trillion and is likely to become a topic for debate in the 2016 presidential race. Post graduate students, who account to 14% of students in higher education, are responsible for 40% of this debt. Some federal programs have made it easy for students to borrow huge sums of money and eventually have those debts forgiven.

These Federal programs have had unintended consequences: Graduate schools have been able to keep raising tuition. High-earning graduates who can afford to repay their loans have been subsidized without careful consideration. The students' ability to repay is not carefully assessed. The amount of students who owe more than $100K has swelled to 1.82 million in 2015.

The current administration has stood behind this program claiming that graduate students have the highest earning potential and will most likely repay their loans. These programs are also designed to generate income for taxpayers. Nonetheless, there has been a rise in enrollment in debt forgiveness programs and an expansion in the less stringent repayment program will cost taxpayers $15.3 billion.

Many borrowers are planning to combine debt forgiveness programs with income-based repayment plans. Debt forgiveness was devised to encourage graduates to remain in public sector jobs instead of leaving for the higher-paying private sector. However, recent studies show that the programs are benefiting the people who need it the least.

Renewable Energy Sources Analysis : Assumption Based Study

Interesting study on renewable energy source development. When you include the assumptions on what the national, state and local infrastructures are ready to do or accept as viable. makes this study very clinical. 

The problem here is the demand for energy is way beyond what any renewable energy source can provide now or in the near future. And yet $billions of tax dollars are being spent on the development of renewables knowing full well they can not meet demand.

And at the same time destroying the primary energy source, coal and then natural gas which fuels more then 60% of all our energy needs. Why do you think they are will do this in face of such catastrophic consequences, both for our economic prosperity and for the environment?

U.S. Renewable Energy Technical Potentials: A GIS-Based Analysis
Source: Anthony Lopez et al., "U.S. Renewable Energy Technical Potentials: A GIS-Based Analysis," National Renewable Energy Laboratory, July 2012.

August 21, 2015

 The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) conducted a study to estimate the potential of different renewable energy generation technologies. The study focused on technology-specific aspects but did not consider economic or market constraints. This study presents the results for six different renewable electricity generation technologies:

utility-scale photovoltaics (both urban and rural), concentrating solar power, onshore wind power, offshore wind power, biopower and enhanced geothermal systems. The study produced some very interesting findings: Rural utility-scale photovoltaic leads all other technologies in technical potential (280,600 TWh) with Texas being the best suited state for this kind of development. By contrast, urban utility-scale photovoltaic has a much lower technical potential (2,200 TWh.) The large population centers of California and Texas are the best candidates for this technology.

Concentrating solar power presents the second highest technical potential (116,100 TWh). Its implementation is most viable in the Southwest. Onshore wind power's technical potential is higher than its offshore counterpart (32,700 vs. 17,000 TWh) and its adoption is ideal in the western and central Great Plains. The majority of Enhanced Geothermal Systems' potential (31,300 TWh) is located in the Rocky Mountain states and the Great Basin but it could be developed in the central and eastern portions of the country.

To reach these conclusions the study assumed that land, transmission infrastructure and other resources were readily available. It also assumed that national, state and local policies would foster the development of these projects.

Thus, the estimates do not necessarily represent the level of renewable energy that might actually be generated.

Of Flags and Lions : The Tyranny of The Few

Who knew? It's interesting in that most of us just sit by while a few 'well meaning' individuals told the rest of us how our lives will be lived and if we don't do like we are told, bad things will happen to us.

And what happens next, we remain silent and go about our business as it doesn't effect us immediately. As Mr Obama's pastor told us, 'when the chicken come home to roast, there will hell to pay' - and so it will and so it has.

With the next election in full swing, it's time to stand and deliver or be ready to accept the consequences for doing nothing.

As the famous saying goes from Edmond Burke, "For tyranny to succeed, all it take is for good men to do nothing"

John Kerry's Family Now Iranian Elite?

What is going on here? Or is it that it is so important to understand the powerful have different standards and moral attitude that those of us in the trenches need only to shut up and keep digging?

I don't know if this is factual stuff but given Mr Kerry's history, why not.


(Author Unknown)
This is unbelievable...  It’s all in the family!                                           

Maybe you don’t know that in 2009 the daughter of Secretary of State John Kerry, Dr. Vanessa Bradford Kerry, married an Iranian physician named Dr. Brian Vale Nahed. Well, I am sure no mainstream media reported this.

The best man at the wedding? Mohammad Javad Zarif. Let me explain Mr.Zarif. Zarif is the current Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs. He was Kerry’s chief counterpart in the nuclear deal negotiations.                                                        

 

                                                        

As  Front Page Magazine  pointed out several months ago, the nuclear talks with Iran were a tragic farce, choreographed and orchestrated by Iran.                                                        

Environmentalists Turn Blind Eye To Wind Turbine Slaughter : Egales Shredded

Who cares how many birds are killed or what the impact to the wild life is as long as the agenda to stop prosperity for the individual is accomplished, and what better way then to limit access to electrical energy. Wind energy production is an abomination, it will not produce the needed energy required by the population or industry now or in the future, it is a total loser and yet here we are moving further and further into the nightmare of forced environmentalism.

And the two-faced wild life organizations is staggering and shameful in face of this slaughter of birds. But it does serve to show us all that the real intentions of environmentalism is not about the environment, it's about forcing an ideological agenda that will control others to do the bidding of an elite few. This called tyranny.  

Obama’s Wind-Energy Lobby Gets Blown Away
Source: Robert Bryce, "Obama's Wind-Energy Lobby Gets Blown Away," Wall Street Journal, August 18, 2015.

August 21, 2015

On August 11th, a federal judge in California ruled in favor of protecting the bald eagle, a symbol of American freedom. This ruling represents a setback for the wind industry and for President Obama's Clean Power Plan.

This decision, however, also points to the administration's close relationship with the wind industry and the danger to wildlife as a result of increased wind-energy facilities. The judge determined that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was in violation of the National Environmental Policy Act when it issued 30 year permits to wind-energy companies without first conducting an environmental-impact assessment. As an industry that promotes itself as environmentally friendly, wind energy companies face a PR predicament because its turbines kill more than a half a million birds each year.

The Clean Power Plan is relying on wind energy more than any other form of renewable energy. The rationale used by clean energy promoters is the following: Future climate change is more important than preserving wildlife. To reduce greenhouse gas emissions, wind-generating capacity will have to increase significantly (but would also increase the killing of birds).

These advocates, of course, don't consider that rising emissions in emerging economies will undo whatever gains are achieved in the U.S. Meanwhile the killing of birds continues. A 2008 study of a northern California wind facility found that it kills approximately 60 eagles and 2500 other raptors each year.

Snowden Public Exposed Secrets : Hillary Secretly Expose Them?

What do the progressive socialists democrats think about this comparison? And what's even more important is can the general public make the connection that it's just part and parcel of the agenda of the democrat collective?

This is who they are and always have been and yet millions will continue to vote for their own demise. Go figure.

Medicaid's Misuse of Funds : 60% Misdirected

The question that remains, is there any way to stop the escalation? Will congress be able to stem the waste or reallocation of funds as indicated here? It seems simple enough to issue vouchers directly to individuals rather then getting caught in the nightmare of red tape that surrounds providers.

The problem of issuing voucher is that there are a lot of people in between the government and the recipients that are currently taking their share of the Medicaid funds. Everyone has a job and must  be paid to do it no matter what. Right? It's the governments way of doing things and it can only get worse the longer congress sits on their collective hands.

Who will stand and deliver?

Only 20 to 40 Cents of Each Medicaid Dollar Benefits Recipients
Source: John R. Graham, "Only 20 to 40 Cents of Each Medicaid Dollar Benefits Recipients" Providence Journal, August 16, 2015.

August 21, 2015

Medicaid is jointly funded by state and federal governments. It grows regardless of the state of the economy and its main purpose is to help those without enough income to pay for their medical care, says senior fellow John R. Graham of the National Center for Policy Analysis.

However, a study conducted in 2008 in Oregon found out that:

• Medicaid increased the use of health services and reduced the risk of large out-of-pocket medical expenses.
• Nevertheless, it did not improve mortality of any physical health measure.
• Of a figure of $1,576 only $465 was directly related to health care. The rest only freed up resources for other types of consumption.
• The net cost to taxpayers was $1,374 per recipient.
• The amount of government spending that was simply transferred to providers was $2,222.
• Yet Medicaid spending keeps growing, and is much larger than other welfare programs.

The author concludes that Medicaid spending should be reduced and the funds converted to vouchers instead of being paid to providers directly, says Graham.
 

Mr Obama Believes Self Inspection Best : It Won't Be His Fault

I wonder what Mr Obama's next move will be?

Mr Obama's Ideology Assures Middle East Destruction

What exactly is the intent of Mr Obama Iranian deal? I can't stop there, why the stand-down when the Iranian people went into the streets? Why the stand down in Syria? Why pull out all the troops from Iraq? What happened in Benghazi? Why did do nothing to help? And what about Lydia? Yemen?

But wait, what about the defense of Israel? South Korea? Japan? Taiwan?

Hey there's more - why Cuba? A professed communist county? Who is the man, what motivates him and what does he believe is necessary to bring people together? It looks like to start with is a lot of dead people.