Digital Television Broadcast Bill

The House Energy and Commerce Committee is moving toward a bill that would expedite the transition to digital television broadcasts. So far, no hard date has been established as to when broadcasters would be required to return all channels on the analog spectrum to the federal government. Current law sets December 21, 2006 as the target date for the return of the spectrum, but exceptions are made for markets where less then 85 percent of households are able to view digital broadcasts.

Trade or Release Dan Kolb Petition

I would like my readers to take time out of their day to sign a petition that I created to get Mr. Kolb off the Atlanta Braves baseball team. To sign the petition click on the title. More to come on this subject.

United States Postal Service (USPS)

There is no good reason for the United States to continue to be stuck with a stagnant $69 billion operation with 774,000 overpaid workers and add to the fact that its a congressionally created monopoly.

As everyone knows if its fast, reliable, and cost-efficient many will pay for the service. Not with the government postal service, which is trying hard not to fall behind its already low standards. For example, the average delivery time today for a first-class letter is 1.9 days, up from 1.6 days in 1981, despite all the new technology that is available. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has conslude that the USPS "has an outdated and inflexible business model amid a rapidly changing postal landscape."

I believe that with the advent of email and other means of sending information, USPS needs to downsize and privatize in order to compete in today's world.

Student Loan Programs. Middle class welfare?

I would like to start a discussion on federal government spending. What programs do the federal government pursue that could best be left to the private sector?

Let's start with federal student loan programs. Those are subsidies that go to students who will earn higher-than-average incomes during their lifetimes. People whom support student loan programs argue that college is a public good like national defense. The argument is that if workers are more educated, then the nation's economic growth will be greater.

Although that may be true, people with college educations will earn on average 75 percent more during their lifetimes than will those with just a high school degree; that should provide a direct incentive for people to pay their own college investment, government loan programs are not needed to ensure that a sufficient number of students attend college.

At least one Democrat learned something from the 2004 presidential race

When asked what he learned from the presidential contest Democratic vice-president candidate John Edwards said: "Don't listen to Mary Beth Cahill."

I love it. Finally a Democrat that is willing to break from the Kennedy wing of the party.

Guiliani and Clinton as 2008 presidential contenders?

In a recent poll both Rudy Giuliani and Hillary Clinton were leading their respective parties in the 2008 presidential race. Neither to me is a very strong candidate. Speaking just in historical terms, no sitting senator has won the presidency since JFK in 1960. For Giuliani, can an ex-mayor really win the presidency? No past president has ever won from such a low office (the closest I can think of is William H. Harrison, who was a war hero with no political experience). Anyone with a political background had come either from the Senate (for example: B. Harrison, Harding and JFK), Vice-presidency (Adams, Van Buren, Tyler, Fillmore, Arthur, T. Roosevelt, Taft, Coolidge, Truman, Johnson, Ford, and H. W. Bush), cabinet/minister (Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, Buchanan, and Hoover), or governor position (Hayes, McKinley, Clinton, and W. Bush). In recent years, its the governor position that will take one to the White House.

Knowing this am I the only one that thinks Haley Barbour and Mark Warner might be the darkhorse candidates? Both are southern governors who are moderate socially and conservative fiscally. In addition, Barbour and Warner have the added advantage of knowing that the last two presidents have been southern governors. The south is a rising political force, not only because of its increased population but also the Republican dominance and hispanic vote. It only makes sense to find a candidate (esp. for the Democrats) that is from the south. Bush already had one of the biggest states in the Union (Texas) for his presidential run in 2000. In 1980, Reagan started with the powerhouse state of California. Clinton, in 1992, had ... uhhh ... Arkansas? Well, that might be the exception that the doesn't disprove the rule. At any rate, don't count out a southern governors.

Highway Bill and Entitlement Spending

The President may veto his first bill soon. The reason? The Senate can't stop spending money. The Highway Bill, set to be voted on next week, is running 15 billion over its expected costs ($295 billion). The only Senator to speak forcefully on the matter was Senate Budget Committee Charman Judd Gregg (R-NH), who stated: "You have the problem of a Republican Senate running over a Republican president because we want to spend more money---or at least some members of the Senate do."

This is just another example in a long line of excess spending by Congress. The sad part of this matter is that the Highway Bill is not an entitlement and thus is something that Congress could control. The problem is that Congress is not willing to control spending in a time when the nation pays 7 percent of its fiscal budget in net interest payments. By 2015 that will increase to 10 percent.

If Congress can't control descretionary then how much faith can we place in them for fixing entitlements and/or the national debt? Do they have the stomach to cut Medicare, Medicaid, food stamps, federal student loans, child nutrition programs, vocational rehabilitation, and crop subsidy programs (all are entitlement programs or entitlements in all but name only)? I doubt they do, but the fact remains that mandatory spending (entitlements) is already taking up over half the federal budget (54%) and is expected to grow to over 60 percent of the budget in 10 years.

The way out? Well Congress believes that the budget reconciliation process can force them to curb entitlement spending. As it stands, Congress has to cut $34.7 billion from the fiscal 2006 budget. I know for fiscal conservatives this may sound like a big win, but these savings only slow the growth of entitlement spending (in addition past reconciliation bills saved from 400 to 500 billion). What is needed is strong leadership on the issue of Medicare and Medicaid (the two biggest entitlement programs). Until the eligibility requirements are changed there will be no stopping the damage that these programs do to the federal budget (I must point out that one could raise fees for these programs as a means to cut costs). I hope somewhere in either political party there is a leader that can stand up and say something big needs to be done.

The Internet instead of Books?

Ok, so I read this article in the New York Times on Saturday talking about how some "college libraries are settting aside their books in a digital age." Well, I have to say I like books. Not that I am against the Internet, but it is nice to see and feel the book in my hands. It gives me some control that on the Internet I feel I don't have. There is something about being able to take a book (or even research material) with me and being really able to study it. What comes to mind when I think of books or learning material on the Internet is a password protected nightmare that I wouldn't otherwise experience in a public library. Not to say anything for the loading time on a computer or when the occassional Internet site crashes.

But still college are going ahead and building learning centers without books. I understand the reason for taking a step into the "digital age," but I would like to have the ability to have the "book version" and not something on a screen. And having the option of going to an alternative library doesn't cut it. If I pay money to go to a college I want the damn library filled with books even if I don't use them. Its just nice to know they are there.

An American to Oversee Church Doctrine!!!

I am not a Catholic but I like it when the United States wins in anything. Woot!!! Go USA!!! USA!!! USA!!!

Clinton and Gingrich Agree?

Has h-ll frozen over or do I sense a presidential run in the future for these two? By coming together on health care, Clinton and Gingrich serve their political futures well by showing themselves as political moderates.

Big problem. Neither is a political moderate!!! How dumb do they think the American people are? I really hate crap like this and I wonder why I dislike politicans when they run for office.

Dan Kolb

It has been two days since Kolb's blown save, but I am still too angry to talk about my feelings fully. I will just say that how the h-ll can you throw a pitch that looks like its for a home-run derby contest?!! Kolb made Dustin Mohr look like a homerun hitter with 40 hr potential.

Its only his second blown save, but Kolb 1-3 record does give some sign of his pitching problems. The truth of the matter is the numbers don't show just how really bad he is playing.

GAO needs some accountability!!!

The Government Accountability Office (GAO)'s big dog, David Walker has spent alot of time and money traveling overseas for the head of an organization that is suppose to provide research and oversight aid to Congress. Why is Mr. Walker going to China, Ulaan Baatar, New Zealand, Seoul, and South Africa over the last four years? Just for the 2004 fiscal year these trips have cost (54 in total) $10,959,48 in tax payer money.

I am I the only one that sees something wrong with the leader of Congress's top oversight body taking trips overseas? I guess we just don't have enough problems domestically for Mr. Walker to deal with? You know, with us fixing Social Security, healthcare, and taxes, GAO now needs to help out China and New Zealand. Whats next? A flight to the moon?

Good Job Goode and Pastor!!

Represenatives Virgil H. Goode (R-VA) and Ed Pastor (D-AZ) came in first and second respectively for member's allowance spending. They are each spending less than 60% of their allowance. For Goode that is roughly 686,000 out of 1,182,000 and for Pastor it is 748,000 out of 1,249,000. Good job fellows!!!

Now lets see if the top spenders, Barbara Cubin (R-WY) and Corrine Brown (D-FL), can learn some money management skills from Goode and Virgil.

Emergency Supplemental Bill

The emergency supplemental bill for funding war efforts in Iraqi was passed by a vote of 368 to 58 in the House. Only three Republicans voted against the bill. One of the three was Texan Ron Paul. I say thanks to him for standing up against government waste in the name of supporting our troops. In the bill was federal funds for tsunami relief, a noble cause, but one that should be coming from private citizen's donations, not tax dollars.

Why have a United Nations or other relief organizations that are either part or fully funded by the federal government? Cutting spending is needed in a time when the government is billions upon billions in debt. I see no need to add to the sad state of our budget by adding additional spending measures onto a noble bill. If tsunami relief can pass Congress, then it should be done as a single bill where each member has to vote for it.

Discloser Bill

I hope reports are true that Representative Henry Waxman (D-CA) will introduce a bill requiring presidential administrations to disclose more information to the public. Although I don't know all of the bill's specifics, in principle, it could benefit both Congress and the American public. Let's wait and see what Waxman comes up with.

Welcome Zimbabwe!

Let's send a big "congrats" to the United Nations for permitting Zimbabwe to sit, once again, on the Human Rights Commission. The irony of this situation is that Zimbabwe is itself under investigation by the Human Rights Watch, a group who's purpose is to "investigate and expose human rights violations and hold abusers accountable." According to the organization, Zimbabwe has:

"Repressive laws such as the Public Order and Security Act (POSA) and the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) remain in place. The government continues to use these laws to suppress criticism of government and public debate, and those most affected included representatives of Zimbabwe civil society, opposition party supporters, and the independent media.

The government also tabled in parliament new legislation regulating the operations of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and the AIPPA Amendment Bill which reportedly seeks to tighten existing media laws. Concerns were expressed that these new laws would further curtail fundamental rights to freedom of expression and association.

Food security remains a pressing issue and concerns have been raised about the availability of food and the risk of political interference in food distribution in the run-up to parliamentary elections in March 2005."

I must say though that with countries like China, Cuba, and Sudan on the Commission it seems that Zimbabwe might be a moderate choice. Good show United Nations!!!

Star Wars Episode III

This being my first post I would like to state my love of Star Wars. The latest and final movie in this series comes out May 19. I just got finished reading the script. Although I have problems with parts of the movie, overall its the best of the prequel series.