Bravery Gets My Vote

15 Friday Feb 2019

Posted by in Deficits, Legislations

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I am tired of people wanting my vote by saying they will cut my taxes. I consider them to be stupid or incompetent since my county, my state, and my country are already running a deficit. Cutting taxes almost never raises revenue. Greater demand of the product and more employees may increase revenue a little. Remember Reagan raised taxes.

The Bush tax cut changed us from paying off debt to running up trillions in debt. The Trump tax cut is costing us trillions more. We just passed $22,000,000,000,000.00. Rauner’s holding off on bumping the tax back up has cost us billions.

Nothing good will come from continuing to elect financial incompetents who just want to get re-elected. It takes courage to do what is right!

A Real Plan for Illinois Finances

14 Thursday Feb 2019

Posted by in Finances, Illinois

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The civic committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago has released an all encompassing report on what Governor Pritzker and the legislators must do to get us out of this financial mess. “Restore Illinois” has been proposed by the business leaders of Chicagoland. Their plan is not as radical as it will be if their advice isn’t taken now. We know every year we hold off biting the bullet, the harder it will be to fix it.

We must all be involved in fixing the problem by having to pay more in taxes. We have benefited from having lower income tax rates than most other states. In addition to the low rates, we get many exemptions other states don’t allow. The exemptions come from lobbying our legislators, filling campaign chests, and the hope of currying favor of their constituents. The commission thinks this will add $6 billion in taxes.

Their tax rate proposal is to increase the flat rate by 1% to 5.95% and corporate rate by 1% to 8%. They also propose taxing retirement income and some consumer services. Most people don’t know Illinois does not tax retirement benefits. They recommend raising the exemption on the benefits from $1,000 to $15,000 on those retirees 65 and over.

I did not find my proposal which would be to withhold the tax when the pension check is issued. Mine would tax those who have left the state to avoid paying taxes where they earned their money.

In addition to raising taxes, the commission proposes the state employees pay more money into their health insurance plans and saving over a billion each year. They propose state employees should pay as much as employers in the private sector. This would include all people getting a state paycheck. It would include our elected and appointed officials.

We didn’t suddenly get into this mess. We have been electing people of both parties for decades that have been a part of creating the problems. “Chicago Tonight” on the February 12th episode had an interview with David Harris, Illinois Revenue Director, and Dan Hynes, Deputy Governor. Their projections were a $3.2 billion budget deficit, $15 billion in unpaid bills, $2 billion in additional bond interest, and $1.25 billion in late payment penalties on unpaid bills.

Governor Pritzker said he was going to solve the state’s financial crisis but his plan nibbles on a deficit that is getting bigger. It is time for union members, bankers, and voters to get off their butts and call the officials this paper periodically lists and DEMAND ACTION!

FIFTEEN AN HOUR – NOT THE SAME

11 Monday Feb 2019

Posted by in Economy, Illinois Finances, Politics

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I was born and raised about 265 miles south of Joliet and we go back to see relatives a few times a year. My grand niece is a fifth grade teacher. Her school system is getting some support from one of the few coal mines in the state. The starting pay in her school is $34,702 per year. Starting pay for Minooka grade school is $42,073.

The pay scale for state workers is the same in Chicago as in Cairo. A state senator or representative is the same anywhere in the state. The Democrats in Springfield want to raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour. In most of the upper part of the state $30,000 is going to get the wage earner off of any state aid but into food pantries or living at the parent’s home. Try raising a family on that much. Granted it will not get that high until 2025 and inflation will have raised the actual cost-of-living.

One proposal is for the minimum wage to be based on a geographical tier. The farther south a wage earner lives the less the minimum would be or the longer it would take to reach that $15 per hour. Both are sound and fair proposals since the living costs are less in the south end of the state. A fair living in northern Illinois is what is called living high off the hog in southern Illinois.

One complaint about a-shoe-fits-all approach is the businesses will have trouble earning a profit when the labor costs rise. The obvious solution is to raise prices a little. Most places can do that but a manufacturing business I brokered a deal on might not be able to compete. Others in the area are competitive because their labor costs are close to those in Indiana, Missouri, and Kentucky.

Will a tiered system for minimum wage be enacted? Maybe this is because the poor don’t contribute to campaign chests or are politically active. Two other reasons are pay for state workers. Tiering state workers would cause union unrest. I know of no state which does that but it would make good sense for Illinois. The other reason is if the legislature tiered the other workers, wouldn’t we think it was a great idea to tier our senators and representatives salaries?

One cost savings to the state should be a reduction in state aid to those making minimum wage. Savings would be partially in rent, food and other subsidies. I doubt any additional revenue will come from taxing the higher wage because it will probably be offset by a reduced net income from businesses.

With all the pluses and minuses involved, I believe we should fully support the raises and hopefully on a geographically tiered salary schedule.

MIGRATION IS A MONSTER OF OUR OWN MAKING

11 Monday Feb 2019

Posted by in Immigration, Politics, Wall

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Americans seem to have a problem with repeating history. We have never learned from world, European, or American history that people will move away from problems or towards a better life. The Irish fled Ireland because of the Potato Famine. Various religions sailed the Atlantic for a place to peacefully practice their religions. Most probably came to make more money. The first people across the Bering Sea may have come for adventure. The Africans came without their consent. We move to other states for many of the same reasons.

Often people go back to where they left because the conditions there changed. I think most of the Syrians that left for Europe will return when the fighting is over. Some will go back to help in reconstruction. Others will wait until regular life has returned. When, and if, conditions and economies of Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, and parts of Mexico improve, I think a large number of Central American migrants will want to go back to their origins.

Why do the people want to leave their ethnic home and move to Mexico, United States, and Canada? One reason is to make more money for themselves and their families. Another is the governmental corruption in their home country allowing rampant terrorism and preventing economic growth is the most stated reason when applying for entry. We may be at least partially, if not mostly, responsible for these problems.

Over the past century we have displaced democratically elected presidents and installed dictators who have terrorized and robbed their people. We helped the Panamanians to rebel against Columbia so we could build a canal and meddle in their politics until Bush I was forced to invade and capture our former spy asset Manuel Noriega.

My best friend built concrete “school houses” in Honduras, just yards from the Nicaraguan border. We supported the Nicaraguan rebels with guns from the Iran-Contra scandal.

We have supported American companies in those countries by bribery, political pressure, and rebellion. The term “Banana Republic” came from our help to keep Dole and Chiquita Bananas in business and not taken over. Peasant workers were little more than slaves causing anti-American hatred.

Violence in most of Central America would be the usual rebel and army retaliation with CIA or DEA implications. The Panamanian involvement with cocaine was so the DEA could track it. President Trump often talks about the MS-13 gangs coming across our southern border. He may not know MS-13 was born in Los Angeles and exported to Guatemala and other countries by our justice department.

Yes, the migrants want better lives for themselves and their families. Instead of trying to stop them at the border, maybe we should spend that wall money on fixing the problems our CIA and State department created. Maybe the people still there might stay and the caravans would be moving south instead.

Get High — Just Not Here

07 Thursday Feb 2019

Posted by in Drugs, Illinois, Politics

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Soon our Illinois Legislators are going to be asked to vote to make marijuana a legal recreational drug. Their stated reason is so much illegal drug is already being used, we might as well legalize it and tax it. I knew making medical use legal was letting the camel’s nose under the tent. Would cocaine be nest?

Many of those same people that are now looking to vote Aye have professed moral issues in the past. Voting to legalize an illegal drug just so the state can get more tax money is immoral. Our legislators have used taxes to keep us from hurting ourselves. Heavily taxing tobacco products is good and put $353 million into the treasury in 2017.

People are going to drink alcoholic beverages in spite of some people damaging their livers and their lives. The state taxed us for $171 million for getting drunk. The police have a road side test to check for consumption.

Gambling is considered a sin but we have allowed a fleet of riverboats to ease the feeling by taking a piece of the action for $270 million. Why a riverboat is less of a sin than a casino in Chicago is a mystery. The lottery netted the state $720 million that wasn’t spent as promised.

The four taxes totaled over $1.244 billion in 2017. Some of the proponents of legalizing marijuana say it will net the state over $250 million, either the taxes are going to be extremely high or Illinois has a lot more druggies than believed.

Now we are considering throwing another moral out the window for taxes. This time we should consider the possibility of netting a few million while creating tens of thousands more users isn’t a good trade. Marijuana users get used to the high and many will go on to other illegal drugs.

The marijuana plants of today are not the potency of twenty years go. It has been genetically enhanced. The edible drug was just credited with being the reason for a husband killing his wife. Many other instances have shown today’s drug is dangerous. That is not what Illinois needs with all the guns in the hands of so many cowboys.

My niece and her extended family voted no in Colorado and they cite the same results as a documentary. The taxes haven’t offset the costs by law enforcement, traffic accidents, and emergency room visits. The citizens have been paying higher insurance premiums. Illegal marijuana is still available and at a lower cost than legal.

The winners in legalized are the grow companies, the retailers, and those with overflowing campaign chests. Let’s do something right and moral for Illinois and tell your legislators to vote Nay!

XXV Amendment Section 4

06 Wednesday Feb 2019

Posted by in Politics, President Trump, U.S. Constitution

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Imagine President John F. Kennedy wasn’t killed by the bullet in the brain. He is in a vegetative state so we did not have someone who can legally carry out the powers and duties of the President. Some way was needed to keep America from having a President Woodrow Wilson situation again. Amendment XXV was proposed by Congress on July 6, 1965, only twenty months after JFK died, and was ratified on February 10, 1967.

After the amendment was enacted several Presidents have used Section 3 to turn over power to their Vice-President during an operation or procedure. It is a way of continuing the government during the hours when the President is unable to do so. The President signs a letter and copies are given to the Speaker of the House, the President Pro-Temp, and the Vice-President. When the President is able to resume his duties he writes another letter saying so.

Section 3 is simple and easily understood. Section 4 must have been written by a stadium of lawyers because it is full of legalese and hundreds of words. Why is it so important? It’s because it specifically details how to remove a President from office without their consent. I am sure the original intent was for a Wilson or surviving Kennedy scenario. However it can be used to remove a President who is mentally unfit to carry out the powers and duties of the President.

President Ronald Reagan stated to lose it before his second election as he demonstrated during the campaign. During his last year there was some discussion about whether he should step down on his own accord. I don’t remember any discussion of Section 4.

Now we have a President who demonstrates a moral unfitness and possibly a mental illness. He has lied over seven thousand times often telling conflicting lies during the same day. His narcissism is legendary. He treats women as toys for his own amusement. His boundless ego has created a fantasy world where he sees himself as emperor and able to bend everyone to his way of thinking. His lack of concentration and retention are well documented and perhaps caused by ADHD.

In his fantasy world, the realities of his intelligence community’s assessments are wrong. He thinks bullying people will always get his way and when it doesn’t, he lashes out. Lashing out when one has a nuclear trigger is scary.

Maybe Trump can be kept in line by the threat of the Cabinet or Congress unseating him with Section 4. It would be a huge step to utilize it but his thirst for absolute power may require it.

Dark Future for Humanity

06 Wednesday Feb 2019

Posted by in Environment, Uncategorized

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As I write this the temperature is minus 23 degrees. It seems an odd time to bring up global warming but this vortex is the result of warmer arctic sea water not yet iced over. The warmer air rose and split the normal vortex into two parts. Sound familiar? Remember why the polar bears are dying? Their food source for winter hibernation has lots of open water to get a breath and not the air holes in the ice cap.

A complete collapse of the polar vortex was the scenario of the movie “Day After Tomorrow.” Since the President believes what he sees on late night movie channels, maybe he will learn about global warming’s possible effects. Watching “Sicario” is where he got his stories of abuse on the Southern border.

While we are freezing with near record lows, Australians are having record highs of over 120 degrees. The oceans of the world have been warming at a greater rate than predicted. Not only does this alter the global climate it causes the oceans to expand more than what was caused by glacial melting.

If the reader doesn’t see what the rising oceans have caused then you should go to Miami during a king tide or Norfolk during a high tide. Cities around the world are planning on how to exist for another couple of hundred years. New Orleans (mostly under sea level) will become the norm.

What else will happen with the rising seas? About 30% of the world’s population depends on rice as their main source of nourishment. Rising seas will flood those paddies and most cannot be replaced. For instance, Bangladesh’s 170 million people will need to move to higher ground and its domestic and export rice will be lost. Southeast Asia’s low lands are the world’s rice bowl. When it is lost the millions of displaced will need to move somewhere else.

By 2100 much of American coastal cities, towns, and foolish coastal developments will be flooded at times. More will be flooded during hurricanes. The population movements inside the United States will be disruptive. Croplands not lost to the seas will be changed by the effects of global warming. What will happen to those evicted? Remember we could have over six hundred million Americans.

As the world’s population increases to about twelve billion and cropland decreases, yields won’t be able to keep feeding us and our domestic food animals. Meat, an inefficient use of crops, will have to be replaced by faux meats made from vegetable proteins.

These are factual projections and are already occurring. Those who don’t find themselves seeing the obvious effects and cannot see the dark future should have it put on their tombstones.

Quit Wasting Our Money

26 Saturday Jan 2019

Posted by in Drugs, Illinois Finances, Politics

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Every Illinoisan knows the state is in deep financial trouble so why would we want to do a capital bill. This morning I heard Republican Senator Sue Rezin wants to push through a capital bill to be paid for by a tax on recreational marijuana. The announcer said she wanted the money to not be kept at the state level but to go all the way down to the townships.

That idea isn’t hers alone. In fact, it is another ploy to get people to want to pass an ill-advised marijuana law. There are many reasons we don’t need thousands of legally drugged out people on the roads (there is no roadside test.), cooking my food, carrying a gun, or any of a myriad other concerns. Ask people in Colorado and some will be honest enough to quote the increased deaths, wrecks, emergency room visits, and users. New evidence shows edible marijuana causes psychological problems including murder during rages.

If the inane law were to pass, the money should go to putting the state in a better financial condition, not incurring another expense. When the Republicans and the Democrats want to join together to tax and spend, Illinois is in danger of bankruptcy. Getting into this mess was bi-partisan and apparently not getting out of the mess is also bi-partisan.

As in most, if not all, states, Illinois legislators have money to give for local projects. (It’s the same aldermanic practice in Chicago.) In Grundy County, our townships already have lots of tax money for roads, bridges, and winter time. The more political entities involved in spreading grants around, the more that will be wasted on unnecessary projects.

Many of the people who want to pass a recreational law are the same people who argued against riverboat gambling and a Chicago casino on moral and religious grounds. Now those same people want to tax a product they were against. They think that the money will go into the state’s treasury for good use. Their moral roots should also be against unpaid debts and potential bankruptcy.

We already have tens of thousands using the drug today illegally and thousands using it for medical purposes. The medical community has shown specially modified (all marijuana is modified) marijuana without THC gives the same results. Hemp products can give the same results without a high.

If the legislature passes a recreational bill, every tax dollar must go to pay down unpaid bills and then pension shortages. We must not continue to waste money for political gain. When Springfield gets it head straight and forgets politics and getting re-elected, I believe our elected and appointed officials can fix the problems.

Negotiating with North Korea

25 Friday Jan 2019

Posted by in Politics, President Trump, Uncategorized

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In late February, President Trump will get another lesson in negotiating by North Korea dictator-for-life Kim Jong Un. After his first meeting, President Trump and many of his administration have taunted the meeting was successful because some bones, possibly American soldiers, were returned. Also North Korea has not tested any missiles or nuclear bombs since.

Mr. Trump’s lack of political experience in negotiating international agreements, his narcissism, and inflated ego has not allowed him to see he has already gotten the short end of the stick. In return for a few bones and the cessation of testing, he stopped the twice-a-year joint training with South Korea. His military leadership tried to explain how important working with the Republic of Korea is in case the huge North Korean army crosses the 38th parallel. Score 1 for Un and zero for Trump.

Why has North Korea not conducted any testing of its missiles and nuclear bombs? After they proved their weapons worked as designed, further testing was not necessary. When they blew up the nuclear testing site it was a meaningless gesture. The site had already been used up and had leaked radioactivity from the last test. It needed to be sealed and the equipment was removed before the useless building was destroyed. In fact the missile fabrication building has doubled in size and the enrichment of uranium has increased in facilities we know about. We know there are others deep underground but not where. Trump believed he had stopped Un’s nuclear program – North Korea – 2, Trump – zero.

Why is our leader being taken in by North Korea’s “Dear Leader?” Un has been trained by experts in how to negotiate with their enemies. The North Korean playbook was written during the Korean War. During the war, Kim Il Sung took months negotiating a truce. The first items on the list are where to meet and then shape of the table. Un – 3, Trump – zero. During the war, Kim Il Sung sacrificed over a few thousand soldiers to see how determined we were by how many soldiers we were willing to lose. Pork Chop Hill was a prime example.

Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il caused over a million of their people to starve to death so they could build up their military power and start their nuclear and missile programs. All three have been willing to kill millions of their own people along with millions of others to keep themselves in power or to go down with the ship if needed.

Trump’s one-on-one negotiations with Xi and Nancy Pelosi have shown he is not the negotiator he pretends to be. He had yet to realize others pretend to be friends to get what they want and his wild words can start wars.