Month: March 2011

Roadkill bill has a serious purpose — really

Posted by dwilson – March 30, 2011

State Rep. Norine Hammond, R-Macomb, kind of expected the ribbing she would get when she sponsored House Bill 3178 which would allow Illinois hunters to pick up fur-bearing animals found dead on highways.

“There were a lot of laughs when I brought the so-called ‘roadkill’ bill before the Illinois House,” Hammond said.

The legislation was brought to Hammond by a retired conservation officer who saw it as a cost-saving measure that will clear up confusion in current law. The cost savings would come when those with a valid furbearer’s license stop and pick up freshly killed animals that can be sold to fur buyers. By clearing roads of dead animals, it would reduce the work crews must do on roadkill removal duty.

In addition, it would eliminate confusion about whether furbearers found along highways can be picked up.

HB 3178 has passed the Illinois House and awaits consideration in the Senate.

McCaskill’s airplane story could ground her

Posted by dwilson – March 25, 2011

U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., is facing withering press after her recent airplane flap got worse when it was learned that taxes were not paid on a plane in which she and her husband had an ownership interest.

The non-partisan Cook Political Report has classified McCaskill’s 2012 re-election campaign a “tossup” only a few days after this tax development. That’s never good for an incumbent.

Early this month it looked as though McCaskill would be able to weather a storm over her taking charter plane flights, using federal travel dollars, on a plane she and her husband own with other investors. Politico reported that she had spent nearly $76,000 in public funds for travel on the plane between 2007 and this year. McCaskill reacted by paying about $88,000 to the U.S. Treasury to pay for any travel costs.

With 20 months to the 2012 election, that might have settled things and left McCaskill relatively unharmed in a state where both Democrats and Republicans can win.

Then came word that taxes on the plane had not been paid in St. Louis County. Personal property taxes of $287,000 were assessed. Penalties and interest added another $32,000.

McCaskill told reporters “There are people I could blame for this, but I know better. As an auditor, I know I should have checked this myself. I take full responsibility for the mistake.”

That’s the kind of quote that will make her supporters proud, but won’t move those who don’t care for her politics. It also is a quote the standard bearer for the Republican party will probably use often during the campaign.

Voters in Missouri will be the ultimate jury on whether McCaskill gets the blame.

Happiness depends on many things

Posted by dadam – March 23, 2011

embedded by Embedded Video

Download Video

The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index has tracked the responses of more than 1.1 million Americans since January 2008. It ranks people’s feeling of well-being by asking questions about things like emotional health, physical health, work environment and basic access.

People in the Midwest have well-being scores that rank them firmly in the middle of the 50-state rankings. And Tri-State region folks were more than willing to share their thoughts on the rankings and what makes them happy — and are linked here.

Edgar oral history series on Lincoln website

Posted by dwilson – March 18, 2011

Former Illinois Gov. Jim Edgar is featured in hours of oral history recordings through the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum website.

Edgar, who was elected governor in 1990 and served for eight years, talks about a variety of topics in recorded interviews. Some touch on issues people may remember well.

In one recording, Edgar talks about the flood of 1993 and tells how Press Secretary Mike Lawrence and “the Representative from over there” — an obvious reference to former Rep. Art Tenhouse, R-Liberty — convinced him that he should call out the Illinois National Guard to deal with historic flooding along the Mississippi River.

It may not be riveting listening, but it is history that lots of people can relate to and remember.

Unbelieveable statistic is truly unbelieveable

Posted by dwilson – March 16, 2011

Ryan Chittum wrote this week about a false report put out by TrimTabs Investment Research and how the erroneous information will be “bouncing around the message boards and chain emails for years.”

Chittum was baffled that so many people were sucked in by an obvious lie. The TrimTabs folks reported that “social welfare programs made up 35 percent of all public and private wages and salaries last year.”

If it were true, that would be shocking. It’s not true.

Chittum tracked down the U.S. numbers and found the Bureau of Economic Analysis numbers used by TrimTabs. The numbers show that annual wages and salaries were $6.4 trillion last year. But the TrimTabs group took a different set of figures and found that $2.2 trillion was paid out last year in Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.

In essence, the number crunchers decided they would simply divide the $6.4 trillion by $2.2 trillion. The problem with that is — Social Security and Medicare are not considered salary or wages and since they’re not part of the $6.4 trillion, they cannot be used to create a percentage in that manner.

Even if one assumes that Social Security and Medicare are government handouts — even though people get money out based on money they’ve paid in — the math just does not work. One would have to add the $2.2 trillion to the $6.5 trillion and then add capital income, which was excluded, before seeking a percentage.

Chittum did his best to kill the false report. Unfortunately, nothing dies in today’s society. Like zombies, the lie comes back from the dead to march through the Internet and eat people’s brains … or at least attack the gray matter of the gullible.

State central committee bill ready for reading

Posted by dwilson – March 15, 2011

Legislation that would require a direct vote by Illinois residents for state central committee members will come up for a vote as early as Wednesday.

SB35 is sponsored by Senators Kirk Dillard, R-Hinsdale, and and Chris Lauzen, R-Aurora, but is being called “a Democrat bill” by Illinois Republican Chairman Pat Brady. The sponsors deny those charges.

Dillard and Lauzen are conservatives who believe Illinois voters ought to be able to elect the state central committeemen and committee women. Currently the central committee members are elected by GOP precinct committee members. The senators believe that unduly restricts party debate, discourse and accountability.

Brady sees it differently. He said the Republican convention considered this provision three years ago and defeated it. Of course, the convention is attended overwhelmingly by precinct committee members.

“The Democrats put this legislation in. They use it as a way to mess around with the Republicans.” Brady said during a recent on-air interview at WJBC Radio.

His contention is that Democrats will pull Republican primary ballots to vote for state central committee members.

Doug Ibendahl of Republican Newswatch believes Brady is supporting the “rigged system” because the insiders are the ones who elect the state chairman.

“We need competent, honest leaders who will work on getting Republican votes, instead of spending all their time … trying to prevent Republicans from voting,” Ibendahl said.

This issue may just be heating up.

Obama to host online session on bullying

Posted by dwilson – March 9, 2011

President Barack Obama will participate in a White House conference on bullying prevention on Thursday with the option for a “live chat” on Facebook.

A video from Obama and the first lady spotlights the problems of bullying that have been compounded by technology that often allows bullying to continue from school to cell phone and online. The video will be available until the conference and chat on Thursday.

Experts on ways to prevent bullying will take questions through the day.

This would be a good resource for school personnel, coaches, parents and others who work closely with young people.

Schilling wants detainees kept in Gitmo

Posted by dwilson – March 9, 2011

U.S. Rep. Bobby Schilling is among members of the House Armed Services Committee who want to prevent the move of prisoners from Guantanamo Bay to other facilities.

Schilling said the legislation supported by him and Armed Services Committee chairman Rep. Buck McKeon would halt any “funding for the construction or modification of any facilities in the United States to house Guantanamo detainees.”

At the heart of the legislation, Schilling said is the prevention of any move of detainees to the Thomson prison in Illinois. The Thomson option has been contentious, with some legislators and public officials in northwest Illinois supporting the creation of hundreds of jobs, while others do not want any terrorist detainees brought to the state for fear of reprisals.

“This legislation would mean no detainees in Thomson, Ill., or anywhere in the United States, its territories or possessions, except for in Guantanamo Bay,” Schilling said.

Clinton’s warning about food riots misdirected

Posted by dwilson – March 8, 2011

During a Agriculture Outlook Forum late in February, former President Bill Clinton said the use of more corn for ethanol production could lead to high food prices and food riots in poor countries.

Clinton’s warning could prove true. The mistake he made was in warning farmers that their decisions could create this problem.

Farmers generally sell their crops at markets to large companies that, in turn, ship that grain to producers, feed mills, ethanol distillers and others in the U.S. or abroad. Farmers, unless they have contracts with ethanol operations, do not make a choice on where their grain is used.

In addition, Clinton’s contention that ethanol is the prime reason for higher food costs is just plain wrong.

Matt Hartwig of Renewable Fuels Association said rising oil prices have a great impact on food costs. And as oil goes up in price, fuel used to transport grain becomes more expensive. Fuel used to transport food is more expensive. Energy prices in food processing plants go higher.

While Hartwig is far from a neutral source, his comments are borne out by U.S. Department of Agriculture studies and independent research by economists.

Does ethanol production bolster the price of corn? Yes.

If ethanol production declined significantly, would it bring food prices down significantly? No. Not as long as oil prices/fuel prices continue at such high levels.

Those who want to assess blame for rising food prices, and rising costs in general, may find some likely candidates in different industries or in government. They might want to blame economic markets and the commodities markets, which involve both grain and oil.

Farmers should not be on the list of people to blame for high food prices. They’re the ones to thank for the food we have.