The Best Blog In The Universe. Forever Vigilant For Confirmed Liars.

Another Giants Super Bowl Win!!!

2012-01-23T13:36:00.002-05:00

It is never early to do some trash talkin’ and that will now commence. Mr. Tebow was roundly criticized for his “Born Again” approach to football but now the Patriots and their owner seem to hint that somehow the spirit of Kraft’s late wife, Myra, has somehow been channeled to provide victory for the Patriots. I guess it is best to rely on the spirit world rather than to film your opponents in an attempt to get the edge.

The “Crime” Mitt Romney has committed is not paying enough taxes. I am amazed at the logic that attempts to skewer Romney over doing something totally legal and within the structure of our tax codes. Rich people and not so rich people take advantage of what is offered in our convoluted tax system so that they can maximize their income while minimizing their obligation to the tax collector.

Mitt also salts money away in the Cayman Islands that is the North American version of a Swiss Bank. He obviously takes as many steps as possible to keep the taxman from his door and what a door that must be.

The Republican primaries have been interesting to watch. The next potential leader of the free world doing their collective weaves around total honesty. Does Ron Paul suck on lemons before taking the podium? Gingrich comes across like a two bit Mass State House career hack. Mitt tries to be the common man when he is a monied elitist. I forget who the rest of them are.

And when a village needs an idiot I suggest they hire on Joe Biden. This Veep is the king of Gaffes. Mr. Potato Head himself Dan Quayle is a light weight in the foot in the mouth department compared to bumbling Joe.

Jobless claims are heading in the right direction as is unemployment. In November Obama will declare it is all because of his administration. The Tea Party will claim it is all the result of their slash and burn threats. The firmly entrenched hacks in D.C. (both parties) will claim it is their success thanks to experience and a mature approach to government.

I watch the Food Network and my least favorite “personality” is Paula Dean. Now it turns out Ms. Butter and Lard has had diabetes for three years and kept her cooking for a coronary show quiet on the whole thing. Now she has decided to come out that she has type two and will - surprise - become a spokesperson for a diabetes med.

The next fraud is Suze Orman now pitching her own fee enhanced debit card. Quite the contrary to what one expects from this consumer watchdog. Now she is promoting her infomercial on PBS - on our dime.

GM has surged into the top spot in auto manufacturing.

Oil at $100+ a barrel but the kibosh is on the Keystone pipeline. More important to pay the bucks to folks who absolutely despise us rather than a degree of independence. Canada has product. Canada has technology. Canada is willing to sell to us. But out of the woodwork come the real environmental nut jobs who seem to ignore the thousands of miles of pipe that already exist with relatively few problems. Just look at the gas lines that cross all over Middleboro. The technology exists to minimize land spills.

Harry Truman may have been the most musically gifted president and had even given consideration to being a concert pianist.

Carl Crawford is building upon his miserable 2011 season with the Red Sox by injuring his wrist. The injury and surgery is described as “not serious” and will probably leave him out of the lineup on opening day. Now Nomar had a wrist injury that was also “not serious” and his career fell apart.

Now with football playoffs in swing comes the next level of stupid stuff - the Mayor’s betting! One mayor bets the mayor of the opposing city on the outcome. Why not use the Mitt Romney approach and bet $10,000.

Was driving through Norton and Easton and saw Xmas trees on the side of the road for pickup. Guess they have no manpower shortage.

A Bridgewater casino? ROTFLMAO!

Assorted Stuff

2012-01-16T13:57:00.000-05:00

Eviscerated? Was that the proper term for the recent BOS budget hearings as it relates to the town IT Director? Sure seemed that way to me.

The BOS repeatedly sympathized with the plight of various departments that have been picked clean through the years. Fiscal issues made the various wish lists just that - a wish.

The G & E got a mention as a potential revenue source. Be interesting how that campaign for new commissioners shapes up.

The federal mall cops known as the TSA have defended their policy of cupcake confiscation. A woman had her cupcake taken since it was packed with frosting and that constituted a gel. She had already gone through the security check point at Fortress Logan which in a rare moment of TSA logic allowed her in. Probably too busy groping for colostomy bags. But the sharpshooters at another TSA local managed to place the goodie under scrutiny and it was nabbed. I also understand that at the same location a black powdery substance in a Dunkin’ Donuts bag was confiscated and brewed to be tested with the offending cupcake. We can all sleep well tonight knowing America is guarded by the brave mall cops of TSA.

Bill Keating will have some primary competition with Sam Sutter getting in the race since as a redistrict he considers it “An open seat.”

Marc Pacheco will not run for Barney Frank’s seat (maybe I should phrase that differently) and will support JoJoJo (or J3) Kennedy. I wonder if that will fly as well as his support for Brunelle did?

Romney’s net worth is greater than all the other candidates and The Big Zero combined.

Verizon is amazing. Since 8/21 I have been attempting to have a bill and service corrected for an organization I belong to. I have spent over 20 hours on the phone - mostly listening to pre recorded messages and have at least fifteen e-mails in my folder. They finally managed to correct it.

Sheldon Adelson of casino fame has contributed over 5M to the Gingrich campaign.

Not a good day to be a Bronco fan.

Great day to be a Giants fan.

That Italian cruise ship is the Exxon Valdez with people.

I had a story on a sidebar a few months ago about a poor soul on the North Shore who while defenseless decided to protect his property from an armed (knife) assailant who wished to make off with the victims tools. When the cops showed up the perp had a busted jaw and was being restrained by the victim. Naturally in Massachusetts the victim gets an assault charge. That was finally dropped after excessive public outcry but one thing became clear - In Massachusetts you have very thin links on just how you can react when you see a perp making off with your goods or even if you are threatened. Amazing.

With today’s technology there should be zero toll takers. Mass Pike has long been a dumping ground for pols who wish to reward or get a relative a job.

Middleboro has a new School Super and she appears highly qualified but IMO this is a classic three and out situation. Three big earning years really help that pension kiss. I have seen that many times. Maybe she can move to NH and grab another gig?

One way around getting the kiss and then grabbing another job as a super out or in state is to have a simple non competitive agreement worked into the contract. Simply state that if you retire from our system you do not accept a similar position in another state or a similar position (compensation is limited according to pension rules) in state. Done in the dreaded private sector.

The rotary issue just goes on and on and has been a problem for at least 50 years. It appears that the various politicos and state agencies are adept at saying all the “right things” but it never goes to the next level.

The Patrick administration is discussing “revenue sources” despite about a billion extra in revenues. IMO they will try and try again to get an addition to the gas tax.

According to The Heritage Foundation and WSJ the United States has slipped to number nine in world economic freedom. Hong Kong is number one. So looks like unbridled communism is doing rather well.

A No Snow January!

2012-01-08T16:07:00.004-05:00

How the hell do you mistake a Golden Retriever for a deer? And the shooter is a cop! I can imagine turning that mentality loose in a situation that calls for target identification.

Goodbye Bachman. Goodbye Cain. Soon to be goodbye Perry. Path is clearing for Mitt.

Linguistic manipulation by now calling one a progressive rather than a liberal. Hilarious. Like calling used cars pre owned. From what I have seen the progressiveness is the same old. Yawn.

Tim Murray is in political flip flop mode over his driving habits.

If the Red Sox get some Bruins type scores they’ll win it all.

GE paid no taxes. So GE simply takes advantage of the existing tax code. Problem is not GE.

And now I am doing my taxes. Our tax code is a convoluted mess.

Interesting factoid: In the United States, around nine billion animals are slaughtered every year (this includes about 150.4 million cattle, bison, sheep, hogs, and goats and 8.9 billion chickens, turkeys, and ducks) in 5,700 slaughterhouses and processing plants employing 527,000 workers.

Another factoid. The Constitution has 4,543 words. Think of that the next time you see legislation that goes on for book length especially the tax code.

A thank you to AB for some good advice.

ETF’s are shrinking and bond funds growing by almost a billion a week.

Unemployment is at 8.5% but the real figure is the U-6 that is near 16%. Interesting figures on Department Of Labor web site especially about jobs created and their wages.

Another Kennedy to run for Barney’s seat. This will be another Patrick “Patches” Kennedy type. Thankfully we have been out sourced here in Middleboro.

Romney is getting flack for being a capitalist. Amazing! His business decisions will naturally be scrutinized and picked apart by those who feel the paramount of leadership success is being a community organizer.

Kardashians are getting dolls in the Mattel toy line. Will BB now ditch his Barbie’s?

Charlie is in jail for failing to hand over some $$$ to an ex. Guess a 140K pension does not go as far as it use to.

A new state law in Illinois requires those who buy drain cleaners and other caustic substances to provide photo identification and sign a log. And folks whine about having an ID to vote!

Met our soon to be new rep Bill Keating. I’m not sure who picked up the pizza tab but based on the BB consumption our debt may hit 16T.

Giants move on!

2012

2012-01-01T15:28:00.002-05:00

A new year. A new start. How can I change my blog? How can I make it better? I can’t. I’m perfect. LMCAO!

I think politicians should have all major contributors listed on their clothing like NASCAR drivers have on their uniforms.

The PAC money is starting to flow into the Massachusetts senate race.

Donors get access. Non donors do not. That is true on all levels. You reward your contributors even if it is a simple note or making a call to arrange an appointment. If it just cuts some red tape I’m cool with it.

I received another settlement check from a class action suit. Rare when they get into four figures. This one was for $3.22.

Verizon to charge a $2 fee on transactions. convenience fee on certain transactions. Guess they never got the memo on Bank Of America.

The TM got rave reviews from the BOS and deservedly so.

Obama gets hammered for a Xmas vacation in Hawaii. Huh? This is something presidents do. Same garbage went on with Bush.

Sox are again attempting to shore up their bullpen. On paper it looks great.

Mohegan Sun is attempting to rewrite 811M in debt. And Massachusetts competition on the way.

Unemployment is now down to 8.6%. The economy is “improving” until you look at the wage scale for all those new jobs.

Ron Paul is continuing to surge in the polls. There is absolutely no way he will ever be prez.

And Robert Reich has proposed a Obama- Hillary Clinton ticket for 2012 with Mr. Flub a Dub Joe Biden doing his damage as Secretary of State.

Filene’s Basement has finally succumbed.

And Friendly’s is hanging on until further notice.

Patriot fans love to pontificate about what a wonderful owner Bob Kraft is. Tell that to the good folks in Foxboro with his attempt to dump a casino in their laps. Wonder if Kraft would like it in Chestnut Hill?

Oil at a $100 a barrel and climbing.

Euro is acting like Red Sox did in September.

January 1st the deer will be able to come out and play as the various forms of deer hunting grind to a halt.

BB has his year in review column. Almost as exciting as The Yankee Clipper section of the Gazette.

That rail yard in Middleboro seems like quite a blight.

The “T” will have to raise fares which is our punishment for their collective mis-management.

Is 2012 the year the Mayan prophecies come true? My wife - The Lovely Cynthia - and I were in Tikal a few years back. Wonder if I could have searched for some inside info?

Disney. Six-Flags. How about Cedar Fair Entertainment. One of the largest in the world.

Your 401(K) American side may have settled down but for diversification junkies it was not a good year for Europe (down around 15%) or Japan (down 17%).

Gulf drilling is going on and from I have been reading the Great Spill has recovered. So much for the end of the world statements from the eco radicals.

2012 prediction: Obama loses and Warren wins.

End Of Year Post

2011-12-24T14:31:00.002-05:00

The environmental nut jobs are on the loose with the proposed Keystone Pipeline that would bring oil from Canada to the United States. So they reject the possibility of 20,000 jobs and would rather rely of the whims of multiple quasi enemies to supply oil?

Maybe these wizards should go back in a time machine and view “The Big Ditch” constructed during WW II. This was known as the War Emergency Pipeline that would supply oil from Texas to New Jersey rather than using vulnerable tankers. In fact they actually started the oil flow before the line was complete.

Sometimes it takes extraordinary circumstance and leadership to address an issue and IMO this is an issue of national security. To set up mindless roadblocks is pure insanity. The pipeline is in our best interests and if it is constructed with the same diligence as the Alaskan Pipeline impact will be minimal or non existent.

Time for some leadership and direct intervention by President Obama.

I have recently been car/truck shopping in a serious mode but one of interest. As a current Pontiac owner I have a special “Off the books” rebate available that is between $1,500 and $3,000. But what I find interesting is the names they dream up. I think all of us have at one time or another bought a vehicle that we gave a special name such as POS or “This car sucks.”

I do believe the American auto industry has done a magnificent job of once again having products that can compete with any. Off course, most large world wide manufactures have their products build in multiple countries and the same goes for parts.

The standard for a vehicle use to be 100.000 miles. Anything after that was a bonus. IMO it is now 200,000 as many of the former bad boys such as exhaust systems and cooling systems use to have a shelf life that was dismal. No longer. But that high end technology comes with a price and that price is exorbitant labor and parts charges. I actually use a collision body shop for many repairs since they are very familiar in their triage business of worse case scenarios. The parts I’ll shop around and check after market or online sources and save upwards to 40%.

Last summer I had the opportunity to tour the Rouge factory of Ford in Dearborn, Michigan. The facility was the original site for Ford production and it is massive but today it is the assembly for trucks. They produce about 1,500 a day and the automation is intriguing. All computer driven. On the assembly line I watched the drones do one specific job over and over while working side by side with their robotic counterparts. The repetition and boredom would have me opening a vein before first break. I can understand why the workers are paid so well since you are being paid for a continually tedious job.

If you wander to Bowling Green Kentucky and are an aficionado of Corvette you can actually observe your car being assembled over a two day period. The computer and production process has your name on everything so you can build your own scrapbook. And being a capitalist society this little venture comes with a price tag - I do believe it is in excess of $500 plus your hotel stay and meals. I also understand with the ‘Vette - an engineering marvel - that virtually the entire car is American made. Few imported parts.

What frustrates me about purchasing a vehicle is that old ploy called “Options Loading.” Try buying a base model. You virtually cannot. Somewhere along the way you will have to determine just what you want and don’t want and attempt to get as close as possible.

What really ticks me off is the way a vehicle is sold. This expensive piece of machinery is then tossed into a dealership that may be ethically deficient or has a sales staff - most do - that reminds one of a street bazaar in Casablanca. It is all about “The Deal” and how “savvy” you are and their need to move the vehicle. Sales quotas, inventory excesses, cash flow and a myriad of other factors all play into how it is negotiated. The only thing that comes close to the full court press at a dealership is being trapped with a time share salesman.

Then, of course, is next up on my hit list and that is advertising. Anything over 200HP is shown in circumstances that are almost impossible with maneuvers that even an experienced NASCAR driver could not do. With trucks it seems every deep voiced actor has been captured to do those commercials. If you are a baritone voice over you have a job for life.

So I finally sprung for a truck. My current battle star had some wheel bearing work, muffle system in need and a bounty of minor ailments that would need to be addressed to the tune of about $2,000 so my ten year old got me a few bucks towards the truck (very few) and will end up in the auto auction. I lost money on that end of the sale but could care less since the aggravation of a private sale was just not worth it.

The truck I wanted was not available at a local dealer so they located one that another dealer would trade off on. Had just the base model and that is a real stripped down one. I have no need for bells and whistles and will probably use the bed so little it is really foolish getting a truck but I never had one. I would have held my breath until the Lovely Cynthia gave her permission.

Then comes one of my real pet peeves and that is the sales tax. You think the wonder boys and girls would have a one week or so open season where they would exclude the first $10,000 on a sale. That is a dream for sure.

Another Week Of Bogo Nonsense

2011-12-13T09:24:00.000-05:00

Now the flurry of activity to line up for casinos. First up is the wonderful pairing of Robert Kraft and Steve Wynn. Kraft - he of Hartford Patriot fame - wants to lease his land for a casino. Does this mean the illustrious Mr. Kraft will finally fork over the 8M needed for the bridge from his parking lot to Patriot Place? Nothing like a billionaire doing it on the taxpayer dime. Then the usual suspects will surface from MGM to some characters from Macau. Good luck, Massachusetts!

The Robin Hood tax has surfaced and it would take international proportions. What it amounts to is a small tax (small is undefined) on financial institution transactions and this bounty would be past on to poor countries to improve their lot in life. It would generate an estimated 48B and I’m am sure it would be as successful as our war on poverty.

VW is planning a Middleboro move but not much of a move since they are already ensconced in the Metro complex about a mile up the road. It will be a welcomed addition to finally see the building - the former RV center - put to use.

When I first moved to Middleboro they had at least three major brands of cars sold in town with a Ford, Chevrolet and Buick dealerships around. That has been down to zero since McGee moved to Raynham. But we do have a number of nail salons and I can hop on a tanning bed if necessary to give me that George Hamilton look. That, I guess, is the important stuff.

Trucchi’s finally has their sign up.

Flat Iron has discontinued music so I’ll have to go on the road for my BB music fix.

Nice weather means lower gas/electric/oil bills. I encourage mother nature - one hot babe - to keep it up.

The Patriots defense gives it up quicker than a drunk cheerleader on prom night. So much for being PC.

But I’m a Giants fan and they have been down right dismal but are now in first place. Go figger.

Bobby Valentine seems like a good fit for Boston.

Squirrels, rats and seagulls - just a higher form of cockroach and mosquito to me.

Cathedral lost a Super Bowl football game because a player raised his fist for two seconds while scoring a touchdown. This is in violation of a newly emplaced celebratory rule and under the very strict interpretation was warranted, but it is also a judgment call, and it this case the ref who tossed the flag had some serious issues with circumstance and how to apply it.

Alec Baldwin once again had his bizarre behaviors surface. Money and fame doesn’t necessarily translate to class.

Spokesmen for the current failed administration - not be confused with the failed administration they replaced - claimed in 2009 they were unaware of the extent of the financial crisis. After Lehman Brothers folder in 2008 all the forensic MBA’s in the world could connect the dots and the government could not? Laughable.

The financial crisis was handled like a Big Market baseball team handles problems - throw money at it.

Too bad the basic message of OWS was lost in their loony nonsense and scruffy appearance they presented. If they had stuck to the specific message they may have been taken as a serious force.

What is major league baseball thinking of? They instituted a dress code for reporters - and you know it was directed at female reporters - attempting to limit the Victoria Secret’s clothing some wear. First Heidi leaves and now this.

Humbug To The PC Crowd

2011-12-04T10:58:00.003-05:00

Christmas is upon us so out of the woodwork from a long hibernation will come the usual suspects whose sole intent is to demonstrate a lack of civility, respect for an ingrained tradition, plain old appalling manners and anything else I can assign from what they manage to dream up in their cloistered little clueless universe. Of whom do I speak? Why the collected Grinches that make up the PC crowd! And, of course, their collective ire over a Christian holiday - XMAS!

I’m an atheist and proud of it but I do have some minor degree of civility and common sense that I manage to apply at this time of the year. I could care less about calling it “A Holiday Tree” - it‘s a freaking Christmas tree! I could care less about a crèche displayed on public property. I could care less about carols sung to God wherever she may be. They can pontificate all they want about Jesus and I could care less. I will not go into a fetal position and whine endlessly to gutless public and private sector entities about “making changes.“ Christmas is important to my family, neighbors, friends and about 300,000,000 or so total strangers who reside - legally and illegally - in the United States. Sure they wallow in the excessive commercialism but they also managed to get their arse in gear and actually reach out to at least give some degree of holiday spirit. I may not be an active participant but I managed to keep my yap shut and throw some fiscal bones to assorted charities. Since I don’t believe in an afterlife I am certainly not investing in a stairway to heaven.

Now along comes assorted PC characters - usually with a abundance of Cambridge and Brookline zip codes - to try and do everything possible to actually put a damper of what a very vast majority celebrate and do so in a fairly harmless manner. Hello! PC! You folks are cranks! Understand you morons it is not the end of civilization to actually allow celebrations to take place. If someone finds it offensive for religious reasons or some type of moral conviction just don’t participate. Hey - I don’t celebrate Ramadan - but somehow it doesn’t toss me into a fit. Stick to that former obnoxious habit of prayers in schools. Concentrate on the “In God We Trust” that seems to still proliferate - although I really don’t get lathered up about it.

What is amazing is how easy some public and private types with decision making powers cave in so quickly to the whims of a few kooks. Seems everyone is so damn petrified of offending someone that they are 100% clueless that who they are actually offending is the 95% or so who participate in all this Christmas shenanigans. Schools seem to be the ones most terrorized by any possibility of being classified as “insensitive.” Tells you the state of education in America.

So this is one atheist who will have limited Christmas participation. I will be in the holiday spirit which is translated into giving a boat load of gifts to assorted family members. I will have to go and pretend I am interested in a tree - “Yes, dear, this one looks great and it is only $55!” I will have to hang lights out which means seeing how good Medicare really is when I do a flop off a ladder. I will have to somehow hide when it comes to that traditional exercise of sending Xmas cards to people I never even heard of. I am really insistent on not sending out any for two years in hopes that we are removed from all lists. I will toss our usual cache of toys and food to the proper depots. I will have to actually with a straight face tell my daughter her dog dressed in Xmas attire looks “cute.” So if I can swallow what little pride remains for me this time of year so can the handful of PC types who can just burrow away until 12/26.

Say Goodnight, Barney!

2011-11-29T17:50:00.002-05:00

Howie Carr said it best about Barney Frank - “Xmas has come early.”

Wrentham Outlets should have a 24/7 mental health clinic open from 11/1 through December. Special interventions should take place for any and all - customers and store managers - involved in any Black Friday sales.

Black Friday is a 100% corporate insult to a steady customer base. You can shop a store year round yet refuse to participate in the foolish madness to save a few bucks and you lose out.

A car dealership tells you all you need to know with the term dealer as part of the title. You go in expecting to “deal.” If you have some poker playing skills and do not mind playing the game you save some money. If you are not adroit at this economic song and dance you do not make out as well. The whole process is reminiscent of “negotiating” with street vendors attempting to sell you knock off items. What is really so pathetic about the situation is that extra few hundred can mean a bundle more to some than others. At least with the internet all those sales tactics and prices are now open for display.

And for car dealers I don’t want an LCD TV or a $500 Visa card so just (insert laughter) apply it to lowering my price.

Comcast is my ISP. I also post on Comcast Forums and just about exclusively on the sports forums. Comcast had decided to close the forums with no apparent reason given. Comcast had 36B in revenue and a net of 8.4% on that revenue,

Comcast also has a help forum that helps customers with trouble shooting. Several years ago I discovered that the forum was operated by volunteers and they had - after some diligent Bogo research - limited access to personal information. I contacted their legal office about this and fired off letters/emails to just about any government agency that is responsible for broadcasters. Can you imagine your bank allowing “volunteers” to “help out” who had access to your personal information?

Many years ago a local political gadfly - Larry Carver - was on the G&E Commission. Larry and I would often converse on a multitude of issues especially politics. Larry was a socialist so we were often polar opposites. Back in those days I was firmly entrenched in the wonderful world of computers and that fascinated Larry. Middleboro was not wired for cable and I do remember that they had a study committee formed to determine if it should be an in house (G&E) operation. Larry and I discussed it many times and he - like I was - felt it was a potential cash cow for the town despite the enormous start up expenses. Eventually it was a no go for the G&E. I know the town did experiment with a phone service - my memory is a bit shady on that - and that was a bust. Some communities have been highly successful with in house cable systems and others have not. Always wondered - usually when I get the cable bill - how it would have worked out.

Private enterprise has motivation to cut cost and keep expenses low - government does not.

In ten years TSA has spent 57B and currently has 65,000 employees. The agency (no surprise) is layered with high level administrative personnel. This according to still another independent study.

I saw some of the excerpts and Gingrich actually makes some sense. Time for another trip to Mexico and make sure I get the real and not faux Prozac this time.

Black Friday had a limited number of killings, robberies and assaults. Way to go, people!

For the uninformed China is adding two new coal fired plants to the grid each week.

The hunt for Bambi has commenced with the opening of shotgun season. Beware walking in your backyard or any place that is marked “posted” as that sign seems to attract Elmer Fudd & Co.

Congress now has an approval rating on 7%. BP during the spill was 16%. Nixon was 24% during Watergate. Even Hitler managed 10% in a recent poll.

Congress has managed to take every minor difference and magnify it ten fold so everything goes into lock down mode. Into this must step leadership and that leadership comes from the executive branch and the failure has been tragic and a bitter disappointment. Obama is clearly a dismal failure of epic proportions. After two years it all became his and in the year that has passed he has done nothing but demonstrate he is an entrenched far left ideologue. If he had a fraction of the ability of Clinton this mess would not be present. A centrist is needed even when philosophical one is not a centrist. Even one of my personal heroes - HST - managed to get almost a 1,000 pieces of legislation passed under similar circumstances.

If you are Martha Stewart and get some insider information and dump a stock you get jail time. If you are Nancy Pelosi or any of the other anointed you get to keep your dough and laugh at us. Until Congress has some real rules of conduct and continues to live above the law and above the rest of us with special privilege we’ll all be what we are - suckers.

Black Friday Special

2011-11-23T09:09:00.000-05:00

A pharmaceutical company needs to develop a type of Prozac to be used for those with excessive consumption and greed.

The Patriot Act had good intent but needs to just go away.

Too many Alpha males in politics and business have a sense of entitlement when it comes to females. Herman Cain is just the latest and one of the crudest to exemplify this.

Thirty-five years ago if you mentioned flat tax I’d think you were nuts. Now I’d consider you a visionary.

I saw Obama give a speech at the Pan-Asian conference. He is now our Lecturer In Chief.

Why are the Israeli’s waiting so long to whack Iran?

Should Lakeville now use the moniker “Home of the cheap bastards.” Their median income is approaching 100K yet the do things on the cheap and attempt to sponge off of Middleboro.

The TSA continues to mystify me. I see many great agents but I see way too many dolts with not an ounce of common sense or customer service skills.

Occupy Wall Street attracted too many kooks especially from the far left. Despite good intent that is killing it.

Those supermarket prices continue to spike.

Shotgun season is about to begin as the hunt for Bambi will go full steam. As a trail runner I will admire the post apocalyptic deer kill by counting the number of empty beer cans and pints under the deer stands. Do the Environmental Police ever give these folks random breathalyzer tests.

The Brockton Water Department may be the single most dysfunctional department in the entire state.

I have been inundated by an array of calls for loans and credit cards. Made sure my no call status was updated.

Watchdog agencies like the EPA are now more pit bull agencies using their interpretation of the law for an out right money grab in excessive fines.

Sign of the apocalypse. The United States has 300M people and 70% of the worlds lawyers.

Biggest offenders in insider trading? Our Congress! And they are exempt from same punishment anyone else would receive. Until Congress is forced to live under the same rules as the rest of this they will remain an elected criminal organization.

Fitch Group issued a warning on 11/16 that U.S. banks were at risk over fiscal issues in Europe. WTF! Just about everyone already knew this year the stock market dropped almost two hundred points in less than an hour. The idea with the market is to get on the right side of the “con.”

Massachusetts casinos were “inevitable.” Don’t count out Middleboro.

Should Black Friday sales be halted as a public safety issue?

Rising from tha ashes is Crazy Days or is it Krazy Daze? Just in time to add to my tee shirt collection.

Green School is coming along and done without CPA money.

Lawyer rant # 23,768. The BOS cannot ride on the MHA fire truck for the Xmas parade since it is a liability issue. Insurance company will make no changes to policy to cover it for a day. Industry standard and done on advice of their legal department.

The state raising the retirement age from 55 to 60? Amazing! Many in the “Dreaded Private Sector” face working well into their 70s.

With gaming comes a whole bevy of lucrative new government jobs to manage the pack of semi thieves operating casinos. I can just imagine what will happen in the next five to ten years.

China

2011-11-16T14:31:00.001-05:00

My wife - The Lovely Cynthia - and I recently completed a four city whirlwind tour in China. I will not bore you with the incredible sites we saw but bore you with some snippets of what China is really like.

We had a two section trip so we had two guides - “Johnny” in Beijing and “David” in Suzhou, Hangzhou and Shanghai. Johnny and David were their Americanized or Western names which is a common practice among the Chinese when dealing with Westerners.

Johnny has been a guide for five years and holds a MA in political science and David was a former high school teacher who has been a guide for ten years since it is a far more lucrative position than teaching. Johnny was 31 and his wife is the editor of a gossip magazine along the lines of US or People. David is about 15 years older and - like Johnny - has one son. His wife is a teacher. Johnny has never been to America but David has led several tours to our country where his favorite city is Las Vegas. David - like many Chinese who come over here - treat it as a shopping trip usually for high end electronics.

Both David and Johnny were party members - a requirement - and Johnny’s parents had been incarcerated during the Cultural Revolution. Johnny was far more political and displayed the usual semantics regarding Chinese expansionism into Tibet and Mongolia and noted that his government uses its ties to North Korea as a bargaining chip for our ties with Taiwan. Johnny did recognize that China has a dismal human rights record but the government has become more cautious for as he said “It is not good government to piss off a billion people.”

China is also a nation with virtually no experience with democracy. Their introductions to the West have by and large been negative. This is a nation that was carved up by the West and occupied. They have a long history of serfdom that can match Russia. They have been ruled by invaders, Emperors who were good and bad, devastated by the Japanese and fought a bitter civil war. For most of their existence who ever could put food in their bellies was “The good guy.” The 19th and early 20th century trading houses along the Bund in Shanghai are a stark reminder of a not too distant and brutal past.

My impression is China is less of a socialist nation economically than the United States at first glance. It is not a government run economy but a government monitored one. Businesses understand there are lines you just don’t cross and if you do the penalties can be excessive. One businessman was convicted of 9M in bribes and graft - tried and sentenced to death. Think about that, Bernie Madoff. They deal harshly with anything that may destroy foreign investment and foreign consumer confidence.

If a business violated the government standards say in environment the result is usually a minor fine and a program developed to meet those standards. Continual failure means an increase in punishment. The government also controls energy, water/sewer, transportation and other infrastructure but it is a mutual partnership. Think of the MBTA owned by the government and private enterprise with a 50/50 split. Some instances it is pure government control. Some it is not.

The Shanghai News and NY Times were virtually indistinguishable. The Shanghai News would report the good, bad and ugly. Government fraud, police brutality, strikes, excessive business practices, poor environmental control by the government, lousy safety standards and on and on. Was some highly critical articles regarding government policy and I found that impressive since my knee jerk impression was one of a repressive communist country.

Their economy is very service oriented since you do have 1.3 billion folks and many barely surviving. The poverty level is $90 and that is for a year. David made 10K as a high school teacher and that is an excellent salary and - get this - you have to pay for high school. Folks can’t afford it? Good luck! The working age is 18 but that obviously is a national joke as the government just can’t control what goes on. Same as here. Occasional bust and that is about it.

Their middle class is rapidly expanding. Very similar to our numbers when adjusted for national income differences. But the big difference is just imagine the good old USA having one billion poorly educated and trained peasants dropped into our laps. That’s China. They still have 20 million living in caves. About 80% of their population would considered a rat infested inner city dump Beverly Hills.

Our politicians - especially the failed president and war mongering right wing - like to point out the rapid economic expansion and especially the infrastructure. Well - Mr. President - they had little to begin with! In China they have 442 airports with paved runways. The U.S. has 5,600. I saw farm after farm using nothing but manual labor. Their rail system is fantastic for what there is of it and the safety has become fodder for jokes. With 1.3B Chinese it doesn’t take a Bogo or an Einstein to figure out why industry is growing. Upward fiscal mobility circa post WWII U.S.A.

Both guides emphasized the one child policy. I asked if there was a deliberate attempt at this and my suspicions were confirmed. There are certain talking points that are suppose to be highlighted and they understand that reproductive freedom is an issue that seems to burn with us. You can have more than one child but unlike the U.S. where you are rewarded with a deduction the opposite happens. Without a stringent population control program they would be India or Somalia.

I did discover that life is considerably different in the rural areas. Some of the customs that we consider weird still exist. There is a reason why China has 50M more males than females. The government also has policies that are far more what we would consider textbook totalitarian out in the sticks. The rural areas are also festering points for clandestine manufacturing and drugs that are funneled into the city and foreign countries. Close down one operation and two more start up. One of our guides compared it to how we tried to eliminate stills. Also a bundle of prejudice against the rural folks. They actually have their own term for “Pink Eyed Village.”

As far as the military what struck me is the lack of military presence even in Tian An Men Square. I really don’t buy into the military expansionism or threats to us for the simply reason nether the U.S. or China really are colonials but more capitalists and it is bad - very bad - for business when you kill your customers. I saw far more military presence in South Korea a few years ago. David wrote off Chinese expansionism in Tibet and Mongolia as adventurism. Others were quick to point out that when a carrier task force does exercises with Taiwan off their mainland coast they realize the potential fire power could devastate the entire country in a few hours.

China has a abysmal human rights record. They are quick to execute - like Texas only much larger. But what we fail to understand is that the advancements that have been made over the last sixty or so years. China changed dramatically in 1989 and again with the open economics of the acquisition of Hong Kong. The Chinese will quickly point out that you cannot compare their development to the U.S. of today but to the U.S. of the past. Just as we had a struggle and still do for ethnic/race/gender equality so do they. It is changing and changing rapidly. I just saw a rather open society and not as repressive as I expected. Folks I talked with were open and honest about their opinions of their economics and government. They will quickly point out our own failures of the past and consider it a template for guiding them. I talked to a group of Chinese businessmen who were adamant that economic differences could be eliminated if Obama and Hu (their premier) were locked in a closet and CEO’s from both countries were allowed to negotiate differences. As one said “You would get 60% and we would get 40% or the other way around. Maybe both would get 50%? But we know what we are doing and they don’t in Beijing and Washington.” Another businessman said to me “I would hate for us to be #1. Always more difficult when you are on the top. Even if we were #1 I would suggest we keep our mouths shut.”

While we were I China the election process had begun. Like Tip O’Neil said “All politics are local” and that applies to China. They will over a period of months elect 15,000 representatives to the various provincial and national legislatures. They are all party members (many in name only) but with stark contrasts just like in this country. Think of our Congress as all Republican ( frightening) but with various factions from moderates to conservatives to religious fundamentalists to representing just one issue such as abortions rights would be in our country. From talking with our guides I got the distinct impression that the powers to be have let the barn door open and it will be quite difficult to instill any repressive measures. Still the specter of a return to stricter methods is always present. I am not nor are many of the Chinese disillusioned to that fact.

American presence is everywhere from KFC to Wal-Mart. After several days of horrible Chinese food we were at a mall in the Bund section of Shanghai and I gorged myself on a DQ banana split, McDonald’s fries and Diet Coke and a cheesecake at Starbucks. Some stores have sections of American and Western goods which are prized for their workmanship and quality. Even the Chinese realize they produce a pile of low end crap. Also a big problem is the rip-off goods that are passed on to both tourists and especially the locals.

The food. OMG is it just awful. Every day we’d have a lunch and dinner that was almost all the same. Similar to our Chinese food but not even close to the variety and virtually nothing fried. White rice and some type of noodle concoction with every meal and greasy soup. For breakfast we had an American breakfast with a variety of Chinese food available and those breakfast buffets were something. The entire trip was five star hotels (in one room we had five phones) and the buffets were spectacular. Never seen better. Piles of fruit, meats, cereals, juices and just about anything else that once had a face. Service was impeccable.

In China they have health care but it is a conglomerate of self pay, government and private employer. The cost is quite reasonable but the real unusual thing is you have no primary care physician. You keep your own records in a blue book so you may go to the doctor thirty times and see thirty different doctors. Yep, Doc, I need more Oxycontin - says in right in my book! There is also Chinese and Western medicine. The Chinese is a preventive approach using herbal medicines and the Western is the same as we practice.

Basic services in the city are handled by district. Imagine Middleboro having each precinct responsibly for its water/sewer, trash removal, parts of the electric grid and parts of any natural gas. Some places you really do not drink the water.

Back Home Again Post

2011-11-09T22:23:00.000-05:00

David Madden step right down and say hello to Charlie Lincoln. Madden is the former mayor and fire chief of Weymouth who managed to appoint himself back as fire chief before he left office with the end result being a boost in his pension of $30,000. Everyone in Weymouth signed off on it. Quirk in the law “enabled” this legal and morally reprehensible move.

Good economic news will be when I go to the store and see country of origin as USA.

Maybe it was Al Gore who “invented” Occupy Wall Street and Elizabeth Warren who “invented” the internet?

The more I read about Joe Biden the more I realize the VP is just an overbearing jackass. Wonder if he can spell potato?

A fantastic World Series for those that bothered watching.

Why doesn’t Medicare cover dental?

While waiting for Beavis and Butthead to come on I managed to get about a ten minute view of “Jersey Shore.” The term “retroactive abortion” comes to mind.

In Massachusetts charter schools have out performed publics even with similar composite student bodies. Nasty little secret is how many teachers send their kids to private schools. They know something.

I really don’t care for Zombie movies but Walking Dead (TV) and 28 Days Later are the exceptions.

worth of olives disguised as a bagel?

The little brats come to the door on Halloween with attempts to plunder my candy stash. Naturally they have “threats” such as a trick if one does not fork over a treat. The little plunderers act just like politicians in training.

Rails-To-Trails just offered me a free 2012 calendar with a donation of $20 or more. How is it free?

Nordstrom’s Department Store has a great policy - no Xmas decorations until Thanksgiving.

Maybe stores will discontinue that stupidity know as special Black Friday early AM sales.

No way I’d own a Mini Cooper.

Whenever my wife - The Lovely Cynthia - claims I (and other males) am an embarrassment I just point out The View or The Running Of The Brides at Filene’s Basement.

Why does the government fund PBS when it seems half the programs are from England? Maybe the Brits should fund it?

The BOS in Upton managed to make national fools of themselves over a Rosary Vigil. Somehow they had their own convoluted interpretation of separation of church and state and were “educated” by two civil liberty lawyers.

Check out the CPA website. Link on left sidebar under local favs.

Alice Elwell had a great article on dump scavenging. Middleboro (no surprise) does not allow dump picking. Probably a manpower shortage.

Khazei got kicked to the curb by the Democrats so that liberal poster gal Lizzie Warren can have a clear and open shot at Brown. Khazei is impressive but when the party upper crust speaks he bows out.

Hannafords has appeared to shut down self check out. Does this mean no more $10

Shanty Town And More

2011-10-28T08:26:00.001-04:00

At the weekly Edgeway Park hearing Selectman Steve Spataro took exception when one of the tortured home owners used the term “Shanty Town.” Well just take a stroll through what passes for the architectural nightmare of our scenic downtown. Exactly how would one classify this collection of 70s kitsch and crumbling late 19th early 20th century buildings?

Start your walk and examine all the weed infested bricks and the sickly trees with their metal grates surrounding them. Did anyone ever hear of weed killer? Hey…just stroll into Benny’s and grab some. Weeds are deadly to cement ands brick. Just look at those store fronts. Is there a contest to see which building owner can create something that will actually surpass Boston City Hall Plaza in sheer ugliness?

Then that parking lot behind Benny’s. That place looks like the military had artillery practice. Was there a war? Did Lakeville attack us and have some F-18s strafe that lot?

On Jackson Street next to the Middleboro Youth Building is something that resembles the back lot of Costello Dismantling. Why is all that crap piled there?

Speaking of Costello he had the right idea with the Washburn building. Just crush it.

And getting back to Jackson Street that parking lot behind the cop shop is also in dire need of repair and maybe a note to B & H auto that it is not their lot for their truck. The trees along the street are also weed infested as the fascination with those metal grates surrounding them provides a wonderful weed attraction.

Now occasionally someone actually decides to invest and make some decent changes such as The Alley Theater. Too bad it is within shouting distance of a major eyesore - the former Steve’s Sports Den.

There are some things that are so bad little can be done except to bulldoze the mess and start over but it would be nice to just keep the place reasonable clean by cleaning gutters, repairing walkways, weeding and doing something besides hanging a few flower pots.

The scruffy lay-abouts that are Occupy Wall Street (OWS) obviously are clueless. Wall Street an issue? Gee…just because fines totally billions were levied against Citi, Wells Fargo, Bank of American, J.P. Morgan and others they OWS gangs think something nasty was going on? Forget all the residual crap that is festering around the movement that reeks of the mindless panacea that socialism will put forth. Toss it out! Forget the “living wage.” “excusing student loans,” all the chants of “social justice” and every other deflection. When they abide by their name - OWS - they are right on target. The entire system is toxic and has been for years.

OWS will face the same problems as the Tea Party and an attempt will be made to hijack as much as possible by more perceived mainstream forces. The TP was seen as a legit movement and it attracted a large segment from the fringe - usually wing nuts - that viewed it as a pathway to respectability. The Republican hierarchy also so the potential of hooking up and viola - you have mix master politics. Deval Patrick has already been stiffing around the OWS gang in Boston and the moon bats do see all those wonderful posters about open doors to illegal’s, tax the rich, fair wages and on and on and realize just maybe they can get some political hay out of this. Are both parties bottom feeders that one should not trust? IMO that is answered by the overwhelming numbers that now designate party affiliation as “U.”

Attention Middleboro (borough) Gas & Electric. Please tell the driver of vehicle M78 727 that when you go into Cumby’s at the intersection of Wood and R28 it would be nice to not leave your doors unlocked and the keys in the ignition of a running vehicle.

At this same store last year some idiot did exactly the same thing with his high end tricked out truck only to have Bogo The Magnificent save his pathetic arse. Some “students” were examining the situation and one had already opened the passenger side door when I made mention of the potential of the vehicle not being in their ownership. The lads quickly bolted towards the cemetery and I waited for the driver to explain the situation. He mumbled a “thanks” and that was it.

So if you ever need a ride hang around the local convenience stores and just wait for the idiot Du Jour. Trust me - you will not have a long wait.

Our two senators are at odds over the impending exit from Iraq. Kerry wants the boys and girls out by the end of the year while Brown is a bit hesitant on exit strategy. The exit strategy should be out ASAP and same with Afghanistan.

Social Security has a COLA increase after several years but the increase is not based on significant regional cost of living indexes. Metro Boston is simply far more expensive than most other places.

\Now for some seniors this money will be wasted of foolish stuff like food (Friskies or Nine Lives?), clothing (Goodwill or Salvation Army?) and shelter (Tarp or tent?).

Elizabeth Warren is going after “The hick vote.” That is polite speak for going after “The third rate dips**t vote.”

The Obama solution to all vexing problems is the continued expansion of government. Each regulation, bureau, law, increased agency power and tax just erodes individualism a wee bit more.

Going green in Massachusetts means the green as in money is gone.

Food stamps and EBT cards offer a lucrative secondary and under the radar market. Selling benefits is quite common on social media web sites.

The original “Halloween” was a great horror movie.

Verizon may have the worse level of customer service in my memory.

House values in Middleboro go down and taxes go up. So I guess when they finally go up the taxes will go down!

How does New Hampshire get jobs? They simply poach them from a tax burdened source just south of their border.

The pension and benefit bloated MBTA is reeling in debt. The proposed solution? Why an increase in the gas tax.

Lotta Great Stuff!

2011-10-21T08:44:00.001-04:00

A nice shout out to Melissa and the Mess Movers for making a dent in the trash roadside and other in Middleboro. Maybe just seeing folks around doing pick-up duty will provide encouragement for others to join and maybe for others to be aware.

I posted out on the infamous BB blog about how the local cop shop has decided to use the public parking venue behind their “house” as a personal dumping ground for the hulking wrecks of former cruisers. Why? And they are not alone. Seems that down in the lower park area is a truck that is also town property that is just sitting around rusting away. G & E also has accumulated flotsam and jetsam in their backyard.

Amazing how our spectacular DPW is willing to harass residents for not removing the fallen remains from the semi hurricane but does zero to address the issue of town entities acting like common polluters. Why the free pass?

Now I also noticed on Route 28 a massive amount of rubbish piled into the entrance way of the water department station. A glance will show that a good portion of that is just the type of stuff that the local trash removers routinely will toss back at you such as wood but they can leave that out for whoever is responsible for carting it away. Amazing that this marvelous double standard apparently exists. Now I could also single out the area around the DPW which is also far from pristine and maybe just about any other area that the town operates. Just seems like stuff that should be taken care of. Maybe someone should give a ticket to Andy Bagas?

I guess if we who actually pay an exorbitant trash tax followed their shinning example they would litter us with paper - as in a summons. Maybe it is time for the Town Manager to actually get after some of our illustrious department heads to set an example that is positive and clean up their own litter boxes.

On the trash front is the 22nd of October is actually a unique opportunity to drop off stuff and the dump (AKA - Landfill) for free. Much of this represents items that many other towns routinely grab for no additional charge. Middleboro appears to be the only community in SE Massachusetts that when faced with a service issue has the standard phrase on why they can’t do it: “We have a manpower shortage.” What they really have is a service and creativity shortage.

I have often said it is “The little things” that get folks all ticked off. Mayor’s White and Flynn of Boston were masters at recognizing the importance of city services. Flynn would go around in a snow plow on storm days and even cruise around the city to make sure trash was being picked up. No excuses. They both knew you could waste millions on hack jobs and handing out contracts to political supporters but when that phone rang at city hall or at the office of a ward boss that was what took priority and it was usually one of those “little things.”

When you toss your money into the great fiscal swamp known as a 401(k) the big point is to diversify but in today’s economy so much moves in tandem. Overseas markets will often mirror our own or visa versa. Twenty years ago a debt crisis in Slovakia was meaningless but today it sends shock waves reverberating across all global markets. Like I have said before - a camel farts in Egypt and the DOW goes down twenty points.

Sectors also seem to go down in tandem also - utilities, manufacturing, tech and on and on. But diversification is more that just markets as it is also specialized bonds, precious metals, commodities and a variety of other areas that one can toss 5% or so into. One of the areas I have tossed a few meager bonds towards is currency markets. I have found you can protect yourself in a fluctuating market but not like you could twenty years ago. You lose but just not as bad as it could be.

Some of the real gloss is off mutual funds since they have been underperforming index funds especially targeted ETF’s. Index funds is merely buying into the DOW or S & P or even a specific sector. One thing is the index funds have lower costs and I have no seen one that requires a “load”{ or upfront fee for the pleasure of giving a fund manager millions in bonus and salaries for losing your money.

With the mutual funds one of the increasing problems is cash flow as they have to have enough free cash to pay off withdrawals and that can depreciate a fund quickly by forcing the selling of stocks or other investments below their intended value. Funds also can be hit by stocks such as Citi Group that go below that magical $5 a share price that funds dump them at. Hence the reverse 10-1 split by Citi a few months ago.

With the real estate bubble firmly puncture that anticipated growth of value is now gone. The 500K house is now worth 350K but for the most part that has tricked down. Again the big issue is loss of equity meaning the loss of money to buy shiny new toys further eroding the lets spend it all mentality of a consumer driven economy.

Across the globe it really can be rather simplified as to why problems exist - countries have too much debt and large obligations and limited revenue. Get more revenue (taxes) and that means less money for shiny new toys or other wasteful things like food clothing and shelter.

The latest disaster of the current failed administration is a jobs bill the primarily props up the public service sector. Giving money to states to increase or maintain staffing levels for teachers and safety just does not create jobs and is just political payback for union support.

Step one is problems in (fill in the blank) and market goes down. Step two is problems ease in (fill in the blank). Step three is go to step one. And some wonder why Occupy Wall Street exists?

On the recent Mess Movers expedition I was down at the playground area and you can see the need for extensive improvements that could and should be made. A new bathhouse for the pool area, refurbish the tennis courts, fix that mess of a skate park/basketball court, some pavement work, and maybe even some trail expansion from the herring run along the river. There are still some old trails in that area that could easily connect to the power lines and to the existing and need to improve trail system on Barden Hill. Even cross Sachem Street and get an easement through the sand pits and into Pratt Farm. This would be a fantastic opportunity for CPA initial expenditures and would provide visible services for thousand s to use. Don’t know how it would work or if it could under present CPA restrictions but it is worth the investigative effort.

SYSCO project is moving right along in Plympton. Say….just how is that marvelous hospital site in Lakeville doing?

Why does an Obama press conference always seem like a college lecture?

For years I have questioned the operation of the Red Sox by owner John Henry. Ah…sweet vindication!

The failed administration has the unique position of being pro-jobs and anti-business.

One of the key points of the Occupy Wall Street crowd is access and that access is bought by lobbyist. Folks appear to be on the outside looking in.
The wing nuts have a tendency to dismiss the Occupy Wall Street participants and connect them to the loony left and that is so reminiscent of the moonbats attempts to do the same with the Tea Party and paint them as far right nut jobs.

What in the world does it take to finally realize the ownership of Edgeway is just bottom feeders.

On Route 105/28 island intersection in Lakeville is a remarkable fall display of mums and other assorted vegetation. I see this around Lakeville but not Middleboro. Middleboro once had a garden club and do they still exist? I know they use to do community service projects like this.

A pizza shop should be automatically rejected as second rate unless they have anchovy pizza.

I’ve been watching prices really shoot up at Hannaford’s the last few months. Get ready for “Wacky Wednesdays” at Trucchi’s.

Market Basket just beat out Wegmans in a recent price comparison.

Many corporations are flush with cash but are not going to risk capital with the ramblings of the current failed administration. Health care, taxation, environmental policy and energy policies are among the potential risks that corporate expansion faces. Why take the chance? Wait for more favorable political conciliations.

I see the old McGee building is now being used and that leaves the Morse building down on the Middleboro - Wareham secure border empty. Rumor was a Market Basket being located there.

About 25 years ago they (town) reconfigured some house numbers on our street. Myself and a neighbor never changed them. Recently someone from the town did a routine appraisal on our property and reported the “crime.” I finally added a second number to the first since I have received several letters from the police. Now the regulations are routinely ignored and a fire captain who lives on my street is in violation. I reported to the person handling this massive 9-1-1 issue the fact that I counted at least ten violations in a half mile radius of my house. To date nothing has been done. So much for enforcement.

Speaking of the idiotic - or why do you give these folks guns? In Swampscott one Anthony McKay became aware of a local druggie attempting to break into McKay’s car. His wife called the cops and McKay confronted the perp and the perp ended up with a busted jaw. Naturally McKay now faces assault charges and I quote from one Sgt Tim Cassidy (AKA - Sgt. Shultz) of Swampscott: “We don’t want anyone to fight back. We want them to call us.” Maybe he was groggy from too many paid detail hours?

Occupy Middleboro

2011-10-14T07:23:00.003-04:00

Occupy Wall Street has been in the news as this throwback to the 60s and early 70s appears at first glance a grassroots (no pun on “grass”) movement. Some of the protesters appear in a time warp from days I remember and like in those days there seems to be a convoluted list of demands, issues and targets that made for amusing reading and that is definitely true with this current movement. Some of the “demands” appear right out of the far left playbook although the protesters claim they have no allegiance to either party and seem to actually place a significant amount of blame on the now quite weak shoulders of the Community Organizer In Chief.

Now the bottom line to me is this scraggly group is onto something. They may not be able to articulate their ire except in slogans or in some rather convoluted and bizarre interviews with media but they know something is wrong - seriously wrong - with the way this nation, this administration, previous administrations and a long list of Congress after Congress has consistently been in the bag to special interests, unions, high profile (and low) billionaires, banking and investment interests and just about anyone who has access thanks to having oodles of cash.

This is one protest I would gladly join and may. If they wish to target the Commodities Modernization Act or Gramm-Leach-Bliley I’ll climb on board and carry a sign but I will continue to sleep in a real bed and bathe daily. These folks are onto something.

The financial services sector is just a joke. The salaries and bonus figures are nuts and for what? How valuable are they? OK…doomsday has arrived and we are picking up the remains of society so who would you rather have a carpenter, plumber, electrician, mechanic or a financial advisor?

Is Herman Cain the Republican answer to Reverend Wright?

A 7B pipeline is in the works from Alberta Canada to Texas. This has an interesting dilemma for our current (and latest) oval office failure - support environmentalist or unions who want jobs? Maybe the Prez can look into his magic teleprompter for an answer?

On a recent trip to Texas we stayed at a resort since our Great White Elephant condo was finally sold and I am just amazed at the various methods high end hotel chains flat out screw over customers. First off is the internet charge that runs at this place $14.99 a day where at Motel 6 you would pay zero. Then comes the resort fee which is what you pay for services that should be included in your bill and often for things you will never use. This can be up to 15%. Of course you get two complimentary papers so maybe that’s why you’d pay twice as much as the Quality Inn next door? I had managed to get a huge discount on this place and paid about 40% less than the rack rate but otherwise there were plenty of places in Galveston with ocean views, free parking and a breakfast for half the price.

Next up on my hit list is the airport mall cops - TSA. “Sir! What do you have in your back pockets?” “Ah….I don’t have back pockets.” “SIR! What do you have in your back pockets?” “My arse is the only thing in my back pockets and you can enjoy the pleasure of doing a feely to find out.” “Sir! There is no reason to respond in such a matter.” “I can respond to an idiot question with an idiot answer when I deal with idiots.” Somehow I managed to get through security. I really don’t think the agent caught the reference.

Rick Perry’s daddy had a rather unique name for the old hunting lodge.

Been some talk that Chris Christie is too fat to be president. The last few have been rather svelte and how did that turn out? Where is Taft when you need him.

My wife - The Lovely Cynthia - and I have never taken a cruise. We travel constantly but a cruise has never been high on the list and in fact is somewhere below experiencing a sand storm in the Gobi desert. In Galveston a new cruise ship docked and this one was a combination Disney World, casino, endless buffet and petri dish. We both decided that just maybe we may try a cruise of three or four days but I know it won’t fit our style. We both like to leisurely explore places we go and TLC (The Lovely Cynthia) enjoys sitting on a beach for hours while I hate to be confined and a ship appears like a large gerbil cage. But we may just finally do it. Folks rave about the cruises but I just listen and say internally “not for me.”

Mitt Romney (R - Waffle House) is suppose to belong to a religious cult according to some mainstream religious pundits. For an atheist they are all cults with some just more established than others.

Elizabeth Warren (D - Consumer Reports) is the current front runner for Brown’s seat. Warren portrays herself as a “lass of the people” and I’ll not try to buy into that elitist Harvard BS with a 500K compensation package and the fact she can’t even file finance reports on time. Tack on her very close ties with the administration and that is Trouble with as capital “T.”

Massachusetts is one of the dwindling few states that actually still has favorable numbers for president WOW (Walk On Water).

The Boston Globe once again has managed to show what a two bit rag it really is as the bow tied bum kissers outed the Whitey Bugler informant. This may seriously put the woman at risk especially from assorted nut jobs who may wish for their 15 minutes of fame. The whole tipster program will also be jeopardized thanks to this incredible breech of common sense. The wonder is who tipped them off? Well …to me just think FBI.

If size matters then visit the new Wegmans super market. This place makes a big box store look like the corner mom and pop operation. I’m familiar with the store from my travels and find it daunting as I just feel uncomfortable in the large super stores. Hannafords and Market Basket are about the right size for me and the prices are find plus I know where everything is without using a GPS.

MCC And Smoking

2011-10-08T20:09:00.001-04:00

Massasoit Community College has implemented a smoking ban that forces the addicted into two designated areas to enjoy their slow method of killing themselves. The administration at MCC had actually conducted an extensive survey that showed overwhelming support for such a ban. I have zero sympathy for the addicted.

I grew up in an environment where smokers were allowed to run amuck with their habit and the whole process was consider chic and sexy. Unfortunately I have little tolerance for the foul aroma and it made life quite difficult for me. As I got older any bars or restaurants were off limits or I resigned myself to about an hour before the burning eyes and pulmonary irritation took place. I was an outstanding candlepin bowler but that had to go since bowling alleys looked like the morning fog over ‘Frisco Bay.

On airplanes it was a disaster. In the early 70s I had to travel for business and three to five hours in a closed environment meant hours of recovery. Classrooms were also a problem as folks would just light up and in fact light up in all public places. One of the reasons I thrived in a computer environment is that smoking was prohibited around the equipment. But changes would be taking place.

In the late 70s I was part of a group called GASP - Group Against Smoking Pollution. Goal #1 was a simple one - to ban smoking in supermarkets. The approach was through local boards of health to make it a health issue and not a political one. By this point there was - unlike global warming - irrefutable evidence of the negative impact of smoking and - pardon the pun - the smoking gun of second hand smoke.

The wheels of fate have now placed smoking into a realm where even the addicted have the manners and common sense to know where and when to light up. I have a boat load of sympathy for their entrapment into the addiction but I have even more sympathy and responsibility for myself and maintaining good health.

So the whinny little group at MCC is offended that they are under strict supervision. Tough. Cry me a river since I went through the other side of the equation for 30+ years. The excuses they put forth were flat out pathetic. You can’t go without for five or six hours? Please. If you were flying from Boston to LA you’d be shut out and somehow manage.

Now I don’t want the foolish addiction banned. If someone wishes to light up in their car or home just go for it. Hopefully they’ll have some common sense and not expose the non smokers to their pollutants. But it is now getting to be a much better world for the majority of us who do not practice the habit. I can eat without having my eyes burning and travel without any worry of someone puffing on a gawd awful stogie next to me. Even hotels I now only have to worry about bedbugs and not the pallor of smoke the previous occupants has left as their personal gift.

In the work place the loading docks are now important gathering places as the smoking zombies assemble several times a day for what seems like endless “breaks” to puff away. I know when I was in the DPS (Dreaded Private Sector) there was a strong undercurrent of resentment over time lost as the zombies fled for their magic puff.

I know most want to quit and have made multiple attempts but like serial dieters they seem to go back and forth between cold turkey and a rendezvous with the Marlboro Man. At least with my ice cream addiction I can exercise the excess off and somehow second drippings from my chin won’t send someone into cardiac arrest. The simple fact is the various forms of smoking are designed to kill you when used as directed. The actuarial tables do not lie on that one.

Where I taught and still tutor I see one of the worse results of behavior disorder and it is exemplified by smoking. What better way to churn up the adults and authority figures than to puff up. Many of the students started at ten years old. A real defiant and “Take that” attitude. Many will flat out say “If I only knew then….“ I have seen some with a pack a day habit that has put them into a situation where even their meager employment dollars are drained to feed the habit. The program has interventions to help but, unfortunately, the success rate is akin to the recent Red Sox September.

My daughter was a student at MHS ten years ago and literally could not use the girls facilities because of the dense smoke. This is a similar problem at where I tutor. The smoke wafting out of the boys rooms can become a dread for me. In fact out of curiosity I once asked an attorney I know if someone like myself with a documented health reaction to smoke could actually bring a criminal complaint against someone smoking in a restricted area by claiming it as a type of assault. He was quite fascinated with that concept.

The malfeasance of the cigarette industry is well documented. Most have managed to weasel out of class action suits despite the evidence that shows a pattern of lying, skewering facts and attempting to debunk the opposition - much like those global warming advocates did a few years ago. But the risk-reward is really great so take a chance. Most of the companies have managed to diversify so much that cigarettes only represent a fraction of the business. They fully comprehended the direction public support was going.

Now the excuse machine at MCC was in full force as the addicted attempted to somehow do a weasel t6o get their way. Too far to walk? Hey, it will do some good for your lungs. The excuse that it could lead to car break-ins. Oh - so smokers are car thieves?

So I am sure the latest brouhaha at MCC will just go up in smoke.

Dis n' Dat While In Sox Mourning

2011-09-30T17:13:00.003-04:00

Barney Frank who is an ardent advocate for online gaming received $18,600 in contributions from that industry - if one can say gaming is actually an industry. After being the poster child for financial malfeasance with his bluster, inane advocacy and then attempted avoidance of the Fanny scandals how appropriate it is that he supports such foolishness as online gaming. Did with housing.

Deval Patrick is furious over the mere idea of having to present proper ID to vote. We use ID’s for everything. Why not voting? Makes sense.

Green energy has certainly been green - real green - for some. The Solyndra mob appeared before a Congressional hearing and it seemed like the 50s and 60s again with pleas of “The 5th.” Appearing more and more like the executives were simply crooks and the administration is up to their eyeballs in this mess. Think Teapot Dome.

I watch excerpts from the Republican debate since about five minutes is my tolerance level. Huntsman and Paul seem reasonably normal but the rest?

The Town Manager and the DPW honcho seem to be approaching the storm rubbish issue the same way in that their first response is to try and figure out how not to do something rather than how to do it. Apparently neither have spent any time in customer service.

Some cities and towns will actually cut back on very visible items as a way of encouraging the peasants to pony up some more cash at TM or with a 2 and ½. I’m am sure nothing like that will ever happen in Middleboro.

Friendly’s is back on the brink of another Chapter 11 protection.

Deval Patrick continues to dismiss Secure Communities as the body toll rises.

Tom Brady’s bride got off with a warning for going 70MPH in a 55 zone. According to the State Police about half of those stopped got warnings so this was not any special treatment. The others were probably judges, court officers, Reps and others connected.

In the movie Contagion one of the characters utters the phrase “Blogging is graffiti with punctuation.”

Obama’s support among Black voters is now eroding.

Maxine Waters (D- Mothership) said “The Tea Party can go to hell.” Chris Matthews made a comment about the blowhard Limbaugh that just about said he hopes someone off’s him. Andre Carson - a Black Caucus Member - stated the tea party would like to see “Blacks hanging from trees.” Now if the right made comments like this it is hate speech.

I read that some fees such as the dump (AKA - Landfill) pass cannot be paid with cash. Now despite what it says on our greenbacks this is perfectly legal to refuse cash for public and private obligations. The legislation (coinage act of 1965) is poorly worded. To me it is an insult. I read into it a lack of trust of employees.

Chief Gates says being a policeman “Is a young man’s job.” Well so much for any 21st century enlightenment on the part of the chief. In case he missed out there happens to be women who actually do the job. Yes, Chief, they do things besides sell cosmetics and pop out babies. Maybe, Alice - a woman! - quoted him wrong?

A young man’s job part II. Has Chief Gates ever roamed around town and took a look at the police details? Some of these guys have been retired for years and I feel like setting up a lawn chair at the work site for them just to play it safe.

A young man’s job part III. Why? Is there some unique quality about being young that defines the job? Maybe you should just shove all those 40+ characters out the door? Say, Chief, how old are you? I guess our chief is both an ageist and sexist?

Design flaws is a way architects and engineers explain away problems some with monstrous consequences.

Aircraft design is fascinating since most experimental models go through vigorous testing before they are rolled out for military or commercial use so I will use that as an example for baseball.

The Comet was a magnificent aircraft and represented the first commercial jet. Built by de Havilland it was placed in service in 1952 and did have some issues that were resolved. Then came a series of mysterious and fatal crashes forcing the fleet to be grounded.

Now why is this related to baseball? Well the aircraft itself was agreed to be of quality by everyone involved. Hundreds of designers and engineers were involved and all agreed on its air worthiness. The fatal flaw was windows and you can read about it. Simple and unsuspecting. Actually new territory. This is similar to the Red Sox in 2011 as the fans and media all jumped up and saluted the choices made with signings, trades and who would get dumped. Heck most felt 100 wins were well within reach and I thought 105 could be obtained. But there are design flaws.

Some of the flaws became apparent from the 2-10 beginning and then magnified as certain expectations were not attained. Most were placed on the back burner as the team went on a 72-37 tear and then the flaws kicked in. Some seem to be how certain players approach the game. Others are the small stuff like not hitting with Runners In Scoring Position or not making a routine play that extends an inning. Then the issues of complacency, clubhouse karma and even ability start to surface. Like with the comet the design flaws are there and will have to be addressed.

Right now Boston is the Comet (de Havilland) and the Yankees are Boeing. de Havilland never really did recover.

IMO the blame for the entire mess of the Red Sox lands on Theo Epstein. Theo loves metrics or the numbers of baseball to make decisions on player acquisition. They use their own proprietary software to crunch the numbers but someone one piece is missing - character.

Birthday Post

2011-09-23T10:10:00.001-04:00

I suspected Roger may have been in trouble about five days before the election when I received an attack ad from Brunelle. When that happens it shows some internal polling may have said “trouble.”

Brunelle also lost Middleboro. Seems to have become a family tradition in the last year.

Despite Pacheco (D-Probation) Roger still lost Taunton. Maybe someone will also run against him?

Borders is just about done and the usual pithy article of hand wrenching lament appeared in the paper with a flurry of quotes from loyal customers and now pounding the pavement employees. The impression was this was some type of monolithic conspiracy to get rid of a landmark business. Huh? No, folks, it was a company whose business model was not updated and tragically failed.

I worked for Howard Johnson Companies from their robust days until the company was essentially dissolved after passing hands from Imperial Tobacco to Marriott. HJ was iconic and also a convoluted mess of mismanagement. They were rift with poor decisions that even those in the lower depths of management would shake our heads at and say “Why are they doing this?” When changes were being made it was without any real plan and was far too little too late. We could all make a list to rival anything put out by Harvard Business School on companies that either went belly-up or are a shell of their former self and a good portion of the common Joe and Jane’s could have told them well before the end came what was wrong and what needed to be done.

The latest in hand wringing guilt is legislation proposed for Massachusetts for businesses to disclose there links to slavery. Now this is not some type of slavery that still exists in parts of the world but their links to our own 18th and 19th century involvement of making a buck off of it. Slavery was extremely profitable in this country for both north and south and many businesses and institutions profited or were formed as a result of profits taken in human trafficking. But somehow this is just more self induced feel good legislation.

More new revenue needed. Is there still some folks incapable of connecting the dots? Revenue means taxes means less income means less food for the government machine.

Ron Paul has said he’d support an audit of the Federal Reserve. That alone might be enough to support him.

Deval Patrick is Mr. Bluster when it comes to the recent daycare tragedy and Mr. Silent when it comes to an illegal killing someone with vehicular homicide.

Why believe anyone? I went to have some muffler work done that I knew was necessary and the prognosis was also two other items that needed immediate attention and that would be about $700 so off I went to the service manager at a car dealership where I have established a business relationship. I was having a routine oil change and asked them to investigate. Items not needed. Always good to get a second opinion.

To the BOS - thank you for the kind words.

Try as they might the wizard’s in The Fed and the administration just cannot control the economy. It’s all about productivity and there is little of it.

The NFL now looks like Arena Football or the early days of the AFL. Wide open passing and inflated QB numbers.

Obama made a smart move with the millionaires tax proposal. The 250K is off the board as being “rich” and the super rich have been designated the fall guy and most seem rather cooperative from what I have read. Puts the Republicans in the corner as there is not much play in this for them when discussing a million bucks a year in income. Just wish I could join them.

Now about all those super rich. I saw an article using IRS figures that showed the zero tax status was for less than one per cent and most others paid at a significantly higher rate that reflected their income. Hmmm.

Reward systems are wonderful. In fact many are the foundation of behavior modification systems. You reward young children and older ones as a way of showing a job well done or some type of improvement that has been made. Applies to adults. In fact we have rewards and punishment built into our existence. So why is it that our tax system punishes success? Seems the more successful you are the bigger target you become.

I continue to read about how the tax burden has actually decreased and that is simply incorrect. When you talk taxes it just isn’t federal but any state tax and any type of adjustment to deductions. I save everything with taxes. Everything. I pulled returns over a forty year period and my percentage increased across the board and that was primarily do to deduction manipulation, increase in FICA and a huge growth in state tax especially sales tax. Some of us are old enough to remember Volpe’s “Temporary” 3% sales tax.

On the above there are several web sites that really show how much we pay in taxes. Amazing how much is hidden. Some will even differentiate between a tax and fee. I have even seen some exotic math that attempts to extrapolate the impact of corporate taxes, fees and mandatory regulations as a inflation index.

Now a local battery maker has decided to jump into bed with the Chinese and their operation will expand rapidly to a Chinese hedge fund involvement and 400 jobs will be added - in China. Huge subsidies by the Chinese who seem to make this work while The Great Community Organizer can hang his accomplishment teleprompter on Solyndra.

Elizabeth Warren will attempt to unseat Scott Brown. She has the usual liberal credentials so there will not be the slightest of maverick in her as with Scott Brown. Dems want this seat after the embarrassment of 2010 and the way things are going they may need it and a lot more.

I see occasional piles of brush lying around town and that rings of Citation City for the DPW. Ah, folks, not everyone pays attention to the latest missive from the DPW about under service. So maybe Andy Bagas will find some “manpower” to go around and tell these folks to get with Middleboro’s new do it yourself program. $208 does not buy you what it use to.

My running or waddling partner’s bride took a nasty spill on one of her bike excursions. Now unlike us she is actually a well conciliation athlete and that is a huge plus in any rehab since the body is already conditioned and the work ethic is present.

I buy junk food. Potato chips and honey roasted peanuts are two favs. I will take a non guilty pleasure of snacking on them but there is s problem. My wife - The Lovely Cynthia - can resist me but not the junk food. The peanuts I thought were sucked up by a vacuum they have disappeared so fast so the directive has come down - no more junk food! So I have to pay the penalty for maintaining my svelte body? Oh the pain!

You can live off the past for just so long and the Red Sox have done nothing since 2007 despite an expenditure of 600M. The latest round of free agent signings have been a monumental disaster. IMO the need is apparent. Theo’s shelf life has expired and I hope he resigns and takes over the Cubs. Theo has done a masterful job of building up the farm system and making beneficial trades but has been a failure at late season pitching additions and those FA signings.

I also feel Tito has lost control of this team and has been managing defensively for a few months. There seems to be increased concern over clubhouse dynamics and the Sox should also look for a change in that direction.

The Ides Of September

2011-09-17T08:16:00.001-04:00

Unions gave Democrats about 400M for the 2008 election cycle so what is the end result of that? About one fourth of the latest “Recovery” Act is targeting unions mostly of the public sector variety as money will flow to local governments to prevent layoffs in that sector - primarily teachers. Now you know why Roger Junior has all those pamphlets/mailers coming to your house with the various union labels assigned.

Rick Perry has decided to come into the territory of the blue sans Scott Brown. Perry - to us - talks funny, prays and has trouble keeping his mouth shut. Take away the pray portion and it sounds like a description of Barney Frank.

How do members of the BOS stay awake during those various hearings when all the blueprints are dragged out and the power point tuned up? I know I’m lost with everything but a map but when they start talking the engineering gibberish it is like a sleeping pill. I’d spend hours asking pointless question after question since my learning curve on this stuff would need a serious boost.

This poster nailed it on the daily stories on the Greek debt crisis. From Yahoo.

“Brand new day...same old contrived Greek Euro zone debt story. You could cut and paste this "news" 100 times and it wouldn't make a difference. They must think we're all idiots.”

I have been inundated with calls for both candidates for the 12th seat but there is a difference. The ones I get I ask a simple question “I’m in Middleboro. What county is that in?” Roger’s calls are from phone banks and all are clueless. Union water boy? You bet!

When an executive of a company has a consistent pattern of making fiscal blunders what is the eventually outcome? For Boston the 2011 free agency list is Crawford, Albers, Wheeler, Jenks and Aceves. The only productive one has been Aceves with Crawford being a huge disappointment at 22M a season. Just add these to an ever growing list and it should be enough to convince Theo Epstein to take that Cubs job. As a GM he has done a remarkable job of building a farm system, drafting and in player development but that is only a fraction of the team expenditures as the big ticket is free agents and he has failed.

The DPW has no manpower to remove brush yet has the manpower to cite folks who don’t remove it. Nothing more consistent than inconsistency.

It was “Inevitable.”

Now what would be interesting is no one bids on a license.

Wonder what “The Raven” is up to?

My real problem with a casino is that it is a form of income distribution with the distribution primarily going to those who don’t give a hoot about the folks where it is located.

Government stimulus means jobs but they will just be temp jobs since no real manufacturing will take place. Now with these infrastructure jobs will the materials be made in the U.S.A.? Or will this be like the Canadian Obama tour bus? Seems if you are going to use rebar, wire, construction tools, heavy equipment and so on it should be a priority to have domestic.

Michael Bloomberg - mayor of The Rotten Apple - claims the job picture is so bleak we could have riots in the street. If Mr. Mayor wants to see some problems I’d suggest he get off his billion dollar arse and examine the tax structure of his city and state. City tax, state tax, sales tax, exorbitant gas tax and on and on she goes.

What generates a recovery is our consumerism and we just are becoming a bit more diligent about what we purchase and how we do it. So one way of curtailing that even more is to increase taxes and further reduce the spending power.

Another Week Of Being A Malcontent

2011-09-11T09:35:00.000-04:00

Storm hits and the BOS and DPW do a Casper The Ghost and disappear. The trash tax in play. $208 well spent. The usual pronouncement of manpower issues will prevent the additional pick-ups that may be necessary and how many other communities have managed to at least do something?

On Tuesday after the storm my running partner and I were cruising down to Eastover Farm for a run when we came across a convoy in Rochester complete with a wood chipper and front end loader. This was Marion Road and they were loading up the fallen wood including batches left out front by residents. Now just maybe this was something they were not suppose to do but did. Their primary objective was to insure that this roadway also had no obstacles left by the storm or was it just that in conjunction with providing service? On the way back to our usual stop at 7/11 we came across two Wareham DPW trucks doing similar activities. Guess other towns can cope with a “manpower shortage.”

Seems like Middleboro has decided to figure out ways of not doing things rather than doing them.

National Labor Relations Board is now going to require employers to have posters in the workplace describing the employees right to unionize. Wonder if they cleared this with Pacheco?

Huntsman. Perry. Bachmann. Romney. What a crew the Republicans have to fight it out for the nomination.

Martin Hanley and Charlie Lincoln appear to have a lot in common.

Probably the only thing more dysfunctional than my blog is Social Security. Rick Perry hammered away at this scheme during the Republican debate of which I saw an excerpt. Think I would actually watch that nonsense? I have been an advocate for partial dismantling of this system for decades and just maybe some in the political mainstream will finally do something about a program that makes Bernie Madoff look like a fiscal Mother Theresa.

The Obama latest stimulus is a mixture of little bits and pieces from proposals of both Republicans and Democrats so the term would be “nothing new here, folks, just move along.” The first stimulus was about twice as large and under its guidance unemployment went from 7.6 to 9+%. This one should bag us the coveted 10% plateau.

I am a Keiko supporter. My support is based entirely on two things. First is her fiscal positions and the second is the huge influx of union dollars for her opponent.

The infiltration of the Republican Party by overly religious elements disturbs me as much as the public employee union ties of the Democrats. I have often called myself a “political bisexual” in that I can go either party or none. I’m finding none becoming all to attractive lately.

When is enough enough? In Afghanistan our presence is about as valued as that woodchuck is in our garden. Simply put they hate us. They hate our government. They hate our religion. They hate our money. Well…maybe not the money since they seem to be putting that to good personal use. I just can’t see any value to our continuing to nest in that country, I thought “The Big Zero” would have had us out the door by now but he is also buying into that famed “Strategic withdrawal” mantra that the military experts continue to espouse.

Football season is about to start which means a goodly portion of the female population will be without male companionship for five months. Six if your team is in the playoffs. Then there is Fantasy Football which also requires huge blocks of time. Have fun, ladies.

Sal DiMasi is going to the federal can. Is that three or four speakers in a row? Easy to lose count.

What do police do? Proposals are put forward to get more “on the street.” Why? Well how about an outdated and failed policy on all levels to deal with drugs. Simple as that. More cops to address an issue that needs a different perspective. It is fiscally attractive to sell. To buy you need enormous sums of money and an easy way to acquire it is via grabbing it from someone else. We really need a controlled substance to be controlled, taxed, regulated and enforcement for serious violations such as we have under DUI’s. What we do now has not worked. It never will work.

Our drug policies have not only impacted our country but others. Mexico is in a shambles and much of it is because of pitched battles between drug cartels. The same applies to Columbia. Many others countries are also in the mix.

The DARE program was a total disaster. It did nothing and there is enough hard evidence to show that.

Obama’s proposals had an interesting impact on financial markets - they lost big time.

I had a recent meeting and espoused a position that has always done me well. I always examine the negative first. I always consider what can absolutely go wrong and assume it will. I first started to employ this mechanism as a baseball fan but found it did wonders in everything from purchasing items to buying/selling stocks. Perfect? Certainly not but it is always better to embrace the positive after you have fully examined in detail the negative.

Storms And Other Stuff

2011-09-01T13:02:00.001-04:00

Once again an illegal has been involved in a horrid crime. Once again it could have been avoided. Once again an illegal had an extensive resume of legal entanglements. Once again the Patrick Administration refuses to address the logic of rudimentary law enforcement. If the law had been applied to getting this character sent to jail or “home” this could have been avoided.

Secured Communities is a great piece of legislation designed to help combat the infiltration of illegal’s and especially attempt to deal with those who accumulate an extensive criminal record. Why the Patrick administration is so reluctant address this issue and cooperate is just beyond me. Is it some type of warped political philosophy? Is it for fear of offending a potential voting block of legal’s? The governor has repeatedly ignored questions that put him on the spot light with this issue and uses his usual canned responses.

Now Obama’s uncle is arrested for a DUI and he had a license and an SS card. Another “Humanitarian” entry?

If a president does what he said he would do during the campaign cycle and when elected he will be successful. That is what he was hired to do and what the voters bought into. With the current president does that apply?

The Weather Channel was a wonder during the storm. They had what passes for reporters everywhere. How do they manage to get those characters in evacuation areas? I thought that was like a “no fly zone” to keep your arse out?

Of course I went out and purchased 50 gallons of milk, a 100+ loafs of bread and went to “The hood” and got an AK-47 to fend off the looters in my neighborhood.

The real truth to us locals is we know beyond a doubt what the storm is capable of especially along the coast and we also know that the real bad boys are the winter Nor’easters that really do the damage. They have consistent winds that can last for a few days. Then there is the ice storms. They really chew up the landscape.

Now in Middleboro the usual power outages happened and it will take a bit of time to get everything up and running. The damage seemed minor with the occasional building going one on one with a tree.

What will happen with the damage claims is we all come face to face with that lovely term “deductible” which is insurance talk for screwing us out of a few dollars. Then will come the adventures of the adjusters whose primary job is to low ball any damage claim and frame it in such a way that you think you have to accept it. To get a legitimate claim paid to restore your property usually means an extended song and dance that could involve lawyers and arbitration. The idea is to wear you down.

In Kansas I bought a $5 lottery scratch ticket which was - surprise - a loser. The top prize listed on the ticket was $1,000. Amazingly low. I didn’t check to see if they dole out a substantial number of top prizes but in Massachusetts a $5 scratchie usually means a minimum of one million as a top prize.

I love the liberal whine about FOX News. Then the benchmark of their pride and joy - MSNBC - goes out and hires Al Sharpton.

Speaking of liberal do I sense that that key Obama voting block - liberal white guilt - is starting to fade?

Obama is proposing tax credits to businesses that hire vets and especially wounded warriors. I imagine a Jim Thomas letter is in the works on this.

In China there is no old age pension system. No Social Security to fall back on. What they do have is a substantial savings rate since it is save or rely on relatives.

I wonder why there is no connection between our Medicare and Social Security retirement age. I retired at 62 yet had to wait until 65 to get on Medicare. Now the retirement age has been raised but the Medicare remains at 65.

Tiger Woods and PED’s. I’m starting to believe some of the connections that make it plausible. Based on his past history probably extensive use of Viagra.

The New York Football Giants (via NJ) are a physical wreck. The ever expanding injury list has put a damper on any expectations which were relatively low to begin with.

The Red Sox continue to hover around north of .600 and considering that woeful 2-10 start is a remarkable resurgence. They are playoff bound.

The recent primary showed the power of special interest groups and IMO that most powerful are still unions. They can generate sure fire voters and provide a bundle of cash. Even the influence peddlers like Koch and Soros pale. They deep-sixed Frawley in the last election despite his being a Democratic loyalist and a pragmatic one. Last thing the MTA or any other union - especially of the public variety - needs is someone who they cannot totally control. Pacheco is up to his eyeballs in orchestrating this election and he is just a premier example of what happens in a one party dominated state.

On the national front Obama continues to amaze! That the long list of Republican lightweights actually match up with him is a telling tale of just how far down Hope & Change has sunk.

Consumer confidence continues to sink and you can tie that in to voter sentiment. Gotta blame someone.

I have had a real flurry of emails from some unknown countries in Africa lately. What happens is someone’s email gets compromised and the address book becomes a target for mass mailings. I mean I didn’t know so many died in plane crashes, auto accidents, falls and anything else that is a storyline on a 1001 Ways To Die.

Several years ago I answered a telephone inquiery about a “prize” I had won. All I had to do was pay shipping and handling. They were located in Chicago and I said: “Hey, I’ll be there in a few weeks and pick it up.” They hung up. Goodbye plasma TV.

My son Bob never wanted a Kindle until he saw mine. Didn’t realize how versatile and lightweight it was.

Kansas City

2011-08-24T19:04:00.002-04:00

Kansas City is the annual Red Sox road trip and this year on both the visit side and the baseball side it was quite successful.

We stay at son #2’s place in Leavenworth and you can’t beat the price - free. He’s former army and his neighborhood is interesting as it is a five year old development sprinkled with current and retired military.

Leavenworth is a base town and also a prison town with military, federal and state prisons numbering six. Many former military - such as my son - work in corrections, the VA or on the base as civilian security. The entire community revolves around this with special emphasis on the military. Just the names of local establishments, the constant displays of flags and all the special discount offers that go with being military.

You know you are in a different environment when the front page of the paper has a picture of a high school principal doing a repelling course as he participates in a Junior ROTC Program. Imagine ROTC in our high schools. Probably have the ACLU and soccer moms going ballistic.

Touring in KC area is always an adventure since it is not exactly a tourist hotspot. This time my wife - The Lovely Cynthia - had to do some touring with herself and another deserted spouse while we attended games. But three games were at night so the baseball escape route was rather limited. We did take in the HST Library again and spent some time at a wonderful museum in St. Josephs called the Patee House. Eclectic collection that took hours to tour. The city also had a Civil War festival going on and that took some time.

The ladies did manage a few shopping trips and the movies as we attended the night games. They also paid a visit to the HST homestead in Independence right near the HST Library. A potential visit to tha Jazz Hall of Fame and Negro League Museum did not materialize. Both are great to tour.

KC is Bar-B-Que and we were not disappointed. A small place was near my son’s house. Located on a country road with a dusty parking lot and a dumpster out front it didn’t look like much. The mimeographed menu was quite limited with about five sides and five dishes. My wife thought the brisket and three ribs would not be worth it since it was $10.95 and the ribs would be those baby backs. She took the small ribs cut instead. These ribs looked like something Fred Flintstone would eat. I ate the brisket and managed two ribs and gave up.

Now no adventure by Bogo is complete without a whiny complaint and mine is the ballpark. Great place except for one detail - they don’t do any replays of anything positive by the opposition. Ellsbury made a great catch so they show the run scoring on a sac fly. Larvarnway hit’s a wall double that looked like a HR but how could we even get our view with no replay? Great defensive plays totally ignored. This happens every year we go. I have complained before so why stop now? Just go up the food chain.

I spoke to the Direction for Fan Relations one Carrie Bligh and expressed my issues. That with some blind spots on the sight lines certain plays need a replay. In Boston every play is replayed as long as it meets the MLB guidelines. Most other parks do it. And in baseball a good play should be recognized even if it is by the opposition. I also mentioned that the owner is David Glass a former high level official with WalMart. And WM just prides it self on customer service.

Ms. Bligh fully agreed and said that at their end of year meeting this will be her priority on input from her side.

Paid Details

2011-08-17T07:57:00.001-04:00

It is a rather simple sign shaped just like a stop sign and attached to the end of a long pole. One side has in red letters stop and the other side has in green letters go. A workman just moves the sign to inform traffic how to proceed in a construction site. I see this in my travels all over the country but with one exception - Massachusetts.

Here we have one of the most pronounced handouts to a union that I can imagine. It is called the paid detail and it can be the source of substantial pay to police. I have often wondered why I see multiple state police cruisers at work sites with officers not visible that often outside the cruiser. The lights provide that moth type attracted to drivers who are careless or have ingested too much alcohol or drugs and seems to have been responsible for a rash of tragic incidents in the last year or so.

On the local level the paid details will usually be found hovering around a G & E “work” crew to direct traffic and generally insure that the hole is properly excavated. Now the usual justification is it is a safety issue and we simple citizens should be content to have such well trained law enforcement officers in the general vicinity to make sure no evil doers or miscreant drivers create any “issues.” The retired officers especially look in prime physical condition to handle any problems that may occur.

Recently BB and I were returning from a running foray and were cruising along route 28 when a work site appeared. I could see the cones out and, of course, the mountainous G & E truck that was the usual hive of activity with a G & E crew. I slowed. Neither BB nor myself had the slightest idea if we were being waved forward. The arm signal could not be seen with the glare so I crept forward until I realized that there was actually a half hearted effort to signal us to scurry along. After running the gauntlet of cones we came across the second member of the detail who I noticed was deep in conversation with someone in a cruiser. I am sure the topic for discussion was advanced law enforcement techniques.

Attempts have been made to at least diminish the fiscal impact of this golden goose with the latest being by the Patrick Administration. From what I have read the savings are about nil so I guess it’s the thought that counts.

I know a few years back the administrators in Halifax attempted to eliminate paid details. Not sure if the chief was involved or this was some type of austerity program implemented to contain cots. I’m not sure if this was during the Benjamino regime and they may have been forced to find pennies elsewhere to fork out cash to their spiffy ambulance service.

Paid details will probably be with us forever. When I discuss it with officers in other states it usually results in inquiring about job possibilities, housing costs and the weather. But what I would like to see is a simple concession to logic - get those freaking stop/go signs so I have a clue of what you are doing.

Alone the legal front comes another jury that was sent down from the mother ship to make judgment. This one found one Albert Arroyo innocent of fraud which, specifically, was collecting a disability from the Boston Fire Department for an “on the job injury.” Now this “bad back” made it impossible for him to work even at a desk job or fire prevention but it did not stop him from competitive body building or palying hard ball baseball.

Albert also claimed during the trial that the union encouraged him to file for a disability. I just can’t imagine a public service union doing that!

I actually followed this trial and assumed it was a slam dunk but now you just never know. I have no idea what this brain dead jury was doing and the decision is just incomprehensible to me. So Albert will continue to collect 65 large each year for the rest of his life.

I have now lost count of the number of union inspired materials I have received from the Brunelle campaign. As a retired teacher my wife and I have been inundated with the usual MTA fliers. Brunelle is the education candidate? No....he is the one that will be able to do the bidding for the MTA just like his sponsor Pacheco has done.

Ecomomy and Other

2011-08-12T15:47:00.001-04:00

How dare those unknown faces at S & P downgrade our credit rating and put a damper on economic growth. The reality is they are just responding what we have done to ourselves. If you had an income of say 100K and a debt of 500K does that make you a 3A risk? No way! It is not the TP who was willing to set the government crashing against the fiscal rocks but a string of incompetent and compliant members of congress and the executive branch. Blame the messenger does not work.

When Obama appeared before the teleprompters the other day to help calm our growing fears something struck me. I put in the back of my mind as just a quirk on my part until Margery Egan and a few internet commentators pointed out the same. Obama appeared scared. I watched him on the internet and that was my reaction. A president who knew everything his administration has attempted has failed. A president who knew he was in way over his head. A president who left immediately afterwards for a political fund raiser.

Will the latest mess result in a new Congress? I firmly believe it will result in a new president as leadership goes well beyond the ability to present yourself well and talk a good game. I wonder if the Tea Party will be part of those swept out or if somehow Republican and Democrats running will attempt to adopt some of the TP fiscal agenda?

Why this administration is a wreck. David Alexrold a flack for Obama blames the whole fiscal mess on the TP. A recent comment I read said: “They spend money we do not have, and then they blame all the people who want to cut spending.”

As gas prices crash the one thing that pops up is our legislature and illustrious governor considering a raise in the gas tax.

The futures traders in oil have really gotten killed in the last two weeks. Many are sitting on $110 a barrel contracts and have been forced to liquidate other assets to cover and that includes investment houses and hedge funds. So that just adds to the frenzy.

There is actually profit to be made in a cash is king environment. Many stocks have shown substantial declines and for the five star companies out there undervalued is some real bargains. I like Boeing (BA), Alcoa (AA), General Electric (GE) and Morgan Stanley (MS).

Trickle down is the old RR song and dance that Democrats loved to tap dance all over especially the more liberal element within the party. Of course they were willing to use the same logic behind the Stimulus measures but just attempt to frame it differently but you have seen and will continue to see a rather negative trickle down. Anyone that is a member of FinCom, SC or the BOS sees it constantly. The state reduces a program and then the town gets stuck. Or the stte gets stuck when the feds do the same and it then trickles down from them to where the buck stops - us. Usually these programs have an “M” to designate mandated,

The international debt crisis has its foundation firmly rooted in socialism. The cradle to grave has a bill to pay and when too much is given and too little comes in borrowing takes place. And when a government realizes the insanity has to be moderated you have riots as in Greece. Now when this eventually happens in this country do I chain myself to the nursing home or burn my Social Security card in protest?

The AARP set to which I belong meaning over age 50 has tremendous political clout. There are a lot of us and we vote. Many younger folks do not - probably working too hard to pay my SS? Anyways, it will be interesting to see how energized the over 50 set is to rewarding themselves at the expense of everyone else. IMO the over 50 set is by far the most politically savvy group in this country and will be key for making the decisions that will impact for the next fifty years. If all holds true they will step up and take a hit “for the children.”

I just wonder if congress is capable on making revisions needed to the tax code. What can be done to make it more attractive for corporations to invest in the U.S.? What loopholes will have to be addressed? Eventually a tax hike is almost a given. I hate the idea but we will be in a hole with no way out. Everyone should get nicked and maybe a few nicked a wee bit more than others. No way anyone either GE or a citizen should pay zero taxes.

This generally runs counter to my own personal philosophy that the government has enough revenue but does not allocate it wisely. They screwed up. We have hired and fired them and they still screw up so giving into their spending addiction is questionable.

Talking heads are always discussing all the intricate programs that home in on a variety of statistical data that results in automated computer trading. Machines betting against each other? The response is so quick that huge blocks of stock can be bought, sold, bought and sold in a matter of minutes. This seems to be a significant issue on volatile trading days and I wonder about one point the “experts” don’t mention. On my laptop I have a button to turn the thing off. Years ago when I worked with massive mainframes - some of the biggest in the world - we had a lever that was labeled: Power on/off.

The Fed will keep a lock on their interest rates for two years so that is some level of stability.

I had several economics courses in college and if you really want to mess with you mind for a day or two read up on Keynesian economics and the negative and positive positions on it. Toss in all the other various schools of economic though and theory and then realize that these are the folks running the economic show. That’ll make you feel all warm and fuzzy.

Why do we fight two wars? We now have a mess in Afghanistan with a measured with drawl taking place. At the end of WW II the U.S. packed up and left. Equipment was left behind and some of it was some great stuff used for decades my scavengers from other nations. What is stopping our government from simply commandeering civilian aircraft and doing a reverse Berlin Airlift? Is it our “Word?” A bad war becomes a horrible war when it continues without resolution in view or any firm and attainable objectives. Just leave Afghanistan. Maybe put it on travel sites for those wishing to view life in the 17th century.

The defenders of the failed administration seem to just be in a constant snit over the reporting on FOX. I guess what passes for reporting on CNBC and MSNBC is acceptable?

The MBTA is nine billion in the hole. That’s their debt. Now there are reports they have been unable to pay claims against the “T.” Some have waited well over a year. The MBTA is a wonderful hack dumping ground that is certainly on a par with MassPort and the Lottery. BB wants to carry on about excessive pensions and benefits those three hack paradises would keep him blogging into the 22nd century.

Beer/EBT/Safer/Personal Racism

2011-08-08T13:39:00.000-04:00

Craft Brewers are the latest to get screwed over in the convoluted regulations that seem to impede business and job growth at every step in Massachusetts. Regulations would almost mandate the purchasing of a Manufactures License since they could not necessarily meet the requirements for a Farmers License regarding using locally grown hops. Some of these small brewers are living on the edge as all expect to be the next Sam Adams but fall short. Some fail and some plug along with a nice work force, a quality product and a reasonable profit. All that seems to go out the door when the regulatory police step in. Does anyone actually sit down with these people? Do they actually look at the consequences of their actions? These are not polluters dumping who knows what in the middle of the night but small businessmen and women being strangled by an unresponsive and no thinking government.

I saw an article the other day in the Enterprise where new legislation is aimed towards attempting to curb some of the more elegant ways those using the automated welfare cards - EBT - spend their or is it our money. Seems that alcohol and cigs can be purchased but what is interesting is the rampant abuse. The Boston Herald ran their usual dump on the poor or disadvantaged or downtrodden or however you wish to describe the recipients series of articles or exposes several months ago. The anecdotal evidence is overwhelming on abuse and fraud in the entire system. Lax controls and easily to manipulate scams abound.

In Brockton I have a rental property and near the property is a convenience store owned and operated by “Jeff.” “Put a camera in my store for 24 hours and put it on TV” is his usual rant. If it was up to “Jeff” he probably would not allow half the purchases that go through his store but the last thing he needs in his life is some heat coming down on him from some governments agency charging discrimination. His biggest complaint is the prices that folks pay at his store when a Shaw’s is less than a mile away. “Why would someone do $40 worth of shopping from me when they can get the same from Shaw’s for $25? I’ve seen people come in and do that and drive away. I’ve seen them buy stuff and then go out the door and sell it for peanuts to get cash.”

And speaking of Brockton I just think of the total mess that they have regarding past due water bills. The spin from the city officials - especially the water department - is to try and place as much onus as possible on the homeowners. Well enough information has surfaced to show that the most significant problem in the entire mess is not the homeowners but the sloppy operation and billing practices of the water department.

S & P downgraded the U.S. rating but it was not based on the ability to pay but the ability to reach a consensus. Congress reminds me of two pubescent girls fighting over a Justin Beiber autograph. Now several years ago Japan had a downgrade and the financial experts stated that the result would be an increase in bond interest rates but just the opposite happened. The only ones in Washington that seem to have a clue are the Tea Party members. Oh how I hate to say that but I give them there props.

Bad economic sign #3,786 is that consumer borrowing is at its highest level in four years.

“Throw the bums out” seems to be the prevailing logic in dealing with the morass of inefficiency that is Washington. If I recall that has been tried the last two election cycles. Maybe third time is a charm?

A golden opportunity is at hand to revise our tax codes. Maybe actually not punish folks for making wise financial decisions?

The economic mess of 2008 took most 401(k)’s the last three years to recover. Now comes the latest blip and what may happen is a massive sell off that will really cause a tumble as folks get gun shy.

The Red Sox banged out another series against NY on the plus side. In 12 games it is now 10 wins but all that is meaningless as the two baseball titans are on a playoff collision course.

The Patriots seem to be collecting a few players of questionable character.

The Safer Grant appears in trouble as our vagabond fire chief has managed to get the whole process questioned. Now his Sharon gig supposedly fell apart over a residency restriction so why didn’t he just have a time frame for a move, then get it extended and then get another job?

With the double dip recession or is it just one very long recession the mood of taxpayers is going to be rather interesting. Look for public service employees to have a nice target on their backs. The pensions and benefits exceed that of the DPS (Dreaded Private Sector) so when cuts are mentioned by Joe and Jane taxpayer you know who and what will be targeted.

I have written to many politicians about adjustments to traditional 401(k)’s in regards to substantial losses some have incurred. These are tax deferred but it would be rather easy to target losses and make an adjustment based on either new tax policy or adjusting old policy. The idea is the money would grow and for many it has not. Some are forced into minimal withdrawal on greatly reduced portfolio’s. Barney Frank’s office has repeatedly refused to even respond to the issue and Scott Brown is just the opposite.

On a recent trip I had the opportunity to board the bus that Rosa Parks did her thing on and even sat in the very seat. It caused a flood of memories of when I was exposed to that “Quaint Custom” as a teenager. More on that below.

On a talk show the commentator was talking about a conversation he had while getting his coffee “With a lovely Chinese lady.” I have no idea why that was even pertinent to the topic. I doubt he would say “I had a conversation with a lovely White woman.”

Years ago two of my very liberal friends were commenting on the Obama speech given at the Democratic convention. I have heard them comment many times on other speakers but they both said “He was so articulate.” I chuckled to myself thinking what do they really mean? We found a Black guy who can speak a sentence with Ebonics?

I taught with someone many years ago who was Black and a forceful speaker. He told me when he got a comment like that his usual retort was “And I am house broken, too.”

When I speak to a person who is different in color or ethnic background what registers first is - and I will focus on color - Black. What I have to do is set makers in my mind to take all stereotypes and keep them locked away and make judgments based on what takes place. I have discussed this trait with folks other than White and have discovered it appears universal. Maybe a form of universal racism? Maybe just human nature?

I remember many years ago being in Charleston for several months. I was about fourteen years of age and my parents were spending some time in the area while my father set up a business. In those days you would take the bus everywhere and I remember boarding the bus to take me to the area of the movie theaters. I always loved to sit in the back where you had these round seats. Very roomy so I went and plopped myself down.

After a few minutes the bus halted and the driver scurried to the back. “What are you doing there, boy?” I responded with a simple “Sitting, sir.” “You not from around here are you, boy?” “No…I’m from Massachusetts.” So he says “Those seats is for the Nigras!” “What’s a Nigra?” “Those is colored folks, boy, now you move you ass down front or I’ll toss you off the bus!”

I remember the separation as you had the various signs that said “Colored” and “White” on restrooms and fountains. I remember having dinner at the house of a prominent Black who was a scrap dealer that my father would sell his scrape to. This man was wealthy and lived in a large home that was in a Black neighborhood. The irony is we could go to his home without incident but he could not go to ours. My father didn’t give a damn about color except green.

I experienced many other such demonstrations while down south and in the years that followed discussed with many folks of color about it. I was always shocked to hear so many with southern roots say in many ways it was better than the north. Up here it was all under the surface and hidden with smiles and platitudes. Down there you knew it.

Taxes/Trails/Pacheco/Zoo/TSA

2011-08-03T16:54:00.000-04:00

Tax free weekend has surfaced with its usual attendant list of just exactly qualifies. I noted our illustrious members up “On The Hill” went full bore to get this done much the same as they went full bore to raise the sales tax.

If they wish a real sales tax holiday extend it to big ticket items.

New Hampshire does not have tax free holidays since every day is a tax free holiday.

On a recent trip to the Midwest we spent much time on the Eastern Time Zone cusp of the great divide. Loved the idea that the sun was setting a bit past 9PM as I’d take that trade off versus a early sun rise.

The Enterprise has raised their prices and my wife - The Lovely Cynthia - refuses to scuttle this worthless mess that Gatehouse created. Alice does a wonderful job covering local news but as a regional daily the Enterprise now relies on wire stories and is just symptomatic of what one sees in the news biz.

As weeklies go the Gazette is still top notch. I love to get local weeklies when I travel since they are a find mix of local kitsch, hard news, hilarious letters and some quite pointed editorials. I would say over the years I have seen at least a hundred weeklies and the Gazette is right up with the very, very best.

On news stories I have noticed a migration through the years where opinions now surface in hard news reporting. This was once a big no no and a guarantee to have the news editor get all over you. No more. I have no idea if this represents a “policy” shift?

Rupert Murdock is getting some heat over the excesses of his tabloids. This seems to be motivated more for political payback than anything else especially with the weepy eyed liberal set tired of getting their philosophical clocks cleaned by FOX.

Ohio seems to really “get it” with building a trail system or at least the Miami River area does. This area is about the size of Southeastern Massachusetts but has 283 miles of paved trails and about 3,000 miles of hiking trails within the various Metro Parks. Now these trails are in pristine condition in that they are scenic, well drained, are well marked, have rest areas and bridges where applicable. Many are handicapped accessible.

Now in Michigan they do the same. Along I-275 and I-70 there were paved bikeways next to the highway. In the latest issue of Rails To Trails magazine they highlight the Michigan trail system. As with Ohio many of the systems interconnect and there seems to be a concerted effort by the state, local government and private organizations to make this happen.

In Massachusetts we have some marvelous trail systems for both hiking and biking but often large swatches are not connected. On the sidebar of this blog I do have a list of sites which detail some of the trails and as an ardent runner/explorer I have become quite adept at searching them out. I use to use old railroad maps, power line systems and equestrian places but with the internet you have an explosion of information provided by bikes (motorized and manual), hikers and just plain nature lovers.

On out trip we finished it off with a visit to the Columbus, Ohio zoo. Now I have some real issues with animal servitude and have heard all the pluses many, many times but still find something repulsive about the whole concept. That said I have visited zoos of all sizes just about everywhere I have traveled and this one may be on the top of my list.

First off is the price. Quite reasonable. Then you have a nice layout that is easy to follow. The food is good by zoo standards and quite reasonable. We had a salad and small drink combo (16 ounces) for $5.99. The place is clean and well maintained and best of all a great place to take kids. Much of the area is really kid oriented with hands on activities. Plenty of parking, too, and at $5.

What really set this zoo apart is they have a water park complete with several kids rides. Interesting concept.

The zoo also has many kids employed who would fit into the category of developmentally delayed and they usually partner up with other kids and are assigned to areas such as the various petting zoo areas which litter the place.

TSA is always a wonder to me regarding just how the agents interact with the public. TSA at Columbus was exceptionally professional and I have found the same at Fortress Logan in Boston. But I could make a very long list - too long - of places where any reasonable manager focused on customer service would probably can the lot of them.

Water rates going up in Middleboro. Does this mean we are getting hosed?

This July I have noticed a proliferation of weeds in our garden. July is usually relatively weed free but not this year. We have managed to stay ahead of the onslaught - for now.

The battle my son has had with the woodchuck appears over with the woodchuck being victorious. My wife - the you know who - was petrified about some of the measures he was contemplating regarding possible ways to have a demise of the woodchuck. Her solution was to fence in crops, plant things it does not want and even plant on the periphery of the garden its own buffet. Wonderful. What a kind lady.

OK….Mr. Woodchuck burrowed under multiple fences including all that had deep rock emplacement and snacked on her beets, squash and a few other items. My how the perspective changes when it gets personal.

I usually use a hoe (the manual tool - LOL) to weed in areas that are fairly open. I also use a smaller spade shaped hoe to get close to the plants. To my wife this is just the very last thing you do. I guess you could say she is a non hoe? Anyways at Greenfield Village in Dearborn Michigan is replica farms. On one farm set in the 1885 time period they were in the fields with - you guessed it - hoes! I ask “Excuse me sir, is that instrument you are using called a hoe? Is it specifically designed to removed weeds with breaking ones back?” His reply “Yes, it is. It makes the task easier and saves a lot of labor.” Now an experienced male would not have turned to his wife and said “I told you so” and I didn’t. I merely turned and smiled and listened to her blabber on about why the period farmer was wrong.

Now this visit was also before the woodchuck devastated her garden so I asked another “farmer” how they handled that situation? He didn’t come right out and give a direct answer but said they handle it the same way farmers have handled varmints since the first seeds were planted 10,000 or so years ago.

Certain local bloggers enjoy various diatribes at the pension system of pubic employees. Well the COLA just came through for the teachers and it is what it always is an increase of 3% on the first $12,000. Over the years this will certainly erode benefits so even those on the public you know what need a 401(K). But that is better than my Social Security COLA that amounted to zero.

IMO the “Concessions” will be minimal from the fire department union. Their main focus is job security and protection of wages and benefits. The safety concerns that have been highlighted at the various public forums and most pronounced by firefighters are accurate but if you wish to do the walk give some real serious wage concessions - otherwise it is just a way of expanding union presence.

Marc Pacheco is suppose to or has endorsed Roger, Jr. Look for the union label on this one. Pacheco is the number one water boy for public service unions in this state so that is no surprise. Pacheco is also an avid proponent for expanded gaming so I would think that could be another reason. Nothing like going to all those union boys and girls who were panting after casino jobs and telling them that Allin was an active mover in the anti movement.

Fiscal Crisis And Hint On Buying Stocks.

2011-07-29T10:07:00.000-04:00

The Speaker of The House is having quite a time trying to bring into the fold some of his newer members as he attempts to get some forward movement of the “debt crisis” which may or may not be shaping up as a fiscal 2YK.

Now the general opinion of those in the media that are left leaning is that this group - with strong Tea Party affiliations - are the ones who will be ultimately responsible for a four figure drop in the DOW and beggar status for the United States. What is left out is they are doing exactly what they were voted into office to do and they are hard liners on it so the next few days of arm twisting will be of much interest.

The postion I found interesting and personally somewhat compatible to my own warped fiscal opinions is the “Gang Of Six” and their attempts to reach a bi-partisan accommodation. The reduction in the number of tax levels, reduction of corporate taxes and a further revision of the tax code stood out. That of course would be accompanied by cuts and the ever present “Revenue Enhancement” otherwise known as taxes.

I really see the rich as an easy target and it appears the breaking point for being rich is a family income in access of 250K. An easy target since about 98% fall below that but what I find appalling is that half the people in this country pay no taxes. Zippo! And that is some with income that touches 85K. With no skin in the game you are not part of the game. IMO everyone should pay taxes even if it is a nominal few bucks. After all the handouts the tax codes provide to get to that zero base and below - you can actually receive money back - sort of a bonus. No taxes and a refund to boot. So when that zero is reached that is it. Nothing. No give backs. And then a few dollars sort of a minimal tax.

IMO I have been impressed with the actions by the Speaker in attempting to resolve this issue. He has a split party or what is really a party of clearly defined factions along fiscal policy. The Tea Party types have entrenched themselves and although I may not agree they are doing exactly what they were elected to do. I just wonder if this may cause a party split similar to what happened to the Democrats in 1972 and 1980 over different issues. Maybe a political version of the cleansing of the hive?

What is absolutely a given is that any measures that Obama has attempted to address a broken economy have failed. You can play the Bush card just for a bit until you have ownership and this president now has ownership and seems lost. The number one priority should have been the economy from day one and not an poorly planned health care proposal that was rushed through a Congress who want to curry favor with a president who “claimed” a mandate. I just love hind sight.

Right now there has not been an aggressive shift of funds as folks seem to have taken a bunker mentality like I have. Gold is up a bit but draw downs in mutual funds are not present. Like me it seems to be a long haul situation where a loss is almost a given but what falls will rise. I place it in the category of what happens when a significant world event takes place such as 9/11 or the Japan mess several months ago. You take a hit and then in three or four weeks the dust has settled and been brushed away and you are back to square one.

This week the markets will lose about 3-5% depending upon how today goes. With a down market cash will be king over the next few months as bargain hunters will be on the prowl. With the mess comes opportunity. I will now give you the great tip I have used for years to purchase stocks. In fact I was discussing this with an investment advisers who was quite intrigued by my approach. This is something that is relatively easy to do with the age of the internet and the wealth of information available.

I go to mutual funds research. You can do this on about any financial site without having an account or just use Yahoo. A few months ago I wished to purchase some pharmaceutical stocks so I went into funds that specialized in pharma. I looked at about six funds from the successful to the not so successful and when you do that you can see what their holdings are. So I check out each fund and see how many have similar holdings that are relatively successful. I make a list of potentials and narrowed it down to Medco Health Solutions (MHS). I checked it out on various research portals such as The Street and Market Watch and found it to be under valued so I made a purchase. The stock trended upwards are finally was purchased by their most significant competitor - Express Scripts (ESRX) and I stand to make a tidy 40% when this corporate marriage is finally consummated. Total time spent about two hours.

Is the above a guarantee for success? Well..….I used the same method and loaded up on World Com so that should say it all but it does offer you an option to build your own mutual fund without the costs of a mutual fund such as front loads and fees. I built my own and so can you just by selecting some of the blue chips that make up the DJ and toss in a few high performers from the NASDAQ. I still have mutual funds and consider them and their poor cousin ETF's to be excellent. I just like to create my own which is exactly what fund managers do.

One other thing I have done is not all funds are created and managed equally. I really go against the grain on this one but have the hard data to prove it and advisers get a bit flummoxed over it. Say I have $75,000 I want to toss into large cap fund. The conventional wisdom is you pick a fund and in it goes. I would pick three funds with similar objectives, holdings, performance and fees and pump 25K into each. Duplication of services? I have actually seen a variance as high as 30% over a period of one year since some funds are managed better than others and it also spreads the risk even within similar financial objectives.

I Love A Middleboro Casino

2011-07-25T21:56:00.002-04:00

I love a Middleboro casino.

Now I was a moderate anti that was best described as a NIMBY that is similar to being a fiscal conservative and a social liberal or maybe getting to second base on a date. An ardent draw the line in the sand I was not. In fact I didn’t mind throwing verbal and written darts at both sides. In my own perverse way I actually rather enjoyed it. But that whole issue is now “back in the day” category. Divisive it may have been but that seems to have dissipated to the part where a small coterie of true believers is left on both sides. No longer is being on one side of the fence or perched in the middle like me a litmus test.

I think we all owe a sincere debt to that issue. It has nurtured a good many activist who as time passed by left the one trick pony to the zealots and moved on to a virtual buffet of town issues. Even our BOS now has members who really would still be tending to their gardens and doing the 9-5 completely oblivious to local government except to curse about their taxes, trash bill or the other mundane things we grouse about and quickly put on the back burner to concentrate on more important activities like viewing American Idol.

Circumference of about 9.25 inches, diameter of about 2.9 inches, a weight of 5.25 ounces and, of course, 108 stitches. Being a true American I have avoided that Gawd Awful metric crap. That is a baseball. My father loved boxing and cherished the day I would box but at age eight I fell in love with the sphere. I learned everything about it. Read and still read endlessly. A devoted fan. Hooked.

Well we all have our addictions and the casino was a great incubator just as the simple sphere was for me. Some - and why mention names as we know them - got hooked on the process of politics especially town politics. What does this board do? Who the hell is Robert and his rules? How do you make sense of a budget? What is the bizarre relationship between FinCom and the BOS? Politics - like baseball - can be a disease and there is no cure but involvement. The casino managed to bring out a whole new phalanx of locals who just plain got involved, Learned and got appointed an ran. They are not one trick ponies but now examine issues diligently, do their homework, are assessable and try to be as transparent as possible and I am not discussing the BOS exclusively.

So that is why I just love that damn casino. It has reverberated by bringing out new bodies with new ideas and a new level of involvement.

Backpacks have now reached the point where they need to be brought to the attention of the Nanny Police. On a recent flight I ended up with a bruised forehead and a scraped face thanks to one clod maneuvering it as he attempted to get into his seat. “Oh…excuse me did I hit you?” “No….I just punched myself in the head and scraped my face with my nails because I was bored.” This bag was huge. And the manners? Folks are so use to carrying them they are clueless that when you turn you are swinging something that sticks out well over a foot and closer to two feet.

A good baseball trade is one in which both teams win. Both teams have needs filled and they walk away from the transaction satisfied. No winners or losers. But with politics and especially the “Debt Crisis” you have to have a winner and a loser and that will be Republicans or Democrats depending upon whom is putting on the spin. Another disgraceful moment in our history and one in which the leadership gap is incredible. That leadership is our current president who will now be the 21st century answer to Herbert Hoover. Obama has shown racial equality at its very best in that a Black guy is as capable as screwing up as a White guy - especially any with a last mane of Bush.

Allin and Lance

2011-07-19T15:21:00.000-04:00

Allin Frawley has hit the ground running as he did for the BOS election and from what I have seen on his short stint on the BOS his work ethic is not isolated to the campaign trail but is a continuing process to understand the operations of the town - government and otherwise.

I’m sure that same quality will translate into performance when Allin is elected to that bastard step child known as the 12th Bristol. I even argue with myself so I’m sure Allin will do things that might run contrary to my own views but I know his opinion will be derived from doing some diligent homework and not an emotional rant. Folks really appreciated access and hard work no matter what their political perspective.

I have no idea why Roger Brunelle, Jr. has entered this race? He has no political resume that I know of and my typical knee jerk reaction is some type of vendetta to draw primary votes away from Allin. The typical straw entering the race whose only goal is to target one candidate. I hope I am wrong on this but until some definitive reason surfaces for entry into the race besides union affiliation I’ll stick with my knee jerk reaction.

Buy local is something we see and hear all the time. Just look at the closed storefronts downtown. For a few extra bucks you can avoid having your money sent to some hillbilly corporate center in Arkansas. Same with local produce. A bit more but fresh and, of course, local

Carpetbaggers were those loyalist of the Union during the Civil War who were rewarded with political jobs of reconstruction of the South. Southerners’ quickly despised these outsiders not only over the political connections but simply because they were only there for a few dollars and then would move on.

I had some real issues with Lincoln Lynch who was school superintendent starting around the time of King Phillips War. Lynch was here for at least twenty years in the command chair and was local. He knew Middleboro and you did have the consistency of leadership in a key town position.

Now those three paragraphs are - to steal a literary term - setting the stage. We now have a fire chief that is apparently on the move - again. May the next chief - if this one leaves - actually have some connection to the town. Maybe it is time to buy local? I really have some “issues” with residency but just maybe that does deserve a look. Maybe a key department needs someone who is more than two or three and out.

At this juncture the whole convoluted ambulance issue is up for more serious debate. Exactly what concessions are being tossed around? This will eventually come out in the wash since the negotiations have borrowed the Cone of Silence from “Get Smart.” Spataro was right in not voting.

Obesity And Other Comments

2011-07-16T08:22:00.001-04:00

Obese kids is what they now call fat kids. Now growing up we had fat kids. My friend Eddie was fat and I called him Eddie while others called him “Porky.” I called him Eddie because we lived close to each other and he could beat the snot out of me if he wanted to. Why chance it?

Now you looked at Eddie’s dad you could understand the fact genetics played part of it. But Eddie was no lay about. Eddie was quite active as we’d ride our bikes everywhere and he was top notch at baseball. Eddie was proof that you can have a few pounds on you and still be in good shape.

So what is the point of all this? I look at playgrounds today and they seem deserted. Growing up we’d get up real early in the AM to try to capture a baseball field and would play all day. No video games to occupy our time as technology was a state of the art pool cue or going bowling at a place that no longer used pin boys. To get places we’d ride our bikes. There were friends of mine I loved to ride with not because of any great bonding allegiance but the fact they could fix a bike. That was their gateway into becoming full fledged motor heads when we got old enough to have a car. I had zero mechanical ability and still have zero so I was always amazed by the ability to see the problem, diagnosis the problem and fix the problem. Now it seems like the bikes are either disposable or you go to a bike shop for repairs.

Now today it seems car pool has become a term that we had no use for “Back in the day.” You think mom or dad would give you a ride of a mile or so? We walked. In fact many of us walked to school. My JHS was a mile and a half so I walked. Occasionally we’d get a ride but it was not a given nor was it expected. Especially with parents who had grown up in a depression and WW II. They were use to doing without and it would take awhile to erase that mind set.

TV was starting to become a big deal in the 50s but it was not the conglomerate of channels you have today. Nor did you have multiple sets. If mom or dad commandeered the set it was tough cookies so you and your buddies would have to occupy your time developing your own mischief. Most of that including running about the neighborhood.

I could go on and on about how technology has impacted our lives especially those under twenty but the whole idea is not a “Good old days” versus today but just to isolate the one thing that seems to divide my generation from those of my grandkids and that is level of activity. I just don’t see the expenditure of energy thanks to the options technology provides. How much of that obesity level would be reduced with an increase in physical activity?

Kevin Reddington is the lawyer whose job it is to defend his client one Catherine Greig the best he can. So he is using the Robin Hood defense to make her sixteen year companion Whitey Bulger seem like some type of hero in the Boston area and, naturally, his moll, Greig, was just a companion who admired this salt of the earth character. And that is another chapter in why I diss lawyers.

Scott Brown is in for smooth sailing for another term as Democrats seemed to have gone to the second tier for candidates.

“Mumbles” doesn’t want WalMart in Boston. I’m sure a good portion of the populace feels perfectly comfortable at Copley Place as a destination to spend their payroll checks for low three figures.

Once again the government needs money to cover their own incompetence and it is done with dire threats of financial collapse. Why just think of Greece and magnify it say a thousand times. On the loony front we have the President pandering for support of his own irrational fiscal and leadership failures by using the typical scare tactics of no SS checks nor entitlement checks. I’m all for the stop feeding program and placing the government on a fiscal diet. Maybe a good cleansing is needed and this is the opportunity to do it?

The lineup to replace Canessa is just about set and it looks like Middleboro could quite possibly end up with a “Home Boy” hustling into Boston each day. Will Allin take the “T” like Dukakis did? Allin will win.

The proposed increases in the water and sewer rates are confiscatory. Time for a well and a two holer.

I have a son who lives in Brockton yet “farms” on our property. A woodchuck has decided to use his garden as a personal buffet and he has responded. So far this is right out of “Caddyshack” with the gopher and Bill Murray.

“I was brought here to do something and do it now” was the quote I heard from one of the obstinate obstructionist regarding the debt crisis. A politician actually doing what he was elected to do. How novel.

It is also not a debt problem but a spending problem.

All Sorts Of Stuff

2011-07-10T08:48:00.001-04:00

Thankfully there is legislation afoot in Congress to eliminate the passage to CFL’s bulbs that you need a HazMat team to replace. Those little suckers give off about as much light as a birthday candle and cost about five times what I pay for Edison’s original.

Some of Obama’s pronouncements on the economy of a few years back have come back to bite him in the azz and even the Democrat operatives are now in full fledge damage control. Unemployment and economic growth have been stagnant and the traditional Democratic practice of tossing money at a problem has failed.

The Republicans express joy - of course - at the continued morass of the economy but - naturally - have managed to attempt to distance themselves from their own culpability in this mess. What exactly got us to the failed policies of Obama? Just wander down to Crawford Texas for your answer.

I see a nice lineup forming for the gig being deserted by Steve Canessa. Nothing like upward political mobility and the old “I can do more in the State House” mantra. With so many getting into the race this may be an occasion with more candidates than voters. I also am somewhat disappointed that a candidate I supported a few months ago decided to pull up stakes and attempt to move on. Maybe Allin will serve in both posts? IMO it is harder work being a member of the BOS than “On The Hill.” But those wages in the State House are nice.

Now on the next BOS race do we have M&M popping out of the woodwork?

I saw an accident scene and Brewster had one of their meat wagons show. Looked new - either that or they really kept those things shiny. Was unnecessary - thankfully.

Casey Anthony trial is finally over. I didn’t follow much of it - just the usual excerpts that appeared on the internet - but I was surprised by the verdict. I guess to prove your case beyond all reasonable doubt means to have pictures of her committing the crime.

On a recent trip I once again was witness to the utter incompetence and common sense that prevails at our airports thanks to the government version of mall cops - the TSA. I’m in line 40 minutes and the backup behind me is long, real long. So TSA opens up two new lines and then goes over and grabs the folks that just got in line. Great. After I got through I went over to the genius who ran this operation and asked if they had ever been in line at a store? I said the usual procedure is to say “May I help the next person in line” when opening up a new register. That the TSA folks could have just moved us directly to the newly opened area. This idea seemed to be beyond their comprehension.

Now TSA will certainly get more power to this quasi police force as someone - probably TSA - floated the idea of surgically implanted bombs. I can’t wait until they give these diaper checking federal goons guns.

The Patriot Act is one of the most despicable pieces on intrusive police state legislation to show up since Abe put the kibosh on Habeas Corpus during the Civil War. The PA is now being used to “enforce” warrants that have little evidence if any behind them. One even involved a school loan where a man and his family were held virtually hostage over a school loan his ex had not paid and who was no longer living in the residence. The simple fact is the more power you give government the less you have and a clear example of that is the proliferation of laws over the decades from the simplest to the complex.

And in that area of laws comes regulations. I imagine just about any business could be shuttered at any time if a government “enforcer” looked deep enough into the books of regulations. Maybe a business didn’t properly fill out some form that even in the most obscure way has little or nothing to do with their operations. That opens a door. Amazing the standards that government holds individuals and businesses to but does not hold themselves to.

The Bulger case clearly has demonstrated that just because you have the tag FBI does not mean you are incapable of accepting a bribe or somehow magically are a pristine seeker of truth and justice. The level of corruption in the agency harkens back to their pre Hoover dress wearing days.

Now the latest ban being proposed is that old evil known as chocolate milk. Another example of how all intrusive our government is becoming in managing our lives to the whims and dictates of a few who - naturally - know better than us. Why does it seem Massachusetts is always on the cutting edge of this nonsense?

The space shuttle is now history and will probably soon be joined by NASA itself.

Saw the movie “Bad Teacher” and it was hilarious.

In Texas gas prices were about $3.33 a gallon. Kroger’s Super Market sold gas for $.3.05 if you had their card. I did get some gas in Texas City for $3.39 and Texas City refines about 20% of our fuel. Go figure.

Red Sox had started to sputter a bit but woke up the last seven or so days. Even with injuries they should be in the playoffs.

Middleborough Historical Society has their annual Ice Cream Social this Sunday

Houston

2011-07-04T22:29:00.003-04:00

I noticed my running or waddling partner had a travelog on his trip to D.C. so I figure I'd do one now that I just returned from Houston.

This was not a vacation as such but a Red Sox road trip for my daughter and myself. Three games at the fabulous Minute Maid Park in downtown Houston.

Now we stayed out by Bush International (IAH) since a downtown hotel is about six to ten times what you pay around the airport. Travel was exceptionally easy since the usual snarl of greater Houston was not present thanks to the 4th. If not this city has among the worse traffic in the country. Public transportation is limited to a small LRV line and buses so cars are the way to go.

Now when you visit Houston there is very little to do in the downtown area. Almost nothing of merit since it is a collection of skyscrapers. In fact Saturday at noon time we went to the Houston Aquarium and there was no traffic to get there and none on the city streets. Easy to park. Downtown is limited to a theater district, a museum section and a non descriptive shopping district. Everything is outside the core city.

So if you go to Houston the main targets would be on I-45 heading south to Galveston. We went to Kemah and the Kemah Boardwalk that has a new five star wooden roller coaster that is one of the best I've ever been on. The Boardwalk has about a dozen rides that can have a daily pass or individual purchase. Plenty of restaurants and I'd suggest Joe's Crab Shack that is part of the Landry's chain of restaurants.

In the same area is NASA and that is fairly self descriptive as you can grab a shuttle tour of the facility. We did it about ten years ago and there is something for everyone and some good hands on stuff.

At the end of I-45 is Galveston and that is the main destination in the area. Moody Gardens is a fascinating place that will take you all day.

Next up would be the ultimate water park right next to Moody Gardens and that would be Schlitterbahn and that could also chew up an entire day.

In downtown Galveston is the Strand District that takes up about an eight block area around the waterfront. Galveston also has a selection of fine Victorian homes for viewing at a nominal charge. Then you have the beaches and from the West End of Galveston on the fee is free. Others are a few dollars. Galveston is also the center for the cruise lines to dock. But now back to the important stuff - The Boston Red Sox.

Three games that had the highest attendance figures of the season except for opening day. Red Sox Nation was in full bloom and this was a home game on the road. Sox fans everywhere. The "Let's go Red Sox" spontaneous chant totally drowning out any attempts by the Astro fans to quell the boisterous members of RSN.

Pres game lineup introductions gave a hint. Huge and demonstrative for Red Sox and mild and polite for the Astros. Game reports even commented on the Red Sox fans obvious enthusiasm and support of their team. Ditto by player comments from the Astros who expressed a high level of jealousy.

Friday night fireworks were spectacular as they "Popped the Top" since Minute Maid has a retractable roof. The display was timed to music of Boston groups Aerosmith, The Cars and Boston. On Saturday night the display mimicked our own Esplanade 4th display.

Sunday was when they played Sweet Caroline for their 6th inning "Kiss Cam" segment and also had lobster rolls available in the Diamond Club.

The food at MM is both exceptional quality and reasonable. The Blue Bell four scoop ice cream cone was $5.50. Popcorn - a tub - was $4 and a large drink was $4.50. The variety was from Bar-B-Que to seafood to Cajun to Tex-Mex with lines that moved quick. Even a McDonald's available but no Dunkin' Donuts. Their food service and park amenities put Fenway to shame.

Parking at the ballpark lot is $15 but lots near the park range $10-20 with free parking or meter (no charge after 6PM and weekends) a ten minute walk - if you don't mind walking in 100 degree weather.

On Friday morning we went to check out ticket upgrades and saw three gentlemen with suitcases attempting to get into a gate that was locked. I told my daughter they were coaches and she didn't believe me until we got close and I said "Good luck in the series, gentlemen, and especially you Terry." Was Francona and two of his coaches trying to get in.

The upgrades were not necessary as on Friday we sat in section 328 ($23), Saturday in section 418 ($16) and on Sunday six rows from the field in section 111 ($60). Far cheaper than Fenway. Great views in the cheap seats - Spataro would like that - and less crowded for the bathrooms and food.

On Sunday the Sox side of the field was mobbed and we had trouble even getting to our seats as fans tried to get up close and personal during pre game. The Astros side was deserted. Kind of sad.

About ten minutes before the Sox took the field reserve infielder spent about five minutes signing autographs next to the Sox dugout and was soon joined by a few other players. Nice touch. Beckett - who was starting - handed his warm up ball to a kid. During the game Sutton hit a foul in our section and a guy went nuts to grab it, spilled his beer and almost did a face plant. Then he hands it over to a kid about five years old a row behind him. Nice gesture.

BOS And Concessions

2011-06-28T09:03:00.001-04:00

Is it all about safety or is it all about the money or is it all about the union and salaries and benefits?

The recent discussion focused on the emotional high note of having three operating fire stations complete with a smorgasbord of EMT’s available for the growing populous. No argument with that as all one has to do is cruise down Route 28 and see the 4X8 placard in front of the station spray painted with “Station closed.”

During the discussion the previous week you had a line of firefighters and/or their relatives and - of course - the out of town firefighters who support the grant that has been discussed over and over and over. The mind numbing figures that never seem to have any connection to one another. The projections which are just that. Insurance regulations, mileage, equipment expenses and all the assorted minutiae that makes me thankful I am not on FinCom, BOS or the Chief.

So is it really all about that main focal point of safety? That was the trump card. Like any good poker player the BOS called the bluff - deliberately or not - by attaching “concessions” to the grant. The classic Quid Pro Quo. I doubt this was planned strategy but it did take the BOS off the temporary hook and dump it firmly into the hands of the firefighters. You want this? You talked of safety? OK….give us 5% or even 10% back in salaries and benefits to show us you can do the walk after doing the talk. How about call firefighters that have been used extensively in the past and are in other communities? Is this really a union inspired roadblock?

Now....contingent on concessions from the firefighters’ union is a phrase I see in The Enterprise. Does no concessions kill this? Will the BOS then scuttle this?

Now if the firefighters do give concessions that in turn will open the door for revisiting other contracts that may be in negotiation. It may be a revisiting to all those retirees.

The BOS seemed to be almost uniform in the necessity of playing some fiscal hardball down the line with all the town unions simply because at our current way of doing business it is fiscally unsustainable.

Lawyers And Courts

2011-06-26T08:16:00.001-04:00

I am positive there are “good Lawyers” just as there is good and bad types of cancer.

The older I get the more cynical I get especially with the way various systems operate and on the very pinnacle of my list is the legal profession. Now we have all heard jokes directed at a particular ethnic group, race or profession and if we choose to chuckle we do so because of an inherent grain of truth that makes you nod your head in agreement. So when I hear a lawyer joke I end up with my neck in traction from excessive nodding.

I was recently in a court where you could observe the two classes that fundamentally made up the circus atmosphere - those about to be plundered of their last few remaining shekels and those doing the plundering. It was best described when I hear one court clerk introducing another new court clerk to a lawyer with the line “He is now one of us.” That about sums up the caste system known as courts. The legal system is operated on exactly the same premise as a casino - keep them coming back until they are broke.

Into this mix is tossed a glib and fast on their feet group of individuals who are know as lawyers. Now I have come to consider them very elegant in the art of deception, half truths, wordsmanship and what you and I would simply refer to as “creative liars.” Just look at our government that has a proliferation of lawyers representing us. Maybe instead of term limits we should bar the bar?

Howie Carr said “In the halls of justice the justice is in the halls.” So in the hallway I could easily eavesdrop on the wheeling and dealing taking place. Tit for tat…quid pro quo…anyway you turn it was an attempt at bargaining or was it? I was privy to two conversations that let me think otherwise. If a client ever heard what was going on they’d flee and take their chances being on the lamb.

Just about the worse crime imaginable is contempt of court. The judge has immense powers within his/her domain and usually enjoys that privilege thanks to a generous political contribution to a governor. I observed one judge continually complain in open court about her case load a time constraints. It became a shrill whine. All one has to do is look at our current job picture and then what a jurist rakes in to realize this is a cushy gig.

The idea in court is to intimidate. The building itself usually is a structure that attempts to incorporate some classic Greek into the architecture. The judge sits at the zenith of the court room so you must look up at the awe inspiring presence replete with black robe usually covering fashion that looked like at explosion at Sears. There are various functionaries scurrying about like worker bees bringing nourishment to the queen on the bench. They also are usually attired in tacky dress and uniforms that - to be kind - need to be taken out a bit. But it all comers down to intimidation. Our ballpark. Our rules.

What amazes me is the inability of a lawyer to say yes or no. They may demand a yes or no from a witness but when asked a direct question it is like trying to catch sand. I see our own Town Council when asked by the BOS for an opinion give statements such as “This could mean” or “Could possibly be interpreted as” or “Potentially could” and on and on it goes. The evasiveness is amazing.

Then you have the cult of linguistics that the Billy Flynn’s (look it up) thrive on. You attempt to read a legal document your eyes just glaze over and IMO that is 100% deliberate. Why confuse you with something you can actually comprehend? Just make sure that within every overly wordy document is enough trap doors to either let your client escape or to just screw over Jane and Joe citizen. I know some attempts have been made to modify some basic agreements but just go to the general laws of Massachusetts and take a look. Case closed!

What seems to keep everything rolling is the fact that many outrageous decisions are merely based on previous outrageous decisions thus continuing a pattern of dysfunction. IMO the law and common sense are polar opposites. So you simply reference other harebrained decisions with the goal of hoping your client becomes the beneficiary of another harebrained decision. Sometimes the ruse is amusing to the nth degree such as the William Fallon (look him up) that claimed the bribe paid to Sal DiMasi was a gratuity.

What really can get a “big score” is a class action suit where you can either legitimately build a serious case for grievances that have to be addressed. The big downside is creating a grievance that should not be addressed. Just a gander of afternoon TV or channels that pull in a .01 rating shows the occasional attempts to build a suit: “Have you ever had hemorrhoids?” Well…call us! You may be entitled to compensation. The term “ambulance chaser” came about for a reason.

Ah….compensation is what you get after they get their cut. What it really amounts to is a form of “vigorish” that will have the same impact on your compensation as a school of staving Piranhas will have on a water buffalo that wandered into the river. My own personal experience with this surfaces frequently with investments. In one settlement for a class action the plaintiffs (stockholders) received about 4% with the rest going you know where.

Now some of our greatest leaders have been lawyers and some of our greatest crooks have been lawyers so some type of cosmic balance seems to take place. I also notice that TV shows love to focus on the glamorous lives of three key groups in society - law enforcement, lawyers and the medical profession. As far as the law is concerned just go to any court on any day and all ideas of glamor quickly vanish. If sitting in a decrepit building attempting to formulate some type of bizarre defense for a client is glamor then I’ll stick to cleaning up the dog droppings in my back yard.

Ambulance Comments

2011-06-21T18:03:00.000-04:00

Chief Benjamino made a very convincing argument for the serious under staffing of the Middleboro FD.

Chief Benjamino did not make a very convincing argument for the potential revenues received from each ambulance run.

Is it possible to get an acronym handout before these meetings?

Why is a firefighter on dispatch? Makes no sense to me. Is it a union thing? Seems like it would be more cost effective to have civilian dispatch.

I have not quite figured out all the intricacies of being a call firefighter but it seems to make some sense to significantly upgrade their wages and supplement each shift with call firefighters. Is this another union thing? Seems they could staff North and South with two fire fighters and call firefighters.

I just don’t consider Medicare plus 100% or 200% as realistic. Are all insurers really going to pay that much? We are going to trust numbers set by government regulators and the insurance industry?

Look like a union meeting of firefighters Monday night.

Some of the questions seemed staged especially the one directed by a fire captain to his chief. Real softball.

EMS Committee report will be interesting.

Is one week enough for FinCom to digest all those numbers?

Former TM Jack Healey had a vested interest with his son a firefighter. Maybe it gives him more insight or maybe a slanted view? Don’t know.

When you are on FinCom and then speak as a private citizen it reminds me of Marsha’s mad dash from behind the desk to the podium.

Very polite audience on a potential volatile subject.

Mention of the size of the town in 1985 compared with today regarding staffing but was anything mentioned about call volume changes?

Two new trucks valued at 1.4M so maybe an expenditure of 500K or so a year isn’t that bad?

What exactly is the tipping point regarding potential yearly shortfalls? What is acceptable? What can we - as taxpayers - live with?

The chief spoke of union give backs. I won’t hold my breath on that.

If you were ever going to have a coronary that was the place to have it.

I checked online and an ambulance isn’t cheap. These babies go for $100,000 - 150,000 easy. No doubt we’ll get the $150,000 one.

Will an ambulance service be a foot in the door legislation? Will we in a few years need maintenance people? Other support personnel? Add on a body here and a body there?

What exactly will we get from Brewster? Seems like they’ll be adding to the tax rolls.

Is that great Helicopter Pad at the old St. Luke’s still buried in weeds?

Is it possible to hit some local businesses on this? Any exotic taxes? Maybe the town can get a few ambulances and Charlie can claim they are recycling trucks? Take it out of the trash tax.

How about our friends at Overcharge Rate Payers G&E helping out? They have their little trust fund of about 5M. Kick in an ambulance.

Is there any way they could actually grab CPA money for this? Doesn’t look like it but there is always the weasel factor.

Chief Benjamino was getting a little tired the last hour or so. Chief did a great job lasting for what amounted to a questioning marathon. Looked like he needed a nice ice tea.

A Failed President And Economy

2011-06-15T13:35:00.000-04:00

Tick….tick…tick as the unemployment continues to tick upwards which the dismal administration continues to rely on the usual suspects: “I’m from Harvard and I’m here to help you.” The administration tried bailouts, a massive jobs program, tinkering with taxes and a multitude of other attempts to gets the pumps going to bail out a sinking ship. So far the end result is a pile of debt, high unemployment, stagnant job growth and a deer in the headlights look from the woebegone Obama.

I will still see the occasional - their numbers are shrinking - defenders of the faith tossing out the Bush card. OK….he was wretched in his years in office. He certainly contributed mightily to the mess including some questionable tax cuts from the “I’m from the Hoover Institute and I’m here to help you” crowd. Personally I like the idea of lower taxes funded by lower spending - a concept that seems to have escaped our “leaders” in D.C.

From what little I have seen of Bush II my assumption is he’s in the witness protection program but his ownership of this mess dissipates with every month’s job report. Now it is firmly in the lap of “The Magic Negro.” But with magicians it is not real but an illusion and I see the illusion presented daily by the likes of the NY Times or MSNBC or the administration when the reality is things ain’t any better. As Obama said recently “The sky is not falling.” Huh?

Now I have no real solutions and if I really felt I did I’d forge some documents and claim I’m a Harvard bred economist and I can join the parade of pointed headed liberals from the ivy covered walls who have fed the Prez all that wonderful information - say, how is that 8% unemployment working out?

What really irritates me besides NY ( AKA - Noo Yawk) Yankee fans is the way Congress and the administration have no apparent spending constraints. Debt? What debt? If I ran my personal finances like they manage a “budget” I’d have been in bankruptcy court a year or so ago. At the core of the budget is entitlements and those seem to have taken on the political line in the sand. Fiscally responsible legislators want talks on it. Note the word talks….lines of discussion. What can we do? So far the Democrats have been stationary and intransient on the issue with a few who have drifted over to “The dark side.” Ignoring a problem will not work. Obstructionism will not work. Blatant class warfare will not work. Time to actually come up with some options. Get together boys and girls or you will most certainly be gonzo.

The one thing that totally confuses me - well, actually one of many things - is the Federal Reserve and monetary policy. All I seem to garner from various financial sites is our dollar sucks. I think that is an economist term? Maybe some day one of those pointed headed liberal economist from Harvard could explain monetary policy for me - providing they are not under the microscope for not paying various taxes for having an undocumented illegal alien cleaning their house or watching their kids. Maybe I should drag out one of my dusty history books and hone up on those various gold versus silver arguments from the 19th century?

Now one thing I have seen surface in various articles is how states, cities and towns, and just about anyone else getting money from the government is having their budget crunched since stimulus money was used to fund programs, jump start programs or create a new layer of programs. They use the fancy term “revenue shortfall” which you and I call “being broke.” The money was a carrot. Some or most fell for the siren song warbled by the Feds. I do not see any Orpheus to save us from crashing upon the fiscal rocks.

Now that stimulus money should be a clear warning for our humble little community when it comes to grants. What happens when the grant disappears? As with the Feds the stimulus was just short term infusion with an accompanying long term debt but funding by the various entities’ would be simple since we’d be in full recovery. Not! So the trap has been set and the only way to solve the problem is the way government has traditionally solved said problem - revenue enhancement or to you and me more taxes and fees. In many localities a visible front line casualty is summer jobs programs otherwise know as a bribe to keep kids from just hanging around causing mischief. But it certainly does not stop there as some lower echelon heads will roll in the public sector thanks to a “shortfall,” unless, of course, you are a manager in the state of Massachusetts getting a nice 3% kiss. Nice job, Deval!

Now when the Feds cut bucks that means states cut bucks and that means cities and towns get screwed. Then just toss in the “M” word - mandates - and the problems just multiply. And that, of course, brings us right back to revenue enhancement and the fact folks have reached the melting point with confiscatory tax/fee policies.

So I might not know much on all this mess and I believe this post has clearly demonstrated that but I do know what is being done isn’t working and I also know that the government is being run contrary to my own personal process of running my own finances. And I do know that government policy directly impacts what I do and limits my own fiscal security and growth. So Congress and the President are directly screwing around with me.

I love Victorian houses. I’d have one if visions of the movie “Money Pit” didn’t dash through my skull every time I see one of the hulking behemoths enter the market. Now I’ve seen a few and the term the real estate hustlers use is “It has potential.” In real estate speak that means you better have some serious cash flow because this baby is going to need some serious work.

Now it is time to go all Chauncey Gardner on you. So right now we all live in a Victorian and it was once quite stately - a gem of vigor, strength, glory and a pleasure to view. Envy to all those sheltered in a basic cape or six room ranch but the upkeep was ignored. It is now a shell with a rotting interior that is occasionally addressed with quick fix repairs that temporarily mask the problems but do not solve them. This President and his administration have failed. Miserably failed. That was clearly demonstrated in the elections of 2010. Now have I seen any dramatic change since the infusion of Republicans? To quote Spencer Triby (Charlton Heston) “I have seen nothing to make me lift my skirt.”

Mostly Politics

2011-06-11T17:16:00.001-04:00

Representative Anthony Weiner has managed to go center stage for a few weeks over some rather explicit photos he posted. In the best tradition of one nabbed came first the denial, followed by evasiveness and finally full admission complete with an Ed Muskie press conference.

As the days have gone by this is no longer a lapse of judgment but a pattern of sexual explicit emails and postings. Weiner is now a “problem” for the Democrats but he is also a moonbat favorite and some have taken to some rather bizarre attempts at justifying his actions. Personally I’m waiting for Jessie to blame it on the Koch Brothers.

Weiner seems to want to stay on the job no matter what and no matter how much pressure is applied. This is right out of page one of the Studds/Frank playbook where no matter what the level of shame you hang on. I’m sure Weiner knows that both survived rather well despite indiscretions that in the real world could grab you some jail time.

Now the talk shows and especially the NY Post have had some merriment with the Weiner - Notice how I avoided saying they are being “hard” on Weiner-
predicament leading to what I consider my two favorite headlines - both in the Post.

“Fall on your sword” and “Erections have consequences.”

The Democrats seem to have less of a shame factor than Republicans.

Sarah Palin had a unique interpretation of American history that actually was accurate. Understanding history and having “dumb luck” are obviously present in this case and to be the latter wins out.

The Town Meeting went rather quickly and I managed to arrive around Article twelve thanks to a hot water heater deciding to leak and getting stuck in a massive Boston traffic jam. Wayne Perkins kept things moving and the BOS had some practice speed reading. A few totally unnecessary head counts that bogged things down just a bit.

I was surprised at the overwhelming acceptance of a tax break for saving military. Totally unnecessary.

Jim Thomas had a letter in the Gazette a few weeks back that demonstrated an appalling lack of understanding of the current military. He was no doubt reflecting upon the beer league soldiers in the century in which he served. . A rebuttal appeared in the Gazette this week and pointed out the numerous flaws in Jim’s reasoning. He must not have been awake when a recent group of local guardsmen were sent off to Afghanistan or articles appear in the various papers about deployments. You join the guard you will be deployed.

Thankfully a power grab by the BOS regarding CPC appointments was deep sixed.

I have often considered TM the purest form of special interest and was not disappointed when after the Rivers Edge vote at least twenty-five headed for the exits.

The Republicans have not really offered much as an alternative to the dismal performance of the Community Organizer In Chief which bodes well for this apparent failure. No real alternative has surfaced unless Mitt is considered viable or electable.

There is a scene in the movie Titanic where the ship is sinking and you see all the rats scurrying to escape. Presidential wannabe Newt Gingrich (R-Infidelity) had his entire staff quit on him. The HMS Gingrich is taking on water and about to sink.

My wife - The Lovely Cynthia - had her annual meeting of the Middleborough Historical Association and was rather upset afterwards about how she conducted the meeting since her grasp of Robert’s Rules leaves a wee bit to be desired. However she muddled along and it was not as bad as she thought it was. I sympathize with her as I find the whole process confusing and boring like the Town Meeting. If I was running the meeting then you would see a real butcher job. Some live off the organized mayhem and I don’t.

The town of Norton I believe has a nice sixteen page book describing the process of TM.

At TM one speaker took a nice cheap shot at Lakeville over the rejection of SYSCO. Was right on target.

Are they still hunting down a new school superintendent? Do you have to be a swim coach to apply?

Obamacare is really starting to look rather bleak. Forget the waivers that now number over 1,300 it will all come down to employers willing to pay fines rather than submit to the program. That burden then falls upon the tax rolls. Been a number of neutral reports showing all the flaws.

D use to stand for Democrat and now it stands for Demagoguery. Paul Ryan started the ball rolling on entitlements especially the twin towers of fiscal doom - Medicare and Medicaid. Both chew up over 25% of the budget and are based on a model that is 20...30...and even 40 years old and that represents a drastic change in demographics, funding and expansion of programs. Instead of having a debate on this issue the Democrats are hiding behind that curtain and hauling out all the traditional evils in that this is just another Republican venture to protect their rich constituent base and heavy donors. This myopic view designed to play to the choir does nothing to address the issue. They offer up no alternatives other than to portray themselves right out of the Nikko Toshogo Shrine in Japan - hear, see and speak no evil.

The Democrats have this long tradition - or at least claim to have it - of actually having some sympathy for the downtrodden - much like Progressive Republicans of the last century. IMO that image dissipated years or decades ago. The issue of entitlements is out of control. This is not Chicken Little but a fiscal tsunami that will continue to get worse.
Friday is now free ice tea day at Cumberland Farms and I must say I have taken an obscene advantage of the situation. If I could actually feel remorse I’d be concerned but I started out with getting the paper and an ice tea at 6:30AM. When I went running about 9:30 I stopped at the Cumby’s downtown for a pre run drink. Returning from the trails it was a post run drink at the Cumby’s in Bridgewater and then still another in Middleboro. I justify this by the fact that on free ice coffee days I sample none since I can’t stand ice coffee. I can rationalize my behaviors with the best of them.

On a sports posting board a New York fan was poking fun at our regional accent that is certainly of higher quality than anything in the NY area. Anyways I posted we pronounce New York as “Noo Yawk” as in “We swept Noo Yawk…twice.” Got several likes for that one.

Waiting For Town Meeting Torture

2011-06-05T16:08:00.002-04:00

“Say On Pay” votes are part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act and allow stockholders to have a non binding vote of executive compensation. When you examine some of the bloated compensation packages it makes the hand outs to public service unions look down right miserly. I have seen some bonus attachments that exceed base pay twenty fold along with a mountain of perks that range from private jet transportation to retirement packages for spouses. Excessive is the best description.

Now those proxy statements I get actually have - on occasion - some meaning and I can vote for or against executive compensation packages which will usually mean a thumbs down. I have always been an advocate for profit sharing as long as it is consistent through the company but have never been one for performance bonuses. I have personally experienced highly paid executives with steep loaded bonuses who have virtually ruined companies and two come to mind - Howard Johnson Companies and Ground Round.

I may critique the performance of those in the public sector but the private is certainly not immune from the same type of Peter Principle types who have devastated companies by decisions that left the generally worker bee population scratching their heads and muttering “What are they thinking?” Sometimes it amazes me at how on target those in the very bottom rung of daily operations had more instinctive insight than the seven figure crowd.

Rank has privilege is a phrase often tossed around since in the military that is exactly so. There are provisional restraints placed on one star and higher regarding composition of staff and usually a general is allowed one officer as an aide de camp.

One of my son’s retired from the army a few years back after twenty-five years of service with an extensive list of “hot spots” from Panama to various excursions into Iraq. His last assignment was for a two star in Iraq for 2007-08. Was quite interesting just what can be available for a general as far as private transportation to even having your own chef. This general, however, was not one prone to excesses and would be willing to make the coffee if he arrived early or to even assist in the more mundane tasks that would happen on a command post. Wanted to know and understand every detail and task. My son said his entire focus was how to put the troops at minimal risk yet successfully complete the mission. In the business world your failures are jobs lost and stock prices plummeting but in the military your mistakes arrive in the middle of the night in Dover, Delaware.

Up before Town Meeting (The purest form of special interest) is a proposal to have troops deployed in a combat zone excused from paying real estate taxes. At least that is my understanding. Now in a combat zone you pay no taxes on federal or state income including all combat pay. Zero. In addition a housing allowance is also available and that can be substantial. The son mentioned above had his PIT paid on his home while serving in Iraq. Another son currently serving gets a $500 housing allowance. Others in his unit who live closer to or in Boston receive substantially more. Some banks will also freeze all payments with no accrued interest while stationed in a combat zone. Some credit card companies will do the same or substantially reduce interest. SSCRA (Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Civil Relief Act) covers what can be done to financially protect someone assigned to a combat zone. IMO it is a well intentioned but needless gesture.

The Democrats have now wrestled the Party of No label from the Republicans. Representative Ryan has put forth proposed legislated to target spending and within that are the three major entitlement programs - Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. The proposal has holes and plenty of them but that is just what it is - a proposal. So far all that is coming forward from Democrats is the old classic arguments that Republicans are tossing the poor, elderly, and disadvantaged under the bus in favor of their fat cat sponsors. Nothing has come forward to offer some alternatives. It is clear that the total focus is to demonize any and all Republicans to secure another term for WOW and to get a majority in Congress.

Mitt Romney certainly looks like a president right out of central casting. But looks and promise of hope and change can be very fleeting as in the case of the Community Organizer In Chief. His tenure to this point has been a dismal disappointment to me and a failure. The economy continues in reverse and debt continues to pile on and so far the only thing that this president and both parties seem to try and accomplish is weaseling out of accountability, pointing the finger of blame and attempting to get elected.

Can I get a TIF?

Dice-K or as I called him Dice-W appears to have finally succumbed to injury and will need significant surgery. Of course many in Red Sox Nation now using the value of hindsight have condemned this signing. Just a glance in the history files of various sports boards shows a different attitude after his 2008 season where RSN was in full brag mode over this “steal” of talent especially with the failure of Kei Igawa in NY.

IMO Dice-K was not a bad FA signing since there were no substantial markers for injury. A bad signing is one where a track record of problems exists or the performance does not meet expectations - hello, J.D. Drew! This is just a career cut short by injuries from 2009 to the present. Of course his questionable training methods, WBC appearances and hiding injuries didn’t help.

My blog is handed out in law schools with the intend of training the budding Billy Flynn’s to say things even more idiotic than I do. A special honor should go to Martin Weinberg who claimed bribes paid to Sal DiMasi (D - Cedar Junction) were “gratuities.” This guy was serious!

James McGovern came close to having won a vote for the president to give a timetable for Afghanistan withdrawal.

James Daley is a ward six school committee member in Brockton who is packing it an after four terms. His reasoning? “I don’t think any elected position should be a lifetime appointment.”

Chris Christie (R - Air wolf) decided to take a helicopter to his son’s baseball game. Amazing! Do these folks ever think? I also understand the ‘copter laid down in the parking lot of a 7/11 on the way so he could grab a Snickers bar.

A few years ago my son Jonathan presented my wife - The Lovely Cynthia - with a present that was a five star gift in her view - a clothesline. Now this was build with treated lumber and the line was looped into pre cut holes and both sides were firmly planted into the ground. My contribution was not labor but two bags of clothespins.

A hearing was recently held at the State House regarding a local option that would prevent towns and cities from unreasonable restriction of “Solar clothes-drying devices” or said clothesline. Opponents have brought up the fact that these “devices” are unsightly and will diminish property values. Typical clueless elitist.

A recent study had three scents that humans find enticing. First on the list was the odor of fresh baked bread followed by bacon and last was sheets that had

Misc. Stuff

2011-05-30T16:45:00.001-04:00

I really enjoy the Science Fiction channel but their programming manager needs a huge dope slap. Why? The other night they had on a made for TV disaster movie about two monster storms converging on Chicago with a series of E-6 tornadoes devastating the city. Prior to this focal point of the movie was a series of similar tornadoes devastating the Midwest. This movie was presented a few days after Joplin. As the movie was playing 15 more were killed in the Midwest in the exact area where one of the TV monster storms had a path of destruction. I guess the programmers didn’t get their prescription for sensitivity pills refilled.

Gale Sayres was a marvelous professional football player. The “Kansas Comet” was flat out the most evasive running back I have ever seen until Deval Patrick started to swerve over the whole Sal DiMasi mess. The governor seems to be telling just enough in hope of keeping the hounds at bay.

Once again Barney Frank has showed there are two sets of rules - his and those for everyone else. His justification for putting the push on to get a former lover a gig in Washington is the old “Everyone does it.” This shameless hack would be skewered if he was a white heterosexual Republican.

I am mystified by the amount of attention given reality “stars” and the money that is tossed towards them for making fools of themselves. Heck….I do that on my blog and get nada.

How long will it take of old behaviors to surface at the MG&E? I have no illusions that all will be transparent, pristine and proper now that a public caning has taken place. They will eventually push the threshold a bit to see if a migration back to business as usual will take place. I’d be vigilant regarding contract negations, travel adventures and cost comparisons to other publics.

The Middleborough Historical Association will have one of their premier gatherings at the Fireside on June 7th at 6PM. This encompasses a short business meeting to be followed by a dinner and a guest speaker William Martin. The dinner is $28 per person and you do not have to be a member to attend. If you wish trot through the portal around 7:45 to catch Mr. Martin please do so. All are invited as you don’t have to be a MHA member to attend.

The Red Sox may have many of us paying a visit to the Crow Mart for a large helping of bird. Several early season failures have come out of their stupor to suddenly make the early season 2-10 start a very bad memory.

Borders bookstore is just about to become toast. Borders and its evil twin Barnes & Nobles have all the charm of roaming down the aisles at a big box store which is exactly what they are. Some have tossed in a coffee/desert bar in an attempt to give the feel of those quaint bookstores that have still managed to survive in a selective niche. Like I really want a desert directly from SYSCO?

The real reality is that electronics will virtually kill off most bookstores and newspapers. I have even joined the Kindle revolution and will say it is not on par with a real book but close enough not to make it a deal breaker.

President WOW (Walk On Water) has suggested that Israel return to 1967 borders. I’m sure he would also be willing to have the United States return to 1848 borders. Israel will not compromise it’s security especially knowing that a fickle U.S. could potentially turn neutral if the oil faucet is turned off.

Jerry Stiller and the Capital One commercials are enough to make me stuff money under the mattress.

With the warm weather comes the bugs and the weeds of which I hate both.

D.C./Baltimore/Travel

2011-05-24T13:17:00.000-04:00

Had an enjoyable trip to Baltimore and to Washington, D.C. (AKA - The scene of the crime). Baltimore is unique in that it contains historical importance in three important periods of American history - The Revolutionary War, The War Of 1812 and the Civil War. In fact the first casualties of the Civil War happens in Baltimore as a regiment of soldiers from Massachusetts were changing trains to Washington and a riot by southern sympathizers broke out and four soldiers and twelve civilians were killed.

In Baltimore it is easy and cheap to get around. Light rail from the airport is $1.60 and uses the honor system - try that in Boston. Downtown the Charm City Circulator is a bus line with three routes covering much of the city and is free. The Metro bus system and subway are also very reasonable.

If you wish to stay right at the inner harbor you will have to cough up some serious dead white guys but if you choose to wander a bit away bargains can be found. We stayed five blocks from the inner harbor and three from Camden Yards for $79 a night at the Radisson Lord Baltimore. A Travelzoo bargain.

To get to Washington you can either get elected, become a MG&E Commissioner or take the MARC train and that is also cheap (AKA - inexpensive) at under $4. That takes you right into Union Station and access to the Metro system which is also about $2 a ride depending upon time of day.

Unlike some well know local politicians some of us actually hunt out a bargain for a hotel and that is what I did. Check outside the city for the Crystal City, Pentagon and Roslyn area. Make sure a Metro station is nearby and there is also places to eat besides a pricey hotel unless, of course, you have a MG&E expense account. We managed to stay at a Doubletree for under $90 a night including taxes. Transport to the Smithsonian and Mall area was about ten minutes on the Metro.

Washington is really a bargain paradise as almost everything is free thanks to our tax dollars. The monuments are impressive and provide one with substantial walking exercise. The museums have something for everyone so I managed to get trapped in displays of Flemish art from the 18th century among other things. The city was crawling with kids on school trips and that managed to conjure up thoughts of exactly why I retired. Nothing like watching the harried teachers and chaperones ushering their flock around and attempting to round up strays. Been there and done that.

Whenever we go to the area my wife - The Lovely Cynthia - “encourages” a trip to Mt. Vernon. This time I did not object since a new museum had opened and I was interested in seeing it. Spectacular but I also had to do the tour of the mansion which IMHO is just not that impressive. If you are a first timer or have kids I’d suggest the boat cruise down and back otherwise the Metro and bus lines will get you there.

George Washington was an amazing person and set the tone for the presidency and is on the top of my list with Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, Harry Truman and Ronald Reagan. I was also “encouraged” on our blister inducing monument death march to go to the fairly new FDR Memorial. FDR is way down on my list of presidents but a very impressive job was done on his digs. We also avoided the White House tour - been there and done that many times and a long wait for the Washington Monument another been there for both of us.

Now back to one of my favorite travel sites and that is Travelzoo. TZ is great for hotel bargains and I have used it many times and they break it down by city. Most of the time it connects directly to the hotel web site but with a special promo code so you can get the deal. As with anything check out other sites and the hotel site for any promotions that may match or exceed that. I’ve actually never found one. Also go to Trip Advisor for hotel rating by customers. Great site. My only real knock is that too often some real specials are bait and switch since the site that has the deal may not really offer it. They connect a lot to Cheap Caribbean and that happens with that site frequently.

An excellent site for airfares is Airfare Watch Dog. This site has many unadvertised promotions and specials that usually are only delivered if you sign up on an airline web site. They break down the restrictions but also usually connect you to another site. Anyways, most sites air fare prices will be similar but double check with the specific airline for promotions.

When I run or waddle with BB much of our conversation centers around entitlements as you can tell if you waste your time reading his column or blog. BB pretends he is a liberal but he is Tea Party fiscal conservative on the financial aspects of pensions, benefits and salaries of public employees . Then toss in the usual budget busters of Medicare and Social Security. I was thinking of Bumpkin when I read an article about Stanley Thornton who collects a disability check since he suffers from infantilism.

Now Stanley at 350 pounds wears a diaper, has a crib and wears clothes suitable for a baby. Yet Stanley does drive a car, does not display this behavior in public, built the crib himself, has held jobs in the past and uses a computer to take out his ire over a politician - A Republican naturally - who questions why this character receives a disability check?

Stanley is symptomatic of what has eroded the SS system for decades. In education I use to get two or three forms a year to fill out so that a child could get what we called “funny money” over a disability of which the most prominent was ADD/ADHD. Getting that diagnosis is rather simple if you know the right physician to go to. So you end up with millions with serious issues and millions more running a scam and no way out. Just look at the legal humps that advertise about representing you in a disability issue with SS.

The great example of government handouts was a character in Michigan that won 2 million on the lottery and bragged about still collecting food stamps.

Dominique Strauss-Kahn has displayed the manners of a male member of the Kennedy clan. Strauss-Kahn is the one who is now the former director of the IMF (International Monetary Fund) who is in lock-up in NYC thanks to a rape charge regarding a hotel maid.

Now Strauss-Kahn has just been charged and has not been tried. My feeling is they’ll hammer the maid’s background or simply buy her off. Strauss-Kahn was also on the fast track to become President of France. What is even more amusing to me is that this diehard socialist who is so “for the people” thinks nothing of having it mandatory in his arrangements with the IMF to go first class with everything. Now other women are also coming forward to make similar pronouncements of sexual exploitation. Maybe Strauss-Kahn can take up residency in California and become governor?

The Red Sox have climbed out of the cellar and have briefly been in first place. The AL East is a very balanced division and a huge turn around from top to bottom of bottom to top can happen with a bad or good week.

A new book has portrayed Sarah Palin as cold and calculating. Nice to see the female pols acting like their male counterparts. Next thing you know will come the earth shaking pronouncement that some on Wall Street are “Cold and calculating.”

FEMA Grant/Patches Kennedy/Barney Frank/Other Stuff

2011-05-16T09:50:00.001-04:00

The Sting was a great movie about running a con game and in my opinion that is how grants operate. The idea with a con is to make the mark (not BB) think they are winning and with a grant you target a need and have a nice front end load (money) but the back end load is what kills you and that back end is it will become your responsibility for future funding.

Middleboro has a dire need for full or as close as your can get to it for fire services and a FEMA grant is available. No doubt about the need as that is a slam dunk. Now we’ll read all about numerical magic that may show just how the future funding will magically appear since the feds always have strings attached and in this case the strings are cut in two years. So what happens down the road? More layoffs of the newly hired? Reduced station hours - again? To quote Cuba Gooding: “Show me the money!”

What and where are potential sources of revenue? State just may open the door a bit with a little chip away at collective bargaining allowing some health care savings. The G&E will be shoveling some more PILOT money into the dismal coffers of our quaint community. Maybe negotiations with the myriad of town unions will get some needed cash flow? But extra cash means a feeding frenzy as everyone lines up for their collective share of the pie. This is an example of where government on all levels needs to be up front about anything and everything - you do it show where the money will be coming from.

I’ve loved to rake “Patches” Kennedy over the coals since I have always considered him the ultimate political lightweight living off of family name and connections. His issues with depression and addiction are well documented especially the more public displays that were a family and personal embarrassment but when you read his comments on his situation it really strikes an emotional cord. The guy is battling and will all his life. His exit from politics seemed to be a big plus for him and he has eloquently expressed that.

Occasionally I do actually agree with the Congressional king of spittle Barney Frank. Barney was yapping away about Republicans and their amnesia regarding putting some moderate clamps or road blocks in place for oil speculators. Speculators actually comprise most of the market and they do not drill, work on a platform, explore or anything else except display a casino mentality regarding oil futures. This has resulted in price escalation even when a glut of gasoline and oil appear. Even when consumption figures decrease. They do nothing but push paper around and take a financial risk with the end result being sky rocketing prices based on perceived down the road market conditions. When a shot is called wrong they can lose millions and even billions but even when wrong we still pay high prices thanks to an inflated commodity.

OBL is reported to have had quite a stash of porn. I wondered where all my stuff went.

OBL also had three wives. A Muslim custom is multiple wives and we do the same only consecutively.

Another Muslim was arrested for interfering with a flight by yelling “God is great” and attempting to get into the cockpit. Naturally one of the excuses of his legal hump is he was trying to get into the bathroom. I often yell “God is great” when my prostrate cooperates.

Now up at the plate is a potential tax on candy and soda under the guise of obesity. Yeah - like any of us really believe it is motivated by concern and not revenue.

I wonder if they will also tax diet drinks? Probably.

Will the nutrition nannies also target processed foods? Loaded with salt and just look at those ingredients.

I look at some of the visible physical conditions of supporters of revenue enhancement on soda and candy and wonder why they don’t practice what they preach?

There is also a proposal to now tax plastic bags at the supermarket with the stash being divided among the store and the revenue enhancers.

As I got older I noticed I sometimes forget where I’ve parked my car at the super market. What is especially alarming is when I have walked to the market.

And on the super market trail Stop & Shop is finally moving out. I really am not particularly fond of S&S and have often wondered why the Middleboro store has managed to survive since it always seems like a sparse number of customers when I do stop by.

I can’t imagine any pet messier than a parrot although my wife - The Lovely Cynthia - claims husbands could be considered their equal.

The local Dairy Queen has had some nice coupons. Many buy one get one free items.

Dustin Pedroia has been chasing out of the strike zone fastballs the way Charlie Sheen chases skirts only Charlie has had more success.

BB finally “educated” me on the value of a Kindle. I do prefer a book but not by enough to make it a deal breaker. I have loaded in about fifty books and almost all were free. Already paid for itself.

I have observed and participated in MCAS for about fifteen years and have come to the conclusion that teaching to the test has dramatically increased test scores but has dramatically reduced ingenuity, spontaneity and creativity in the classroom. Just an opinion.

Cameras to catch traffic violators is technology for diligent law enforcement or revenue enhancement? Just another way to legally be a pickpocket.

A nice grant for firefighters but the downside is what do you do when it runs out?

I am amazed that the most expensive of hotels charge - and a high price - for using wireless. $15 a day is not unusual. Yet a coffee house around the corner or a Motel 6 will have it free.

Another nickel and dime pathetic fee from high end resorts is a “resort fee” which is just another scam to help the bottom line.

Public Execution Of MG&E

2011-05-13T14:49:00.002-04:00

I will say that the MG&E management and Commissioners did display a modicum of survival skills the other night when faced with an onslaught of pointed questions. Chief inquisitor, Lincoln Andrews, had them - to use a boxing term - on the ropes especially “The Traveling Man” Don Triner. If this was a boxing match the referee would have quickly brought it to a halt and declared the collection from the MG&E victims of a TKO. “Consultants” and all.

Mr. Andrews showed he is capable of roasting a lot more than the editor of the Gazette and he continued a verbal execution that was all based on the MG&E putting on a display that was a mile wide and an inch deep. The tap dancing that took place by the MG&E collection that would have made BoJangles Robinson proud except the end result was what would expect when one side has the high ground, facts and a pile of angry ratepayers - to use another famed boxing term - No Mas. Capitulation. MG&E in full retreat. Cute graphics, double-speak and pricey consultants didn’t quite cut it.

What eventually came down was a moratorium on travel, more rate reductions and an increase in PILOT as the MG&E was in high profile damage control. IMO this will only increase the blood lust as the operations and especially contracts will face even more detailed scrutiny by those who have this apparently bloated “Public Municipal” firmly in their target zone. I’m sure the inner sanctum at the MG&E is hopeful that just maybe all those concessions will get the hounds off the scent for a bit but I suspect they’ll be more questions raised and more and more.

Now Commissioner Joseph Ranahan and a local resident, Brian Giovanoni, mentioned that any increase in PILOT is tantamount to a tax increase. Even Sandra Richter - the 110K spokesperson for MG&E - put the kibosh on that train of reasoning. This will just be a bit more out of their stated 4% profit. What was shocking was that one - Mr. Ranahan - actually takes up space on the Commission and didn’t comprehend this. Maybe Mr. Ranahan can answer why - on his watch - Braintree has about 35% more in revenues than Middleboro and pays a PILOT of 1.5M to Middleboro’s $400,000 while keeping rates 2.7 cents lower than the MG&E? How about a little less travel and a bit more diligence in what we placed our trust in - that the commissioners would protect our investment.

What is clear is that the excessive travel produced little of value to the rate payers and a nice plum “bonus” or sorts to elected officials. Mr. Triner can always return to the DPS (Dreaded Private Sector) and once again get the luxury he apparently craves.

But the MG&E can proudly state “We’re #1!” in the all important category of executive pay for a municipal as headmaster Granahan pulls in top dollar and not far behind is the rest of the illustrious management team that ranks either in the middle or very high depending upon how one wishes to include/exclude personnel in municipal comparisons. As Disraeli once said about three kinds of lies: “Lies….damn lies…and statistics.” Depends on what they wish to include and how they wish to interpret or frame it. So far it’s not flying since the third rate dips**ts that comprise Bub Town fully realize a pile of horse droppings when they hear it. All the consultants in the world could not rescue Humpty Dumpty Granahan. Say, how about that 7M?

Next is those gas rates and the bottom line is their bottom line will soon be a bit less since this is a collective “Gocha” and that will also see a decrease. I’m sure they were just ready to announce that even without a public outcry - yeah, right.

Of course the promise of further rate reductions (bribes) is on the agenda as they make an ill fated attempt at damage control. Seemed local Rich Young didn’t really buy into the all of a sudden generous mode of the MG&E. My, Rich, you are such a skeptic! You actually think they would have some concern over lowering a rate that could/should have been lowered so that some may have actually afforded to occasionally pay their bills during a harsh winter? And, yes, what better time to have a reduction than in the warmer weather.

Now - to follow up on Rich Young - how about a rebate? Seems the locals have been paying a wee bit more than we should have and probably for years. Maybe that 7M could be 5M?

However all this public scrutiny has had a very positive impact as the MG&E will now come to their collective senses (I hope) and actually work for the owners and the Commissioners will actually be somewhat independent and oversee rather than be a compliant partner. Gee…why did it take a new guy - Mike Solimni - to get the webs of amnesia wiped away?

MHA/Oil/Margins

2011-05-07T15:22:00.002-04:00

The following PR is brought to you by the Middleborough Historical Association.

2011 marks the 150th Anniversary of the Civil War. One aspect of the war, which is not often brought to light, is the volunteer work of women on the home front. In 1861, just months after the war began, the U.S. Sanitation Commission was created to coordinate the efforts of women who wanted to contribute to the war effort of the Union States during the Civil War. The women raised money, collected donations, worked as nurses, ran kitchens in army camps, made uniforms, and administered hospital ships and soldiers’ homes.

Join us on Saturday, May 14, to learn more about the women’s volunteer efforts when the women of R.I. Battery B Civil War re-enactors present a dramatization of the Providence Ladies Relief Society tea meeting of 1863, to collect donations for the war effort. This is a return visit of the popular event held thirteen years ago at the M.H.A. museum.

Tickets are needed to attend the tea meeting dramatization (complete with tea and cookies and of course you may bring your own special tea cup) to be held in the Carriage House at 11 a.m. and again at 2 p.m. Since their is limited seating, it is advisable to order your tickets ahead by calling 508-947-3394. Tickets are $5 for M.H.A. members and $7 for non members. Please indicate which seating you plan to attend. Tickets will also be available at the museum grounds on the day of the event.

I am never really one to feed into the collective angst of the various environmental factions - especially the more radical renegades of the ilk - over the aspect of oil/gas exploration specifically domestic exploration and development. With the ongoing “crisis” over fuel expenses the primary concern should be one of the economic viability of Jane and Joe public being fiscally solvent and that is where the President can step in. Time to lease out some off shore oil contracts and open up other areas that have been closed to drilling and risk the occasional and what appears to be rather isolated incidents like that of The Gulf. The Executive Branch could also require that not one drop of oil taken from our lands leave this country.

Would be nice to see a reward - a very dynamic reward - offered for the individual, company or conglomerate that could come up with a viable alternative to our dependency. In the next ten or so years crucial decisions will have to be formulated on both current policy, alternatives and long range policy and an enticement is always a great motivator. Might even have to do it as a Manhattan Project for energy.

Meanwhile it will only get worse with a roller coaster ride based on speculation, international crisis - teal or perceived- and consumption especially from the Asian markets. Every two steps forward in a price rise will only lead to one step back. Prices will climb and economic growth will be muted.

I was rather confused - a real easy task as you can imagine - over the recent water restrictions in Middleboro. According to what I scanned you cannot wash you car. Now what about someone like myself who has a special protection sealant on my car. I cannot take it to the car wash since the brushes provide potential damage. The sealant allows be to avoid waxing and all I have to do is hand wash, rinse it off by hosing it down and then dry it with a cotton cloth. Maybe this was a misprint in the paper or I am just reading it wrong?

The MG&E is an issue that just will not go away.

Hack holidays of Bunker Hill Day and Evacuation Day have survived a House vote. This was an issue our local “Team” of representatives voted against.

The kiss and hugs crowd is showing incredible distain for the collective bad manners displayed spontaneously by Americans (and others) for celebrating the death of OBL. Saw another talking head on TV today wringing her hands over our thirst for vengeance. I consider it rejoicing over justice finally being achieved.

Charm pricing is the idea of advertising something for $8.99 rather than $9. Some of this is the result of language since in English we read left to right and what sticks in our mind is the first number.

Another thing to generally ignore is volume purchasing at the super market. The buy five for $5 since in virtually all cases - unless advertised - you will get the same $1 price buying just one.

Virtually everything is negotiable on large ticket items especially furniture. Just ask for a lower price especially if you are spending a bundle. Many times furniture is a 3X item meaning it is boosted three times over cost.

When I get my car serviced with an estimated cost that goes into three figures I routinely ask for a 10-15% discount and have never been refused. This is especially true at shops such as Midas who will negotiate off their estimate. Just ask especially since this is a highly competitive market.

Clothing is an item that is also marked up substantially especially at a boutique store. Margins are usually in the 60% range which means that $100 dress (I take an 8 and BB a 14) has a profit of $60 and a cost of $40. A few years ago my wife - The Lovely and svelte Cynthia - was faced with a dilemma over purchasing four dresses with a budget that said three. I spoke to the clerk and said “We’ll write a check right now for the three most expense dresses if you toss in the fourth one gratis.” Sale was quickly consummated.

Electronics use to have a similar margin to clothing but that has changed dramatically in the last five or so years. You can still get a 15-20% markdown but it may take a real effort.

A great way to negotiate is if you know someone in the same purchasing situation as you are. If you and a friend are in the market for a similar plasma TV or car then negotiations will be eased and discounts greater.

What the internet has done is to make comparison shopping and true cost readily available with a bit of research - and it is not isolated to the big ticket items like cars.

I’ve started to watch the School Committee meetings on channel 20 and am getting the impression that many of the usual suspects have already bailed or are in the process of bailing out. I also get the distinct impression that the previous superintendent was not exactly a top of the line leader.

The Red Sox are not the worse team in baseball and talent wise may just be the best but they are a total disappointment at this point. The old “Fire in the belly” seems to be totally absent from this group and the performances are lethargic with what appears to be a “Let the other guy do it” attitude. Maybe it was too much money?

Roasting Jane/Political Stuff

2011-05-01T09:14:00.004-04:00

I was required to attend a roast of Jane Lopes by my wife - The Lovely Cynthia - which was in retrospect a good decision. No doubt watching the Red Sox performance would have resulted in excessive damage to a plasma TV. Anyways, I was dressed and perfumed by Cynthia for public presentation. I knew this must be a huge event since Cynthia was actually going to be seen in public with me. Thankfully she did not Duc Tape me.

I had no clue as who this Lopes person was other than it was something to do with a newspaper as I heard some casual bar talk about “Hack writer” and “Hatchet Queen.” Cynthia did point her out and she appears to be a reasonably well kept older woman wearing the pant suit version of a Bill Belichick outfit. Just think Botox.

One thing I noticed is that many of the roasters backed out at the last moment so that is usually a clue that no one really gives a you know what. Looking around the hall was obviously “papered” (giving away tickets) to at least give the imagine of a semi full house. I guess at these roasts your “friends” usually show up so I can sympathize about having no friends.

The highlight of the evening was Lincoln Andrews - who obviously had many years of pent up rage and anger stored up and was given the golden opportunity to skewer Ms. Lopes. Was he feigning his ire? I think not. He - like the rest - had a score of scores to settle. Now Mr. Andrews managed to combine the worse antics of Don Rickles weaved into his own unique presentation. I mean he was good! So good that the roastee - despite excessive wine consumption - was actually attempting some form of crude heckling to counter the onslaught. This only encouraged Mr. Andrews who had a wealth of one liners…two liners and ten liners to offer up along with the highlight of Ms. Lopes entire career - a faux house of ill repute that she attempted to save from the developers axe. Say, Jane, how did that work out?

The entire affair did raise some significant coin for the Parks Department and Jane probably has a enemies list comprised or has just grabbed a local phone book and will start with “A.”

Thank you, Jane, for actually making me want to wait for the mail truck to arrive on Thursday afternoon. You know my addiction to weekly locals and as one who travels considerably I always grab them. When I say the Gazette is top notch I mean it is superb. That begins at the top. Just your community resume alone made you an ideal choice for this “honor.” And the reality is it was an honor based on respect, love and your giving back to Middleborough.

Oh….The Gazette is still only fifty cents and when Jane eventually gets her pension she will realize why.

All of a sudden the Massachusetts House has turned into a group of Republicans. In an overwhelming vote they decided to limit collective bargaining and thus gave cities and towns a potential break on the exasperating issue of health care. The whine from the unions just cranks me up as they promise to “punish” those 111 who voted in favor of this long due legislation. The unions just don’t get it. They could see for years this fiscal tsunami heading their way and did little expecting the long illustrious history of union toadyism on the part of the long entrenched Democrats would offer protection from this state becoming another Wisconsin and Ohio. Surprise!

The real fact is just looking at the G&E contracts and carrying over similar structure to city, town and state governments demonstrates clearly why the general DPS (Dreaded Private Sector) worker bees have zero sympathy. How often do you see the term “Suspended with pay” when a public employee is caught in some type of personal or professional quagmire? Doesn’t happen the DPS.

The legislature also managed to actually address an issue that has been ignore for decades and that is public assistance - fancy PC term for welfare - fraud, abuse and so on. No longer can our tax dollars be used for the ever important lottery tickets, booze and tobacco. Fines will also be levied on those businesses which participate in the broad range of scams. My only concern would be level of enforcement. Don’t expect much with that.

Alan Khazel - love child of the anti gaming crowd - has offered up his body Aztec style to face Scott Brown. Khazel has an interesting and varied political background with a good portion of his carcass resting and firmly planted on the left side of the political spectrum. I give Trump a better chance.

G&E Excesses/Smoking Pigs/Investment

2011-04-24T12:52:00.002-04:00

Bumpkin has tossed out various G&E contracts and they are certainly loaded with perks on all levels. I have no idea how this compares with other municipals or public's but my first impression is it exceeds anything in the dreaded private sector (DPS). I still have memories of when I was a worker bee in the DPS and many of the G&E perks were unheard off. Now I can also compare this to the present day with friends and relatives who work in the DPS and the conclusion is the same - the G&E has a great gig going.

The Finance Committee has decided to examine the expense records of the G&E and in an article in the Sunday Enterprise what caught my attention was the expense report of Mr. Triner. This will be interesting since his out of pocket expenses amounted to $1,548 including $2.50 for a Snickers bar. I am not sure exactly what trip (AKA - Vacation) this was for but it may have been the D.C. trip as posted in the latest edition of the G&E bible known as The Messenger. If so I will just love to examine a copy of that report to see how much they spent. I may not know much but one thing I do know is travel bargains and I have enough sense to satisfy my snickers with a stop at a corner store rather than in the hotel.

The bar at $2.50 is just symptomatic of an attitude that treats the rate payers as a piggy bank. We recently had one departed member of the BOS hand out cupcakes to enraged rent payers. How did that work out? We have had a total change in the BOS in the last three years. Complete turn around in personnel including one who was ousted and re-elected once he discovered the facts that those in the cheap seats pay attention to Monday Night Live and also vote. Now the next examination has to be a commission that protects our interests with the G&E. After looking at the contracts and the fact that the commission did not even reprimand the excesses of the manager I have to wonder who is running the show.

Saturday I joined a group called Middleboro Mess Movers as we collected trash from selected areas downtown and one thing is abundantly clear - smokers are incredible slobs. I cannot believe the amount of cigarette butts especially around the town hall. My opinion is that those butts are primarily the results of town employees or those being tortured by various meetings. Do any of them have the slightest concern about picking up after themselves? In the parking lot it also became apparent that the mental process is that if I have to empty my car ashtray that means just toss it on the ground or pavement and let someone else handle the responsibility.

Now the other place I was at was that strip of land across from the VFW and adjacent to the Hideaway and that brings into play another group - lottery scratch ticket players. Place was loaded with the losing tickets. The next item was the excessive amount of cans and bottles in that area. Are these just being tossed out car windows? Are they the result of customers just tossing crap?

Bottom line is it is amazing the amount of trash that is just dumped from folks who are just plain lazy or just don’t give a damn.

I invest in a variety of “things” on a regular basis. I am no expert who will go long or short on the market or even dabble extensively in options but I feel I am educated enough. Years ago I took control of my own portfolio after comparing my selections with the CFP (Certified Financial Planner) who was doing it - at 1.5% win or lose. Some of the CFP’s are masters at “churning” or buying and selling excessively in your portfolio to increase their own commissions. Then top it off with the way you are “directed” to certain mutual funds, annuities and ETF’s. You get the idea. Not many but enough to make one wary. My own opinion is that selecting a series of mutual funds that meet your own investing habits and strategies is rather easy with the volume of information available on the internet and via investment houses.

I have become convinced after watching market trends that a certain level of a con game is going on. A multi-trillion dollar shell game. The latest is the issuance of a warning from Standard and Poor about the credit rating of the U.S.A. being decreased unless debt is controlled. When do they issue this sparking guaranteed to shake the markets pronouncement? Why on a Monday morning just before the U.S. markets open and Europe is in full swing. Poof! The typical over reaction and sell-off.

Now why not do it like a politician delivering bad news? Like on a Friday afternoon? The pol knows the Saturday newspaper is virtually just a few pages of useless information to which no one pays any attention. Why didn’t S&P do the same? Give everyone a good forty-eight hours to digest the info and let the government formulate their litany of excuses on why this is really not bad news.

I see this type of questionable timing happening all to often and just being suspicious in nature of the potential and proven manipulations of the financial markets I have to question the whole process.

A helpful stock picking process is to look at a mutual fund and examine what they invest in and what portion of that investment is their portfolio. This is especially useful if you wish to target a specific area such as health care or energy. You can even weed through the fund selections and narrow it down based on your own level of risk taking.

Marathon Monday And Being Fat Or Skinny.

2011-04-18T09:04:00.002-04:00

What better day than “Marathon Monday” to put out a post of weight and being fat or skinny or in between. My personal opinion is that the Boston Marathon is one of the most over hyped useless sporting events imaginable. Most of the runners appear to need some serious counseling about working one self into a state of looking like a stick person and this is from an ardent runner - jogger who has done marathons with the last being the famed Coachman Marathon years ago that was a one shot one that ended up in Taunton.

Federal requirements for pounds per passenger on buses will now go from 150 to 175 pounds per person for an estimate. Our rather robust physiques are causing this change along with less standing room since we are getting larger.

The seats at Fenway Park have shown how much our derriere size has increased through the years. There is that great scene from the movie “Fever Pitch” where Lenny Clarke - now rather svelte - attempts to get himself firmly planted in his seat. Trust me if you are a plus size or 3X it is an adventure at Fabulous Fenway. In fact you can have what now passes for normal body mass and still have an adventure squeezing your carcass into the seat that you may have paid $150 for.

Some health insurance companies actually offer a discount for following the prescribed charts regarding your health - weight, body mass, non-smoking, not reading my blog, not having the physique of BB, and a variety of other indexes that show you are less of a risk. Otherwise you pay full price. Like a version of auto insurance where good drivers get a discount only good health habits get a discount.

The BMI is really interesting in that it can give some real false impressions. Pro football players at the skill positions rarely are within the correct parameters yet have fat around 5%. The problem is their weight and height.

Years ago I use to run in the mornings at D.W. Fields Park in Brockton as I returned home from work. I ended up occasionally with a small group and we marveled at a runner known as “Fatso.” Fatso ran faster as he gained weight. Fatso would also smoke when he ran. Fatso checked in at about six feet and an easy 250+ with a substantial paunch. Fatso was also in his early 40s. The group I ran with urged me to enter a road race that was being sponsored by the nurses association at the VA. First road race I was ever in. Anyways I start to follow Fatso who ran a fairly consistent seven minute mile. He has his son along riding a bike and handing him beers. He was running, drinking and smoking. I will brag and say I managed to finish 11th overall and 3rd in my age group and that was with over 300 runners. Fatso did very well coming in around 42 minutes.

There was a restaurant in Brockton called Sciliano’s that use to sponsor a road race each year and they had a heavyweight division in honor of Rock Marciano. You had to be over 200 pounds for that division. The year I ran that race Fatso blew away the heavyweight division. He was a genetic marvel.

Now Fatso brings up an interesting point and that is that he conditions his most important muscle his heart. His habits may certainly depreciate the value of that but somehow I imagine he is still lounging around somewhere smoking a pack a day and swilling beer. An exception no doubt. But one can be over weight and in good shape. It seems like a contradiction but I have seen too many examples to show that it can happen. Through the years I have played sports against many who may resemble a pear in shape but actually were in very good shape despite the extra baggage. Some have actually been high end in sports in high school and college from swimming to tennis to track and to basketball. The level of performance may have sunk a bit but that endurance is still there - a bit less but still present. I just get the prejudice opinion on my part that weight - and I am not talking obese - is just a bit overblown if you exercise on a regular basis especially cardio.

Who is Kelly Gneiting? He is an American Sumo who checks in north of 400 pounds. Kelly managed to run or at least waddle the LA Marathon in 9:48:52 and that may be a record for the heaviest man to run a marathon. It has been submitted to Guinness.

In the great Woody Allen movie “Sleeper” he runs the Happy Carrot Health Food store only to wake up 200 years in the future to be informed that all those bad habits such as smoking have actually proven to be beneficial. Oh the irony of it all!

I’m sure the airlines will soon charge by the pound. If you are now a certain size you may be required to buy two seats so you can plant your bulk. Sometimes airlines will just place you in a seat with a vacant seat next to you if a vacant seat is available. Some lucky ones actually get a first class upgrade but the airlines are probably cautious on the amount of vittles they offer them.

As I get older the weight is not the issue but the distribution is since I weigh the same as I did - 172 pounds - as when I got married 37 years ago. However I now have a 36 inch waist to my pants rather than a 34 and sometimes will move into a 38 just since I like roomy comfort. Gravity is nasty!

My wife - The Lovely Cynthia - is on a perpetual diet and has been for about twenty or so years. A few pounds here and there and then back on. Maintaining is the best way to describe it. I exercise a lot so that is no problem unless I stop since those “extras” are burned off. With my first Achilles surgery I went from a few hours a day of full court basketball and eighty miles of running a week to nothing. I was use to taking in 5,000 to 6,000 calories a day so you can imagine the results. Thankfully it was “only” twenty pounds.

Massachusetts recently rated the counties in the state for which was healthiest and Plymouth County came in ninth and I’m sure Middleboro did its very best to contribute to that score. Nantucket came in as healthiest but they probably didn’t show anyone the price of housing as that would have brought on a coronary.

In the states the usual suspects for the lard award are located in the south with old favorites Mississippi and Alabama using racing calorie for calorie to see just who can weigh in as the winner.

Now there is a certain amount of encouragement to just eat and eat and all you have to look at is “Do you want that Super Sized?” If that fails just take a look in The Yellow Pages under buffets. Meals in this country are notorious large. Several years ago in Helotes Texas the local McDonald’s would “Texas Size” your meal and that included a 44 OZ drink container loaded with French fries. Now Helotes is a suburb of San Antonio but when you travel the highways down that way there is an almost endless selection of fast food places. On the Bandera Highway from Helotes to Loop 1604 is a mere five miles but I’ve counted four Bill Miller Bar-B-Que’s and at least five Taco Cabana restaurants. Around here DD proliferates but that is only one chain. Just think of running the gamut of multiple FF chains all with a convenient drive thru.

On our last trip to NYC we had the new nanny police menus that have calorie counts included in the product description. I am still attempting to fathom how a salad can have 1,800 calories. My wife - The Lovely Cynthia - just thought this was a wonderful idea and it guided her selections. I let my palate guide me. But I recently saw a piece on TV where the calories listings had no impact on food selection and may actually have an adverse one. Seems some folks will look at a $12.99 meal with 1,500 C and one with 900 C and opt for the 1,500 C as a way of getting more “value.”

The human body really wants to get fat. We’re wired that one from back in the day when between meals could be measured in days and not hours and to quote a line from Rambo “trained to eat things that would make a Billy-Goat puke,” so the body always wanted to have a fat reserve incase food became sparse. That is always hovering around in our genetics.

My wife - you know who - is an ardent viewer of two shows on TV that are part of that morning - afternoon viewing time that focus on a female audience. One is “The Doctors” and the other is “Dr. Oz” and both can trace their roots back to Oprah Winfrey - that alone should make anything questionable. The Doctors focus on two subjects - sex and weight loss. Usually some type of gimmick is hosted upon the viewing audience via product placement. Some new beauty secret to make you 10 years younger or wrapped up in nutrition with the idea of losing weight via a book being pushed or some basic healthy eating ideas to at least attempt legitimacy while hawking products. It is all relatively harmless and I am sure the vast majority of the audience nods their collective heads in support and then promptly forget about it.

Dr. Oz has one of the most inane shows on TV that combines the theatrics of a low end quiz show with some apparent outtakes from a CSI show. I have watched the show and will say “He (they) are wrong” only to have my spouse jump to the defense of the fraudulent information. I merely guide over and do a quick computer search to show a few thousand references to back me up. I find Oz has a bit of humiliation and personal degradation in his show but that is just me. With both the shows I have a steady stream of negativity before they even start. I almost disagree even when I agree.

So today you can watch the marathon and enjoy or do like I do and go out for a relating run or walk and pay no attention to the fact that a major world class city becomes not the Hub of The Universe but the Hub of Inconvenienc

G & E - Again!

2011-04-13T10:03:00.001-04:00

If problems are not addressed they exacerbate themselves such as personal health, repairing your house or examining the performance and management of a municipal utility.

The G&E meeting of Tuesday started out with a procedure I have never seen - a sign in sheet. My first reaction was I must now keep a jaundice eye on my bill - being the trusting soul that I am.

Mr. Granahan immediately issued his apology with several "I was wrong comments" but that is just not going to cut it as far as a detailed examination of the operation is concerned. That will take place. This just is not a "Let's move on situation" but a "Let's take a real close look situation."

Their budget has to be examined. Procurement procedures examined. Take a long look at job descriptions, qualifications, salaries, benefits, pensions, employee evaluation procedures, management perks, commissioner perks, and just about anything else that needs public scrutiny. Then they need to do some serious comps to see if Middleboro is the municipal exception or the municipal standard for both rates and employment issues.

What this comes down to is rates. Are we paying more than we should thanks to mismanagement or excessive expenses? Former Selectman Lincoln Andrews questioned why he pays less in Bridgewater per kilowatt than Middleboro charges. Former Selectman Adam Bond questioned the redundancy issue on legal representation especially paying for someone with limited experience in open meeting law and public records. Both questioned the competency of Mr. Granahan especially with his rather generous compensation package. A rate payer and Selectman Allin Frawley questioned the sick leave policy as reported in The Enterprise. I found it rather strange that management addresses bad behavior - excessive questionable sick leave - by a reward system. So now employees who are sick come to work and make others sick or risk safety since their performance may not be 100%? These are all important issues that directly relate back to operations, management and rate payer costs.

Why did it take the aggressiveness of a new commissioner to get this rolling? Why did the other commissioners display such a reluctant attitude in having Mr. Granahan do what was both right and legal? Is this stagnation that comes with a complacent attitude?

The G & E needs a financial and procedural audit.

Middleboro G & E?

2011-04-07T07:38:00.001-04:00

A few weeks ago Charlie Cristello, the Middleboro Town Manager, had a visitor from the Enterprise who requested some information that is public record. Charlie simply wrote it down on a piece of paper and answered every question asked. This centered around his very own contract. The Enterprise has been having a very public ongoing battle with another community regarding access to public records and wanted to simply check out responses from various communities.

The recent election had as a major issue transparency. Business being done in public. Inquiring minds might want to know and if it is public information do it.

Now you come to our local G & E that seems to operate under rules that defy public access but also common sense. The Enterprise had a rather interesting article about how the manager John Granahan has managed to go into some type of corporate lock down over his contract, payroll information and the budget. Unlike the TM he has a different set of rules. Mike Solimni, a commissioner, has not been able to get the information. I can just imagine telling a CFO or a CEO to "buzz off" if they asked for corporate information from an underling. The diss of Solimini is a diss of rate payers.

Town Counsel has said they do not see the light (pun intended)in regards to releasing information that should be readily available. This stonewalling has also impacted other town officials who need the information for such foolishness as accountability and with a key phrase being the town (us) will be responsible for all G & E debt.

I called up several municipal power companies to question what they do. What policy do they have? It all came down to two words - public record. Mr. Granahan claims his contract contains "Proprietary information" and as one pundit said "What does it contain? The formula for cold fusion?" I didn't bother to ask procedures as just the fact that they realized honoring a request was their responsibility.

What other towns do is just a useful point of reference in case municipal unities have some type of Skull and Crossbones society going on but the core issue remains the same - the management style of Mr. Granahan.

Now their web site does have information such as their annual report but only as far as 2005. They do have open meetings but what good are meetings that are open when the information requested is not open?

The G & E seems - at least to this novice - to do a reasonable job of keeping rates low, servicing the power grid and contributing to the community but I just wonder if the manager is running another local fiefdom?

Vaporized!

2011-04-02T22:10:00.000-04:00

The voting results were a total vaporization of the previous regime on the BOS as Allin Frawley and Ben Quelle both came in at about 3-1 over sitting members of the BOS. Marsha Brunelle actually finished 4th. A very distant fourth but close to her cohort Marsha.

Being a cheap shot artist that I am I can take my stick and once again poke it into the bees nest but the bees have no sting. IMO the arrogance that Marsha displayed accompanied by an equal strain or one that even exceeded hers was demonstrated by her husband and that was what finally got the enough is enough vote out. The connection was impossible to avoid. Now if I actually had a gracious bone in my body I would do the yada, yada, yada feel good and thank you for your service lecture but why should I change now?

Marsha Brunelle has a world of experience on various towns boards and especially the BOS but an increasing number of folks who tune in on Monday have obviously become disenchanted by the way she conducts business at the local government house. Just maybe someone will dig out a worn copy of Robert's Rules and some semblance of structure will return. One cannot dismiss the impact that her ill conceived attempt at controlling the dialogue on Monday played out and that issue certainly had "legs." What happens is a cumulative effect where time on the board has a tendency to build up animosity. Folks do have a tendency to remember the negative and give it more value than remembering the positive and there seemed a whole world of negative swirling around the last several years.

Marsha also represented being the point person on the recent rent control issue and we saw meetings filled with seniors who were just plain pissed off. Old folks - of which I guess I am now classified - vote and pissed off ones make it a point to "encourage" their offspring in the town to also vote with certain reminders about wills, inheritance and any other conceivable means of arm twisting. Case in point, of course, would be Moi and his wife - The Lovely Cynthia.

I was reading an interesting and rather dated science fiction book by Eric Frank Russell called "The Space Willies." That was quite prophetic considering the outcome of the race for BOS. A significant amount of "credit" for MiMi being now classified as BOS detritus can certainly find some type of time line that flows back to candidates night and the attempt by her own Willy to do a rather poorly conceived gotcha question.

In The Herald a few days ago an article about attempts by Democrat operatives regarding Scott Brown had the following quote by Larry Sabato, director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia: “The Democrats have got to dig up some dirt because they don’t have any alternative.” That is what Willy Duphily attempted to do with his pointed question to Frawley regarding CPA and Frawley's renter status. I have no idea of what the logic was behind the question. Now one would suspect that an effort would be made by a questioner to bring forward a well thought out and relevant question and not one that seems to have been found in some rubbish bin that is rambling loose in the frontal lobe. This is now the Duphily version of "cheap seats."

So we no longer will have MiMi to watch at BOS meetings unless she is in the audience or passing out cupcakes and possibly flowers. As I have stated before a political appendix. Now MiMi may be a wonderful person and maybe even to some locals a budding Mother Theresa but the reality is being a good person does not necessarily translate into being a competent member of the BOS. MiMi appeared ill at ease and out of her element. I rarely found even the slightest hint of a cognizant comment emanating from her slot on the board. The term that comes to mind is empty pants suit. Thank you, Willy!

Allin and Ben are sure not to please me 100% and I would certainly not expect that. I've met Ben a few times and watched him on candidates night and he is no slouch. This was no coattail win by Ben as he more than carried his share of the day.

Allin has put in an exceptional effort for both the campaign and his service to the town. This will be a learning process for him as it will be for Ben but both have the patience and intellect to do the job. I know Allin will do his homework and when a issue takes place he will certainly hone up on it - no deer the headlights look.

This result clearly shows that the casino issue is no longer a Middleboro litmus test for a candidate. Long gone. See ya!

Red $ox Preview

2011-03-29T08:30:00.000-04:00

Virtually every year for the last 40 or so years I make the calendar with a bright red circle. That is the date I predict the Red Sox will have totally disappointed me and my usual pre season delusion that they will actually get into the playoffs and make some noise. This year there is no circle.

In my lifetime I have not seen a Sox team as balanced in all areas of the game as this one. The defense is outstanding with three Gold Glove infielders and arguably the best outfield since the days of Hooper and Speaker. Add to it a level of versatility and you have the whole defensive package from catching to infield to outfield.

Defense wins games and the most significant component of defense is pitching. A starting pitcher controls the tempo of the game and they have five starters who could be good, very good or downright outstanding. Buchholz and Lester are both potential Cy Young Award winners and both are capable of winning 20 games and almost did in 2010. Next up in the rotation is a slimmed down John Lackey. The Sox spent 85M to sign Lackey (14-11/4.40ERA)to a long term contract and while 2010 was not a bust it was a disappointment. Lackey will perform better. Then comes the mystery of Josh Beckett also signed in 2010 to a long term extension at 85M. Beckett was a pitching pinata in 2010 and has been in spring training. Can he return to say 2009 form? That was a 17-6 year and more than acceptable. In the same level of disappointment is Dice-K. Dice has done rather well in spring training and hopefully will return to 2008(18-3) status when he was one of the best starters in the league. IMO if Beckett and Dice-K return to previous performance levels start looking at possible playoff partners in August.

The 2010 bullpen was the worse in the league and has been totally rebuilt. If Papelbon continues his downward trend (9 blown saves)the Sox have both the experienced Jenks and closer of the future Bard waiting to take over. The addition of Dan Wheeler from Tampa Bay is a quality move as Wheeler is an experienced middle reliever who does have a tendency to give up a wee bit too many home runs. Tim Wakefield (AKA - One Trick Pony) has also returned to either spot start or work out of the bullpen. I have never been a "fan" of Wake but he can provide a variety of pitching services but I question his ability to do it competently. The rest of the bullpen is a mix and match with new comers Reyes, Albers and Aveces and a stock pile of old favorites in Pawtucket waiting for a call. Plenty of depth on this staff.

This offense is potentially amazing. There are several players who have the ability to be league MVP's. The hitting from top to bottom is balanced with guys who make contact, display plate patience and can drive the ball. This team will produce runs especially if Ellsbury returns to form and Crawford continues to improve his game. A Sox team that could lead the league in stolen bases? That would be something.

Virtually the entire lineup is in their prime years as players and the Sox have fewer stating players over age 30 than the Celtics. A big "if" in the lineup is Jarrod Saltalamacchia. So far he has shown signs of returning to his previous status as one of the best young catchers in baseball. I look for Ellsbury to have a huge year and also expect my personal whipping boy - JD Drew - to have a profitable last year contract sendoff. The bench players of Lowrie, McDonald and Cameron would be starters on 20 or so other teams.

I'm looking at a monster year for the Sox. Management has provided a serious upgrade, players have returned to health and the manager is perfect for Boston. Playoffs for sure with the potential for 105 wins.

BOS Campaign

2011-03-20T11:27:00.000-04:00

Another week and another war.

I’m Scott Brown and I drive a truck. I’m Allin Frawley and I drive a hammer. Both have some remarkable similarities and I am not discussing their view of politics but their approach. Both have actually managed to combine state of the art and old time politics. Brown has shown a streak of independence that has riled up left and right and Tea Party types. Allin has no personal agenda other than to serve to the best of his abilities - summed up fairly well on his web site. Brown had the novelty of his truck. He actually used that truck to campaign around Massachusetts. Allin opened up a storefront and he is there whenever he can be. I can go in and pat him on the back or whine. Where do I go to see MiMi? The Café Milano at noon time? For Marsha do I slip a note under the door in the Town Hall basement IT Department for Roger to forward? In politics so much is perception and not necessarily political position. BOS is about as local as it gets.

The last store front I can recall was for Gary Studds waaaay back. I know because I worked in that campaign with the usual stuff of handing out info, holding signs and going door to door. To listen to MiMi in the recent Enterprise article one would get the impression that Allin’s campaign is being funded by Soros or the Koch Brothers.

Just a thought but being a good person does not necessarily translate into being a competent person.

Jack Healey had a nice letter for Allin Frawley in the Gazette and it represented quite a you know what slap to the M & M duo. Jack had served as town manager during part of Marsha Brunelle’s reign so it appears he had some real issues with her performance both as a TM and now as a Joe Citizen. His letter about summed it up.

MiMi Duphily also had her campaign letter in the paper and as tempting as it is I will be silent on that one.

So far letters of note have been from a former chair of the BOS and a former TM and I wonder if any will be in the paper from any sitting members of the BOS?

As I cruise around Middleboro (AKA - Middleborough) I notice that the number of election signs have started to blossom. I usually end up counting them and it is fairly even for all candidates with Jay Austin having a slight edge.

A few issues have surfaced in the BOS race but I think it will really come down to change versus no change as the primary issue. This will not be a one trick pony election as it was with the gin mill floundering around. If the status quo is acceptable then look for M & M to return.

PBS/M & M/Newt

2011-03-15T17:44:00.000-04:00

The newly empowered Republicans in Congress have not targeted the big ticket items such as Medicare and Social Security with their budget axe but have focused on NPR and the CPB to trim funding and even eliminate public subsidies. I applaud this move.

The Herald has run a series of articles that have clearly shown the excesses of the local affiliate WGBH which provides about 30% of the programming for PBS. Salaries and a cushy state of the art studio have been a central point but what caught my eye was PILOT. PILOT is payment in lieu of taxes that most if not all non profits - a joke in of itself - contribute to the City of Boston. WGBH moved into their new digs four years ago and have contributed the grand total of zero dollars despite having that new $85,000,000 studio. Prior to that the contribution was about $10,000.

Now those pesky Republicans view the fiscal attack up Elmo and the rest of the crew as political payback as the far left slant of PBS that is rather well known. Just as Juan Williams canned for expressing his opinion on FOX. Or one of the honchos at the public broadcasting trough who fell for an undercover scam that had him labeling Tea Party types as “racist.” That seems to be the code phase du jour for the far left to explain away opposing points of view. Having a nice British accent does not exactly mean what you hear is the truth and the resulting faux pas led to a resignation.

The budget input for tax dollars for WGBH represents about 8% of their budget so somehow they will survive. Maybe a nice tea (party) put on by some of the more concerned citizens in Cambridge and Brookline can make up the cash loss. Across the board the loss will be somewhere in the neighborhood of about 10% of the various public broadcasting leeches so that is manageable. Maybe the heavy contributions of the Koch Foundation can be increased? A last total the Koch Foundation had contributed $7,000,000 to PBS - not bad for a Libertarian/conservative.

If all goes down the tubes there is always the option for the executives to move into other positions at other non profits and I understand there is about a dozen slots that may open up soon at Blue Cross. In the meantime I will have to miss the mating ritual of some obscure Australian rodent or the opportunity to pay exorbitant amounts of money for DVD’s from groups and individuals who I have never heard of. Seems whenever I tune into WGBH and their various other incarnations I see a string of semi ads anyone. Just go ahead and let Ronald McDonald replace the obnoxious Big Bird.

Mansfield found it necessary to run Saturday sessions to make up for school days lost to snow. Naturally the “For the kids” teachers union stepped in with a union protest but it was unnecessary since the kids didn’t bother to show up. Session two was canceled.

MiMi and Marsha are running as a tandem team much like a tag team in the WWE. I have no idea of what their election platform will be? Plant more flowers? Tazer those who dare approach the sacred podium? Sit in the audience when a discussion gets around to the IT Department? Whine about a pooch on your street? So you get a mirror for your vote. Vote for both and you get exactly the same and from what I can gather MiMi should change her name to mimic since that is usually her path on the BOS - Mimic Marsha. Marsha has IMO reached that point in performance and presentation that is like a party guest who is boring the bejabbers out of everyone and proceeds to stay around and entertain you when everyone else has left. How can I miss you when you won’t go away? With MiMi I have no idea what she is doing aside from making comments that leave me just wondering if it is me only to discover - thankfully - it is not.

I remember back about a year ago when the gavel was forced to at least grovel a bit when you saw an interesting group lined up at the podium - Neil, Steve, Lincoln, and several other who I have left out that served the BOS quite well. Those with a clue approaching a Chair without a clue? At least it presented a stark beep…beep….beep moment as the Chair managed to backtrack a bit.

So it is fairly easy to understand who I will vote for and it will not be a bullet vote. The political chain that is the BOS has two weak links and maybe - hopefully - they’ll be voted off the island.

Why let a cheap shot go by? Homeowners stage a protest and Quelle and Frawley marched with them but our own twin Marie Antoinette’s offered them cake! What, MiMI, no flowers?

So Newt wants to get into the oral office and bring the entire nation to its knees like he does his paramours. Maybe GM will revive the Hummer in honor of Newt? As far as the arm candy she has figured out the way to his heart is not through his stomach. Maybe he can hook up with Clinton some day and discuss an oral history of the presidency?

Speaking of comedy in presidential politics it is not yet a done deal that Sarah Palin will run for the office. Is she a female Dan Quayle destine to be the punch line of jokes? Appears that way. The Republican Party ran roughshod over the Democrats in the last election cycle but appear to have quite a leadership vacuum for those running to grab the big enchilada. And I just love the personal foibles of some of the more morally anointed ones getting their PAC’s ready. I guess they have to fill the void of hypocrisy that Ted Kennedy left behind.

I read a nice assessment of President Obama where the connection was made to how he is an academic type that is prone to lecture and not leadership. Seems to be a high degree of vacillation when certain issues hit home with the Community Organizer In Chief.

The recent disaster in Japan is reflected in world wide financial markets with a massive sell off. Investors remind me of when a forecast of two inches of snow is in the works and the supermarkets empty of milk and bread in panic buying only with the financials it is panic selling.

More Bogo Brilliance

2011-03-10T11:28:00.000-05:00

Charlie Sheen is a wreck. Listening to his incoherent and disjointed ramblings makes one wonder when the mother ship will beam him up. His illustrious behaviors have been well documented and need no repeating. Now these behaviors could be the results of excessive drug use and mental health concerns and maybe a combination of both but what I really take note of is the way the media is actually taking advantage of the situation. Sheen appeared on numerous outlets and I question why they even have him on. To my simple mind it appears that ratings trump personal disaster. Now I’m waiting for someone to step up in this situation either his family or his entourage to at least address the issue. In the meantime the paparazzi and media will continue to take advantage of a person obviously in need of intervention.

Giving a monetary handout to a street person has always presented me with a moral dilemma. A large portion are what we called “bums” or “vagrants” when I was much, much younger. What is an issue with me is slipping a buck or some change into a coffee can knowing with an almost certainty that I am feeding an addiction. Now I use to write a clearing of the conscious check to Pine Street Inn and Rosie’s Place but even those have been outed for having some rather excessive salaries so that is now gone. Some local food pantries and places such as The Conway House provide something with a bit more contribution security. As the years have gone by virtually all of our charitable contributions have been local.

On the above paragraph I remember a time I was in Boston and stopped at a light when a woman came to my car with a young child in her grasp and requested money for food since she and her child were hungry. Across the street was a Burger King so I told her to go over there and I’ll buy her a meal. Her response? “F**k you.” That’s what makes me jaded.

I remember several years ago on a visit to Mexico we observed Mexican youth washing the windows of cars snarled in traffic. This is quite commonplace and anyone who is in a major city sees it. I pointed out to my daughter and wife “Look at the shoes.” They both did and my daughter recognized some real high end kicks. Quite a lucrative business.

Been numerous reports across the nation regarding some rather violent and in your face activity towards counter demonstrators at state house rallies. The rallies supporting union rights have a strong union presence and some have taken to heart Capuano’s “blood in the streets” statement. Wonder why that is being downplayed as isolated incidents when the same “isolated incidents” happened at Tea Party rallies during the last election cycle. Seems like the only major media outlet to really focus on it is Fox.

Having a campaign headquarters as Allin Frawley has done returns me to those electioneering times of yesteryear when the practice - even for local elections - was quite common.

The Obama administration is a wreck and shows little signs of getting out of the quagmire and 2012 is just around the corner - but there is good news. Think Newt, Mitt, Rudy, The Donald and a few others and all looks rosy for an Obama repeat.

How did John “I’d Walk A Mile For A Camera” Kerry miss this one? A quirk in Colorado law allows some estates to pay taxes at the agricultural rate. Tom Cruise has a property he bought for 18 million yet pays $400 in taxes since he allows sheep to graze for a short period of time a few times a year.

Former CEO Cleve Killingworth of BC/BS is reportedly on the boards of at least a dozen other companies and many are non profits. How much compensation he receives from this is unknown. AFL-CIO union president Robert Haynes has been rather reluctant to discuss his 72K kiss from his board position except to say in is only “pennies a year” compared to the billions BC/BS rakes in. Tell that to the folks who have had their premiums doubled in the last three years. But some behind the scenes wrangling obviously took place and the board announced they are “suspending” Their salaries - translation is let’s do this until it all blows over.

William Good is a public sector employee who gets it. He is Commissioner of the Inspection Services Division in Boston and The Herald brought to his attention some rather disturbing problems with how his agency does business. His response? “You have identified a problem and we are going back and clean it up.” No deflection. No evasiveness. No getting defensive.

On Tuesday, conservative activist James O'Keefe posted a hidden-camera video in which NPR executive Tom Schiller bashed the tea party movement as "racist" and "xenophobic" and said NPR would be better off without federal funding. That is an excerpt from a wire story on the resignation of Vivian Schiller - no relation to Tom Schiller - from NPR. This agency should have been cut from the fiscal herd decades ago.

Mike Tyson is in trouble. No it is not a domestic incident, biting an ear off or a threat to “eat your children” but something even more serious - PETA. Iron Mike has a show on Animal Planet about pigeons and pigeon racing but he is no novice since he’s been doing this for 30 years. Well…PETA is all up in feathers over this and has started to picket his house - now that is something I’d really want to do if Mike goes off on one of his bipolar rants. When I lived in Marshfield decades ago a neighbor was involved in pigeon racing and I can’t think of anything that would get me upset about it. His wife claimed the birds got more attention and better care than her or the kids and she was right.

The Wall Street Journal has reported a significant slowdown in municipal bond offerings as state budgets have to be addressed before adding long term debt for capital improvements. The bonds also will have to start paying more attractive (punitive) interest rates thanks to ratings drops. Same applies to local communities.

Newt Gingrich has a unique solution for all husbands that are involved in affairs - the passion for my country made me do it. Yep, Newt, that will go about as far as your presidential attempt.

Too Much To List

2011-03-03T15:03:00.001-05:00

At least the rain cleaned off my car.

Companion tickets for airline travel have long been a marketing ploy to get you hooked into specific credit card offers. These are traditional BOGOFREE (Buy One Get One Free) items but they come with a catch. The ticket is only good in specific inventories or fare classes. I have one from American Airlines and decided to attempt to use it but knew what would happen. Round trip airfare from Boston to Houston - Hobby for two tickets came out to $781.60 booked online with all taxes and fees. The same fare booked with an agent (required and $20 per ticket) amounted to $824.20. So using a “free” ticket actually cost more. No surprise.

The above are usually handed out with a credit card offer for 25,000 to 40,000 air miles which is what I am after. Sometimes you may get a pass to their executive club, companion tickets, money off coupons and so on but most are worthless. Just go for the air miles and don’t pay for the card - first year is usually fee free - then cancel out when they hit you with a fee. Impact on your FICO score is negligible. You can also negotiate at that point and I have had the fee dropped and been given 5,000 to 10,000 bonus miles. Remember the more you charge the more they make off merchants who have to pay a fee - all eventually passed on via higher prices.

Capital Planning Committee was well organized in their presentation and their recommendations. The condition of some of the equipment is beyond belief especially those fire trucks. This represents heavy use equipment in all sorts of weather conditions and the results become obvious.

Barney Fife department. A Girl Scout leader says young members of her troop thought they were headed to jail when a Georgia police officer told them to quit selling cookies.
The city's police chief and mayor spoke with the officer. They say he did nothing wrong and that it was a misunderstanding. The troop now has a permit to sell. And to smooth things over, the city is offering the girls a pizza party. Here is the real story. That cop was an idiot. Carrying a badge and having a gun does not make for common sense.

One of the big problems I have with overrides for education is the money goes into salaries and benefits.

The Gas & Electric fiefdom has budgeted $38,000 shutters. I guess they don’t shop at Lowe’s. Maybe they can un-budget it and put that 38K back to the ratepayers? Historical preservation is nice but lower rates are nicer.

So the stock market goes nuts and oil prices go through the roof over Libya. Libya produces about 2% of the world supply which is about what is probably spilled by tankers. The Saudi’s were on record as saying any loss of production from Libya would be made up by increased production from their fields yet that had no influence on the speculators.

Under funded pensions in the public sector amount to about 3 trillion.

A government shutdown is now possible but it is not a rare occurrence from what I have read. Been at least ten in the last 30 years with no shutdown of social security checks. Despite this Obama has said that may happen. Always count on scare tactics.

Teachers should be compensated to the best of the ability of a community but when the fiscal well has been tapped out then a certain reality must set in.

The Herald had an article about court officers having a second job by altering their schedule. Seems to be rather commonplace and many of the court officers are compensated in excess of a $100,000 a year. The pubic is becoming aware that there are now two classes of people - the public service elite and those who compensate them.

The GM of the Boston Celtic - Danny Ainge - shipped out about half his team at the trading deadline. The team is in first place and has the second best record in the NBA so this is a substantial risk. Check back in June for tar and feathers or sainthood.

I just can’t imagine a bigger political disgrace than Democratic legislatures fleeing rather than voting. You oppose a bill and do not have the support to stop it so you play hide and seek. If this happened in Massachusetts the Republicans would be perpetually on the lamb.

Soon the candidate night action will take place. Oak Point (Where every day is a tax free holiday) will have one sponsored by their extremely pro active vets group.

Those pesky Tea Party types have actually been serious about cuts and debt reduction. Seems that too many Democrats have now developed a status quo regarding the perfect storm with benefits and wages to the public sector.

The real action of those influenced by the Tea Party appears to be in the various state legislatures were the perpetually passing down of fiscal insanity has finally caught up. Cuts have to be made or taxes raised.

Have got tickets for the Red $ox games in Houston and Kansas City. I guess spring is here. Even made plane reservations for myself and my wife - The Lovely Cynthia - for KC using air miles. My wife will not attend games but “hang” with other ladies who are indulging our baseball wishes. Oh the payback I face on this!

Warren Buffett remains “optimistic” about our economy. Hey if I had 50 billion or so I would be optimistic.

Rush the blabbermouth has pointed out another wonderful inconsistency in the White House by shedding some caloric light on the eating habits of the First Lady. Michelle Obama does not exactly practice what she preaches to the hoi polloi.

I just wonder when the activity of pirates will grab some type of concerted effort on the part of nations. Seems the defensive exercise is rather shoddy and inconsistent.

The Razzies were handed out and I pay more attention to that award than the Oscars.

The sports team that generated the most revenue in 2010 was Real Madrid a soccer team that made 583M.

Freedom Of Information Act has shown a wee bit of negativity regarding late Senator Ted Kennedy including his rental of a brothel in Chile and a petulant and pompous attitude. Ted is a great example of DYKWIA (Don’t you know who I am?) mentality that seems to have been passed down the genetic food chain to his son “Patches.” I will say I greatly admired JFK and even more so RFK but Ted I had no use for since I have personally witnessed some of his DYKWIA behavior.

You know you are getting old department. The last WWI vet died at 110. I remember attending parades in the early 1950s when you had vets from the Spanish - American to Korea marching. The WWI group was about the age I am now. I do believe the last vet of the Civil War dies in the mid 1950s.

I saw The King’s Speech and it was an entertaining movie but I passed on The Fighter.

Regarding The King’s Speech I found dramatic license taken with the character Lionel Logue who became the therapist for the Duke of York. Logue was shown to be somewhat of a down and out character when the reality was he was financially quite comfortable with an extensive collection of wealthy clients that allowed him to also treat those with limited resources for free. Logue was a well respected professional who was actually the founder of British Society of Speech Therapists. In regards to The Duke of York he confidently made many speeches before the address that became central to the movie. It’s the movies!

Another scammer made contact with me the other day and it was not the English Lottery or some lost relative in Nigeria. This was a cold call from Texas Allied Petroleum for investment in a drilling operation. Just a mere 60K for a ten times that return and complete with a slick brochure that arrived the next day. Only issue is in this day and age one with even my limited internet skills can do ten minutes of basic research that shows this “company” has more red flags than a May Day celebration in Red Square.

The return call was a thing of beauty and lasted less than a minute especially when I pointed out the long trail of complaints and that all their fiscal reports were company created and unaudited. The sad thing is that some folks get dizzy with the promised returns only to be duped out of large sums of money. Be aware that they will often attempt to have the prospective sucker (investor) use their IRA as a means of investment. There are enough shady characters with legitimate credentials without having the fly by night frauds hanging around.

In The News And Other Stuff

2011-02-24T18:23:00.001-05:00

Tea Party backed Republicans in Congress lost out on their bid for an additional 22B “For the children” cuts in social services. Unfortunately everyone has a turf agenda to “protect” certain interests such as The Crying Man Speaker still attempting to get those jet engines for his district. But the deficit conscious Republicans did manage to slash 61B while providing protection for certain companies. Now on to the Senate and then to the President. Chances are it will eventually be watered down or eliminated. Bottom line is everyone is going to get nailed if the spending and deficit is to be controlled.

Governor “two and out” Patrick refused to up the unemployment for MA employers thus saving 400M in extended costs to businesses that would have to eventually be passed along in the pricing chain.

A charity started by two returning vets of Iraq and Afghanistan proved to be a sham. They were even given office space in the state house by the administration only to be outed by Gatehouse News. One expenditure was $800 at Foxwoods. Ouch! Looks like the lesson learned was how to mirror the rampant corruption of Afghanistan and Iraq.

The Republicans - first year branch - and Obama managed to agree on a minor budget slicing last week of alternative jet engines that would trim 450M from the budget. Not much in the context of the federal budget but more than the budgets of Middleboro, Bridgewater, Lakeville, Carver, Raynham, Wareham, Halifax and a few other towns combined.

Senator Marc Pacheco has made my political phony sidebar in the past and I could easily toss him out there again. Marc now is exploring being mayor and a state senator. Living proof of what we all know that being “In the House” in Massachusetts is a part time job with full time pay. Of course what has been dragged out is “others have done it.” Gee…a history of hacks padding their pension.

Maybe Pacheco is a political Mormon so instead of two wives he has two jobs.

Wisconsin has done what BB would love and - hey, BB, it’s the Republicans doing it! They are slashing the pensions and proposing a rewriting of collective bargaining laws with state workers. One of the proposals is to have the workers pay 12.5% of their health care cost. 12.5%! The other proposal is to have them fund half their retirement. Democrats actually left the state rather than be forced into watching this pass. Similar situation is surfacing in NY where a liberal Democrat Andrew Cuomo has all of a sudden become a fiscal conservative going to war with public service unions.

Governor Walker of Wisconsin did exactly what he said he would do if elected. He was elected and actually followed through. Now leaving the state in a snit is not part of the political process since if you are disturbed by his policies just vote him and his cronies out of office on the next round and make changes.

The fiscal tsunami that has hit the United States first surfaced in Europe where governments have had a “smell the coffee” moment and realize the stark reality that the money is not there. To get the money would require a round of oppressive tax increases.

Back home the same reality is now firmly in place as pragmatic democrats and republicans attempt to come to grips with the fiscal realities.

In Middleboro the annual shortage has been going on for decades and I imagine more this year. You have a community with the lowest median income of any town in the county, rising health care costs, mandated programs to fund, contractual obligations and really quite limited new revenue and no rescue on the horizon. Labor costs are the big budget buster and unfortunately that is where the axe will eventually fall. After four rounds of failure with 2 and ½ I doubt any life line will show up.

The value of a second opinion also applies to cars. My wife - The Lovely Cynthia - had a “noise” emanating from her pristine vehicle. Muffler? Don’t know. Had it checked out and was told it was a possible transmission problem which they do not handle. Go to a transmission service and have them look at it. I know from previous experience this is $2,000+ so I went to get a second opinion. This time it was a wheel bearing. Mechanic on the test drive with me said so after about 15 seconds. Bearing replaced. Noise gone. Savings? A bundle.

Local UFC or former UFC fighter is in the news. Has quite a path of destruction with assaults and destruction of property. Time to get some help.

The IRS is one government agency that scares the bejabbers out of us. They have attempted to become more reasonable through the years but this next little missive is not about that but about their web site. User friendly. You can track your refund. They also answer tax questions via the internet. That has been an excellent source for me.

I’d love to see a one time tax free holiday for car buying. This is the ultimate big ticket item and I just refuse to buy a new one when I have to toss away 6.5% on top of an excise tax.

National Grid offers a series of rebates for those wishing to purchase a new high efficiency gas burner which I did. Next comes getting that rebate. How many roadblocks can one company put in place to avoid paying? They are requesting information that was not even on their checklist. Somehow I am getting the whiff of small claims court.

There is a web site that lists what the honorarium for speakers of some notoriety. Bill Belichick has a fee of $50,001. What is the one for?

Airline tales of joy. I have a friend who is going to Hawaii and when he went to get his flight the airline was going to bump him since he was a non revenue passenger (airmiles). Eventually his compensation was a night room at the airport Hilton with several food coupons. A flight the next day first class on both legs. And finally a check - not a voucher - for $800. That is the best one I can ever recall.

President Day Post

2011-02-17T13:38:00.002-05:00

In Boston there is a tradition of saving your shoveled parking space with items to prevent access to those not worthy - the ones that didn’t shovel it out. Now a city ordinance allows this to happen for 48 hours and then the rules change but folks still have the items out ignoring the “Mumbles Mandate.” The trash collectors have been told to remove them since they are considered refuse so chairs, toilets, barrels and other items are collected. In Middleboro that would not be a problem since they don’t pick up the stuff.

The Republicans in Congress seem to be in a bit of reverse on budget slashing as their machetes have turned into a pocket knife.

The Patriot Act had a surprise as 26 Republicans came to their collective senses and voted against extending it.

Charlie Sheen would make a wonderful addition to Congress or maybe as Prime Minister of Italy?

The basketball season continues on at the professional level. I remember “back in the day” when Gene Conley would be pitching for the Sox and backing up Bill Russell. Now that season seems to extend half way through baseball season.

Back when the Sox traded Frank Sullivan (6’7”) for Gene Conley (6’8”) someone asked Frank Lane - a notable GM - who got the better of the deal? His reply: “Red Sox by an inch.”

I wonder what will become talking points for the BOS race? My personal question if I manage to get off my posterior will be “What do you plan to do for health care cost reduction in union negotiations?” Same can be said for patient zero in the local health care issue - the teachers union.

Metro South Chamber of Commerce is offering a great trip to China in November. This is a nine day trip with most meals, four and five star hotels and airfare from Boston for $2,050 per person.

Scott Brown is now approaching 8 Mil in his campaign fund. That will be an attention getter for any potential opponent. Brown has drawn fire from the right, left and middle so he must be doing something right since I am so use to our Congressional delegation pandering to the far left.

The Scott Brown money will only grow and grow exponentially if he wins in 2012 since he’ll be on the front burner for Republican presidential hopes for 2016. Money equals access to power.

I saw another letter by Marc Pacheco in the Gazette responding to Jim Thomas. Naturally - like many others from left of center - he dragged out the new code words “toxic” and “Vitriolic” to describe Thomas previous letters. Spare me the tears, senator, since after listening to Barney Frank for years Thomas is actually Ms. Manners. Once you start getting them to respond - and Pacheco has - you have won.

Now my dear Barney Frank is not going to give up his 400 or so years of “service” in Congress and quietly - wait - quietly and Barney? LMBAO - ride into the sunset and return to his previous employment - pumping gas back in the 50s! No dreaded private sector for Barney. So now the political musical chairs begin - what moonbat will be on the outside looking in? If I was in Congress and the major portion of my district was west of Worcester I’d be checking on my pension payout.

I’d love to see Sarah Palin and her daughter Bristol appear on Jeopardy. Well….maybe “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?” OK….than a 1st grader. My money would be on the kids.

Mitt Romney is suppose to be making another run at being the Leader of The Free World. Almost enough to make me vote for President WOW - if I voted for a national slate at all.

The rotary relief has been deep sixed again. Looks like I will continue to take five minutes rather one minute to get through now that the exotic pathway has been eliminated. But putting my personal negativism aside it’s demise is not something I would pin on the BOS, TM, Planning Board, DPW, IT Director and anyone else for it just seems to be a semi greedy developer.

When they finally get around to actually doing something with the rotary it would IMO end up being a local version of “The Big Dig” with escalating costs, shoddy workmanship and a time line that will last until we are all like the Jetsons. I imagine that project will be very, very costly.

I saw our delegation meet with the BOS so I tried to drift through all the political speak and make some sense of it but all I managed to hear was “tough” as far as cities and towns getting anything.

Watching the Three Amigos or is it Stooges before the BOS I once again saw my aversion to suits and ties. I really think a tie is absolutely stupid. Just dumb to me. My wife - The Lovely Cynthia - thinks a well dressed man is attractive. So that places me in the non attractive category. The one good thing about suits is that they seem fairly timeless as some I have are 30+ years old and still in style and still fit.

Martin Gaskell lost out on a job at The University of Kentucky over his religious beliefs. Gaskell describes himself as a “Theistic Evolutionist” which means he accepts Darwin and believes the earth is actually billions of years old. He did what is commonplace - he sued. Enough email evidence and other evidence was available to have UK settle for 125K. Gaskell is an example of a reputable scientist with impeccable credentials who can also be very religious. They are not necessarily mutually exclusive.

I have never been to The Alley Theater that has opened in Middleboro but I wonder if it is the type of venue that can show films? Many out of the ordinary films do not reach the suburban audience so one has to migrate to various places in Boston or Cambridge to see these films. I don’t care for the term “Art Films” but that is the general moniker assigned to that genre. Be nice to see if someone could give it a go in this area especially if they could combine it with a dinner.

More on entertainment. Spider Man The Musical has been in the news with all the problems they are running into which are mostly self-inflicted thanks to some rather exotic special effects. This is now turning into a $65,000,000 dog. Still in “previews” frustrated critics finally got fed up and gave it reviews - Spidy got squashed! How bad is it? Playbill is offering steep discounts on their web side and Audience Rewards is giving away a thousand points for buying a ticket. I’ll pass.

The military budget will soon be front and center as even the Tea Party crowd has stated it needs to be examined. Trouble is when the “bad guys” start something that is when we go to the cops and in international politics the cops happen to be our military. What bothers me is how we choose to define the “bad guys” as it seems that the military has been used more as an extension of diplomacy of Teddy Roosevelt (carry a big stick) than anything resembling a long range plan.

Right now the United States has eleven aircraft carriers. A carrier is not just a flight deck but a fearsome force that has as much firepower as most countries and that does not even include the nuclear arsenal. Is eleven really necessary? Is it necessary to station troops in England? Germany? Japan? The percent of out budget used for military expenditures is simply outrageous especially in the context of having two questionable wars occurring simultaneously. Our Force de Frappe seems excessive.

Thankfully the Republicans has targeted NPR and PBS for zero funding.

Maybe the Republicans and WOW can get into dueling budget cutting. A sort of mine is smaller than yours?

The Motley Fools are investment advisors but not in a traditional sense. They tend to debase some stocks and especially mutual funds which is where for several years they have directed their collective angst - mutual funds. I enjoy them and have found their advice interesting. But now they have started their own mutual fund. Welcome, boys, to reality and the world of making really big money.

The Hayden Planetarium has reopened after a year of renovations to bring it into the 21st century. The Museum Of Science in Boston is a very dated facility just like the aquarium but at one time they were the blueprint for similar projects all over the country and even the world. Both have shown their age but steps are being taken to once again make both premier attractions.

Spring training has opened so prepare for an endless stream of mindless stories.

Troubles in Egypt did not have any serious impact on the stock market the last few weeks and that is not unusual. I read an article that showed markets are not really impacted long range by significant events such as Pearl Harbor, 9/11 or the assassination of JFK.

The deepest skiing snow base in New England is the Blue Hills. 55 to 75 inches.

Rather amusing watching the BOS debate for twenty or so minutes about getting a free ambulance. Looks like the vehicle is in rather good shape with nothing really to be done to it. So why the debate? Take it. If it is a pile of bolts junk it. I got $400 for a beat up Hyundai with a engine that was shot.

Japan has had the second largest economy for 43 years and it is now number three behind China.

A sign that the boom times have returned is how the financial picture is improving for Sand Las Vegas, MGM, Wynn Resorts, Boyd Gaming, Penn National Gaming and a slew of others whose central focus is enticing you to lose your money. Their stocks are all at or near 52 week highs.

DIET/FRAWLEY/BOS/EGYPT/BB/OTHER STUFF

2011-02-10T17:01:00.000-05:00

The Bogo diet has started. Every year around this time I manage to gain about five pounds. Now to many that is nothing but to the real BB (Buffed Bogo) it is so why accept it? My body just seems to want a layer of winter fat despite that I have a fairly high exercise activity level and really always have except when I am in rehab mode for an injury or surgery so that part of the puzzle is in place. But the weight? So I cut way back by eliminating all sweets and breads and concentrating on smaller portions. Snacks consist of diet tea or soda and fruit or crackers. Maybe not top notch on the Dr. Oz scale but filling. In a week that five pounds has vanished but I will go on a bit longer and trim another five or so - maybe.

On the diet front or is that behind I just get a load of all the gimmicks for weight loss. It really is quite basic: Eat less. Eat right. Exercise more.

But with the diet I use I live for Sunday. Sunday is the very, very best day since that is treat day. The treat is a Honey Dew coffee roll. I savory Sunday and that coffee roll. I microwave it for ten seconds. Each bit of frosting is devoured and licked off my fingers. I know - visual - but you all do it. Admit it. I take that treat in bits and pieces as I slowly work my way to the center. That is my reward. This will probably be a three or maybe a four Sunday diet. When it is done I will resume my normal eating patterns and not worry about any gains since exercise burns about a 1,000 extra calories a day.

The nanny state of Massachusetts is doing enough meddling into how we make choices in just what we are going to eat. The perception is that the citizenry is waddling around - especially children - as borderline obese. Not true for this state as we are ranked among the very healthiest in the nation. Go concentrate on Mississippi or Alabama.

If Michelle Obama wants to be the obesity police maybe she can start with her good friend Oprah.

I consider the continual ranting of the provocateurs of the nanny state diet and foods division way out of bounds. Quite intrusive to tell restaurants what they should serve and how we should eat since there is enough information available for people to make healthy choices and restaurants have certainly responded to their customers wishes by balancing menus. I will not be shocked if childhood obesity becomes a legitimate reason for having DCF look into the rotund family and classify junior being a porker as a form of child abuse.

Call centers are starting to again be located back in the United States as customers have expressed frustration over dealing with representatives for whom English is a second language, do not understand the nuances of our form of English and have no concept of our culture. Cost cutting was fine but the blunt realization is too many customers have expressed their ire over this so bad news for foreign employment but good news for domestic employment.

The more I listen to Sarah Palin the more it seems like she belongs to the woman’s contingent of our BOS.

Allin Frawley is listed on my sidebar as he now has a web site to inform on his campaign for BOS. You know Allin as a regular and quite persistent in both attending and requesting information from the sitting BOS. I will vote for Allin and it is quite simple why. He is willing to invest time, learn, do diligent homework, has a notable work ethic and has gone 100% on record as allowing access.

The two members up for re-election have - IMHO - had their shelf life expire. Marsha Brunelle has displayed a culture of arrogance since the days of the casino issue and that has not changed. The final token for me was her ill fated attempt several months ago to limit access. She can frame it any way she wants but the bottom line it looks bad - really bad - when six former and quite well respected BOS members show up for a verbal lynching. I saw some real backtracking but no apology. Then toss in the ongoing drama with the IT Director. MiMi I have referred to as a political version of the appendix since no one knows what it does and if removed does no harm. After watching meetings on TV the term “empty suit” comes to mind.

The Democratic Leadership Council (DLC) has closed their doors. This is the last vestige of pragmatic Democrats - the kind a moderate to liberal Republican could vote for. Blue Dogs as they were likely to be called. I guess the party wishes to return to the days of McGovern, Mondale and Dukakis.

Egypt has a world of troubles going on as another iron fist attempts to maintain control as various factions will certainly use this convoluted mess to prop up their own “politics,” especially politics immersed in religion.

There will be spill over and I am sure the Saudi’s and their pampered and oil drenched royalty will be center stage and right now this is having an eerie comparison to the domino effect of the fall of communism back a few decades ago. Maybe this will have similar consequences or it just might be the turmoil that seems to surface occasionally in so many nations of questionable democratic principles or none at all.

What is happening in Egypt is a cry for democracy without any real operational experience in democracy. Without that a vacuum is easy to be created so something like the Muslim Brotherhood - banned for fifty or so years - can step in. The United States is attempting in both Iraq and Afghanistan to do the same things - seeds of democracy. Good luck with that! Our blueprint is not necessarily a strict rule of majority as much as it respect and protect the minority. In the mess that followed the hanging chad there was no revolution in the streets. Doubt if you can see that mind set transferred to countries with no background in it.

Back in 1990 communism was on life support anyways as all the half-truths that had been formulated for decades were beginning to unravel thanks to technology. Nothing like having underground video tapes by the millions floating around in various controlled counties that show that much of the propaganda was simply false. Sort of confirmed liars on an international scale. And now that carries over to Egypt where the first thing to do is attempt to control the flow of information my shutting down the internet. Communication - especially the visual and instantaneous kind - goes beyond the internet.

There was a great book written called “WW III - August, 1987” that detailed the fall of communism with the outbreak of hostilities in Europe. What the main focus was actually happened and that is the tenuous relationship between Russia and the various occupied nations of the “Communist Bloc.” In the book those nations quickly ignored or revolted against their “maters” from Moscow and that was later mirrored in the fall of communism in Europe.

President WOW is attempting to promote a new found centrist position regarding his approach to business. Had all the right platitudes tossed out in a recent speech before the Chamber of Commerce but a mountain of damage has already been accumulated by his administration. His speech had a less than enthusiastic response.

The Wheeling-LaBelle Nail Company of West Virginia has closed a victim of foreign competition and the recession and that leaves Acorn Manufacturing’s Tremont Nails of Mansfield as the only nail producer in the United States to carry the made in U.S.A. label. Tremont Nails manufactures traditional square cut nails and much of the process and craftsman can trace their skills back to the beginning of the Industrial Revolution.

In Germany and Japan the school year is about 230 days. I know from personal experience that in Japan the students do not receive homework but are “encouraged” to join after school clubs which further hone the academic skills learned during the day.

We have had exchange students for an entire year and they have been from Japan and Poland (twice). Interesting approach to how behavior issues are handled in the classroom. As the students get older the accountability magnifies and if behaviors beyond the norm continue the students are simply tossed out. No second, third, fourth or fifth chance. No IEP. No appeal. No nothing. You are on your own. Obviously the United States has a more egalitarian approach but consider that when testing scores are given. Sometimes our scores are skewered by students who in other countries would not be given the exams (SPED) or have been tossed (behavior).

The exchange students we have had also preferred our methods of education as they thought they created an environment that encouraged independent thought, free exchange of ideas and the ability to explore areas of interest. Of course these were also students that had the ability to sustain their own education - driven would be the word.

Chrysler ran a two minute ad in the Super Bowl that feature rapper Eminem and the ad finished way down on the popularity charts. I thought it was a great ad as it focused as much on the city - Detroit - as it did on the product itself. Great visuals of a rust belt icon attempting to recovery and a industry on which it depends upon. Having a local kid do it was great.

I’ve been finding Pravda online English edition an interesting read.

A contractor in another town charged a senior citizen $4,800 for clearing a roof - a job that normally goes for $250. Fortunately others stepped in and the money was returned.

Thank you to Alex Rodriquez (AKA - “Slappy” or “A-Roids”) for his splendid display of up close and personal feeding by his between strippers gal pal Carmen Diaz while both wallowed in a luxury suite at the Super Bowl. Now in the great scheme of things this is trivial beyond trivial but to the A-Fraud and Yankee haters this is just more ammunition to bring to the baseball posting boards - not that I would partake in such activity.

BB will never be known as “Mr. Research” based on his latest column and his use of ONE study to make a determination on charter schools. This is too significant issue to point to ONE study as a determining factor. Studies from various other sources such as the Manhattan Institute, Harvard Graduate School of Education, Columbia and even Stanford show positive results. You can also look at testing results from National Assessment of Educational Progress that supports the Stanford study BB quoted. Fine on of success and find another that highlights failure. The results vary and can be linked to availability of resources, how the charter school is defined, the methods of data acquisition and a myriad of other possibilities. IMHO the bottom line is charter schools have been fine but not world beaters. I hope BB is not going to do any “classes” on research techniques.

Pre Super Bowl Post

2011-02-04T15:37:00.003-05:00

Texas has some fiscal problems as does almost every other state and this one is federal mandates for Medicare. The federal government is great at mandating and then pulling the diminishing the funds - same thing happens on the state level as educational mandates are a big one with that. Governor Perry in Texas knows what other governors know and that is to fund the mandates you cut in other areas so aide to communities, education, social services and just about anything else on the budget will get a shave.

Health Care may be on life support if the SCOTUS sides with the lower courts. Republicans want three big changes and all are virtually opt outs such as allowing states and employers to opt out and gutting some of the Medicaid mandates. As far as opt outs a boat load have already been issued by the administration to various businesses/unions.

On Monday evening BOS member Steve Spataro mentioned both monies received and condition of buildings at the Middleboro History Museum. The gift bequeathed to the Association was under the $250,000 but close to that - why quibble? Already half that money has been directed into maintaining the buildings and some information is available on the side bar via link to the MHA. What it comes to is a lot more is needed. The buildings need HVAC to preserve artifacts and documents which are deteriorating rapidly. And when I say HVAC there is none. No heat or A/C and plumbing that is great if this was the 19th century. I’m sure the MHA will apply for funds from the CPA since they receive zero from the town, Pierce Trust or anything else of note for either operating expenses or maintenance of property. Just insurance alone represents about half the annual budget. They receive yearly grants from the Cultural Arts Council and one yearly grant of $500 from the Maxim Trust and the CAC grant goes to funding educational programs or entertainment such as the Ice Cream Social. When Spataro said they were faced with a choice of losing a building he was correct. The Wood gift prevented that - for now.

New York state has slashed their budget and a major fallout is NYC and the sub plot is the layoff of up to 20,000 teachers in NYC. Everything that is negative about a union can be summed up by NYC. There are teachers who have been removed from the classroom yet report for duty each day and are sequestered away with literally nothing to do. Many have been in this routine for years but the powerful union keeps them on the payroll. Be interesting to see if Mayor Bloomberg manages to take on the union in attempting something besides years of service as a determining factor for employment.

Somalia pirates are reported to be torturing captives. It is unconfirmed if the method is playing taped BOS meetings.

Another few snow days and April school vacation just may get dented.

David Stern is a Florida attorney who has made millions on the foreclosure process. So just what is DJSP Enterprises? That is the part of his firm that has gone public. Woe for some and profit for others except that the profit was just not there including a grand name from the Nemasket past - General Wesley Clark. Stern calls his yacht the Misunderstood. Yeah…lawyers are misunderstood. DJSP Enterprises has lost a yacht load of money.

Is that bunker they use in Massachusetts for emergencies a former Nike site? They are scattered throughout the southern part of the state and one in Rehoboth was being used by a private company to store computer file backups.

Tri-Valley college in California was nothing more than a front for illegal immigration. Ninety-five percent of the students were from India and the government finally figured it out that something was wrong. The Indian government has asked the United States for leniency on the “students.” From my own personal experience those from India appear to fall into several groups: Doctors, dentist, small business owners. engineers and computer professionals and maybe the occasional cab driver. Back when I attended Northeastern the School of Engineering was like a trip to India. What amazed me was the ability they had to pick up all the language quirks in what we call English.

The snow pile on the side of our driveway has now reached about eight feet. I am thinking about possibly installing a ski lift and picking up some extra cash. I long ago gave up trying not to toss snow on the bird bath.

Pitchers and catchers report to Ft. Myers in a few weeks.

I bought a snow roof rake. Works well. About $40 at Lowe’s and actually not made in China.

How can a politician be pro-jobs and anti-business at the same time? Seems many do exactly that.

My wife - The Lovely Cynthia - is always watching Dr. Oz and The Doctors on TV and what I notice is that both shows show a bundle of products that they hustle.

The above shows and Dr. Phil can all trace their roots to Harpo Productions and Oprah Winfrey. Great book on Oprah by Kitty Kelly. Love that gossip.

Punxsutawney Phil is just plain idiotic but it did result in a great movie - Groundhog Day.

Massport is in the news as the Boston Herald reported several parking lot attendants earned in excess of a $100,000 last year. The base pay is about $54,000 so that OT adds up. The duties included helping folks find their cars, fix flats, dust snow off cars, jump start and man the booths. There have been many articles through the years on the amount of OT that is so prevalent with Massport so just think about that the next time you have to park at Fortress Logan.

Notice all the flights getting cancelled? Jet Blue wiped out their whole schedule. Airlines are now subject to fines and penalties especially when passengers are confined to the tarmac so why risk say $29,000 a passenger? Just cancel everything and charge no fees for rebooking.

Residency requirements became some type of minor issue at the BOS meeting but as it turns out there happens to be a significant number of department heads who reside in town. Such a requirement could potential drain off applications who view it as too disruptive and burdensome to move. Uprooting from a community - especially if you have young children - could put a real damper on filling out an application and forwarding a resume to Middleboro.

The stock market presents an interesting visual as the end of the trading days nears with some rather rapid fluctuations either up or down as computer programs, day traders, short sellers and foreign investors all kick in the last thirty minutes or so. Volume also goes a bit wild.

More Rambling Of Assorted Thoughts

2011-01-28T08:26:00.005-05:00

Congress has just started up and already the talk is of the elections of 2012. With an improving economy I’m sure the Republicans in Congress will benefit as they claim success for any turn around. Naturally Obama will claim credit for any turn around as it happened on his watch and he’ll use that for a second term run where he just may be successful as he drifts more towards a centrist position. Nice to know the new campaign starts just about three months after the previous one ended.

The Dow Average continues to creep up to 12,000 or pre 2008 disaster levels.

Airlines are becoming profitable again thanks to eliminating flights and increasing fares.

According to various reports companies will not rehire at significant rates simply because they are use to operating now on leaner staffs. I’m sure that being in the dreaded private sector means many 50+ hour work weeks and a diminishing benefit structure. I would never want to be in the position of operating a small business and have to deal with the day to day myriad of requirements by various government agencies while trying to best make a reasonable bottom line for my employees and my own well being.

The Daily Beast has rated Massachusetts children as the smartest in the nation based on various test results. This is rather common knowledge and a good portion of the “success” is based on MCAS which does have rigor that exceeds that of national requirements. Do teachers teach to the test? Of course you have to do that since you are required to follow the frameworks and the frameworks are represented in MCAS testing. For the last several years I have tutored students who have failed MCAS - usually multiple times - and the retesting rate of passing is significant. Most of it is just having a formulated approach to the tests and improving test taking skills.

School curriculum is usually designed to meet the requirements of the frameworks so that the material that you present in the classroom will be found somewhere on MCAS. This is what the curriculum developers do and by that I mean those who sell the books and programs to schools. This is a highly competitive business and one that have often left me wondering. In the school system I retired from they had three different math programs while I was there. Students and staff would get use to say Connected Math only to have it pulled in favor of say Chicago Math. Experienced teachers - meaning those with over 20 years of service - would often “hide” some of the older textbooks that they could use to supplement with the newer. This practice was often frowned upon by administration but some would realize that some of those old methods were quite successful but did not have all the glitz of the newer material.

Several years ago one of my jobs for a few years was actually teaching teachers but most of it was in the area of behavior or classroom management. This would occasionally require me to participate in team teaching since I felt it was necessary to integrate myself into the daily routine within the building. There was one class where a teacher with a few years experience was attempting to show how to multiply and divide fractions using some newer math concepts as divined from the Gods of Curriculum. The kids were lost so I asked if I could teach a lesson on it and did so my using the methods that taught me less - of course - the threat of physical violence. Within thirty minutes the kids understood exactly how to handle division and multiplication of fractions. No great skill on my part but just pushing forward how it was taught to me by Mrs. Nash back in the 50s.

I have an algebra book that dates back to 1949. It was a book I had in school and there is nothing colorful about it. No multi-colored pages. No little gnomes or other creatures with cheery faces. No real gimmicks of any sort. Just a real basic approach. Much of that book I have used in the classroom and in tutoring. I have had other teachers copy sections of it. I hate to degrade the new stuff with “back in my day” logic but from my own experience the material that was used to teach me was damn good.

Cumberland Farms is experimenting with a drive-thru. That should be simple - smokes, lottery tickets and milk. At the Cumby’s I frequent the other day someone came in and was buying laundry detergent, about ten cans of cat food and some canned goods. The expense of these items at a Cumby’s is astronomical compared with a jaunt down the street to Hannaford’s. This was early afternoon and I just could not believe running up a $30 tab over stuff that would cost $10 at a super market. They also left in a Hyundai and not an Audi or a Mercedes.

Bill Belichick and Tom Brady are now poseurs compared to what they once were. Is this the curse of the Eli after losing to the Giants in the SB? Brady has been outplayed and BB out coached in their last three playoff games - games in which they were favorites to win. To me the Patriots are now in that same territory that fans of a certain NY baseball team are - anything less than a World Series or Super Bowl win for the Pats is a failure and Brady and BB have failed.

Where will be the next resting spot for the Tribe? Middleboro and Fall River have failed so they are now on the hunt again. Where oh where will they land?

Gambling will be on the agenda for the next session in the Massachusetts House. Supposedly Patrick and DeLeo have some type of compromise in the works so that not only will the state grab your bucks but so will a casino.

It’s the little things. Wastewater is being treated in Middleboro for plant use. Savings of about $10,000 a year.

Saw an article on Cougars - the ones that go after younger men in the ten to twenty years younger range. That means any Cougar chasing Bogo would be in her 80s. Guess I’ll have to hang out around Island Terrace.

Chuck Turner of the Boston City Council got three years but the collection of former felon House Speakers have nary a day in jail. His crime was a $1,000 bribe but the real crime was two fold - the first was his arrogance in court and the second was being Black.

All those snow days mean no school days and that translates to an extended school year as the days are made up in June. Many school systems have half days built into the school calendar and that is classified as a full day. Usually “professional days.”

BB is doing another show at the Flatiron Café. Hopefully more of the singing chores will be taken over by his wife who has quite a nice voice. Now if Marese can only play the guitar then BB can go around carrying the instruments while she entertains. Hey…maybe she can try her hand at writing a newspaper column?

David Merrill had a wonderful column a few weeks ago in The Enterprise regarding cable companies and his was rant specific - Comcast or as I prefer to call them - Comacast. His complaint is an old one and one that just drives me off the very deep end and that is the inability of the consumer to actually select the channels they want without having to purchase a package that may contain a few channels they actually watch. I have questioned Comacast many times on this issue and the response is always the technology cannot do it. Total 100% BS and they know it.

I have a friend who is representing himself in court and that is a daunting task. It is their playground meaning the judges, lawyers, hacks from probation and assorted others. They know the process so that makes it difficult since they have so many linguistic twists and turns coupled with procedural roadblocks. Representing yourself is like going into a casino and playing slots - difficult to win. I have used small claims many times but that process is simplified compared to the other legal arenas. I am really cynical of the legal process as I have seen first hand a level of incompetence, lack of common sense, questionable character and on and on from lawyers and judges. Politicians have replaced corporate CEO’s as the least respected profession with Congress on top of that list. Most represented profession in Congress? Lawyers. Case closed.

Republican Jeff Perry lost out on his gig to go to Congress but that just opened up another employment opportunity since the Republican sheriff - after a nation wide search - found him a nice $110,000 slot - one in which the previous occupant received $57,000.

I read a nice headline on the State Of The Union address - Long On Rhetoric and Short On Facts. About sums it up for President WOW.

Another two-bit Chicago hack was also in the news as Rahm Emanuel - formerly of the WOW Administration - has failed residency requirements to run for Mayor of Chicago. The case will now be bumped up to the state SC for review. If it is a Daley court he’s a lock to get the go ahead kiss.

And speaking of Chicago it is one of my favorite places to visit. This is a great city that IMO far surpasses NYC.

One stock I have liked in the last two years has been Boeing Aircraft (BA) but at times it is a roller coaster ride. Right now it has taken about a 3% dive in the last few days over profit erosion and Dream liner delays. Still at around $70 a share it is a great buy. IMO it will be at $90 within six months.

Taco Bell is in the news about some of the contents of their products especially the not quite 100% beef taco. As someone noted “At least we now know what happened to the “Chihuahua.”

Now for awful chain restaurants just step right up Red Lobster! There are no Red Lobster restaurants in New England as far as I know and for good reason - we know sea food and have some - if not the best - in this area. I had an “experience” with RL out in California a few years ago where I ordered a seafood platter that consisted of a few pieces of tilapia, some clams, a few shrimps that looked out of a can and some things that I was no sure about. I rarely complain about food but when the waitress asked me about my meal I said “It was the worse seafood I have ever experienced in my life.” The manager had a long talk with me and was willing to comp my meal but I refused saying it was obviously standard to their menus and I was use to my homespun version of seafood. Since he had spent some considerable time in Portsmouth, NH he had to agree. I also noted that their tank containing “Maine Lobsters” had “Product of Canada” attached to the claws.

Not sure of the current status of the Green School but I assume work has been limited by the weather. I also assume that the project may qualify for CPA funds.

Ocean State Job Lot has started selling garden items.

Bristol Palin gets between $20,000-30,000 plus expenses for a personal appearance. Why would anyone want to see or listen to Bristol Palin?

Woe is me time is hitting the Middleboro budget for the annual deficit circus that this time has a tab of $1,500,000 according to the TM. The big crunch is the health care and that can be controlled a wee bit by having GIC.

“We have a major malfunction.” Those were the words utter by flight control when the Challenger shuttle broke up. My son had just returned from Kindergarten and watched the break up - not and explosion - and the impact obviously didn’t leave any scars regarding flight since he became a commercial pilot. The shuttle will now be retired.

Let It Snow Post

2011-01-21T15:19:00.000-05:00

What is the HFPA? That is the Hollywood Foreign Press Association that distributes the yearly Golden Globe Awards to movies and TV. The “Association” has exactly eighty-two members many of which have questionable connections to any legitimate news agency. For example the president of the organizations, Phillip Burk, lists his associations as “Australia” and “Malaysia.” For the sham awards the “Association” received $26,000,000 from NBC. Members are often transported around the world on junkets that would make any politician envious just so that some may vote for the right movie, TV show or entertainer. In another day and age this was known as payola. The organization is also a non profit and has quite a substantial record of questionable practices that go into the exclusiveness that they protect by routine rejection of credentials of some rather legitimate foreign news sources.

President WOW has poor marks on handling the economy so he has decided to put his efforts into “overdrive.” Then why the Clark did he waste so much time, effort and political chits on a health care program that is being both skewered and now - finally - seriously being “adjusted.” It’s the economy, stupid….to quote a famous American.

Governor Deval “Second Time Around Is Better” Patrick is turning into a Republican! Now in the target of the Gov is Massport another hack infested dumping ground loaded with six figure salaries for paper pushing. The state is loaded with agencies and quasi agencies that seem to have the main purpose of providing “employment” for the connected rather than services for the taxpayers.

The Herald had an interesting editorial on the dreaded private sector providing sick pay to employees. This is a rather convoluted issue since some companies have a firm and generous policy while others have none. Sick you lose. Where my daughter works sick days are deducted from your vacation days. Now the legislation proposed is to have one hour of sick time accumulate for every thirty hours worked up to a maximum of seven days. That seems like a rather decent approach but The Herald - like Bogo - feels the primary reason is to take the focus off the excessive sick leave and numerous other benefits that are available in the public sector.

My own personal experience was that in my last year of teaching I had not taken a sick day in the system I worked in. I could accumulate these up to a maximum of 180 days. I could also contribute three days a year to a sick bank which I did. In my last year I suffered an Achilles rupture followed by surgery and then during rehabilitation another rupture an a total reconstruction. The building I worked in was not handicapped accessible so a jaunt up four floors was not in the picture. So I had my sick days and managed to take 138 of them at full pay. That is why they refer to the other side of the fence as “The dreaded private sector.”

The system I was in also had a buy back for sick days. If you worked for at least fifteen years in the system you would be entitled to $30 for each unused sick day up to a maximum of 120 days. I would have lost my days since I only worked thirteen years in the system. Now administrators were essentially contracted labor and many had contracts that called for full pay buy backs with no service requirements. Many other public service unions have these same conditions with tweaks for their members. The buy back is significantly better for say the MTA, police and fire.

I had a certain perverse pleasure in purchasing The New York Post on Monday and giving it to my wife - The Lovely Cynthia - so she could read all about what NY thinks of her Patriots. I certainly would have loved a smack down of the Jets but some things just don’t go as expected. I figure this depression will last out the week but it will never match the one when my NY Football Giants (via NJ) beat the locals in the SB. At least that one eliminated all talk of how I could react so emotionally to the Red Sox.

Allin Frawley will now run for the BOS so that is now down to two replacements for the current members up for re-election. Anyone who reads this blog - all four of you - know that I really don’t care to have Marsha and MiMi around for another term. Marsha has consistently demonstrated bad judgment in her latest tenure from her “defense” of the IT Director to that abysmal performance on attempting to limit speech before the BOS. As far as I can determine MiMi does little beyond planting flowers and mimicking Marsha. As I said - the political version of an appendix. I hope neither candidate announced for their run will run against the incumbents but more as own their own merits as that 10% or so of us who will actually vote are well aware of the actions of the BOS.

Many years ago my wife purchased a Hyundai Elantra station wagon. The car was decent and the price was quite affordable. Nothing special but a car that was serviceable for us for many years. The Elantra represented just about the top of the line except for an under $20,000 faux sports car Hyundai manufactured. How times have changed. First came the Sonata that matched up with the mid market cars of the United States and Japan and now comes the Equus that has an MSRP that starts at $58,000. I’ve read the reviews and it obviously matches up rather well with the higher priced European and Asian imports at considerably less money.

Now my car of choice would be a new Bentley Mulsanne that costs about as much as a home in Middleboro. $300,000 or more for an off the shelf model that is all hand made with such excesses as leather from cows especially raised for the use in the car - no barbed wire marks. I remember seeing a great looking Bentley many years ago at Peaceful Meadows Ice Cream in Whitman. A family dressed like they stepped out of The Great Gatsby but what caught my eye was the Bentley had a small bumper sticker that read “My other car is a Yugo.”

Now if you want a real bargain I’d suggest the Indian made Tata Nano which translates to something like “A total piece of crap that you will probably die in.” This $2,500 mistake sits in many a depot in India unsold. Seems it is a bit risky to drive with the occasional explosion and the fact a good wind can crush it. If you like power than this 30HP “car” will generate about as much as a riding lawnmower.

The great gin mill debate will now surface with the new sitting legislature. Just how will this eventually pan out? Seems “The People” want some sort of means to piss away more money on gaming besides the lucrative scratch tickets. An improving economy will have various members of the pinky ring set coming forth with cash in hand, in bags. Stuffing it in bras and all sorts of great coin to get their gin mills up and running. I look at the investment potential in say neon. Neon will be big…big….big! I know some hate the term inevitable but that is what it is. Where the potential for tax dollars exists to feed the hack machine then onward with gin mills.

Now I really don’t mind the gin mills as I know exactly what to expect. As an entertainment option they are fine with great dining and quality entertainment. I will do what I usually do and plunk down my $20 for the $1 slots and get that out of the way. Maybe “I’ll get luck” and walk away with a princely sum of say $50? Just maybe the state will siphon off some of the money and problems that are going to R.I. And Ct. Maybe Clark from Connecticut can inform us all of the hazards? I for one do not intend to attempt to legislate personal choices.

In Middleboro the specter of a Tribal gin mill still exists but only if they can find a tribe that doesn’t remind one of the Keystone Kops. Being a NIMBY I would be surprised if anything is ever even attempted after the on and off again multiple times fiasco that has taken place. I’m sure the various investors involved in backing up or propping up The Tribe are looking for more viable alternatives. I doubt even the most ardent of pro casino folks are feed up with the circus that surrounds this whole mess.

I still harken back to that casual meeting I had with some various tribal elders at the Crazy Horse Memorial out in SD several years ago. Three different tribes and all involved in gaming and all with the same view: Watch out for the investors. Take as much control as possible. Get them out ASAP. Have your own people take an active role as possible.

The Pawn Stars is a reality TV show that takes place in a pawn shop in Las Vegas. Some of the items that have a value placed on them can be quite expensive. I saw one show in which a George Washington signed lottery ticket was appraised and the appraiser said he would expect it to go for $15,000-20,000 at auction. The why sell it to the pawn guy for $8,000? Need cash that quickly? Degenerate gambler? Makes no sense to sell it to a pawn shop when consignment to an auction house will bring you more.

Many “experts” in finance are touting a massive “Bull Run” on the stock markets. Just what one needs to hear is more predictions regarding the direction and solvency of our world wide financial institutions. One bold predictor even marked 9/4/2013 as the day that would represent the S&P having doubled. I don’t know if that will be accurate since according to the Mayan business we all will have been vaporized by then.

A few weeks ago on the sidebar I listed the salary of Joe Kennedy as far in excess of 500K a year for running a non profit and this is not unusual. Where my daughter works as a teacher is a non profit specializing in Autism and the salaries and benefits are just not that substantial yet a Herald article in the summer had the director pulling in over 500K a year. This is actually not that unusual as many charitable organizations will list 100% of their money raised going “to the cause” but that also includes costs and a big portion of those costs can be some rather inflated salaries. Little research can point out just what percentage actually goes to the charity.

Local Elections And Other Garbage

2011-01-14T17:34:00.003-05:00

Patriots will win and will cover.

MiMi Duphily has announced that she will run for a second term on the BOS. Based on her display on Monday’s my simpleton opinion is MiMi is the appendix of local politics. The appendix has no apparent value and can be removed without damaging the body.

Why is it MiMi and not Mimi?

Brian Giovanoni has announced a run for the School Committee. Brian and I were on opposite ends of the casino issue but Brian has put in some valuable time on those committee’s no one hears of. And would certainly apply himself to a job on the SC. That will be an interesting contest if the incumbents reup.

Ben Quelle has announced for BOS and that gives me one option to vote for and I am sure another will pop up. I cannot vote for either MiMi or Marsha. Marsha for her attempt to quelle (pun intended) free speech and MiMi for being MiMi.

The lowest of the low is the Westboro Baptist Church most notable for demonstrating at military funerals. The few members of the church have made it known that they planning on demonstrating at the funerals in Arizona and the response from the far right, left, Republicans, Democrats and Tea Party is to pass some type of legislation to prevent this or severely limit it. What an abomination! Typical knee jerk reaction. I can see this matter being handled similar to abortion clinics but this situation seems more restrictive.

Managed to get out around noon time on the day of the storm and the roads were in great shape. The DPW may not pick up trees but they did a very good job on my street which is a side street. Route 28 was down to the pavement. Trouble is we had some more snow during the night and that did cause a bit of an accumulation on the side streets. In The Boston Herald Ray Flynn, the former mayor of Boston, had an article on how he use to drive around with the plow drivers to make sure things were getting done. Unlike Mayor Bloomberg in NYC (and some members of the BOS) he realized it is the little things. Bloomberg got the message and had full force during the latest NY storm.

I read that all this snow is a result of global warming. I had also read that the warmer weather in the summer is the result of global warming. Nice to frame a science debate where no matter what evidence is presented backs up a position.

Evergreen in Massachusetts is dead. Eight hundred jobs gone and a bundle of taxpayer dollars thanks to Deval “Almost One and Out” Patrick. I understand that their Chinese operation is still going and, of course, their CEO got a nice bonus despite the company going down the tubes. The governor stated something about at least having jobs for four years. Such leadership! Good for going green.

Gambling will be on the agenda in Massachusetts for 2011 and will surface in one form or another in the wonderful world of extravagant gin mills. The Tribe seems to be out of this play so far but one never knows.

My wife - The Lovely Cynthia - enjoys shoving snow and who am I to discourage such a wonderful pastime. I even purchased a few additional shovels that are actually capable of hacking away at the ice. I do participate in this joyful activity but it is frustrating since I am constantly directed to “avoid throwing snow on the birdbath” or “Not near those bushes” as snow has to be piled in certain specific areas. Her primary goal every storm is to clear an area in the back yard so that her feral welfare cats will have access to the multiple feedings they receive each day. If any Haitian hurricane victims knew just what was available at the feeding trough they would head north and stay under the picnic table in the back yard.

My daughter managed to find some news that was not on her primary news focus in life - TMZ - that had a story about the elderly dropping from heart attacks while shoveling snow. When this storm rolled around she actually had a plow come over and plow us out. She even commandeered her brother to come over and participate in some sibling shoveling activity. That has not stopped my wife who has made twice daily treks to clean off melted ice or provide pristine pathways to bird feeders.

The CL had an interesting posted comment on a prominent anti casino site that had “data” pronouncing how many potential suicides are possible with a casino in Massachusetts. The information was so blatantly false as to be laughable. Do these folks ever realize that just a modicum of research will fill that BS full of holes? Find to be anti this or that but when the attitude is the ends justifies the means it is just plain wrong. Becomes much to common place in too many issues. The old repeat a lie often enough it becomes a truth.

Commercials that advertise we’ll beat our competitors price or the item such as a car or floor will be free is just plain idiotic. Does anyone really think about the stupidity of that statement?

Another one is car dealers putting a sticker on a car that is just ADM or additional dealer markup for a car on which there has been nothing added on. Just a negotiation ploy. A few weeks ago I was at a dealership where I saw think in full court press mode with a client with limited English skills. While the salesman was off - probably illegally checking credit without permission - I explained the situation to the customer and then left. Hopefully he did not pay MSRP and the additional useless thousands.

I came across a great book via email called “Disorder In American Courts” that uses actually court room testimony. For example:

ATTORNEY: The youngest son, the 20-year-old, how old is he?
WITNESS: He's 20, much like your IQ.

I will avoid any connections to any local attorney’s.

Patrice Tierney - wife of Representative John Tierney - has been sent to a to be determined Club Fed for thirty days thanks to her involvement with a money laundering scheme connected to her brother. Her husband had no knowledge of this according to his own statement and I can understand that. If my wife started to toss around thousands of dollars and buy a new car I’d not say a thing. That means the rep is either a liar or an idiot.

Start Of The New Year Post

2011-01-07T18:40:00.000-05:00

Tom Brady made the GQ list for best dresses males and the Bogo missing from the issue was an oversight I am sure. I know that BB was represented in the torn and stained flannel shirt section. Special note was given for his ability to wear a shirt three sizes too small and appear - and I quote GQ “Like a Bumpkin.”

In NYC the big story has been the lack of snow and garbage removal thanks to a blizzard. This story has been going on for ten days and is reflective of how the little things get to folks. Heads have already rolled and more are expected to follow. I was in NYC for three days and trust me the locals are really pissed. NYC also picks up Christmas trees - probably buried under the trash.

NYC is the epee center for the nanny state nutrition police and it is displayed up front in calorie counts on the menu. My wife - the Lovely Cynthia - loved the idea of seeing this since she is in a perpetual state of diet. I could care less and it seems most of the population is the same.

To get to NYC we took the train so when you go Middleboro to South Station and then South Station to Penn Station it is about five and a half hours on the train but certainly beats the traffic crap shoot with the bus. The trains were comfortable, clean, on time and with a rather spiffy clientele. For us an advanced purchase one way ticket was $49 each.

As the train went zipping along I just stared out at the large number of abandoned buildings - mostly factories and warehouses - that were along the route. Amazing how much manufacturing has been lost. Maybe Suo will give some insights from the trenches since I have little knowledge about it.

I did notice many buildings converted for other use primarily into housing. Be nice if the obstructionist can be mollified so that Starr Mill can be reused.

The train stopped in New London and I have not been there for many years. A few years ago Limo had proposed a trip to the gin mills and a tour of the area including New London. I jumped on that offer but I don’t think any other anti like moi or pro did. Now I’ll have to go down in the summer and look around as the waterfront area seemed quaint and dynamic.

Now the classic Huck Finn is being sanitized to remove potentially offensive language. I’m sure I’m next on the list for that treatment.

Barney Frank accepts all the science of global warming. Now BF is enraged because a federal agency has refused to expanding fishing - hurting New Bedford - since there is no science to support it. BF refuses to accept their science but gleefully accepts the science of Al Gore. Go figure.

The Massachusetts Parole Board is an upfront example of exactly what is wrong with this state. This collection of connected hacks averages out to about a 100K a year for scrutinizing the prison records of offenders. It appears that once one “finds God” or completes an extension course they have been rehabilitated and can return to society. The public outcry will soon dissipate and it will be back to business as usual. Find it interesting that in New Hampshire they get a $100 a day for being a board member and meet only a few days a month.

The Legislature and governor have managed to make the ultimate fiscal sacrifice and get their pay about one half of one percent.

Middleboro is now raising fees since according to the TM they have not been raised in twenty-two years. If that is true - and after 50 Xmas trees I wonder - then they are making up for lost time as the raises are substantial.

One poster on the 4,677th best blog in Middleboro claimed that since she has an artificial tree she is subsidizing the removal of mine. What a silly argument. No doubt this same “visionary” also supports not paying real estate taxes if you have no children in school or have ever had children. Government is not a menu picking one item from column A and one from columns B and C.

It has to be a slow news day when the annual plunge of the L Street Brownies takes place and it ends up as a prominent news story. Why is that even news worthy? Right up there with the annual St. Patrick’s dinner when the criminals ….I mean the politicians - make inane “jokes” about each other. At least the yearly Brownie adventure now has some charitable connections. I also understand there are a few of these polar bear types are even in picturesque Newport. If folks need inane and idiotic foolishness just read the blogs of BB or the Confirmed Liar. Naturally my blog is exempt from being classified as inane or foolish.

And as far as career criminals it was nice to see the warm welcome in The House for the return of two convicted felons and former speakers - Sal DiMasi and Tom Finneran. This happened about the same time Diane Wilkerson (D-Maidenform) picked up a three and a half year vacation as a guest of the Commonwealth. Maybe the parole board can let her out?

Rodney Dangerfield was one of my favorite comedians and he had a great line regarding the neighborhood he grew up in: “I was fifteen years old before I realized the cops also got paid by the city.”

There is one thing I have discovered even more obnoxious than Bogo and that is that idiotic Kars For Kids commercial.

The next commercial I can do without is the yearly idiocy of Toyotathon that has convinced me to buy any other car but.

On the other end I love the “I pick things up and put them down” commercial by Planet Fitness.

Professional computer folks are IMHO compliant in an incredible display of intrusion on our own privacy in that they are either employed by or contract out their services to companies that track your online movements via cookies or just target you with specific pop ups. I would love to see some type of frivolous legal action (hello, AB!) take place to put a head lock on what they do and the companies they work for. Maybe a $1,000 fine for every unwarranted popup?

Can you bet on the Apocalypse? Sure can. Where disaster awaits so does profit in the wonderful world of cat or catastrophe bonds depending upon the circumstances. Virtually all bonds have a limited yield (2% to 14%) if no earthquake, hurricane or 100 megaton blast takes place during a specific time but if it does your investment can be vaporized. The investment is really part of the insurance market and say the disaster you are linked with such as Bogo writing a coherent blog results in getting paid. No disaster you score! I’m going with the Mayan calendar on this one.

In other financial news the IPO of Facebook may take place in 2011. This is expected to be valued at more than 50B. Investors are all thinking another Google.

The Republicans are in office two days and unemployment drops from 9.8% to 9.4%. Boy those Tea Party folks are sharp.

Shelf Plus Pricing. I had never heard of this until Mouse Print published a post on its use by Avanza Supermarkets. What it does is add a specific percentage to your order for each or certain items. The advertisement will read something like $3.29 a pound and then in mouse print “An additional 10% will be added on at the register.” This was not exactly a new concept and has been used by other businesses.

Locally I enjoy Hannaford’s. I scan that meat section constantly for discounted items which seem in abundance compared to other markets. Right after New Year’s I got a nice prime rib discounted almost $3 a pound. Their specialty market has some great cuts but most are also available in the meat department. The fish department is rather small and can be pricy compared to Market Basket but they usually have a few specials each week that make it more reasonable. Bakery is also a regular stop. Hannaford’s has it all over Stop & Shop and Shaw’s. For seafood Larry Carver is also worth a visit but can be a wee bit expensive for certain cuts but the quality and freshness can’t be beat.

A friend of mine - which being a friend of mine shows a certain lack of selective standards - used the term polymath - a phrase I have not heard in decades. The first time I ever heard it was in graduate school at B.C. and it was spoken by a professor named Andrew Buni. He used the term to describe the budding historians that populated his class and asked that we all be polymathic or renaissance men and women. I hope the others in that class did better than I did at achieving that goal.

Finishing Off The Year

2010-12-30T08:42:00.002-05:00

I read a recent comment about Senator Scott Brown that he is “Not a puppet.” This became readily visible in his vote in favor of repeal of “Don’t ask, don’t tell” and START. Can you imagine Kerry or Kennedy going against the grain in one week on two significant issues? Many of the anti Tea Party and just “hate Republican” crowd no doubt will remain silent on how dead wrong they were on Brown. No doubt they will support whatever lock step ultra liberal they can drag out in 2012 to run against Brown so they can get back to the position of mindless orthodoxy. Brown has done a remarkable job of voting for the legislation and not for the symbol of “R” or “D.”

The new year means a new diet for many folks. January usually sees an upsurge in “Y” attendance as all those resolutions are made to get the fat off. I see shows on TV constantly plugging one product or book after another to make everyone slim and attractive like Bogo. The real truth is rather simple. If you wish to lose weight just eat less and exercise more. The weight comes off. Now as far as the eat less that does not mean one coffee roll rather than two but simply eating a more balanced regimen. A key component in any weight loss is exercise and exercise can be just plain old walking especially trails once the hunt for Bambi ends and CPA spends a few hundred large to have a trail system locally. But, seriously, there are some great trail systems locally so just use them.

My son just returned from a stay in Kuwait. His missions were simple - drive into various places in Iraq and extract equipment. The missions usually lasted between twelve and twenty days and the trucks he drove - HET’s (Heavy Equipment Transports) offered wonderful target opportunities. The trucks had amour and all sorts of counter measures but still they’d get hit or close to it. Needless to say several members of the transportation group came home early due to extreme stress and many of those were on their third deployment. On 12/24 the entire group arrived back in Massachusetts and they know their next stop will be in Afghanistan in two years.

One of the more compelling stories my son told was the first time he saw a group of children and tossed candy out the window. They ran thinking it was explosives. Then they returned to collect the goodies. As the missions continued kids began to get some upgrades as we sent over packages of Hot Wheels to distribute.

The Care packages sent to troops are so important. You can donate just the postage for a package which is about $12 and I do believe Oak Point has a Vet’s group that does just that or look up Cape Cod Cares. Just include letters and local papers even if they have no relevance to who may get them. It is not unusual to get a note from a kid in Iowa who is in Iraq or Afghanistan who has a Gazette or Herald or Globe or Enterprise and relays how important it was just to read a simple newspaper and look at articles that we routinely bypass and even advertisements.

Give President Obama a break. He’s trying to enjoy a family vacation and all you get is the shutter bug paparazzi attempting to get a photo op. This applies to celebrities from the “A” list to the “D” list. Why is it important to look at a photo of Jack Nickelson coming out of a restaurant or some reality “star” getting into a car? Who is really fascinated by this stuff? Is this something for 20 somethings? I just don’t get it. Many a time I have seen celebrities in a public place and the last thing I would be is intrusive and try to get a picture taken or an autograph. I remember on a Red $ox road trip we had dinner at a hotel the team was staying at and one of the players was - Lou Merloni - was signing autographs in the lobby so I went over just to observe the madness and he asked if I wanted his autograph. Instead I gave him MY autograph and said if he wanted a picture with me he better have a camera. Fortunately he had one and I’m sure Lou has in hanging in his den.

The famous also get special treatment such as go to the head of the line or a comp. Recently Shaq was at Nashoba Ski area and refused a comp for himself and his children and SO.

That brings up another wonderful Bogo story. In the early 1970s we flew into Hyannis Airport and went to the upscale restaurant on the premises - the Neptune Lounge and they required a suit jacket and tie, Being the GQ person I am I had neither but they supplied me with an awful facsimile. After ordering in came a large party and none of the gentlemen had a suit jacket or tie. I asked why and the response was “That’s Ted Kennedy!” So I repeated and got the same response. I left. I imagine the check is still being held for me. By the way the Senator was highly intoxicated, loud and just plain obnoxious and I know all about obnoxious.

Football time. I am a fan of the NY Football Giants (via NJ) and they have put on the most pathetic display imaginable the last five quarters. Then you have the local entry that has managed to perform beyond expectations. IMO the real star surprise for the Patriots is Green-Ellis. Kid is like Jim Nance for you old time Pats fans.

Huge Hefner is getting married again. The 84 year old Hef is engaged to a 23 year old who professes her love to Hugh.

The start of the new decade is upon us as that takes place on 1/1/2011. The same applies to the millennia which began on 1/1/2001 and not on 1/1/2000.

I am still mystified by the recent statement that about 50 Xmas trees met their fate at the chipper last Xmas season so therefore why bother. I imagine this is some rather telling math deficiencies on the part of the DPW. On our street along there were about ten and we have only 35 houses on the street.

More on the DPW is that the recycle pickup will not take place for those of us scheduled for Tuesday. We’ll have to wait two more weeks in a shinning example of more quality service for the $208 trash tax. My wife - The Lovely Cynthia - called up the DPW so that is how I know. She called again to whine - I mean, to complain - and was told the DPW supervisor would get back to her. Still waiting. Probably happened sometime this century.

The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts rendered a decision that has resulted in a mandate for all of us to clear our sidewalks and even our steps or face the consequences of legal action either via local fines or from slips and falls. The recent snow storm provided a windfall or snowfall for The Boston Herald that took photos and attempted to interview justices that didn’t follow their own ruling. Naturally they could not be reached for comment. With government officials they are them and there are us and both have different sets of rules.

Xmas trees and other junk

2010-12-22T08:56:00.002-05:00

It’s the little things that get to folks and that is especially true in government. In Middleboro the latest directive is regarding Christmas trees. Apparently the semi- new and IMO clueless Highway Superintendent decided to forgo the annual pick up and decapitation of the spent Xmas tress. Our trash tax is $208 and covers very little except routine pick up. No large items. No leaves. No paints. No special collection days. If you want to decide those your choices are two fold. First is to select an appropriate spot on one of our 160 miles of roadways and just toss it. The second is to get a dump pass (AKA - Landfill) for $25 and bring assorted items there but if they happen to fall into a select category there is an addition fee and that fee can be expensive. Yes…the dump will take yard waste gratis but you must haul it in yourself. So now back to the trees.

Your option is to cart the tree to the dump and toss it. No charge except for your time and gas. Now if you happen to be unable or unwilling (ODD?) to do this too bad. No wood chipper to relieve you of this duty. If you do not wish to go to the dump I’m sure you can cruise down Wareham Street and make a personal delivery to the highway department.

The whole trash tax is a joke. For $208 down from $216 you expect some moderate degree of service. If I lived in several other communities this would not be a problem. Advanced notification and large items are taken away. Old sofa? No problem even if gramps is still sitting on it. Ditto appliances, wallboard, wood and just about anything else. You may pay more such as Brockton with a $280 fee or less with Attleboro and their under $200 fee but you do get some actually return on this backdoor tax.

This is a little thing but it is the type of thing that gets locals blood to boil almost as much as an imperial decree not to plow certain streets. What it does show me is an amazing lack of basic understanding of human nature and the fact that when you cut a simple service almost on the eve of Christmas that Middleboro may have hired a few Grinches to take over key position. Timing is everything.

Oil is up to $90 a barrel and the U.S. is continuing to be held hostage to oil producing nations. The truth is we use oil now. We need oil now. We are limited in what we can do for domestic production. The reality is drilling should be allowed without our domestic domain to create some degree of independence. The U.S. should also insure that domestic production remain domestic and not tossed into the international markets. As far as alternative energies that technology is advancing rapidly but until further breakthroughs occur oil will have to do.

The Chinese are now following the U.S. pattern of the 50s with personal transportation - the car. Despite incredible transportation infrastructure development the Chinese seem to want the auto. And they like big ones if they can afford it. Then they have those monster traffic jams that don’t last hours but days. Some truckers carry camping equipment to wait out the jams. Looks like that transportation infrastructure left out four, six and eight lane highways.

Scott Brown is going against party drift in the START Treaty proposals. Brown is also changing his opinion on don’t tell. Brown has done exactly what he said he would and not necessarily follow the party herd. What a far cry from whom he replaced and our Senior senator …and toss in our Congressional delegation.

As far as our delegation let the feeding frenzy begin as one seat will have to be deleted thanks to population shift. Would it be possible to give up all the seats? Our delegation is like a crew of Mynah birds just repeating and following lock step whatever decree comes forth from the leadership. I’d suggest they gerrymander out Barney Frank unless the party needs another fiscal albatross around their necks.

I have a condo in Texas and an interesting thing happened - my real estate taxes went down. Not by much but they did go down since the value of the property went down. How novel!

I don’t know what would be a bigger disaster - another four years of Obama or Palin winning. A perfect lose-lose situation.

ASVAB is the test for joining the Army or Marines and the failure rate is climbing up to almost 25%. The Air Force and Navy require even higher scores than the 31 percentile the Army/Marines require. The average scores for blacks is 38 and for Hispanics it is 44 and whites’ check in at 55.

The Red $ox have managed to rebuild their bullpen just before Christmas with the acquisition of Jenks and the under valued Dan Wheeler. If Bard maintains his performance level and Papelbon can regroup this may be one the best bullpens in baseball.

The Wikileaks founder became victim of a leak as his Swedish police reports were leaked.

President WOW (Walk On Water) ahs managed to cave in on the expiration of the Bush tax cuts. Many in his own disjointed party have willingly tossed him under the bus. Nancy Pelosi (D-Botox) and Harry Reid (D- Slot Land) even refused to show up at the ceremonial signing of the measure. Is this the beginning of an Obama drift towards the center? Is this a willingness to work with Republicans?

Welcome back to the 1166th.

SYSCO/Traffic/Hunting/Facebook

2010-12-16T13:01:00.002-05:00

SYSCO ends up in Plympton and it appears the deal maker was the quick permitting available. In Middleboro there was considerable behind the scenes activity to get the deal done but, alas, it was a great effort but no prize. My assumption is that SYSCO will use Spring Street on Rt. 44 as their access point for Rt 3 and I-495 . Middleboro rotary may get some heavy duty truck action in the mornings. Maybe the land that was designated for a potential Middleboro site could be used for a casino?

What is it with Rt. 24? This is now the Highway To Hell to quote one of my favorite bands. I use to work in Boston, Quincy and Braintree and have taken that road thousands of times and cannot recall - even at my advanced age - the number of accidents that seem to snarl traffic. Back when I had a daily commute Rt. 24 was generally clear sailing until you got to Rt. 128 or whatever it is known as. There is nothing particularly unusual about the configuration of the road like there is with say - I-95 in the Pawtucket area - yet it has become almost a daily occurrence to have wreck somewhere. My daughter now travels Rt. 24 every morning and has become an avid listener of traffic reports - something she had never done in the past.

I’m all for an extension of the tax cuts and really am getting a bit tired of the “soak the rich” mantra. There are certainly people of wealth who didn’t exactly extend themselves to any great sense to get the dough - maybe a thanks, Dad? But I know folks who exceed that magical 250K figure that moonbats seem to toss around and they are folks that are driven by long work days, incredible responsibility for decision making and really not living a flamboyant and excessive life style. The super rich - top 1% - have 23% of the income yet pay 40% of the income taxes according to The Herald. Class warfare sells.

The national debt keeps piling on and IMO the one key to the whole mess is a surging economy. If unemployment manages to get cut in half you will see revenues start to erode those many trillions especially when accompanied with some degree of fiscal restraint.

In baseball a good trade is one that helps both teams and the same applies to politics and the recent negotiations/compromise between Obama and the Republicans clearly showed that.

On baseball the famed Baggie Dome in Minnesota had a snow induced collapse. This was IMO the worse baseball park ever created. Thankfully the Twins have a new field and the Vikings may soon also have one.

As Christmas approaches the phone calls amp up on the begging line to which I usually respond: “I do not accept solicitations over the phone.” I really dislike the call centers that some quite legitimate charities use since it does siphon off a considerable amount of potential income.

I do believe LaBelle Chevrolet of Bridgewater is now another victim of the economy. Last time I drove by a few cars were in the lot and the sign was down and there was a sign that signaled a possible used car - pardon me - Pre-Owned car lot.

A high school track star was shot in the leg over the weekend in Mattapoisett as he and his fellow runners made the tragic mistake of running in a restricted area to hunters during hunting season. Earlier in the week a dog was plugged in another town as it is quite easy to confuse a pooch with a freaking deer. As a trail runner restricted means absolutely zero to way too many hunters in the quest for Bambi. I have been to areas over the years that are restricted and well posted only to find the beer swilling and rifle toting crowd out for the kill - deer, cow, horse, dog or human - just plug something. I have talked to many hunters who say it is amazing the changes that have taken place over the last forty years as many keep the woods clean of their rubbish but seem more inclined to sample some recreational drugs and more traditional alcoholic beverages prior to and during the hunt. Things are rough when even some hunters shy away from it.

I have a Facebook page that I hardly use but I did receive a message from Facebook about the possibility of my account being compromised so on I go. I change my password but could not sign on. When I go through the hoops they set out I need a code they have emailed me. Naturally I never received a code and therefore cannot get on and just delete this worthless piece of garbage. OK…just contact them but the trouble is you can’t. No way! Phone is useless. So I sent out about fifty duplicate emails to various parts of the company hoping someone will respond. After three days nothing. Useless

Puerto Rico

2010-12-08T16:54:00.002-05:00

Puerto Rico has become an annual pilgrimage for my wife - The Lovely Cynthia - and myself - The Obnoxious Bogo. This time we decided to venture to the west end of the island to Rincon about a torturous three hour drive from San Juan.

Rincon is a tourist area that is primarily a stop for the island residents rather than a huge influx of those from the continental states. Most of the upscale resorts in PR tend to be in the San Juan and Ponce areas or in their general vicinity with an occasional lonesome one spread elsewhere on the island. I could care less since we stay in guest houses or boutique hotels. Cost and most importantly our personal preference are the contributing factors as we find the large resorts quite self insular and lack the ability to get a neighborhood feel. Bogo goes “native?” Neither of us need a spa or a golf course or a 400 square foot room and twenty-four hour concierge service. We prefer neighborhood stores, restaurants and stopping by local road side stands. We prefer public beaches and actually enjoy being in a neighborhood where chickens may roam the streets despite being the island equivalent of middle class to upper middle class. And where we stayed that is what they did. Kids playing in the streets, dogs running loose, folks sitting on their porches, parking cars on sidewalks and just strolling around. This was a neighborhood and not a four star enclave.

Rincon is quite a beach area that is noted as being a surfing hot spot. The beaches are many and the sunsets are a killer and toss in consistently mild weather and it is a keeper. We stayed at a guest house and were for our five days the only ones. Someone must have warned them I’d be in town. They have eight rooms and all remained empty as this was the end of “low season” which means cheap rooms. Generally “high season” and its accompanying expense starts in mid December so if you go to PR plan accordingly. Now when I say we were on the water I mean on the water. Walk out our room and cross a tiled communal patio and go thirty feet and it is the ocean. You get the picture.

Right down the beach - about a five minute walk - was a resort. This was not a lavish place but one that had those amenities you may occasionally desire such as a more upscale restaurant, music and a bar. We wandered down twice and the place was relatively quiet on both a Friday and Saturday night. The “low season” thing.

I once had a PR student who said to two Asian students: “We Ricans are just like you - we drive like s**t and love to gamble.” How right he is about both. The main highway from San Juan to Arecibo area is Route 26. Two lanes, tolls, great scenery and drivers who seem to stay in the passing lane and go 45MPH with no desire to pull into the right hand lane. You find yourself going right and left to swerve around these folks. I asked a local about this quaint customs and he gave a Spanish term that roughly translated was something like A-holes. The other thing is turn signals. Why even have them? It became a game to see the ratio of who used them. It was about one out of thirty would actually put on a blinker when turning. Massachusetts drivers actually appear polite. After Route 26 comes Route 22 and it is endless traffic lights for forty miles.

Everywhere you go is the lottery. The national lottery tickets are sold on tables set up in front of high traffic areas or on roadsides right out of trucks with lottery signs. Scratch tickets are popular but they seem to prefer the daily numbers and the national lottery. Casinos are in some areas - primarily San Juan - but are small in scope and frequented almost exclusively by tourists.

The language barrier exists. My skills with Spanish are now limited to about fifty words. I can order food, ask for directions, find a bathroom and that is about it. What will often happen is my fifty words and a locals fifty English words will be enough to get things done. Sometimes the results could be unusual as you may end up with a food item that you are totally clueless about. What is also interesting is how many noted American companies do not have their signage, menus and other information in English. It seems in the states they bend over to accommodate but not on the island.

Speaking of food I have never been one to sing, shout or mime the praises of PR cuisine. I’ve just never considered it that special. In San Juan and Ponce you have a variety of restaurants that practice infusion culinary arts that will blend PR cuisine with Cuban, French, Italian and so on but in Rincon it is primarily the basics and a whole list of your standard known fast food chains. I love Churches Chicken and they was one about half mile away and the local bakeries had some exceptional pasties. I did find a local place that did Bar-B-Que and it was great. Pulled pork, beef and roasted chicken and plantains done a variety of ways. The cook (don’t call me chef) went to the prestigious Culinary Arts Institute of America but gave up being a chef for the beach life in PR.

In PR a grande is equal to our small. A standard coffee size is six ounces and a large eight ounces. The Coffee is exceptional in taste and we actually have PR coffee shipped out about twice a year. No more expensive than getting a bag of DD. The local beers - Madelia and Silver Key come in ten ounce cans so size does make a difference.

One of the things that always gets my bride irritated is that PR is far from “going green.” They do not recycle, the streets tend to be sloppy, and we have never seen a solar panel array or a windmill despite their astronomical electrical costs on the island. They must have alternative energy somewhere but I haven’t seen it yet.

If you rent a car in PR it is relatively inexpensive but the highways system is almost on existent. San Juan and Ponce areas have some four lane roadways and there is one connecting San Juan to Ponce but if you go east or west out of San Juan after about fifty miles you are no longer on a highway system but smaller roads. The signage can also be a mystery as in some places it is confusing or does not exist - just like Massachusetts.

For those who are budget minded PR offers a nice option to other non American islands in the Caribbean. No worry about any passports or entrance or exit fees. The weather is excellent and there are many bargains as far as places to stay. The island also options some touring options from a rain forest to the giant array at Arecibo.

Black Friday/Education/Hannaford's/Smokers/Korea/Steve Spataro

2010-11-29T16:15:00.000-05:00

I did what most do not do and purchased several “special door busters“ online before the rush. Even got free shipping. Also it is not the busiest shopping day of the year as that honor goes to the Saturday before Christmas. One site actually tracks selected promotion items and shows that last year an astounding 80% were on sale for less than the “special price“ within two weeks. .

I was on a recent run with a certain Pulitzer possibility columnist who also happens to have the 2,987th best blog in Middleboro and we discussed education. I got into my usual pontification of the value of vocational education which I consider an absolute gem in the fast deteriorating educational structure. I have one son who went to BP and loved it. The program opened a gateway for him to get into electrical work and that provided him with an employment opportunity until he completed fight training. At one time many, many years ago I ran for the Middleboro position on the BP School Committee and in a field of five managed to finish second. However I did beat out blanks.

I use to spend some time at BP with my son taking his courses and operating a ferry service for him for jobs and after school athletics. Very impressed by the various programs in structure, professionalism of staff, curriculum and expectations. There is usually a waiting list to get in so discipline is not an issue. Screw up you are gone. Where I use to teach - Attleboro - the Vocational School is part of the high school and I believe only one other community has that set up. Unfortunately many of the students I had could not attend Vo-Tech classes due to significant behavioral issues. Those that did managed to get a nice start in life with some decent training and good paying jobs.

There was and continues to be an impression by some that Vo-Tech is a place for academic under achievers and some of the early MCAS results may have supported that hypothesize. But those scores have improved considerably and many of the Vo-Tech students attend college rather than go into the work force. A significant number in Attleboro attended the usual mix of schools for more advanced technical schools to highly advanced schools like Wentworth and the engineering and architectural schools at Northeastern and Boston University along with community colleges. In my opinion much of that educational stigma is just not valid.

Another option in the Vo-Tech spectrum is the Bristol County Agricultural High School in Dartmouth. Bristol Aggie as it is called offers Vo-Tech training in the area that its name references. I know Middleboro has some students that attend and I know through my past experiences in 4H that the school is exceptional Programs offered are in a variety of areas from large animal science to natural resource management.

“It shouldn’t come as a surprise to us that we are providing progressively less support for our students.” That was a quote from School Committee member Paul Hilton in an article in The Gazette regarding floundering MCAS scores and continuing budget short falls anticipated with further cuts in state aid. Naturally all those problems will be rectified by tossing a boat load of money into the school system. The article seemed to be the first shot in another attempt at a prop 2 and ½ override and follows of the heals of a snippy and disgruntled letter a few weeks ago by another SC member.

Hannaford’s had an interesting advertisement in The Brockton Enterprise showing their prices were lower than those of S & S and Shaw’s. No big surprise to those of us who are regular shoppers but what they didn’t mention was the dirty little secret of supermarket chains - zone pricing. Price in one market in the chain may not be the same in another market in the chain. Different zones have different fliers. I first noticed this many years ago when I would shop at stores in Quincy and the same specials and prices were different than those in our area. This was pre internet days so I simply had a talk with a manager who explained the various factors that form the basis for zone pricing of which the most important is competition. I was also told that certain areas that are less than economic powerhouses will generally have higher prices mostly as a result of pilferage - employee and customers and lack of foot traffic (customers). This is one of the primary reasons why major stores just don’t wish to locate in poor neighborhoods. Racism is usually tossed when pressure is exerted to have a store locate or to stay and the counter argument will be we are not in business to lose money.

The AP has a story on 11/22 explaining why the stock markets went down over 1%. The reason was mounting debt issues in Europe and especially Ireland coupled with tension in Korea. On Wednesday the markets go up again over one percent and the AP story has Europe debt crisis and tensions in Korea ease and world markets go up. On Friday the markets go down almost a percent and the story headlines are world markets flounder on European debt issues and tensions in Korea. No comment necessary.

Anna Jacques (rhymes with flakes) Hospital in Newburyport now does not hire smokers. First shunted to the loading docks in sub freezing weather and now stamped do not hire. As one of the first members of GASP (Group Against Smoking Pollution) I often wondered if our initial foot in the door legislation would eventually have unforeseen consequences. GASP first signification project was to ban smoking in supermarkets. Seemed reasonable enough. This was accomplished by making the smoking issue one of public health and not - unlike with AIDS - a political issue. Today smokers are ostracized to the fringes where they can enjoy their detrimental habit as they please but banning employment and requiring urine tests to insure they are not lighting up on the sly?

Most smokers that I know respect the air space of the non smokers and most smokers have attempted to quit numerous times. Almost like losing weight and gaining it back on and losing it again. A real merry-go-round. The health consequences of smoking are well documented so this is not an issue of conflicting data. No global warming debate with this puppy. But sooner or later extremist take over and you see this now as a classic example with Anna Jacques Hospital.

President WOW (Walk On Water) managed to get an elbow in the chops and that required twelve stitches. This is the end result of a pick up basketball game and he managed to get the errant elbow. As a former gym rat who use to play some heavy duty B-Ball up to my mid 50s I can fully understand. Seen that many, many times. In all my years I never managed to get one stitch from basketball - of course I had a fracture cheek bone thanks to an errant elbow for a teammate and have also managed to break every finger several times - but no stitches! I’m sure WOW - a true gym rat - has many similar scars.

I may be a New York Football Giants (via New Jersey) fan but I hate the Jets infinitely more than I dislike the local team whose name escapes me. I also dislike Dallas and the Colts infinitely more than the local team so I wish them well in what amounts to a show down on Monday Night Football.

I watched some college football this week and noticed a significant number of coaches had state troopers escorting them. My first response is a simple why and the second is it a paid detail?

Now North and South Korea are in a rocket launching spat. The ultimate punk is Kim Jong II who stands to inherit daddy’s little armed to the teeth nation. Kim Jong appears to be attempting to show pops and the generals he has a pair by whacking an island of about 1,500 innocent bystanders with his latest weaponry. You have one side with a hot economy and another side with plenty of military toys and little to eat - unless you are the twin porkers named Jong. I just love the way these various characters dress up in their military uniforms with all those phony medals. As far as I can determine there is absolutely nothing in this little foray that is in the “What’s in it for us?” category. We still - along with the U.N. - are suppose to have some type of commitment to help defend the South which is why we have a presence. I have seen some video’s of the North and their allegiance to their Fuehrer and it goes beyond bizarre.

My wife - The Lovely Cynthia - and I will be heading to Puerto Rico for a few days. This has become an annual event and I have finally convinced her to go somewhere on the island besides San Juan. As a member of the famed “Cheap Bastards Club” I prefer PR over other islands in the area just based on cost. Really a bargain - even the airfare. The car rentals are exceptionally cheap thanks to few fees and taxes. My $92 rental for five days ends up having only $13 in taxes and fees. In many cities it is close to 50%.

A special thank you for BOS member Steve Spataro for helping distribute candy for the Middleborough Historical Association at the annual Christmas Parade. Steve also had to put up with my usual banter.

A TSA Thanksgiving

2010-11-22T18:32:00.000-05:00

Egyptian Air Flight 990. Investigators claim pilot did a suicide crash. 217 dead.

SilkAir Flight 185. Possible suicide pilot. 104 dead.

Private pilot crashes his small aircraft into IRS building.

Massachusetts - Snow Airport having an illegal training other Illegals on small palne operation.

This is just how freaking stupid this whole TSA joke is. What does it take to load up a Cessna 150 and fly at a few hundred feet right into Fortress Logan and take out a fully loaded heavy right on the tarmac? Or just flying the damn thing into that gas tank in Dorchester? I’m sure the geniuses that run our security are aware of this or maybe not? I’ll probably get a knock on my door and a pat down. Just look above at that issue at Snow. This was a fairly harmless situation since they were Brazilians attempting to get a pilots license that is gold back home. But what if they were not? Have they got cells planning crap like that? Does it take much for a terrorist network to spend the time and effort to get someone trained low end?

Israel has long had the tightest airport and airline security in the world and they manage it without strip downs, pat downs and nuking the passengers. Amazing! Lot of personal interviews with some profiling and common sense.

I can’t imagine why the TSA mall cops will not use some common sense. They are suppose to do their own version of profiling but some of those chosen for intensive personal attention just make one wonder.

Will perv’s now focus on getting employment at the TSA? Some airports have actually decided to use private companies and do not use the TSA. Seventeen at last count.

Do we give up our rights when we buy an airline ticket? Where is the line drawn? IMHO virtually every pat-down would constitute sexual assault in the real world. Yeah….I am really ticked off by the whole mess and especially being laughed at by terrorists.

The Ware Report found rampant corruption on Beacon Hill. Now that was a real shocker! I never suspected. Wonder why the report was released AFTER the election. Anyways, the Governor is in avoidance mode and the report simply shows what most of are already aware of….it’s not what you know but who you know and contributed to that gets you on the fast track for a job in the Probation Department.

Of significant mention in the Ware Report was our Senator Marc Pacheco (D-Payoff). Turns out he allegedly was involved in this mess by requesting one of “his guys” get a plum probation job which - a true miracle - happened. Then “His guy” is requested by the Senator to seek contributions to the Pacheco slush fund. Pacheco has denied all. Marc…do you know Chuck Turner? The report questioned the credibility of the Senator.

Steve Grossman won an election and is already hiring a defeated Democrat for his office staff. The payroll patronage is on to build up that old monthly kiss (pension).

Governor “Almost One And Out” Patrick is still on the kick for tuition breaks for illegal immigrants. Amazing.

Middlesex County Sheriff James DiPaola won his election and was on tap to collect a salary of 123K in addition to a newly minted pension of $98,500. Why? A state law exists that allows one to collect a pension if they are elected to a paying office. DiPaola had a “good conscious” moment and resigned.

Another investigation of insider trading on Wall Street. Certainly hope Martha Stewart isn’t involved.

How can someone write a story in the Peirce Trust that questions the methods of selecting beneficiaries by just a cursory review of Town Reports? You have the trustees available so interview them to get an idea of how the fund is managed, invested and what criteria they use to select where the money goes. Shoddy research is an understatement.

The stock market took some hits in the last week or so thanks to ongoing debt issues in Ireland. But when you look at Ireland it ranks 57th in world GDP - just behind Finland and ahead of Morocco. And this causes billions in losses? The logic is it is symptomatic to possible failures in other countries. Now Ireland has been handed a 100B bailout. This was the hot economy just a few years ago and now it is another European Economic Union welfare handout. How quick it can fall apart for a business or country.

I love the upsale I and others get at “Quick Lube” type places. I was getting my usual simple oil change when customer after customer was called into the shop to be given varying degrees of bad news regarding their vehicle. Then came my turn. I was showed the transmission leak I had that was barely noticeable so I said “That looks serious! I’d suggest you get it done right now since I don’t want any further issues” I got the no problem and the $200 estimate for a flush, seal and filter change so I came up with my own retort: “Oh…a charge? I had that done by you folks two weeks ago and less than a thousand miles ago. I requested it. Filter, seal and fluid change. Looks like you’ll have to see what you screwed up.” About 15 minutes goes by and out comes the service manager again: “I checked your records and you are correct. This is nothing more than residual leakage.” Sure. Told them I’ll watch it for the next 12,000 miles just in case.

Last year my daughter had here car fail inspection at a dealership in Raynham. Why? The seat belt in the real was frayed. I looked at it and she had to have what was frayed pointed out to me. This seemed like total BS since they wanted $300 to replace it. I took it to a station here in Middleboro that we generally do business with and they laughed at it. Total BS. Just an attempt by a dealership that is suppose to have a great reputation just trying to make a sale.

Patriots caught a break with Peyton Manning making an over throw on a pass.

Red Sox have been discussing the possibly of getting Adrian Gonzales from the Padres. Gonzales will be a free agent after 2011 so if a trade is made I would hope they would have a contract in place but the deal makes little sense to me. For the money Gonzales would require the Sox could resign both Beltre and Victor Martinez and not part with the players necessary to trade to get Gonzales.

A by law will now have to be written regarding the CPA and this will be interesting to see who ends up getting the power to select committee members.

An article appeared over the weekend that questioned giving more money to teachers with advanced degrees. Research claims that the increased education is not reflected in increase performance. No surprise to me. I’ve seen folks without a degree in 4H and scouts run classes that were great. The article pointed out the state of Washington where the added expenses total about 300M a year. This does not even address the added pension costs since pension is based on income and education increases income.

Sensible Alternative To BB Post

2010-11-13T07:57:00.002-05:00

Now that the election is over a few trial balloons have surfaced in Massachusetts about addressing the revenue issue. Revenue issue is a kind way of saying raising taxes and is like calling a used car a pre-owned car. The possibility of tinkering with the income tax and increasing the gasoline tax are starting to read their collectively ugly heads. When you vote to maintain a sales tax “For the children” the interpretation is simply and that is that the folks will quite naturally be accommodating to other tax increases or fee increases. According to the Taxpayer Foundation Massachusetts has the largest per capita debt of any state with fellow traveler California close behind. Two states that go lock step with the demands of public service unions.

I really enjoyed George Bush (R- Hanging Chad) attempt to rewrite history on an interview regarding his failed presidency. Dubya certainly matched the inane attempts of Jimmy Carter and his revisionist rant of a few months ago. I’m sure both probably consider Warren G. Harding as a personal favorite. I can’t wait down the road for Obama attempting to make sense out of the train wreck he helped create.

The CPA is now in the books as far as Middleboro is concerned and I hope the local Historical Association will be able to grab some of the funding. The conditions of the buildings had reached a point where a decision was going to have to be made on not restoration and repair but which one to save while leaving the remains for the wood pile. Fortunately the Association came into a generous gift which has allowed renovations to take place that will at least preserve the site. Now CPA funds may allow the Association to address other critical issues on the property.

Republic of South Korea had full page spreads in newspapers across the United States on 11/11 thanking the United States and those of the United Nations that helped secure their freedom.

Governor “Almost One and Out” Patrick pledged a billion bucks to Bio and pharma to create jobs and last week two bio firms announced layoffs. Another stimulus type bill that results in a taxpayer bill.

A nasty report surfaced from the government that outlines drastic steps that must be taken to address the debt issue. Naturally the mention of increase in taxes and reduction in benefits was front and center. Good luck with that.

One of the key components in the above was structural changes to that great Ponzi scheme known as Social Security. Reduction in benefits, increase in retirement age and further cuts to Medicare were prominently mention. Why is it that those who actually contribute must take the brunt of government failures? Seems like the last group to have anything slashed is the entitlement crowd especially illegals.

The government with their enforcement arm - the IRS - has also proposed an elimination in the home mortgage deduction. This is not new as the tax code has had countless little items dropped over the years and the cumulative impact has been to have more revenue enhancement.

The increase in retirement age and pension reductions has hit Europe hard as one nation after another has to deal with rising costs and lack of funds. The solution advocated is an increase in the retirement age and that has been met with riots that have shut down some countries particularly France. Imagine what the war torn streets of Paris would be like if they proposed an increase from age 60 to 70 for retirement rather than 62.

Mayor Mumbles in Boston is taking on the unions. Amazing! In Massachusetts it is especially evident the power the police, fire and teachers unions wield and how a very, very large portion of our legislature seems to pay heed to them more than the average Joe and Jane. Mumbles is attempting to get some relief on health care which costs Boston 300M a year. The city currently pays 82% and there are options such as the state run program that could provide cost relief. Mumbles is actually attempting a home rule petition to circumvent the unions. Good luck, Mumbles.

The clear consistency in the government budget is excessive pension and health benefits that certainly put to shame most in the dreaded private sector. The matching contribution in the dreaded private sector is about as rare as a cognizant column from BB and most employees have to make do with what they can cobble together with a retirement plan of their own. In my own days in the DPS the health care bill was usually a contributory 50/50 split and in virtually all areas of the public sector it is in the 80/20 range or higher with the taxpayer footing the greater portion of the bill. Middleboro is no exception.

The Cabot Club has folded. This is a 100+ years old civic organization that had made significant contributions to the quality of life in Middleboro and the dwindling membership finally forced the situation and they are in the process of dissolving. I do see a lack of involvement in certain organizations I was active in such as scouts and 4H.

Nice letter by Wally in The Gazette.