Let us all hope and pray tonight that he is the future, because, if he isn't, he just became a salary cap liability:
The Green Bay Packers said this afternoon that they have signed quarterback Aaron Rodgers to a long-term contract extension through the 2014 season. "As we talked about in the past, we try to be proactive in our discussions with our current players and we felt like this was an appropriate time to try to come to an agreement with Aaron," said General Manager Ted Thompson. "We feel like this is good for the organization and the players, and we will continue this approach as we move forward." Rodgers was the team's first-round pick in 2005. He has started all seven games for Green Bay this season and has thrown for 1,668 yards and 12 touchdowns for a 98.8 passer rating.
Friday, October 31, 2008
PACKERS EXTEND RODGERS' CONTRACT
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Technical College - End the Tax Travesty
As tax bills will be sent out in less than two months, this time of year always leads to me ponder the interesting status of technical colleges in Wisconsin. IF I were to be in the State Assembly or Senate, one of the first pieces of legislation I would introduce would be a bill to end the unelected status of technical college boards. It comes down to one simple concept which led, in part, to the formation of our nation - no taxation without representation.
Technical college boards are not elected, and that is where the system breaks down. According to the Legislative Reference Bureau, a technical college board is made up of nine members who are appointed by a committee of local elected officials under a representation plan based on population distribution within the district, including women and minorities. Two members must be employers and two members must be employees. One member must be a school district administrator of a district that lies within the technical college district, and one must be an elected official. All members serve for three-year terms. The advocates of the current system point to the fact that the members are appointed by "elected "officials, as if this somehow circumvents the concept of no taxation without representation. I doubt any of us know which local officials appoint the members of the Moraine Park Technical College Board. I know I don't, and I have never appointed a member.
I firmly believe that taxing bodies which do not answer directly to the voting public, will find themselves with a diminished incentive to economize, and a greater likelihood of giving into special interests. In the past year, Germantown, which is a part of the Milwaukee Area Technical College (MATC) District, may have shown us the first glimpse of the future. According to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, most Germantown residents who choose to attend tech college go to a tech college other than MATC, but Germantown property taxpayers send MATC roughly $5 million every year, and nobody from Germantown is on the board. As a result, there has been an effort by Germantown to leave the MATC district. Washington, Ozaukee or Waukesha Counties send tens of millions of tax dollars to MATC’s appointed board either, but they still have to pay tens of millions of dollars in property taxes each year.
One of the checks on local governments, when it comes to taxes, is the levy limits. Last year, The Governor used his veto authority to eliminate the levy limit placed on technical colleges. The budget approved by the Legislature in 2007 had imposed a cap on growth for technical colleges at four percent. In light of the recent taxing trends of Wisconsin's technical colleges, the logic behind removing the levy limits seems to be flawed. According to the non-partisan Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance, technical college tax levies have increased from $251 million in 1992-'93 to $622 million in 2005-'06. That’s an increase of almost 150 percent, twice the increase in overall levies during the same time period. Governor Doyle also exempted technical colleges from levy limits in the previous state budget.
Back in 2003, in an effort to increase local control over the state's technical college system, a legislative task force has recommended that the colleges present their annual budgets before county boards. It was one of several recommendations made by the Assembly Speaker's Task Force on the Wisconsin Technical College System, appointed by then-Assembly Speaker John Gard (R-Peshtigo), who is now running for Congress. The proposal, along with other legislation aimed at making the boards elected, have all died before reaching the floor of the Legislature for debate.
The problem is not just in southern Wisconsin. Back in 2005, the Sister Bay Village sent its payment to the Northeast Wisconsin Technical College in Green Bay under protest, adding this little written note - "The services in the form of course offerings for northern Door County and the location of such courses are not commensurate with the taxes paid. In fact, it has been calculated that for the annual taxes paid from northern Door County, we could send every child from Gibraltar School to Harvard."
Where could we send our children? Yale? Cornell? How about right here to Ripon College...
School Board Cuts 2008 Mill Rate
This is great news on top of the city's vote to freeze the mill rate in 2009:
For the fifth time in seven years the Ripon Board of Education has cut the equalized mill rate for property taxes that support school operations. At its October 27 meeting the Board approved a $22.9 million budget for the 2008-09 school year that includes an equalized mill rate of $9.20 for tax bills that will be distributed in December. This is a decrease of 6 cents in the equalized mill rate from last year and a drop of $2.64 cents in the past seven years. Actual local tax bill mill rates are subsequently converted to assessed valuations and will differ in each of the eleven municipalities that are part of the school district.
Wisconsin’s school funding law contains revenue limit provisions that restrict school boards from raising budgets by more than a rate determined by inflation and the district’s school-aged population. After the budget is determined, the amount of state aid for property tax relief is calculated with a formula that estimates the equalized value of property per student in each of the state’s 426 school districts. This calculation is considered a measure of the relative wealth of the district’s population and its need for state aid to ensure that all students in Wisconsin receive a comparable educational opportunity. Ripon’s state aid for 2008-09 is 67% of the operating budget.
Ripon’s revenue limit for the 2008-09 budget is a 2.9% increase at a time when costs are exceeding that amount. The majority of the district’s budget is for wages and benefits, and another state law mandates that teachers receive a compensation increase of no less than 3.8% each year. This disparity in the budget laws has caused the Ripon Area School District to cut $328,000 from last year’s budget and an additional $342,000 from the current school year budget. The amount that is necessary to cut from next year’s budget to meet the law’s provisions is still being calculated. Public listening sessions will be announced for November and December for receiving community input into budget planning for 2009-10.
Friday, October 24, 2008
Municipalities to participate in fall forum
RIPON – City of Ripon, Fond du Lac County, town of Ripon and local school district officials will participate in a fall forum on Oct. 27, at Royal Ridges. The noontime event is sponsored by the Ripon Area Chamber of Commerce, Ripon Rotary and League of Women Voters of the Ripon Area. The meeting will be conducted in a question/answer format and residents are welcome to submit questions at the luncheon. Reservations are $7 and may be made by Friday, Oct. 24, by calling the chamber at (920) 748-6764.
I will be there....Hope to see you as well.
UPDATE
So what was discussed? Trees, health insurance, housing and the fire district were the main topics addressed to the city's representatives. There was a question regarding the removal of trees. I wish we had more money to replace trees, and we do have a line in the budget for tree replacement. One idea I have toyed around with is the planting of trees in the unused portion of Woodlawn Cemetery to create an urban forest. Seeing that we have enough land to take care of our needs into the 22nd century, I think this could be a viable project, with community and voluteer support.
As for housing, a member of the audience questioned what concerns we have about our recently-created housing developments. Of course, we have read about the Sandmar subdivision, and the water drainage issues. I am looking forward to a report in the very near future on possible solutions. A number of meetings have been held in the past week to discuss ways to find any possible solutions. One important fact to remember is that the existing lots were not seriously impacted in the June floods. I have said it over and over - I would not hesitate to build a home there if that is what my family decided to do. The national economy is obviously having an adverse impact on the local housing market, but we have NOT seen a jump in foreclosures, and I am pleased with the fact that, when the housing market purges itself of the bad loans and excess inventory and is ready to grow again, Ripon has a number of housing options. This is something we did not have when previous housing and economic downturns were reversed.
As for the fire district, I am pleased with the recent direction and leadership provided under the Board President, Deano Pape. The fact that the city has contributed to the purchase of two new vehicles without borrowing, and that we built a station that was extremely cost-efficient in terms of construction, cannot be overstated. Like any "marriage", this district has had its good and bad days. I only wish that the towns of Metomen and Green Lake would reconsider their previous decisions to secede. That said, there are storm clouds on the horizon. The aerial truck has surpassed its expected lifespan, which means we all need to sit down and have a serious discussion on the cost-benefit of replacing this unit, and how we are going to pay for it.
On to health insurance...each governmental body discussed their current coverage plans. The Ripon Area School District offers single plans for teachers are 100% paid by the district, family plans are 95% paid by the district. The administrators switched to the Network plan this year at a significant savings to the district. For the teachers, the carrier remains a negotiable item, but they have not budged from using the WEAC health insurance, despite some evidence that placing the insurance out to bid could result in savings for the district. The Fond du Lac County health insurance plan has about 850 participants, and costs went up 5% last year. Health care is difficult to assess for the Town of Ripon, as they only have two fulltime employees, and its options are limited. The City of Ripon's health insurance costs went up 11% this year, and remains a concern. There are roughly 50 covered individuals/families under a Network plan. The employees pay $30 per month, regardless of whether they are under the single or family plan. The city did go to a much higher deductible recently, with the city paying the amount of the increase. There is no deductible for individuals under the plan. The savings, roughly $100,000 for that one year, was placed in a Sick Leave Payout Fund for future retirements. I told the group our health insurance plan is "a ticking timebomb", and I believe it is. I could not support the recent contract with out unions, because of the health insurance system we are under. This has not improved my popularity with the unions, but I cannot ignore the increasing pressure on our budget each year. The day will come when, either the employees increase their contributions, deductibles are passed on to the employees, we reduce coverage, or we reduce payroll. My only hope is that this potential "battle" is handled in a respectful manner, for the employees, for the city and for the taxpayers. The problem lies with Washington's inability to discuss and pass meaningful health insurance reform, but we are left to deal with the symptoms.
MY THOUGHTS ON A SMOKING BAN
The Fond du Lac City Council this week, narrowly, approved a ban on smoking in city workplaces, including taverns, bowling alleys and other workplaces. This was a contentious issue, and, according to a local group and their organizer, Smoke-Free Air for Everyone, or SAFE, and Maggie McCullough, it was a tough decision for the council to make, and at least one member had endured "personal attacks" for her position in support of the ban. Let me be clear on this issue. At this time, I am NOT in favor of a similar ban in Ripon.
First of all, I am a former smoker. I quit on January 1, 2008 at 1213 AM, and have been cigarette-free since. I quit "cold turkey", and it was hard (especially during Packer games, the Brewer playoff run, and the floods in June), but I had the support of my family and friends. Plus, having two little daughters changes one's attitudes and habits. I am not an anti-tobacco zealot, as some former smokers become, but I am a staunch defender of personal freedoms.
Here are the reasons I cannot support a smoking ban:
1 - Smoking is not illegal in the United States. In fact, this state has increased its tax on cigarettes to fund public health programs, though, with our Governor's track record, who knows where the additional revenue will go. If we want to be serious about curbing or eliminating smoking, then we should ban it entirely. Of course, the economic impacts would be tremendous in parts of the nation.
2 - I have heard the complaints about entering a bar or restaurant, where there is smoking. No one has forced anyone to enter these establishments. They entered of their own free-will, and that is the magic of the free market system. IF the owners of the properties had seen an economic advantage to eliminating smoking, they would enforce their own smoking bans. And, in some cases, restaurants have done that.
3 - I have also heard that smoking puts employees at risk. Once again, no one has forced them to work there. They chose to work there, and they should have clearly understood the risks.
4 - I agree smoking is not healthy, and advocates of the smoking ban have used this argument effectively. BUT obesity is not healthy (I am obese, another admission), and will the ban on smoking move on to fatty foods. Efforts have already been seen to ban such establishments as McDonalds in some California neighborhoods. Where did we lose the concept of personal choice, responsibility and freedom? Why does the government continue to think it always knows what is best for us?
5 - For the record, I am also opposed to the seat belt requirements, and the recent change in Wisconsin law to require certain booster seats for children. Once again, the government seems to know what is best for each individual, and that is a scary slope to start sliding down.
I am sure my position will not be popular with some, but I felt it necessary to get it out there, since Fond du Lac is just down the road.
UPDATE
Since posting this, I have received some flak for this sentence:
"For the record, I am also opposed to the seat belt requirements, and the recent change in Wisconsin law to require certain booster seats for children."
First, let's be honest - Wisconsin passed this law in part because it was bribed by the Federal government, just as we were bribed to drop our speed limit in the 1970s. Call a spade a spade. Let me site the following news article:
"The State is also planning to help families who cannot afford to buy the car seats. The new law allows Wisconsin to apply for Department of Transportation money that will help families in need get the seats at little or no cost. " - http://www.keynews.org/archive2/booster.htm
Let that sink in real clear - The State can get money from the Feds to buy seats for people who cannot afford them.
And then read this: "Doyle's office said the new law allows Wisconsin to become eligible for $625,000 in federal funds this year and up to $2.5 million over the next six years. The state will use the money for child safety seat education and training and programs that help poor families get the seats.According to state transportation statistics, 53 children under age 8 were killed in car crashes between 2000 and 2004 in Wisconsin." - http://www.beloitdailynews.com/articles/2006/02/07/wisconsin/wis03.txt
There are more children in this state who will die from the dietary choices imposed on them by their parents, than who will die from their parents not putting them in a booster seat. I think we can expect the calorie police at Golden Corral and Old Country Buffet soon....if the Federal government decides to bribe us once again.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
AN EMAIL TODAY TO THINK ABOUT
This is not intended to offend anyone. Just the facts!
ARE WE STUPID OR WHAT?
It makes you wonder....... This email comes in three parts....Make sure you read all three parts!
Part 1
Remember the election in 2006?Thought you might like to read the following:
A little over one year ago:
1) Consumer confidence stood at a 2 1/2 year high
2) Regular gasoline sold for $2.19 a gallon
3) The unemployment rate was 4.5%
Since voting in a Democratic Congress in 2006 we have seen:
1) Consumer confidence plummet
2) The cost of regular gasoline soar to over $4.10 a gallon
3) Unemployment is up to 5% (a 10% increase)
4) American households have seen $2.3 trillion in equity value evaporate (stock and mutual fund losses)
5) Americans have seen their home equity drop by $1.2 trillion dollars
6) 1% of American homes are in foreclosure
7) Food prices skyrocketing over 30% in 1 year.
America voted for change in 2006, and we got it! Remember, it is Congress that makes the laws and spends our money - not the President. He has to work with what's handed to him.
Part 2
Taxes...Whether Democrat or a Republican you will find these statistics enlightening and amazing.
www.taxfoundation.org/publications/show/151.HTML
Taxes under CLINTON (1999)
Single earning: 30K - taxed $ 8,400, 50K - taxed $ 14,000, 75K - taxed $ 23,250
Married earning: 60K - taxed $ 16,800, 75K - taxed $ 21,000, 125K -taxed $ 38,750
Taxes under BUSH (2008)
Single earning: 30K - taxed $ 4,500, 50K - taxed $ 12,500, 75K - taxed $ 18,750
Married earning: 60K - taxed $ 9,000, 75K - taxed $ 18,750, 125K -taxed $ 31,250
Barack Obama promises to return to the higher tax rates if elected. It is amazing how many people who fall into the categories above think Bush is screwing them and Bill Clinton was the greatest President ever. If elected, Barack Obama has already promised that he will repeal the Bush tax cuts, and amazingly, a good portion of the people who fall into the categories above can't wait for it to happen.
PART 3
You think the war in Iraq is costing us too much? Read this: Boy, am I confused. I have been hammered with the propaganda that it is the Iraq war and the war on terror that is bankrupting us. I now find that to be RIDICULOUS. Read on... I hope the following 9 reasons are forwarded over and over again until they are read so many times that the reader gets sick of reading them. I have included the URL's for verification of all the following fact:
1. $12 Billion dollars a year is spent on primary and secondary school education for children here illegally and they cannot speak a word of English!
Verify at: http://transcripts.CNN.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0604/01/ldt.0.HTML
2. $17 Billion dollars a year is spent for education for the American-born children of illegal aliens, known as anchor babies.
Verify at: http://transcripts..cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0604/01/ldt.01.html
3. $3 Million Dollars a DAY is spent to incarcerate illegal aliens.
Verify at: http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0604/01/ldt.01.html
4. 30% percent of all Federal Prison inmates are illegal aliens.
Verify at: http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0604/01/ldt.01.html
5. $90 Billion Dollars a year is spent on illegal aliens for Welfare & social services by the American taxpayers.
Verify at: http://premium.cnn.com/TRANSCIPTS/0610/29/ldt.01.html
6. $200 Billion Dollars a year in suppressed American wages are caused by the illegal aliens.
Verify at: http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0604/01/ldt.01.html
7. The illegal aliens in the United States have a crime rate that's two and a half times that of white non-illegal aliens. In particular, their children, are going to make a huge additional crime problem in the US.
Verify at: http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0606/12/ldt.01.html
8. The National Policy Institute, estimated that the total cost of mass deportation would be between $206 and $230 billion or an average cost of between $41 and $46 billion annually over a five year period.
Verify at: http://www.nationalpolicyinstitute.org/pdf/deportation.pdf
9. In 2006 illegal aliens sent home $45 BILLION in remittances back to their countries of origin.
Verify at: http://www.rense.com/general75/niht.htm
The total cost is a over $400 BILLION DOLLARS A YEAR. Are we THAT stupid? If this doesn't bother you, then just delete the message. If, on the other hand, it raises the hair on the back of your neck, I hope you continue to forward it to every legal resident in the country including every representative in Washington, D.C.
WHICH STORY IS MORE IMPORTANT?
STORY NUMBER ONE
Newly released medical records from vice presidential candidate Joe Biden do not include the results of any recent brain scans, which some experts consider necessary to assess whether the senator is at risk for a repeat of the brain aneurysms that nearly killed him 20 years ago.
STORY NUMBER TWO
Police departments in cities across the country are beefing up their ranks for Election Day, preparing for possible civil unrest and riots after the historic presidential contest.
Public safety officials said in interviews with The Hill that the election, which will end with either the nation’s first black president or its first female vice president, demanded a stronger police presence.
Some worry that if Barack Obama loses and there is suspicion of foul play in the election, violence could ensue in cities with large black populations. Others based the need for enhanced patrols on past riots in urban areas (following professional sports events) and also on Internet rumors. Democratic strategists and advocates for black voters say they understand officers wanting to keep the peace, but caution that excessive police presence could intimidate voters.
STORY NUMBER THREE
The Republican National Committee has spent more than $150,000 to clothe and accessorize vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin and her family since her surprise pick by John McCain in late August.According to financial disclosure records, the accessorizing began in early September and included bills from Saks Fifth Avenue in St. Louis and New York for a combined $49,425.74.The records also document a couple of big-time shopping trips to Neiman Marcus in Minneapolis, including one $75,062.63 spree in early September. The RNC also spent $4,716.49 on hair and makeup through September after reporting no such costs in August.The cash expenditures immediately raised questions among campaign finance experts about their legality under the Federal Election Commission's long-standing advisory opinions on using campaign cash to purchase items for personal use.
I KNOW I KNOW....TOO EASY OF A QUESTION....
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
MAYOR WILL NOT EXERCISE VETO POWER
After further thought, I have decided not to exercise my veto authority on the council's recent granting of an extension to Ripon Restaurant Group, which holds a liquor license they obtained when they purchased 312 Watson Street (Big Stella's) on the following grounds:
1 - I have five days to do, not seven, as I thought
2 - We have another license in reserve, which is not being requested by any other party. Yes, the VFW did request the license, and was denied by the Council. They have not come back to request it since.
3 - Ripon Restaurant Group has shown no malicious or sinister motives in requesting the extension. I am sure the conspiracy theorists out there will continue to believe I am "in bed" with Boca Grande, and Ripon College, and the people trying to take over the VFW, and the turf supporters, et cetera, et cetera. Sorry, I don't have a bed that big, and, besides, I only want to share my bed with one person....I married her. Except on Saturday morning, when my daughter climbs in to wake up Daddy for breakfast.
Monday, October 20, 2008
NEW BUSINESS OPENS IN DOWNTOWN RIPON
UnCorked owners Lisa Diedrich and Julie Bartz embarked on the business to fill a “fine wine” need in Ripon and surrounding communities. “Julie and I attended a few wine events and began discussing the idea of opening a wine market with other wine enthusiasts in the community,” said Diedrich. “Everyone was excited about the idea, so after a little research, we were ready to start our business.”
UnCorked opened in September of this year. The specialty wine shop features more than 60 labels from California, Washington and Oregon, along with bottles from Australia, New Zealand, Argentina, Chile, France, Spain, Germany, Italy, Austria and South Africa. “We carry wines familiar to wine drinkers, as well as amazing wines from small, family owned wineries,” said Diedrich. “We select wines from around the world that we think our customers will truly enjoy.”
UnCorked also boasts a selection of wines at a variety of prices, from value to special occasion. “Our prices range from $7 to $40, and at least 30 percent of the wines we offer are under $12 a bottle,” said Diedrich. “Our goal is to provide a selection of wines that are reasonably priced and appeal to everyone.”
The Open House, Thursday, Oct. 23, will feature wine samplings as well as special discounts on all wines purchased that evening. The event will also promote UnCorked’s wine club. The wine club, which officially begins in November, will provide members with two bottles of wine per month selected by the owners for a set cost. “This allows wine club members to learn more about wines they may not be familiar with,” said Diedrich. “The cost is simply the monthly fee, as you pick up your wines each month. Wine club members will also receive additional discounts and notification of special ‘member only’ sales in the store.”
UnCorked also lends their services for holidays and special events. A unique gift basket selection is available for holidays, and the store also offers custom-made wine baskets upon request. “There are numerous benefits to experiencing wine, and with UnCorked, we hope to bring that enjoyment to the entire community,” said Diedrich.
UnCorked is a specialty wine store committed to providing value and special occasion wines in a variety of prices and labels. For more information on UnCorked’s wine services, e-mail http://ssomail.charter.net/do/mail/message/mailto?to=tangouncorked%40gmail.com or call 920-748-3422. Visit http://ssomail.charter.net/do/redirect?url=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.downtownripon.com%252F for more information on all of the unique shopping and dining opportunities offered in Historic Downtown Ripon.
UPDATED (10-24-2008)
I had a chance to attend the opening on Thursday October 23rd. GET IN THERE, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN. Even if you do not like wine, the ambience and the friendliness of the staff makes this a winner. Let's support this locally-owned business, which I hope will be a key part of Downtown Ripon.
Despite economy, Ripon keeps eye on new hospital
RIPON – These times of economic uncertainty will do nothing to hold back the folks in Ripon who want a new hospital for their community.
They are moving full steam ahead on fundraising for a $30 million hospital in the city's business park. Ground will be broken in 2009 and the new hospital will open in 2011.
Ripon has some history to live up to when it comes to building hospitals in tough times. The community's first hospital, after all, was financed through a bond issue during the height of the Great Depression.
"Ripon has kind, generous and caring people. They are still kind, generous and caring even during a bad economy," said Bonnie Lueck, executive vice president of the Foundation for Ripon Medical Center, the entity helping to raise some of the money for the new hospital.
Lueck and her volunteers hope to raise from $1.5 million to $2 million in 36 to 48 months. They are taking a slower approach than a traditional capital campaign, which might attempt to raise that amount in two years or less.
The recent instability of the stock market merely solidified the foundations' decision to take the slower approach, Lueck said.
The city is playing a role by giving the hospital a deal on 10 acres near the corner of State Highway 44 and Douglas Street. It is selling the acres at $15,000 each rather than the going rate of $20,000, and allowing pay back over 10 years with no interest, said City Administrator Steve Barg.
In addition the city will front $210,000, which the hospital will pay back in lieu of taxes at the rate of $21,000 per year for 10 years. Under terms of the agreement, which has not yet been signed, the city will take ownership of the old hospital with its dated infrastructure at 933 Newbury St. The city already owns the land that RMC pays $21,000 annually to lease.
City officials are looking at ways to use the old hospital, or the land, if the buildings are demolished.
The Need
Nannette Roberts wears lots of hats at RMC. She is director of health information services, information privacy officer and interim primary care services director. In that last capacity she is responsible for making sure all the doctors and specialists and their support staff who work in the Medical office Building have the space they need to get their jobs done. It's a bit like fitting 10 pounds of apples into a five-pound sack.
"I've created a daily calendar to keep things straight. I actually draw a picture of the rooms that shows on Monday this is what the room will look like. Next week we're short two rooms on one day. We are definitely bursting at the seams," Roberts said.
She has a new office, small but efficient. That could change at any minute, she said. If necessary, she'll vacate to make room for medical staff.
Throughout the years since the first hospital opened its doors in 1936 there have been multiple expansions and renovations. Staff have made do quite well with the facilities but "we've built on top and built on top" and now it's time for a new hospital, said Joan Karsten, president of RMC's board of directors.
Regular inspections underscored the need to update and improve. Originally, the plan had been to add on again, but it soon became apparent that would cost nearly as much as a new hospital, Karsten said.
Consultants hired by RMC interviewed some key community people. The results helped the hospital chart its course.
"People want to help with a new hospital. It benefits them and their families for generations to come. For businesses, it's easier to recruit if we have amenities.
"Health care is very important because of the college. Parents want to know we have 24/7 healthcare with trained physicians on staff," Lueck said.
Ripon Medical Center is a 25-bed hospital that serves 25,000 people in Ripon and surrounding communities, providing a broad range of medical, surgical, rehabilitative and emergency services.
Iona Altnau has been at RMC longer than anyone. The emergency room registered nurse has worked nearly every nursing detail at the hospital in her 47 years there. She is nearing retirement and may not still be working when the new hospital opens, but she's excited for her coworkers.
Things are much better in ER than they were back in the days when the department was one room in the basement with a hallway as a waiting room. But still, there is room for improvement, Altnau said.
The new hospital will provide a private triage area to give patients more privacy. As it is now, the ER waiting room is small and staff must try to talk to incoming patients to determine where to out them without having other patients overhear their conversations.
Her colleague Joann Strandell is looking forward to the day when RMC has more than one ambulance, when they won't have to hurry an ambulance driver along because another is waiting.
The new hospital will provide luxuries many hospitals don't think twice about, such as a loading dock, more parking space and a helicopter landing pad that is not in a residential area for the first time in the hospital's history, Karsten said.
The hospital is the first building to lay claim to the city's expanded business park.
Patricia Wolff: (920) 426-6689 or pwolff@thenorthwestern.com.
THE COMING OBAMA TAX INCREASE
Steve Prestegard, at Marketplace Magazine, has out out a good piece on the impacts of Obamanomics. IF I ever ran for Congress or Governor, I may consider Mr. Prestegard for a position on the economic advisory team. He "gets" it...
http://www.marketplacemagazine.com/blogs/blog2.php/2008/10/20/the-coming-obama-tax-increase-1
Regular readers have noticed that I am skeptical that Barack Obama will cut the taxes of anyone, let alone the 95 percent of Americans he claims to want to cut. (Paid for by increasing the taxes of the readers of Marketplace.)
In fact, although Obama has yet to drop this bomb on us voters, I believe he has a specific, and large, tax increase in mind — specifically, an increase of at least 50 cents to $1 per gallon in taxes on gasoline and diesel fuel, either by raising gas and diesel taxes or by creating a new carbon tax.
There will be several rationales, beginning with the need for additional federal revenues (a rationale you may have seen before) now that the federally funded bailout will balloon the budget deficit. (At least on paper; there remains the possibility that, if the bailouts work and the feds are able to resell the assets they’re purchasing, the feds may actually break even. But Obama will not tell you that.)
This fuel tax increase also works right into Obama’s supporters’ energy and environmental interests — if you make something more expensive, people use less of it, as we all learned again this past summer. And since individual transportation gobbles up carbon and punches holes in the ozone layer, the more fuel costs, the less people will travel.
The unspoken rationale will be that our country did in fact survive gas prices exceeding $4 per gallon this past summer, and with gas prices having dropped below $3 per gallon, voters won’t care so much about going back up toward $4 per gallon.
This is not a new idea. You may recall that former Chrysler CEO Lee Iacocca and presidential candidate H. Ross Perot proposed similar gas tax increases more than a decade ago for budget deficit reduction. More recently, U.S. Rep. John Dingell (D–Michigan) proposed increasing gas taxes by 50 cents a gallon along with a “double digit” tax per ton of carbon dioxide emitted. Dingell sees a disconnect between people’s desire to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and people’s willing to pay to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Economists of most political persuasions will tell you that one of the most effective ways to reduce a particular activity is to tax it, or increase taxes on it. (Which means that Obama must want fewer people making $250,000 or more a year since he proposes to raise taxes on them.) So higher taxes on energy would certainly serve to reduce energy consumption, at least to some extent. Energy taxes are also a form of consumption tax, and it could be argued that a shift to a tax system more based on consumption than income might have some benefits.
Of course, such a tax increase would, as we've all discovered this past summer, make everything more expensive. Transportation-related taxes have particularly bad impacts on small towns, which in Northeast Wisconsin now serve as places to live for people who work in larger areas as much as communities with their own economies. If the economy goes into recession, businesses will not be able to pass that particular cost increase to consumers, and then we'll find out which businesses are well-capitalized and which are not.
It is wrong to take taxes for a specific activity (in this case, transportation) and then use them largely for non-transportation uses, such as budget deficit reduction. Government uses taxes for social policy as well, and this is wrong too; it could be argued, for instance, that allowing people to write off mortgage interest gets people to buy houses when renting might be more appropriate for their finances.
Moreover, there is no real evidence that a gas tax increase would depress worldwide demand enough for us to not enjoy the usual summer gas price increase. Gas prices go up in the summer because demand for gas goes up, with people vacationing across the world, and gas prices are based on oil prices, and oil is a worldwide market. Add a U.S. gas tax increase of up to $1 per gallon, and by, say, Independence Day weekend we could be paying $5 per gallon, or even more.
Transportation is what allows goods to get from seller to buyer. Making transportation more expensive through higher gas taxes will have a direct effect, and not a positive effect, on the economy. As with all such tax increases, it will have a negative effect particularly on people at the margins; it may not affect you, and it won't affect President Obama or our federal elected officials, but it will affect your employees, and particularly your lower-paid employees. (And the poorer one is, the more likely one is to own an older car with lower gas mileage.)
A steep gas tax increase is an idea that would make a large constituent group of Obama's, environmentalists, happy. I predict a gas tax increase will happen, and fairly soon, sometime in the first half of 2009, with Obama hoping taxpayers won't remember by election time why gas costs between $5 and $6 per gallon.
MILL RATE FROZEN FOR 2009 IN RIPON
Well, I am grateful that five of the eight Council members agreed with my position not to raise the mill rate in 2009. This does not mean the overall TAX LEVY will not go up. We did have growth through construction and valuation increases, but the mill rate (which is the amount you pay per $1,000 of your home and land's value) will remain the same in 2009. A combination of hard decisions, as well as wise decisions in past years to set aside surpluses for future capital expenditures and "rainy days", has paid off.
One irony in all of this was that, when we announced a $200,000 surplus in late spring, one resident chastised me for not "sending back" the money, via some sort of rebate or refund check. First of all, the costs of figuring out who gets what and sending actual checks out to the people would have chewed up a chunk of the surplus. Second, the surplus was used to finance projects that would have not been funded without borrowing (a new fire rescue truck and a new emergency government vehicle). That same resident came up to me last week and thanked me not raising the mill rate. As I have said before, there is a method to my madness. LOL
Ripon has a good fiscal report card. The state of Wisconsin, on the other hand, does not. Governor Doyle warned us last week of a possible $3 BILLION deficit in the current budget, and according to an October 15th article in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, the damage may be even worse:
"The actual deficit figure could be more than $3 billion, but a more precise amount won’t be known until Nov. 20, when Budget Director Dave Schmiedicke must estimate future tax collections and how much spending state agencies request for 2009-’11. Agencies must submit budgets with the 10% cut on Nov. 17. Doyle and Schmiedicke said they saw these signs of major economic problems in recent weeks, forcing the new deficit warning:
• Sales tax collections fell 6% in July, August and September, compared with the same period last year. The sales tax was expected to bring in $4.29 billion this year, or one-third of all general-fund taxes.
• Corporate tax collections fell almost 16% in the same three months, compared with 2008.
• Soaring claims for unemployment benefits will drain the state fund that pays them by early next year, forcing state government to borrow from the federal government to help cover those claims. That hasn’t happened since 1982.
State tax collections usually grow by more than 3% a year; the increase of every 1 percentage point brings in an additional $130 million."
It is going to be awfully hard for me to vote for ANY incumbents on the ballot next month....
39 YEARS DOWN....SO MANY MORE TO GO
So, my 39th birthday has come and gone. Of course, this birthday was the first one I celebrated with Emmy (pictured right). She joined Mommy and Kylie in giving Daddy two very manly birthday presents...a six-pack of Blue Moon Pumpkin Beer (their autumn brew) and a three-pack of boxers. Does life get ANY better than that?
Do I feel older today? HECK NO....I have told more than one person that my best years are still to come. Of course, I may not think that after the election next month (LOL), but, with a beautiful wife and two precious children, optimism should be the name of the game (if not my 401-K) for the future. I am looking forward to 2009 (a family vacation we hope, Kylie in 4-year old kindergarten we pray, a World Series in Milwaukee we hope and pray), and will be counting for the winter days to come to an end.
So I celebrated my birthday with a Packer win (evening their record to 3-3 on October 19th. It was their first win on this date since 1986. The reason for the long gap between 1986 and 2003 is that the bye week usually fell on my birthday week)
PACKERS RECORD ON OCTOBER 19th
YEAR OPPONENT RESULTS STARTING QB
2008 versus Indianapolis Colts W 34-14 Aaron Rodgers
2003 at St. Louis Rams L 24-34 Brett Favre
1986 at Cleveland Browns W 17-14 Randy Wright
1980 at Cleveland Browns L 21-26 Lynn Dickey
1975 at Dallas Cowboys W 19-17 John Hadl *
1969 at Los Angeles Rams L 21-34 Bart Starr
* - Bart Starr's first game as Packer head coach
Sunday, October 19, 2008
THINGS TO DO - HALLOWEEN IN RIPON
Friday, October 24 & Saturday, October 25
Located a few miles outside of Ripon on Brandon Rd
Donation of $3.00 supports local charities. Call 748-BONE for more information
Saturday October 25 (2:00 - 5:00 p.m. at Cedar Ridge Ranch)
Sunday, October 26 (12:15-12:45 pm)
WATSON STREET HALLOWEEN FOOD DRIVE
Look for containers along Watson Street. The food drive needs your help and this is a great chance to give back to the community.
Registration forms available HERE
Friday, October 17, 2008
THE OCTOBER 14th COUNCIL MEETING
CITY OF RIPON COMMON COUNCIL MEETING - Council Chambers, City Hall - Tuesday, October 14, 2008 - 7:00 p.m.
I. Call to order/roll call
II. Pledge of Allegiance/Invocation
III. Public communications and comment
IV. Presentation – status report from the Community Appearance Team - We received a well-written report on possible improvements to the West end of the city, including work on the median strips and Pedrick Park.
V. Resolution – commending Jack Carlton for 23 years of service to the community
VI. Consent calendar (Unless the Mayor, Council or staff asks that one or more of the items listed below be pulled, this list may be approved with a single vote.)
1. Reports from standing committees and staff
2. Resolution – writing off certain uncollectible ambulance accounts
3. Resolution – writing off a certain uncollectible sewer/water account
4. Street closures for Halloween event on October 30th – 100 block of Watson
VII. Other business
1 . Continue 2009 budget process - The Council approved, 5-3, my proposal to balance the budget without raising the mill rate in 2009. The revised budget takes more money from the Equipment Replacement and Sick Leave Payout funds, and adds $30,000 for a new street roller and $30,000 for FF-N landfill costs. The council voted to hold a public hearing on the budget November 24th, as well as two public hearings on November 11th (to raise the hotel room tax up to one percent and to raise taxi fares by a quarter)
2. Request for revolving loan fund allocation - Advanced Paper Enterprises - The Council unanimously approved a $200,000 loan from our revolving loan fund for working capital to this business relocating to the industrial park. The Loan Review Board met on October 13th, and also unanimously approved the loan. This does use up all the money in the loan fund, but we see about $12,000 in payments per month, and could tap other sources if needed.
3. Request for extension for use of "Class B" liquor license – Big Stella’s - As of October 1st, Ripon Restaurant Group, LLC, owners of the former Big Stella’s, have not opened for business as required under Chapter 6 of the Ripon City Code. We received a letter from them asking for an extension until June 30, 2009. The Council voted 6-2 to grant an extension until January 15, 2009. At present, the City has one "Class B" liquor license available (surrendered by Republican House). At this time, I am considering a veto of the motion, and have until Tuesday evening to make up my mind.
4. Review current status of City’s active TIF districts - Last month, Council asked that staff report on our active tax incremental financing districts. The 2008 audit reports, along with maps and other documents, were reviewed.
VIII. Mayor’s communications and appointments - I will be asking the Council to consider reducing the membership of the Park and Rec Committee and the Loan Review Board in the next few months.
IX. Agenda items for future Council meetings
X. Adjourn to closed session under Wisconsin Statutes 19.85(1)(e) "Deliberating or negotiating the purchasing of public properties, the investing of public funds, or conducting other specified public business, whenever competitive or bargaining reasons require a closed session
RE: Request to amend developer’s agreement – Sandmar Village
YOU WANT CHANGE? THE WALL STREET JOURNAL PREDICTS THE FUTURE
SCARY SCARY SCARY:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1224...s_opinion_main
If the current polls hold, Barack Obama will win the White House on November 4 and Democrats will consolidate their Congressional majorities, probably with a filibuster-proof Senate or very close to it. Without the ability to filibuster, the Senate would become like the House, able to pass whatever the majority wants.
Though we doubt most Americans realize it, this would be one of the most profound political and ideological shifts in U.S. history. Liberals would dominate the entire government in a way they haven't since 1965, or 1933. In other words, the election would mark the restoration of the activist government that fell out of public favor in the 1970s. If the U.S. really is entering a period of unchecked left-wing ascendancy, Americans at least ought to understand what they will be getting, especially with the media cheering it all on.The nearby table shows the major bills that passed the House this year or last before being stopped by the Senate minority. Keep in mind that the most important power of the filibuster is to shape legislation, not merely to block it. The threat of 41 committed Senators can cause the House to modify its desires even before legislation comes to a vote. Without that restraining power, all of the following have very good chances of becoming law in 2009 or 2010.
- Medicare for all. When HillaryCare cratered in 1994, the Democrats concluded they had overreached, so they carved up the old agenda into smaller incremental steps, such as Schip for children. A strongly Democratic Congress is now likely to lay the final flagstones on the path to government-run health insurance from cradle to grave.Mr. Obama wants to build a public insurance program, modeled after Medicare and open to everyone of any income. According to the Lewin Group, the gold standard of health policy analysis, the Obama plan would shift between 32 million and 52 million from private coverage to the huge new entitlement. Like Medicare or the Canadian system, this would never be repealed.The commitments would start slow, so as not to cause immediate alarm. But as U.S. health-care spending flowed into the default government options, taxes would have to rise or services would be rationed, or both. Single payer is the inevitable next step, as Mr. Obama has already said is his ultimate ideal.
- The business climate. "We have some harsh decisions to make," Speaker Nancy Pelosi warned recently, speaking about retribution for the financial panic. Look for a replay of the Pecora hearings of the 1930s, with Henry Waxman, John Conyers and Ed Markey sponsoring ritual hangings to further their agenda to control more of the private economy. The financial industry will get an overhaul in any case, but telecom, biotech and drug makers, among many others, can expect to be investigated and face new, more onerous rules. See the "Issues and Legislation" tab on Mr. Waxman's Web site for a not-so-brief target list.The danger is that Democrats could cause the economic downturn to last longer than it otherwise will by enacting regulatory overkill like Sarbanes-Oxley. Something more punitive is likely as well, for instance a windfall profits tax on oil, and maybe other industries.
- Union supremacy. One program certain to be given right of way is "card check." Unions have been in decline for decades, now claiming only 7.4% of the private-sector work force, so Big Labor wants to trash the secret-ballot elections that have been in place since the 1930s. The "Employee Free Choice Act" would convert workplaces into union shops merely by gathering signatures from a majority of employees, which means organizers could strongarm those who opposed such a petition.The bill also imposes a compulsory arbitration regime that results in an automatic two-year union "contract" after 130 days of failed negotiation. The point is to force businesses to recognize a union whether the workers support it or not. This would be the biggest pro-union shift in the balance of labor-management power since the Wagner Act of 1935.
- Taxes. Taxes will rise substantially, the only question being how high. Mr. Obama would raise the top income, dividend and capital-gains rates for "the rich," substantially increasing the cost of new investment in the U.S. More radically, he wants to lift or eliminate the cap on income subject to payroll taxes that fund Medicare and Social Security. This would convert what was meant to be a pension insurance program into an overt income redistribution program. It would also impose a probably unrepealable increase in marginal tax rates, and a permanent shift upward in the federal tax share of GDP.
- The green revolution. A tax-and-regulation scheme in the name of climate change is a top left-wing priority. Cap and trade would hand Congress trillions of dollars in new spending from the auction of carbon credits, which it would use to pick winners and losers in the energy business and across the economy. Huge chunks of GDP and millions of jobs would be at the mercy of Congress and a vast new global-warming bureaucracy. Without the GOP votes to help stage a filibuster, Senators from carbon-intensive states would have less ability to temper coastal liberals who answer to the green elites.
- Free speech and voting rights. A liberal supermajority would move quickly to impose procedural advantages that could cement Democratic rule for years to come. One early effort would be national, election-day voter registration. This is a long-time goal of Acorn and others on the "community organizer" left and would make it far easier to stack the voter rolls. The District of Columbia would also get votes in Congress -- Democratic, naturally.Felons may also get the right to vote nationwide, while the Fairness Doctrine is likely to be reimposed either by Congress or the Obama FCC. A major goal of the supermajority left would be to shut down talk radio and other voices of political opposition.
- Special-interest potpourri. Look for the watering down of No Child Left Behind testing standards, as a favor to the National Education Association. The tort bar's ship would also come in, including limits on arbitration to settle disputes and watering down the 1995 law limiting strike suits. New causes of legal action would be sprinkled throughout most legislation. The anti-antiterror lobby would be rewarded with the end of Guantanamo and military commissions, which probably means trying terrorists in civilian courts. Google and MoveOn.org would get "net neutrality" rules, subjecting the Internet to intrusive regulation for the first time.
It's always possible that events -- such as a recession -- would temper some of these ambitions. Republicans also feared the worst in 1993 when Democrats ran the entire government, but it didn't turn out that way. On the other hand, Bob Dole then had 43 GOP Senators to support a filibuster, and the entire Democratic Party has since moved sharply to the left. Mr. Obama's agenda is far more liberal than Bill Clinton's was in 1992, and the Southern Democrats who killed Al Gore's BTU tax and modified liberal ambitions are long gone.In both 1933 and 1965, liberal majorities imposed vast expansions of government that have never been repealed, and the current financial panic may give today's left another pretext to return to those heydays of welfare-state liberalism. Americans voting for "change" should know they may get far more than they ever imagined.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
MAYOR UNVEILS NO MILL RATE INCREASE PROPOSAL
I have released the following tax proposal this afternoon. It includes no increase in the mill rate, versus the 1.15 percent which has been proposed. The council will discuss the proposal tonight:
To: The Common Council
From: The Mayor
Date: 10 October 2008
As we approach some hard decisions on the 2009 budget, I have been working with staff to develop a plan to balance the budget, without raising the mill rate. I CANNOT support any rate increase, in light of the difficult economic times we are all facing. When I was first selected as mayor in 2003, I ran on a platform of increased growth translating to increasing tax revenue without raising the mill rate. Under my proposal, we would:
* Reduce the mill rate to the save level it was in 2008
* Fund our landfill costs
* Reduce the 2010 capital budget list by $30,000
* Fund the purchase of a new rescue truck without borrowing. This means we have purchased two fire department vehicles and an emergency government vehicle in the past two years WITHOUT any additional borrowing
ASSUMPTIONS
$15,720 - Surplus after our last budget meeting (This includes the additional money needed for health insurance in 2009)
$4,072 - Increase in state computer aid payment
$19,792 - CURRENT SURPLUS
BUDGET ACTIONS
* ACTION (FISCAL IMPACT) - OVERALL SURPLUS/BALANCE
* Fund $142,500 for the new fire rescue truck (This includes the city’s covering the second half payments from the Towns of Nepuskum and Ripon ($17,500), which must be repaid by April 1, 2010) – We currently have $125,000 in the 2009 budget. I am recommending we take $42,500 from the Equipment Replacement Fund, which has $134,000, and the remainder from the levy, leaving $91,500) ($25,000) - $44,792
* Purchase the 3-ton road roller (which was pushed back to 2010 in proposed budget)
(-$30,000) - $14,792
* Remove the $10,000 in proposed funding for the Murray Park Trail system. No plan has been approved at this time. I would advocate we set this as a 2009 goal, including possible land acquisition and the investigation of removing the existing railroad abutments from the trail as part of the project ($10,000) - $24,792
* Remove the $21,000 from the police department for Captain Stieber’s sick leave retirement payout. Fund the payout from the sick leave reserve fund, which we set up in 2007 with the one-year cost savings from going to a HSA health insurance system ($21,000) - $45,792
* Reduce funds for the taxi (This would cut the levy need for the taxi operation from $22,700 to $5,000, based on the Council’s willingness to impose a $.25 across the board increase in fares)
($17,700 ) - $63,492
* Reduce the mill rate to the same amount as 2008 - (-$30,698) - $32,794
* Place the remainder in contingency for landfill costs - (-$32,794) - $0
FURTHER SUGGESTIONS
* I would recommend that any money budgeted for city stormwater management come from the money in our reserve fund, which would obviously reduce that overall fund.
* One fundamental fact that we have done little to nothing to resolve is the ever-increasing burden of health insurance on the city budget. It remains a time bomb, which will eventually implode within our budget. I STRONGLY encourage that we sit down with our insurance providers and our unions, and either explore options to reduce the annual increases or increase the contributions of our employees to the costs. This year’s 11 percent increase is absolutely an unsustainable number for future years. The current ratio of annual increases to our annual tax growth GUARANTEES a financial apocalypse for the city, as it does virtually every other level of government. We are using reserve funds to balance the budget this year. What will we do in 2009???????
* I would strongly suggest that we consider doing the Ransom Street project entirely in 2010, rather than spread it over three years. An additional two years will only translate into additional costs, and since we are borrowing the money (in all likelihood), let’s do it in one year to also reduce the inconvenience to the residents.
WHO TO BLAME?
The name of the game today in the world of economics is blame, blame, blame, and then blame some more. The Economist magazine may have put out the best analysis yet, and EVERYONE seems to share in the blame game:
As The Economist magazine noted recently, the problem is one of "layered irresponsibility ... with hard-working homeowners and billionaire villains each playing a role." Here's a partial list of those alleged to be at fault:
The Federal Reserve, which slashed interest rates after the dot-com bubble burst, making credit cheap.
Home buyers, who took advantage of easy credit to bid up the prices of homes excessively.
Congress, which continues to support a mortgage tax deduction that gives consumers a tax incentive to buy more expensive houses.
Real estate agents, most of whom work for the sellers rather than the buyers and who earned higher commissions from selling more expensive homes.
The Clinton administration, which pushed for less stringent credit and downpayment requirements for working- and middle-class families.
Mortgage brokers, who offered less-credit-worthy home buyers subprime, adjustable rate loans with low initial payments, but exploding interest rates.
Former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan, who in 2004, near the peak of the housing bubble, encouraged Americans to take out adjustable rate mortgages.
Wall Street firms, who paid too little attention to the quality of the risky loans that they bundled into Mortgage Backed Securities (MBS), and issued bonds using those securities as collateral.
The Bush administration, which failed to provide needed government oversight of the increasingly dicey mortgage-backed securities market.
An obscure accounting rule called mark-to-market, which can have the paradoxical result of making assets be worth less on paper than they are in reality during times of panic.
Collective delusion, or a belief on the part of all parties that home prices would keep rising forever, no matter how high or how fast they had already gone up. The U.S. economy is enormously complicated. Screwing it up takes a great deal of cooperation. Claiming that a single piece of legislation was responsible for (or could have averted) the crisis is just political grandstanding. We have no advice to offer on how best to solve the financial crisis. But these sorts of partisan caricatures can only make the task more difficult.
OK, enough with the blaming. Now let's get it solved....
OBAMA'S NEW ECONOMIC RECOVERY PLAN
I read things like this and cringe:
Relax rules on early withdrawals from retirement savings
Obama has proposed letting workers who are having a hard time paying bills make penalty-free early withdrawals from their IRAs and 401(k)s in 2008 and 2009. One could withdraw up to 15% of one's balance but not more than $10,000. Normally such withdrawals made before age 59-1/2 are taxed as income and are subject to a 10% penalty rate. The provision would apply retroactively to Jan. 1, 2008.
Social Security is already a disappearing proposition for my generation, and along comes a presidential candidate saying, "Go ahead, spend down your retirement." Imagine the pressure on the financial markets when the assets of the IRAs and 401(k)s (Here is a hint - think stocks and bonds) are liquidated. We should be ENCOURGAING savings, as our national average is below zero percent.
Give seniors a break in a bad market
Obama said he agrees with the proposal Republican nominee McCain made last week to temporarily excuse retirees from having to cash out a percentage of their IRAs or 401(k)s when they turn 70-1/2.
OK, according to CNN, "since the minimum required amount to be withdrawn in a given year is based on one's account balance at the end of the prior year, it can be a much bigger hit to seniors' nest eggs when they have to make their withdrawal after the market has fallen precipitously. On Monday, the Dow was down 29% from where it was on Dec. 31, 2007." This one makes sense, and I agree with it.
Have the federal government lend to state and municipal governments
Obama wants to help counter the budget crunch faced by states, whose tax receipts are declining while demand for and cost of public services is rising.
How much more money can our federal government hand out? We are already borrowing vast amounts to finance the war, the bailouts, the general budget, etc. This one has INFLATION written all over it.
Encourage job creation
Obama wants to offer a temporary tax credit of $3,000 in 2009 and 2010 to companies for each new full-time employee it hires in the United States.
Companies could be encouraged to create jobs by reducing capital gains taxes and reducing OVERALL taxes, rather than more tax credits.
Extend unemployment benefits and temporarily suspend taxes on them
Obama, like most Democrats calling for a second economic stimulus package, wants a 13-week extension of unemployment benefits to help those who may be unemployed for more than six months.
While, in theory, this seems like a plausible idea, the question of where will you find the money to replace the lost tax revenue, and fund the additional benefits, is unanswered. Another Obama proposal that appeals to the masses, and then comes with a hefty pricetag.
Require foreclosure moratoriums
Obama said he wants to require any financial institution that participates in Treasury's Troubled Asset Relief Program for financial institutions to put a 90-day moratorium on foreclosures for homeowners "acting in good faith." The moratorium, according to the Obama campaign, would offer a time-out to give the lender and homeowner more time to work out an agreement that could keep the homeowner in his home.
Please define what is "good faith". And will someone please tell me why the government continues to prop up people who have mortgages they should not have signed and cannot afford. Any deal between the bank and the homeowner should be just that - between them.
