Issue 8 State of the Union reaction feb,13,2013

Well lads and ladies...another uneventful State of the Union as only me and fellow political diehards were probably watching (aka THE NERDS). Obama as usual is a great speaker, but his message was cookie cutter at best. It felt like any one of his other speeches, with just information added in for place holding. Overall, the speech was the usual boring topics. Let’s break it down.

On climate change, he talked about cleaning up the planet....problem, who is going to do it and how. We need a plan, and an incentive for the non-climate change believers to join in. Basically, the individual or business has to be able to make money off of recycling. I’m not talking about cap and trade where a business buys tax credits from a so called cleaner business, but a legitimate market to use those recycled goods for profit, for both the individual and businesses. I personally do not believe in climate change, but I do want a clean planet.

As for the free trade deal between the United States and the European Union (it is an economic union between member countries in Europe for those who don’t know), it would mean a massive influx of jobs and business. Essentially, a free trade agreement between the U.S. and the E.U. will allow businesses new markets to make money by expanding their business over seas and giving consumers in America more and possibly cheaper choices for products and services.

On to the deficit. Obama failed on this one in my opinion. Yes we are taxing the rich more, but that will not solve Washington’s fiscal mess. Our government is bulky and needs streamlining to make it efficient. I.E. cutting programs that do not work, merging departments and agencies to eliminate overlap (ATF, DEA and the FBI ring a bell), and structural reforms like eliminating the retirement age from Social Security and making it so that you can retire at any time if and only if there is enough money in the account for a senior citizen to retire without ending up impoverished. Do we need to stop borrowing, yes. Do we need to tax people less, maybe, but that comes with a total transformation of the tax system.

As to the increase of the minimum wage....that will actually increase the number of poor people and/or decrease the number of full time workers. Why you ask. Simple, business pay their people based on affordability. In other words, the more they make, the more people they can higher...if you make hiring and keeping employees more expensive, and those companies (big and small) will need to cut costs to accommodate. It is wonderful that politicians want to use the minimum wage to help eliminate poverty, but it never has and never will. So rather than trying to bring people above the poverty line (currently around $20,000 a year) lets lower the poverty line by increasing the value of the American dollar (it is worth 63 cents less then it used to be) and thus an individuals buying power. If you can buy more with your dollar, then you are richer without having to make any extra cash. That is why so many people advocate the gold and silver standard to back our money's value. The only consequence is that it would be harder for people to pay off their financial debts, but congress makes the rules so it can force banks (one of the few times I believe government can interfere) to adjust how much a person owes in debt based on a dollars value. The higher the value, the less you owe, the lower the value the more you owe. Basically, changing the relationship between money and debt.

As to guns...yes let us have a universal background check. It will help to reduce crimes with legally bought guns (just not ones bought illegally). We do need to study psychology to aid in preventing people from getting guns who are unstable, but we also need to find ways for people to deal with stress (like from bullying) so that they do not take a gun to school. Basically, keep them in reality. Limiting the types of weapons bought and sold in the U.S. will do nothing as they are 100% un-enforceable especially with the advent of 3D printing where you can build a gun in the comfort of your own home. What does need to be done is to federalize all gun crimes. Basically the States make the law and then the Federal government carries out a harsh punishment as they deem appropriate. This also aids in preventing States with a gun culture (where they love their guns) from being abused by a one size fits all policy and thus keeps the laws catered toward their specific State populations and culture.

Overall a nice speech, with no real specifics on how to solve the problems America is facing. Sure the part on fixing America's roads and bridges is important, especially for bringing business back, but as we have the most complex and highest business tax in the world, fixing the American infrastructure will not matter much until you make it cheap to own and operate a business in the U.S.. The president did talk about immigration reform and gave credit to both parties in congress who were working on it, so it just remains to be seen if he will keep his promise and sign it into law if it does not meet his standards. Good luck Mr. President, I may not agree with your overall solutions, but you have a rough road ahead.

The Republican reaction was on the other hand was nice...and that is all it really was. It had a nice immigrant story, and tried to contrast the democratic vision of America with the republican one. Was the contrast successful, yes, but no specifics. It was designed to appeal to people who share republican values (even if they themselves are not republican). The Republican Party is rebranding and this reaction speech was basically the first step.

Issue 7 A true leader Feb,12,2013

It is not very often that a national figure steps down voluntarily from power, but that is exactly what Pope Benedict has decided to do.  He knows he is no long capable of supporting the office and responsibilities as the Pope (the leader for all Catholics) and has made the responsible decision to excuse himself.  Any man (or woman) who willingly gives up power deserves respect and admiration.

The only other truly notable figure to step down from power was George Washington.  He gave up power at the end of his second term overseeing a very rare and unusually non-violent transition of power for its period in history.  This set the precedent for future Presidents to serve two terms until it became official in the United States Constitution after President Franklin D. Roosevelt's death in office (he served for 3 terms and 42 months).  That is 31 Presidents giving up power before him, with him deciding to keep his power for as long as possible.

As for the Pope on the other hand, the last Pope to resign was did so in the 1400s.  It is rare for anyone who has tasted power's corrupting flavor and then to spit it out when they felt its sweet flavor was no longer needed.  Yes, power corrupts, and no one is immune.

So I applaud the Pope in his decision.  Despite my initial scepticism of him, Pope Benedict has served the faith well.  So thank you Pope Benedict, thank you for your service and being an example to us all.

Issue 6 Taxes and welfare make a baby feb,11,2013

Before I start, I would like to apologize as I know I promised to post earlier, but I fell asleep. 

Any how, on to the topic.  Your probably curious as to the titile well here I go:

Taxes and Welfare make a Baby!?

            I’m sure all will agree that everyone hates paying taxes and that welfare is an unfortunate necessity.  What if the two were fused so as to eliminate much of the welfare bureaucracy and its costs while still providing benefits needed for our lowest income earners and the poor?  This is not a new concept for the Noble Prize winning economist Milton Freedmen had this idea in mind with his negative income tax.  I have my own idea however, which could be implemented with the existing tax code (with major alterations).  My idea is to implement a deduction in upwards of 10% to 20% for each “dependent” in your home.  For our purposes a dependant will be defined as any children living in your home under the age of 18, the elderly (age 65 and above), the mentally and physically disabled/challenged and college students who are living at home and their parents are paying for their education.  With this system, the tax credits, and welfare handouts for single parents, parents with disabled children and other similar programs would become largely redundant and can be altered or eliminated based on how well the deduction works.  The principle is simple, let people keep more of their own money so the government has to give them less or nothing at all.  Thus, the IRS becomes the new welfare office. 

            How this would work is simple.  The same way you file for deductions and tax credits every April 15 is the way you file for this deduction.  You simply register all the dependents living in your home and for that entire year and as long as you qualify, the amount of taxes you pay is slashed by 10 to 20% per dependent.  It will get people out of the welfare offices for they will no longer need to apply there.  I would even suggest adding pregnant women to the list of dependents under the expectation they are going to have the baby.

            Some are probably wondering, just how does this benefit us? What’s the point?  For one, it eliminates a bunch of people from having to receive traditional welfare, which is always a good thing.  My idea is plain and simple, if you’re just going to give that money back in the form of welfare then why not just let them keep the money.  It makes life so much simpler.  As to why I have the definition of dependents expanded in such a manner (usually its just children who are considered dependents) is to try and replace or in some cases reduce as many welfare programs as possible.

            There may be unintended consequences however.  Those consequences may possibly mean a family who normally would be forced to send grandma and grandpa to a nursing home may find it much better to keep our seniors at home (our grandparents could even register each other as dependents easing their tax burden).  Large families, who due to financial reasons would be forced to give up their children to foster care will no longer have to.  Grandparents who for whatever the circumstances are raising their grandkids would also get tax relief.  You’re beginning to see the benefits.

            These benefits of the unintended consequences are all possible, but they are not the ultimate solution to the welfare problem.  There will be cases when people will still need more money in the form of welfare due to their unique circumstances.  However, my idea tries to account for the majority and it is my hope that the States with their own income taxes, like my home State of New York, will copy this addition to the tax structure.  As to those leftover who still need more money, they can be accommodated by customized tax rebates.  This again will turn our tax collectors into our welfare office.  You apply for the deduction and if you qualify for a “supplemental rebate” you will get a check from the IRS with the money you need to supplement your personal income to care for your “dependents.”  As a result many welfare programs at the Federal level (and the State and Local level if replicated there) can be abolished.  This is beneficial for now we will no longer need to accommodate a welfare bureaucracy.  This program will not eliminate unemployment or food stamps which could be used to fill in the gaps that the new deductions are unable to account for. 

            Some may be questioning if this deduction will apply to the rich (obviously they could never get the rebate).  My answer is 'yes' for the following reasons.  There are children out there without parents and the rich can easily accommodate a multitude of them if they were to adopt.  In other words, orphans will have a home and a good education.  Some may think this is a terrible idea, children will be used to save money (our seniors too).  Well to counter that, there is already a system in place to prevent any abuse which is America’s adoption systems.  These systems look to ensure the welfare of the children being adopted go to good homes with decent families.  So there is a countermeasure in place already.  Look at Angelina Jolie, she’s adopted a bunch, and Congresswoman Michele Bachmann raised 23 foster children, who knows how many more will get a chance to have a warm loving family due to raising children becoming more affordable.

            It is important to understand that all other tax credits and deductions of the tax system must largely disappear.  There may be a few exceptions like charity, and State and Local taxes, but the rest will have to go.  Why?  It comes down to priorities.  Are your priorities tax revenue and providing tax credits and deductions for whatever you can think of, or is it tax revenue and protecting our low income earners.  Providing tax credits to mohair farmers or for buying golf carts (this is a form of corporatism) goes against the tax welfare fusion for it would cause the country to falter financially, (and we should not be sending our tax dollars to the government to have them help people buy golf carts).  As to those tax credits and deductions that should remain State and Local tax deductions are a must, but so is charity.  America is the most charitable country in the world and those charities help the poor in ways welfare can’t, for traditional welfare is nothing but a blanket approach and is usually too clunky.  This really leaves only three pieces to the tax system, a deduction for dependents, one for non-federal taxes and one for charitable donations.

            Right now there are approximately over 900 Federal welfare (anti-poverty, low income assistance, school lunch programs) programs.  There are no limits placed on how many of these programs you can apply for and thus there are some people who live fairly well off on the current system.  My idea seeks to rid us of as many of these programs as possible with all its fraud, waste and abuse included by simply letting them keep more of their own money.  Let’s save time, effort and money by bringing our tax system and welfare system together to make a baby.

The idea is: if you're just going to give a person back the same money you took from them in taxes, then why take it from them in the first place.  Hope you enjoyed my little post (wink).

Issue 5 exercise/food feb,9,2013

I have chosen another light topic for this snowy winter day....(damn that Groundhog).  This time it is food that you can eat before and after exercise.

Obviously, before you work out, you want to eat light.  I usually grab an energy or fruit bar and a glass of water (hydrating early).   But you can also have coffee.  Apparently coffee has the unique attribute of allowing you to work out longer.  The caffeine gives an overall energy boost and prevents the onset of muscle fatigue.  Aside from the aforementioned, fruit is a good choice for their natural vitamin and mineral content.

For after your workout, you will want to replenish any lost nutrition and aid your body in rebuilding itself.  One of the first items is any red, blue or purple fruits.  They of course contain vitamins and minerals, but also are high in anti-oxidants.  Pickle juice (as yucky as it sounds) contains salts and nutrients as well.  In other words it acts as a supped up version of Gatorade.  ( I would still probably have the Gatorade over this though).  Next is cottage cheese.  It contains calcium, lactates, and other catalysts to aid in muscle repair.  The final food is chocolate milk.  Like the cottage cheese, it contains essential nutrients to rebuild and repair muscles, but it also contains sugars (energy) that your body needs to repair itself.  You can't fix your body after a work out without energy and chocolate milk gives you exactly what you need (I know it works for me) :)

  I originally learned this on Fox and Friends. Needless to say I paid attention. Hope this helps you exercise gurus out there.  Sometime between now and tomorrow night I will post my first political topic on an issue everyone loves to hate Taxes.

Issue 4 Printing in 3D Feb,8,2013

While we are all weathering the storm I felt that another non serious post was appropriate.  In today's issue I wish to talk about 3D printers.  You're probably saying what the heck is a 3D printer right? Well it is a technology that has been around for a decade or two that allows you to print three dimensional objects like lamps, toys, car parts and the like. 

The technology behind it is simple. You place the material you wish to make the object out off in a hopper (that material is the ink).  From there, the material is broken down in some way (usually melted) and is laid layer by layer onto the printing surface.  It can also be done with fine powders where the powder is also layered and melted together as the model or object is built.  So you can literally build anything from the comfort of your own home without heading to the store.

If you think that this resembles the replicator devices from Star Trek, you would be right.  Some techies wanted to make a replicator for general use, but while not at the level of manipulating molecules, it does some very amazing things.  Currently the cheapest can take 3 varying kinds of plastic and make 3D figures and objects.  The most expensive however can range up into the millions and print objects out of glass, stone and metals in addition to plastics.  Businesses like Northrup Grumman and Lockheed Martin use 3D printers to create lighter and often times stronger materials for their airplanes and naval craft.  Basically the 3D printer can make any object that cannot be made by hand such as intricate designs that would require major machining or designs that are impossible to make by such methods.  This is because the 3D printer layers the object as it is built rather than hollowing out a solid object.  So you can literally put whatever kind of structure you want in an impossible to reach space.

This technology is going to get even cheaper and change how people do business.  People will be on their computer and buy a particular design of say a lamp and for that one time only the printer will print that lamp on the cheep (or at least the parts for it to be assembled).  You can bypass this one time buy and print method by designing your own lamp, toys or even car parts.  All it takes is a design program on your computer to design and build your own.  From there you can make money off your designs in the same way a person sells an app for cell phones.  Cool right.

3D printers are really coming into there own for it is predicted that within two decades they will be affordable to anyone and everyone.  Large scale versions are even predicted that can build up to 12 houses a day, (don't worry construction workers, you will still be needed to do the finishing touches inside the buildings).  A 3D printer has also been successful in printing medication, which I predict will allow doctors to print medications for their patients without going to the pharmacy (don't worry pharmacists your unique knowledge on drug interactions will still be needed as you will fill a niche roll in medicine, so expect a large pay increase that may even rival an ER surgeon).  There has even been test at universities where 3D printers are used to produce food.  In this case it was a slab of meat (eatable meat).  The same idea is also used to produce organs for transplant patients using a patients own living cells (typically stem cells) eliminating any chance of organ rejection.

One catch, while goods will become cheaper to obtain (like those especially high price items), the "inks" will be expensive.  Bulk cargo in shipping containers will shift to ink transport over pre-made items which will be expensive.  The one saving grace though is that some universities are looking to find ways of recycling materials you wish to throw out and turn them into new inks. 

You know this is a world changing technology especially when it has coverage in articles  from Popular Mechanics, Popular science, The Economist and Forgine Affairs.  There will be legal battles and copyright laws will have to be re-written again, but it is the future, and a bright and profitable one at that.

Issue 3 healthy food Feb,7,2013

   My final issue of the day is health food.  I talked about prepping for the worst in my previous article Issue 2, so I thought it appropriate to talk about something fun.  I originally got this idea from Dr. Oz on his TV program.  He was talking about healthy alternatives to everyday foods.  The one I tried (today) is a mayo substitute in which you mix Avocados and Greek yogurt together. 

Obviously, gut the avocado and mash its lovely green flesh (kind of like you do when making guacamole).  In this case I used two avocados.  Then mix in the Greek yogurt (it has to be Greek to work), in my case a large helping of Chobani Greek yogurt.  I added a little salt (less than half a teaspoon for mine) as a preservative and to add flavor contrast to the mix.

The result was great, I had my avocado/Greek sauce on a ham and cheese sandwich and it tasted awesome.  It is healthy due to the avocados  providing fiber and vitamins and nutrients, while the yogurt offers a low fat probiotic (it's good for digestion) as the binding agent.  Way healthier than mayo, and has a unique taste that makes it (at least for me) worthwhile.  I give it a shelf life maximum of 2 weeks, and a fun factor of 10 out of 10 if you are making it with friends family or children.

Enjoy and happy eating

Issue 2 winter storm preps Feb,7,2013

    As I have only just started to blog I thought it appropriate to have a total of three articles to start off with.  This one will be about prepping for the upcoming winter storm that will hit NY and parts of the upper east cost this comming Saturday.

    Well, here it goes...You need to get gas in your fuel tank and do so as soon as possible.  Many people are already lining up at gas stations to load up on fuel in case the winter storm becomes as bad as they say (currently 3inches to a full 2 1/2 feet of snow in some areas).  This gas for your car or generator will  provide you with needed fuel to power your car if gas stations close down after the storm like with Hurricane Sandy.  We all remember what a nightmare that was. Obviously you need the fuel for your generator, if you have one, to power and heat your house too in case the power goes out in your area.

   Remember, if your house has no power and you decide to live in your car for a couple of days, make sure the exhaust pipe is not covered to prevent the exhaust going back into your car and killing you.  Like wise, if you have a generator and keep it in the house, have a system to vent the exhaust outside.  If your generator is outside, have some sort of lock on it to prevent it from being stolen.  Also, lock your gas caps as the most common crime in America is theft of fuel via syphons.

    Food wise, make sure you procure atleast 7 days worth of water.  You will need it if you cannot get out of your home.  Beer and wine also work as they have a long shelf life (yes this may be an excuse to drink) and will provide you with liquids when you need it once you run out of water.  Rum/Vodka can be mixed into water to make what is known as grog, which will prevent bacteria from growing in the water, though it will taste terrible (and a waste of booze) it is a helpful survival tool.   The rest of your provisions should be shelf stable, ie dry cereals, energy bars, poptarts will work, and of course canned food (especially if you have the means to cook it) don't forget the can opener--hand held (no power required).

Aka...I'm telling you to get to the gas station and supermarket right now and buy all you need now.  Yes, there is a possibility that you will not need such things, but it is a better safe than sorry kind of situation.

If you have seniors in your family, try to take them into your home, or wait out the storm in their home as emergency services will be paralyzed by the strom itself. In other words, if something happens to them and they are alone, no one will be there to save them. Obviously, move all your preps to your new location and eat a harty meal with as much of your perishable items as possible like milk, eggs and meat as they will most likely spoil if the power goes out. Or as it's a winter storm, consider the snow as your own personal outdoor refrigerator.

Definitely lock your values up, because like after Sandy there will be some looting, so lock it in a safe place in your home that is out of sight and will thus be out of mind for a would be theif.  If you stay home and a theif or worse comes in, make lots of noise (aka make like a psycho path) and arm yourself if they come at you....call the police if a chance presents itself.

Finally, avoid using your phones.  The more they are used, the less likely any phone calls will go through. Thus, use the internet to communicate whenever possible.  The internet was originally created as a means of communication in the event of a nuclear holocaust, so it will still be there.  A simple "I'm ok" should be sufficient. Nothing long and drawn out so as to avoid cluttering the signals which will inhibit distress calls to the police and fire department.