The Old New World Order

I'm not one for conspiracy theories. It seems that conspiracy theorists go out of their way to publish loud websites in all caps AS IF THEY'RE SHOUTING AT THEIR PC's.


more graph humor and song chart memes

But this New World Order map from Strange Maps piqued my interest. I don't see the North American Superhighway there, but I'm happy to see that Greenland is part of the North American Union. It seems that we may have control of the north pole. Of course when the Earth's axis flips, that's not going to do us a lot of good.

Indy Police May Have to Pay for Gas

As if passing the cost of high fuel on to speeders wasn't unconventional enough, an Indianapolis Council member plans to propose requiring city and county police to pay for some of the gas that they use in their patrol vehicles. This would only make sense if only those officers with take-home vehicles were made to pay for the gas they use when they are off duty. Whether the rule would apply only to those officers is unclear. If take-home vehicles do, indeed, reduce crime in the neighborhoods in which those officers live, it follows that penalizing police for taking squad cars home would lead to an increase in crime. It's yet another consequence of years of the federal government's irresponsible fuel policies.

Truck Sales Slowing? Duh.

Ford Motor Company announced that it is holding off until September before launching its 2009 F-150. Anyone who didn't see this one coming is blind. Gas fluctuates day-to-day between $3.80 and $4.15 a gallon, and it can cost more than $50 to fill up even a compact car that has an empty tank. No one is buying pick-ups now except for those who have short commutes and otherwise do not depend on a truck for long hauls. At $35,000 for a new pick-up with just a few added options and the price of gas and diesel as high as it is, most consumers can't afford to buy, even those that have been living from credit card to credit card. Last month the F-150 was replaced as the country's top-selling vehicle by the Honda Civic. The F-150 had held that spot for 26 years -- since the last time gas prices went nuts and recovered.

Jobs are sure to follow as sales and production continue to drop. The market for smaller vehicles should see a bump, but not enough of one for all of the truck workers to keep employed. The auto industry is tanking. Yet our legislators refuse to do anything about it. Congress and the President bear fault here. For years they have stifled new energy initiatives and responsible use of traditional sources of fuel. They have stuffed their pockets with special-interest money at the expense of the country's economy. They should repair their damage by opening domestic reserves, repealing fuel taxes and surcharges, and allowing new drilling. It will be a long road to recovery, but we need to start now lest we lose our way back.

Speeders Hit with Fuel Surcharge

Beginning in July an Atlanta suburb is going to charge speeders for the fuel used by the police to chase them down. "All speeders will be charged with an additional $12 fuel charge." Atlanta proper is expected to institute a similar penalty.

It's a bit disingenuous to say that a cop uses $12 in fuel to pull over a speeder. Most speeders stop pretty quickly when being pulled over. It's too similar to a sin tax for my liking even though speeding is an illegal activity. And it seems that the speeder is being charged twice for one tank of gas. Also, it seems that there is more incentive for cops to pull you over if it's going to fill their gas tanks instead of taking away from other parts of the police budget.

One of the things I like about the plan, however, is that it is municipal-specific. No interference from the feds or the state. Let's see if it supplements the budget like it's intended.

Pride Festival Should Make Hoosiers Proud

The Circle City IN Pride Festival, held this past week in Indianapolis, attracted nearly 40,000 participants before it ended on Sunday. This celebration of equality should fill Hoosiers with pride that they live where they do. We've finally reached a point in our history when persons can openly be who they are, subject only to the stigmas that attach to all of us in one way or another. We celebrate diversity without forgetting that in the big picture, our differences are slight. We are all cousins, and Thanksgiving dinner would be boring if we were all the same.

Ethanol, Dollars, and Sense

The ethanol debate continues. What's caused food prices to increase so dramatically in the last six months, federally subsidized ethanol production or the devaluation of the dollar? The feds certainly miscalculated with their promotion of increased ethanol production and passage of bills that require 36 billion gallons of fuel from renewable sources in the next 14 years. Essentially, we're locked in to a contract that we won't be able to pay with corn. That means we either need to find other renewable sources or food prices will continue to rise. Add in the tomato shortage, rising gas and diesel prices, and rising credit card interest rates, and families are looking at a harsh winter this year and likely next as well. The feds have tied our hands. They've dined on our hard work, and in this election year they're preparing to dash.

Suspending Gas Tax a Good Idea

House Democrat Minority Leader Patrick's Bauer call to suspend Indiana's sales tax on gas is a good idea, but why does it take the Governor to declare an energy emergency?  Yes, fuel prices are higher than what we've been used to, but that hasn't slowed our consumption down.  We're far from a state of emergency. 

There are many other good reasons to suspend the tax.  If there were no 6% surcharge on fuel, not only would individual pocketbooks benefit, making it easier to provide for family needs, savings and consumer purchases, but small businesses would retain much needed funds that could be put to use in better ways, perhaps by hiring another employee or funding research and development or purchasing another building or vehicle to help the business grow.  All facets of the economy would benefit.

The General Assembly should not stop there, however.  A temporary suspension is not the complete answer.  The state should permanently cut the sales tax rate in half to 3% for all goods and services.  This would benefit the state, individuals and small business much more than a temporary suspension of the sales tax on gas.

Indiana Election Law -- The Inside Joke They Don't Want You to Hear

Democrats and Republicans have done it again. They've colluded to keep twelve Libertarian candidates around the state off the ballot. How? Simple. They've passed yet another law designed to trip up Indiana's Libertarian Party. As if minimum vote percentages for ballot access and for major party status weren't enough, the General Assembly just this year passed a law that went into effect upon passage that is clearly aimed at the state's third largest party.

Mike Kole, the Libertarian's Secretary of State candidate, reports that the party filed their post-convention vacancy candidates' paperwork with the Indiana Election Division just like they always have. Not good enough, according to the IED, though. The candidates were required to file a "10-day notice of intent" to fill the vacancies with the IED. The law gives no reason for the notice, and it provides no form for doing so. It seems to serve no function other than to frustrate Libertarian candidacies.

This is reminiscent of the attempt by the Kernan and Daniels' campaigns to keep Libertarian gubernatorial candidate Kenn Gividen from the debates in 2004. It harms the voters by taking away their choices, and it violates the spirit of free and open elections. In some of the races where the Libs were scratched, there was either no Republican or Democrat candidate. In other words, in those races, the General Assembly has ensured victory for their party mates.

Like the public outcry over the Gividen snub resulted in Gividen being allowed in the debates, Indiana voters should scream for election law reform. This is a prime example of why Indiana's election law needs gutted and replaced with common sense.

Observation on the Middle East

The story I see today is that Secretary of State Rice's trip to the Middle East to broker a peace deal was a failure.  That's a curious premise, because it has appeared from the beginning of the latest conflict that the Bush administration has not been actively pursuing peace.  The statements out of Washington were that there should be no cease fire until a lasting solution was found.  

Seriously?  It seems that a cease fire would be the first step to brokering a deal.  Stop the shooting.  Stop the bombing.  Stop the killing.  Stop it all so leaders can talk.  Who is going to want negotiate while their citizens are being slaughtered?  who is going to take time out from defending themselves, whichever side, to talk across a table to the enemy?  With the elevated tension in the region, it seems making those involved step back and take a breath would more likely result in a lasting peace accord rather than piling on.

While the United States should probably not be involved in this conflict at all, if it is going to participate, it should at least be a productive force for both immediate and lasting peace.