‘Crappy’ Tax Day Parody of Pharrell’s Hit Song ‘Happy’ Nails Absurdity of IRS...

Perfect.


(h/t: Reason)

Wimpy...

Obama: 'Couldn't be prouder of the job' Susan Rice has done

According to TPM LiveWire, "Wednesday, President Barack Obama took the opportunity to praise United Nations Ambassador Susan Rice. 'Susan Rice is extraordinary,' Obama said in a response to a question shouted from a reporter. 'Couldn't be prouder of the job she's done.'"

Well, she did take the Benghazi heat off him.

That's some fine work there! As the brouhaha over U.S. UN Ambassador Susan Rice continued, it appears MSNBC got their Rices wrong. If you'll notice in the lower left of the screen shot below, former Sec. of State Condoleezza Rice has been confused with Susan Rice.

It could happen to anyone...right?

It pays to know the right people: "According to a report from OnEarth, which cites U.N. ambassador Susan Rice’s financial-disclosure reports, the potential secretary of state nominee holds significant stakes in several Canadian oil companies and banks that would benefit enormously from the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline. The construction of the pipeline was blocked by the State Department earlier this year, but, if nominated and confirmed as secretary of state, Rice would be involved in the postponed approval process. Rice, whose net worth is estimated around $33 million, owns between $300,000 and $600,000 worth of stock in TransCanada, according to her 2011 financial disclosure report. TransCanada is the original developer and sole owner of the Keystone Pipeline project. The company has already started building the southern section of the pipeline, and continues to seek government approval to build the northern portion."

(h/t: NRO's The Corner)

"The American public? We could take 'em or leave 'em." - "In response to a question from reporter Major Garrett on whether the Obama administration's mishandling of Benghazi raises 'core questions of basic competency,' press secretary Jay Carney revealed that Barack Obama 'is not particularly concerned' about whether Susan Rice misled the American people."

I guess we missed the 2012 election slogan: "Re-elect me and I won't give a @#$%!"




From The Bliss Index' Econ 101 class: Remember, one of the first lessons is, "Money goes where it's treated best." The latest example - "Two-thirds of millionaires left Britain to avoid 50 [percent] tax rate: Almost two-thirds of the country’s million-pound earners disappeared from Britain after the introduction of the 50 [percent] top rate of tax, figures have disclosed." 

California, are you paying attention? (Probably not.)

In case you were wondering: Yes, the dog is edible. (Which wouldn't be the first for Mr. Obama...)

'nuf said...

Forward?

Here comes the boom? - Dear Mr. President and Vice President: Remember when you poo-poo'd Iran's nuclear build-up? Check out this nifty little graph --

So what does it mean? It means, "Iranian scientists have run computer simulations for a nuclear weapon that would produce more than triple the explosive force of the World War II bomb that destroyed Hiroshima, according to a diagram obtained by The Associated Press." So, yeah...nothing to worry about here.

More great news from The Recovery! - "The median wealth of U.S. households is the lowest since 1969: 
New research found that while median wealth plummeted, the top 1 percent increased wealth by 71 percent."

Your tax dollars at work! - "Head of Fed Dept. Wasted Thousands in SUV Rental for Three Block Drive." Apparently, a big wig over at the Federal Maritime Commission spent more than $1,600 a month for a 2011 Chevy Tahoe, fully loaded with leather seats and GPS. The agency also spent up to $75 an hour for a staff member to drive the vehicle in the nation's capital -- to avoid a three block walk. (Video below.)

"California's economy remains shaky" -- Let's see...higher taxes, burdensome regulations, a lawsuit happy state...gee, ya think?

Fiscal "cliff" or "iceberg?"

Geithner: 'Privilege of Being an American' Is Why Rich Need Higher Taxes

"Turbo Tax Timmy" is at it again.

This time, he explains why some are more equal than others:

"That’s the kind of balance you need," said Geithner. "Why is that the case? Because if you don't try to generate more revenues through tax reform, if you don't ask, you know, the most fortunate Americans to bear a slightly larger burden of the privilege of being an American, then you have to -- the only way to achieve fiscal sustainability is through unacceptably deep cuts in benefits for middle class seniors, or unacceptably deep cuts in national security."

Yeah, no class warfare there, Timmy...

Words of wisdom

Sometimes, the less said...the better.

In this case, NJ Gov. Chris Christie (R) gets to the root of the problem plaguing his state -- and this country -- with just a few words.

A few, very powerful words.

His talk (video below) is reminiscent of other historical/political/economic observations made by the likes of Churchill, Thatcher and Friedman (to name but a few).

You go, guv!

Take it from the expert...

Question: Who said, "the last thing you want do is to raise taxes in the middle of a recession. Because that would just suck up -- take more demand out of the economy and put businesses in a further hole..." ?

Answer: Watch/listen to the video below.

(h/t: Instapundit)

Tap dancing...and tapping your wallet

What did $776,372 in Stimulus money do? According to the Recovery.gov website, it created 2.06 jobs (reported as three part-time jobs for students)...

Here at The Bliss Index® Center for Interpretive Dance, we're always thrilled to see appreciation for the lively arts.

But even the Jazz-Tap-Interactive-Dramatic Dance folks on staff here have a difficult time understanding how the following happened...

According to CNS News, "As President Barack Obama is proposing another $447 billion Stimulus plan, some of the money from the previous $800 billion-plus stimulus plan is dancing away. According to Recovery.gov, the website that tracks the money spent under the Recovery Act, The University Of North Carolina is receiving a $762,372 grant for it’s ‘Dance.Draw’ project."

That's $776,372 of Stimulus money being spent...on dance.

The report continues: "The website grant summary explains the project, 'The Dance.Draw system will enable dancers' motions, tracked via small RF transmitters worn in satin cuffs, to act as input streams that can be flexibly applied as control parameters for interactive visualizations. The system will log dancers' motions and will be able to composite video of the dancers with different visualizations, enabling post-hoc analysis of the choreography and exploration of prospective mappings between the motion and the projected media. The 'interactive visualizations' are shown in a Dance.Draw pilot video as a series of projected shapes that move along with the dancers. Among the objectives listed for the project is to 'allow choreographers to explore interactive dance without always having a full cast of dancers present.' The program may diminish the amount of dancers needed onstage to 'explore interactive dance,' but it is creating jobs. (The latest report on the Recovery.gov website shows 2.06, reported as three part-time jobs for students, that have been created with the funds.)"

Dancing the night -- and the money -- away?

Who really pays?

More like -- we know who will really pay our debts.

Related item: What's Wrong with Making Future Generations Pay for our Debt?

What are they worth to you?

According to a Congressional Research Service report, "more than 77,000 federal government employees throughout the country — including computer operators, more than 5,000 air traffic controllers, 22 librarians and one interior designer — earned more than the governors of the states in which they work."

The Washington Times notes the report was "released at a time when public workers’ salaries and benefits are under scrutiny across the country as governments try to streamline.were released at a time when public workers’ salaries and benefits are under scrutiny across the country as governments try to streamline."

In the report, according to the WT, "CRS reviewed 2009 salary figures, the most recent available, and found 77,057 employees who earned more in annual pay than their respective governors. Of those workers, 18,351 were doctors — the highest percentage. The second-highest total was for 5,170 air traffic controllers — likely both front-line controllers and their supervisors."

These folks? I hope they're well-paid...

The story goes on to say that, "CRS said nationwide there were 122 park rangers, 271 environmental protection specialists, 14 chaplains and one prison guard who earned more than their governors. There were also 21 archaeologists, three sociologists, 48 social workers, four food service workers and five civil rights analysts who made more than their governors. CRS said some locales are likely to have a higher concentration of well-paid employees. For example, 942 of the medical and public health workers who made more than their governors were from Georgia, the location of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"Air traffic controllers, who were the second-biggest group to get salaries higher than their governors also generally have high salaries," the story notes. "That category likely includes both front-line controllers and their supervisors. The Bureau of Labor Statistics said the median salary for an air traffic controller in May 2008 was $111,870, while the top 10 percent earned $161,010 or more a year."

No offense to interior designers, but should a government-employed one make more money than - say - a governor?

It's difficult to argue with certain "life-or-death" positions being paid at high levels (particularly for those requiring a great deal of training/education or having so much responsibility...the doctors and air traffic controllers come to mind), but what's with an interior designer making more than a governor? Or a food service worker? Or a...? Well, you get the picture.

Interesting to see where your taxes go, isn't it?

Your tax dollars at work...

Half-a-mill for shrimp on a treadmill?

...I'd settle for paying a few bucks for a shrimp on the barbie.

How do you feel about taxpayer-supported research?

Sounds good until you hear about $500,000 to study shrimp "working out" on a treadmill. Or $1.5 million to create a robot that folds laundry. Or $300,000 to study how the Facebook-based game, Farmville, builds personal relationships.? (Or for the National Science Foundation, which is carrying out all this "work," moving into a new building that rents for $26 million a year -- compared to its current rent of $19 million per year?)

The list, which includes a study on gelatin wrestling, was disclosed as part of the video clip below from ABC News.

So how do you feel about the spending, now?

Why is this man smiling?

Because this man (below), is making him look good...

According to The Hill, "Vice President Joe Biden, speaking at a fundraiser in Philadelphia Friday, compared Republicans in Congress to people who excuse rapists by blaming their victims.

 The vice president, known for speaking his mind and at times putting his foot in his mouth, said that Republicans who want to cut spending while at the same time cutting taxes for the wealthy are similar to rape apologists."

Yes, misspelling (or correctly spelling) the word, "potato," is much, much worse.

Public Pensions Are Killing The Golden Goose/State...

California, like most of the other states, has a bevy of problems/issues making the possibility of economic recovery look dimmer and dimmer each day.

One thing that does separate California from the rest - besides its huge economy (about the eighth largest in the world) - is the dark and expanding cloud representing “unfunded liabilities.” These are currently estimated to be somewhere between $100 billion and $650 billion-plus. In other words, that’s money the state doesn’t have yet will be obligated to pay out. (And let’s not forget - unlike the federal government, states can’t print money they don’t have.)

Most of these unfunded liabilities are (state) public employee pensions and benefits, long-promised to hundreds of thousands of retirees and their survivors. Promised by law.

So what is a state like California to do?

Calls have been going out, near and far, for the governor and legislature to cut spending. But the truth is, the huge Democratic majority - and chief executive - are beholden to so many groups benefiting from entitlement programs and what can be considered “earmarks” of sorts, that any cutting that’s being done is superficial...at best. (Governor Jerry Brown is pushing a tax increase on coming special ballot in June, which if passed will cement California’s claim as the most-taxed state in the nation. The money will help pay-down the annual debt - about $25 billion - but it won’t make a dent in the unfunded liabilities column.)

Reason has a new piece up, “Farewell, My Lovely: How public pensions killed progressive California,” which explains why all the planning, light-handed cutting and increased taxation aren’t the true solutions to the state’s fiscal woes.

“As 72-year-old Jerry Brown enters his second governorship, he has an agenda to match that power, with visions even greater than those that haunted his two-term administration of the 1970s and ’80s: building 20,000 megawatts of renewable power, laying a new high-speed rail network that will connect the state’s major cities, forging a statewide infrastructure for alternative energy, hiring thousands of green employees,” author Tim Cavanaugh, writes at Reason. “The new governor’s environmental agenda is ambitious, untenably expensive, and indelibly popular with voters and lawmakers. Yet when Brown looks out on Democrat-controlled California, he seems less like Caesar at the Rubicon than Wojciech Jaruzelski at the Gdansk Shipyard. Brown is champion of a workers’ party with monopoly control, yet all his plans are being derailed by a labor movement nobody can harness.”

And therein lies the problem.

If California ever has any hope of digging out of the mess it’s now in, everyone is going to have to feel the pinch...make sacrifices. Even groups the Democratic party is beholden to.
Especially the public employees unions.

Read the whole article here.

Bonus graphic: If you don't live in California, you can see (from the chart below) how your state's fiscal situation stacks-up against the Golden State's.

PBS - Publicly (funded) B.S.?

At least when it comes to making appeals for more cash...in particular, cash from taxpayers...it takes a lot of chutzpah to poor-mouth when your "public broadcasting" executives are making big, big bucks.

In a terrific Wall Street Journal piece by U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC), he gets right to the point in the lede: "When presidents of government-funded broadcasting are making more than the president of the United States, it's time to get the government out of public broadcasting."

The senator adds: "While executives at the Public Broadcasting System (PBS) and National Public Radio (NPR) are raking in massive salaries, the organizations are participating in an aggressive lobbying effort to prevent Congress from saving hundreds of millions of dollars each year by cutting their subsidies. The so-called commercial free public airwaves have been filled with pleas for taxpayer cash. The Association of Public Television Stations has hired lobbyists to fight the cuts. Hundreds of taxpayer-supported TV, radio and Web outlets have partnered with an advocacy campaign to facilitate emails and phone calls to Capitol Hill for the purpose of telling members of Congress, 'Public broadcasting funding is too important to eliminate!'"

This blog post is being interrupted by a PBS pledge break: Send more money!

He notes that "PBS President Paula Kerger even recorded a personal television appeal that told viewers exactly how to contact members of Congress in order to 'let your representative know how you feel about the elimination of funding for public broadcasting.' But if PBS can pay Ms. Kerger $632,233 in annual compensation—as reported on the 990 tax forms all nonprofits are required to file—surely it can operate without tax dollars."

To get the whole picture, read the piece. But I'll warn you: take your blood pressure medicine, first.

Follow the money - to public broadcasting...

The train wreck that is High-Speed Rail...

Why do politicians love the idea of a railroad system that can never be what they promise it will be and will cost way more than they promise it will be delivered for?

The answer: because it's other people's money they're spending.

Liberals (aka: “Progressives”), on the other hand, have a different agenda at work: control.

In his latest column, "High Speed to Insolvency: Why liberals love trains," George Will explains why "America’s 'win the future' administration [is] so fixated on railroads, a technology that was the future two centuries ago?" The underlying reason, he points out, is that "progressivism’s aim is the modification of (other people’s) behavior."

Either reason, wasting tax money or infringing on liberties is reason enough to kill these programs.

If there’s one great thing that’s come out of this horrible economy, it’s that many people – voters and elected officials – have woken-up to the fact that projects like High-Speed Rail (HSR) are boondoggles. Total wastes. Because the poor economy is forcing tough choices on both groups, there is growing consensus that as cuts need to be made, wasteful projects like HSR should be among the first on the chopping block.

Let’s just hope we can keep cutting these rail projects quicker than their proponents say the make-believe trains on the make-believe systems would travel…

Going off the rails...

Just when you thought they couldn't spend our tax dollars any faster, they put them on a high-speed train to nowhere...

A lot has already been written about the multi-billion dollar folly that is the administration's national high-speed rail proposal (HSR). At a time when the nation is staggering under the attack of the twin cancers of budget deficits and debt, Team Obama suggests that pouring even more tax dollars down a rat hole (aka: HSR) is what will make America strong again.

Choo-Choo Charlie: Vice President Joe Biden (aka: Amtrak Joey) has led the charge for the administration...

Thankfully, numerous experts, citizens and leaders (such as Florida Gov. Rick Scott, who canceled his state's high-speed boondoggle but continues to get pressure from the Feds) are standing up to this ridiculous notion that a 19th century form of transportation is the best way to travel...especially because it can only survive with the help of ridiculous amounts of tax supported subsidies. The forces behind HSR are strong and well-financed, but the state of the economy - combined with the opposition's good sense - has this train Dead On Arrival....

The pipedream...

The following video, produced by Reason, is a terrific primer on why HSR is a train to nowhere...

Which states are "business friendly?"

Q: What kind of states keep businesses growing and going? (What kind of state attracts, encourages and keeps businesses - and jobs?)

A: States that provide market or manufacturing/service bases that aren't burdened by over-regulation, excessive litigation or stifling taxes.

So it should come as no surprise that "blue" states - those typically associated with/controlled by liberal policies and politicians - are the least "business friendly."

The venerable TaxProf Blog cites a report released today that paints an interesting picture of the nation's economy, and where business goes to either thrive or die:

The Tax Foundation today released the 2011 State Business Tax Climate Index (8th ed.) which ranks the fifty states according to five indices: corporate tax, individual income tax, sales tax, unemployment insurance tax, and property tax. Here are the ten states with the best and worst business tax climates:

1	South Dakota	41	North Carolina
2	Alaska	42	Rhode Island
3	Wyoming	43	Minnesota
4	Nevada	44	Maryland
5	Florida	45	Iowa
6	Montana	46	Ohio
7	New Hampshire	47	Connecticut
8	Delaware	48	New Jersey
9	Utah	49	California
10	Indiana	50	New York

Interestingly, all ten of the states with the worst business tax climates voted for Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential election, and five of the ten states with the best business tax climates voted for John McCain (and eight of the ten voted for George Bush in 2004).