What Kind Of Mileage Does That DTS Get, Anyway?

by Michael Graham March 30, 2008 @ 16:30

The Cadillac of Governors is at it again.

Gov. Deval Patrick, fresh from his announcement that "I've never been hostile to taxes" is now reminding all concerned that "I have never opposed raising the gas tax. What I have said is that it is not my first choice."

According to the Boston Globe-Democrat, Gov. Patrick's ready to move on to door number two. Last summer, Beacon Hill was buzzing with the idea of a "temporary gas tax." Not anymore. Now they've dropped the word "temporary."

I assume it has something to do with truth-in-advertising laws.

Why do we need higher gas taxes, anyway? What--$3.50 a gallon isn't high enough for the car-hating loonies in the legislature? Apparently not.

Sadly, many readers of the Globe-Democrat agree with the idea that selfish, mean-spirited taxpayers of Massachusetts aren't willing to pay their fair share for needed roads and repairs.

But if you track down the actual facts--like a study published by the Reason Foundation comparing our spending to other states, you know that this is bunk.

I spoke to one of the key researchers on that study, Dr. David Hartgen, and wrote about our conversation in the Boston Herald last year:

“Massachusetts has one of the very highest road budgets per mile of any state in the country,” Hartgen told me yesterday. “You also have one of the smallest state-controlled systems -- only about 3,300 miles. There are 48 other states that would die for your budget.”

When you add up all the tolls, taxes, bonds and federal bucks that go to Massachusetts roads, it works out to $753,892 per mile. That’s higher than every state except New Jersey, and its numbers are skewed by the fact that it’s the only state entirely covered in concrete.

To put Massachusetts in perspective, Rhode Island -- also in the top 10 in road revenue collection -- gets just $365,624 per mile, and New Hampshire collects a modest $103,000 per.

The spending side is even worse. Massachusetts is also ranked second in per-mile spending on state-controlled roads at $893,236 a mile. New Hampshire spends just $88,191 per mile. For every dollar New Hampshire spends on a mile of road, we spend 10. None of this includes the approximately $710 million in automobile excise taxes we pay each year, which (theoretically) fund local road projects.

Please take a moment to re-read those numbers. We are spending more than $890,000 per mile of road per year--and Gov. Patrick and Beacon Hill's big spenders say you're not paying enough.

The Boston Globe-Democrat, to my knowledge, has never published these numbers. They have never asked a politician to explain why being #2 in spending isn't high enough. They've never questioned the idea of higher taxes--not even while you're spending close to $3.50 a gallon for gas.

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Massachusetts Health Care "Reform": So Successful, We Can't Afford It!

by Michael Graham March 28, 2008 @ 07:43

If you're still struggling to figure out how Massachusetts can be so overflowing with supergeniuses, nuanced liberals and elite academicians...and STILL be one of the worst-run states in America, this news story on the current budget crisis offers key insights that may help.

You could start with Governor Patrick's direct, unnuanced statement that “It’s not that I’m hostile to taxes." But that's too easy. No Massachusetts politician is "hostile to taxes." They're constantly looking forways to take as much money from taxpayers as they can get away with.

But the real insight comes from the discussion of the Massachusetts health care mandate, a Mitt-Romney-supported state law that forces everyone to buy health insurance, but gives us very little flexibility as to the level of coverage. Everyone is forced to buy the same level of coverage, whether or not they can afford it. So what happens? People who could afford Wal-Mart coverage but aren't allowed to buy it instead enter the taxpayer-subsidized program for Macy's-level coverage. Great for them--lousy for the taxpayers.

Oh, and since more "free" health care means higher demand, the result is higher prices for medical care. That in turn drives up the cost to taxpayers of paying for everyone else's insurance, which means more people can't afford their own health coverage, which drives them to the state's program, etc., etc.

That's how the system really works (or fails, depending on your perspective). But how to Massachusetts pols view the health care problem?

Leslie A. Kirwan, chairwoman of the Health Care Connector Authority Board, acknowledged that the health care law has been so successful that it will cost significantly more than anticipated. Exactly how much more, Kirwan couldn’t say, but she said the cost to taxpayers would be significantly more than anticipated in the governor’s proposed budget for the new fiscal year — a budget that also had depended on casino revenues to help make up a gap in funding for state aid to cities and towns. [emphasis added]

"It's so successful, we can't afford it!" This is what Massachusetts calls a "success?" If so, we better hope for a few state government failures...before we all go broke.

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How To Make Sure Your Children Hate You Forever

by Michael Graham March 27, 2008 @ 08:28

The Boston Globe-Democrat shows you how with this story on "no-gift" birthday parties for little kids. Instead of getting presents, kids as young as 6 and 7 are told their friends are giving donations to charity instead.

Isn't this a great way to teach children about charity? Uh, no. It's a great way to get them to resent you and the whole concept of charitable giving. So why are parents doing this?

In some circles, parents have become almost competitive in their quest to banish materialism from their children's parties. The nonpresent is quickly becoming the "must-have" gift. The bragging rights are going to be 'How much money did you raise at your birthday party?' " said University of Minnesota professor Bill Doherty, a founder of the group Birthdays Without Pressure, which hopes to launch a national conversation about super-sized parties.

In other words, it's all about the parents making a social statement, regardless of the feelings of their own children.

The smartest person quoted in this story is Bennet Murray a 6-year-old leaving a no-gift birthday party in Brookline. When asked if he might like to do the same on his birthday, he said "No. "I like getting presents."

What some kids need more than new presents, it seems, is new parents.

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Sen. Obama Apparently Can't Hear, But Can He Read?

by Michael Graham March 27, 2008 @ 07:43

Sen. Obama is back defending Rev. Wright again, and he's returned to his old story--he never heard his racist, anti-Semitic, anti-American mentor say anything controversial.

Well, Sen. Obama is a man, which means he's a lousy listener (that's what my lovely bride, The Warden, tells me anyway). But can he read? And if he can read, did he read this article about Israel published in his pastor's magazine?

Scroll down to page 8 and read Ali Baghdadi's "Letter to Oprah" regarding her visit to "Palestine" (that's what Rev. Wright's pals call the nation of Israel.)

In addition to the usual claims that Israel is a terrorist nation, worse than the Nazis, blah, blah--you know, the usual stuff from a Sunday morning at Barack Obama's church--there's this claim by Mr. Baghdadi, sent out as part of the "Pastor's Page" from Trinity UCC:

I must tell you that Israel was the closest ally to the White Supremacists of South Africa. In fact, South Africa allowed Israel to test its nuclear weapons in the ocean off South Africa. The Israelis were given a blank check: they could test whenever they desired and did not even have to ask permission. Both worked on an ethnic bomb that kills Blacks and Arabs.

Gee, why aren't AMERICAN scientists this smart? We could develop a bomb that only kills the Taliban, or Al Qaeda. We could have a military composed entirely of people of African or European descent, then drop bombs on the battlefield that only killed everybody else!

DAMN THOSE ISRAELI BASTARDS! Why won't they share this technology with us?

I can't wait until we have a man in the White House who knows how the world really works. A man who, when the red phone rings at 3am, already has Rev. Wright on speed dial.

UPDATE: Then again, what do you expect from a candidate whose webpage, right now, features the endorsement of the New Black Panther Party?

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Graham Vs. Braude--The Cage Match!

by Michael Graham March 27, 2008 @ 06:58

OK, maybe not a cage match, but we did have an interesting discussion on Braude's NECN TV show about Mrs. Bill Clinton's decision to throw down on Barack Obama's church.

You can use this link to watch the video, and then let Jim Braude know what a hunk you think he is.

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Deval Patrick Throws Himself Under The Obama Bus

by Michael Graham March 27, 2008 @ 06:31

Is there anyone supporting Sen. Barack Obama who doesn't end up under the Hate Talk Express? As I mentioned at the time, Sen. Obama's speech about race threw more people under the than a 90-year-old driver plowing through a farmer's market. Sen. Obama let us know what everyone else had done wrong--white people, black people, talk show hosts, his own grandmother, etc.--without ever admitting he was wrong to attend a racist, anti-Semitic church for 20 years.

But our own Governor, Deval Patrick, has taken this storyline to a new level. In today's NYTimes, he throws HIMSELF under the bus.

The Times story is about the clear and obvious parallels between Deval "Together We Can" Patrick and his partner in plagiarism, Barack "Yes We Can" Obama. Two unaccomplished candidates running for offices they are clearly unqualified for; two candidates who, if they were white, wouldn't have a prayer of winning their party's nomination; two candidates running on vague, vacuous platitudes about hope and change.

And, as the Times points out, Gov. Patrick's administration has been a dud. Is there a lesson here about a potential Obama administration?

"Mr. Patrick dismissed the comparison, saying Mr. Obama had far more political experience than he, and he defended his own record." [emphasis added]

NOW he tells us! So Deval Patrick, trying to defend the most inexperienced presidential candidate in 150 years, finally admits what I spent all of 2006 pointing out--he was never qualified to be governor himself.

"You think Obama's clueless," Patrick is essentially saying, "you oughtta look at MY record! I make him look like Adlai Stevenson!"

Thanks, Deval. Thanks alot.

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Check My Math...PLEASE!

by Michael Graham March 26, 2008 @ 21:35

My Boston Herald column today is about the whining over MCAS from unmotivated teachers and students, and the abysmally low standards of the Massachusetts school system.

Having said that, math has never been my best subject, so I'd like for those of you who are gifted in this area to please take a look over my shoulder at some calculations I've been making re: the Boston government-run school system.

According to this article from the Boston Globe-Democrat, the taxpayers of Boston are chipping in an additional $10 million to this year's school budget. That brings the Boston Public Schools budget to $827.5 million.

According to the Massachusetts DOE, total enrollment in the Boston school system has been dropping steadily and is now down to 56,190. But even that number is high, because average daily enrollment--the number of kids actually sitting in classes and using school services--is around 91% of enrollment.

So in fact we are spending $827.5 million on the operating budget (no capital costs or the like) to teach about 51, 200 kids. OK?

Which means, by my calculations, we're spending around $16, 100 per student for 180 instructional days in the Boston government schools each year. That's about $90 a day, or $1800 a month.

Am I right? And if my math is correct, isn't the only reaction to this...HOLY CRAP!

I don't care how you spin it, $16,000 is a lot of money. I could get my kids an amazing education for that kind of dough. I'd have enough for a private school, with cash left over for summer camp and some private tutoring.

Am I missing something? Please help. As a public school student myself, my math is suspect. Please let me know if my numbers--and my "Holy Crap!" reaction--check out with you.

Thanks.

MichaelGraham@969wtkk.com

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Has Hillary Joined The Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy?

by Michael Graham March 26, 2008 @ 08:57

When lunatic femi-Nazi Barbara Ehrenreich wrote an article for The Nation alleging that Hillary had joined a secret, right-wing religious cult in Washington, I ignored it. The Nation + Ehrenreich = "Painful lack of credibility."

But now, I'm not so sure.

We now know that Mrs. Bill Clinton was a closet supporter of NAFTA and is today, like Sen. Obama, lying about her support.

Then there's the photo above, featuring Mrs. Clinton and infamous VRWConspirator Richard Mellon Scaife. (And is that Agent Scully peering over her corner in the very back?)

But the strongest evidence that Mrs. Clinton has abandoned the Left is her willingness to criticize Sen. Obama regarding his relationship with Rev. Wright.

Hillary Clinton has touched the real third rail of American "progressive" politics: race. Her attacks on Sen. Obama amount to a rejection of the rules of the Left, namely that people in various racial and other identity groups are never to be criticized on issues related to that group. Rev. Wright is a racist, black-power preacher. Sen. Obama is a black parishioner at his church.

Therefore, the good liberal thing to do is say "well, black people have a different perspective, blah, blah, blah" and ignore the irrational, racist rantings coming from the church.

Mrs. Bill Clinton has broken the deal. She's treating Sen. Obama like an adult who should be held responsible for his own actions, rather than making condescending race-based excuses for his shameful behavior. This is UNHEARD OF for a liberal politician, particularly one who's trying to win a Democratic primary.

Hillary Clinton, lying about Bosnia. That's dog bites man.

But Hillary Clinton, telling the truth about the racism of a black pastor during a Democratic primary? That's man bites, kills and eats, dog.

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Is This Sen. Obama's White Grandpa?

by Michael Graham March 25, 2008 @ 08:53

Of the many surprising things that have been said by and about Rev. Wright, the most amazing to me is this comment from Sen. Barack Obama:

"This is not a crackpot church."

You can listen to the entire interview here.

I wonder how many people you would have to poll before you found another American who agreed with Sen. Obama that there's nothing "crackpot" about the bizarre, racist theology or conspiracy theory paranoia of Trinity United Church of Christ.

Apparently Barack Obama holds the "Grandpa Simpson" standard of crackpottery. My question is, if Rev. Wright and his church doesn't qualify as "crackpot," who does? The John Birch Society? Scientologists? Bigfoot enthusiasts?

If Rev. Wright is mainstream, then so it Tom Cruise. How frightening is that?

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Feelin' The Love

by Michael Graham March 25, 2008 @ 07:06

Another fine Massachusetts liberal puts his principles into action, and shares the experience via email:

I suffer the unfortunate burden of never being able to escape your coulter-esque horses**t after leaving charleston, sc, where your useless articles were published in the Charleston City Paper (i proactively ripped your column out of every paper i could find, forget free speech in your case) i moved to boston only to have the occasional accidental five second stay on 96.9 during your awful show when flipping throught he channels. for the good of all people, or at least your poor kids who must be the most hated young republican geeks at school, get out of the media, of the air, and into a hole. i loathe the thought of you polluting the air in my beloved home state of MA.

My favorite part of that email is the "forget free speech" comment. Ever notice how quickly Lefties rise above their own principles?

Then there's this note from a Global Warming kook, in response to my report that global temperatures have been flat since 1998:

PLEASE stop talking about things you don't understand. YOUR perception of a trend since 1998 doesnt mean anything. Climate isnt about 5 or 10 year trends and global warming doesn't mean that every year must be warmer than the last. Global Warming (climate change) wasnt invented by Al Gore or the environmental movement and the science behind global warming is the result of thousands of man hours of peer reviewed research. It is sad that someone as ignorant as you has a microphone in front of him...please go back to stand-up....The eight warmest years in the GISS record have all occurred since 1998, and the 14 warmest years in the record have all occurred since 1990.

What I love about this email is the combination of arrogance and cluelessness. It's one thing to have virtually no facts about the current state of global temperatures, but to be so wrong and then send out obnoxious emails about it is, well, priceless.

As I've already shared with you on this blog, NASA has updated its figures on global temperatures, correcting previous errors. The warmest year on record is 1934. Five of the 10 warmest years were before 1954. And temperatures have been flat since 1998, despite ever-increasing levels of carbon in the atmosphere. In fact, the biggest 12-month drop in temperatures ever recorded is happening right now.

You'd think that someone who lacked these basic facts will be a bit more modest. But the angry Left doesn't do modesty. They do outrage.

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The Natural Truth

By Michael Graham

What Kind Of Mileage Does That DTS Get, Anyway?

Massachusetts Health Care "Reform": So Successful, We Can't Afford It!

How To Make Sure Your Children Hate You Forever

Sen. Obama Apparently Can't Hear, But Can He Read?

Graham Vs. Braude--The Cage Match!

Deval Patrick Throws Himself Under The Obama Bus

Check My Math...PLEASE!

Has Hillary Joined The Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy?

Is This Sen. Obama's White Grandpa?

Feelin' The Love

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