CurtBlog : taxes

Is this necessary?

skills0 — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 14:15:22 GMT

So this morning I had a dentist appointment and I had to walk across the loop. It had snowed and was still snowy, so there was various snow removal going on. I walked by the Daley Center and they were clearing snow from what is admittedly a bit more sidewalk/terrace than some buildings. They were clearing it with what looked like an almost brand-new John Deere small utility tractor with a cab, blade, etc. Conservative estimate on a price for one of those is $15-20K range. I actually know because I've researched them a bit and then I doublechecked my guess online.

What the crap do they need something like that for just to clear snow? Then when walking back I noticed they actually have TWO of them. Now maybe they were donated and maybe they are leasing them, but at any rate, this is what my taxes go to? Can't they use a snow blower like everyone else? Meanwhile, we can barely get streets plowed in our neighborhood and the streets and sanitation department never enforces the sidewalk shoveling ordinance, so you are always walking/driving around at your own risk.

Low expectations and Palin

skills0 — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 13:19:42 GMT

I've tried to shy away from political commentary on this blog, but enough is enough. I spent much of last night's VP debate alternately rolling my eyes and being angry. And this morning I feel much the same way. Apparently if you can at least talk and not say anything that a 6th grader would find stupid, you can be a successful VP candidate. Apparently the bar is now so low for Palin that anything counts as a success. The biggest thing I heard last night and this morning is "She did better than I expected". She did better than I expected too, but then again my expectations were terribly low. Is this all we're looking for at this point? It reminds me of that SNL fake commercial for "Lowered Expectations", the dating service for people who aren't quite as good looking or smart or in shape or whatever.

If you could get past the rambling on and on, it became quickly apparently that most of the time Palin was either 1) speaking in gross generalities or 2) contradicting herself or 3) showing herself to be completely in over her head on understanding the nuances of government or 4) just plain saying things that were incorrect. This is the part that made me laugh and roll my eyes.

The part that made me angry is all the stupid Americans who will eat up that hockey mom and Joe Sixpack bullshit hook line and sinker. That's because for a lot of people, it's apparently more important to identify with a candidate than elect someone who will actually help you. Those are the same people who voted for Bush a second time. Can we temporarily suspend their right to vote this election?

Just for grins, here are some of the more crazy things I got from Palin:

we can't allow Iran to have nuclear energy ... uh make that weapons
The surge worked so well in Iraq all we have to do is do the same thing in Afghanistan, something the commander on the ground there doesn't even believe.
Providing a $5000 credit towards health insurance is a zero budget item. Apparently the government doesn't have to pay for that, except with Monopoly money. Luckily Biden called her on this one.
She kept saying to vote for the party that will give Americans tax cuts. Great idea, that means you are voting for Obama/Biden. The McCain plan mostly gives tax breaks to rich people and corporations.
She kept saying to vote for the party that wants energy independence, but to her that means drilling for oil that we might have in 10 years rather than focusing on alternative energies and putting money into that. I'm not sure what she means by McCain is using an "all of the above" approach, but she said it a lot of times so I'm sure it will work.

I can go on, but it's just too easy. I hope some people are seeing how ludicrous it is to even have this person in the running besides me.

Chicago is quickly becoming an undesirable place to live

skills0 — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 14:12:01 GMT

I'm really starting to get fed up with this city. Daley is a crook and he's running the city into the ground. Big shock. His latest budget proposal announcement for next year calls for, are you ready for it, 10-15% increase in property taxes. This while Daley and his cronies channel millions of dollars into TIFs (one of the worse scams on the working man ever), can't keep the cops from breaking the law and hurting people, lets the CTA self-destruct, fumbles around with an ill-advised Olympic bid (I don't think a single one of my friends is in favor of it) and continues to award high-paying jobs to friends so they can sit on their asses all day while my tax dollars pay their salary. What the heck is wrong with this city? If this keeps up, finding another place to call home is looking better and better.

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