The best and worst of Opinion Line 2006
Breasts, fashion statements
As far as I'm concerned, the only thing wrong with breast-feeding in public is that the baby's head obstructs my view.
If a woman breast-feeds her baby while lunching at Hooters, would other patrons be offended? Just curious.
If you have stomach rolls, please stop wearing shorts that show them. Nobody wants to see that. If you have back rolls, please stop wearing halters. Nobody wants to see that, either.
If you are 35 or older, short skirts, low-necked tops and tight jeans are not for you. Face it; your glory days are over. Cover up.
Friday, January 05, 2007
Thursday, January 04, 2007
No big deal?
Health costs create county budget gap
Wednesday, December 20, 2006
By Steve Gunn
CHRONICLE STAFF WRITER
The short, happy era of fiscal prosperity is over for Muskegon County government.
After using an unexpected $1.7 million windfall in September to balance their fiscal 2007 budget plan, county leaders have learned that the cost of providing retiree medical benefits has gone through the roof.
That means the county, almost three full months into the new fiscal year, will have to find a way to erase a sudden deficit of approximately $2.3 million, including $750,000 in the general fund and about $1.5 million in all other funds.
County commissioners started the painful process of eliminating that deficit Tuesday by voting to impose a hiring freeze on full-time employees and reducing the "benefit option" for employees that don't enroll in the medical insurance program.
County Administrator James Borushko will also ask all county departments to review their budgets in the coming weeks and recommend spending cuts and/or revenue increases equaling two percent.
An overall budget reduction plan, based on those recommended cuts, will probably come before county commissioners in February or March, according to officials.
"There's always a new challenge the next day," said Borushko, alluding to last summer's unexpected property tax revenue windfall that temporarily provided the county with enough revenue to cover its budget. "We will look for good news to come hopefully in other areas."
The latest "new challenge" is related to the cost of keeping up with future medical costs for county retirees.
Every few years the county has an "actuarial" study done of its pension and insurance programs, to determine how much it must set aside every year to meet its obligation to retirees over three decades.
Last year the county put aside 6.8 percent of its gross payroll, based on a 2000 actuarial study.
This year county officials estimated they would have to put aside 9.28 percent of gross payroll in the new fiscal year, equaling about $4.5 million.
Then a new actuarial study came in, and the results were chilling. County officials learned they would have to set aside slightly more than 14 percent of gross payroll, or about $6.8 million.
That created a $2.3 million hole in their fiscal 2007 budget plan.
The impact of the shortage could potentially be blunted in coming months. A proposed state law would allow local governments to sell bonds to lessen the impact of the additional costs.
But there's no guarantee that option will become available, and the county would be foolish to count on it, according to officials.
In a memo to commissioners, Jack Niemiec, the county's director of finance and management services, described the budgetary impact of the cost increase "huge."
"The next question, of course, is how to deal with this huge hit," Niemiec wrote in the memo. "We cannot ignore it."
Commissioners reacted Tuesday in several ways, based on Niemiec's recommendations to erase the budget shortfall.
* They voted to impose a hiring freeze for all full-time positions that are funded at least 50 percent with general fund money. The hiring freeze will not save money at the outset, but could make a difference as the months pass and positions become vacant, according to officials.
* Commissioners also voted to reduce the amount of money they give employees who opt out of the county's medical coverage. Currently employees with families of more than two people receive $5,450, families of two receive $5,115 and single employees get $2,322.
With the reduction in place, employees with families will get $2,000 per year while single employees will get $1,000. A total of 210 county employees will be affected, including 9 of the 11 county commissioners, according to officials.
The reduction will save the county an estimated $516,220.
* Niemiec said the county will also save money because wage increases for county employees were not as large as they could have been this year. The county was set to increase wages between 2.5 percent and 3.5 percent for most employees, based on the consumer price index.
The CPI ended up at 1.7 percent, meaning the county can pay the low end of the wage increase, or 2.5 percent. The county budget had assumed an increase of 3.25 percent for most employees., so the saving will be $332,037.
Savings from the reduction of the benefit option and the lower wage increase will total $848,957. That still leaves a hole of roughly $1.4 million in the budget, which the various departments will be expected to eliminate through their two percent cuts.
"We will expect everybody to show up and meet their obligation," said Borushko, who added that employee layoffs probably aren't a concern, unless the initial budget cuts fail to eliminate the deficit.
Wednesday, December 20, 2006
By Steve Gunn
CHRONICLE STAFF WRITER
The short, happy era of fiscal prosperity is over for Muskegon County government.
After using an unexpected $1.7 million windfall in September to balance their fiscal 2007 budget plan, county leaders have learned that the cost of providing retiree medical benefits has gone through the roof.
That means the county, almost three full months into the new fiscal year, will have to find a way to erase a sudden deficit of approximately $2.3 million, including $750,000 in the general fund and about $1.5 million in all other funds.
County commissioners started the painful process of eliminating that deficit Tuesday by voting to impose a hiring freeze on full-time employees and reducing the "benefit option" for employees that don't enroll in the medical insurance program.
County Administrator James Borushko will also ask all county departments to review their budgets in the coming weeks and recommend spending cuts and/or revenue increases equaling two percent.
An overall budget reduction plan, based on those recommended cuts, will probably come before county commissioners in February or March, according to officials.
"There's always a new challenge the next day," said Borushko, alluding to last summer's unexpected property tax revenue windfall that temporarily provided the county with enough revenue to cover its budget. "We will look for good news to come hopefully in other areas."
The latest "new challenge" is related to the cost of keeping up with future medical costs for county retirees.
Every few years the county has an "actuarial" study done of its pension and insurance programs, to determine how much it must set aside every year to meet its obligation to retirees over three decades.
Last year the county put aside 6.8 percent of its gross payroll, based on a 2000 actuarial study.
This year county officials estimated they would have to put aside 9.28 percent of gross payroll in the new fiscal year, equaling about $4.5 million.
Then a new actuarial study came in, and the results were chilling. County officials learned they would have to set aside slightly more than 14 percent of gross payroll, or about $6.8 million.
That created a $2.3 million hole in their fiscal 2007 budget plan.
The impact of the shortage could potentially be blunted in coming months. A proposed state law would allow local governments to sell bonds to lessen the impact of the additional costs.
But there's no guarantee that option will become available, and the county would be foolish to count on it, according to officials.
In a memo to commissioners, Jack Niemiec, the county's director of finance and management services, described the budgetary impact of the cost increase "huge."
"The next question, of course, is how to deal with this huge hit," Niemiec wrote in the memo. "We cannot ignore it."
Commissioners reacted Tuesday in several ways, based on Niemiec's recommendations to erase the budget shortfall.
* They voted to impose a hiring freeze for all full-time positions that are funded at least 50 percent with general fund money. The hiring freeze will not save money at the outset, but could make a difference as the months pass and positions become vacant, according to officials.
* Commissioners also voted to reduce the amount of money they give employees who opt out of the county's medical coverage. Currently employees with families of more than two people receive $5,450, families of two receive $5,115 and single employees get $2,322.
With the reduction in place, employees with families will get $2,000 per year while single employees will get $1,000. A total of 210 county employees will be affected, including 9 of the 11 county commissioners, according to officials.
The reduction will save the county an estimated $516,220.
* Niemiec said the county will also save money because wage increases for county employees were not as large as they could have been this year. The county was set to increase wages between 2.5 percent and 3.5 percent for most employees, based on the consumer price index.
The CPI ended up at 1.7 percent, meaning the county can pay the low end of the wage increase, or 2.5 percent. The county budget had assumed an increase of 3.25 percent for most employees., so the saving will be $332,037.
Savings from the reduction of the benefit option and the lower wage increase will total $848,957. That still leaves a hole of roughly $1.4 million in the budget, which the various departments will be expected to eliminate through their two percent cuts.
"We will expect everybody to show up and meet their obligation," said Borushko, who added that employee layoffs probably aren't a concern, unless the initial budget cuts fail to eliminate the deficit.
Tuesday, January 02, 2007
Anti-cheese campaign is seen as 'nannying gone mad'
The new regulations, being introduced this month by the television regulator Ofcom, will ban broadcasters from advertising cheese during children's TV programmes, or shows with a large number of child viewers....
The ban comes in the wake of evidence that television commercials have an indirect influence on what children eat and are contributing to obesity in the young...
The model officially labelled cheese as more unhealthy than sugary cereals, full-fat crisps and cheeseburgers.
The ban comes in the wake of evidence that television commercials have an indirect influence on what children eat and are contributing to obesity in the young...
The model officially labelled cheese as more unhealthy than sugary cereals, full-fat crisps and cheeseburgers.
The successes of President George W Bush
Sometimes we forget the significant wins for W... and the USA.
Pretty long and impressive list!
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1759220/replies?c=8
Sunday, December 31, 2006
More blather from the MSM
This "poll" purports to prove that the average American is despondent about their future. Then this gem:
"One in four, 25 percent, anticipates the second coming of Jesus Christ."
Just your old, run of the mill 25% of folks expecting the end of the world. Jeeze...
"One in four, 25 percent, anticipates the second coming of Jesus Christ."
Just your old, run of the mill 25% of folks expecting the end of the world. Jeeze...
More from Steyn
There wasn't much in evidence last year. Take another little vignette that'll look good in the movie version:
Mustaf Jama, a Somali ''asylum seeker'' in Britain wanted for the murder of a policewoman, fled the country by taking his sister's passport, wearing a niqab (the full Islamic head-to-toe get-up that covers everything but the eyes) and passing unhindered through the checkpoints at Heathrow.
How about that? It turns out we are profiling after all, but we're profiling everybody except Muslims. Your wizened l'il ol' gran'ma on a Yuletide break to London is bent double and out of breath struggling to take off her coat and shoes. The officials sternly scrutinize her passport to check that the picture matches her flustered and bewildered face. All around her hundreds of women are doing the same, mutely shuffling through the scanner in their stocking feet. But Britain's most wanted man is breezing through because he took the precaution of dressing as a Muslim woman. And it would be culturally insensitive to expose them to the same scrutiny as your gran'ma.
Mustaf Jama, a Somali ''asylum seeker'' in Britain wanted for the murder of a policewoman, fled the country by taking his sister's passport, wearing a niqab (the full Islamic head-to-toe get-up that covers everything but the eyes) and passing unhindered through the checkpoints at Heathrow.
How about that? It turns out we are profiling after all, but we're profiling everybody except Muslims. Your wizened l'il ol' gran'ma on a Yuletide break to London is bent double and out of breath struggling to take off her coat and shoes. The officials sternly scrutinize her passport to check that the picture matches her flustered and bewildered face. All around her hundreds of women are doing the same, mutely shuffling through the scanner in their stocking feet. But Britain's most wanted man is breezing through because he took the precaution of dressing as a Muslim woman. And it would be culturally insensitive to expose them to the same scrutiny as your gran'ma.
Brilliant!
I guess that arresting and executing the murderer isn't an option.
SATELLITES will be used to pinpoint prostitutes in danger following the murders of five sex workers in Suffolk, The Scotsman can reveal.
Prompted by the killings, new locator devices will be piloted with prostitutes in Edinburgh from February.
Police say that by alerting them immediately to the whereabouts of prostitutes being attacked, the alarms could save lives.
SATELLITES will be used to pinpoint prostitutes in danger following the murders of five sex workers in Suffolk, The Scotsman can reveal.
Prompted by the killings, new locator devices will be piloted with prostitutes in Edinburgh from February.
Police say that by alerting them immediately to the whereabouts of prostitutes being attacked, the alarms could save lives.
Why indeed?
http://www.suntimes.com/news/steyn/191774,CST-EDT-STEYN31.article
Here's something else nobody's curious about: Sandy Berger. Consider this passage from the inspector general's official report on the Sandypants and his destruction of classified materials from the National Archives:
''Mr. Berger exited the Archives on to Pennsylvania Avenue, the north entrance. It was dark. He did not want to run the risk of bringing the documents back in the building risking the possibility [redacted] might notice something unusual. He headed towards a construction area on Ninth Street. Mr. Berger looked up and down the street, up into the windows of the Archives and the DOJ, and did not see anyone. He removed the documents from his pockets, folded the notes in a 'V' shape and inserted the documents in the center. He walked inside the construction fence and slid the documents under a trailer.''
Why is this man getting his security clearance back in 2008?
Here's something else nobody's curious about: Sandy Berger. Consider this passage from the inspector general's official report on the Sandypants and his destruction of classified materials from the National Archives:
''Mr. Berger exited the Archives on to Pennsylvania Avenue, the north entrance. It was dark. He did not want to run the risk of bringing the documents back in the building risking the possibility [redacted] might notice something unusual. He headed towards a construction area on Ninth Street. Mr. Berger looked up and down the street, up into the windows of the Archives and the DOJ, and did not see anyone. He removed the documents from his pockets, folded the notes in a 'V' shape and inserted the documents in the center. He walked inside the construction fence and slid the documents under a trailer.''
Why is this man getting his security clearance back in 2008?
Why evil thrives
CNN showed an old, fawning interview of Saddam by Bernard Shaw. They end the piece with the reverential "he was 69". Disgusting!
http://www.torontosun.com/Comment/Commentary/2006/12/31/3097088-sun.html
Less and less in the West these days -- thanks to the insidious doctrine of moral equivalence -- do we seem capable of unequivocally condemning evil, even when it is staring us right in the face.
Rest assured, though, that our enemies are watching our timid, politically correct reactions. And learning. And plotting.
http://www.torontosun.com/Comment/Commentary/2006/12/31/3097088-sun.html
Less and less in the West these days -- thanks to the insidious doctrine of moral equivalence -- do we seem capable of unequivocally condemning evil, even when it is staring us right in the face.
Rest assured, though, that our enemies are watching our timid, politically correct reactions. And learning. And plotting.
Saturday, December 30, 2006
Without Bush, this last one couldn't have happened!
Return to the Article
December 30, 2006
The record speaks for itself
J.R. Dunn
Lenin - Dead of the complications of a stroke, perhaps assisted by poisoning, January 21, 1924.
Benito Mussolini - Executed without judicial procedure by communist partisans, April 28 1945. The act was robbed of any meaning by the concurrent murder of his innocent mistress, Clara Petacci.
Adolf Hitler - Dead by his own hand beneath the ruins of the Berlin Chancellory, April 30, 1945.
Stalin - Dead of stroke aided by medical neglect at age 74 at his dacha outside Moscow, March 5, 1953.
Ho Chi Minh - Dead of heart failure at age 79 at his home in Hanoi, September 2, 1969.
Francisco Franco - Dead of old age at 82 on November 20, 1975.
Mao Tse Tung - Dead of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis at age 82, on September 9, 1976.
Tito - Dead of circulatory problems on May 4, 1980, three days before his 88th birthday.
Nicolae Ceaucescu - Shot out of hand at age 71 after a bogus "trial" following a national
uprising, December 25, 1989.
Ruhollah Khomeini - Dead of cancer on June 3, 1989, at the age of 89.
Kim Il-sung - Dead of a heart attack at 82 in Pyongyang, July 8, 1994.
Pol Pot - Dead at age 72 (possibly a suicide) on April 16, 1998, while waiting to be turned over to an international tribunal.
Idi Amin Dada - Dead of old age at age 79 on August 16, 2003, after years of exile in Saudi
Arabia.
Slobodan Milosevic - Dead in his cell under unexplained circumstances while in the hands of an international criminal tribunal at the Hague, March 11, 2006.
Most of the great butchers of the 20th century died of old age, in their own beds, some of
them honored by millions. Not a single one met justice in the sense accepted in free states across the world. The handful who died otherwise are aberrations, victims of strange events that act as models for nothing.
There is one single exception - the hanging of Saddam Hussein on December 30, 2006
after a careful, lengthy trial carried out under extremely difficult circumstances according to
internationally recognized judicial norms. The state of Iraq has succeeded where the rest of the civilized world has failed. It is a singular achievement, and it will stand.
"There is no more acceptable sacrifice than the blood of a tyrant."
- Giovanni Boccaccio
December 30, 2006
The record speaks for itself
J.R. Dunn
Lenin - Dead of the complications of a stroke, perhaps assisted by poisoning, January 21, 1924.
Benito Mussolini - Executed without judicial procedure by communist partisans, April 28 1945. The act was robbed of any meaning by the concurrent murder of his innocent mistress, Clara Petacci.
Adolf Hitler - Dead by his own hand beneath the ruins of the Berlin Chancellory, April 30, 1945.
Stalin - Dead of stroke aided by medical neglect at age 74 at his dacha outside Moscow, March 5, 1953.
Ho Chi Minh - Dead of heart failure at age 79 at his home in Hanoi, September 2, 1969.
Francisco Franco - Dead of old age at 82 on November 20, 1975.
Mao Tse Tung - Dead of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis at age 82, on September 9, 1976.
Tito - Dead of circulatory problems on May 4, 1980, three days before his 88th birthday.
Nicolae Ceaucescu - Shot out of hand at age 71 after a bogus "trial" following a national
uprising, December 25, 1989.
Ruhollah Khomeini - Dead of cancer on June 3, 1989, at the age of 89.
Kim Il-sung - Dead of a heart attack at 82 in Pyongyang, July 8, 1994.
Pol Pot - Dead at age 72 (possibly a suicide) on April 16, 1998, while waiting to be turned over to an international tribunal.
Idi Amin Dada - Dead of old age at age 79 on August 16, 2003, after years of exile in Saudi
Arabia.
Slobodan Milosevic - Dead in his cell under unexplained circumstances while in the hands of an international criminal tribunal at the Hague, March 11, 2006.
Most of the great butchers of the 20th century died of old age, in their own beds, some of
them honored by millions. Not a single one met justice in the sense accepted in free states across the world. The handful who died otherwise are aberrations, victims of strange events that act as models for nothing.
There is one single exception - the hanging of Saddam Hussein on December 30, 2006
after a careful, lengthy trial carried out under extremely difficult circumstances according to
internationally recognized judicial norms. The state of Iraq has succeeded where the rest of the civilized world has failed. It is a singular achievement, and it will stand.
"There is no more acceptable sacrifice than the blood of a tyrant."
- Giovanni Boccaccio
Where do we get such brave men?
http://insidedenver.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5245883,00.html
The sergeant with no legs sat inside the cemetery, thinking about how this homecoming was supposed to happen.
Amazing Google Top Searches for 2006
http://www.google.com/intl/en/press/zeitgeist2006.html
Pretty pathetic areas of top interest. Still, mostly kids... I hope.
Pretty pathetic areas of top interest. Still, mostly kids... I hope.
Friday, December 29, 2006
Who'd of guessed?
http://www.riehlworldview.com/carnivorous_conservative/2006/12/ap_and_ep_perfe.html
The anti-American MSM lying? Non! (a bit of frogy lingo for my multicultural readers.)
AP and E&P: Perfect "Liars" Together
The AP and E&P have teamed up to perpetuate a lie. The details of their own story make that clear for anyone taking the time to actually parse it. The headline screams Many U.S. Troops in Iraq Oppose Escalation, so let's take a look.
The anti-American MSM lying? Non! (a bit of frogy lingo for my multicultural readers.)
AP and E&P: Perfect "Liars" Together
The AP and E&P have teamed up to perpetuate a lie. The details of their own story make that clear for anyone taking the time to actually parse it. The headline screams Many U.S. Troops in Iraq Oppose Escalation, so let's take a look.
Oo la la!
A 19-year-old woman who disappeared was found stuck in an elevator in a suburban Paris housing project for three days, the French press reported Friday.
The daily Le Figaro described the woman, identified only as Safiatou, as vulnerable because she had "problems of confusion." It said she was found dehydrated but alive on Dec. 22.
According to newspaper and television accounts, Safiatou's father had contacted the building concierge Dec. 19 to say his daughter could be stuck in a broken elevator. No alarm went off and the concierge and a repairman found no one when they checked, Le Figaro reported, citing a source close to the investigation.
The technician began repair work the following day. On Dec. 22, the repairman returned to complete the job and heard a soft cry, Le Figaro reported.
On Wednesday, the girl's father, who had advised police of his daughter's disappearance, filed a complaint for non-assistance to a person in danger -- a crime in France -- according to Le Figaro.
Several elevators in the housing project had recently been renovated but not the one in question, according to the news reports. They said that it was unclear why Safiatou did not cry out for help.
Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
The daily Le Figaro described the woman, identified only as Safiatou, as vulnerable because she had "problems of confusion." It said she was found dehydrated but alive on Dec. 22.
According to newspaper and television accounts, Safiatou's father had contacted the building concierge Dec. 19 to say his daughter could be stuck in a broken elevator. No alarm went off and the concierge and a repairman found no one when they checked, Le Figaro reported, citing a source close to the investigation.
The technician began repair work the following day. On Dec. 22, the repairman returned to complete the job and heard a soft cry, Le Figaro reported.
On Wednesday, the girl's father, who had advised police of his daughter's disappearance, filed a complaint for non-assistance to a person in danger -- a crime in France -- according to Le Figaro.
Several elevators in the housing project had recently been renovated but not the one in question, according to the news reports. They said that it was unclear why Safiatou did not cry out for help.
Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Wednesday, December 27, 2006
silent treatment.....
http://powerlineblog.com/archives/016314.php
On his visit to Iraq, Senator Kerry apparently got something like the silent treatment from the troops who are "stuck" there. WDAY's Scott Hennen quotes a message from a friend serving in Iraq:
This is a true story....Check out this photo from our mess hall at the US Embassy yesterday morning. Sen. Kerry found himself all alone while he was over here. He cancelled his press conference because no one came, he worked out alone in the gym w/o any soldiers even going up to say hi or ask for an autograph (I was one of those who was in the gym at the same time), and he found himself eating breakfast with only a couple of folks who are obviously not troops.
What is amazing is Bill O'Reilly came to visit with us and the troops at the CSH the same day and the line for autographs extended through the palace and people waited for two hours to shake his hand. You decide who is more respected and loved by us servicemen and women!
On his visit to Iraq, Senator Kerry apparently got something like the silent treatment from the troops who are "stuck" there. WDAY's Scott Hennen quotes a message from a friend serving in Iraq:
This is a true story....Check out this photo from our mess hall at the US Embassy yesterday morning. Sen. Kerry found himself all alone while he was over here. He cancelled his press conference because no one came, he worked out alone in the gym w/o any soldiers even going up to say hi or ask for an autograph (I was one of those who was in the gym at the same time), and he found himself eating breakfast with only a couple of folks who are obviously not troops.
What is amazing is Bill O'Reilly came to visit with us and the troops at the CSH the same day and the line for autographs extended through the palace and people waited for two hours to shake his hand. You decide who is more respected and loved by us servicemen and women!
Who are you going to trust?
The liberal MSM/defeatocrats or our troops on the ground?
[M]orale among our guys is very high. They not only believe that they are winning, but that they are winning decisively. They are stunned and dismayed by what they see in the American press, whom they almost universally view as against them. The embedded reporters are despised and distrusted.
A religion of peace?
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,20979298-662,00.html
IN September, an elderly Muslim man told some of his peers that scantily clad women were not unlike uncovered meat.If they expose themselves, who's to blame the cat for devouring them?
Sheik Taj el-Din al-Hilaly, Australia's senior Muslim cleric, thought his sermon at the Lakemba mosque, in suburban Sydney, was for his followers' ears only.
IN September, an elderly Muslim man told some of his peers that scantily clad women were not unlike uncovered meat.If they expose themselves, who's to blame the cat for devouring them?
Sheik Taj el-Din al-Hilaly, Australia's senior Muslim cleric, thought his sermon at the Lakemba mosque, in suburban Sydney, was for his followers' ears only.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)