Monday, August 12, 2013

Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Paulbarians at the gates (of Henderson) & the battle for Horizon Ridge!

Big announcement earlier this week in two GOP state races!

After the Ron Paul (here to fore known as Paulbarians) contingent was recently ousted from leadership positions inside the Clark County Republican Party, we wondered if they would go quietly into the night ...........they have not!!!

Two brothers, the brothers Bunce, have announced they will primary two established sitting republicans!

The two republicans in the sights of these Bunce Paulbarians are Assemblyman Lynn Stewart (AD22) and Senate Minority Leader Mike Roberson (SD 20).

The main target of the Paulbarain siege is Mike Roberson. Poor Roberson has had quite the two legislative sessions between 2011 & 2013. In 2010, Roberson was swept into office in November 2010 when there was a tidal wave of "tea" sweeping America, where republicans made big gains in the House of Representatives and state races across the land...........the tea was sweet & the Obama hate piping hot!

So flip the calender to the 2011 Nevada Legislative session: Roberson fresh off the teabag & nicely steeped went to Carson City in the mode of Governors Scott Walker (WI), John Kasich (OH) & Rick Scott (FL) ready to firmly punish the evil doers who were ruining the US economy.......... those evil teachers, public employees and prevailing wage workers!!

Roberson was loud & proud, pounding the teachers & their socialist collective bargaining...........hammering state and public employees and their cushy untouchable positions.........and also targeting those leeches who build public roads and buildings for pro-athlete type salaries!!!! The problems were identified and the legislative policy's were aimed and ready to fire!

Those were halcyon days for "Tea party" Mike Roberson and the outraged voters who put him in office............so impressive was the wrath that Roberson brought, that he earned "Rookie of the Year" from a conservative watch dog group!!!

Now what of Lynn Stewart you might be asking your self, well here's where he comes in: Stewart is "Stan Laurel" to Roberson's "Oliver Hardy". Roberson is the leader of the two and the more boisterous of the duo, always ready for a press interview, while Stewart sort of stayed out of the limelight.

Since Stewart's assembly district is inside Roberson's larger senate district, the opportunity for the Brothers Bunce & their Paulbarian supporters to fight a battle right in their own neighborhoods and take on two in one senate district!!

Let's flip the calender to the 2013 session. Pundits were all on alert to see how "Tea Party" Mike Roberson was going to eviscerate all things public........... schools, unions, workers wages. This was sure to be the second raid on the evils dragging down society in Nevada and a blood bath was expected! Conservatives were drooling with anticipation of the undoing of decades of public policy and would dance with glee to see these "public takers" get their comeuppance!

Then "Tea Party" Mike Roberson had a sudden change of heart. WTF?!?!?! NO!!! Yep! During the session, as usual the issue of removing the constitutionally protected taxation mining has enjoyed since 1864 was broached............this was ALWAYS a democratic issue & priority..........not so in 2013!

Shockingly, it was "Tea Party" Mike Roberson who dove into the deep end and without hesitation, Mike tossed out 149 years of republican support mining had counted on..........and "Tea Party" Mike went after mining like a rottweiler going after a cottontail bunny!! He unleashed a vicious attack on the holy of holy's: Mining!!

Where did this come from?!?!?! Was "Tea party" Mike now "Moderate"Mike?!?! Conservative blogger's were stunned............pundits wondered what happened.............even democrats sidled up to "Moderate" Mike. Roberson not only sinned against the Savior of Nevada (mining), Roberson went as far as agreeing to extend some taxation that was set to expire?!?! NOOOO!!!!

This was too much for the tea sloshed conservatives to handle. Punishment must be meted out for this sudden, dastardly betrayal of all things conservative!!! Not only had Roberson betrayed the holy institution of mining, he allowed taxation to extend beyond it's expiration, which brings us to the last grievous sin.............Roberson reneged on his NO TAX PLEDGE?!?! GASP!!!

Conservatives were livid...........Paulbarians were clamoring for scalps and heads on pikes. The fight was on for the soul of the Nevada republican party! The Paulbarains had ruled the castle after a coup was instigated in 2010, bringing pure 1830's libertarian thinking to the GOP of Clark County!

As the struggle for the republican party moved into 2013, the Paulbarians were defeated by a knight in shining armor who matriculated from his kingdom in California (where his father rules a congressional seat)...........and with the help of some "establishment" republicans they wrested the kingdom from the hands of the Paulbarians.

Suddenly the Paulbarians found themselves in the wilderness, with no party, (they sure weren't going to make good with the likes of normal republicans), no home and possibly no voice.

Thus we have the Brothers Bunce and their announcement that they will (in the names of Paulbarains everywhere) restore true conservative ideals to the masses by challenging Stan (Lynn Stewart) and Ollie (Mike Roberson) in a battle for true conservatism!!!

Now "Moderate" Mike Roberson faces a challenge from the right and church going Lynn Stewart is in the firing line of Paulbarian and "true" conservative anger..........where real American Libertarian ideals will be espoused and "LIBERTY" and "FREEDOM" will be the talking points................and where will this battle be fought?? The battle for liberty & freedom will be fought in the Henderson hills along Horizon Ridge.............right in the middle of Home Owner's Association central...........nothing screams "liberty & Freedom" like a solid Home Owner's Association !!!!






Thursday, June 27, 2013

Dean Heller flips on immigration reform, but what else can he do?!?!

Nevada Republican Senator Dean Heller has recently come out as a big supporter of the pending immigration bill, which is currently being massaged in the US Senate. But there are some hurdles republicans will have to get over and past to make it possible for them to vote FOR any immigration reform.

First the national republican quandary:

Everyone knows republicans are in a real messy situation when it comes to this immigration reform issue.

For republicans to remain somewhat in the good graces of their base, republicans can't come out and support immigration reform (IR), without putting up some sort of hurdles that will hinder any path to citizenship.

The far right GOP base of tea party and the more "immigrant intolerant" segment of the GOP will not accept any real immigration reform. This fact is being seen with the split within the republican party where some are saying "if the GOP doesn't embrace IR, then the party is doomed in the near future" as Hispanic and minority voters are on the increase in just about every state of the union and those future voters will not be voting republican. Others are taking the hard line against IR, holding to the liking of their far right voting base and trying to fend off any potential backlash by the tea party by being forced into a primary election fight by outraged tea party and the far right.

So what are republicans to do?!?! They can't cheese off their hard core voting base by just passing a simple pathway legislation...........they can't hard line IR as their base probably would prefer, because that means the GOP will be on the shit list to huge numbers of immigrant and minority voters.

So the only middle ground republicans can take, is to get multiple amendments to the IR bill, that basically make the US - Mexican border a second version of the Great Wall of China!!

So now we have "conservative", "have to stop the spending" republicans tossing billions of dollars at the border as a condition for republican support for immigration reform, in a lame attempt to appease their base and also make it look like they are a friend to immigrants, Hispanics and minorities.

The Dean Heller Quandary:

Dean Heller's situation in Nevada is a microcosm of the national GOP problem.

Heller was in the US house, where he had a generally safe district of rural GOP voting Nevada and his home turf in Washoe County, Douglas County and Carson City......pretty safe and not a district where one need pander to Hispanics or minorities!

Now Heller finds himself in the Senate and suddenly Hispanic and minority rich Clark County (where 70+%) of the Nevada's population lies. Now all of a sudden Dean Heller sort of needs to reach out to the Hispanic voters in southern Nevada, an area he could ignore in all his other elections!

Heller didn't poll well with Hispanics in Clark County, and thus his sudden flip on immigration. See this article from November 2012: http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2012/nov/15/heller-positions-himself-help-broker-immigration-r/#axzz2XMmyhgMy





Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Quite the month this has been!

Been a busy month on the news & political front..........so without fanfare, let me say this about that!

Edward Snowden & the NSA affairs.

This story probably has evoked some opinion from almost everyone. Some are for it as "it keeps us safe"......some are against it as it's "way to much government intrusion".

My questions are:

1) How does a lower level person in a massive system like the NSA/Homeland Security come to have the supposed information and depth of clearance that Snowden is suspected of having?

2) Why is the US government farming out this type of work to private contractors who are paying inflated salaries & then billing the tax payer for probably two and a half times the salary of these employees?

3) Should private companies be allowed to maintain this type of information?

We all know that in this digital era we live in, that few "secrets" can be hidden from prying eyes. Corporations have mined the electronic data since the early days of the internet and this is just another set of eyes that have access to all the digital information flying through the wires and airwaves of modern society.

George Zimmerman trial.

The trial is finally underway in the shooting of Trayvon Martin and the media is all over it. Regardless of the outcome of this particular incident, the basic problem with these "Stand your Ground" laws, is that with few or no witnesses, you can basically get away with murder and call it self-defense.

Paula Deen comments.

The career meltdown of Paula Deen has been on the fast track since the public became aware of her use of the "N" word. Now I agree that the word is offensive, and she has done some apologizing, but the back lash against Deen has been overly swift and drastic, so much so that her empire is under full collapse. While I don't advocate her use of the term, the fallout has been extreme in my opinion.

Apparently society has reached a point that if a Caucasian person utters the word, it's a career ending mistake of epic proportions.........but just search Twitter for the use of "nigga" (the urban form of the N word) and you get an endless stream of tweets using that word by of all people, African American's?!?!

Supreme Court ruling #1 - The Voting Rights decision.

The court ruled on the 1965 Voting Rights Act & came down on the side of voter suppression. This ruling opens the door for republican led states to impose various voter restrictions. Look for the southern states and of course Texas to impose all kinds of hurdles that will be implemented to hinder people of color from voting.

Supreme Court ruling #2 - Overturning DOMA.

The court overturned the 1990's Defense of Marriage Act! This was a big step to same sex marriage equality in the US. The battles for full marriage equality will now be fought in each state, but this ruling opens the door for equality in federal laws. Expect the far right & religious right to counter with state regulations and perhaps even a try at a constitutional amendment......I think as more states approve and warm to marriage equality, there might not be enough states to ratify any constitutional push by the haters on the right.

The Texas sized filibuster.

Texas state legislator Wendy Davis took to the floor and went on a 13 hour filibuster to block Texas republicans from passing another (in endless GOP) abortion bills. The filibuster worked as the clock struck midnight before the republicans could get the vote in! The twitter-verse and Facebook were on fire last night as the epic showdown played out through the evening hours, with supporters following the proceedings and packing the capitol building in Austin.

So, is the battle finished for the assault against Texas women? Of course not! Dimwitted Texas Governor Rick Perry has (late today) called for yet another special session to try and ram rod the abortion bill through yet again.

If nothing else comes from this Texas showdown, it's the proof that the republican party is solely focused on abortion issues and anything else be damned.

Why any female of child bearing age, any person of ethnicity or culture and any THINKING person would cast a vote for a republican is beyond me.




Friday, June 7, 2013

"Bad teachers" & what it really means

Over the last few years we have continually heard caterwauling, mainly from the right, about the abominable state of public education in the United States. What was wrong, they say, is that there are "bad teachers"!!!

BAD TEACHERS  - BAD, BAD, BAD

This term, "bad teachers" has become the usual battle cry from those who insist public schools need major reform and must be fixed or the future is sure to be one of doom, where pestilence will reign over a land of uneducated zombies.

Yet for all the times I have heard the term "bad teachers" tosses out as the REASON we need immediate reform, I have yet to hear one case where "bad teachers" has been defined.

Is the teacher bad when little Johnny refuses to open his book to the correct page, when little Susan comes to school mid term & has to suddenly meld into a new school/classroom, when little Billy comes to school not having had a decent meal in days, or when little Lindsey comes to school after a night of hearing her dysfunctional parents have it out til the wee hours?!?!

Is it a "bad teacher" who is responsible for taking up to 35 or 40 individual kids; who each has a different basis for their being, health, wealth, nutrition, nurturing, clothing; and when these 35 to 40 kids take some standardized cookie cutter test and comes up short on the results that do not meet the assembly line results that are expected?!

Is it a "bad teacher" who has to deal with 3 or 4 ADD/Autistic kids, while also catering to the slower learners so they keep pace, and all the while trying to keep the more gifted learners engaged?!?! 

Is it a "bad teacher" who has to not only deal with the 35 to 40 kids in her classroom, but might also have to deal with the extended families of the students and their over the top expectations that their little genius is just one test score from a full academic scholarship to Harvard?!

I think I get the drift of the real meaning of "bad teachers" when used as the blanket statement to cast the entire teaching profession in a bad light. It's not so much about individual "bad teachers" as it is an all out assault on  driving public opinion that public schools/education are a bane to America and the only solution is to create a "new system" where private schools and charter schools are the answer to all the supposed ills of education in the United States.

A side effect of this move to private and charter schools of course is to eliminate the unions of public education, from administrative staff to the teachers to the support staff.

See, when it's a union represented teacher in a public school..........that is a "bad teacher"..........yet when this same teacher lands at a private or charter school, where that "bad teacher" is cleansed of union representation and benefits beyond some basics and where some "educator" holding the school business license is skimming taxpayer dollars to line his/her pockets, then that "bad teacher" suddenly morphs into a "teacher"!!!

This school reform is nothing more than a union busting, drive wages and benefits down effort to create a hierarchy of schools were we separate kids into categorized levels of economic and racial  compartmentalization all based on a propaganda program disguised as "school reform".

Now that my rant is over, and if you stayed around to read this, please check out this article:

Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Idle thoughts on the Nevada Legislative Session #NVLEG

Well the 77th Session of the Nevada Legislature is in the books and even had a last second "Special Session" tacked on to finalize a few (5) bills that were pending when the clock hit zero.

Here's a few non all encompassing thoughts on the session that was:

The Special Session 

Governor Sandoval was the one who called for the special session (at a cost of about $25,000) when a few of his pet bills were left for dead when the clock ran out at midnight Monday night/Tuesday morning.

I realize there was a captive senate & assembly still around when the special session was first discussed, but why couldn't the special session be scheduled for, say noon on Tuesday, so the senate, assembly & legislative workers could grab some sleep before plowing into the last bit of work?

No reason the Governor couldn't have gotten his required paper work out from 8 am to 11 am and called the session to order at noon or 1 pm Tuesday, rather than keep the entire legislative operation up all night while the paper work was being completed.

Just seems that might have been a bit more friendly way to handle the last few bills on a short special session.

Accomplishments

SJR-13 was the first vote (of two required) to work towards repealing the same sex marriage ban that was placed in the Nevada Constitution back in 2003. Time has moved on, opinions are changing, and more states and countries are coming around to allowing/recognizing same sex marriage and now Nevada has take step one in this 3 step process to grant marriage equality to all in Nevada.

SJR-15 was another landmark vote. This vote was the 2nd of the two votes required to remove the 150 year old protected mining tax cap from the state constitution. This resolution was fought by mining interests and even the Governor opposed it (shocking!), but with the VERY surprising help of GOP Senator Mike Roberson, a long time democratic issue was finally able to get enough support to get a passing vote. Now this issue will be brought before the voters in November 2014, where it should pass with ease. Mining will fight it, but I hear some business folks will jump on board to see this vote passes. Of course the business folks, would rather see mining take the hit so thus the support for the measure. Also, the business folks want to see the mining bill pass so it can squash the modified business tax proposed by the teachers union. But after 150 years and 3 decades of talk, it appears mining is set to lose their constitutional protection, a thing no other Nevada business/industry enjoys, not even the gambling houses!

After thinking the gun sale background check bill (SB 221) was all but dead, the bill rose like the Phoenix from the legislative ashes, even fighting off a watered down GOP version to make it out of committee and see votes in both chambers! The bill passed pretty much along party lines and now will go to the Governor Sandoval. Sandoval has said he will veto the bill, but there is political risk in that move. Background checks are popular with over 70% of Nevadans. So bully to those who stepped up and passed this bill and now puts it squarely in Sandoval's lap - Let's see if this veto or even signing comes back to haunt Sandoval in his re-election run in 2014.
There were other good things that came out of this session, but in the interest of brevity, I will stop at those 3!

Disappointments

One big whammy was the failure of AB 230 (the Sex Education Bill) - This failure really sent the activists into hyperventilation with the heat for the failure being placed directly on Senate Majority Leader Mo Denis & Senator Justin Jones. Emmily Bristol who blogs as the Sin City Siren ( see blog here: http://sincitysiren.wordpress.com/ ) really went off and pulled no punches on her and her fellow activists angst regarding the collapse of the bill. The galling thing was that it didn't even get a vote and died in committee, despite promises and assurances that the bill would seemingly sail to passage. What political fallout from this remains to be seen, but rest assured many democratic supporters were fuming over this bills collapse.

Removing the mining taxation cap from the state constitution. (SJR-15) There is some head scratching over how a issue democrats had embraced and made their cause for the better part of 25 years was hijacked by a suddenly moderate republican Senator Mike Roberson?!?! It wasn't the democrats who really sounded the horn on going after the mining cap this session, it was mining's long time buddies the GOP who turned on them!  When Mike "Benedict Arnold" Roberson (mining's nickname for him) went public he was on board to go after mining, the democrats kind of meekly sat silent and let Roberson steal the spotlight that rightfully should have been on the democrats, as this was supposedly their issue?!?! The democratic leadership should have been out front leading the charge on SJR-15 & making sure the people of Nevada knew that this was a DEMOCRATIC issue. But no, they sat back and let Roberson get all the press, which might help in GOP races in 2014 - Opportunity lost, in my humble opinion, and opportunity the democrats might regret in 2014. 


Strong moments

These were some of the strong moments that stood out to me.

During the debates over same sex marriage (SJR 13) there were more than a few stirring bits of oratory, but a few stood out.

1) Senator Kelvin Atkinson gained national notoriety when he spoke and mentioned he was gay during a floor session. His comments went nationwide, getting Atkinson interviews and appearances on national TV outlets.

2) Senator Justin Jones had to go against his church leanings and mentioned his own family circle when explaining his support of same sex marriage

3) Senator Pat Spearman likened the discrimination of same sex marriage to that of the racial discrimination she has faced over her lifetime.

4) Assemblywoman Michelle Fiore who broke with her own republican party leanings explaining her mother was gay & how this vote was personal in extending equality to all couple who seek marriage.

A strong moment that caused a bit of a stir, started a Twitter hash tag (#FierceFlores) and rallied activists to the cause on the sex ed bill (AB230) was when Assemblywoman Lucy Flores testified that she had had an abortion in her teens. This admission brought admiration from supporters, but also brought hate from others who take the rather intolerant angle to their ideology.

Capable rookies

These freshmen legislators stood out to me.

Senator Aaron Ford - The bow tied one is not one to miss details and questions, and questions thoroughly and thoughtfully, delving deep into the issues leaving no stone unturned.

Senator Pat Spearman - "Pastor Pat" stood out as one of the calmer voices, imparting wisdom, compassion and perspective like few others.

Senator Justin Jones - Jones took on the NRA with his gun bill, and while he was hit from all sides, his background check bill stood the test and got a passing vote.

Friday, May 31, 2013

#nvleg Let Governor Sandoval take the political risk #SB221 #SB322

There's two bills in the Nevada legislature that have (or at least should have) good support in Nevada's largest county: SB 221 The background checks for fire arms purchases and SB 322 which would add more positions to the state transportation board of directors, and is written so that Clark County (home to 70+% of the states population) would be given more seats on the board.

Governor Sandoval has already publicly said he would veto the bill (SB 221) on back ground checks for fire arm purchases and for some unknown reason SB 322 has been buried in committee and might not see the light of day in the waning hours of the legislative session.

So here's an open door for the democratic caucus (at least the southern Nevada contingent) to force the governors hand.

Get SB 221 out and passed and let Governor Sandoval veto it. The public polling suggests that background checks aren't the big threat to "liberty" the overzealous "gun enthusiast's" say it is.

For the sake of Clark County, SB 322 needs to get passed out of committee and also needs to be voted on and sent to the governor. This bill would also make the Clark County republicans make a choice as to, are they going to stand up for Clark County, or will they cave on supporting their home turf.

So let Governor Sandoval veto these bills and let him face the politics of those veto's. Also this gets the Clark County GOPer's on the record as either having supported their home county or allowing the underpopulated northern's have the major say on whether Clark County will get funding for our highways & freeways.

Sack up democrats and play a little hardball !!!!

Thursday, May 9, 2013

#NVLEG In a Cage & Reeling over film industry tax break #SB165

There is a bill (SB165) before the legislature to allow tax breaks for the film industry, which is intended to bring more film/movie production to Nevada.

Even Hollywood and new Las Vegas area resident Nick Cage went to Carson City to testify in support of this bill, which isn't surprising since Cage is obviously closely tied to the benefits of this bill.

The state Democratic party has come out with a petition to add support for the bill, but some in the democratic/progressive base are balking and casting aspersions on the bill. Those showing angst are saying why give film makers tax breaks when Nevada is busing mental patients one way out of state (Could be a documentary on this issue) and also Nevada is bringing up the rear in pretty much every negative education related category.

I can see this as a somewhat fair gripe by progressives on the surface.

But let's separate the film bill from the education and mental health issues affecting Nevada.

There is currently some filming done in Nevada, and Las Vegas has been a draw for Hollywood over the years and probably will continue to be (and not always in the best light).

Currently Nevada gets a few movies filmed in Nevada and Nevada reaps some tax benefit from those productions, but that probably is limited to one to four movies a year........so Nevada gets the full tax windfall from the (say) four movies and peripheral production support.

Now imagine with some incentives, perhaps Hollywood might look to the varied Nevada landscapes, locations and unique offerings, so that 10, 15, 20, 30 movies opt to film in Nevada.

With more filming being done in Nevada and with Las Vegas being a short hop from the film industry base in Southern California, would there be incentive to locate some production/post production and other film industry support operations, which brings jobs, diversifies the Nevada economy and also pumps money into the coffers of local and state government.

Right now Nevada might be getting 100% taxation on 4 movies just on the filming side...........where this bill has the potential to bring in 75-80% taxation on 15 to 30 movies, not just in location filming, but also eventually in production, post-production, sound stage operations and all the peripheral jobs that come with movie production.

Sometimes there is bigger money in volume as opposed to limited volume - Think Wal-Mart, they thrive on volume to make billions...............and this bill has the potential to bring volume to Nevada and also expand the film industry in Nevada.

And if this bill does bring in extra taxation revenue above the current levels, then all of Nevada can benefit................and the workforce benefits by an increase in a new industry that helps diversify Nevada's economy.

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Why can't teachers just TEACH?!?! #NVLEG

As I perused the Twitter-verse and the pages of Facebook, I came across a bill in the Nevada Legislature that would permit teachers or any other "yahoo" who happens to be employed by the school to administer insulin injections to diabetic students.

First off, there should be no discrimination against diabetic students attending public schools.

In my day we had school nurses who took care of the little ailments, bumps and scrapes and we let the teachers teach!

But there seems a movement today to not only expect teachers to teach (and get impossibly super results) but there is a movement afoot to have teachers become personal armed body guards, dispute arbiters' and now in the Nevada Legislature there is a bill that would allow teachers to act as nurses!!!

What can't teachers do?!?! Might as well get rid of the school bus system and let teachers run a taxi service to get the kids to school (Lord knows they could use the added income!).

SB320 which is being introduced by Democratic Senator Mo Denis would make it so teachers, office staff, administrators and perhaps even janitors to be able to give diabetic kids their insulin injections!

This bill has the potential to be loaded with liabilities and issues that won't end well. Teachers have enough on their plate without having to deal with needles, syringes and bodily fluids. Are teachers to carry a supply of latex gloves at all times in case an injection need be done??

Let's fund education so that each school has a nurse or two. Professionals who are trained to handle the basic medical needs seen in schools. Let's not extend teachers job requirements from teaching to adding armed guard and nurse.

With all the hoo-rah surrounding failing schools, test results, and any other hot topic gripe, let's not add the onus of being nurse to the job of TEACHER.

#NVLeg Song & Dance Tax !!!

Checking in on the Nevada Legislature as the days draw to a close, with 27 days remaining in the 120 day session.

Today the Democrats rolled out a tax plan!

Can't say I'm thrilled with this idea to generate revenue for Nevada, as the Assembly Speaker Marilyn Kirkpatrick has brought up an admissions tax on entertainment! Which means pretty much anything locals & tourists attend will be hit with a 8% tax.

Seems this new tax will replace the existing "live entertainment" tax, with a more wide reaching and easier to navigate simple 8% tax on everything except non-profit gatherings and small 50 seat or less venues.

This is another tax on the local population plain and simple. It hits the very pocketbooks of the citizens' who already pay a hefty sales tax.

Was there any thought of maybe asking the business community to pay a little tax? Year after year Nevada's lawmakers shy away from even thinking of asking the states largest businesses to pay a few taxes. Large retailers in Nevada don't pay a profits tax, and guess what, Nevadans see no benefits from these companies getting the tax break by seeing lower prices at the store. Just like mining, the large retailers take their Nevada based profits and ship them out of state!!

With this bill just being introduced with 27 days left, means a swift flurry of activity will surround the bill and as usual the Democrats have waited to the final buzzer to offer any tax plan.

Why it took 93 days to introduce this bill is a mystery, because on the surface it's far from anything that would take 93 days to conjure up.........it could have been done across the street over a few mugs of beer & a napkin.

It won't be surprising to see Republicans lampoon this bill and Governor Sandoval has already (in mere hours after the big announcement) chimed in as an opponent.

Unless Someone can tell me a reason to like this bill, I as a staunch DEMOCRAT am in full agreement with Nevada's REPUBLICAN Governor. And that shouldn't happen!



Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Senator Dean Heller fails Nevada, yet again

Today's vote by Senator Dean Heller wasn't the first time he has failed Nevadans.

But his vote against background checks really showed he doesn't give a crap about where the wide majority of his constituents stand on the background check issue in the gun control debate.

Over 80% of Nevadans thought background checks would be a good thing to keep guns from getting into the hands of mentally unstable people.

However Dean Heller doesn't seem to care what his constituents stand on the matter. No Dean Heller is more beholding to the National Rifle Association & the suitcases of money they toss into Heller's campaign coffers. So rather than go with the wishes of the majority of his constituents, Dean Heller opted to take the blood money and vote no on background checks for gun ownership.

Even in the aftermath of a mass shooting in his own home town of Carson City NV, where 4 people died and at least 11 others were wounded in an IHOP restaurant, Dean Heller couldn't muster the courage to say no to the NRA.

http://www.mynews4.com/news/local/story/Carson-City-Shooting/aPyN_Pod3EGjHMqhz0qv1Q.cspx?rss=3298

Even a bi-partisan negotiated agreement on background checks weren't enough to make Dean Heller turn away from the NRA and the money they toss at him.

Dean Heller can rest easy tonight, fully knowing he has left the door wide open for a repeat of another shooting of innocents in Nevada and across America. Even 4 people who died at the hands of a disturbed gunman in his own home town couldn't sway Dean Heller from licking the boots of the NRA.

Thank you, once again Mr. Heller, for failing Nevada and giving us the joy of knowing you will stand up for the NRA before you will stand up for your constituents in Nevada!

Loony Louie of the 113th

With the immigration debate about to heat up, we figured Loony Louie would make some sort of idiotic commentary and as expected Loony Louie came through!

Louie loves his media appearances, which gives Loony Louie the stage to practice his ...special talent of uttering absurd and downright idiotic statements - This installment of the Loony Louie Media Tour comes courtesy of C-Span where Loony Louie said this: “We know that al Qaeda has camps with the drug cartels on the other side of the Mexican border,” Gohmert agreed. “We know that people are now being trained to come in and act like Hispanics when they’re radical Islamists.

Check the link for a clip of Lonny Louie doing his idiot act in the flesh!!

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/04/17/gohmert-radical-muslims-being-trained-to-come-in-and-act-like-hispanics/
 
Also check out this Facebook page to stay up on the idiocy of Loony Louie:

Thursday, February 28, 2013

Nevada Mining can't take the heat #NVLEG

Since before the 1865 statehood, the mining industry has ruled the state of Nevada.

Miners have held sway over every acre of the Silver State (a moniker that pays homage to the mineral in Nevada) since the early 1850's, right after gold was discovered in neighboring California.

When Nevada was granted statehood in 1865, it was the powerful Comstock miners who played a major part in writing the Nevada Constitution, going as far as embedding their (extremely low) tax rate (5% of net proceeds) into the state constitution.

Mining is the ONLY industry in the state of Nevada which gets special constitutional protection in the form of an embedded tax rate that takes two sessions of the legislature and a vote of the public to alter. With Nevada's bi-annual legislature, this process takes about 5 years start to finish.

Since 1865, this mining tax rate has been unchanged.

A local Las Vegas, Nevada based news outlet dared challenge Nevada's mining industry with an investigative effort regarding the mining industries vast power over the legislative process in Nevada.

Mining is just about every legislative pocket with political donations and a roster of lobbyists that dwarfs every other industry based in Nevada........which is odd because NOT ONE of the larger mining companies is even based in Nevada.

Since 1850 miners have dug their holes, grabbed the ore, processed that ore into precious metals and then moved on to the next find. Mining has changed over the last 150 years, gone are the days of "hard rock" mining where small groups of miners cut tunnels & shafts to follow veins of ore.......now the operations are huge, where entire mountains are taken down, massive holes (craters actually) are carved and the tiniest trace amounts of gold are leeched out with toxic chemicals.

Nevada has always been a haven for mining. Nevada is the 3rd largest gold producing jurisdiction on the planet Earth.

So with all the minerals right here in Nevada, and such a low tax rate, one might think large multi-national mining companies might be compelled to locate their corporate headquarters in Nevada?!?! But not one mining HQ is located in Nevada. Some are even based in higher taxed Canada!!

One large mining company even ships the unprocessed ore to Utah (higher taxes than Nevada) to be processed into gold.

Mining tells a big story about how much mining does for Nevada, while a little of this is true, the bottom line is this: There is only so much mineral wealth in Nevada & when that mineral wealth is tapped out, the mining industry & those high paying jobs will leave Nevada just like they have left hundreds of ghost towns & open mining shafts across the state for the better part of 120 years.

So back to the local TV news station - The station did a multi-part investigation into mining & the taxes they (don't) pay. After the series concluded, the Nevada Mining Association (NMA), the lobbying association was so upset with the truth and being exposed, the NMA decided to pull their advertising (propaganda) from the station as retaliation for the news series.

Station owner & long time Nevadan Jim Rogers had a wonderful response the the NMA's recent decision to retaliate against his TV station by pulling advertising: http://www.mynews3.com/content/news/story/Jim-Rogers-to-Nevada-Mining-Association-We-don-t/mqfTax7yoEq33cE2LnOAXA.cspx

Follow this link to the multi part expose: http://www.mynews3.com/content/news/Special/Default.aspx

Thursday, February 21, 2013

Loony Louie of the 113th


As February draws to a close, we haven’t had much fodder from Loony Louie during the 113th congress, but as sure as the sun rises in the east, Loony Louie came through with one of his favorite topics!!

On wing-nut radio, Loony Louie pulled out one of his favorite scare tactics where in making his point, he trots out the Islam/Muslim boogie man.  In his radio appearance, the hot button topic of gun laws came up, and Loony Louie was ready to go with the usual GOP stance of the 2nd Amendment being there to “protect against an evil government”.

Pretty much anytime the gun control debate comes up, one of the first defenses of the 2nd Amendment will always be to protect against a tyrannical government, but Loony Louie always has to ad his special addendum to this standard retort. Loony Louie loves to toss in some Islamophobia to add emphasis to his usual scare’em with Muslims tactic.

Loony Louie says that there are those who want “Sharia Law” to be the law of the land in the United States, and therefore is another reason for everyone to be armed to the teeth! As always with the lunatic fringe, the only way to dissuade the evils of something is to counter with as much armaments as possible.

 
To hear Loony Louie, check out this link: http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2013/02/21/1622561/congressman-says-americans-need-guns-to-protect-the-nation-from-sharia-law/?mobile=nc

Follow the exploits of Loony Louie of the 113th on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/407523402627492/#!/pages/Loony-Louie-of-the-113th/533869493291473

Monday, February 11, 2013

Give back here, take more there #NVLEG


In a recent Las Vegas SUN article Nevada State Senator Mike Roberson (R) Henderson, says he wants to reduce the excessive registration fees that Nevada imposes on cars.

(Sun article: http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2013/feb/11/roberson-seek-reduction-car-registration-tax/ )

I couldn't agree more. Nevada while being a supposed "low tax state" makes it up in excessive fees in other area's and vehicle registration is a big one.

While I applaud Senator Roberson's efforts to reduce the vehicle registration fees, I disagree on where the lost vehicle registration fees will be made up. Seems Roberson and Assembly Speaker Marilyn Kirkpatrick (D) North Las Vegas are in the same mindset to hoist a "services tax" on the public to make up for the lost vehicle registration revenue.

This is the old "Revenue Neutral" move where you reduce a tax over here and raise it over there........so while those registering their vehicles will see a reduction in their annual registration costs, when they drive those vehicles to get a hair cut, spa treatment, dog grooming, or any similar service, they will get hit with a tax on those services...........so the vehicle owner can revel in glee that they got a nice reduction in their vehicle registration, but if that vehicle owner goes and gets any of the tax targeted services they will pay it right back in nickles and dimes throughout the year!!

So is this a win-win or just moving the tax around? It's a win if you own a car and never use any services like getting a hair cut or go to a salon.........but if you don not own a vehicle and do go get hair cuts or visit a salon you will now be the victim of new taxes you never paid before!!!

So here we ago again with the public taking another hit from the legislature while they go about totally ignoring big business, gaming & mining, as all get off without so much as being asked about paying a single penny while, especially mining and big business swoop in on Nevada minerals and cash and trot off with the profits leaving Nevada with little to show.

Friday, February 8, 2013

Are 100,000+ voters being ignored? #NVLEG

The Nevada State Education Association (NSEA) has gathered signatures and submitted a petition to levy a 2% business margins tax on businesses in Nevada that make a $1,000,000 and above.

This week we saw Assembly Speaker Marilyn Kirkpatrick and republican assemblyman Pat Hickey state firmly on Ralston Reports that neither will give the margins tax a sniff during this legislative session.

We should expect this stance from Assemblyman hickey, since after all he is a republican, and protecting big business at all costs is top priority. The shocker is that Assembly Speaker Kirkpatrick is also taking a similar stance and is willing to tell the 100,000+ REGISTERED Voters, that their signatures on the NSEA petition will be ignored and the petition that they signed on to support will be tossed into the trash can as soon as it reaches her desk.

So 100,000 REGISTERED VOTERS are basically being told: "We don't give a damn and we are going to ignore the petition you signed".

This fortunately is the opposite stance Senate Majority leader Mo Denis expressed during his segment on Ralston Reports. Assemblyman Denis said the margins tax, or at least some form of it or close alternative to it, should be discussed and not just ignored as it appears the assembly leaders are willing to do.

So here's a big THANK YOU to Senator Mo Denis in that he will not ignore and refuse to acknowledge that 100,000+ REGISTERED VOTERS who signed a petition that would generate a tax supporting education wasn't totally an exercise in futility.

Thursday, February 7, 2013

Services tax?!?! SERVICES TAX?!?! #NVLeg

You have got to be kidding me!?!?

The speaker of the assembly Marilyn Kirkpatrick & leader of the democratic caucus at the 2013 Nevada Legislative session has been talking up a tax on some "services", which means haircuts, pedicures, manicures, and other small services that people use every day.

So this is the big idea to spread and broaden Nevada's tax base and revenue stream?!?!?!

Oh, Crap NO!!!

This theory to add additional taxation on services is nothing more than piling more taxation on the backs of the very people that can't afford it.

Where's the obvious solution of, perhaps, taxing a little of the business community in Nevada??

The Nevada State Education Association got a petition through multiple hurdles to make it to the legislature, which would levy a small 2% tax on large business in Nevada to help fund education in the state! But apparently in Nevada we can't touch a penny of corporate/business money because of some phobia that adding a piddly 2% tax will cause these oppressed businesses to just pack up and leave Nevada!!

Let's see:

Mining digs huge holes, moves mountains, poisons water sheds & aquifers, disrupts wildlife, leaves toxic chemical ponds and carts off Nevada's mineral wealth while paying a pittance in taxes to Nevada and converting Nevada's mineral wealth into vast profits that are enjoyed in Colorado, Canada and other locale's outside Nevada!! Gotta love that!!! Come in dig the holes, leave with the loot!!! Don't believe me, check a map of GHOST TOWNS in Nevada - everyone another chapter in the looting of Nevada's minerals and whoever's left is informed to "STAY AWAY FROM OPEN MINE SHAFTS!", lest we bumble and fall into one of history's holes.

Big business is apparently taboo also. Big retail has a nice little deal going for them in Nevada! Big retail can gleefully locate their stores in Nevada knowing they will NEVER be asked to pay a few cents on the vast profits that each store sends out of Nevada to their corporate headquarters outside Nevada. So while Wal-mart and other big retailers know this, you think they might give their Nevada customers a little break on the price of their goods? Not a chance!

Think that Nevada's LOW TAXATION & BUSINESS FRIENDLY ways would draw corporations to Nevada in droves in their quest for a tax free, wide open, little regulation place like Nevada............we've been waiting for 149 years!!!

Then we have gaming (used to be called gambling ;) ), who has a tax rate in Nevada that has been untouched for decades. Try to get Nevada casino's to pay a wee bit more, say 7% (up from 6.3%) and you would think the high rollers were wiping out the dice tables & hitting runs of 21's on the blackjack tables with all the moaning and hand wringing the casino bosses go through. yet these same casino company's are actively competing against one another to locate casino's in states that have taxation rates in the 20%'s, 30%'s and even 40%'s?!?!? Wow, where's all the caterwauling we see in Nevada when, maybe, a 0.7% increase is proposed???

You see in Nevada, these 3 business entities run the state (and along with their army of extravagantly paid lobbyists). So the average Jane or Joe has little hope to ever see these titans of industry pay a few dollars in additional tax............no it seems much better to pry another 3%, 5% 8% out of the public's pocket when they get hair cuts, pedicures or spa treatments.

Tuesday, February 5, 2013

2013 Nevada Legislature - The Opening #NVLeg

The 2013 session of the Nevada legislature is underway, what will it bring & how will it go?

The first big event to hit the 2013 session was the Nevada Supreme Court's recent ruling on a teachers union petition to create a business tax to fund education. This move by the Supreme Court takes this issue to the forefront of the session. The republicans in the legislature can't be happy that a "union" has gotten this petition this far, especially after attempts to bury and kill it have now failed.

It's no secret that legislative republicans have targeted the teachers union over collective bargaining. Eliminating public employee unions is a GOP hot button issue - (This isn't just a Nevada thing, it's a GOP crusade across the US at the state level).

So the legislature has 40 days to take action on the petition and either pass some form of the bill or vote it down and let it go to the voters. Look for alternative bills to appear that attempts to create some type of education funding. So there will be a mish-mash of alternative ideas, but you can bet, that the bill/petition as written by the teachers union will not be well received by the majority of the legislators, either due to outright ideological thinking (republicans) or fear of business community reprisals democrats).

Now that Nevada has moved another two year period into the era of term limits, the face of the legislature is changing every session, sometimes dramatically. Gone are the days of stalwart politicians (Bill Raggio, Joe Dini, Joe Neal, etc) who had deep knowledge of state affairs, decent working relationships within the legislative body and could lead their caucuses with unity.

With term limits, the revolving door will usher in new faces more often than ever. We have a new untested Assembly speaker (Marilyn Kirkpatrick) & a new leader on the Senate side (Mo Denis). Will they be able to maintain a "team" with their fellow legislators, or will there be a free wheeling my way of the highway mindset?

And lastly, will the contentious feel of the 2011 session (coming off the 2010 elections) remain or will there be more bi-partisan efforts to solve Nevada's issues!??! In the 2010 elections, we saw the rise of the tea party faction play a role in electing rigid uncompromising politicians at the federal and state levels. The 2011 session had some of those uncompromising republicans and it created tension between the parties and even within older GOP ranks.

So far I have the feeling that some former "hard liners", namely Sen. Mike Roberson have eased away from their cut everything at all costs ideology. Roberson has been down right diplomatic in public comments leading up to the 2013 session. So maybe there is hope for a little more across party compromise in 2013.

Final early analysis: The republican caucus won't be as far right as they were in 2011 and the democrat caucus will be similarly centrist as they were in 2011. So based on the early appearances that the GOP faction isn't as hard line as 2011 makes me think there might be some compromise in the 2013 session.............but as always, this remains to be seen!





Thursday, January 24, 2013

Harry Reid's Filibuster Fail

Over the last four years, Nevada Senator Harry Reid (Senate Majority Leader) mentioned numerous times that senate filibuster rules needed to be changed.

He said in an interview with Rachelle Maddow on October 27, 2010: "This has to change. It's wrong what they (senate republicans) are doing. The republicans have abused the system and it's going to have to change. There should not be a sixty vote requirement in the senate."

He said on the senate floor May 10, 2012: "if there ever were a time, that Senator's Merkley & Udall were right, that the senate should change the filibuster rules."

On December 4, 2012 Reid said: "We have to change the rules. We can not continue in this way. So I hope we can get something the republicans will work with us on, but it won't be a hand shake deal."

Right after the November elections on November 7, 2012, Reid, at a press conference said: Reporter question: Do you plan to make changes to the filibuster rules? "Yes I do. I've said so publicly & I continue to think that way, the republicans have abused the rule"

So what happens? Harry Reid does a 180 degree turn on filibuster reform in a matter of a few months.

So Reid was all over the media saying that filibuster reform was a HIGH priority.

But today, Reid & McConnell reached a "deal" on filibuster reform that is basically a handshake agreement (the handshake that Reid said was not going to happen in earlier comments)  and now the country faces two more years of republican abuse of the filibuster because for whatever reason Harry Reid caved on his filibuster stance.

This "handshake" just asks that senators politely ask if they are going to filibuster any bills coming for a vote!!!

For whatever reason, Reid backed away from meaningful filibuster reform and took a handshake deal where Reid hopes the republicans won't return to business as usual, and filibuster everything President Obama and the democrats in the senate try to get done.

Maybe Reid has something on McConnell & the republicans where he thinks they will play nice in the next two years, but if the last four years is the new republican strategy, then expect more gridlock in the senate.

Big opportunity missed today on filibuster reform, and lot's of progressives, democrats and liberals are scratching their heads and saying "WHAT THE F*#K:?!?!?!

Friday, January 18, 2013

Friday thoughts

Not major pontification in this post, just some thoughts and facts to pass along!
                                                                                                                                                                   
Do the republicans have an image problem? According to a NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll (Jan 12-15) it seems that they do.

Opinion of..........
GOP  - 26% Positive 49% Negative
Dems - 44% Positive 38% Negative
Obama - 52% Positive 37% Negative

One might think, that after the election results, the GOP might get a clue........but it appears the GOP leadership is too dense to grasp reality & they continue on their path of idiocy.
                                                                                                                                                                    

Now that the "Fiscal Cliff" issue has been put to rest (until next time!) the attention turns to the "Debt Ceiling" - With the way the GOP is going, bumbling their way along, I honestly think there's a segment of the republican party that would willingly tank the US & world economy, just to make a point.

Aren't the republicans the party of big business? How can business work and plan ahead when the GOP might stab the economy in the back & take corporate investments down with them?!?!
                                                                                                                                                                     

The GOP majority & led House of Representatives worked a whopping 109 days in 2012! Nice work Mr. Cantor & Mr. Boehner!!
                                                                                                                                                                   

Corporate leaders say Obama policies are holding them back.........not where corporate profits are concerned: 

U.S. corporations’ after-tax profits have grown by 171 percent under Obama, more than under any president since World War II, and are now at their highest level relative to the size of the economy since the government began keeping records in 1947, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Profits are more than twice as high as their peak during President Ronald Reagan’s administration and more than 50 percent greater than during the late-1990s Internet boom, measured by the size of the economy.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-01-17/corporate-profits-soar-as-executives-attack-obama-policy.html
                                                                                                                                                                  
     
The National Rifle Association (NRA) has morphed into an lunatic managed mouthpiece for the lunatic fringe.