Boots & Sabers

The blogging will continue until morale improves...

Author: Owen

Too Big to Fail

by | 1950, 16 Nov 2323 | , | 0 Comments

Be skeptical when politicians tell you that we have to inject hundreds of millions of dollars into a private business because they are just. too. important. Important to whom? Follow the money.

Major league baseball and the Brewers are a significant and prestigious item on the State of Wisconsin and the City of Milwaukee’s resume.

 

The prestige of being a Major League Baseball town is priceless. Employers big and small use Wisconsin’s resume of Great Lakes, woods and waters, arts and entertainment, successful education systems, and professional sports teams as ways to recruit the talent needed to fill our workforce and economic needs.

 

In short, the Brewers (and other major league attractions) are too important to lose.

I have worked in with businesses in Wisconsin for decades and have never – not once – seen an employer tout the Brewers to a job candidate as a reason to take the job.

This deal is terrible for taxpayers. It’s fantastic for the owners of the Brewers and politicians.

Freedom as Effective as Tyranny in Combatting Virus

by | 1905, 16 Nov 2323 | , | 0 Comments

Interesting.

Covid lockdowns were no more effective at reducing infections than letting people adapt their own behaviour, a major Oxford University-baked study suggests.

 

A team of international researchers created a model that estimates Covid death and unemployment rates in response to different pandemic policies.

 

Results suggest that imposing shutdowns — that forced people to stay home and closed essential shops — squashed fatality rates from the virus.

 

However, leaving people to adapt their own behaviour — such as by socialising less to avoid becoming infected, an approach used in Sweden — was just as effective.

The Hard Costs of the Biden Border

by | 2043, 15 Nov 2323 | , | 0 Comments

Insane

A report released Monday by the U.S. House Homeland Security Committee says the influx of migrants across the country’s southern border could cost taxpayers $451 billion.

 

The fourth report released by the committee says that the tab includes housing, education, property damage done by migrants, law enforcement, and health care costs.

 

A report from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services showed that “emergency services for undocumented aliens” added up to $7 billion in fiscal 2021 and $5.4 billion in fiscal 2022, with migrants receiving at least $8 billion in improper Medicaid payouts (10% of the nation’s total of $80 billion).

 

Migrants are also putting a strain on the nation’s criminal justice infrastructure, with the cost adding up to $8.95 billion in fiscal 2022.

School Districts Look at Consolidation

by | 2038, 15 Nov 2323 | , | 1 Comment

Here’s a story about how shrinking enrollments have some school districts looking at consolidating (yes, they should). This little missive caught my attention:

When it comes to funding, Rossmiller says the state legislature has imposed revenue limits on school districts for close to 30 years.

 

“[…] which limits the amount of money that they can receive through a combination of local property taxes and money from the state. Limiting their revenue, obviously, limits how much they can spend. And so school districts continually have to make choices,” said Rossmiller.

The actual data shows that school spending has continued to increase far in excess of inflation even while enrollments dropped. The “choices” that most districts made were to beef up administration and salaries. Heaven forbid that there are “limits on how much they can spend” like the taxpayers that pay for them.

Wisconsin’s shrinking deer hunt

by | 0712, 14 Nov 2323 | , | 2 Comments

My column for the Washington County Daily News is online and in print. Here’s a part:

Since the peak in 2000, there has been a steady decline in the number of deer hunters and the deer population has been rapidly expanding. The reasons are mainly demographic. Wisconsin’s population is shrinking slightly and aging rapidly. As hunters age, they eventually stop hunting for myriad reasons. Some stop because of health reasons. Some stop because their hunting groups dwindle and disband. Some stop because they change their lifestyle and hunting is no longer convenient. As older hunters increasingly hang up their blaze orange for good, there are too few younger hunters to replace them.

 

I am in the latter category. I absolutely loved the deer hunt for many years, but a change in lifestyle makes it no longer practicable for the time being. A successful hunt is one that is safe, fun and harvests some meat — in that order.

 

The statistics from the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) bear out the troubling trends for the hunt. Wisconsin hunters peaked in 2000 by harvesting almost 403,000 deer. Last year, they harvested just 176,476 deer and have not harvested more than 200,000 deer since 2012.

 

Consequently, the statewide deer herd has been rapidly expanding. The DNR estimated that there were 987,300 deer in 2009. Last year after the deer hunting season, they estimated the deer herd at 1.67 million. That is a 69 percent increase in the deer population in just 13 years.

 

How big should Wisconsin’s deer herd be? That is a matter of opinion. It is a balance. It depends on what one considers to be acceptable levels of agricultural loss and vehicle collisions. At the same time, the state wants to keep the herd large enough to support Wisconsin’s hunting culture while maintaining a healthy ecosystem with deer in it. The “right” size of the herd is debatable, but as the primary herd control mechanism dwindles, the ability of the DNR to control the herd at all is slowly slipping away.

 

As the number of hunters decreases, the DNR is going to need to adjust the regulations to encourage a greater harvest per hunter in order to keep up with the growing herd. Simply, the DNR will need to make it easier and cheaper for each hunter to harvest more deer

Feds Investigate Milwaukee Government for Corruption

by | 0945, 13 Nov 2323 | , | 1 Comment

Broken by Mark Belling:

An ongoing investigation, first reported by me on Friday November 10, is focused on a pair of Milwaukee aldermen. Sources familiar with the federal investigation say it is premised on whether the aldermen in question have been improperly rewarded for their positions on issues.

 

I am not naming the aldermen. They have not been charged. Federal investigations sometimes lead to charges and other times do not. They can be based on concrete allegations or be fishing expeditions.

[…]

I had earlier reported that the concert venue issue was an area of focus of the investigation. In addition, there has been intense discussion in city government circles about the issue. No one has publicly stated that anything inappropriate has happened but opponents of the project have bitterly complained about the approval of the facility. City approval does not mean the facility will be built and the developers still need to get financing which is currently difficult given the interest rate environment.

 

The Common Council approved the concert venue proposal despite adamant objections from operators of other local concert venues. The approval came after developers dropped a proposed 800-seat venue at the complex. The two aldermen in question had originally opposed the project but went on to support it.

 

Neither of the aldermen in question have commented to me about the investigation. Federal grand jury investigations are secret and it can be a crime to disclose them. However, when a probe begins and people are questioned, word of these investigations can get out.

Evers hands out your candy

by | 0741, 11 Nov 2323 | | 1 Comment

Here is my full column from the Washington County Daily News that ran earlier this week.

Gov. Tony Evers announced that he is providing over 36 million tax dollars to pay for five building projects. The announcement highlights just how broken our government has become.

 

Our government is intentionally built with divided powers and checks on those powers. The Legislature makes law. The executive executes that law. The judiciary judges the correct application of the law. The entire apparatus was built for the express purpose of avoiding the concentration of power that always precedes tyranny.

 

In this instance, last year the governor proposed a list of building projects to be funded by the taxpayers. The Legislature, which has the responsibility and power to allocate taxpayer money, passed a capital budget that agreed with the vast majority of the governor’s building proposals, but not all of them. Unlike the federal government, state governments cannot print money. The state Legislature must prioritize spending and balance the budget.

 

That is how the process works. The governor suggests how to allocate the budget. The Legislature writes the budget. The governor then checks the Legislature with his veto power. Everyone moves on. Not this time. Governor Evers announced that despite not being included in the capital budget, he is going to spend over 36 million tax dollars to pay for five projects. How? The answer illustrates our broken government. First, the money Evers is spending is slush fund money from the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act. This was the $1.9 trillion waste passed by the federal government to “change the course of the pandemic and deliver immediate relief for American workers.” This gargantuan spending boondoggle fueled our current almost $34 trillion national debt and was a key contributor to the inflation and high interest rates that Americans are suffering with today. It is borrowed dollars that our grandchildren’s grandchildren will be paying taxes to pay back. The American Rescue Plan Act was a generational theft.

 

Sold as a “rescue plan,” the spending also created gigantic slush funds for state governors to spend at their personal discretion. This is the money that Evers is using to pay for building projects. Our government’s structure is supposed to prevent the concentration of power and arbitrary government, but the slush fund allows Evers to allocate money — a power expressly granted to the Legislature — without any oversight. Such arbitrary exercises of power are the stuff of dictatorships.

 

Looking past how the money got there and how the governor had the unfettered power to spend it, let us look on what it is to be spent.

 

$15 million for the Janesville Sports and Convention Center

 

$9.3 million for the Milwaukee Iron District new soccer stadium $7 million for the Green Bay National Railroad Museum expansion

 

$5 million for the Bronzeville Center for the Arts

 

$330,000 for the Door County Peninsula Players Theatre upgrades.

 

No wonder the Legislature did not agree to spend millions of dollars on these projects. Is it really the role of state government to fleece the taxpayers out of their hard-earned wages to pay for a soccer stadium in Milwaukee? Is expanding the National Railroad Museum in Green Bay worth making a young family in La Crosse cut back on groceries to afford their rent? I am sure that the Door County Peninsula Players Theatre is delightful, but it is difficult for an elderly couple in Hudson to enjoy when the cost of gas is over $3.00 a gallon. Budgets are about priorities and there was a good reason why these projects did not make the list.

 

At the end of this money train are people who will be paid to do these projects and the very few people who will make money off of the facilities. Watch where that money goes and how it is spent. Then we will all know why Evers chose these projects.

 

We see how broken our government is. The federal government shakes down future generations by borrowing money to spend on the present generation. This triggers inflation, responded to by jacking up interest rates, thus lowering the spending power and quality of life of the current generation. The money is allocated into gigantic slush funds for governors to spend at their whims, thus bypassing small-“r” republican governments at the state level and creating arbitrary government. Then the money is spent on governors’ pet projects that have little to no value for the taxpayers paying the bills.

 

The scheme is not about a better Wisconsin or a better America. It is about fleecing the many for the benefit of a few.

Ticketed in Oklahoma

by | 0734, 11 Nov 2323 | , , | 0 Comments

This is so messed up.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — An Oklahoma Highway Patrol trooper ticketed a tribal citizen with a current Otoe-Missouria Tribe license plate for failing to pay state taxes, prompting an outcry from tribal leaders who blamed Gov. Kevin Stitt‘s increasing hostility toward Native Americans.

 

Crystal Deroin, an Otoe-Missouria Tribe citizen, was ticketed for speeding near Enid on Tuesday and received a second $249 citation for failure to pay state motor vehicle taxes because she did not live on tribal land.

 

“After over 20 years of cooperation between the State and Tribes regarding vehicle tag registration, it appears the State has altered its position of understanding concerning tribal tags,” Otoe-Missouria Chairman John Shotton said in a statement. “This change was made without notice or consultation with all Tribes that operate vehicle tag registration.”

Most Oklahoma drivers pay motor vehicle taxes each year through the renewal of state license plates. But many of the 39 Native American tribes headquartered in Oklahoma also issue special tribal license plates to their citizens each year, based on a 1993 U.S. Supreme Court decision involving the Sac & Fox Nation that says the state doesn’t have the authority to tax tribal citizens who live in Indian Country.

There are entire movements around licensing and taxing people in the interests of public safety, but all of that gets thrown out the window when it comes to the tribes.

UK Economy Stagnates

by | 1906, 10 Nov 2323 | , | 0 Comments

Ouch

The UK economy failed to grow between July and September, figures show, after a succession of interest rate rises.

The chancellor said higher rates were hitting growth, but added that the economy had performed better than expected this year.

 

Forecasters suggest the economy is set to be stagnant for several months yet.

Last week, the Bank of England said the UK was likely to see zero growth until 2025, although it is expected to avoid a recession.

Frank Borman Passes

by | 0757, 10 Nov 2323 | , | 1 Comment

RIP. Who ever thought in 1970 that we would lose all of the Apollo astronauts before America returned to the moon? Pioneers like this are rare jewels in our nation’s history.

Frank Borman, an astronaut who flew on the Apollo 8 mission that orbited the moon, has died, NASA announced. He was 95.

 

Borman died Tuesday in Billings, Montana, according to NASA.

 

NASA administrator Bill Nelson, in a statement, called Borman “one of NASA’s best” and “a true American hero.” “His lifelong love for aviation and exploration was only surpassed by his love for his wife Susan,” Nelson added.

Apollo 8, launched in 1968, was the first NASA mission to both leave low Earth orbit and reach the moon. Borman, along with astronauts James Lovell, and William Anders, orbited the moon 10 times before returning to Earth. They were the first humans ever to see the far side of the moon. “Earthrise,” the iconic photograph showing the Earth half-covered in shadow above the moon’s horizon, was taken by Anders during this mission.

Germany Struggles to Appease New Nazis

by | 0739, 10 Nov 2323 | , | 1 Comment

Ever so slowly, some people (not enough people) are admitting how immigration policies shape their countries – for good or bad. In this case, bad. Germany has been allowing in swaths of immigrants from countries with cultures that are incongruent with Western civilization. There are consequences for that.

There was outrage when one group, subsequently disbanded by government, appeared to be celebrating the Hamas atrocities of 7 October on the streets of Berlin.

Felix Klein, the government’s Commissioner for Jewish life in Germany, says it has become apparent that there is a big problem in Germany’s integration policy.

“It is problematic when it turns into antisemitic and anti-Israel hate where people shout ‘From the river to the sea, Palestine shall be free’ – which would deny Israel’s right to exist.”

 

Manchin Won’t Seek Reelection

by | 2022, 9 Nov 2323 | , | 0 Comments

Not unexpected, but most welcome. In the news story, this caught my eye…

He also emerged as an influential player in the passage of Biden’s signature Inflation Reduction Act, providing one of the final votes needed for the Democratic-only bill that invested billions in deficit reduction, invested in U.S. renewable and non-renewable energy production, allowed Medicare to negotiate on some prescription drug prices and capped the cost of insulin for seniors at $35.

Newsom Slides

by | 2013, 9 Nov 2323 | | 1 Comment

It’s always funny how a politician’s numbers will sink after they go out and introduce themselves to more people.

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s standing among California voters has hit an all-time low, with 49% disapproving of his performance as governor, according to a new UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll co-sponsored by the Los Angeles Times.

 

The survey showed Newsom’s popularity has tumbled this year as he continues to amplify his national profile and campaign outside of the Golden State to support President Biden and attack Republican governors and their conservative political agendas.

 

Newsom’s approval rating was 44% in the late October poll, an 11-point slide from February when 55% of voters approved of his performance. His disapproval among California voters increased 10 percentage points from earlier this year.

America at War

by | 1818, 8 Nov 2323 | , | 3 Comments

We appear to be at war.

The U.S. military on Wednesday said American warplanes struck a weapons storage facility in eastern Syria that officials said was being used by Iran-backed militants responsible for dozens of drone and rocket attacks against American troops in the region over the last three weeks.

 

It was the second such strike in the past two weeks.

 

“Today, at President Biden’s direction, U.S. military forces conducted a self-defense strike on a facility in eastern Syria used by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and affiliated groups,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a statement. “This strike was conducted by two U.S. F-15s against a weapons storage facility. This precision self-defense strike is a response to a series of attacks against U.S. personnel in Iraq and Syria by IRGC-Quds Force affiliates. The President has no higher priority than the safety of U.S. personnel, and he directed today’s action to make clear that the United States will defend itself, its personnel, and its interests.

 

“The United States is fully prepared to take further necessary measures to protect our people and our facilities. We urge against any escalation. U.S. personnel will continue to conduct counter-ISIS missions in Iraq and Syria,” he said.

 

“Between October 17 and November 7 … U.S. forces have been attacked at least 40 times,” Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh said on Tuesday.

Milwaukee City Attorney Allegedly Sexually Harassed Employee

by | 0739, 8 Nov 2323 | , | 3 Comments

If the facts of the case are true, anyone in corporate America who takes annual sexual harassment training can tell you that it is sexual harassment. Nonconsensual touching combined with retaliation. Yup. Dead to rights. But look how long they are spinning out this process for a Democrat. Despite allegedly committing the transgression within months of taking office, he will be able to finish his four-year term before any action might – MIGHT – be taken. Democrats protect their own.

A state investigator has found “probable cause” to believe Milwaukee City Attorney Tearman Spencer violated state labor law by effectively forcing a female attorney out of his office after she reported that he had touched her inappropriately.

 

Former Assistant City Attorney Naomi Gehling filed a discrimination complaint last year with the state Department of Workforce Development’s Equal Rights Division. In it, she alleged she was “ostracized and mistreated” by Spencer after she informed a deputy city attorney and human resources staffer of the incident. She also accused him of creating a “toxic and uncomfortable” workplace for her.

 

Gehling previously disclosed that she had accused Spencer of placing his hand on her knee during a meeting on July 23, 2020, just months after he took office. Spencer has denied any wrongdoing.

 

In her preliminary finding, Leticia Daley, a state equal rights officer, said Gehling’s resignation in April 2021 appears to be a “constructive discharge,” meaning Gehling felt she had no option but to resign because of her “sex and her report of unlawful discrimination.”

 

[…]

 

If Gehling and the city don’t settle, her complaint is scheduled to go before a state administrative law judge on April 23 and 24 — three weeks after Milwaukee voters are to decide whether to re-elect Spencer.

[…]

Spencer, who is in his first term, has not said if he is running for re-election on April 2. Already in the race is state Rep. Evan Goyke (D-Milwaukee).

Toyota Launches Bargain Truck

by | 0752, 7 Nov 2323 | , | 1 Comment

This would sell like hotcakes in America.

Compared to the features of the Corolla sedan, Toyota’s entry-level model in the United States, the IMV 0 is in an entirely different universe. Forget LED headlights, power windows and door locks, or standard adaptive cruise control. The IMV 0 doesn’t even have any trim on the A-pillar. The instrument cluster dial that would normally show engine RPM is just a big blank circle. It doesn’t even have a shift light. Then again, the 2024 Corolla starts at $22,995. The IMV 0/Hilux Champ will be the equivalent of about $10,000 when it launches in Thailand.

Zelensky Cements Power by Indefinitely Postponing Elections

by | 0741, 7 Nov 2323 | | 0 Comments

Yes, we are supporting one dictator over another in Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said presidential elections will not be held in the country next year, saying that it would be “irresponsible” to do so during the ongoing war.

“We all understand that now, in wartime, when there are many challenges, it is utterly irresponsible to engage in topics related to an election in such a frivolous manner,” Zelensky said in his nightly video address to the nation on Monday.

Prior to the war, Ukraine’s presidential elections were scheduled for March 2024, but the country’s constitution mandates that they cannot go ahead until any declaration of martial law is lifted, which is unlikely to happen in the near future. Ukraine was due to hold a parliamentary election in October.

EV Solution? Carry a Generator.

by | 0713, 7 Nov 2323 | | 1 Comment

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

DETROIT (AP) — One of the biggest reasons people cite when saying they won’t buy an electric vehicle is range anxiety, the fear of running out of juice on the road with nowhere to recharge.

 

Stellantis’ Ram brand may have an answer for that, especially for people who need a truck to haul or tow things. It’s called the Ramcharger, a pickup that can travel 145 miles (235 kilometers) on electricity, with a 3.6-liter V6 gas-powered engine linked to a generator that can recharge the battery while the truck is moving.

Evers hands out your candy

by | 0648, 7 Nov 2323 | | 1 Comment

My column for the Washington County Daily News is online and in print. Here’s a part:

Gov. Tony Evers announced that he is providing over 36 million tax dollars to pay for five building projects. The announcement highlights just how broken our government has become.

 

[…]

 

In this instance, last year the governor proposed a list of building projects to be funded by the taxpayers. The Legislature, which has the responsibility and power to allocate taxpayer money, passed a capital budget that agreed with the vast majority of the governor’s building proposals, but not all of them. Unlike the federal government, state governments cannot print money. The state Legislature must prioritize spending and balance the budget.

 

That is how the process works. The governor suggests how to allocate the budget. The Legislature writes the budget. The governor then checks the Legislature with his veto power. Everyone moves on. Not this time. Governor Evers announced that despite not being included in the capital budget, he is going to spend over 36 million tax dollars to pay for five projects. How? The answer illustrates our broken government. First, the money Evers is spending is slush fund money from the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act. This was the $1.9 trillion waste passed by the federal government to “change the course of the pandemic and deliver immediate relief for American workers.” This gargantuan spending boondoggle fueled our current almost $34 trillion national debt and was a key contributor to the inflation and high interest rates that Americans are suffering with today. It is borrowed dollars that our grandchildren’s grandchildren will be paying taxes to pay back. The American Rescue Plan Act was a generational theft.

 

[…]

 

No wonder the Legislature did not agree to spend millions of dollars on these projects. Is it really the role of state government to fleece the taxpayers out of their hard-earned wages to pay for a soccer stadium in Milwaukee? Is expanding the National Railroad Museum in Green Bay worth making a young family in La Crosse cut back on groceries to afford their rent? I am sure that the Door County Peninsula Players Theatre is delightful, but it is difficult for an elderly couple in Hudson to enjoy when the cost of gas is over $3.00 a gallon. Budgets are about priorities and there was a good reason why these projects did not make the list.

 

At the end of this money train are people who will be paid to do these projects and the very few people who will make money off of the facilities. Watch where that money goes and how it is spent. Then we will all know why Evers chose these projects.

 

We see how broken our government is. The federal government shakes down future generations by borrowing money to spend on the present generation. This triggers inflation, responded to by jacking up interest rates, thus lowering the spending power and quality of life of the current generation. The money is allocated into gigantic slush funds for governors to spend at their whims, thus bypassing small-“r” republican governments at the state level and creating arbitrary government. Then the money is spent on governors’ pet projects that have little to no value for the taxpayers paying the bills.

 

The scheme is not about a better Wisconsin or a better America. It is about fleecing the many for the benefit of a few.

Login | Register

Archives

Categories

Pin It on Pinterest