Mayor of Greensboro Bill Knight's Campaign Reports are Here and Needs Help with the UNKNOWN

Knight Bill


The new Mayor of Greensboro Bill Knight has turned in his end of the year 2009 campaign contribution forms to the Guilford County Board of Elections with many discrepencies that are simple to get but way too many local politicians think it is ok to not put these items on their forms.

Let's take a look at what our campaign laws of this state have to say.

163‑278.11. Contents of treasurer's statement of receipts and expenditures.


(a) Statements filed pursuant to provisions of this Article shall set forth the following:


(1) Contributions. – Except as provided in subsection (a1) of this section, a list of all contributions received by or on behalf of a candidate, political committee, or referendum committee. The statement shall list the name and complete mailing address of each contributor, the amount contributed, the principal occupation of the contributor, and the date such contribution was received. The total sum of all contributions to date shall be plainly exhibited. Forms for required reports shall be prescribed by the Board. As used in this section, "principal occupation of the contributor" means the contributor's:


a. Job title or profession; and


b. Employer's name or employer's specific field of business activity.


As you can see from the above North Carolina law your campaign forms need to provide this information of job title and profession. From the above scribd document of the mayor's campaign forms he had a total of 29 different campaign contributors and 21 of them are by their treasurer Beth Hemphill labeled "Unknown" which is around a 72% of the forms are not complete and should be amended.

How hard it is to get in touch with these people to find out this information let's take a closer look at some of the unknowns on this list. Google is a great source along with the white pages online to find this information out.

Here is some phone numbers to guide you to the promised land of providing this information to treasurer Beth Hemphill

Jimmy Shoffner 288-2727
Orton Jones 288-8898
Reginald Sipe 273-9312
Michael Nash 370-4144 and if this is the lawyer here is his web site for occupation CLICKHERE, he is even unknown on his address as well
James McNairy III 378-1564 , here is a link to his profession CLICKHERE
Walter Underwood 292-4685
George Brumback 288-8702, the same one on the local bond commission
Jeff Tillman 851-2194,  with his own blog runsmart2win CLICKHERE
Anne Callicott (self employed/homemaker), (Zip code: 27408) $200 to SHARP PENCIL PAC on 05/24/05, what is Sharp Pencil PAC? That is Howard Coble's affiliated PAC CLICKHERE

It isn't that hard to get this information and this is just the first posting of campaign forms that will get a second look from this blog and hopefully others as well. We can also note from this end of the year returns there was plenty of contributions that went up to the limit on giving before you have to divulge any information to the board of election with on the scribd document you can see that 22 out of 24 gave the maximum of $50 to his campaign without reporting your vital information.

Maybe in the future it will be that any person who even gives a sum of $1 or more will need to show all their information to the campaign reports not just over $50. We also have a new law where the threshold to report has went from $3,000 down to $1,000 on all campaigns in North Carolina . So this means plenty of more candidates  will have to file reports in a timely manner.

Let's see how many other local candidates campaign reports look like and if anyone else like Guilford County Commissioner Kirk Perkins will get a Gold Star for reporting CLICKHERE 
 or will they be like the mayors reports that you see above which wouldn't even get a Star. The mayor is also Howard Coble's treasurer and is a accountant as well. This is the reporting he does on his own campaign, wow.

More at the Greensboro News and Record with a report at inside scoop titled "It Pays To Be Mayor" CLICKHERE

Roch 101 with a post CLICKHERE

Editorial Cartoons of the Week, January 28, 2010 Compliments of William Warren TOPICS are Power Grabbing for Governors, Courting Disaster and Blame Bush

ALG Editor's Note: William Warren's award-winning cartoons published at GetLiberty.org are a free service of ALG News Bureau. They may be reused and redistributed free of charge

Climate Summit Junket? Government Waste from D.C. to Copenhagen Part 2

Watch CBS News Videos Online

CBS News has a follow up to the reporting of our congressmen and women who went to Copenhagen for the climate summit. Here is a link to the first post CLICKHERE . Now CBS News reports on their expense report where they were charged well over $2,000 a night. Don't you just love your tax dollars at work. It is great to see someone besides John Stossel CLICKHERE doing reports like this . Part 2 is embedded above.

Hypocrite Watch: John Boehner: $6,145.60 borrowed from every American child under 18 transferred to the top 2% of the country?

If $120 billion @ 5% for 75 years = $460,920,000,000,
and $460,920,000,000 divided by 75,000,000 US kids = $6,145.60,
did John Boehner vote to charge each and every US child
about $6,145.60,
to give the nations top 2% about $120 billion over the next 2 years?

Are the New York Yankees stealing from our kids?

If players for the New York Yankees make about $200 million per year,
how many new American jobs do they intend to create
with what could be about $10 million extra over the next two years
that will be borrowed from our children
under the Obama/Republican tax deal?

I am absolutely convinced that this tax cut plan, while not perfect,
will help grow our economy and create jobs in the private sector.

Barack Obama

Last season, the Yankees spent $206 million on players

...The Yankees’ median salary was $5.5 million...

NYT

According to the strange the logic of Democratic leaders in Congress,
the best way to show middle class Americans that they care about creating jobs
is to slam some of America's top job creators with a massive tax hike.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell
.
.
.
................................................Tax Cuts Extended......... Tax Cuts Expired

Adjusted Gross Income $200 million

Approximate Tax Liability..........$70 million.............. $80 million

Average Income Tax Rate........... 34.47%....................39.00%

If about 1,699,000 US households make more than $250,000,
and their portion of the tax cuts cost $120 billion
did America’s elected leaders
just charge everyone’s kids about $1,600 each?

If $10 million @ 5% for 75 years = $38,410,390.99,
and $38,410,390.99 / 75,000,000 American Kids = $0.51 per American Child
are the players for the New York Yankees taking about 51 cents
from each and every New York Yankees fan under 18?

Public Records Request from Weaver-Quaintance to the City of Greensboro

gsopublicdocumentrequest


HAT TIP: DIGTRIAD News 2 CLICKHERE

The above is the public document sent from the attorneys of Weaver-Quaintance on the request for transparency in local government that is sorely needed in Greensboro and Guilford County N.C.

Ezekiel 25:17

Ezekiel 25:17

"The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides
by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men.

Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will,
shepherds the weak through the valley of the darkness.

For he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children.

And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger
those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers.

And you will know I am the Lord
when I lay my vengeance upon you."

Samuel Jackson
Pulp Fiction, Erroneously quoted

Editorial Cartoons of the Week, January 21, 2010 Compliments of William Warren TOPICS are President's Party Crasher, Union Deals, and Ivory Tower of Elitism

ALG Editor's Note: William Warren's award-winning cartoons published at GetLiberty.org are a free service of ALG News Bureau. They may be reused and redistributed free of charge.

How is it possible that none of any kind of questions like these, or relative answers about incomes higher than $1,000,000, have not been reported?

"Senate Tax-Cut Plan Would Add $857 Billion to U.S. Debt,"
or will the Tax Deal really cost at least $1,472.92 trillion?

$857 Billion @ 4% x 30 years = $1,472.92 trillion

$857 Billion @ 5% x 40 years = $1,983.56 trillion

$857 Billion @ 6% x 50 years = $2,706.77 trillion

$857 Billion @ 7% x 75 years = $4,523.35 trillion

If Bill Gates and Warren Buffett make about 5% on dividends and 5% on capital gains
on about $100 billion, did they stop by the White House
to thank Obama for giving them what could be an extra $1,477,351,600 over 2 years,
by charging America's children about $1,600 a piece?

If about 1,699,000 US households make more than $250,000,
and their portion of the tax cuts cost $120 billion
are America’s elected leaders
about to charge everyone’s kids $1,600 each
to give Bill Gates and Warren Buffett about $1,477 billion?

$120,000,000,000 / 75,000,000 Kids = $1,600 per American Child?

If Mitt Romney is worth at least $190 million
and makes about 5% of dividends and 5% on capital gains,
could he bring in an extra $5,656,178
by charging America's children about $1,600 a piece?

If US Senator John McCain (R-Ariz.) was worth about $19.64 million in 2008,
about how much did he just vote himself over the next two years?

If Us Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) was worth about $80.40 million in 2008,
about how much did he just vote himself over the next two years?

How could Virginia US Senator Jim Webb
explain why he may vote to charge each and every US child about $1,600 each
to give US congressman Darrell Issa
what could be about $1.3 million in Tax Cuts over the next two years?

How could California US Senator Barbara Boxer explain
why she may vote to charge each and every US child about $1,600 each
to give Rush Limbaugh what could be about $15 million in Tax Cuts over the next two years?

How could North Carolina US Senator Richard Burr explain
why he may vote to charge each and every US child about $1,600 each
to give Britney Spears what could be about $6 million in Tax Cuts over two years?

How could US Senator Charles E. Schumer explain
why he voted to charge each and every US child about $1,600 each
to give New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg
what could be about $295 million in Tax Cuts over two years?

James Kwak: Deficit Hawkoprite Watch: The Debt Ceiling and America's two political parties

"Sometime this spring, Congress is going to have to raise the debt ceiling
or the federal government will face default.

Republicans are going to demand many, many pounds of flesh in exchange,
ranging from cuts in discretionary spending to rethinking of entitlement programs...

...Democrats are probably going to give in to at least some Republican demands...

...The deficit problem was created by Congress,
through its many votes to increase spending and decrease revenues
(otherwise known as taxes).

“One of the peculiar embarrassments of the American political process
is the fact that Congress votes separately on the deficit and debt,
as if they were two different decisions. . . .

“A politician who votes for the spending and tax measures
that produced the deficit but against a debt ceiling...
,,,is deliberately wasting taxpayer dollars for no purpose
other than to grandstand before voters as a ‘fiscal conservative’.

Anyone playing such a game
has complete contempt for the intelligence of their constituents.”

James Hamilton

...I picked five major bills in the past decade that have significantly increased the national debt:
the 2001 tax cut, the 2003 tax cut, the 2003 Medicare prescription drug benefit, the 2009 stimulus,
and the 2010 tax cut.


...Then, for each of those bills, I looked up the CBO budget impact estimate made at the time.
(Source)

Their costs, as projected at the time (and hence as knowable by members of Congress), were as follows.

The first number is the ten-year cost;
the number in parentheses is the portion of that cost through fiscal year 2011.

Numbers are in billions.

2001 tax cut: $1,346 ($1,346)

2003 tax cut: $350 ($354 — the cut has a tiny deficit-reducing impact in its final years)

Medicare Part D: $395 ($271).
Note that I am not including the fact that the cost of this bill
was almost immediately reestimated after it passed to be significantly higher,
since that was not knowable to members of Congress when they voted.

2009 stimulus: $838 ($793)

2010 tax cut: $858 ($374)

That’s a total of $3.8 trillion — $3.1 trillion of it hitting the national debt by this year,
and hence contributing directly to the need to raise the debt ceiling.

Then I looked up how current senators voted on these bills...
(Source)

For each senator, I added up how much of the current (2011) debt he could have voted for,
and how many he did vote for.

...current Democratic senators (including Sanders and Lieberman)
had the opportunity to vote on $127 trillion of additional debt,
and voted for $64 trillion, or 50 percent;

...current Republican senators had the opportunity to vote on $104 trillion of debt
and voted for $70 trillion, or 67 percent.

...Of current senators, the proportion in each party voting for each bill is as follows:

2001 tax cut: Democrats 18%, Republicans 93%

2003 tax cut: D 3%, R 94%

Medicare Part D: D 17%, R 88%

2009 stimulus: D 100%, R 5%

2010 tax cut: D 77%, R 87%

So the typical Democratic vote
...would mean voting for 37 percent of the total debt produced by these bills...

...The typical Republican vote[d] for 75 percent of the total debt.

...[Some of] the Republicans who will be railing against fiscal irresponsibility
and threatening to block a raise in the debt limit [may be] the irresponsible ones themselves
who created the need to raise that debt limit.

...the only people who can claim not to be responsible for the national debt
— at least not via any of these five bills —
are the newly elected members (except Rob Portman and Pat Toomey,
who voted down the line to increase the debt as Congressmen) and Tom Coburn,
who joined the Senate in 2005 and voted against both the stimulus and the 2010 tax cut.

By contrast, Republican leaders Mitch McConnell and Jon Kyl
ach voted for $2.3 trillion of debt (75 percent),
yet will somehow try to argue that the need to raise the debt ceiling is not their fault.

On the flip side, the...people who voted for all $3.1 trillion of debt
are Ben Nelson (D-NE) and Susan Collins (R-ME)...

...Following Nelson and Collins, at $2.8 trillion, are Max Baucus (D-MT), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA),
Mary Landrieu (D-LA), and Olympia Snowe (R-ME)...

...the December tax cut is Exhibit A in the problem with bipartisan compromise,
at least from the perspective of the deficit.

...The ...substantive issue of whether, in fact, [they] created the national debt in the first place
and should behave accordingly.

...here’s a spreadsheet with all the data. (Source)

James Kwak

Martin Luther King, Jr., Strength To Love, 1963

Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that.

Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.

Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence,
and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction

... The chain reaction of evil -- hate begetting hate, wars producing more wars
-- must be broken,
or we shall be plunged into the dark abyss of annihilation.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Strength To Love, 1963.

Noam Chomsky on Allen Johnson on Isabella Adkins and Greensboro's news and political industry

Is the delivery of consumers to merchants
the objective of Greensboro's local news industry?

The beauty of the democratic systems of thought control
as contrasted with their clumsy totalitarian counterparts,
is that they operate by subtly establishing on a voluntary basis,
aided by the force of nationalism and media control by substantial interests,
presuppositions that set the limits of debate
rather than by imposing beliefs with a bludgeon.

Should news stories and editorial board opinions
conceal correlations to advertiser or parent company profit?

Then let the debate rage,
the more lively and vigorous it is,
the better the propaganda system is served…

Why would some local news organizations
criticize policy positions of some,
while receiving undisclosed and/or indirect compensation from others
interested in non-attributed dissention?

Those who do not accept the fundamental principles of state propaganda,
are simply excluded from the debate.
(or if noticed, dismissed as "emotional," "irresponsible," etc…)

Noam Chomsky

It is difficult to get a man to understand something
when his salary depends on his not understanding it.

Upton Sinclair

If Greensboro's media companies know how much capital political candidates raise,
could profits be enhanced by targeting news coverage
to influence campaign advertising money flows?

Could a percentage of what you think,
be what some frequently suggest you think?

Should centralized information outlets lose influence
as more independent internet based sources proliferate?

Is it worse that Greensboro’s political & news industry leadership
didn’t see the municipal budget crisis coming,
or that they did and failed to act?

Transparency Meeting Closed To Public , I Kid You Not Thanks To V.P. Biden

The Los Angeles Times has a headline on 1-14-2010 titled Joe Biden Update: He meets on transparency today but the meetings are closed CLICKHERE . Now that is funny and the article is amazing to read as well. Take a look at the Vice Presidents itinerary in the article.

Hat Tip: Right Angles CLICKHERE

"Pruning begins at Duke Energy, Progress"

"Pruning begins at Duke Energy, Progress"

"The marriage of Duke Energy and Progress Energy will cost jobs in Charlotte and Raleigh, and the companies' top bosses have already started encouraging early retirements and attrition to minimize layoffs.

...the CEOs said they don't have a target number of job cuts in mind. But on Wednesday, Duke CEO Jim Rogers and Progress CEO Bill Johnson met with about 1,500 Progress employees in downtown Raleigh and warned them to prepare for staff reductions as the companies identify redundancies and slash costs.

Johnson, who will be CEO of the combined, Charlotte-based utility company, noted that employee insecurity will help winnow down staff this year. Some will opt to retire and others will take other jobs rather than live with uncertainty.

"A little concern and ambiguity, and if you have options, you think about them a little harder," Johnson said. "This is a dose of reality."

It will be the second corporate reorganization in less than five years at Progress. The Raleigh-based company is one of the Triangle's biggest employers, with about 5,600 employees statewide.

...Duke employs about...7,600 in North Carolina.

...Johnson and his executive team will move to Charlotte.

...Duke and Progress have each done previous corporate mergers that led to several thousand positions being eliminated. This merger, however, is on a much larger scale and will result in creating the nation's largest electric utility.

...Johnson said ...he urged the employees to focus on safety and job performance.

"What I told them was, 'I can't engage you. You've got to engage yourself. You've got to live with a little ambiguity, a little uncertainty,'" he said.

...Rogers stressed that during 22 years as CEO at Duke and other utilities, he has never resorted to layoffs. He said he can't guarantee any layoffs this time, but he will seek to use other means, including buyouts for employees to take early retirement.

Rogers said the average age of Duke's work force is 50 to 51. The average age of Progress workers is 46.

...A decade ago, the merger between Carolina Power & Light and Florida Progress that created Progress Energy eliminated about 1,300 positions, mostly in Florida. Duke's 2006 acquisition of Cinergy in the Midwest resulted in more than 1,500 positions being eliminated.

When Duke bought Cinergy, Rogers said, some employees were allowed to work on special projects, and some were even paid to provide services to the nonprofit United Way. Others were offered other opportunities within the company.

"You had two job options," Rogers said. "You can say no to the first one, but you can't say no to the second one unless you want to leave the company.""

John Murawski

"Pruning begins at Duke Energy, Progress"

"Pruning begins at Duke Energy, Progress"

"The marriage of Duke Energy and Progress Energy will cost jobs in Charlotte and Raleigh, and the companies' top bosses have already started encouraging early retirements and attrition to minimize layoffs.

...the CEOs said they don't have a target number of job cuts in mind. But on Wednesday, Duke CEO Jim Rogers and Progress CEO Bill Johnson met with about 1,500 Progress employees in downtown Raleigh and warned them to prepare for staff reductions as the companies identify redundancies and slash costs.

Johnson, who will be CEO of the combined, Charlotte-based utility company, noted that employee insecurity will help winnow down staff this year. Some will opt to retire and others will take other jobs rather than live with uncertainty.

"A little concern and ambiguity, and if you have options, you think about them a little harder," Johnson said. "This is a dose of reality."

It will be the second corporate reorganization in less than five years at Progress. The Raleigh-based company is one of the Triangle's biggest employers, with about 5,600 employees statewide.

...Duke employs about...7,600 in North Carolina.

...Johnson and his executive team will move to Charlotte.

...Duke and Progress have each done previous corporate mergers that led to several thousand positions being eliminated. This merger, however, is on a much larger scale and will result in creating the nation's largest electric utility.

...Johnson said ...he urged the employees to focus on safety and job performance.

"What I told them was, 'I can't engage you. You've got to engage yourself. You've got to live with a little ambiguity, a little uncertainty,'" he said.

...Rogers stressed that during 22 years as CEO at Duke and other utilities, he has never resorted to layoffs. He said he can't guarantee any layoffs this time, but he will seek to use other means, including buyouts for employees to take early retirement.

Rogers said the average age of Duke's work force is 50 to 51. The average age of Progress workers is 46.

...A decade ago, the merger between Carolina Power & Light and Florida Progress that created Progress Energy eliminated about 1,300 positions, mostly in Florida. Duke's 2006 acquisition of Cinergy in the Midwest resulted in more than 1,500 positions being eliminated.

When Duke bought Cinergy, Rogers said, some employees were allowed to work on special projects, and some were even paid to provide services to the nonprofit United Way. Others were offered other opportunities within the company.

"You had two job options," Rogers said. "You can say no to the first one, but you can't say no to the second one unless you want to leave the company.""

John Murawski

"Progress Energy Lobbyist Dies in Auto Fire Inside Garage"

"This morning at 5am (ET) [January 10, 2011], Ashley Turton died of a car fire in her garage. And, in other news, a man spontaneously combusted on his couch.

Turton’s body was found inside the burning car by the Washington D.C. Fire Department. Turton was the wife of White House deputy director of legislative affairs Dan Turton, and was a lobbyist for Progress Energy (in the news because of a $13.7 billion merger with Duke Energy announced the same day).

At this point, it is too early to come to a conclusion about the cause, but something about a woman crashing into her garage at around 4:50am seems rather curious. Several questions need to be asked.

What was Turton doing driving around at that time? She crashed at around 4:50am, but that means she was driving her car before that time and also that she was coming from somewhere else. Unless, of course, she decided to back out of her garage and driveway, then suddenly decided to commit suicide by slamming into her garage. There are more efficient ways of entering the underworld, though. Also, there are only a few establishments that one could visit in the wee hours of a Monday morning (gas station, 24 hour supermarket, 24 hour fitness clubs, strip clubs, etc).

Why was Turton unable to exit the vehicle? It’s possible that the energy lobbyist had a heart attack, a stroke, a seizure, etc., and this caused her to lose consciousness and thus crash into her garage–but just as she was pulling into the garage?

A question of speed. How much speed would have been required to cause the fire’s ignition? Supplementary question: if Turton didn’t lose consciousness from an undiagnosed medical condition, why didn’t she brake? Perhaps the brakes lost functionality, but then why was she unable to get out of the vehicle again?

Homicide detectives were called to the scene, so there is the suspicion on the part of D.C. police that things aren’t what they seem to be. Even so, their theory is that the car crashed into the garage and ignited, which raises all of the above questions and any others that might develop. "

DJ Pangburn

GN&R Editorial Board Shamefull Propaganda Spin on Duke and Progress Layoffs?

"...Progress Energy, headquartered in Raleigh,

...Duke Energy, which is anchored in Charlotte.

Combined, they’ll serve more than 7 million customers, including most residents and businesses in North Carolina.

Otherwise known as a monopoly?

Rate cuts aren’t likely

The deal promises benefits, such as cost savings that can be passed to consumers.

Do the last two sentences contradict each other?

If there won't be rate cuts, what are the benefits?

...Duke only promises efficiencies that can “mitigate the future rate increases we expect.”

Sometimes people mistake the way I talk
for what I am thinking.

Idi Amin

...In Duke’s current service areas, customers should watch for signs that this equalization will result in Duke rates rising to meet falling Progress rates somewhere in the middle.

Since the long-term trend for prices is up,
the equalization (good for Progress customers, bad for Duke customers),
will be hidden by higher prices for all customers.

Peter Schwarz
Professor of Economics at UNC Charlotte

Everyone should gain from this deal, or it’s not worth doing.

Is what you think others think,
what they may be thinking,
or what they and/or some others want you to think they’re thinking?

...Some anxiety is felt in Raleigh, home city for Progress Energy. While a major administrative presence is likely to remain in the state capital, that’s not the same as a headquarters.

But keeping the corporate structure in-state is still a plus by any reckoning.

How is "keeping the corporate structure in-state" a plus for the laid off workers?
.

If another doesn’t say all they mean,
do they mean all they say?

A down side to the merger, which can take a year to complete, will be a loss of jobs. Duke says it will eliminate duplicative operations but has not disclosed numbers.

“I could foresee an eventual 10-15 percent reduction in the combined work force,” UNC Charlotte economics professor Peter Schwarz, an expert on the energy industry, told the News & Record by e-mail.

The two companies employ about 30,000 workers in six states. Schwarz’s estimate would mean job cuts of 3,000 to 4,500 — not all in North Carolina.

Just mostly "duplicative operations"
located at both headquarters located in North Carolina?

4,500 mid-level jobs x about $70,000 salary = $315,000,000 lost income?

30% of $315,000,000 = $94,500,000 lost fed, state and local taxes?

If there's no new jobs, how many mortgages could default?

.

How could home prices be affected?
.
How much could property and other taxes have to increase on everyone else
to make up for the lost tax revenue?

Did the GN&R Editorial Board consider the increased taxation?

While no loss of jobs is welcome, there could be compensating benefits. Reliable, low-cost energy is attractive to businesses, Schwarz said. With Duke’s low rates, “industry should view the increased Duke coverage as a positive.”

How can there be "compensating benefits" if rates and taxes continue to rise?

Duke is an “excellent ally,” said Dan Lynch, president of the Greensboro Economic Development Alliance, because of its competitive rates and “extremely high reliability quotient ... I would think it’s going to be good for everybody,” he said of a possible merger.

Except for the fired workers and the increased taxes on everyone in North Carolina,
right Dan?

Can some promoting erroneous concepts
believe self-created illusions?

Greater resources

...Duke should continue to create incentives for customers to reduce consumption through weatherization, use of energy-efficient appliances and other advances.

Thank goodness

An energy hub

With this merger, North Carolina can become an energy hub — especially if Duke steps up its commitment to develop wind, solar and bio fuel.

The power industry can remain a large employer in North Carolina, perhaps with fewer administrative jobs, but also with a greater emphasis on research and development.

Sometimes I wonder
whether the world is being run by smart people who are putting us on,
or by imbeciles who really mean it.

Mark Twain

Some uncertainties lie ahead. The deal must meet the approval of shareholders and state and federal regulators, who should guard the interests of consumers and the public.

Why would some utility company executives
want to work at state and federal regulatory agencies
and why would some retired regulators
want to work for the companies they regulated?

If all concerns are addressed, this Duke power surge might benefit customers and energize North Carolina."

Greensboro News & Record Editorial Board

Is Mel Watt going to vote to charge every American child about $1,600 to give Rush Limbaugh what could be about $15,324,704 over two years?

"Compared to the Tax Cuts Extended scenario,
total tax liability for the Obama Plan scenario would be $7,662,352 higher

..................................................................Tax Cuts Extended................Tax Cuts Expired

Adjusted Gross Income...................................$78,000,000.....................$78,000,000?

About $38 million of earned income
At least $20 million of dividends on about $1 billion
At least $20 million of capital gains on on about $1 billion
= about $78 adjusted gross income?

Tax Liability on $38 million of income...................$19,273,989.....................$26,936,341?

Average Tax Rate..................................................24.53%.............................34.29%"?

$26,936,341 - $19,273,989 = $7,662,352 x 2 years = $15,324,704?

What is the estimated net worth of Rush Limbaugh?

Tax Calculator
Single
Tax Plan: Tax Cuts Extended vs. Tax Cuts Expired
Tax Year: 2011
AMT Patch: AMT Patch in effect
.

If about 1,699,000 US households make more than $250,000,
and their portion of the tax cuts cost $120 billion,
and $120,000,000,000 / 75,000,000 Kids = $1,600 per American Child,
and $120 billion divided by 1,699,000 = $70,629.78,
is Mel Watt going to vote to charge everyone’s kids $1,600 each
to give all the households making more than $250,000 per year
an average of $70,629.78 each?

Is Howard Coble going to vote to charge every American child about $1,600 to give Darrell Issa what could be about about $1,387,836 over two years?

If Darrell Issa, worth about $303 million, makes about $15.5 million per year*
and could save about $693,918 per year in taxes by voting for Obama's Tax Deal,
could Congressman Issa vote himself what could be
about $1,387,836 over two years?

………………………….................…Tax Cuts Extended…………….Tax Cuts Expired

Adjusted Gross Income……………$15,150,000*…………………$15,150,000*?

Tax Liability……………………...…..$5,265,721......................$5,959,639?

Average Tax Rate………………………..33.80%......................... 38.28%?

$5,959,639 – $5,265,721 = about $693,918 x 2 years = about $1,387,836?

.
Tax Plan: Tax Cuts Extended vs. Tax Cuts Expired
Tax Year: 2011
AMT Patch not in effect

If about 1,699,000 US households make more than $250,000,
and their portion of the tax cuts cost $120 billion,
and $120,000,000,000 / 75,000,000 Kids = $1,600 per American Child,
and $120 billion divided by 1,699,000 = $70,629.78,
is Howard Coble going to vote to charge everyone’s kids $1,600 each
to give all the households making more than $250,000 per year
an average of $70,629.78 each?


$15,150,000 income estimate* = 5% of $303 million?

Randall Kaplan and Bridget Chisolm Interview on Newsmakers at News and Record, Name All The Investors

Allen Johnson from the Greensboro News and Record CLICKHERE has interviewed Randall Kaplan and Bridget Chisholm on the proposal for a new downtown Greensboro luxury hotel . The video is embedded below, this is from the newsmakers segment of the Greensboro News & Record. One question that needs to be addressed is this.

WHO ARE ALL THE INVESTORS IN THIS WHOLE DEAL?

The Elm Street Group consist of a dozen or so investors including Randall Kaplan,Milton Kern,George House, and Brad Semon.

WHO ARE THE OTHER 8 investors in this Elm Street Group?

Back on January 1,2010 this was said in a blog post at Allen Johnson's blog " could we please get the news and record to name the names of all the parties involved with this endeavor and who are the dozen or so partners in the elm street group"

Still waiting for this answer to the question. Maybe when they get in front of the Greensboro City Council next week we will see this question be asked by a Greensboro City Council member.

Will Mr. Kaplan answer the question please tell us who are all the investors in the Elm Street Group not just 4 of them but all of them?

This is called TRANSPARENCY in local government.

Editorial Cartoons of the Week, January 15, 2010 Compliments of William Warren TOPICS are Senator Harry Reid, Obamator, One for the Gipper

 Triadwatch editorial cartoons for the week of 1-15-2010 . Have a Great Weekend.

ALG Editor's Note: William Warren's award-winning cartoons published at GetLiberty.org are a free service of ALG News Bureau. They may be reused and redistributed free of charge.

Did US Senator Richard Burr just give Rush Limbaugh what could be about $15 million, by charging our kids about $1,600 a piece?

If Bill Gates and Warren Buffett make about 5% on dividends and 5% on capital gains on about $100 billion, did they stop by the White House to thank Obama for giving them what could be an extra $1,477,351,600 over 2 years, by charging America’s children about $1,600 a piece?

If Mitt Romney is worth at least $190 million and makes about 5% of dividends and 5% on capital gains, could he bring in an extra $5,656,178 by charging America's children about $1,600 a piece?

The 50 Richest Members of Congress (2008)

If about 1,699,000 US households make more than $250,000, and their portion of the tax cuts is about $120 billion...?

If US congressman Darrell Issa is worth about $303 million and makes about 5% of his net worth per year, could he charge every US child $12,000 to vote himself about $1,387,836 in Tax Cuts over two years?

Could US Senator John Kerry charge every US child $12,000 to vote himself about $500,036 in Tax Cuts over two years?

If Britney Spears makes about $64 million per year, could she bring in another $5,876,704 from President Obama's Tax Deal over the next two years?

If Michael Bloomberg makes 5% per year on $20 billion, and pays half his taxes on long term capitol gaines and half on dividend interest, could he bring in an extra $295 million over two years with Obama's Tax Deal?

If Rush Limbaugh makes about $78 million per year, could Obama's Tax Deal give him about $15,324,704 more over the next two years?

If there are about 75 million kids in the United States of America, will congress and the president charge them $12,000 a piece to bail out the financial mismanagement of their parents?

Can any American legislator who votes for a $900 billion deficit increase run as a "fiscal conservative" in 2012?

How could some American legislators opposed to raising the debt ceiling, vote to increase the nation's deficit by $900 billion over 2 years?

Did US Senator Mitch McConnell just give Bill Gates and Warren Buffett what could be about $1.5 billion, by charging our kids about $1,600 a piece?

If Bill Gates and Warren Buffett make about 5% on dividends and 5% on capital gains on about $100 billion, did they stop by the White House to thank Obama for giving them what could be an extra $1,477,351,600 over 2 years, by charging America’s children about $1,600 a piece?

If Mitt Romney is worth at least $190 million and makes about 5% of dividends and 5% on capital gains, could he bring in an extra $5,656,178 by charging America's children about $1,600 a piece?

The 50 Richest Members of Congress (2008)

If about 1,699,000 US households make more than $250,000, and their portion of the tax cuts is about $120 billion...?

If US congressman Darrell Issa is worth about $303 million and makes about 5% of his net worth per year, could he charge every US child $12,000 to vote himself about $1,387,836 in Tax Cuts over two years?

Could US Senator John Kerry charge every US child $12,000 to vote himself about $500,036 in Tax Cuts over two years?

If Britney Spears makes about $64 million per year, could she bring in another $5,876,704 from President Obama's Tax Deal over the next two years?

If Michael Bloomberg makes 5% per year on $20 billion, and pays half his taxes on long term capitol gaines and half on dividend interest, could he bring in an extra $295 million over two years with Obama's Tax Deal?

If Rush Limbaugh makes about $78 million per year, could Obama's Tax Deal give him about $15,324,704 more over the next two years?

If there are about 75 million kids in the United States of America, will congress and the president charge them $12,000 a piece to bail out the financial mismanagement of their parents?

Can any American legislator who votes for a $900 billion deficit increase run as a "fiscal conservative" in 2012?

How could some American legislators opposed to raising the debt ceiling, vote to increase the nation's deficit by $900 billion over 2 years?

Did Melvin “Skip” Alston, Bruce Davis, Carolyn Coleman, John Parks and Kirk Perkins vote to fire a Guilford County Teacher?

"Guilford commissioners deny free EMS to skating event

For: Melvin “Skip” Alston, Bruce Davis, Carolyn Coleman, John Parks, Kirk Perkins

Against: Paul Gibson, Bill Bencini, Billy Yow, Kay Cashion, Linda Shaw

Mike Winstead was absent.

...A number of residents spoke against the sponsorship,
calling it corporate welfare and a government handout to a for-profit industry.

Hill Carrow, director of the skating event, was on hand to defend the sponsorship.

“We’re not here because we’re asking for a handout,
a subsidy or a bailout of a failing business,” Carrow said,
emphasizing that the show would go on with or without support from the county.

...in the end, commissioners’ concerns over the budget
— and the appearance of spending so much money while asking their employees to cut back
— carried the day.

“If you go ask any county employee how much of a raise they’ve had in the last three years,
the answer is going to be none,” Commissioner Billy Yow said.
“And the Guilford County taxpayer is carrying the load of a pack mule right now.
We can’t keep on with the Wyndham and the skating.”

Joe Killian

Why would the Greensboro News & Record Editorial Board blindly cite what "could be a $25 million economic impact" from the skating championships?

"Hill Carrow, chairman of the championships,
said...the event ticket sales were at 85 percent of its $2 million sales goal,

about $1.7 million."

GNR

"...county support for a nationally televised event that could draw as many as 100,000 visitors
and whose local economic impact could approach $25 million
would send a positive message about this community’s willingness
to make public-private investments in such projects.

Should Guilford County taxpayers have to pay what many consider to be bribes
to for-profit entities?

That might matter when the next opportunity comes along."

Is the Editorial Board advocating taking money from the county's children

to provide a more pleasant present for a select few?

Greensboro News & Record Editorial Board

If $2 million in tickets plus $2 million for parking and concessions etc... = $4 million,
plus another $4 million for hotel rooms and food = $8 million,
how did who come up with what "could be" the other $17 million of economic "impact"?

On Skip Alston, Guilford County Finances and Conservatives for Guilford County

"Conservatives for Guilford County...met with Budget Director Mike Halford at a member’s house in November for a session with their “Fat Cutting Team.” Commissioners Billy Yow and Paul Gibson attended.

Guilford County Budget Director Michael Halford
on 2010/11's "Budget Gap,"
otherwise known as the undisclosed until now Budget Deficit

Commissioners Chairman Melvin “Skip” Alston said the PAC was going too far.

Did Someone in Guilford County's Government
Lie to the Greensboro News and Record on the Budget Deficit?

"...if we start sending our staff members to the houses of everyone who has questions about the county, where does it stop?” [Alston said]

Guilford County Information Request emailed to the following:…, on June 2, 2010

Jeff Hyde, one of the founders of Conservative for Guilford County, said Alston’s concern is misplaced.

“First of all, Skip Alston is the Simkins PAC,” Hyde said. “It’s not like he doesn’t have that meeting with them every day."

Misleading rhetoric by Skip Alston?

Hyde said the invitation to Halford came after Commissioner Kirk Perkins challenged members of the group to tell the commissioners where they should make cuts to the budget.

Could Guilford County face a $73 million budget deficit in 2011/12?

“So, we took his challenge,” Hyde said. “We put together a group and now there are, I would say, 45 people who are involved in looking at different departments close up, learning about the mission of that department and seeing where it could be cut.”

Property and Quarter-cent Sales Tax Math,
by Scott Yost and Skip Alston: Did the News & Record Know?

Halford said he welcomes questions from whatever group but bows out when it becomes political.

Alston has suggested the county hold a series of public budget meetings for all residents.

Greensboro News & Record Editorial: "When bills come due"

...Halford said that may be more important this year. “We’re facing serious budget issues and some serious policy questions this year,” he said."

Joe Killian

Did Brenda Jones Fox and Skip Alston retard ticket sales by publicly humiliating the Figure skating championships?

“I don’t know why this is just coming before us now,” said County Commissioners Chairman Melvin “Skip” Alston. “We’re going to listen to what they have to say, but I don’t know that we’re going to be able to do anything for them.”

...County Manager Brenda Jones Fox said the county hasn’t been dragging its feet about the request. In fact, when Carrow initially approached the county he’d asked for much more and been denied, Fox said.

...Fox said when Carrow sent the request for $40,000 worth of support to Alston, they decided to put it before the commissioners.

Didn't Skip know they asked in 2009,
and if he didn't, why didn't Fox tell him
when "they' decided to make the request public?

...Alston said he is glad the event will be held in Greensboro, but isn’t sure the county will be able to contribute to it.

“We’re going to hear his presentation,” Alston said. “But that’s a lot of money to be talking about right now, and right before they get started.”

If the initial request was denied privately,
why did Alston and Fox decide to drag the Figure skating championships
name through the mud, right before the event
if they didn't have to?

Joe Killian
.

Did Alston and Fox just lose the publicly owned Greensboro Coliseum

ticket, parking and concession revenues,

by raising an issue in public that didn't have to be?

Climate Summit Junket? Government Waste from D.C. to Copenhagen

CBS News has a nice investigative report on the Climate Summit to Copenhagen and a great example of Government Waste at it's best.

Watch CBS News Videos Online

"Figure skating championships ask for county sponsorship": How much did Rashad Young give without public input or City Council approval?

"The organizers of the 2011 U.S. Figure Skating Championships are asking for $40,000 in support from Guilford County less than two weeks before the event is to be held at the Greensboro Coliseum.

...Hill Carrow, director of the championships, said he asked the county for support a year and a half ago but was just able to get an audience with the commissioners at their next meeting, which will be held Thursday.

“It took this long to finally get it in front of the entire county board. The fact that the championships are about to get underway made for a natural deadline for the commissioners to consider the request.”...Carrow said

...County Manager Brenda Jones Fox said the county hasn’t been dragging its feet about the request. In fact, when Carrow initially approached the county he’d asked for much more and been denied, Fox said.

“His initial request, in November 2009, was for a $100,000 grant,” Fox said...

...In a memo to the Greensboro City Council in June, City Manager Rashad Young said attendance for the nationally televised event is estimated at about 100,000, with 10,000 hotel rooms rented in the area...

.

If Mr. Carrow asked for and recieved a handout from the City of Greensboro
that didn't require an "audience"
and was rejected by Guilford County without an "audience" in 2009,
is Mr. Carrow full of siht?
.
Wait, how much did the City of Greensboro give without City Council approval?
.
Didn't Rashad Young give the Downtown Skating Rink money without approval?
.
How many city council members questioned the allocation?

.

“We haven’t had success thus far, but at least we are persistent. We’d really like to have the county participate,” Carrow said.

.

Can "participate" be used as a euphamism for
"pad a private business owner's bottom line with taxpayer dollars"?

.

Carrow said he thought county sponsorship would send a powerful statement to U.S. Figure Skating and other major sports events considering Greensboro that the area has a strong public and private partnership that can make their events a success.

.

"public and private partnership"
.
What does "extortion" mean?

.

Previous host cities have reported $25 million in economic impact, depending on final attendance, Young said in the memo."
.
Joe Killian

Has the economic impact study been reviewed by Greensboro's City Council?

Was the impact study reviewed by Rashad Young?

Where is the impact study?

"a memo to the Greensboro City Council in June"

If Rashad Young "officially announced" Greensboro's contribution over the summer of 2010,
why didn't the public hear anything about it?

If Greensboro's City Council got the memo,
how many attended the "announcement"?

Didn't Mr. Carrow create the impact study,
many may consider to be something of a fraud,
that was used to sell Greensboro City Council and the public
on the Aquatic Center?

Greensboro Swim Center Hypothetical

.

Didn't Mr. Carrow also state Aquatic Center's
"can’t have any debt service,”
before helping convince Greensboro voters to borrow $19 million
for a money pit that disrupts Coliseum parking?

.

Why would a “Consultant” named Hill Carrow
who created a $14,337,210 hypothetical economic impact “projection,”
say only debt free competitive swim centers work?
.

Guarino: Why is the US Figure Skating Championship Organization
Asking Guilford County for $40,000?

.

Roch: Grifter alert

.

SamH: Re: Skating championship asking for $40k

If Rush Limbaugh makes about $78 million per year, could Obama's Tax Deal give him about $15,324,704 more over the next two years?

"Compared to the Tax Cuts Extended scenario,
total tax liability for the Obama Plan scenario would be $7,662,352 higher

..................................................................Tax Cuts Extended................Tax Cuts Expired

Adjusted Gross Income...................................$78,000,000.....................$78,000,000?

About $38 million of earned income
At least $20 million of dividends on about $1 billion
At least $20 million of capital gains on on about $1 billion
= about $78 adjusted gross income?

Tax Liability on $38 million of income...................$19,273,989.....................$26,936,341?

Average Tax Rate..................................................24.53%.............................34.29%"?

$26,936,341 - $19,273,989 = $7,662,352 x 2 years = $15,324,704?

What is the estimated net worth of Rush Limbaugh?

Tax Calculator
Single
Tax Plan: Tax Cuts Extended vs. Tax Cuts Expired
Tax Year: 2011
AMT Patch: AMT Patch in effect

On Jared Lee Lougher II

He accuses the government of
"implying mind control and brainwash on the people by controlling grammar."

Jared Lee Lougher

Can thought be controlled by repeating positive messages,
while underreporting negative,
and vice versa?

All that was needed
was an unending series of victories over your own memory.

George Orwell

With a little help,
can most convince themselves of just about anything?

If they can get you asking the wrong questions,
they don't have to worry about answers.

Thomas Pynchon

Can repetition create truth?

On Charles Davenport's (print edition) opinion piece in the Greensboro News & Record on Homosexuality and the definition of Natural Law

a loosely knit body of rules of action prescribed by an authority
higher than the state.

Natural Law, according to Russell Kirk

Russell Kirk (October 19, 1918 – April 29, 1994)
was an American political theorist, moralist,
historian, social critic, literary critic, and fiction author
known for his influence on 20th century American conservatism.

Was Russell Kirk an exalted philosopher,
like Aristotle and Plato?

Natural law or the law of nature
has been described as a law whose content is set by nature
and that therefore has validity everywhere.

As classically used, natural law refers to the use of reason
to analyze human nature and deduce binding rules of moral behavior.Natural law

Why were women denied the right to vote until 1920?

Natural Law is derived from divine law

Charles Davenport

List of animals displaying homosexual behavior
Marriage shall not impede a man's right
to take concubines in addition to his wife or wives.

II Sam 5:13; I Kings 11:3; II Chron 11:21

Are people gay because they choose to be
or because it’s biological?

A marriage shall be considered valid only if the wife is a virgin.

If the wife is not a virgin, she shall be executed.

Deut 22:13-21

Marriage of a believer and a non-believer shall be forbidden.

Gen 24:3; Num 25:1-9; Ezra 9:12; Neh 10:30

If a married man dies without children,
his brother shall marry the widow.

Gen 38:6-10; Deut 25:5-10

Could the use of Mr. Davenport's definintion of Natural Law
violate the US Constitution?

No State shall make or enforce any law
which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States;
nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property,
without due process of law;
nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution

"Their lifestyle choice should be opposed
only when they lobby for public approval"

Charles Davenport

.

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion,

or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech,

or of the press;

or the right of the people peaceably to assemble,

and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

.
First Amendment to the United States Constitution

I look forward to Joe Guarino's response.
George Hartzman

$12,000 per American Child: Where is the Tea Party on the tax cut?

"Where are all of the Tea Party supporters
and newly elected Tea Party legislators
who voiced their displeasure with the rising national debt
during the last congressional elections?

Their battle cry was,
"we don't want to pass this monstrous debt on to our children and grandchildren".

Now they seem to be curiously mute with the Bush tax cut extension
adding hundreds of billions dollars to the national debt."

John Clark

On God, and why sometimes, some people think what many believe to be not very realistic assumptions

Can any good person get to heaven,
or do you have to believe certain thoughts?
.

Do suicide bombers act in ways they think God wants them to?

If God were a defined certainty,
would the number of people following different religions increase or decline?
.

If a fire breaks out in a fertility clinic,
and you can only save a canister with five inseminated eggs,
or one 4-year old child,
which do you save?
.

Is life support God’s will
if $100,000 keeping one patient on life support
could provide seeds to grow food for 10,000 starving others?
.

Could this be heaven,
or hell?
.

If something started everything,
is everything else supposition?
.

Would the God of rectangles have four sides?
.

Can an atheist be superstitious?
.

What do you believe that you can’t prove?
.

No man shall be compelled to frequent or support
religious worship, place, or ministry...,
nor shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions or belief,
but that all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain
their opinion on matters of religion.

Thomas Jefferson
Virginia Bill on Religious Freedom

On Gabrielle Giffords being Jewish

"The tragic shooting of Arizona congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords
may have had an anti-Semitic undertone, according to some analysts.

Giffords...is considered the first Jewish Congresswoman in Arizona,
according to the National Jewish Democrat Council, a badge she wore proudly.

Giffords, 40, was raised “mixed” by a Christian Scientist mother and Jewish father...

After a 2001 visit to Israel,
she had decided she was Jewish only and became a staunch Zionist.

In a 2006 speech calling for a reviving of direct talks between Israel and the Palestinians,
Giffords talked about her Jewish background.

“My grandfather, Akiba Hornstein, was the son of a Lithuanian rabbi,” Giffords began.

“My grandfather changed his name to Giff Giffords for reasons of anti-Semitism
and moved to Southern Arizona from New York more than a half century ago.”

“...I am a lifetime member of Hadassah [the largest Zionist women's group in America]
and now a member of Congregation Chaverim [a Reform synagogue],” she said.

Moving into a political tone in her speech, Giffords said, “the failure of the current [Bush] administration to continue the peace process has been a loss to America and Israel.

That is why we need a new direction in Washington.”

At her swearing in for a third term in Congress last Wednesday,
Giffords used a copy of The Pentateuch, The Five Books of Moses, for the ceremony."

The Right Perspective

On Jared Lee Lougher

His favorite activity, according to one video posted on the site,
is "conscience dreaming,"
the "greatest inspiration for my political business information.

Some of you don't dream — sadly."

Jared Lee Lougher

If some people can convince themselves
and/or be easily convinced by others,
how many are convinced of what factual inacuracies,
and what do those who think relatively the same incorrect notions
believe to be true?

If a nation expects to be ignorant and free...,
it expects what never was and never will be.

Thomas Jefferson

Is it better or worse, that a large portion of society
believe what may be many things that are not factually true?

Insanity in individuals is rare,
but in groups, parties, nations and epochs it is the rule.

Friedrich Nietzsche

If many believe an untruth to be true,
is it still not true?