State of Cape Cod

As one legislator in R.I. told me years ago, when you hear a politician or civic/industrial leader mention.
"free!"
'no new taxes"
"create new jobs"
"for the people'
'for the children'
"for the environment"
'for the good of the country"

..hang on to your wallet!"

These are buzz words crafted by pundits who are seeking to extract huge sums of your money, making you feel good about it, as they line their, and their cronies, pockets at your expense.

And the intended recipients of such preposterous programs, receive, if at all, a mere pittance..and remain totally dependent and subservient for the duration.

always waiting for the proverbial carrot.


possee

"The word 'green' alone is used to describe any number of allegedly useful, even necessary, products and programs which will impact us all. There are the windmill and global warming controversies to name just two. The point is, when something is described as being of benefit to all of us, for our own good, it’s a good idea to find out who's behind it and how he stands to gain. Always follow the money trail. Remember, Al Gore ain't broke."

And neither is Gordon. If his true purpose was to bring clean, green energy to the Cape and Massachusetts Jim would consider an alternative site.

His purpose was purely profit wrapped in the cloth of green energy. His Chelsea fossil fuel power plant across the street from a grammar school is further proof that he is driven by profits vs the good of all the folks on Cape Cod.

Thank God the Native Americans stood up and refused to be steamrolled by the next generation of intruders to their culture.

I grew up in a small town neighborhood, with relatives nearby and many other children whose parents looked out for everyone. But demographics have changed all that.

I lived on a public street then, not far from the downtown area -within an easy walk. But what we've seen on Cape Cod over the past fifty years, with rampant subdivision of once open land or agricultural land, often miles away from downtown areas, schools, playgrounds, et cetera, has had a significant impact on how we have to parent our kids.

My folks could let me roam on my bike and go to the nearby ballfield, because we had that kind of neighborhood. When my kid was growing up, though, we were several miles from the nearest ballfield, and with all the retirees buying up the building lots our subdivision didn't have enough families with kids to allow eight or ten of them to get together for a pickup game, even if there had been an open field on which to play nearby.

Each section of town once had it's own Little League team and field, but now that's centralized around one facility, with a townwide draft.

I am trying hard to digest this. I was raised in large part by my grandparents, the very generation to which you refer. While I applaud simpler times and virtues there were other far less savory aspects to the old way, and in my humble opinion, such divisions did little to foster a "closer knit community" for when people assume "like to like" they also unwittingly subscribe to the notion that everyone of a particular race or religion acts alike and naturally wants the same thing. That is a slippery slope.
I remember my grandmother telling stories of such times, where she as a little girl was not allowed to play with the so called "Portagee" children.
Well, of course, right? Birds of a feather flock together, in that frame of mind.
In my own experience, the opposite is true. My daughter's best friend is Chinese, and this enriches our experience. I am fluent in Brazilian Portuguese and therefore grateful I didn't limit myself "like to like"
I agree with many of the simpler/physically stimulating elements of times of yore, but disagree with division by race or religion.

Jonathan: Only as an illustration of the homogeneity of neighborhoods in those times, not segregation but gravitation of like to like. There was usually an Irish section, an Italian, Jewish, Black, etc. This fostered, I believe, a somewhat closer knit community with more common interests than a more diverse area might have.

The kid in Boston who murdered the college student was one of Stacey's Roxbury students.

It has been said that, "The malicious have a dark happiness, Jonathan, it's the degradation of man by poverty"

I agree with 99% of what you are saying, but how does ethnic and religious segregation play in? You seem to lead with that as something to emulate, some good thing that we lost.
I find that puzzling and so would most.

Mr. Cohen: Not everywhere. Read the first sentence. I use them interchangeably. And don't let the ACLU hear you calling them roten punks.

Oh, btw: They don't call it "junior high" anymore. Now it's "middle school."

You left something out.

"Oh, and one other thing: Get off my lawn, you rotten punks!"

You see kids putting it in reverse by accident and driving into a CVS shop window all the time.

A rightwinger wants fairness? What socialistic twaddle. You have strayed from the reservation my friend. Let's just do The Full Reagan and forget this License jive altogether. A private tollbooth on every intersection!!!

The Outees probably think I should be Ventilated.

balognasamich - I asked your quetion on the apple forum and was apparently told that the opposite is more likely to be true. I'm confused.

http://discussions.apple.com/search.jspa?search=Go&q=why+do+macbooks+pick+up+the+free+wifi+while+windows+does+not%3F

I'll trill in... one question has always dogged me this side of the pond... why do macbooks pick up the free wifi while windows does not?
And Ned, why 'since the election'? Shouldn't your 'outing's' also be punctuated?

Wow an excellent post from Roger. The dust has settled here trollwise since the election thanks be.

And Maureen Dowd?

Before we make reporters reveal their news sources, I think we should make them all preface every article with the identity of their corporate sponsors, i.e. any business interests from which they have received compensation, directly or indirectly, in each calendar year. I'm sure George Will's disclosures would far exceed the length of his columns.

After reading this article, three blind and mysterious mice have taken it upon themselves to peronally invade, probe and infiltrate my thought process by inserting a microchip of (Mis)Information.

Don't worry Rog; newspapers are toast and TV news is 'pwned'. The Fifth Estate is dead. Just hope that that never never becomes a problem for you or anyone you know.

I used to blame the Governor for some stuff and the President for the rest, but now I just blame blacks for everything. It's not really correct, but it allows me time for other things.

I stand corrected. You are absolutely correct, if nitpicky. If by unanimous in your derision you mean you agree with yourself, I should certainly hope so for the sake of your mental health. I, too, am unanimous in my complete disregard for your opinion. In fact, I consider it a badge of honor. Additionally, I chuckle at your feeble attempt to flaunt your linguistic prowess by addressing me in Italian. Ottenga una vita.

It is my collective duty to inform Signore Savino that there's no apostrophe required in 'Get's'... it's not possessive, unlike your average Wingnut. And I am unanimous in my derision.

excellent column. Getting to be time to leave this awful state after living here for over 30 years.

If they forced early retirement on some of the dead wood hanging onto state jobs who are making over $100k, we would save so much more. This is a cheap shot aimed at those who have already suffered enough by fiscal fallout. Let us see how they stay alive after the middle class get wiped out. What a bunch of morons. Who ever said you needed brains to be in govt? More brothel residents. I was never a fan of Reagan, but his quote made sense. No loyalties but to their own and any high bidder will do. When is the next ponzie scheme? Maybe they should give up their own salaries for a few years. There is another easy bank roll.

So is beer.

Wine is already taxed at the distributor level and believe me, its passed on to the consumer.

The soda tax, like the lottery and the cigarette tax, is clearly aimed at the less-educated working class who aren't as empowered to lobby against taxes on themselves. Suppose Deval wanted to tax pinot noir, ski lift tickets, and sushi? Do you really think it would ever happen?

Pinot noir involves a big carbon load in transporting it, downhill skiing in an environmentally unfriendly and dangerous activity, and sushi has gross parasites and is mercury-laden.

So let's tell the truth and call this tax what it is: the bubba tax, for working class white people who drink a lot of soda, smoke, and buy lottery tickets.

Again, not meaning to be cruel, but this is the exact usual possee Comment. I'm just sayin'. Citizens for Limited Taxation wants a revolution? Didn't we get one in '80? Isn't that the crumbling rotting-zombie world we now live in? There aren't enough brains on earth to feed the zombiehunger.

Roger

Unfortunately, the same crowd that bemoans our current financial mess, and increasing tax burdens, are the same ones who will vote, and voted, unanimously,overwhelmingly, for the same gang of thieves who created this mess..
They are so enamoured and star struck by the majesty of it all..
from the Golden Dome on Beacon Hill
to the White Dome in DC,
that by the time a glint of truth hits them,
it's too late..
as it is now..

Glad I had my sunglasses on so I wasn't blinded as well..

Welcome to the Brave New World!

possee

New Jersey: Respectfully, I recall that the quality of mercy (and compassion) is not strained. I prefer to leave alternative sentiments in the hands of the Archie Bunkers among us.

Rudy Giuliani needs a gig ...let's bring him out here to 'disappear' the homeless like he did in NYC. James Paul is a gentleman; and his reaction to Rog, whose whole blog history here can be summed up in the olde Irish maxim, "I Got Mine #*@& You", is not only understandable but admirable.

NJ Rog,

You are right on. Who can argue with your assertion that "Certainly nobody should be without shelter and food. A humane citizenry ought to, without hesitation, ensure that their fellow human beings are provided with the rudimentary necessities of life."

videopaul,

I have read you comment several times and fail to see what your objection is to NJ Rog's article. An ad hominem attack on NJ Rog merely detracts from any point you were trying to make. Of course, he is from New Jersey, but is that a real reason???

To videopaul: Disagree if you like, but please do so politely. Insults are the currency of the intellectually bankrupt.

Since your wavin' tho ol' Red, white & blue I suggest you read a recently written bokk "A Peoples' History of Poverty in America." What you have written here is so obviously and literally pedestrian and bourgeois. I would bet that you have never had a hungry day in your life. Good for you. And where is all that big money in social work? Most of the people who work with these problems either come from them or volunteer tremendous amounts of time. You have nothing to give but a narrow cliche', uninformed opinion from a lofty perch. Thanks but no thanks - your charity sucks and your view of humanity is flawed.

harleyrider, marlborosmoker, budweiserdrinker. The Rebel Consumer.

Looking on the bright side, Banzhaf concludes:

"We might now be even more successful in persuading states and localities to ban smoking on their own, once they no longer have OSHA rule-making to hide behind."

Once again, the Anti-Smoking Movement reveals that it's true motive is basically Prohibition (stopping smokers from smoking; making them "social outcasts") --not "safe air."

And the attitude seems to be, as Stanton Glantz says, if the science doesn't "help" you, don't do the science.

Another major threat was that, if the agency were forced by ASH's suit to promulgate a rule regulating workplace smoking, [it] would be likely to pass a weak one.... This weak rule in turn could preempt future and possibly even existing non-smokers rights laws-- a risk no one was willing to take.

As a result of ASH's dismissal of the suit, OSHA will now withdraw its rule-making proceedings but will do so without using any of the damaging [to Anti activists] language they had threatened to include."
-ASH Nixes OSHA Suit To Prevent Harm To Movement

Scaring Banzhaf, and Glantz and the rest of them to death.

Permissible levels? No, no. That would mean that OSHA, officially, said that smoking was permitted. That in fact, there were levels (hard to exceed, as we hope we've already shown) that were generally safe.

This so frightened Banzhaf that he dropped the case. Here are excerpts from his press release:

"ASH has agreed to dismiss its lawsuit against OSHA...to avoid serious harm to the non-smokers rights movement from adverse action OSHA had threatened to take if forced by the suit to do it....developing some hypothetical [ASH's characterization] measurement of smoke pollution that might be a better remedy than prohibiting smoking....[T]his could seriously hurt efforts to pass non-smokers' rights legislation at the state and local level...