CapeCodToday Blog Chowder

Surprise surprise... Zep hasn't responded to any of her critics. Please Zep, enlighten us on how this trial was "murky".

In all honesty, to all those who seem to think that the McCowen trial was a "sham". Why do you presume that our local police wanted to frame someone? Why do you assume that racism is the overriding factor?

In my mind, the Worthington murder was all but forgotten, except for the vocal FEW who seemed to know the victim. What was the urgency in finding a "patsy"?

I read lots of rhetoric, speculation and emotion, but no hard facts from McCowen's supporters.

If it looks like a duck and quacks likes a duck....

McCowen was a man with a lot of problems and the evidence (DNA) identified as being at the scene of the crime; nuff' said!

Not to be facetious; but I thought that "progressives" or "liberals" (I hate to apply labels) have been telling us for several decades now that it's not the governments job to push morality?

Here's an article that supports an opposing view to the article you posted http://www.epionline.org/study_detail.cfm?sid=100

First of all; statistics prove that less than 1% of working adults over the age of 25 earn the "minimum" wage. It's not a simple generalization to suggest that the minority of people who choose to raise a family earning this wage are a disgrace. I earned minimum wage at 16, working my first job. I was happy to be earning what I was. I never expected that the "minimum" wage would be my meal ticket to the American Dream.

Secondly, if you believe that it's the governments job to set a minimum wage, then in my mind it's not a leap in logic to suggest that there should be a "maximum" wage! This bothers me.

The fact that people "choose" to raise a family on the minimum wage is a disgrace!! :)

I've never suggested that he's a union puppet. Although he may have corporate contacts, he is a lawyer and apparantly has never had any experience actually running a business.

With that being said, SEIU (which is arguably the most leftist of U.S. trade unions) endorsed Patrick from the get go. One of the issues that SEIU uses as a rallying call is increasing the minimum wage or as they call it the "living" wage.

Horace Mann schools are excellent! My argument is based on the fact the MTA supports H. Mann schools because they are funded through local school districts and thus make use of the local teacher's union. The MTA came out pretty strongly in support of Patrick, so I think they must see him more as a friend than a threat!
By the way, my wife is a charter school teacher and is strongly anti-union, so I admit to being biased!

Two "union" issues that stand out in my mind are his proposals to increase the minimum wage and provide more support for union controlled Horace Mann charter schools.

It was actually Matt Patrick, the state rep. that proposed raising the income tax.

He wrote an editorial that was in today's Cape Cod Times.

Well, I guess we'll see how he does! I must say that I'm a little bothered by the fact that Matt Patrick has already proposed increasing the state income tax.
I just hope that Deval doesn't act as a rubber stamp for the state house.

Customer service wasn't part of the union contract!!

Are you suggesting that Democrats like to drive SUV's?

You're right.... and I like Patrick less then Healey (not by much though)!!

Rant, you're right; Healey really does suck.

Unfortunately, I cannot support Patrick because his victory will mean Massachusetts will be completely under one party rule.

Look where it's gotten us with the federal government!!

Give me my free drugs ya little whippah snappahs!!

Zep, Is it possible that a clever terrorist could attack a vulnerable target via the Great lakes? (i.e an explosives laden pleasure boat running aground on a busy summer beach, etc...)

If so, should the government take "reasonable" steps to protect the US along the Great Lakes?

The M240 fires a 7.62mm round with an effective range of a little over 1800 meters!

There's over 10,000 miles of coast line along the Great Lakes!!

There's plenty of coastline left for your "Peanut cruise"!

AFK = Away from keyboard

L8R

No no no... don't you all understand? The Governor has omniscient powers of all state functions!!

The legislature doesn't do anything; they are the helpless pawns of an evil right wing (haha) Republican administration that wants to steal school lunches from urban kids and kick old people out to die on the streets!! And on top of that.... they want to (gasp) give money to rich people by lowering their taxes!!

Oh, the humanity!!

I have no idea whether the fee increases are reflective of cost or not. I suppose we can speculate! I would be curious to see some examples of these fee increases.

What’s the problem with spending $45 for a birth certificate; is this a significant cost? If someone is purchasing a boat and they need to register it, shouldn’t the costs associated with registering that boat somehow be tied to municipal costs associated with supporting boats (i.e. boat ramps, harbor master, etc…). The same should go for vehicles, building permits, etc…

What’s wrong with the government operating pragmatically?

Oh, never mind… I just realized I’m debating a democrat (just kidding)

I don't have a problem with increased fees, as long as they are a reflection of the actual costs associated with that government service.

IF the government finds that it is necessary (arguably) to provide certain services, the costs associated with those services should be borne by those who use those services. (i.e. if you want to use a town skating rink; YOU pay for it).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anarcho-capitalism

:)

Hooray!!

For a minute there I thought there was going to be a debate on the issues!!

Is that any better??

Is it BYOB at the Kennedy cookout??

Mary, I picked up on your tongue and cheek comments regarding Dr. Rice and Margaret Thatcher. You may want to make a corection on your blog title.

"Listen to women who agree with me (Zep) and then disparage all others..."

Catch 22

Please remember that Islam is the religion of peace http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/asiapcf/09/02/zawahiri.tape/index.html

Wow, that dish looks unbelievable!!

Just in time too, because the tomato plants are starting to ripen.

Monpo, please don't dismiss Lawrence Welk!!

That's fine Peter, I can accept that there are people who can’t make it to public meetings; but my criticism is more with the expectation that many people have that it should be paid for by the cable providers. What about people with satellite TV? What about those without cable at all? To put the burden on Comcast (or Verizon) is anti-business in my opinion.

If the broadcast of public meetings is something the Town deems to be important, they should consider broadcasting over the internet, or via A.M. Radio. I can’t imagine the costs would be substantial, since the Town could probably get a free radio license, in addition, they could charge a nominal fee to those who would want to view it over the internet or accept local business advertising to offset the cost of bandwidth.

It’s time for people in government to think outside the box!

Yay, another bureaucrat impeding free enterprise!!

Let's be honest Bill; very few people actually watch public access and I don't think it's the job of the telecom companies to susidize it.

If someone cares enough about an issue that is being covered in a public meeting, they should get off their duff and GO TO THE MEETING. They shouldn't expect Comcast or Verizon to foot the bill.

Why does the government always have to act in a parasitic manner?

Chuck Norris' tears can cure cancer.....


too bad he's never cried!

Jack, That's the essence of my questions.

Pure democracy is essentially mob rule; i.e. the majority always gets its way!

What's the difference between democracy and mob rule?

"Veteran for Peace".... I just checked out their website. What a treasure trove of left wing activists!!

All of the quotes you have cited sound "noble" enough. Unfortunately, I do not accept Lt. Watada's notion that our soldiers who do not refuse to go to Iraq are morally equivalent to soldiers serving under the Third Reich.

I guess that throws any rational debate on the subject out the window if you are insinuating that our soldiers are Nazi's!!

Well said McFly!

Sounds like a good first step in getting government out of our lives.

Haha

What's your point Zep?
We won the war, rebuilt Japan (and Germany), and have not used a nuclear weapon in anger since.

It's easy to be a Monday morning quarterback with over a half century of history to fall back on.

My apologies for sounding a bit ticked off, a very close friend has served two tours in Iraq and I get very defensive.
I did read the article and I do find it troubling. But you know something, most members of our military (enlisted, NCO's, officers, "brass") also find behavior like that troubling as well. I choose not to paint a broad brush over the overwhelming majority of our military.
Your comment regarding the "civilian commanders and the brass" did not go unnoticed. I think it was merely a token comment and a poor attempt to insinuate that bad behavior is systemic within the military.
Your aversions towards murder and torture are not unworthy and I have never indicated such; in fact I agree with you in principle. Unfortunately your assertion that the army condoned atrocites is downright absurd and based more in speculation than actual fact.
Your article bases all of it's information on a Pentagon report that exposed atrocities commited during the Vietnam war. If the military condones this sort of behavior, why would they write this report?

At least our soldiers in Vietnam weren't exposed to the horrors of having panties put over their head or seeing their beloved bibles flushed down the toilet.
Sarcasm aside; the USCMJ is quite explicit with regards to acceptable behavior for members of the military. Illegal behavior is not tolerated in the military and it is dealt with harshly (do you even know anyone that serves????)
Quite frankly David, I'm pretty ticked off that you disparage the ENTIRE MILITARY for your own ideological reasons.
Any person who "volunteers" to serve our country is noble and you should show a little more respect!!

The bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki; much like the firebombing of Dresden are horrific reminders of what war is. Unfortunately, war is sometimes necessary. Japan and Germany could not under any circumstances be allowed to win WWII, simple as that. You have to look at things in historical perspective.

Capri, I appreciate what you say! Unfortunately, it's a shame that the mother's of our foes (Islamists) think nothing of sending their children off with explosives strapped to their bodies.

Why didn't the UN deal with the problem to begin with? They have issued resolutions calling for the disarmament of Hezbollah; why do you think they are going to be effective now?

Peter, what you say sounds all well and good (ceasefire and negotiations), but how has it helped the mideast in the recent past?
Israel and Hezbollah have had a ceasefire for the past six years and it doesn't appear to have accomplished anything. Hezbollah has been stockpiling rockets along the Israeli border and no one has done anything about it. You claim that what Israel is doing is "counter-productive"; how in the hell can reverting back to the staus quo be productive?
Peace has to be a two way street and I've seen nothing but whining and finger pointing coming from the Arab states, Hezbollah, and the Palestinians.

Kellery, The Canadian government only subsidizes drugs with regard to their national health care system. US consumers are not part of this system and thus are not beign subsidized by the Canadian government.
The Patented Medicine Prices Review Board of Canada controls the price of all patented drugs sold in Canada.
If a US (or Canadian, European, etc...) pharmaceutical company sells drugs in Canada, they are required to sell the drug at the price which the government sets or risk paying fines (and possible loss of their patent).
The pharmaceutical companies choose to offset their losses by charging more for their drugs in the US since we don't have price controls.
Not only that, but many other countries have price controls as well, so the US is effectivley paying for a good portion of the world to have "cheap" medicine.

Welcome aboard Marge!
A slight distinction needs to be made. You keep referencing "free trade"; not a "free market".
Not only that, but Canada legislates the price of prescription drugs, so this is the reason that prices are "cheaper" up there. US consumers (those that don't import from Canada) are effectively subsidizing our neighbors to the north.

That doesn't sound like a "free market" to me.

Welcome aboard David. A few comments and questions:
1. Radionuclides?? From the information that I have seen, there are more active Radionuclides (radioisotopes) emenating from space then there are from Pilgrim.
2. I thought that the high cancer rates on the cape were due to Pave Paws, MMA pollution, groundwater pollution, etc...
3. Nuclear waste is being stored on site because there are federal laws restricting the movement and reprocessing of those materials. We should be reprocessing the material that is still fissable.
4. See 3; that material should be reprocessed and whatever byproduct is left can be encased in glass "vitrification"
5. Troubling; Please cite source
6. It seems to me that it would probably be good to have an emergency plan for a nuclear “disaster”. In addition, we should probably have an emergency plan in place for hurricanes, tsunami’s, Avian Flu etc… This would probably be a good role for county government. Where has the government been for the past THIRTY YEARS??
7. Why don't people buy their own KI pills?

Hey Chuck,
Why not keep the nuclear energy and have an additional 20% from wind energy?
Why does it only have to be one way or the other? Where's the middle ground?

Monpo, What kind of a profit margin do you think the oil companies should be making?
From all of the financial data I have seen, it appears that the oil companies on the whole are only netting about 10% of total revenue. Is that an outrageous profit in your mind??
And to be quite honest, high oil prices are probably one of the best things that can happen to renewable energy. The high price of oil makes it economically viable to develop many of the forms of energy production that Stilgar has mentioned.
The free market at work... it's a beautiful thing :)

Questions for Opinionator:
Should it be legal for a business to hire an individual and not pay any of their payroll taxes?
Should it be legal to hire an individual and not pay any worker's compensation insurance for them?
Should it be legal to hire an individual and not pay them the state minimum wage?

As a diver who one day aspires to dive the Doria, I'll give my respects!
Deep diving is a dangerous activity and I respect anyone who engages in it.

**correction; "they DON'T deserve to make it"**

I disagree wholeheartedly. We need oil in the short term AND we also need to begin developing alternative energy.
Oil is a huge part of our economy and it is economically impossible to go cold turkey.
The only thing we agree on, is the fact that the oil companies are recieving way too much in the way of tax loopholes and subsidies from the goevernment. The capitalist in me says that if they can't make it on their own, they deserve to make it. That goes for everyone!
As the price of oil increases (hopefully because of natural market forces) clever business owners will find, develop and make money off of alternative energy.
Our economy and standard of living has been brought about (mostly) because of the free market.

I think almost everyone is in agreement that the long term goal for our energy needs should focus on "renewable" sources. Regardless, we have a current need for fossil fuels and it is pie in the sky thinking to suggest that "renewable" energy is the current solution to our woes. Most cars on the road can not use "bio diesel" and there are a lot of limitations to using ethanol (lack of supply).
ANWR is one piece of the pie when it comes to our energy needs and I don't think we can afford to not make use of "all" of the resources we have available. This would include further drilling in the gulf of Mexico, off the California coast and exploring potential oil fields off of George's Bank.
From an economic standpoint; if there really is not that much oil in ANWR, why are the oil companies willing to invest so much money in establishing a presence in that area??
Let me reiterate that I am fully in support of renewable energy (I actually support Cape Wind) but we have to be realistic about our energy needs!!

What's your point??

The good ol' legislators on Beacon Hill are mearly looking out for the best interests of those people who care least about their own best interests!!
In my opinion, these legislators are cowards, plain and simple! Why don't they just legalize drugs all together? I mean, by their own admission, they are enabling drug addicts to use (in a safe manner); why not go that extra step?

Stilgar: It's a shame that more people don't hold your viewpoint. Somehow I recall quite an uproar when Condoleeza Rice gave the recent commencement address at BC. There were quite a few protests calling for her NOT TO BE HEARD.

Matt, Thank you for engaging and debating us in this debate!!
Unfortunately, I disagree with you!!
Back to the minimum wage debate...... How do you decide what the minimum wage should be? It seems to me that it is arbitrary. If your goal is to have a "family of four" live on a minimum wage, why don't you double or triple the current wage!!
An arbitray wage doesn't make sense to me!

Sounds like typical class envy/warfare!!
So the argument is... the wealthy aren't deserving of their success. Did I get this right?
Why don't we bump the minimum wage up to $20/hour. Not only that, if the government is going to be in the business of establishing wages, why don't we make a maximum wage while we're at it. A 62% increase in the number of millionaires; that's outrageous!!

Sarcasm aside, it's a shame that the government has become so entrenched in our lives that many people expect the government to be involved in such things as wages, healthcare, redistribution of wealth, etc...

On the other hand, I do listen to NPR on a regular basis and I enjoy their content. The vast majority of the programming is high quality and tends to cover a lot of issues and stories that are missed by the mainstream media. The problem as I see it though, is I don't think it the governments place to be subsidizing media outlets. In my opinion, NPR needs to develop their own revenue streams apart from the government and I think there are lot of new avenues available. i.e. satellite radio, listener supported memberships clubs, further promotion of the NPR Foundation, etc..

Oh Ned... if you're listening to WOMR then everything must seem like "hard right corporate content". I listen to Democracy Now once in while, it is interesting to listen to the media spin from the Bolshevik end of the political spectrum!!

Stilgar: Not all "climate scientists" are true "climatologists". Some "climate scientists" may specialize in fields that study the effects of climate change on their specific field. That does not make them all qualified to speak on the causes of climate change.
Here are a few dissenting voices:
http://www.sepp.org/heidelberg_appeal.html
http://www.envirotruth.org/myth_experts.cfm
Don't be so quick to dismiss those with differing opinions.

Hey, I'll call a spade a spade. The government should not be subsidizing ANY business (or any person for that matter)!!
Let the free market work it all out.

The US ethanol industry can only survive will welfare in its current form. We need to eliminate tarifs on Brazilian ethanol and let the US producers develop their own methods of production free of direct government subsidies.
On another front, a Canadian company named Iogen has developed a process of creating ethanol using cellulose (plant fiber). It's a neat concept that I hope they are able to develop into a profitable industry.
It would be a great business opportunity to have regional and/or local (if it’s profitable) factories producing cellulose based ethanol, using everything from lawn clippings to paper and even trash. Unfortunately, I think the technology still has a long way to go.
I don’t buy into all of the climate change hysteria, but I do think that we need to diversify our energy needs from a political and economic standpoint. Ethanol should be one option, along with oil, coal, wind, nuclear, solar, tidal, etc…

Hmm... where do I begin; and please don't call me heartless :)
Medicaid/MassHealth is $7bil; I'm sure there's a substantial amount that can be cut. Why do I have to pay every time someone visits the doctor for some sniffles?
Higher Ed is $900mil; I paid my way through "private" college with loans and hard work. These schools should be self sustaining. (PERIOD)
Income Support (welfare) is $600mil; if you can't afford to have a kid... don't have one or give them up for adoption. It sounds cruel, but why should I pay for lousy personal decisions.
I don't think everything I mentioned should be eliminated; just substantially cut. People shouldn't count on the government. I can name quite a few other cuts that SHOULD be made, but I'd probably be tarred and feathered.

I can only dream :)

That's a shame too because entitlements are the largest source of waste (uh... I mean spending) in the budget.