Wonking the Coast

The El Paso Miracle

2009-07-06T18:13:00.002-05:00

An interesting article about the astonishingly low crime rate in El Paso, which would seem to be a candidate for a high crime rate, in light of what's going on just across the Big River.

Creaking back to life?

2009-07-06T15:56:00.002-05:00

As my friend Cory pointed out the other day, it's been a LONG time since I posted anything here. In fact, it took me a while to even remember my password...

But, I'm feeling a bit like posting these days, so I may put some more stuff up. Or not. I suppose time will tell.

You said it, brudder...

2008-10-19T08:40:00.003-05:00

". . . THE COUNTRY IS GETTING STEERED INTO CHAOS AND INSOLVENCY AND WAR BY ITS UNREAD UNINFORMED DULLARD SHEEP CONSTITUENCIES AND YOU JUST LET THE CANDIDATE SAY ONE MORE TIME WITHOUT OBJECTION THAT HE'S GOING TO CUT TAXES WHILE HE CALLS FOR FREE 24 KARAT GOLD FRANKFURTERS TO BE INSERTED INTO EVERY AMERICAN'S ASS JUST BECAUSE BUTT BULLION POLLS WELL."

Berkeley Breathed on Salon.com, discussing his feelings about the current state of America, and why he's sending Opus "into the ages."

Watching the horror...

2008-09-12T13:30:00.003-05:00

You can watch live web feeds of 4 Houston TV stations covering Hurricane Ike at http://www.maroonspoon.com/wx/ike.html

Reporters I can understand. The woman there on the seawall with her two small kids, looking to see what is going on, not so much. She doesn't want to leave her house, so she's exposing her kids to this. Aaaargh!

Galveston in the bulls-eye

2008-09-12T13:15:00.003-05:00

Dr. Jeff Masters over at Weather Underground says "Storm surge heights of 20-25 feet are possible from Galveston northwards to the Louisiana border."

A 20-foot surge could make the island totally disappear (see this spooky animation created in 2005 when Rita came through, showing what a 20-foot surge would do to Galveston), so this looks to be bad. Like REALLY bad. Like Katrina-like bad. I hope I'm wrong...

Large Hadron Rap

2008-09-10T20:55:00.001-05:00

To satisfy all of our advanced-particle-physics-rap urges (although I think MC 900-foot Jesus did this song already in about 1988):

Heads up, Corpus Christi

2008-09-09T16:19:00.002-05:00

I lived in Corpus Christi for about 3 years in the mid-1990s. It's a nice town. I hope they come through this okay, but they look to be on the "bad" side of the storm if it follows this track. There isn't a whole lot of population on the coast between Corpus Christi and Harlingen/Brownsville to the south, so if it does come in there hopefully they won't get too badly hit. Good luck y'all!

Oh, you have GOT to be kidding...

2008-09-09T16:04:00.002-05:00

Lance Armstrong Announces Return to Tour de France

Can I just say:

Thank you, Dr. Morale....

2008-09-05T15:09:00.002-05:00

I usually like reading Dr. Jeff Masters WunderBlog over at Weather Underground. He really seems to know his stuff and he gives it to us straight. But then I read this about Hurricane Ike:

"Overall, I'd give the Gulf Coast a 70% chance of getting hit (including the west coast of Florida)."

Gee, thanks doc. Not his fault, of course, and he's giving it his best estimation, but considering we just got through with Fay and Gustav, I think I'm about ready for someone to just start lying to me and tell me everything is going to be okay...

Ike Ike Ike

2008-09-05T11:08:00.005-05:00

"Ike." It draws varying images to mind. "I like Ike" bumper stickers (which I'm too young to really remember). The smiling, balding face gazing placidly down from the principal's wall as the gym teacher suggests calling in a sketch artist to draw the offending student's dingus from the shower scene in "Porky's." A young (but already creepy) Richard Nixon. The cold war.

Perhaps a Cockney quarterback (think about it...).

But it looks like "Ike" may soon mean something totally different to folks in these parts. I'm NOT liking the look of this:

Tax Watch website is down

2008-06-21T18:49:00.002-05:00

Went to read the new Florida Tax Watch report and found their website is down. Crashed by the thousands of Escambia residents wanting to pore over the report? Kinda doubtful, but we can hope... Hopefully the website will be back up shortly.

Florida Tax Watch Report is up

2008-06-20T11:32:00.003-05:00

Florida Tax Watch's report on Improving Transparency and Accountability in Escambia County Government (.pdf warning) is up on the Tax Watch website.

It looks to be about 40 pages long, so I'll have to wait until this weekend to be able to read it, but Rick Outzen notes on his blog that the report "finds that revenue and spending increases since 2000 are 'unsustainable.'" Not shocking.

Paradigm Shifting, part deux

2008-06-18T22:53:00.003-05:00

So last November I complained about a tank of gas costing me less than $70.00. Ah, the folly of youth. That same tank now costs me almost $90.00. At Sam's club. Sheee-yit, mang. So the Tundra is officially for sale. If y'all know anyone who is interested in a very gently used 2001 Tundra SR5 with lots of the bells and whistles (sorry, no leather), lemme know. Gotta unload this albatross, y'know?

Same song, different year

2008-06-18T22:46:00.003-05:00

I wrote almost exactly a year ago about my Rice Owls being eliminated from the 2007 College World Series after a couple of early wins. No such luck this year, though. Two losses and out. Ugh. But, hey, we can console ourselves with the fact that they've made the CWS 3 years in a row now, right? And that they won the whole thing in 2003? And, uh, um, aw screw it. I want a beer. Frackin' Owls...

Got a foghorn and a drum and a Hamer that's rockin' and a cord and a pedal and a life that'll do for now...

2008-06-18T22:33:00.004-05:00

Some things just feel like home. I put on this record tonight, and even 20+ years down the road it still makes my spine tingle. If you haven't listened in a while, give it a go again. You won't be sorry.

Good Ideas Abound (not so much here, tho)

2008-06-18T22:11:00.002-05:00

Poking around the Florida Tax Watch website looking for the still-elusive report on its analysis of Escambia County's tax and spending practices (I'm equally giddy and apprehensive about the results of that report), I came across their "Notable Practices" report (.pdf warning), which seems like a great resource.

I haven't read the whole thing yet, but it looks like a collection of really good ideas that it would make sense for us to consider here.

Perhaps not surprisingly, there is only one "notable practice" from the Pensacola/Escambia County area, involving "urban infilling," which is described in the report as

us[ing] an urban infill implementation grant and funds from other programs to acquire 12 lots, construct seven homes, and pay for 1,700 overtime hours that were worked by police officers patrolling the urban infill and redevelopment area.

The report states that "[t]hese activities helped encourage private developers to build housing in this area." I'm not sure what project this refers to, but it sounds neato.

Maybe some of our local nabobs should read through some of the ideas coming from other areas in the state? Maybe? Anyone? Bueller?

Hello, TaxWatch? Hi, it's me, Patrick...

2008-05-24T10:20:00.003-05:00

I've been sort of half-heartedly following the budgeting process for Escambia County (see Rick Outzen's blog items about the budget here). What I'm really eager to see is this year's TaxWatch report on Escambia County, but for some reason it's been delayed.

Back on February 4th, Florida Tax Watch indicated in a press release (.pdf warning) that the report would be out at the end of March. I sent an e-mail recently, inquiring about the status of the report, and received a reply from Kaye Kendrick, Senior VP for Research, stating that they are "still continuing to work out a few details," and that, although there is no official release date, I should "check back with [TaxWatch] during the second week of June."

Hopefully it will come in time to be considered in the budgeting process.

Sometimes you gotta wonder...

2008-05-23T18:38:00.002-05:00

I haven't commented about the whole "Rustygate" thing before, but I've been thinking about it quite a bit. Rick Outzen has talked about it a lot, and the PNJ even picked up the story (finally). I don't necessarily share Rick Outzen's apparent view that anything sinister or underhanded occurred, but I certainly DO agree that the City Council (particularly Mike DeSorbo) screwed this thing up, and how.

I mean really.

How can city council-persons in THIS CITY, who have seen things like all but one of the county commission dismissed, sunshine law violations galore, etc., etc., etc., not understand the suspicion with which EVERY action they take will be viewed? In the atmosphere that prevails in Pensacola these days, WHY THE HELL would anyone agree to bag the whole attorney-selection process that was advertised and underway, all of a sudden, with no real notice to anyone, and just say "Ah, what the hell, let's just hire that guy, and to hell with everyone else who applied, qualified or not." WTF are they thinking? How can DeSorbo NOT think that he's gonna get his ass chewed for doing that? Does he just not care? Or does he really not know? Either way, it speaks poorly of him. I learned a long time ago that I never wanted to be in the position of being belived either incompetent or evil, 'cause neither one is good. One good thing was that MY city council-person, Jewel Cannada-Wynn, had enough sense to vote against this boneheaded idea. Good on her.

While I don't always share Rick Outzen's fervor for "regime change," I'm starting to warm up to the idea. We definitely need some new blood, if only to help assuage the public perception that things are mired in the "Good Ol' Boy" network of old. We need to identify some promising independent new local folks to take city council, county commission, ECUA and School Board posts. Sometimes change is good. Seriously.

Stop. Really. Just stop. Don't make me pass a law...

2008-05-15T09:07:00.004-05:00

I'm all for the democratic process. I fully believe in the value and necessity of intelligent debate when we're passing laws that affect all of us. But, c'mon, aren't there a few things that can just be DONE, without the hassle and delay of the legislative process? I am speaking, this time, of making it illegal to f*ck your dog, m'kay?

Does anybody think this would be a bad law to pass? Would anybody argue against it? Apparently, it is still legal in Florida (and about 19 other states). And, inexplicably, it is happening.

Since 2001, there have been at least a dozen documented cases in Florida.

[shudder]

Sen. Nan Rich (D-Sunrise) introduced a bill this spring making such shenanigans illegal. The bill died in the Judiciary Committee.

Whiskey.
Tango.
Foxtrot.

Can't we just agree on this one? Can't the Governor just issue an executive order making this illegal? I'll even write it for him: "Dear Florida. DON'T F*CK YOUR DOG. If you do, we'll put you in jail. That is all."

Gads.

Movie quote o' the day

2008-05-14T20:16:00.001-05:00

I see in fight club the strongest and
smartest men who have ever lived --
an entire generation pumping gas and
waiting tables; or they're slaves
with white collars.

Advertisements have them chasing cars
and clothes, working jobs they hate
so they can buy shit they don't need.
We are the middle children of
history, with no purpose or place.
We have no great war, or great
depression. The great war is a
spiritual war. The great depression
is our lives. We were raised by
television to believe that we'd be
millionaires and movie gods and rock
stars -- but we won't. And we're
learning that fact. And we're very,
very pissed-off.

--Tyler Durden

Deep Thoughts...

2008-04-15T16:16:00.002-05:00

"WAR IS PEACE." - George Orwell, 1984

"I just want you to know that, when we talk about war, we're really talking about peace." - George W. Bush, June 18, 2002

"FREEDOM IS SLAVERY" - George Orwell, 1984

"Freedom is not a concept in which people can do anything they want, be anything they can be. Freedom is about authority. Freedom is about the willingness of every single human being to cede to lawful authority a great deal of discretion about what you do." - Rudi Giuliani, March 16, 1994

"IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH" - George Orwell, 1984

"We have to get away from the ethos that knowledge is good, knowledge should be publicly available, that information will liberate us. Information will kill us in the techno-terrorist age." - Prof. Arthur Caplan, University of Pennsylvania, 2002

I'm still giddy...

2008-04-10T14:09:00.002-05:00

I'm still a little giddy from the Jayhawks' win on Monday night, for their first NCAA championship since 1988. Here is my bracket (which won me $80 in my office pool).

Sorry, try again...

2008-04-10T06:52:00.003-05:00

The Florida Supreme Court heard arguments yesterday in the case of Emma Murray v. Mariner Health/ACE USA. The summary of the case provided by WFSU's "Gavel to Gavel" site describes the case thus:

"Ms. Murray, a nurse's assistant, was injured while helping lift a patient and had to undergo a hysterectomy and other surgical procedures. Her application for workers' compensation benefits was denied. After a hearing at which witnesses testified and evidence was presented, the Judge of Compensation Claims awarded her the requested benefits. Her lawyer then applied for attorney fees, seeking $16,880. However, the JCC found that a 2003 state law limited the fee that could be paid to $648. The First District Court of Appeal upheld the JCC. On appeal to this court, Ms. Murray argues the 2003 law was either misapplied or, if not, violates her constitutional rights to equal protection, due process and access to the courts. Mariner Health and Ace American Insurance Co. argue caps on attorney fees are not unconstitutional and are even found in the Florida Constitution."

The arguments were made by Richard Sicking, Esq. for the Claimant, and by Cheryl Wilke, Esq. and John Darin, Esq. for the Employer/Carrier.

The oral argument was what attorneys like to call "lively." Richard Sicking was about two seconds into his presentation when the questions started, and they did not stop for the entire hour presentation.

Attorneys around the state, both on the plaintiff's bar and the defense, are waiting to see what the Supremes do with this case. If they declare the 2003 amendments to the workers' compensation law unconstitutional, the law will revert to the pre-2003 status, and expectations are that there will be a flood of new workers' comp cases, as attorneys can finally make a living bringing those cases again, which has been very difficult to do since the new law went in place. Obviously, a flood of new claims means a flood of new work for the defense bar, so don't imagine that defense lawyers don't want this to happen.

Scuttlebutt is that the Supremes had pretty much already decided to declare the law unconstitutional before it was submitted yesterday.

See video of the oral argument here (scroll down to the April 9, 2008 entry).

Last one, I promise...

2008-04-08T20:36:00.002-05:00

I probably should have just started with this one. This shows the last 23 seconds of Regulation, and the whole overtime.

Rock chalk, baby...

Mario Chalmers' Game-Saver

2008-04-08T20:29:00.002-05:00

The last video cuts off too soon, so here is Chalmers' clutch 3.

I will watch over and over and over and...

2008-04-08T15:09:00.001-05:00

Hey! I pick the Jayhawks every year to win the NCAA. It only took 20 years for them to win it again...

Okay, so I lied...

2008-01-28T15:14:00.000-06:00

I promised to "show my work" and post about how I was figuring out whether to vote in favor of or against Amendment 1. I didn't. Hey, I'm sorry, some stuff came up (some good, some REALLY bad). So, instead of telling you my whole thought process, I'll just tell you that I decided to vote "no."

Why?

Well, for one thing, I kept hearing from supporters that "Amendment 1 isn't perfect, but it's a start." Well, that's what I call damning by faint praise. "This is crap, but it's slightly less crappy than some other crap" ain't exactly a strong sell in my world. Particularly when you're talking about something as important as taxes. And I'm tired of the knee-jerk argument that "government wastes too much money" and "tell those bastards they'll just have to tighten their belt more." Well guess what, WE'RE THE BASTARDS. Our government is not some distant, alien entity. It's us. You and me. So if we think our government is bloated and inefficient, it's up to you and me to do something about it. I don't believe that just closing the purse is the right way to do things. Rather, we need to focus on being more efficient, combining redundant services, eliminating unnecessary staff positions, etc. And that will be painful. We have hard decisions to make.

So let's get started.

Amendment 1? Will it survive the courts?

2008-01-13T13:13:00.000-06:00

Like a lot of folks, I'm mulling over the "Amendment 1" property-tax proposal in advance of the January 29 vote. I think that I have a pretty good understanding of how it is supposed to work. The easy part is the bit about doubling the homestead exemption from $25,000 to $50,000 for primary residences. Considering that the original $25,000 homestead exemption was put in place years ago, and, when indexed for inflation, would exceed $50,000 today anyway, this part seems like a no-brainer.

The "Save our Homes" portability bit is the poser. I think there is a lot of confusion about SOH in the first place, much less making it "portable." For those who aren't aware, SOH was a state constitutional amendment approved in 1992 (effective 1995), which caps increases in a home's assessed value for tax purposes at 3% per year or the change in the Consumer Price Index, whichever is less. (See Florida Statute Sec. 193.155 here). So, as your home's value (hopefully) increases over time, it's actual market value can outstrip it's taxable value. The longer you own your home, the greater this disparity can be. Ultimately, people can come to feel "trapped" in their homes, because if they sell and move into a new house, they lose the benefit of that valuation disparity. The "portability" part of the proposed "Amendment 1" is designed to allow homeowners to carry that benefit with them into their new home. If you move into a more expensive home, you'd carry the dollar-amount of the previous assessed value with you into the new house. If you move into a less expensive home, the percentage of the previous taxable value vis-a-vis the market value would be transferred.

Seems like a great idea, but, as always, there are some problems. The Orlando Sentinel has a good explanation of some of those problems in its Sunday edition today. They point out that the amendment may well not pass constitutional muster, as it unfairly benefits long-time Florida residents over new home buyers, which could improperly affect interstate commerce.

I'm still undecided, but leaning at this point toward voting "no." I will continue to post as I hash this thing out in my head in the next few days.

Nothing like waiting until the last minute, I always say...

Presidential Candidate Select-o-matic

2008-01-09T13:45:00.000-06:00

Minnesota Public Radio has a neat issue-based presidential candidate selection thingy.

Don't tell my wife, but it shows my views as most compatible with Madam Clinton.

Huzzah!

Wedding Photos

2007-11-23T17:32:00.000-06:00

Courtesy of Kathleen's cousin Brian, some photos from the wedding:

More photos on
flickr.

Worst. Book. Title. EVAR.

2007-11-21T14:11:00.001-06:00

Read about others
here. (I also like "Everything You'll Need to Remember About Alzheimer's").

Paradigm shifting and drifting

2007-11-19T15:57:00.000-06:00

So I filled up my gas tank today. $68.95. Ouch. Kathleen and I just got back from our honeymoon in Ireland, where we paid 1.189 Euro per liter for gas. Double ouch. I'm beginning to think that maybe, just perhaps, possibly, it may no longer be smart to fire up the big V-8 pickup every morning for the 2.5-mile trip from the house to the office.

So, I am officially hereby making the plain statement that I want one of these:

Smart Car

So, if anybody has a spare $12,000 laying around and is wondering what to get me for Christmas....

Thanks to Everybody

2007-11-19T15:53:00.000-06:00

In the words of Steve Martin: "I'd like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you. Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou."

To all of our friends and family who made the rehearsal dinner, wedding and reception such a special and memorable event for Kathleen and me, we do SERIOUSLY want to thank all of you. Y'all the best, mang.

Photos soon.

P

Replacing a toilet - my way...

2007-10-14T23:00:00.000-05:00

Here's how to replace a toilet. Um, well, at least it is ONE way to replace a toilet.

1) Notice crack in bowl of toilet. Realize that toilet is not leaking water, so ignore for 5 years.
2) Get annoyed by toilet making funny noises at night, because the flapper-valve is slowly leaking water. Promptly address this problem by getting up and closing bathroom door so you can't hear the funny noises anymore. Continue doing this for another 2 years.
3) When flapper-valve finally breaks, rendering the toilet useless, un-fixable and un-ignorable, go to Home Depot and buy $79 all-in-one-box toilet replacement. Congratulate yourself.
4) Get up Sunday morning and start dis-assembling old toilet. Spill very much nasty water all over bathroom floor. Curse. Scare dog by shouting. Consider just burning house down.
5) Finally get water line disconnected, toilet tank resting on its side in shower, and old toilet bowl leaving rust mark on carpet. Address the icky wax-ring leftovers. Gouge said icky wax-ring leftovers off closet flange with finger. Get icky wax-ring leftovers all over both hands. Curse more.
6) Clean fingers with industrial-strength carcinogenic solvent.
7) Examine closet flange and realize it's broken and must be replaced. Consider just putting new toilet on the old, broken flange anyway, but then decide to "do the job right." Congratulate yourself again. Stick washcloth in stinky sewer pipe and head back to Home Depot.
8) At Home Depot, look around for 15 minutes before finally finding someone who knows something about plumbing. Take his advice and buy a new closet flange, new water-supply line and PVC cement. Go back home.
9) Find that washcloth has fallen down into sewer pipe, but is still visible. Realize that those long "hook-out" pliers in your tackle box are the perfect tool to retrieve the washcloth. Spend 20 minutes moving crap around in the garage to get to the shelf where the tackle box is. Retrieve "hook-out" pliers and take back to the bathroom, and realize they're too big to fit down in the sewer pipe. Curse more. Stick your damn arm down in the pipe and grab the fucking washcloth. Wonder if you have enough gasoline to get the house going good.
10) Try to cut top of pvc closet flange off of sewer pipe with hacksaw. Take hacksaw blade out of handle because it-just-won't-work-right with the handle, and try holding the blade by hand while cutting off top of flange. Scrape all skin off knuckles. Cut 3/5 of way through flange before giving up and just breaking the damn thing off with a very large screwdriver. Curse more. Consider hiring a plumber.
11) Again using hand-held (and now bent and twisted) hack-saw blade, cut down through sidewall of remaining closet flange where it is glued into pvc drain pipe. Give up and chip the rest of the flange out of the drain pipe with same large screwdriver and hammer. Congratulate yourself for being wise enough to put the damn washcloth back down in the drain pipe where it was to catch the pvc chips as they fall. Clean out pvc chips and washcloth, and congratulate yourself again. Wonder if you have any beer.
12) Using pvc primer and cement as directed, glue new closet flange into drain pipe. Dismiss thoughts that it looks like it is sticking up too high.
13) Test-fit toilet and realize that the t-bolts are WAY too long if you're ever going to get the decorative caps to cover the bolts. Take bolts and get in car.
14) Go over to parents' house, because they have a vise and a functional hacksaw, and cut the t-bolts to length. Go back home.
15) Put t-bolts in flange. Turn new toilet upside down and install new wax ring. Place toilet on new closet flange and t-bolts. Squish everything down really good. Install washers & nuts and tighten.
16) Install tank on toilet, despite the total lack of functional directions. Congratulate yourself again.
17) Hook up new water-supply line to tank. Turn on water. Turn off water. Mop up water. Re-tighten water supply line. Turn on water. Check for leaks, find none. Congratulate yourself.
18) Intall valve handle. Hook chain from flapper valve to handle. Flush toilet. Find no leaks. Begin to realize you are a naturally gifted plumber.
19) Wonder why the flapper valve won't stay up and let the water drain, requiring you to hold the handle down to flush the toilet. Curse. Try again several times, noting that nothing changes. Check useless directions. Check warranty. Consider burining house down. Look at flapper valve again and finally see the teeny-tiny rubber band they put on it at the factory to keep it from flapping in shipping. Remove rubber band. Find that toilet flushes perfectly and doesn't leak. Consider opening a plumbing school.
20) Attach toilet seat and lid to toilet. Notice large sticker on the front of tank advising you to remove the rubber-band from the flapper valve. Curse.
21) Check toilet and find that it is very wobbly and the front lower edge is about 3/8" off the floor. Think this is probably not good.
22) Eat lunch. Drink beer. Fall asleep watching football.
23) Wake up when fiancee calls you on the telephone to say she's coming over with her dogs.
24) Go back to Home Depot. Purchase 20 washers. Go back home to find fiancee there with her dogs.
25) Try to find level. Ask fiancee where level is. Thank fiancee for showing you where level is.
26) Using level and washers, shim up toilet until it is more or less level, if you don't really look too closely, and so it doesn't wobble anymore.
27) Caulk around bottom of toilet.
28) Flush again and find no leaks. Sit on toilet and feel no wobble. Congratulate yourself on being the best fucking plumber in Florida.

Time: 7 hours.
Trips to Home Depot: 3
Trips to parents' house: 1

Oh, and one more thing...

2007-09-21T23:09:00.000-05:00

Now that the Florida Supremes have overturned Mierzwa, the insurance companies are going to right quick give back all those premium increases that they justified based upon their increased exposure due to, you guessed it, the Mierzwa decision, right? Right? RIGHT? Yeah, riiiiight...

Ouch...

2007-09-21T12:42:00.000-05:00

Floyd Landis found guilty of doping, stripped of 2006 Tour de France title.

As much as I hate to see this (just as I hated it when Tyler Hamilton was caught doping), I'm still hopeful about cycling. The fact that the best and brightest are being consistently caught and punished makes me think the sport may actually survive. Are you listening, baseball?

"Plain meaning?" Apparently, not so much...

2007-09-21T07:22:00.000-05:00

The Florida Supremes just overturned Mierzwa. It's pretty amazing that two separate Florida appeals courts (Florida Farm Bureau Cas. Ins. Co. v. Cox, 943 So.2d 823 (Fla. 1st DCA 2006); Mierzwa v. Florida Windstorm Underwriting Assn., 877 So.2d 774 (Fla. 4th DCA 2004)) can look at a statute (in this case the pre-2005 valued policy law, Fla. Stat. sec. 627.702(1)) and hold that the "plain meaning" of the statute is that the insurer has to pay the full face value of the policy when the property is a total loss, regardless of what caused the loss, and then the Florida Supremes can look at exactly the same statute and say "no it doesn't."

I guess only the Supremes can do it that way...

Excellence in blogging

2007-09-17T21:55:00.000-05:00

My friend Ray has a most deadly and dangerous post about ice cream. This presents the true pinnacle of blogging. Enjoy.

Busy, busy, busy...

2007-08-30T16:16:00.000-05:00

Okay, so I haven't been blogging much lately. Not for a lack of stuff to blog about (I mean, damn, Mr. Touart, what the hell are you thinking?), but mostly from lack of time. New job, working on the house, planning the wedding, keeping the customers satisfied, etc., you know the routine.

So, for those who want something to read and are tired of coming here and seeing nothing new day after day, I offer the following fun websites:

Fark.com - All the news that gives you fits, with fun commentary.

Townie News - Wild-ass BoSox and Patriots rants by everyone's favorite drunk, Fitzy Fitzgerald.

The Smoking Gun - The ultimate authority. Check out the mug shots.

Dubya D 40 - Angry smarty-pants lefty rantings. Guess who they don't like?

Ernie's House of Whoop-Ass - Dirty. Funny. Dangerous. But mostly dirty. NSFW.

Maddox - Dude's funny, but doesn't post very often. Hope you like pirates.

Odd Todd's Laid Off Land - Watch the cartoons, play the games, send Todd a dollar. Or not.

Enjoy. And I'll try to get back to you soon. After the fantasy football draft on Sunday, though. Gotta go work on those cheat-sheets.

P

Just in case you were in a good mood...

2007-08-18T09:12:00.001-05:00

Here's the worst story I heard yesterday. I mean, damn....

Man Left Outside Airport for Three Days.

This narrowly edged out the story of the guy throwing his deathly ill, 75-pound wife off a fourth-story balcony, and the story of the mountain in Utah continuing to slowly collapse on miners and rescuers.

I think I need a hug.

What the hell? Calling Mike Nifong...

2007-08-13T17:17:00.000-05:00

Man faces re-trial for legally possessing prescription drugs.

He was previously convicted after the jury was not told that it is legal to possess Vicodin when you have a prescription, which this fellow had. The appeals court says the conviction is "absurd" and "ridiculous." The prosecutor is undaunted, and wants to re-try the case. Justice wakes up, scratches, yawns and thinks to itself that this is going to be a crappy day...

Bill Moyers "Impeachment Panel"

2007-08-10T22:31:00.000-05:00

This may be the best work Moyers has ever done. This ought to be required watching for every member of Congress, the judiciary, and the press. I hope I can find a video of the entire discussion. If so I will post it.

Watch this kid run...

2007-07-31T09:28:00.000-05:00

I hear he has committed to Michigan. I suspect we'll be hearing the name McGuffie a lot over the next few years...

God Smites Supreme Court Chief Justice

2007-07-31T06:17:00.000-05:00

Sorry, the Devil made me do it...

As I was saying...

2007-07-27T06:46:00.000-05:00

Slate.com's Worst Sports Week Ever.

Jeezus H...

2007-07-26T09:56:00.001-05:00

Okay, I'm having a really hard time with a lot of sports these days. I didn't see it, but Cory tells me that Al Troutwig went off on the sad state of sports on the Tour de France coverage the other morning. I'm right there with Al.

The Tour is particularly offensive. I, like many, jumped on the Tour de France bandwagon back in about 2000, when Lance Armstrong was going for his second of seven consecutive wins. It was tough watching last year without Lance leading the way, but I was still interested. This year, with the Operation Puerto scandal decimating the ranks of the peloton, the Tour had a rather sad pall cast over it. Then on Tuesday, Alexander Vinokourov fails a doping test and the entire Astana team (including top rider Andreas Kloden) withdraws from the race.

NOW, Michael Rasmussen, the maillot jaune and favorite to win the race,
has been dismissed and sent home. The Tour is in wreckage. The sport is in shambles. A lot of Americans, including me, are on the verge of writing cycling off completely. I used to be a fan of boxing. Boxing got so corrupt and ridiculous that I don't watch anymore. Cycling is moving that direction now. I am glad that Rabobank took a tough stand and sent their team leader home, but I REALLY wish that it hadn't been necessary.

This sucks. Seriously...

Everyone who thinks you can rely on a contract step forward. Whoa, not so fast, trial lawyers...

2007-07-26T08:21:00.000-05:00

Some interesting dialogue has been going on recently about the Minouche Noel case and her dispute with her attorney, Sheldon Schlesinger, over his fees & costs from her med/mal case against the state. Schlesinger took on her case in the late 1980s, winning an $8.5 million judgment in 1999 against the state hospital where she was injured as a child. Seven years of lobbying later, after having to hire professional lobbyists, Schlesinger finally convinced the Florida legislature to pass a claims bill to pay the judgment. Governor Crist signed the bill back in May.

However, Schlesinger has now put a lien on the payment, saying he is owed an additional $500,000 or so in fees & costs under the contingency fee contract with Noel's parents. The legislature had capped Schlesinger's payment from the judgment at $1.07 million.

Most of the commentary on this case is predictable - "just another greedy trial lawyer trying to get rich on the back of a poor, injured girl." I don't buy it. Schlesinger worked on this case for nearly twenty years. He had a contract which the Noel family agreed to when the sought his services. Schlesinger is, by any measure, one of the most successful and sought-after trial lawyers in the U.S. I think he should be paid what the contingency-fee contract called for. That's the way it's supposed to work.

For some intersting takes on the issue, read Michael Mayo's column in the South-Florida Sun Sentinel, and a good comment about the case on Discourse.net.

Enjoy!

Florida's Fire Chiefs want PIP to stick around

2007-07-26T08:04:00.000-05:00

The Buzz reports that the Florida Association of Fire Chiefs has issued a statement (.pdf document) urging Governor Crist to call the legislature back for a special session on PIP. Fire/EMS companies stand to lose millions in un-reimbursed EMS calls if PIP sunsets on October 1st, so it's not surprising that they want it to stay on the books.

As more and more folks in the health-care field wake up to the fact that the sunset of PIP will cost them money, you can bet that the drum beat for a special session will continue to get louder. It remains to be seen how the insurance industry plays their cards to oppose this growing call for a special session. Count on them starting a big public-relations push soon about how the death of PIP will lower insurance costs.

How the News Works

2007-07-19T10:55:00.001-05:00

What's going on here?

2007-07-18T16:35:00.000-05:00

I think we've entered the Florida panhandle of the Bizarro world. First I hear that a Jackson County Democrat is a strong candidate for state legislator, and now I hear that a Democrat is the top presidential fund-raiser in the panhandle.

Is it the Apocalypse?

sigh Sadness...

2007-07-18T07:26:00.000-05:00

Michael Vick was just indicted for dog fighting.

This is depressing on a number of levels. I don't really know what to say about it.

Un-sucky movie of the day...

2007-07-17T09:22:00.001-05:00

I guess it was bound to happen. After previous summer-movie-blockbuster bombs like "Spiderman 3" and "Pirates of the Caribbean at World's End," we were bound to eventually go see a good movie. And so last night we saw "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix." And we saw that it was good.

I'm not a big Potter fan. I've not read any of the books. I've only seen a couple of the movies. But this one I liked. The story was fun and pulled me through, and the acting was commendable, particularly the woman who played Umbridge (*cough*bitch*cough*). And the wizard battle at the end was worth the wait. Most telling, perhaps, was the wife-to-be's reaction (who is a huge Potter fan, has read all the books and seen all the movies), who thought it was great. So there you go.

A Democrat state legislator in NW Florida? No way...

2007-07-17T09:13:00.000-05:00

An interesting article in the St. Petersburg Times discusses the possibility of a Democrat actually being elected to a seat in the state legislature in a panhandle district. While most would say this is a fantasy, the candidate is Sheriff John "Johnny Mac" McDaniel, who has been sheriff of Jackson County for nearly thirty years.

A tough-talking, law and order Democrat? Yeah, I guess they do still exist...

The Dead Zone

2007-07-17T08:43:00.000-05:00

And no, I'm not talking about the tv series...

The Houston Chronicle reports that the Gulf of Mexico "dead zone" off the coast of Louisiana, caused by nitrogen in the Mississippi River, will grow to more than 8,500 square miles, it's largest size in 22 years. Well, at least Louisiana doesn't have a lot of other problems to worry about right now...

As I discussed in a previous post, more corn for ethanol doesn't help this problem, as corn requires high-nitrogen fertilizer, which washes into the Mississippi.

Water, water everywhere, but not a drop for my lawn...

2007-07-17T08:19:00.000-05:00

The Northwest Florida Water Management District issued a new report (.pdf format) yesterday on the drought conditions in this part of the state. As anyone who has seen my shaggy lawn recently can attest, we've had a lot of rain in recent days here in Pensacola. However, the district reports that we're still "about 16 inches below normal district wide." The majority of the district indicates severe drought conditions, with parts of the Florida-Georgia border region rated as "extreme drought." Although no mandatory water restrictions have been put in place, voluntary water restriction measures are being promoted by most of the water authorities in the area, including ECUA here in Pensacola.

So watch the water use, please...

Irony...

2007-07-15T16:22:00.001-05:00

The "Code Monkey" video below has stopped playing correctly...

Any code monkeys out there care to lend a hand?

I thought not...

For the tech geeks out there...

2007-07-13T15:47:00.001-05:00

Brought to my attention by my tech-geek buddy John C. in Austin, it's the Code Monkey.

Enjoy.

Ouch...

2007-07-13T10:32:00.000-05:00

Here's a nice photo from the GOP presidential candidate forum hosted by the NAACP. Yes, you're seeing that correctly, only ONE (Tom Tancredo) of the nine GOP candidates showed up (by contrast, all of the Democrats came).

Phobia of the Day: paraskevidekatriaphobia

2007-07-13T08:05:00.000-05:00

In keeping with my recent posts on fear of squirrels and fear of clowns, it seems appropriate today to address that age-old fear, paraskevidekatriaphobia.

Personally, I have no particular fear of Friday the 13th. I am, however, somewhat afraid of low-budget horror movies, but mostly because they bore me and are a waste of time.

I hope Jerry doesn't see a squirrel wearing a clown costume today. That'd suck.

Jeeezus H...

2007-07-12T17:34:00.000-05:00

Arizona legislators admit they didn't know what they were voting on.

I guess I'm naive, but I would hope that a legislator would at least know what the bill is that he's voting on. These dopes in Arizona voted in favor of a bill outlawing the use of the names of dead servicemen on commercial products, and when questioned about it later had such wonderful explanations as:

"a senior moment"
"these things slip past us all the time"
"if I had been paying better attention, I would have voted no"

As stated in the article, "Rep. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Phoenix, conceded that she wasn't paying attention and was totally unaware of the contents of the bill on which she voted at least twice . . ."

BTW, Gov. Crist recently signed a similar bill into law in Florida. I wonder how many of our legislators in Tallahassee were asleep at the switch on this bill?

Rats from a sinking ship...

2007-07-10T13:43:00.000-05:00

John McCain loses his campaign manager, deputy campaign manager, chief strategist, and political director all at once. Says "everything's great!"

McCain is the Republican candidate most closely tied to President Bush on OIF, which is more and more the wrong place to be.

Bong Hits 4 Jesus - The Game

2007-07-10T06:03:00.000-05:00

I missed 2.

Any requests? Sorry, I'm not licensed to play that one...

2007-07-08T15:46:00.000-05:00

Florida Today reports that music licensing companies (ASCAP, BMI, etc.) are "stepping up" enforcement of copyright laws by going after coffee houses, bars, restaurants, etc. where musicians play covers of copyrighted songs. So, if you own a bar or coffee house and want to have your local guitar hero come and warble a few Jimmy Buffett tunes to entertain your customers, be ready to shell out the bucks first.

They report that a bar even received a bill from the licensing company that owns Hank Williams, Jr.'s "Are you ready for some football?" jingle, because it played Monday Night Football on t.v. sets in the bar. Instead of paying, the bar owner just turned down the volume when the opening song came on.

Gotta love the "free market" sometimes...

Dear Smokers: You are the scum of the earth...

2007-07-07T18:38:00.000-05:00

Joe Jackson lights up.

Yow.

I can't wait to have kids...

2007-07-06T08:16:00.000-05:00

From One Good Thing, this nice story:

For hands-down humiliation, however, I haven't yet been able to top my neighbor's misery, when his three year old daughter interrupted his poker game by running naked into the room and screaming with a joyous voice of discovery, "DADDY! DID YOU KNOW? I COME WITH MY OWN POCKET! AND IT CAN HOLD A PEN! LOOK!"

And while he was knocking his chair over to get across the room to put a stop to her performance, she showed all his friends where the pocket was and how well you could put in and take out all kinds of things.

This is a man who's going to show up at his daughter's high school graduation drunk and shirtless, with her name painted across his chest and gut, randomly shouting "WOOO!!!" during her valedictory speech and making devil horns with his upraised hands. And she will have totally earned it.

Hott4Hill

2007-07-06T07:47:00.001-05:00

Special PIP-tastic session?

2007-07-04T06:45:00.000-05:00

The Buzz reports that

Gov. Charlie Crist is "very close" to calling a special session to address the Oct. 1 disappearance of the state's no-fault automobile insurance coverage.

It's easy to see who's ox will be gored by the sunsetting of PIP. Looking at the (unbelievably weak, home-made, amateur looking) Save PIP website, the list of supporters includes the Florida Medial Association, Independent Healthcare Providers, Florida Chiropractic Association, Florida Orthopedic Society, Florida Consumer Action Network, National Center for Policy Analysis, and the Palm Beach Medical Society. (I mean, really, with all that money that is the BEST they could do with their website?).

Sciurophobia

2007-07-03T14:32:00.001-05:00

Jerry apparently doesn't like squirrels. Therefore, Jerry is a girly-man. Personally, I find squirrels to be among the least offensive of the order of rodentia.

Oddly enough, though, when I entered "evil squirrels" into Google I found that there are many people who share Jerry's aversion to squirrels. Here are some websites that you sciurophobes might want to check out (and believe me, this doesn't even scratch the surface):

The Bushy Tailed Rat

Proof that Squirrels are Evil and Mischievous

Evil Squirrel Bastards

The Evil Squirrel Conspiracy

Evil Squirrel Attacks 3 Innocent People

Enjoy.

yawn

2007-07-03T06:34:00.000-05:00

Reading about Prez Bush commuting Scooter Libby's prison sentence leaves me with a profound sense of apathy. I just don't care. I TRY to care; I feel like I SHOULD care; but I don't. My own indifference is actually more interesting to me than the story itself ("Narcissus, table for one..."). I think it's a combination of things: Libby being an obviously expendable underling (the loyal solider falling on his sword to atone for the sins of his commanders), my total lack of surprise that Bush decided to keep him out of jail (the only surprise is that it is not (yet) a full pardon), and my disappointment that Patrick Fitzgerald did not prosecute any of the more culpable players (*cough*DickArmitage*cough*). I find the whole thing depressing, and it stokes my rising cynicism about this administration.

Nixon lives.

Anybody know anything about html?

2007-07-02T14:06:00.000-05:00

'Cause I don't. I found this 3-column blog template, but what I want to do is to WIDEN the whole page, so I don't have these 1.25-inch-wide borders on either side of the page. I don't have a clue how to do that. Anybody? Bueller?

This makes me giggle...

2007-06-30T11:37:00.001-05:00

I have no excuse.

A fence all the way across the Mexican border? Riiiight.

2007-06-30T09:57:00.000-05:00

We can't even get a 2-1/2 kilometer fence correct. And now we're going to build one for the entire length of the border? Yeah. Right.

Budget wonkery

2007-06-30T07:56:00.000-05:00

A few random thoughts about the budget worksheet (.pdf file) handed out at the County Commission budget workshop this week:

We were budgeting over $160,000 for "out of county travel?" Where were these people going? Good on them for cutting that expense. Also $9,990 for seminars and "meals, plaques and ceremonies" for the BCC. Did anyone know they had budgeted for this crap in the past? Well, I didn't.

$700 for the County Administrator's Blackberry actually doesn't seem all that high to me. If it makes him more efficient, I don't really have a problem with him keeping that.

The county attorney has chopped $100,000 out of their budget for outside counsel. I'm curious if there is anything left in that budget item.

What the hell is the "Merit System Protection Board?"

We were paying a federal lobbyist $67,500? My first reaction is, "well THAT was dumb," but, on second thought, I'm not so sure...

Facilities management looks to take a pretty big hit, with $865,000 proposed to be cut from their budget, including the entire construction crew.

I hate the idea of eliminating funding for the school nursing program. Yes, it is a $120,000 savings, but considering how little we allocate toward healthcare in this county, eliminating one of the few sources of healthcare for our children seems short sighted. And in view of the overall budget, $120K doesn't seem like all that much.

I hope that the commissioners follow through with the idea of returning Lakeview and the community clinics to full funding. (Actually, I hope they can find a way to INCREASE funding for these items).

Overall it looks like the commission is working hard to "tighten their belts" with these budget cuts. It's a painful process. I hope we see some good results.

Now, how about those proposals for combining redundant city and county operations? We could save a TON more money there if we could agree to do it.

It's PIP-tastic!

2007-06-30T07:44:00.000-05:00

The Buzz has an interesting entry about a little detail of the PIP sunset that people had largely overlooked. PIP itself is due to sunset on October 1st, but the real deadline is 45 days earlier, when insurance companies start sending out their insurance renewal premiums, which may be cheaper due to the lack of PIP coverage. The carriers can blow the horn about cheaper insurance rates at that time, making it more difficult, politically, for state legislators to go back and reinstate PIP in a special session some time in September. The insurance lobby has definitely got the legislature over a barrel on this one...

Okay, this is just crazy...

2007-06-27T22:51:00.000-05:00

Warren Buffet's taxable income for 2006: $46 million
Warren Buffet's income tax rate in 2006: 17.7%

Warren Buffet's secretary's taxable income for 2006: $60,000.00
Warren Buffet's secretary's income tax rate for 2006: 30%

Even Warren Buffet says this is nuts.

Additional source.

See, this is the kind of crashing wave of cynical realization that washes me down the beach, back to the foaming left-wing liberal sea from which I was beginning to crawl...

Oh. My. GOD.

2007-06-27T17:21:00.001-05:00

Nancy Grace breeds.

Be very afraid.

Ann Coulter: Not your average nut

2007-06-27T16:48:00.000-05:00

I find it very hard to believe that Ann Coulter is REALLY as insane as she appears. I understand that she casts herself as a "polemicist" or some kind of not-quite-stable talking head, but, come on, NOBODY is THAT crazy. Are they?

Having read all sorts of conspiracy theories this past week regarding the now defeated 1/2-cent sales tax proposal here in Escambia County, the inner conspiracist in me is coming forth. I'm beginning to think that Ann Coulter is really a deep mole, planted by the DNC to help their candidates. Witness the campaign of John Edwards, which is quite successfully using Ann Coulter's bizarre, ranting ad hominem attacks to raise campaign funds.

In fact, the continuing appearances of Ann Coulter on shows like MSNBC's "Hardball" (be sure to watch the video) leads me to believe that the media is, in fact, wildly liberal. Who else but left-wing wackos, understanding the value she brings to their cause, would continue to put Ann Coulter on the air? Lyndon LaRouche was marginalized back in the day because he was such a nut. Seems that Coulter is AT LEAST as much of a nut as LaRouche was, but somehow she keeps getting on the air. Is it just the willowy body, long blonde hair and short skirts? I think not. I think she's the deepest sort of under-cover agent, working for the vast left-wing conspiracy, while pretending to be conservative. The Donny Brasco of the political world.

Watch out, Ann, your cover is disintegrating...

The Constitution in a nutshell

2007-06-25T11:11:00.000-05:00

In an article on Slate.com, Professor Walter Dellinger gives a wonderfully clear overview of the U.S. Constitution and how the U.S. Supreme Court decides cases based upon it. I went to law school and spent a year studying Constitutional Law. I think I should've just read this article instead. Would've saved a bit of time...

Breakfast Tacos...

2007-06-24T22:50:00.000-05:00

So I followed Robert Rodriguez's recipe for "Sin City Breakfast Tacos" (careful, some "dirty words" there) this morning. This was my first attempt at home-made flour tortillas, and they came out quite nicely, if I do say. Sorta small and weirdly-shaped, but tasty - much better than store-bought'n tortillas. My only problem was that I don't have a big griddle to cook them on, so I had to cook them one at a time in a skillet, which took a while. All in all a good experience, so I'm going to try again soon, concentrating on making them slightly bigger and more round-ish like.

I feel so domestic.

I'm voting "No." Here's why...

2007-06-22T22:07:00.000-05:00

After much consideration I have decided to vote against the 1/2-cent local sales tax, which is proposed to fund healthcare for the working poor. I agree that we have a serious, and rapidly worsening, healthcare crisis in America. Far too many people who work hard to support their families cannot afford health insurance and therefore rely on trips to the ER when illness or injury occurs. The hospitals treat these people and pass along a portion of the cost to insurers, who in turn raise insurance rates, which causes more people to lose coverage. A vicious cycle, for sure.

However, I do not believe that a local sales tax is a good way to address this problem. There are a number of faults with the proposal, but the one that bothers me most is that far too few people will benefit from this plan in any real way. Access Escambia reports that, if 100% of eligible workers in Escambia County signed up for this plan, it could help about 30,000 people, which is less than 10% of the population. Judging by the enrollment rates in other Florida counties that have tried similar plans, the chances of getting anywhere near 100% enrollment are slim and none. Alachua County has had a similar program in place for over 2 years, and has only 770 people enrolled as of the beginning of this month. Education and public relations might help somewhat, but I believe that enrolling a significant percentage of eligible workers would require a fundamental change in the mind-set of a lot of these workers, which seems unlikely. Ultimately, I believe this system would cause a significant drain of economic resources in Escambia County that would not wind up benefitting the vast majority of Escambia County residents. And, I'm sorry, but I just don't believe that this little program in this little county would have any significant effect on health insurance rates.

In the end, it seems like Access Escambia is trying to kill the elephant that is our NATIONAL healthcare crisis with a pea-shooter. What is needed is a fundamental change in the way this nation addresses healthcare. We will have to give up some benefits we have enjoyed before. It will cost A LOT of money. Luckily we HAVE a lot of money. The war in Iraq has already cost us over $400 BILLION (with a "B"), and will likely exceed $1 TRILLION (with a "T"). With a fraction of that amount we could fund a national healthcare plan that would provide benefits to us and our children for decades.

Judging from the stories I've read and the people I have talked to, it seems unlikely (to my eyes, anyway) that this tax will be approved. So, for now, the hard truth is that the working poor of Escambia County will likely continue to suffer without healthcare. I hate that fact. But I believe that it is within our power to change our world, if we can agree that a comprehensive NATIONAL healthcare plan is our highest current priority. That will take courage, leadership, and a lot of banging heads. We should get started.

The "Healthcare Primary"?

2007-06-22T09:17:00.000-05:00

Tim Noah posts an article on Slate.com positing that healthcare may well become the #2 most-important issue in the upcoming presidential election (behind the ubiquitous war in Iraq). He discusses Barack Obama's proposed healthcare plan (.pdf file), concluding that it is "better than it looks."

Here in Escambia County, 1 in 5 people have no healthcare insurance. In Houston, it is 1 in 4. Similar stories are being heard all over the country. Some folks will be vigorously opposed to any national healthcare plan ("socialized medicine" appears to be the preferred epithet) no matter the need, cost or results. I think it is absolutely necessary, and what's more, inevitable.

Access Escambia / PETT Debate (Part Deux)

2007-06-22T08:53:00.000-05:00

I attended the Access Escambia / PETT-PAC "information session" last night. I was disappointed to see so few people (only about a dozen) attending, and not a single representative from local media. I suppose the low turnout was due, at least in part, to the lack of significant advertising about the event.

Jim McClellan presented on behalf of Access Escambia, and Greg Fink presented the opposing position of PETT-PAC (People for the Ethical Treatment of Taxpayers - Political Action Committee). If you've been following this issue for a while, like me, there was not a lot of new information presented. Access Escambia's position is that something HAS to be done about the public health situation in Escambia County, and the program they have proposed, while admittedly not perfect, would be a good start in attempting to reverse (or at least slow) the downward trend. PETT-PAC agrees that we have a health-care crisis, but believes a local sales tax is the wrong way to approach this problem.

After the presentations Jim and Greg, a fairly lively question-answer session followed. Members of the audience asked some hard questions, and it appeared that many are skeptical about the Access plan.

I am still on the fence. Like everyone, I agree that we've got a real, and rapidly increasing, problem with healthcare. I also agree that something needs to be done. However, I am not convinced that a local sales tax is the right answer. With only 4 days until the vote I need to make up my mind pretty quickly. When I do, I will attempt to reveal my decision-making process here.

Aaargh! Owls lose...

2007-06-21T21:08:00.001-05:00

So I made the tough choice and went to the Access Escambia / PETT-PAC "information session" (not "debate") instead of watching the Rice Owls vs. North Carolina Tarheels in the College World Series. And, natch, BECAUSE I DIDN'T WATCH, Rice lost and is now eliminated from the CWS. Yes, that's right, I take full responsibility for the Owls' loss. I am quite sure that if I had sat home drinking beer and watching the game instead of taking an active interest in my local community, my team would've won.

Dammitdammitdammitdammit!

More on the sales tax issue later.

Access Escambia / PETT Debate

2007-06-21T17:12:00.000-05:00

An anonymous comment on Rick Outzen's blog is the only announcement I've seen of this debate:

Access Escambia and PETT PAC to meet Tonight. Access Escambia and PETT PAC will be discussing the PROS and CONS of the Half-Cent Health Care Surtax Referendum.
When: 7:00 P.M.
Where: Bethel A.M.E. Church, located at 511 Woodland Dr, Pensacola, FL.

Damn. Why'd they have to schedule this during the Rice vs. North Carolina rubber match in the College World Series? Winner of tonight's game is in the championship against Oregon State. Hmmm. Attend debate about local 1/2-cent sales tax, or watch a VERY IMPORTANT(!!) baseball game? Whatever shall I do?

Tuberculosis at the Escambia County Jail

2007-06-21T08:34:00.000-05:00

File it in the "scary but not surprising" folder:

I hear that a recent inmate at the Escambia County Jail had tuberculosis, and that the Sheriff's Department, despite knowing about it, failed to inform other inmates, visitors, public defenders, and maybe even some of its own personnel about the presence of the highly-communicable, deadly disease in a timely manner. Personnel from the Public Defender's office have been undergoing TB tests to be sure they haven't contracted anything.

Yeesh. Yet another reason to stay out of trouble...

AccessEscambia Plan

2007-06-19T17:51:00.000-05:00

Rick Outzen has posted the entire 169-page AccessEscambia Business Plan (.pdf format).

Enjoy!

I'll have my pie in the sky, please...

2007-06-18T22:13:00.000-05:00

OK, so WEAR News reports that the Pensacola Chamber of Commerce wants to turn the 9-acre vacant lot between the Civic Center and Aragon Court into a "Technology Commerce Park" that will bring in a thousand high-paying jobs. The story states that

The goal is to attract technology based companies that will pay their employees at least 50-thousand dollars a year.

Hey, I'm all for goals. I think it's important to strive for improvement and I applaud the Chamber and city/county government for their vision. But, c'mon. A THOUSAND jobs? Paying at least $50K a year? A $50 million bump to the local economy? While we're setting goals, why not just build Wonka's Chocolate Factory and we'll all become Oompa-Loompas?

Sorry, it's kinda late and I'm cranky.

Transparency for all, except me...

2007-06-18T11:30:00.000-05:00

Congressman Jeff Miller: "We should have transparency in the earmark process."

Taxpayers: "Great! How about showing us the earmarks you requested, Jeff?"

Congressman Jeff Miller: "No way, man."

Putz.

PIP-awareness is growing

2007-06-18T08:59:00.000-05:00

I wrote about the sunsetting of PIP a few days ago. Chris Chiari, a Democratic candidate for Florida House district 91, has an interesting podcast (.mp3 format) about this issue on his website. I like that he takes a stand on the issue, even though he won't be in the legislature (if he wins) in time to prevent PIP from going away.

This issue is one that largely slipped under the radar of Florida voters last fall, but will be a growing issue over the next few months as more people become aware that PIP is going away.

Owls win again!

2007-06-18T07:19:00.001-05:00

The Rice Owls won their second game at the College World Series yesterday, besting North Carolina in another double-digit performance, 14-4. They now have two days off before meeting the winner of the North Carolina-Louisville elimination game on Wednesday.

GO OWLS!

Uninsured workers not just a local problem

2007-06-17T09:22:00.001-05:00

I just read an article in the newspaper of the town in Kansas where I grew up. Other than different names, it could be a re-print of the article in today's Pensacola News Journal about the working poor and the lack of access to healthcare.

It seems to me more and more evident that we HAVE to get a nation-wide solution to this problem.

Florida's low tax burden

2007-06-17T08:41:00.000-05:00

A very interesting editorial in the Daytona Beach News Journal discusses the fact that Florida is, and has been, in the bottom 25% of all states as far as its local-state tax burden. As the writer notes:

Only 12 states bear a state-local tax burden lower than Florida, according to the 2007 Bureau of Economic Analysis (Department of Commerce). Those 12 states are Alabama, Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, and Wyoming.
. . .

The findings for Florida show that in a 37-year period, Florida's average ranking is 41.

The writer's thesis seems to be that Florida already has an extremely low tax burden when compared to other states, which brings more business and population here, but with no clear revenue plan for dealing with the influx of population we are simply digging a deeper hole for ourselves.

When compared to other states, does it really seem like Florida has a tax crisis? Our governor and state legislators seem to think so. I'm not so sure...

OWLS WIN! OWLS WIN! OWLS WIN!

2007-06-16T07:21:00.000-05:00

So the Rice Owls stomped the Louisville Cardinals yesteray in game 1 of the College World Series, by a score of 15-10 (gotta love those aluminum bats!). Things weren't looking so good for the Owls in the early parts of the game. Their lead-off pitcher, freshman Ryan Berry, looked to be "on tilt" from the first pitch, which hit Louisville's Boomer Whiting. Later in the first he hit another Cardinal, Dan Burton. Berry made it through 2-2/3 innings, giving up 2 runs before Wayne Graham had had enough. A tough day for the normally outstanding freshman.

After 4-1/2 innings the Owls were down 10-4, but ultimately the power of the #2-ranked team won out and the Owls prevailed, 15-10. Next game on Sunday.

GO OWLS!

Is PIP gone for good?

2007-06-15T06:31:00.000-05:00

When Jeb Bush vetoed an attempted revision of the Florida PIP statute last year, it started a clock ticking which will run down on October 1, 2007. If nothing else is done, the no-fault insurance system that has been in place for the last 36 years in Florida will go the way of the dodo after that date. Insurance carriers say this will cause auto insurance rates to go down. Hospitals argue that this will simply shift the cost of care to them. It looks like they're both right.

Tom Zucco wrote a good piece on the issue recently in the St. Petersburg Times.

There are also some rumors being reported that the legislature might come back for yet another special session in September to consider the PIP issue again. If Colorado's experience with allowing PIP to sunset is any indicator of what Florida faces, I would expect a pretty big battle between insurance and the healthcare industry on this issue. Expect the healthcare lobby in Tallahassee to put a lot of pressure on lawmakers to bring up this issue once more before October 1st.

Is Alachua County the model for failure?

2007-06-14T14:49:00.000-05:00

AccessEscambia.org touts other county-wide, sales-tax-supported healthcare systems for the working poor in Florida, noting:

Other counties in Florida- Polk, Hillsborough, Alachua, and Gulf- and in other states have successfully developed and implemented similar models for the delivery of health services to the uninsured and medically poor.

Looking at these other counties, it does appear that the Polk HealthCare Plan and Hillsborough HealthCare have been successful in reducing healthcare costs and providing needed care to the working poor. However, the Alachua County plan, known as CHOICES, has been criticized for collecting too much money for too few beneficiaries. In fact, only about 700-800 people have enrolled in CHOICES, while the program has received in excess of $20 million in sales tax revenues.

Why is this important? Because, of these counties, Alachua County is the most similar to Escambia County. Polk County has a population of nearly 600,000, while Hillsborough County has over 1.1 million residents. By contrast, Escambia County and Alachua County both have less than 300,000 people. Alachua County and Escambia County report very similar median household incomes ($34,696 and $36,743, respectively, in 2004), as well as similar retail sales per capita ($10,720 and $11,255, respectively, in 2002). Hillsborough County, by way of comparison, shows a median household income in 2004 of $44,850, and per capita retail sales in 2002 of $13,231.

The problems that Alachua County has faced with its CHOICES program makes me even more hesitant to support the Access Escambia plan.

Fightin' Owls in CWS

2007-06-14T12:25:00.000-05:00

Fight for Rice,
Rice fight on,
Loyal sons arise,
The Blue and Gray for Rice today,
Comes breaking through the skies.
Stand and cheer,
Vict'ry's near,
Sammy leads the way,
Onward go! to crush the foe,
We'll fight for Blue and Gray.

So my Rice Owls are in the College World Series. Again. Damn, that Wayne Graham has built a hell of a program.

The Owls open play against Louisville tomorrow (Friday, June 15th) at 1:00 p.m. on ESPN2.

Go OWLS!

Random thoughts on the proposed 1/2-cent sales tax

2007-06-13T13:53:00.000-05:00

I'm wondering about the 1/2-cent sales tax for healthcare in Escambia County.

a) The proposal is that there is an 11-member board of directors, with 5 of those members being nominated by county commissioners (1 from each district) and 6 being in the healthcare industry (1 each from Baptist Hospital, Sacred Heart Hospital and West Florida Hospital, 2 from the Escambia County Medical Society, and 1 from the Partnership for a Healthy Community). This seems to set up a controlling interest of the board amongst local healthcare workers, who may have a vested interest in this new system. Wouldn't it be easier to sell this to voters if they didn't think it was a "fix" by the local hospitals? I would suggest they re-allocate these seats to include at least 6 of the 11 being non-healthcare professionals from the community.

b) The ordinance proposes a "Watchdog Committee." What authority do they have? The ordinance is silent on this. If they're going to have any real effect, shouldn't this "watchdog" have some teeth?

c) The ordinance calls for an administrator and whatever personnel are needed to do the job of the new system. I would like to see some limits on the amount of tax revenue that can go toward administrative costs and salaries.

More corn for ethanol hurts the Gulf

2007-06-13T11:02:00.000-05:00

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - A national agriculture expert says growing corn in the Midwest for green fuel could increase pollution downriver and contribute to a "dead zone" that forms each summer in the Gulf of Mexico.

Gary Mast says the country is in a dilemma. He says the nation wants food and fuel and wants it produced environmentally soundly.

The problem is that corn needs more nitrogen fertilizer than other crops. So more corn means more nitrogen fertilizer and runoff carrying the fertilizer fuels the growth of microscopic organisms that then die, fall to the bottom and decompose, using up the oxygen there.

Mast is a Department of Agriculture representative on a national task force created in 1997 to find ways to reduce the runoff of nutrients.

He summarized the problem to the Mississippi River and Gulf of Mexico Watershed Nutrient Task Force, which environmentalists and others criticized during a public comment period for failing to do much of anything.

The dead zone has averaged about 48-hundred square miles since 1990. The record -- 8,500 square miles -- was in 2002. Last year's covered about 6,662 square miles -- about the size of Connecticut and Rhode Island together.

Matt Rota is the water resources program director of the Gulf Restoration Network. He's among those who say the task force hasn't done enough. He says he supports getting off of oil, but letting more fertilizer wash down the Mississippi would be robbing Peter to pay Paul.

(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Text of proposed 1/2-cent sales tax ordinance

2007-06-13T09:26:00.000-05:00

AccessEscambia.org has posted the text of the proposed 1/2-cent sales tax ordinance on their website, in .pdf format.

Pensacola loses again...

2007-06-13T07:11:00.000-05:00

Once again, Pensacola has been shown to be lagging far behind its very close neighbors in terms of economic vigor. As reported by The Northwest Florida Daily News yesterday, Fort Walton Beach, only 40 miles down the road, has been ranked SECOND on Moody's Economy.com "Business Vitality Index," ranking behind only Austin, TX. Other panhandle cities in the top 50 include Tallahassee (35th) and Panama City (36th). The Wall Street Journal posted a .pdf file with the top 50 cities listed
here. Is Pensacola on the list? Are you kidding?

Wonking the Coast

The El Paso Miracle

Creaking back to life?

You said it, brudder...

Watching the horror...

Galveston in the bulls-eye

Large Hadron Rap

Heads up, Corpus Christi

Oh, you have GOT to be kidding...

Thank you, Dr. Morale....

Ike Ike Ike

Tax Watch website is down

Florida Tax Watch Report is up

Paradigm Shifting, part deux

Same song, different year

Got a foghorn and a drum and a Hamer that's rockin' and a cord and a pedal and a life that'll do for now...

Good Ideas Abound (not so much here, tho)

Hello, TaxWatch? Hi, it's me, Patrick...

Sometimes you gotta wonder...

Stop. Really. Just stop. Don't make me pass a law...

Movie quote o' the day

Deep Thoughts...

I'm still giddy...

Sorry, try again...

Last one, I promise...

Mario Chalmers' Game-Saver

I will watch over and over and over and...

Okay, so I lied...

Amendment 1? Will it survive the courts?

Presidential Candidate Select-o-matic

Wedding Photos

Worst. Book. Title. EVAR.

Paradigm shifting and drifting

Thanks to Everybody

Replacing a toilet - my way...

Oh, and one more thing...

Ouch...

"Plain meaning?" Apparently, not so much...

Excellence in blogging

Busy, busy, busy...

Just in case you were in a good mood...

What the hell? Calling Mike Nifong...

Bill Moyers "Impeachment Panel"

Watch this kid run...

God Smites Supreme Court Chief Justice

As I was saying...

Jeezus H...

Everyone who thinks you can rely on a contract step forward. Whoa, not so fast, trial lawyers...

Florida's Fire Chiefs want PIP to stick around

How the News Works

What's going on here?

*sigh* Sadness...

Un-sucky movie of the day...

A Democrat state legislator in NW Florida? No way...

The Dead Zone

Water, water everywhere, but not a drop for my lawn...

Irony...

For the tech geeks out there...

Ouch...

Phobia of the Day: paraskevidekatriaphobia

Jeeezus H...

Rats from a sinking ship...

Bong Hits 4 Jesus - The Game

Any requests? Sorry, I'm not licensed to play that one...

Dear Smokers: You are the scum of the earth...

I can't wait to have kids...

Hott4Hill

Special PIP-tastic session?

Sciurophobia

*yawn*

Anybody know anything about html?

This makes me giggle...

A fence all the way across the Mexican border? Riiiight.

Budget wonkery

It's PIP-tastic!

Okay, this is just crazy...

Oh. My. GOD.

Ann Coulter: Not your average nut

The Constitution in a nutshell

Breakfast Tacos...

sigh Sadness...

yawn