Isn’t Unemployment Temporary…?

First off, I know … the gaps continue between posts to the blog, and interestingly enough what compels me to write today is a story about unemployment benefits. What’s interesting is that the reason from my absence this time is that I found a new job and have been busy training and getting on the floor and starting up. But now the schedule is more concrete and stable and I can now find the time to write. Thankfully.

So yes, back to the original question. Aren’t unemployment benefits supposed to be temporary? At least I thought they were. However a new article in The Washington Post on Tuesday spoke about how some of the 11.4 Million people who are out of work in America today are able to or have been recieving their unemployment benefits for as much as 99 weeks. 99 WEEKS!! Seriously?!?! That is almost two full years on unemployment insurance. TWO YEARS!! So is there really an incentive to find a job. And say if I lose my job in about a year when hopefully the economic situation is somewhat more “rosy” shall we say. Will I be able to get almost TWO YEARS of unemployment benefits?

The other situation that brought this to my attention was the debate in the Senate about a week ago, where Senator Lamar Alexander (R-KY) held up an extension of unemployment benefits, not because he thought it was similar to welfare…but because the extension was not paid for! There was an uproar from the public and one instance stood out for me in the public uproar. A woman, from Kentucky (who was unemployed) said in response to a question about the merit of Sen. Alexander’s hold on the bill on the basis of it not being paid for … (paraphrase) ‘I understand unpaid bills, but where are these people going to get their money from. Is Sen. Alexander gonna pay out of pocket?’ WHAT?!?!?

My response to that is that unemployment benefits were never meant to be paid out for this length of time. This is tantamount to welfare. I don’t doubt that the situation is difficult for people who have been unemployed. I was unemployed myself. But regardless of the economic crisis … should these benefits be nearly endless. Back in the 1990′s and 2000′s when the economy was stable and creating jobs… I am sure there were some people who became unemployed. We did not endlessly extend their benefits. I am sure their situation was nearly as rough and possibly even worse. What makes this any different? Unemployment is difficult no matter the economic situation. It would have been just as difficult back in the 90′s as it is today I assume. It is time for fiscal responsibility in Washington.

These are just a few thoughts as I get back into the swing of things on the blog. … And FYI … look for some new San Antonio Conservative Online Radio Shows online at blogtalkradio.com coming soon.

If you want to read the article about Unemployment Benefits from The Washington Post – go to: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/08/AR2010030804927_pf.html

NEW: $18 Million of Stimulus being Spent to Redesign Recovery.org

This from the ABC News blog the Note:

ABC News’ Rick Klein reports: For those concerned about stimulus spending, the General Services Administration sends word tonight that $18 million in additional funds are being spent to redesign the Recovery.gov Web site.The new Web site promises to give taxpayers more information about where their money is going than the current version of the site.

“Recovery.gov 2.0 will use innovative and interactive technologies to help taxpayers see where their dollars are being spent,” James A. Williams, commissioner of GSA’s Federal Acquisition Service, says in a press release announcing the contract awarded to Maryland-based Smartronix Inc. “Armed with easy access to this information, taxpayers can make government more accountable for its decisions.”  

The contract calls for spending $9.5 million through January, and as much as $18 million through 2014, according to the GSA press release.

“We are pleased that another major milestone has been achieved,” Earl E. Devaney, chairman of the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board, says in the press release. “We thank the GSA for its assistance and look forward to working with Smartronix.”

UPDATE:  The RNC has released a new web ad mocking the Obama administration’s decision to allocate additional funds to the redesign of the Recovery.gov Web site.

Here is a hint for the Obama Administration, we don’t need a fancy website to find out how our money is being spent. We just need something simple. Perhaps and excell spreadsheet broken down by state with the various projects listed and amount of money spent. Perhaps a column about how many jobs were created by that expenditure. Hmm…sounds pretty good to me…maybe Obama should pay me $18 Million for that. With all the talk of a second stimulus package being needed it begs the question. Was stimulus one (as I will call it now) a waste of a ton of money? Maybe…maybe not. The thing is that not even a quarter of the money has even been spent. So was ask for another one, if the money hasn’t even been spent at all. WTF Obama … WTF?!?!?

San Antonio Named #1 Metro Economy in America

Good news today for those of us who call the Alamo City home, we live in the best economy in America. This even dispite the overall economic downturn being experienced by the country as a whole. This according to a new study released today by the Washington DC based Brookings Institution. This report shows that the city has outperformed 99 of the 100 metropolitan areas in the US.

This from the San Antonio Express-News (www.mysa.com):

Being a top-ranked economy is nothing new for San Antonio. Just a little more than a year ago, the city finished second to Oklahoma City in a Forbes.com study identifying the most recession-proof metro areas.

Alan Berube, a co-author of the report who also is research director for the institution’s Metropolitan Policy Program, said it wasn’t one overriding factor that pushed San Antonio to the top.

Instead, solid scores on a variety of measures were responsible for the city’s ranking.

“San Antonio’s numbers look strong precisely because of what your economy is based on,” Berube said.

The local economy is driven by sectors such as health care and insurance that didn’t fall as badly as other sectors, was shielded from the downturn by military expansions and, like other cities in Texas, didn’t participate in “the ridiculous run-up in housing prices” early on that triggered meltdowns in many areas, Berube said.

“San Antonio didn’t lose as much in the first place, so it could be ready to turn around sooner,” he said.

Brookings’ MetroMonitor report, which is being released today, provides what the institution calls “the first ‘beneath the hood’ look at the impact of the recession on metropolitan America.”

It measures changes in employment totals, unemployment rates, housing prices, the value of goods and services produced by cities and other factors through the first three months of the year to identify which cities are performing well and which are not.

Texas is well-represented in the top-performing metro areas.

Austin, Houston, Dallas and McAllen finished third, fourth, fifth and sixth, respectively, after Oklahoma City at No. 2. El Paso also scored well at 11th. At the very bottom of the list was Detroit.

San Antonio’s standing drew applause from city and county leaders, who said it can be helpful in attracting more jobs and prosperity to San Antonio.

“The stability of the economy, the predictability of costs — those are hard things to beat,” said Mario Hernandez, president of the San Antonio Economic Development Foundation.

“It speaks volumes about San Antonio’s business-friendly climate and our willingness to embrace new opportunities,” said Mayor Julián Castro.“I’m not surprised. I am pleased by it.”

Keith Phillips, senior economist with the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas in San Antonio, said that while the ranking is good for San Antonio, it reaffirms what past studies already have shown about how steady the local economy is and how well it measures against other cities when times get tough.

He also cautioned against reading too much into the study because it gave such high rankings to cities that depend on energy markets, which could have further to fall as the recession continues.

San Antonio isn’t an energy-dependant city, and Phillips does not believe it will fall out of the top 20 metro areas in performance.

The Brookings’ report said San Antonio’s employment totals dropped by 0.4 percent from its peak in the third quarter of 2008 and its gross metropolitan product, or productive output, slipped by 0.5 percent. In those categories, the city is in fourth and sixth places, respectively, among the large cities.

The increase in San Antonio’s housing prices was the ninth best in the study and its unemployment rate, while higher than a year earlier, experienced the sixth lowest increase.

The weakest metro areas featured double digit drops in employment totals and housing prices over the study period.

Housing prices plummeted by more than 30 percent for the year ending in March in Stockton, Calif., for instance.

Only about a third of the 100 top metro areas avoided a decline in home prices over the year, the report said.

Good news for San Antonio and for Texas with 6 of the top 11 economies in the country. There is one reason for that … Texas has created a positive climate for business to relocate and prosper in the state. Thats why there are so many Fortune 500 companies here. Republican leadership in Austin these past years has helped the Texas economy grow with common sense business sense and tax cuts for small businesses that promote reinvestment and job creation.

Ronald Reagan Speaks Out Against Socialized Medicine

In 1961, then citizen and later former President Ronald Reagan spoke out against the Democratic Party and its advocating of socialized medicine. This YouTube video only contains audion as this was in an LP sent out by the AMA.

The debate is not much different today. Former President Reagan’s word speak volumes as to the ills of socialism and socialized medicine. 

Click here to read articles on the failings of both the British and Canadian socialized heath care systems. (Just an FYI you might have to scroll up on those pages a bit when you get there because something is off with the link placement on those pages. You just have to scroll up to get to the top of the specific section I linked you to.)

One graph I will place up here shows how people in the US have more access to advanced medical technologies. The base unit on the graph is units per million (so for installed MRI machines it would be # of MRI machines per 1 million people).

We do not need government run health care systems in America. We need free enterprise, we need free market solutions to the problems we face. If the government steps in like they have in other contries we restrict competition and create a monopoly in the health industry and face increased prices, longer waits for treatment. My mom had open heart surgery in December of 2008. She didn’t have to wait for the government to okay it … a 3 year old girl in the UK like you can read by clicking that link had her surgery delayed by the Gov’t heath system THREE TIMES! That is unacceptable in America and should be unacceptable anywhere. Socialism does not work. Plain and Simple!

And this guy wants to be South Carolina’s Governor?

With the responsed that Rep. Grasham Barrett (R-SC) recieved at the Tea Party being held in Greenville, SC on Wednesday … his bid for Governor of the state might be off to a bad start. The Palmetto Scoop posted this video to its website of Rep. Barret speaking to the attendees at the tea party:

Barrett, who voted in favor of the $700 billion bailout to stabilize the financial sector, despised by many of the demonstrators, knew what he was getting into. South Carolina grassroots conservatives have been blasting the congressman for months because of his vote on the Bush administration’s bill last October. Previewing his Tea Party speech earlier this week, The Greenville News wrote that Barrett was headed “into the Lion’s Den.”

The booing and shouting continued for the entire five minutes Barrett was on stage. When he pointed out that he recently introduced a bill called the TEA Act to stop wasteful government spending, one protested yelled repeatedly: “Too late!”

 

Much of this might have been forgotten if Barrett were returning to his safe seat in Congress in 2010, but the Westminster Republican is leaving the House to seek the South Carolina governorship next year. He’s gearing up for what’s likely to be a tough three-way Republican primary against Attorney General Henry McMaster and Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer, a contest in which Barrett will almost certainly have to answer for his bailout vote.

Barrett spokesman B.J. Boling said the crowd’s reaction “was about what we expected” and stressed that the congressman’s “conservative credentials are unquestionable.” He noted that the National Journal has ranked Barrett as the fourth most conservative member of the U.S House.

“This is about disagreeing over one vote, and the congressman and the folks who were there agree on a whole lot more than just that,” Boling said. “He has a record of fiscal conservativism that I believe is unmatched in the House.”

Let’s just say that Rep. Barrett is going to have a tough race for the Governor’s seat … really tough.

Action Alert: 22 Texas Senators Voted for Tax Increases!

This from Americans for Prosperity:

This week, 22 Texas Senators voted to expand our unemployment insurance eligibility in Texas. This will result in a short-term gain, but long-term cost. It will result in a tax increase that will impact Texas employers and future job growth.  Please call those Senators and ask them to reverse their vote, and vote against this tax increase. The bill isSB 1569 and the next vote is slated for Monday.
Texas has the strongest economy in the nation for one reason — we work to keep taxes low.  Texas has the largest job growth in the country, has been named as the best state for doing business, and has more Fortune 500 companies than any other state.  
But some Senators are willing to throw our success away and accept one-time federal dollars that will expand our current program. The unemployment insurance portion of the so-called stimulus would pay for less than eight weeks of unemployment insurance payments in Texas. Passage of SB 1569 will result in a permanent tax increase for Texas employers and fewer jobs in Texas.
Our message to those Senators who voted for the tax increase: Don’t mess with Texas’ economy and job growth! 
Texans want a paycheck, not an unemployment check.  Our current program of Unemployment Insurance still allows those who lose their jobs to get unemployment checks while they look for a new job.
It is imperative that we not increase taxes at this critical time. We agree with what Sen. Tommy Williams (R-The Woodlands) said before the vote on Thursday: 
“Texas employers would be stuck paying the bill, through higher state taxes, once the federal money ran out.  I just felt like the long-term consequences of expanding that program are not good for Texas employers.” 
Please call these State Senators and tell them to vote against this tax increase (SB 1569) and for Texas jobs:
Sen. Kip Averitt (R-Waco): (512) 463-0122 or (254) 772-6225
Sen. John Carona (R-Dallas): (512) 463-0116 or (214)738-5751
Sen. Wendy Davis (D-Fort Worth): (512) 463-0110 or (817) 806-4400
Sen. Bob Deuell (R-Greenville): (512) 463-0102 or (972) 279-1800
Sen. Robert Duncan (R-Lubbock):  (512) 463-0128 or (806) 762-1122
Sen. Rodney Ellis (D-Houston): (512) 463-0113 or (713) 236-0306
Sen. Kevin Eltife (R-Tyler): (512) 463-0101 (903) 596-9122
Sen. Craig Estes ( R-Wichita Falls): (512) 463-0130 or (940) 689-0191
Sen. Mario Gallegos, Jr. (D-Houston): (512) 463-0106 or (713) 678-8600
Sen. Chris Harris (R-Arlington): (512) 463-0109 or (817) 461-9109
Sen. Chuy Hinojosa (D-McAllen): (512) 463-0120 or (956) 972-1841
Sen. Eddie Lucio, Jr. (D-Brownsville): (512) 463-0127 or (956) 548-0227
Sen. Steve Ogden (R-Bryan): (512) 463-0105 or (979) 776-0521
Sen. Florence Shapiro (R-Plano): (512) 463-0108 or (972) 403-3404
Sen. Eliot Shapleigh (D-El Paso): (512) 463-0129 or (915) 544-1990
Sen. Carlos Uresti (D-San Antonio): (512) 463-0119 or (210) 932-2568
Sen. Leticia Van de Putte (D-San Antonio): (512) 463-0126 or (210) 733-6604
Sen. Kirk Watson (D-Austin): (512) 463-0114 
Sen. Jeff Wentworth (R-San Antonio): (512) 463-0125 or (210) 826-7800
Sen. Royce West (D-Dallas): (512) 463-0123 or (214) 467-0123
Sen. John Whitmire (D-Houston): (512) 463-0115 or (713) 864-8701
Sen. Judith Zaffirini (D-Laredo): (512) 463-0121 or (956) 722-2293

We must take action on this. This bill will only provide 8 weeks of funding and then leave Texas to hold the bag and raise taxes on business and hurt our still strong economy in this state. Remember, even in this recession, San Antonio had is unemployment rate DROP while adding 4,000 new jobs over the last month. Yes, maybe in the short term this could be good, but in the long run it will hurt Texas and cost jobs. Take action and make sure that this bill does not pass!

“Just Tax”

This video is hilarious … Its got a good message. Enjoy.

Coming Soon: Complete Post on Tax Day Tea Parties

I had a great time at the Tax Day Tea Parties in both Austin and San Antonio. I am working right now on posting photographs and videos I took from these events. Once I get that done I will work on the blog post. These events were successful … the Don’t Mess With Texas Tea Party at Austin City Hall had over 2,000 people in attendance with Gov. Rick Perry, Michael Williams, Lance Kennedy, and others. Here in San Antonio … Estimates are now upwards of 15,000 packed into Alamo Plaza with Glenn Beck, Ted Nugent, and others standing up to out of control spending and the growth of government. Those in attendance (including myself) made it clear that it was both parties and that Republicans have at times lost their core principles at times. But it is time to reclaim the founding ideals of the country and renew America’s promise to our future generations.

Either way … a full post is coming up later tonight … FYI: watch the Glenn Beck replay at 1:00 AM CT for SA Tea Party coverage from this afternoon! It has been a great day for true patriots and for Americans all over this country. And I am the only one I know that went to two tea parties in one day and in two different cities … awesome day!

Street Light User Fee?

If you live in the District (District of Columbia that is…) be prepared to pay a possible “Street Light User Fee” to the city for maintenance and operation of street lights in the District. This is the brainchild of current D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty in the FY 2010 budget proposal submitted at the end of March. This from Washington City Paper:

Details of the fee have been reveled in draft legislation submitted to the council today: The fee will be assessed on your Pepco bills. Residential customers, under the proposal, will pay $4.25 a month ($51 a year); commercial customers will pay $16.75 monthly ($201 yearly), and all others $42 monthly ($504 yearly).

While the fees themselves do not seem to be very large ($4 a month) … but this is just the begining. If we allow the District to pass this fee … they can increase it to whatever amount they want. By the way … who are all others? If your not a residential customer or a commercial customer what are you? Does that mean like schools will pay $42 a month? If someone knows let me know. Cities have problems of areas without street lights. If your street doesn’t have sufficient lighting is your fee then less … NO. I would rather not use street lights thank you … I agree they increase public saftey and what not. But maybe I could use that $51 a year and get brighter headlights or more headlights on my car … or lights all around my car that light up the road around me (that would be kinda cool). The thing is … I know how to spend my money better than the government does … Stop the Spending … Stop the ridiculous taxation!

Click Here to read the Article from the Washington City Paper.

The Devalued Prime Minister of a Devalued Government

Daniel Hannan, an MEP of South Eastern England, scolded the British Prime Minister Gordon Brown for the out of control government spending in the British government (sound remotely familiar?). “You can not spend your way out of reccession…,” was one of the best quotes for me. Read the Daniel Hannan blog at www.hannan.co.uk

This video is the from the Daniel Hannan You Tube channel. This guy should be the next Prime Minister of the UK. Smart guy.