From time to time I have discussed the question of immigration in America. To be direct, I do not like any illegal immigrant being in the nation, and absolutely believe that they deserve nothing from the Government if they are here. That being said, if you want to give up your home for immigrants to stay at and your income for them to live reading further will only anger you.

Again I will start with a clarification. They are not undocumented workers. That is polispeak for Illegal alien or more accurately illegal immigrant. The document they are missing is a green card - which would give them legal purpose to be in this nation. Thus every single illegal alien is a willful criminal first and foremost.

This is an issue that will definitely come to fore during the Obama Administration. With a Democrat-led Congress and the most liberal President in decades, I have no doubt that legislation will be attempted to give these criminals citizenship. I am completely against this idea.

Right now tens of millions if not more is being spent on illegal immigrants. Prosecuting illegal criminals, removing them from the work force, closing down sweatshops, medical aide, education and housing are but a few sources of the costs. While these individually are not major factors, combined they do help to affect the American economy. They add a burden that need not be there.

I have no problem with my taxes going to help those in need, when they are citizens. I have no problem helping people throughout the world. I endorse several humanitarian causes in Africa (Darfur among the top) and elsewhere. But those endorsements and donations are my choice. Illegal aliens are a burden I cannot choose to bear.

Think of it like this. I know of no one that would suggest that a crack dealing armed robber should receive federal housing, unless that housing were a jail. But if that same individual was illegal some believe that criminal deserves - and some may have - federal housing. That is not to say that all illegal aliens are hardened criminals, but the fact is some are. And one dollar for that is a dollar too much.

There are those that believe illegal immigrant children deserve higher education. This is not elementary school or high school. They state that college is a right of these people, specifically the right to receive federal aid and in-state tuition, the same as American citizens. Which first ignores the willful act of being an active criminal in this nation. Second it grants rights we do not give to those that legally enter this nation for a higher education. And third it adds a burden that is not compensated for as these young adults (18 - 22) and their parents do not pay taxes which the financial aid comes from.

In the same vein of thought is everything that illegal immigrants demand and ask for. They want to have rights of citizens, but are unwilling to accept the first responsibility of every citizen, following the law of the nation. That is a bit backwards in logic.

Even more people wish to give these criminals a right to become citizens. To my knowledge America does not give criminals - especially those that have or would likely commit felonies - citizenship from any country. Every adult illegal alien has actively chosen to commit a felony and they want to be rewarded?

I do understand the difficulty in removing every illegal immigrant from the nation. Given the size and wealth of our nation (even in times of recession and depression, like now) it is unrealistic to believe we will ever remove or prevent all illegals. But that is not an excuse to place a value and commoditize our citizenship. Which any plan of path to citizenship that involves a fine creates.

So what is the answer? Many will not like my answer. In fact to a degree I do not. Because it creates a de facto system of abuse. But the current system is basically no better in terms of abuse and/or discrimination.

But an idea is one that has worked in the Ancient past. Secondary class citizens. We create a legal class of citizenship that is not entitled to every right just as a full citizen would receive.

All illegals that accept this would be entitled to continue to live and work in the nation.

• They do not have a right to vote.
  
• They do not have a right to federally funded housing.
  
• They do have a right to receive federally funded food and medical aide.
  
• Their illegal children have the same right to receive an education as any other citizen, but they cannot receive in-state college status.
  
• They can only receive half the federally funded financial aid of a citizen.
  
• They are protected by all the laws of a citizen, and must receive the pay of a citizen.
  
• They will pay 50% more in federal taxes which they must file for every year or have their status rescinded.
  
• Every illegal alien age 18 - 26 must sign up for a draft if the nation ever deems the need to call on them.
  
• And if they are convicted of any felony, ever, they will be deported immediately no matter if they have children that are citizens.


Those that would flaunt this choice, and try to avoid this, would be deported after losing all possessions and 1 year of hard labor (think chain gang fixing roads across the nation).

Why might an illegal immigrant family or individual accept this? Because their children born on U.S. soil retain the rights of a full citizen. Because they will not be deported (so long as they do not violate the felony statute). Because even under these conditions they will live a quality of life greater than that in their home nations.

This plan is not completely fleshed out, so don't just tell me their are loopholes. I know there are, but I am not a politician and this is not a law I am presenting to Congress. This is an idea for others to iron out more completely. But it is comprehensive. And it addresses all illegal aliens currently in the nation and those to come. It is a path to citizenship, albeit to the children of the illegals. It removes the commoditization of U.S. citizenship, and addresses the willful violation of our laws.

It's not nice, but life is not about nice. It's relatively fair, and far better than the lives they led in their homelands. And they always have the choice before them. They can leave or suffer the consequences of further violating our laws.

Now let the debate begin.

Labels: citizenship, college tuition, Congress, illegal aliens, illegal immigration, Obama Administration, path to citizenship

With all the attention being place on oil and energy in the past few days I thought I’d take another look at taxes. One of the least popular issues that every Presidential race focuses on. And consistently the public has the same request, lower taxes.

For 2008, the ‘election of change’ [a dumb concept considering that is a fact], we have 2 very explicit views. I say explicit, but if you don’t listen carefully or check any other details you may be distracted of confused by the polispeak that each candidate employs. So I want to take a moment, before the rhetoric switches back after the energy issue stops catching headlines, to look at their stances clearly (as found at The Tax Foundation).

Deferring to experience I will start with Senator McCain.

Originally opposed to the President Bush tax cuts, Senator McCain now is in support of this tax plan. He also favors cutting corporate taxes by 10%. For those that suffer from estate taxes he plans to implement a move to only 15% tax on estates over $10 million. He wants to remove the alternative minimum tax, which affects many middle-class families which it was not intended to tax, and he is strongly against any increase in taxes related to Social Security.

Now for Senator Obama.

While he has already voted to increase taxes for anyone making $31,850 he has publicly stated that he will only repeal the Bush tax cuts for the top 1% of the nation. How such a law could be enacted is unknown, and considering that proposals and campaign promises of a similar nature have never occurred his repeals may include more people. He has also promised to eliminate taxes for all seniors that make less than $50,000. When it comes to corporations Senator Obama has stated he will “close loopholes”, which means whatever you wish it to. He has no expressed plan for estate taxes or the Minimum Alternative Tax, presumably leaving them both in place. But he does have a defined plan for the Social Security tax, which he plans to increase – directly coming from wages. There may be an exemption for those above $102,000 but it isn’t clear.

Senator Obama also has several other plans related to taxes that Senator McCain has no comparable for. Senator Obama will create several ‘credits’ for various Americans. One credit will apply to those that work and make over $8,100 – the credit will be for $500 or $1,000 for families. He would also create a 10% credit for all homeowners with a mortgage. This mortgage owner credit would amount to about $500. There would also be an earned income credit for those making minimum wage and working full-time for $555, if children are being supported “responsibly” [how and who determines that?] then another $1,110 is available. For those in college up to $4,000 can be forgiven. Lastly Senator Obama wants the IRS to issue tax forms that are partially pre-filled to reduce the time in filling out the forms.

Now I’m sure both plans have their appeal points, and many with children like the comments by Senator Obama. But let’s look at this in total.

Senator Obama has already voted to increase taxes of most Americans 3%, which he publicly stated he would not do. Because of that I feel every other statement about taxes he has made is in question. In addition every attempt to isolate any singular group of Americans to pay higher taxes has failed. Inevitably Americans not expected to be paying higher taxes do so.

I agree with the concept of excluding taxes for senior citizens that are making enough money to survive on their own. I do not agree on the fixed price or the cap. While $50,000 may sound comfortable today, not long ago $30,000 sounded the same. Any provision that does not take into account the increase of cost of living, nor the cost of medications (which older Americans have higher budgets on disproportionately) fails those it is meant to help.

While spouting polispeak about corporations and their earnings is a winning strategy with unions and newspaper headlines, it is not an effective tax plan. There are some loopholes in the corporate tax code that should be removed, but the real boost to the economy is decreasing tax rates. This allows businesses to increase the number of people employed, or raise their pay, or fund research, or expand to increase scales of economy. Whichever is done the economy for the nation receives more revenues in multiple areas that were stagnant prior. Raising corporate taxes has the opposite effect.

Estate taxes are a special situation that most Americans don’t fall under. Even so, for those that do have to deal with these taxes, they are huge. While most like to point out the multi-million dollar estates, those with far less pay the same tax now. Again this limits gaining revenues on these funds from other sources that could stimulate the economy. But I don’t have a strong opinion on this point.

Social Security is commonly called the “third rail of politics” and it is aptly named. Older voters are sensitive to anything that might affect their money. Considering that most voters are older, and this number is about to swell as baby-boomers age, this is an issue that none want to be on the wrong side of. Then again, younger voters have little interest in funding a program that they in all likelihood will never receive a dime from. SSI is a flawed program that has never worked exactly as planned. Increasing money by raising taxes on those that can’t afford it does little to help anyone beyond actually pushing its problems onto either another administration or generation. Senator Obama’s plan sounds exactly like that.

Senator Obama’s plan for college students sounds eerily like the short-lived plan proposed from then-potential candidate Senator Hillary Clinton. This plan forgives money instead of providing it though. A major question is this though, who will pay the $28.8 billion that this plan would absolve each year. [That assumes that only 7.2 million Americans go to college - and would this include those who take college courses online?] The money from this would have to come from somewhere, which means higher taxes.

I like a 10% credit for mortgages, as I will soon own a home. But in reality I don’t need it. My home purchase is based on the fact that I can well afford the mortgage, and that it is a fixed rate. Those that prepare properly for a home purchase have no need of a credit. Those that do not will not be saved by what would amount to maybe 2 months payment on their obligation. If this plan were less polispeak, it would be designed to help stimulate the economy – especially since 96% of all mortgage holders are paying on-time.

I can’t think of anything more to ask about a credit for those that have children [specifically it seems targeted to fathers paying child support] than who and what criteria equate to responsible. How would this be enforced. Under it’s current wording this implies that the Government would be involved actively in raising every child in America, under arbitrary and politically motivated rules. And what happens if the Government claims you are not being responsible? Do they take the children from the parents, or incarcerate them, publicly ostracize them or penalize them in some other way? Considering that the Government can’t balance a checkbook or check out foods for potentially deadly diseases I don’t trust their opinion on what is “responsible” in child rearing.

And lastly the IRS tax forms. It’s a nice polispeak rabble rouser. It gets headlines. It sounds great, until you think about it. How long do you think it will take to mail out tens of millions of printed tax forms? How will those who have never filed a tax form prior file? How much will this cost to be made? Especially since each and every form will be individual so scale of economies will never take place (never mind the fact that it would likely cost more each and every year – like stamps).

And perhaps most importantly, how will the Government ensure that every document is sent out to the proper person. Because if even one were to be mishandled, or one employee were paid off, identity theft would be rampant. Some would counter that the government send out documents now though no numbers exist on how many are improperly delivered. But the counter would accurately be that the Government is inefficient in every department, what would cause the IRS to suddenly become so?

So in honestly reviewing the tax positions of Senator Obama and Senator McCain, on balance I see McCain with better plans and more effective for the nation. You may not agree, and if so I’d love to hear where I got it wrong. And if I got it right let me know. [please remember I’m not an economist so don’t get too technical on me.]

Labels: college tuition, IRS, mortgage loans, Polispeak, Presidential election race 2008, Senator Barack Obama, Senator John McCain, Social Security, tax policy, tax rates

Sometimes I just have to wonder what liberals are thinking. Today I noticed a news program that was discussing the issue of the birthright of getting a college education. The implication was that Senator Obama will provide government funding to enable every student to go to college. That isn’t exactly true of what Senator Obama has said, and it has so many problems that it’s a joke.

First, let’s be honest. College and higher education is not a birthright. It’s an option. Millions live and work everyday without one. The obligation of the government is to provide a basic education to the children of the nation. It is the obligation of parents to make sure that their child uses that education to their benefit. And it is a step towards adulthood for that child to determine if college is a path they wish to take.

Even more honest is the fact that every child should not go to college. Seriously, your kid may not be the next lawyer, doctor, or college graduate. You probably know if little johnnie or jane is not going to get there long before they reach 12th grade. And that’s not a bad thing. The military is not for everyone, neither is being a policeman, a doctor, an accountant, a salesman, a scientist and so on.

Many liberals love to point out that college tuitions have grown over the last 5 years. They point out that many families can afford college. The first point is true, just as the cost of a car, home, and dozens of other products/services have grown as well. But these same liberals leave out the fact that while most families can’t afford Ivy league colleges there are city colleges, state colleges, and junior colleges that are easily more affordable. Add to that the fact that there are hundreds if not thousands of grants and scholarships that go unused every year. Money is out there for virtually every kind of student, and colleges make huge efforts to help students afford the cost of higher learning.

When I went to college I had a scholarship. I also worked 2 part-time jobs. So did dozens of my friends. It was my responsibility to earn or borrow the money I needed to gain the education I wanted. Had I spent more time in the library I could have gotten even more money.

Some will say that college should be easier. Why? Is life easier? Is work easier? Is raising a family or being in a marriage easy? The fact is that the things that are least easy are what we all tend to want most. We appreciate what we earn and sweat for. Give a person a fish and they’ll wait for another, teach them to fish and they will work to make sure they are not hungry.

Now Senator Obama believes that the student aid form is what is preventing kids from going to college. I believe that if filling out a piece of paper is too difficult, you shouldn’t be considering college anyway. So it’s a long form, so is a mortgage or car loan. So is building up an IRA or retirement fund. I don’t care if the form takes a day to fill out, that’s one day out of a life filled with greater knowledge than the day before.

“Another common reason that high school students decide not to attend college is that they discover they are
unprepared for it in 12th grade.”

You have to be kidding right? If you have been getting D’s and C’s all your time in school I think you know long before 12th grade that you will not be going to college. If you prefer to watch a movie based on a book instead of reading for a school report, college is not for you. If you can rebuild an engine and could care less who Nicholas of Cusa is, college is out. If you spend summer vacations building decks for friends and family, or working in the garment industry making marker – and the concept of how an extra hydrogen atom can attach a water molecule puts you to sleep – college may not be an option. [And I spent every summer from junior high school until I left college working in the garment industry]

Now here is another interesting thought. If Senator Obama were to provide funds for every child in America to go to college, where is that money coming from? College will still need to be paid for, so who will pay it? You will. It’s called higher taxes. Which means you will have less money, whether you have kids or not or whether your kids goes to college or if your kid is able to finish with a degree. If you feel you don’t have enough money to live on now, wait till you have to pay for your neighbors kid to go to college – you know the kid that can’t give you back the right change in Mc Donald’s even with the cash register figuring it out for them. That’s money that is well spent indeed.

But there is a bigger issue that few even consider. America needs skilled labor. Carpenters, truck drivers, machinists and more. As much as the information highway has grown, the basics are still out there. There are no machines or internet programs that will build a house. Or fix plumbing. Or drive a dump truck. Or dig in a mine. And we are running out of those types of laborers. There is such an emphasis on trying to get every child to be a computer geek, or a trial lawyer and so on that everyone forgets that someone has to build the wires, lay the cable, and maintain it for you to get an internet connection or even lights. And you don’t need college degrees for that.

Now I believe in the importance of a higher education. I believe that you should go to college. But only if you want it. Only if you strive for it. Only if you will make it count for something. Otherwise it’s just high school part 2.

Something that my father once told me I feel applies here. He said,

“No matter what you do, if you do a good days work and get a good days pay you can hold your head high in front of anyone.”

I believe that. I’ve held my head high as I swept floors, pulled out garbage, worked as a telephone operator, in a bindery department, a telemarketer, a bar back, a DJ, a bartender, a 3rd line cook, a busboy, a security guard, a stockbroker, a lab assistant, a director of operations in import/export, a writer, and over 155 other positions (of which I have never been fired and have had over 66 promotions). It’s not what you do, it’s why you do it and what goals you put in place for your life.

College has been very important for me. I continue to read and learn. It helps me understand the various issues I discuss in numerous blogs I write for. It helps me understand the ramifications and obfuscated meanings in politics and political speeches. It helps me expand my mind and imagine the improbabilities of the universe. But that’s not for everyone, and I don’t need to pay for anyone to reach that level unless I choose to do so.

When I went to college a very good teacher did me a kindness, sending me a few dollars every so often. He wasn’t obligated to do so, he did it because I had shown my desire to learn in high school. It wasn’t much, but it meant a lot – because he didn’t need to do it. That gave me a reason to strive harder. But it would have meant nothing if everyone in America was paying for my education and I had nothing invested in it.

So again I say, liberals need to think about some of the things they say they want. College is a great thing, and helping some get there is good. But lets be realistic, it’s not for everyone. I don’t want to pay higher taxes to waste my money and some kids’ time on a useless venture.

Labels: college tuition, education, IRA, retirement plans, scholarships, Senator Barack Obama, tax increase

The title of this post is not a joke, it’s a serious question. It’s a question that I’m not asking, Senators McCain and Clinton are asking it. It’s a cheap polispeak bid to buy your vote for as little as possible.

Now it’s being packaged really nicely. Lots of bluster, with claims of a summer long holiday or an attack on big business. It’s a cute claim that if you vote for X Congress will suddenly get shocked from their slumber and force the price of gasoline down. And I have a bridge to sell you too.

I will give Senator John McCain a bit of credit here. He came up with the idea and started to sell it before Clinton even noticed it was an issue. But there is no doubt that Senator Clinton noticed the positive polling McCain received and jumped on the bandwagon. I will give Senator Obama credit as well for not going along for the ride.

Now lets assume for a moment that this ‘gas holiday’ actually happened. Yeah! You get to save about .30 cents a day, or $27 over the summer. If you went to see Iron Man, plan to see The Incredible Hulk, WANTED, Indian Jones or any other summer movie you spent all the savings. That’s just seeing one of those films. Short holiday huh?

Of course when you add up all the people ‘saving’ money you can quickly get into the tens of millions of dollars or more. And every dime of that money will be sucked out of the roads in your particular state. Hope you like potholes and closed roads. How much more gas do you use to go through a detour? Still think McCain and Clinton are doing you a favor?

Now let’s get back to reality. This will never pass. I say that because this is not the first time this has been suggested. It never passed before, and it won’t now. Because the roads have to be driveable and open. And if the taxes are lost from the pump, you are guaranteed to pay for it elsewhere. So the real question is what do you want to be taxed on.

As for the idea of taking the profit from Oil companies, hurrah America is now a socialist nation. Because only socialists, and their economic cousins communists, believe that the government knows how much money you should make. And if you think that Democrats and Congress voting to increase the taxes of everyone making $31,850 or more is 2-faced, wait till they say that your business exceeded the profit for your industry and takes away all your money. You made a better mousetrap, made millions and employed thousands – but you went over the cap and so you made $100,000 while the government took your $10 million to spend on a study on whether or not the spotted owl is surviving. Doesn’t that feel good?

Of course we have left out the other part of stealing the money of companies, the economy. As the government takes money from all corporations, yes even your small business – just like they promised to raise the taxes of just the ‘rich’ – they have less money to invest into research (they fired half the R&D departments since the cash wasn’t there and they need reserves for a bad economy, loans from banks to buy new equipment, and bonds that are out), to put into retirement funds (kiss that 1-for-1 contribution to your 401K goodbye), mergers are too expensive (so much for your mutual funds and stocks). Since growth is low as are interest rates foreign investments pull out of the nation the dollar drops and things get really expensive.

And that’s just what I can foresee. Imagine what a real economist can tell you. And if you think I’m wrong just sit and think of all the things connected to corporate profits and/or the federal gas tax. It won’t take long to get numbers in the billions falling away, being spent by a government that hasn’t balanced it’s checkbook in my lifetime and runs every aspect of it’s operations about as well as your local DMV on a really good day.

And the Senators know all this. They know the arguments and have seen the projections. They know the Congressmen and women. They already counted the votes. So they know it will never happen, but it sounds great and makes people think they care, as long as no one stops to think it through.

Of course I don’t expect better from Senator Clinton. She tends to think the public is either dumb or forgetful. Because it was only early this year she promised to use the money from big oil to pay for healthcare. And she is used to making empty promises, like telling upstate New York she will create 200,000 jobs (after 7 years there still hasn’t been one made on her watch, but 30,000 have been lost – great management there). Or there is the wonderful campaign promise she made that would give every child in America $5,000 for college the day they were born. Amazing that she stopped talking about that once people (including me) asked where the money for that would come from, what happens to the money for those that don’t go to college, or does that include children that are illegal aliens. But that kind of polispeak got her headlines and votes, which was the real reason for the offer to buy your vote.

So considering this I ask voters in Indiana and North Carolina, is your vote worth 18 cents?

Labels: college tuition, illegal aliens, Indiana primary, North Carolina primary, Polispeak, Senator Barack Obama, Senator Hillary Clinton, Senator John McCain, tax policy

How rich do you feel if you are making $31,850 or more?

If you are like most families and individuals in America, I imagine that you don’t. In fact I would say most would feel relatively poor. Not because of a lack of luxury items or failing in a competition with the Jones’ but because of a scarcity of essentials and a knowledge that loss of everything is possible.

Americans in the middle class don’t feel rich because they are the ones losing their homes to the mortgage crisis. They are the ones incapable of affording better colleges (or sometimes any college) for their children. They are the families most often without healthcare coverage and unable to afford medical costs.

And they are the ones that are going to feel even worse if Democrats, and the Presidential candidates Senator Clinton and Senator Obama, get their way. I don’t say this because of some ideal, or dedication to the Republican Party. I say this because that is exactly what they are voting for.

“Senators voted 52-47 to reject a move to extend tax cuts for middle- and higher-income taxpayers, investors and people inheriting businesses and big estates.”

and

“Obama and Clinton both promise to reverse Bush's tax cuts for wealthier taxpayers, but the Democratic budget they'll be voting for would allow income tax rates to go up on individuals making as little as $31,850 and couples earning $63,700 or more.”

So, if you make $31,850 or more you may not feel like Bill Gates and Warren Buffett but you are going to get taxed like them.

This is not a surprise because for all the statements by Democrats that running scared from Iraq will turn the economy around, and their implication that universal healthcare is the same thing as free health care the facts are that more money will come out of our pockets to pay for it all. Your pocket, whether or not any of the things you will be paying for will provide a single benefit for you or those you know.

This is what a Democratic President will provide. Some may believe that this is a small price to pay. Some may believe that all businesses should pay more in taxes. And some may believe that terrorists and those hostile to the existence of America will give up their fights just because we turn our backs.

But I believe that increasing the taxes that the middle-class and businesses pay will not improve the economy. I believe that giving money TO problems rather than spending money to FIX the problems is foolish. I believe that turning your back on a bar fight will get your head cracked open from a chair smashed upon it. I believe that nothing is free, and some things are too expensive to be worthwhile.

The Democratic candidates have marched across America saying they will only tax the rich. They have said that they will only affect big business. They have said that they will make America safer. All are great things. But the facts of their actions indicate they are lying if not confused.

“Under both Democratic plans, tax rates would increase by 3 percentage points for each of the 25 percent, 28 percent and 33 percent brackets. At present, the 25 percent bracket begins at $31,850 for individuals and $63,700 for married couples. The 35 percent bracket on incomes over $349,700 would jump to 39.6 percent.”

So here is the big question for the up-coming election. If you aren’t rich at $31,850 and the Democrats are going to increase your taxes, what other plan proposed by them is equally skewed to your disadvantage?

Labels: American economy, Bill Gates, college tuition, Democratic Party, Iraq War, mortgage crisis, Senator Clinton, Senator Obama, tax increase, tax rates, universal healthcare, Warren Buffett

Do you remember old films and cartoons where you will see a politician (usually an empty suit) pick up a baby and kiss it? A recent take on that was done in the program Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law. In that episode Phil wound up shaking babies and kissing hands. You have to see it to get the joke.

[If anyone has a video clip of that, let me know and I’ll add it]

But we are in the 21st century and modern day politicians can do the old trick in new ways. Take the ‘proposal’ by Senator Hillary Clinton for example.

"I like the idea of giving every baby born in America a $5,000 account that will grow over time, so when that young person turns 18, if they have finished high school, they will be able to access it to go to college”

Wow, that sounds great. What a human being, a caring mother. A load of crap. It’s just candy to get votes, and I’ll explain why.

First, who is going to come up with the 20 billion dollars such a program will cost? You will, say hello to new taxes.

Second, what if your child doesn’t want to go to college. Maybe they want to be an artist, truck driver or construction worker. Where does their money go to? Do they just lose it? Where does that extra money go?

Third, when we say every baby, that includes the babies born of illegal aliens (or the silly undocumented workers designation – here’s a clue the document missing is a U.S. birth certificate or green card hence illegal). If the parents are caught and deported, where does that child’s money go? What if the parents leave the country and take the child with them? Do we pay for college in another country? Do we send that cash to the child in another country?

Fourth, what kind of college qualifies? Community college (which is not really college but high school 2.0), vocational colleges?

Fifth, if the average college tuition is $22,218 (private) or $5,836 (public) and we assume 10% annual growth for just 18 years that means (forgive my math it’s been a while) $98,973 and $32,380 respectively. Taking $5,000 for 18 years at 10% (current rates are 4.75%) then Senator Clinton’s generous gift of your money generates $27,936. Now if my math is correct (which I’m sure I will be told if I am not) and interest rates go up to and stay at 10% (not going to happen) there is still a shortfall of $4,444 just for private school.

I know that the growing cost of college probably won’t be what I just stated, but I can equally be assured that interest rates will not be that high or consistent. It is reasonably accurate that under almost every scenario the money saved will still fall short of the average college.

So depending on the college wished for, loans, grants, and part-time work will still be needed. The wonderful cure all of Senator Clinton’s gift of your money will still not be enough. Of course you can imagine that this amount will then be lobbied for an increase to make up the difference. There will also be special interest groups that will want increases for their kids like Latinos, Native Indians, the overweight, anorexics, gays, kids who are colorblind, kids who can’t dance and so forth.

Millions will be spent to make sure the funds are not misspent. Millions more will abuse the system somehow, and yet millions more will go to studies to see if the system is failing or adequate. The amount will be increased, illegal immigrants will complain that they aren’t getting a fair chance and college tuitions will increase proportionate to the Clinton gift and students will complain about it.

Oh and the last reason why this plan will absolutely not work, and why Senator Clinton is using it as a modern day ‘kiss the baby’ is that if it was such a great plan she would have tried to get it passed on the state level and used it as an example of how wonderful a leader she is.

Since this ‘idea’ has more holes and long-term complications than Swiss cheese Senator Clinton never bothered to run with the idea and saved it for a time when she needed more attention in her quest to gain the Presidency. Funny how it came out now, just as every Democrat is looking for a way to avoid the MoveOn.org problem, especially since she wouldn’t want anyone to remember that she voted in favor of what MoveOn did.

Labels: college tuition, election 2008, Presidential candidates, Senator Clinton, soundbite politics

Let’s think about what happened today. It’s May 1st and thousands of illegal aliens took to the streets throughout the nation today. Their goal was getting immigration reforms passed that would legalize their presence in the nation. Almost sounds impressive.

That is if you don’t consider the fact that these illegal aliens do not have the right to assemble, the right to free speech, cannot vote, nor have representation in the government. Those are rights of citizens of this nation. In effect they just gummed up the works in various major cities, increasing the need for police and law enforcement officials which will be paid for by myself and other citizens since these illegal aliens do not pay taxes either. That just pisses me off.

Yes I’m sure there were citizens in the crowds as well. But there were many illegal immigrants as well. Were it up to me, I would have used the manpower of law enforcement officials at the protest sites to round up as many illegal immigrants as possible and deport them all. Why this wasn’t done makes no sense to me.

I’ve seen the news all day showing various individuals complaining how may of the illegals have created families and are part of communities having lived in this nation for decades. Is this supposed to make me feel bad about their situation? The fact they have been a drain on the system for decades, and knowing that my tax dollars have helped to pay their medical bills and college tuitions without any contribution from them is not endearing to me. Do you feel bad that all the money you have paid in taxes every week and by April 15th every year goes to benefit people that NEVER pay taxes or have them taken out of their pay?[ok, not all your taxes but yet a good portion of them] Do you feel bad that there are entitlement programs in existence just to help them have better lives, and we cannot get relief or help from those same programs because we make too much money and are citizens of our own country? Makes me all warm and fuzzy.

I’ve listened to the illegal aliens and ultra-liberals cry about how families are being broken up with the current policy. But I forgot when it was I invited any of these people to come here, and then have kids. Each of them knew that if they got caught they would be deported, so it’s not a sudden risk just was added by the government. In addition, many of these illegal immigrants know that many liberal cities and officials won’t deport a family that have children (especially if the child is a citizen by being born here) who cannot support themselves. I have no doubt that some chose to have children just so the difficulty is increased. Smart plan, but highly deceptive. Hardly endearing.

Were it my choice, I’d deport the parents and the kids go into the governments care. I’d rather pay taxes for the state to raise a kid than keep their parents illegally in the nation longer. They made the choice and knew the potential problems. I don’t feel bad when the consequences of their actions come to fruition as negative actions to them.

I have to ask another question. If so many illegal immigrants have the balls to clog up our streets, protesting our laws, and making demands of us, why in the world don’t they go and change the government and laws in their own lands? Maybe for some it’s because it would take hard work, time, and there wouldn’t be any bleeding hearts waiting in the wings ready to give away their hard earned assets for no reason other than the fact they exist. Maybe that is part of the reason, maybe not. Either way they still don’t deserve any of the things we allow them to have here. The very least they could do while enjoying this free ride is to get out of the streets and stop demanding anything.

This is what I think, what do you think?

Labels: college tuition, illegal immigrant, immigration policies

I was reading an article recently [Hispanics Have Unique Cancer 'Profile'] when I noticed something. Why is it that in various documents from the government Hispanics are compared to non-Hispanic whites? I’m Hispanic (Black African American and Puerto Rican) but the government classified me African American, so does my doctor. Mexicans, Cubans, Brazilians, Ecuadorians and dozens of others are ‘Hispanic’ and many are not light skinned enough to be white. I also know many of all the Hispanic groups that are white skinned, including parts of my family. But none of them are white either.

In fact the only ‘white’ Hispanics I know of are Spaniards from Spain. Of course anyone who has paid attention to medieval history is aware that the Moors controlled Spain for 100+ years. The Moors were from Africa, need I say more? But I’ll take Spaniards as a given regardless. So who else are these Hispanic whites the government is referring to me not being? I just find that whole category annoying, but perhaps it’s just my ignorance on the subject.

By the way, the term Hispanic is dumb and misleading. It is derived from the word Hispania – an old word used to describe Spain. While the old Spanish did do a lot of ‘getting to know the natives’ (or ‘bringing them civilization/Christianity’ whichever you prefer) the native peoples/Indians of the various areas are as much part of the equation as Spain. Why such a term is used I do not know. It’s like the term Latino, which is better applied to Italian since Latin came from the Ancient Romans. While it is a pet peeve, it does annoy me that a more fairly descriptive term was never used. And why would it be a bad thing to call me a Black African American Taino Indian.

As for the above-mentioned article, read it and look at my post The health of this Puerto Rican Black African American. “If you don’t have your health what have you got?” (Bonus for those that know where that quote is from – hint, it’s a movie)

Another interesting article [Rising college fees will cost us in time] is one that hits home. I can definitely attest to the fact that college tuition has been raising since 1986. I recall the increase at Rutgers University; that would ‘only’ cause 11% of the student body to no longer be capable of affording the college as the school board of directors said. Not a big deal if you can afford it I suppose, I for one could not. And that was after taking into account the fact I maintained 3 part-time jobs while going to school.

Higher education has always been difficult to attain for minority students, especially those that are Black African American and Hispanic. Between less support from a family with lower incomes, less disposable income, fewer homes or assets, more difficult social backgrounds, worse elementary through high school systems and other factors – getting to college is hard enough. Of course that is a blanket statement, some of those factors apply to some people others don’t. But they do exist in abundance to many.

So with that said it’s no surprise that America is again becoming an elitist society in terms of education. One based on those with better education, and thus generally better pay, and those without. Not a new revelation, it has been happening since well before the 1980’s. It’s just far more apparent with the advances in technology in the last 20 years.

But that does not mean that higher education is impossible. Nor that anyone should give up. Some education is better than none. Such was true for me. It doesn’t mean that we should open up the colleges to everyone either. There should be some challenge, it makes the journey worthwhile. Making it attainable is a challenge; letting tuition prices continue on this path makes it a dream.

This is what I think, what do you think?

Labels: African American, college tuition, Hispanic American, puerto rican, Taino Indians