JUST HOW MUCH PLASTIC WASTE DOES COSTCO GENERATE FROM THE FREE SAMPLES? AND WHY ARE WE THE LOCUSTS OF THE WORLD?

There is no recession experience quite like going to COSTCO with the kiddies and enjoying the fine samplings of items available. I often equate it with the old happy hour back in the eighties when bars would serve finger foods to keep you drinking. At Costco you can have a complete meal. There are drink samples, from coffee to juice to soda. Appetizers include chips and dip, crackers, cheese and fruits. You can enjoy a sandwich, hot pockets, potstickers, noodles and have a pasta salad or coleslaw as well. There is ice cream and pastry for dessert, nuts, dried mango, and candy. What more could you want? The kids are happy, my wife is happy and I am happy. What made me look twice was the huge amount of trash generated from the plastic forks that are given out with the samples; it seems like an unnecessary item when a toothpick would work just as well. The turn around time for a plastic fork is under a minute; once the sample is eaten, the Dixie cup and napkin and fork are dumped in one of the large red trash receptacles placed throughout the store. And it is a short time before the employee who has to haul the trash away, is seen with the large gray cart filled with trash bags containing the disposed of snack utensils. I like Costco, and the I think the samples are excellent marketing. I just wish that there was less waste generated. I know that Costco recycles a huge amount and has many green programs in place. I would like to suggest some 'green' forks, such as the ones shown below made from starch and vegetable fibers that would decay naturally       From their Web site, Vegware is a global leader in the development, manufacture and distribution of eco friendly food packaging and catering disposables. We currently operate in Europe and North America. All of our eco packaging products are made from annually-renewable or recycled materials, and all are biodegradable or compostable.  An email to Costc's sales and marketing division on this topic from me went unanswered. Pay attention Costco! In fairness, it is not just Costco - we are the ones doing the consuming. Like locusts we certainly abuse the resources available to us. Here are some statistics from a Mother Jones article which you can read HERE: "Chris Jordan is the photographer laureate of waste—his most recent project, "Running the Numbers," uses exquisite images to show the 106,000 aluminum cans Americans toss every 30 seconds, or the 1 million plastic cups distributed on US airline flights every 6 hours, or the 2 million plastic beverage bottles we run through every 5 minutes, or the 426,000 cell phones we discard every day, or the 1.14 million brown paper supermarket bags we use each hour, or the 60,000 plastic bags we use every 5 seconds, or the 15 million sheets of office paper we use every 5 minutes, or the 170,000 Energizer batteries produced every 15 minutes... Americans discard enough aluminum to rebuild our entire commercial air fleet every three months—and aluminum represents less than 1 percent of our solid waste stream. We toss 14 percent of the food we buy at the store. More than 46,000 pieces of plastic debris float on each square mile of ocean." In a society that runs on supply and demand, we are certainly demanding. At Costco I watch severely overweight people wrestling to get their samples. I watch people of every nationality displaying rudeness as they vie for the coveted sample in front of them, as though the store might run out, or this was the last scrap of food humanity would have available. When I walk along the street, no matter how nice the neighborhood, there is no shortage of trash left behind. And when I walk through the high schools I see students who do not think twice about dropping their refuse for someone else to clean up.

IT'S 2 AM - DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOUR ILLITERATE OFFSPRING IS HANGING OUT?

Nothing says "moron" quite like the sad offerings left by our local thug-styled high school dropouts who do with paint what feral cats do by instinct. It sure refutes Darwin, doesn't it? MisterWriter

COMING SOON TO A GLOBAL CATASTROPHE NEAR YOU - 2012 - THE DAY THE MAYANS' SAID "TOLD YOU SO" BUT WHO REALLY CARES?

Will the sun's revived activity fry all our electronics With all the Swine News around, I thought something far cheerier was in order. And then, listening to science man Michio Kaku talking about the leaks in the earth's magnetosphere and the impending period of higher than normal solar mass coronal ejections expected as El Sol awakens from a dormancy period, and how the Mayans foretold the end of the world (when their calendar ran out, no less,) and I thought to myself... Hmmmmm, it sounds like the making of a wonderful Wednesday posting. So all this happens around 2012, when the Mayans, who by the way are EXTINCT - great calendar system they had; could not foretell their own demise, claim that it is the end of the end. And of course, no potential apocalypse would be worth a damn without a Hollywood disaster movie to add fuel to the mental embers of those brain dead enough to not want to fact check anything on their own. Don't get me wrong; the end of the world is cool, especially in this film where you see monks high up in the Himalayas as flood waters start seeping over and into the valleys until it washes them all out. That was almost as good as the scene of the ocean coming into New York in The Day After Tomorrow, or the gigantic mega-tsunami washing over the New York skyscrapers in Deep Impact. I'm not happy about the end of the world. I have way too much on my to-do list. Somewhere between now and eternity I need a vacation - I work way too hard. However, if the end is coming there is one question I really want answered: If every person on the planet flushed their toilet at the same time, would we generate a flood? So if the sun decides to give a giant electromagnetic plasma spit-up in our direction and some of the plasma goop comes through the leaky holes in our magnetosphere and screws up the electrical grids causing us to become a throw-back society with no food, electricity, no Blackberry or Internet, not to mention a city of millions with no food - did I say no food - I think that would qualify for the end of the world unless cannibalism caught on really fast and some people opened special restaurants like Chez Sapien. It would be open season on the overweight, for sure. Now in case you think I am making this up, click on the links below and read it for yourself. And then remember, the Swine Flu is just a super powered version of the regular flu with a lot of media and pharmaceutical backing. Go wash your hands! Happy Wednesday! 90 Seconds from Catastrophe The Quebec Blackout Storm You can see ALL the end of world dates (forecast throughout history) HERE Want to survive? Visit the Survivor's Club HERE   MisterWriter

THE MAY ISSUE OF THE CONCORDIAN IS NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE...PACKED FROM COVER TO COVER

Click the images to read the online edition. Thanks to Rebecca Faith Barrett for an excellent cover photograph MisterWriter

COCO BOS PATCHES DA'S HOLE UNTIL THE FALL. WATCH OUT CRIMINALS - PROSECUTIONS WILL CONTINUE WHILE COUNTY CHECKS ITS BUDGET. WHO WON THE FIGHT? WHO KNOWS!

Put away that sawed off shotgun for now people of Contra Costa. Your board of supervisors has extended financing for the DA through the fall so that he can continue to prosecute misdemeanors. At the special meeting this afternoon, after the ritualistic flailing on a spear posturing, it was decided that things will chug along until the fall. Federal Glover rescinded his request to Jerry Brown that the DA be investigated. So now we are all buddies again - cheeeeeese! How about all politicians and public service admins take a twenty percent pay cut for wasting our time on this one?  Read the CCTimes story HERE MisterWriter

THERE IS A FUNDAMENTAL PROBLEM WHEN A 12th GRADER CANNOT PASS A 10th GRADE EXAM, AND YET 20,000 of CALIFORNIA'S 475,000 SENIORS FAIL TO PASS IT!

It is one of my favorite education topics to pick on, aside from the STAR TEST joke of an exam; the California High School Exit Exam (CAHSEE.) Why? Well, aside from the multiple choice format, this exam is a 10th grade level exam that you have until 12th grade to pass. If you can't pass it, you do not graduate. Studies show that about 20,000 of California's 475,000 seniors fail to pass the exam. Click the image above to read the whole article. I will just stick to the one line...a 10th grade test that you can take multiple times until you end 12th grade. 10th grade! Not 12th grade - to me, a 12th grader should be taking and passing a 12th grade test. Isn't the point of all that schooling to be able to demonstrate that you know the 12th grade content knowledge?  In fact, shouldn't there be a 10th grade, 11th grade and 12th grade test, with a conditional retention if you fail any of them? What is the point of putting a kid into 12th grade if he/she cannot pass a 10th grade test? Maybe we should just give them some certificate for showing up instead - make them feel special. Ugh!!!! Worse still... Click the image above to read the whole article. "However, the average 12th-grade reading score was the lowest since 1992, but not significantly different from 2002," the report said. Gee, I wonder why that is? MisterWriter

COCO BOS FEDERAL GLOVER WANTS COCO DA INVESTIGATED - AN APPROPRIATE EXAMPLE OF WHY IS IN THE NEWS ARTICLE - READ ON...

If you need a reason why the CoCo DA should not stop prosecuting misdemeanors you need look no further than the sidebar in the CCT article about the request into the DA's performance. Click the news picture above to read the article. The special session of the BOS will be this afternoon. More to come...no doubt! Claycord.com posted a good comment from the Sheriff's reps... of watch the CBS-5 news report HERE And remember...   ...I always wondered what he was delivering of whether he was going to work for UPS given the sign color scheme. MisterWriter

IT IS ALMOST TIME TO WEAR THE GREAT AMERICAN DESIGNER FACE MASK. PANIC IN STYLE!

The lowly pig is once again the bad guy. No huffing and puffing; I do not wish to contract anything swine related that has mated with ilk-virals from avians or the like to form a super bug of unknown proportion. And so we wait, watching, as we have done many times before since the 1918 super flu killed a large chunk of the world population, scaring ourselves with campfire tales of massive death and destruction, death with no rhyme or reason, simply because some corporate greed decided to merge virus strains just because. You have to admit, like the nasty roller coaster ride you pay for at theme parks, there is an element of anxiety in the not knowing, a fresh coat of appreciation for that little lot we have, the scrapings we have eked out despite the recession, now potentially able to be sneezed away before a rapid death. At this juncture, even by Mexican standards, the death toll there is not massively high next to the population as a whole, or death by drug lords, earthquake, toxic chemicals or car accident. And for those in the US infected, it seems that they have just another flu, let alone anything toxic. The CDC says that could change in an instant, and maybe so. Break out the gas masks and go buy a ton of canaries. It reminds me of the worries about the Avian Flu, and the fears that a resurgence of a global epidemic might wipe out humanity once again. As I read the science data there I was struck by the notion that as with all viruses, resistance is acquired through exposure; in the 1918 super flu, those who survived were immune. Those who were not either died or survived now immune to that strain. Hardly a worry for resurgence. That is not to say there are not other viral strains. What about AIDS? West Nile? Avian Flu? The list goes on.  Each flu season it seems like we get sicker and sicker, new and gut wrenching variations of bugs that assail us at every opportunity. Those of us with children, or exposed to children in an education setting know that they are a cesspool of viral agents sinisterly recombining until something pulls your intestines in side out for a few days. Isn't that the cost of being human? Adapt and survive. Or don't.  We have become too accustomed to expect that we all have a right to life just from being born. The lessons of the past are painfully present in the history books and battlefields turned shrines. Besides 40,000 people die in the United States in auto related accidents, 44,000 smoking related deaths, 300,000 deaths related to obesity, 14,561 deaths due to AIDS related causes and so on. No one knows why the non-Mexican victims are not getting the deadly consequences at this time. Perhaps it has to do with out ridiculous exposure to vaccines from birth these days. Perhaps it is our ongoing exposure to other viral agents. Perhaps it is our rapid response when we run to the doctor at every sneeze, demanding antibiotics, even though they do not work on viruses. Perhaps it is just that Americans don't put up kindly with dropping like flies.  In time,  I am sure we will find out the real reason. What I do know is that someday soon there will be designer face masks claiming to be sanitary and stylish at the same time, the new apparel for life-minded people. And Billy Mays will be shouting his special offer at you: "Buy one now and we'll even through in two more for free, and if you call now you can get the special flu-buster handcream." And whether or not the flu ever grips this country like it has Mexico, some fat-assed pharmaceutical company executives will be getting filthy rich off the production of marginally effective anti-flu medication driving stocks through the roof and signaling an economic recovery of sorts until they get sued for causing brain damage or causing spontaneous sex changes amongst the population as a whole. That is if we do not learn that they started the whole thing to begin with. No doubt border crossings will elevate. No doubt Americans will be held hostage in exchange for millions of doses of anti-flu. No doubt people will be hammering their doctors for preventative doses even though that is the wrong approach. And no doubt the virus will take the course assigned it by its genetic code, regardless what we do. After all, we can't stop the common cold yet; why would you think the flu, super-flu or mega-flu would be any different? Wine flu on the other hand... Click HERE for the CDC's Swine Flu updates. Click HERE for some information on the Swine Flu Click HERE for an editorial about the panic and the flu. MisterWriter

THE END IS COMING AT A DISCOUNT!

The signs are everywhere: Minimum-waged employees holding double-tiered vertical signs proclaiming “The Final Days – 30%-50% Off Everything.” It seems unavoidable these days. At many street corners, you see these harbingers of doom ‑ a grim reminder of the state of the economy and the ongoing job losses. Certainly, the face of the business landscape has changed. Peppered in with these signs are similar banners with wording that might fit comfortably in the same message. What is different with these signs is that their stores have made a profitable business by going out of business. And in some cases, this has lasted for years. It used to be that there was truth in advertising. While the legislation still exists demanding that standard, the ability to enforce it has faded. Commerce has made gains in sales through the dubious expansion of truth. Disclaimers printed in subhuman font size offer the missing bits of information the consumer may legally need. “This product may cause gastric intolerance and death. Consult your physician.” Likewise, with television disclaimers mumbled off at high speed, the hope is that the enamored consumer will focus on the “Extenzed” benefits of the product rather than its shortfalls. I know of at least two stores in the county that are now into their fifth year of going out of business. Consumers have become jaded to claims and expectations, stuck between their addiction to commerce and their distaste for the lies that comprise advertising claims. Anti-aging product advertising offers the extremes as well. Here is a patch that will remove all those wrinkles by direct deposit of the miracle compound, with some miracle name like “beautificol” with results visible in just two days. Of course, the product costs a lot of money and requires multiple treatments with an average result of better moisturized skin and not much more. Spackle is cheaper and could have the same claim: “Smoothes wrinkles, evens out facial contours with a Botox-like effect without the injections or cost. And it comes with a convenient facial applicator. If you order now, we will even include a free book – how to fix your face while you are fixing your house.” The vitamin and supplement industry have known this bonanza sales marketing practice for many years, offering two for one bottles of unregulated compounds that are packed with “mega” everything, even if doctors tell you that most will be flushed away with your next bathroom visit. The lure and the claims are just too strong. Marketing departments are just too clever. And the consumer logic is that if even one percent of the advertised claim turns out to be true, they would be ahead of the game. It used to be that television and movie celebrities endorsing a product had to be using the product in order to make the claims.  When I watch Robert Wagner or James Garner peddling reverse mortgages or other celebrities pushing products of questionable value, I wonder just how the average consumer is supposed to discern the truth. Or did  advertising become a numbers game where a certain percentage of the population will get ripped off or harmed by the claims while the rest believe whatever they will about the effectiveness of the product? How many products have we each purchased only to discard after a failed trial, chalking it up to our own gullibility? Perhaps the ultimate claim of truth comes in the courtroom, where each person takes an oath to “tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.” There was a time when society had a far higher degree of integrity, when a simple pledge had meaning. Today’s version should be adjusted. “Do you agree to tell the truth, the whole truth, some variation of the truth, statements with some truthful elements in it until we find that you have been less than truthful?” The end is closer than we think. Life is already valued at 30 percent to 70 percent off its full retail value and rapidly falling. I don’t want to deal with it that way.   MisterWriter originally printed in the Clayton Pioneer 4/24/09

PICKING ON THE BAY BRIDGE - AMERICA USED TO BE A WORLD LEADER IN CONSTRUCTION. WHAT HAPPENED TO OUR COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE?

Perhaps having spent many years in Hong Kong in my youth and watching the skyline changing yearly has left me with unrealistic expectations; but when I watch the slower than snail's pace work on the Oakland side of the Bay Bridge I am frustrated by another example of why America is not a global competitor when it comes to construction. Bogged down by union regulations, OSHA codes and a tendency to over think projects, it seems like Asia can do it faster, better, safer, bigger and for a lot less money without sacrificing safety.  In the end we are the ones who lose out. Case in point. Hong Kong's Stonecutter's Bridge cost $350 million to build. Work started in 2004 and is about to conclude. The bridge will be the second longest of its type in the world, with a span of 1,018m and an overall length of 1,596m. The longest stay cables supporting the bridge superstructure are more than 670m (2,198ft) long. For reasons of durability and to enhance the appearance, further studies concluded that the tower skin should be fabricated from a duplex stainless steel (grade 1.4462 to BSEN10088) with a shot peened surface finish. The deck itself will be made of steel in the main span and of concrete in the side spans.   Click HERE for an aerial tour of the bridge. Compared to the Bay Bridge's eastern span (remember that they are not replacing the whole bridge) which was planned out after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake and started in 2000 is still in progress after labor disputes last year with the Port of Oakland, and skyrising costs. Originally budgeted at $740 million in 1997, the figure was quickly revised to $2.6 Billion to the current $6.3 Billion (compared to Hong Kong's $350 million.) Here is the Dept. of Transportation's page on the bridge work.  "Under legislation signed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (July 2005), tolls will rise at bridges across the Bay Area to help finance the long-delayed project, now estimated to cost at least $6.3 billion -- nearly six times the original cost."  THE CHOICES: Smaller bridge for $6.3 Billion or world's 2nd largest bridge for $350 million? 20 years in the making and counting or 5 years to complete? Does anyone else see an issue? And don't go quoting safety and earthquake concerns. For one thing, the new bridge is expected to survive an earthquake, but as we know that is a statement that should only be made after the fact. In Hong Kong typhoons hit with winds up to 200 miles per hour - they have safety issues as well. And it is not just an isolated project. Click HERE to watch an EXTREME ENGINEERING episode (10 minutes) about the building of the new airport in 1998 and the island land reclamation suspension bridges, rail line, and freeways all done in an amazing period of time. The construction of Hong Kong International Airport at Chek Lap Kok was one of the biggest operations in the industry. The core program cost more than $20 Billion and involved four major sponsors, ten separate projects, 225 construction contracts and over 1,000 critical interfaces. I just wonder what happened to America's dominance in construction... Publisher's Weekly wrote about this book: "Harvard economist Porter suggests that it is no accident that Japan leads in exporting electronics and computer-controlled machinery, Italy in fabrics and home furnishings, and the U.S. in software, medical equipment and movies. In each of the 10 countries that he and his international research team investigated, clusters of firms gained a global competitive edge by capitalizing on innovation, raising productivity, and drawing on unique elements of their country's history and character. Porter, who served on Reagan's Commission on Industrial Competitiveness, sees government's proper role as pusher and challenger, rather than as giver of subsidies to protect industries. Stressing renewed effort and competition as keys to gaining global advantage, he questions regulations that would limit competition and recommends enforcement of U.S. antitrust laws to end monopolistic mergers."  It makes you wonder what the future will bring if we do not change out national attitudes about progress, education and imposing a higher standard of expectation upon our citizenry. And it is worrisome. Click the book cover to read more on this topic. MisterWriter

THE COCO D.A. FIGHTS BACK - CLAIMS BONILLA DID NOT REPRESENT HIS WORDS TRUTHFULLY - SOUNDS LIKE A SHOWDOWN IN THE MAKING

A report on Halfway to Concord with an email response from the county District Attorney appears to refute the comments from Supervisor Bonilla's office. Halfway to Concord writes that Allen Payton of Antioch contacted the D.A. and  received a response that is printed on the site. READ IT HERE.  Funny, I emailed the D.A. also but I did not get the courtesy of a response. Anyway it sounds like a smackdown is coming and it will be interesting to see what happens Apr. 28th when the tribes clash at the BOS chambers. I believe it is safe to say that when the dust settles the services in danger will not be cut back, after all we can't have our citizenry arming themselves and dispensing their own justice. MisterWriter

COCO BOARD OF SUPERVISORS TO DA - YOU MADE A TROUBLING DECISION - A THREAT TO THE SAFETY OF COUNTY RESIDENTS - SPECIAL SESSION CALLED

The following media release best sums up the unhappiness from BOS chair Susan Bonilla's office. CONTRA COSTA COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS TO REVIEW DISTRICT ATTORNEY’S CHANGE IN MISDEMEANOR POLICY As a result of the District Attorney's decision to publicly state that his office would cease prosecuting certain misdemeanors without adequate consultation with law enforcement officers, the Chair of the Board of Supervisors, Susan A. Bonilla, will call a special meeting of the Board of Supervisors’ Public Protection Committee. The purpose of the meeting will be to analyze the impacts of the District Attorney's decision and propose to the Board of Supervisors measures that will begin to resolve the concerns of our constituents. Supervisor Bonilla will invite the Contra Costa County Police Chiefs Association and the Contra Costa County Sheriff to attend the meeting to discuss the potential impacts of the District Attorney’s new policy upon the community. The Board of Supervisors believes providing public protection is of high priority. It is regrettable that the District Attorney has unilaterally decided to publicly state that his office will no longer prosecute certain misdemeanors. “I find the District Attorney’s decision deeply troubling. The Board of Supervisors understood, while there would be reduction in services, the District Attorney would make every effort to efficiently schedule cases and seek cost-saving opportunities that would preserve the infrastructure of prosecuting all misdemeanors. The Board of Supervisors relies on the District Attorney to manage his office in a manner that best serves the public. However, the District Attorney’s decision of summarily returning cases to police departments without review by a deputy district attorney and requesting police chiefs to no longer submit certain types of cases threatens the safety and well being of Contra Costa County residents,” said Supervisor Susan A. Bonilla. While the Board of Supervisors establishes the budget for the District Attorney’s Office, as a separately elected official, the District Attorney has sole discretion as to how he will allocate resources to “seek justice and enhance public safety for all our residents by aggressively, fairly, ethically, and efficiently prosecuting those who violate the law” as stated in the District Attorney’s mission statement. A special meeting of the Public Protection Committee with the Board of Supervisors at the BOS Chambers will be held on Tuesday, April 28th at 3:00 pm. Watch for an update. Way to go Susan Bonilla! Don't let it be open season for crime in the county. MisterWriter

TO BOLDLY GO WHERE NO ONE HAS GONE...MORE THAN FIVE VERSIONS BEFORE! ET TU SPOCK?

There is no recession in the Star Trek universe, no budget cuts - they don't even use money - and they know how to make decisions. Forget about political correctness - you just don't wear that red shirt and you might live! On May 8, in what promises to be a far better version than has ever been done before, J.J. Abrams dishes up the revamped, souped up, nitty gritty, down and dirty beginnings of the Kirk clan of space farers and that snappy spacecraft called "Enterprise." Click the picture for a giant sized version. Now many will scoff at this film, claiming that it is more digital drivel that cashes in once again on the Rodenberry galactic cow, and I concede that the film preview they have shown on television, of the three released previews, has to be the lamest of the set. Nonetheless, the third preview offers you a good taste of what this movie has in store. You can click it below. The characters are the same, but the actors are gone. Only Nimoy has a brief role as the father of the Spock character he once defined. The cast is new, rough, flawed in character and like the rest of us struggling to find their place in a system where your life can end twelve minutes after you take command of a starship, as we learn happened to Kirk's father, in the process of saving 800 lives, including that of his son. What Batman Begins did to the whole superhero franchise, I believe this movie will do for a show that has survived the test of time. I remember rushing home from school to watch it, snack in hand, lured by the mysteries of space, the marvel of a spaceship that could go anywhere, and the fact that no one ever bothered Kirk while he was in the john because there were no toilets on board the Enterprise.  There were, however, many Klingon jokes. It's been a rough week. Between rampant allergies, Sacramento storms, idiot politicians, dire financial consequences for California and the education system, the CoCo County DA proclaiming the county a potential criminals Club-Med, and the recession which lingers like a hangover. A little brevity is in order. So enjoy a preview (below) and decide whether to mark it on your calendar to see on the big screen. And remember, there is more reality in Star Trek than in the California state budget dreams filled with lottery backed bonds. Live long and.... Click HERE for the better preview of the new Star Trek movie (give it a few seconds to load after you click) Click HERE for the Website with more info. MisterWriter

CALIFORNIA ASSEMBLY STOPS STEALING YOUR MONEY - DECIDES THAT STEALING YOUR MONEY WOULD BE A "DISTRACTION."

Yesterday I reported that the out of touch with reality Speaker of the California Assembly, Karen Bass (D-Los Angeles) and minority leader Michael Villines (R-Clovis), had awarded $551,000 worth of pay raises to 136 employees, despite the state being so far in the black hole of budget balancing. Well today, head twit Karen Bass announced that she had recalled the raises because they turned out to be "a distraction" from the work they are doing there in the Assembly.  No Karen Bass, it was not a distraction. Your ass got busted for being greedy in the face of your constituents collective misery. Get a clue. "Bass said at a Capitol news conference. She said she would not rule out future pay hikes." "I believe what happened was a mistake on our part as managers," Villines said. "We need to acknowledge and recognize -- and we do -- that in an economy this tough, where people are hurting in California this bad, this is not the right thing to do."  You think? In addition to his state salary of $116,000 a year, Villines receives more than $100,000 annually from a family trust that has real estate holdings. I assume that Bass makes the same salary if not more. $116,000 a year is significantly more than the average California income especially given the screwy job Sacramento is doing. I still think she/they need(s) to be recalled. They have no clue. At least the state now has $551,000 more to argue over. Read on for other elected officials who may be stealing your money this year because they have done such fine work on your behalf! I think not!  I think Jack O'Connell needs to rethink his for sure, especially given the plight of so many school districts. California’s legislative salaries, already the nation’s highest, will rise to $116,208 today for all but a handful of lawmakers who have declined the hike while the state fights a massive budget shortfall. Attorney General Jerry Brown and Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell were singled out for a higher raise based on comparable pay in their fields. Their paychecks will jump 5 percent, or $8,776 per year to $184,301. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s salary was set at $212,179, an increase of $5,679, but the figure is moot because the multimillionaire former actor and bodybuilding champion has never accepted state pay since taking office in November 2003. Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner, a wealthy former Silicon Valley entrepreneur, said through a spokeswoman that he will donate his $4,543 salary increase to charity. State Sen. Abel Maldonado, a Santa Maria Republican who declined today’s pay hike for the third year in a row, said he can’t fault his colleagues but personally would not feel good about pocketing higher pay in a year of fiscal distress. “We’re in the red,” Maldonado said. “The governor sends out a memo that says everyone must (plan) for a 10 percent cut. And elected officials are going to take a raise?” California pays legislators at least $30,000 more than any other state, but numerous city or county managers, auditors or school superintendents receive far higher paychecks, according to data considered by the pay commission.  State Sen. Dave Cox, R-Fair Oaks, said he plays no part in setting his salary, and he accepts whatever decision is made by the seven-member pay commission of gubernatorial appointees. Wow! Don't you feel good about living in California now? Click the color links to read the articles. MisterWriter

IF YOU THOUGHT A $99 PARCEL TAX WAS TOO HIGH, CHECK THIS OUT!

Just to keep the MDUSD $99 parcel tax (which will hopefully bring in $7 million in revenue) in perspective for those naysayers out there, allow me to share with you the education budget for a small district of 1500 students in Bronxville, New York. Here is their board of education notice. Click the above to read the rest of this small district.    In case you are on the math weary side, this equates to an annual per student spending of $29,410 and some change You can visit the Bronxville district Web HERE. Bring your own Kleenex.  In contrast, the MDUSD with 36,000 students has a $286 million dollar budget for this school year which equates to a per student amount of $7,944 and change. Adding a $99 parcel tax will bring in $7 million to the MDUSD which is already in danger of being offset by the state of California's calamitous budget hole, even before the lackluster Special Election on May 19 (where it seems people are not thrilled with the idea of financing the state budget with lottery winnings.) So the question must be asked - aside from a better revenue model in Bronxville, how can there be such a disparity in education funding?  To have a range from $7944 to $29,410 is more than just "slight funding differences." Is there better accountability within the state as well as the district? Is size a factor? It makes you really question California's commitment to education and why we have cruised squarely into the last place in the nation. Way to go, California! Thank you to Jim for the info. MisterWriter

THE CALIFORNIA ASSEMBLY IS STEALING YOUR MONEY - DESPITE MASSIVE STATE DEFICIT THEY GAVE THEMSELVES RAISES TOTALLING $551,000. HOW DARE THEY DO THAT WHEN YOUR CHILD CAN'T EVEN GET EDUCATION FUNDING FOR SPORTS?

In what has got to be the STUPIDEST thing to do, Speaker of the California Assembly, Karen Bass (D-Los Angeles) and minority leader Michael Villines (R-Clovis), have awarded $551,000 worth of pay raises to 136 employees, even though thousands of other state workers have been laid off and the state is facing up to $14 billion in deficits ($8 billion now and the rest if the State Propositions on the May 19 Special Election ballot fail.) How dare they? What arrogance and ignorance. I am disgusted with the incredibly stupidity of the people running this state.  I submit that they are so far removed from reality that they should be removed from office. RECALL the lot of them. California is in the mess it is in because of these attitudes and conduct by our elected officials. Service above self? I don't think so. "We didn't feel in this time period we could do any more. I'd like to do more," Bass said, as reported in the Los Angeles Times story. The state is running at an $8 billion budget gap deficit now with potentially more when the state propositions fail. And will they fail? The GOP is voting against the lot of them.  "Party chairman Ron Nehring said the vote symbolized his members' dissatisfaction with the entire budget deal struck by the governor and lawmakers in February to close the state's budget deficit, then projected to be nearly $42 billion." "No staff raises are planned this year in the state Senate, where a salary freeze was imposed in January, according to Alicia Trost, spokeswoman for Senate leader Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento). It is unclear whether legislators will receive pay raises this year." Is it just me or should the message that Sacramento hears from us all should be: "Don't even think about a raise for any reason while the state budget is in deficit. You have NOT EARNED one." At the bottom of this posting you will find the address for EVERY assembly person in the state (or click the highlighted links.) Please send them your letters of disgust and demand that the pay raise is returned until such time as the state is out of the financial hell hole it is in. That is the least they can do. And demand that KAREN BASS and MICHAEL VILLINES resign. They are clueless as to the needs of the state and that makes them dangerous. You might consider sending state senators and legislators a copy of the letter. Click all the links above to see those reports. MisterWriter

CONTRA COSTA COUNTY - NO MORE PROSECUTIONS OF MISDEMEANORS??? CRIMINALS CAN COMMIT THEFT, NON-INJURY HIT AND RUN, DRUG DEALS AND NO ONE WILL PROSECUTE THEM! IT WASN'T GREAT BEFORE; NOW IT WILL BE INSANE. HELP THE POLICE DO THEIR JOBS - CONTACT YOUR LOCAL BOARD OF SUPERVISORS TODAY AND DEMAND ACTION OR THEIR JOBS. THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE!

I hate to say that it is time for citizens to bear arms and handle their own justice; but given the latest insanity, it appears that theft, drugs and non-violent crime will be on the rise because the Contra Costa District Attorney, Robert Cochly, has informed all agencies that these offenses will not be prosecuted as part of the budget cuts made by the County Board of Supervisors. "I am faced with the reality of informing all of our law enforcement partners that we will definitely being doing less with less," according to the memo. Kochly told CBS 5 his office is nearly $6 million in the red, with property tax and state revenues drying up. Six deputy district attorneys will be gone by next week, and another 11 by year's end." CLICK HERE for the CBS video report. Anyone reading local blogs or newspapers know that crime during a recession increases. What better invitation to those people in the community who live by the anarchy to ramp up their operations. So if someone breaks into my house, so long as there is no violence, they will get away with it?  So drug dealers outside the schools can now carry three to ten times the drug amounts before they will get arrested? This coupled with the non-violent offenders released from prison makes for a Mardi Gras for the criminal types. The change takes place May 4, so there is still time to end the insanity before it really begins. Here is a link to the County Board of Supervisors. Find the one for your city and let her/him know that you will not tolerate this choice. Without a rule of law there is anarchy. They must act to fix this problem. UPDATE: 2pm: Claycord .just posted the entire memo -read it and weep HERE MisterWriter

420 - NOT JUST A BUDGET STOPGAP MEASURE!

Californians, welcome to 4/20, famous as an excuse for smoking 420, which after 4/15 may certainly take the edge off the whole tax game. Of course this 4/20 the topic of legalizing marijuana in order to save the American economy has again made the rounds and rightly so. Logic dictates that legalizing an illegal substance removes the stigma, enforces control and adds the ever vital revenue locally, including taxes, rather than to some hygiene-deficient, illiterate dealer who represents the product of a failed education system and a society that advances the notion of profit by screwing the masses. What could be wrong with that? I live in California, the golden state so broke that they are even floating lottery winnings to cover bonds so that the budget can fire up like a car engine with one turn left before it burns up. And I wonder why, using the same logic, we don't just extrapolate a few more genius ideas to restore us to our former state of delusional glory, after all, around fifty thousand prisoners have been or are in the process of being released from California jails to save money, and the District Attorney's office has been trimmed  back to the point that prosecuting misdemeanor crimes is...um...optional, so why not creatively finance a few more things? First, I say legalize prostitution. Same logic as marijuana. Control it, tax it and add prostitution to the school curriculum (ever since Clinton blow jobs have been removed from the category of sex, anyway) so that an entire industry of professional consorts can emerge complete with degree. Talk about firing up the will to learn. "Mommy, daddy, I want to grow up and be a hooker."  "That's nice, son." Next up, gang violence, totally unregulated for decades, needs to be licensed. You wanna to be a gang banger, get a frickin license. Hell, buy your gun from the state as well. We know you will all shoot each other anyway and the revenue will be a one shot boost, but since you indoctrinate all the lazy ass youth that can't handle school and think that gun size is equated to gonads, we know that the revenue stream will be better than we could hope for. They're all reading this going "huh?" Graffiti needs a license, too. If I need a permit to replace a window in my home, your illiterate spray-painting butt needs one too. And taggers, please not, the 'F' word has a "c" in it! I don't get how you can screw up that potent word by misspelling it! Morons! As an Internet user, I know that the WWW was borne of porn and all the best technology available online has had a porn origin. And yet you have free services like Craigslist with categories of getting people together like Moron seeking Moron - well, a quick read of Craigslist makes you realize that there is a huge tax paying base out there untouched. People dating are willing to humiliate themselves on sites on the off chance that they will find their perfect lifetime (2 years) mate! How about a dating license? It is almost as dangerous to date these days as it is to drive. And most people are just terrible at it. Dating school, fees, licenses, and dating tax will better regulate the whole industry. So as you 420 worshippers, hookers, taggers, dropouts and Internet daters out there are inhaling, lying down, painting, and applying make-up today, please consider that aside from being an insignificant speck of bug turd floating in the cosmic river of life, we all have a duty and a responsibility to the state to help restore and revitalize the revenue stream. Start by grabbing that tube of KY, dropping your pants and bending over in the direction of Sacramento while shouting out the Governator's name. The budget monkeys might just notice just as soon as they get done washing their hands!

BOYS AND GIRLS THIS IS WHY YOU NEED TO STUDY SCIENCE IN SCHOOL AND THEN GO ON TO CURE BLINDNESS!

BRITISH scientists have developed the world’s first stem cell therapy to cure the most common cause of blindness. Surgeons predict it will become a routine, one-hour procedure that will be generally available in six or seven years’ time. The treatment involves replacing a layer of degenerated cells with new ones created from embryonic stem cells. It was pioneered by scientists and surgeons from the Institute of Ophthalmology at University College London and Moorfields eye hospital. READ THE FULL STORY HERE And in a related story, how about having your entire genome sequenced?  "A year ago, I joined one of the most exclusive clubs in Britain. After wiping a swab around the inside of my cheek, and swiping my credit card to the tune of $985, I became one of the first people in the country to get a good look at the contents of my genetic code."  READ ON MisterWriter

IT'S NOT IMPOSSIBLE. IT IS PHYSICS. A GREAT READ! AND A GRAND VIDEO SERIES. MICHIO KAKU AND THE UNIVERSE

I don't know if you have watched the History Channel's amazing series THE UNIVERSE but Michio Kaku is one of the scientists you hear from who explains all the techno stuff in easy to understand language. In many ways he is the Carl Sagan of the series, and I liked Carl Sagan. Click the first video below to hear about the book. Here is a brief description of the book: A fascinating exploration of the science of the impossible—from death rays and force fields to invisibility cloaks—revealing to what extent such technologies might be achievable decades or millennia into the future. One hundred years ago, scientists would have said that lasers, televisions, and the atomic bomb were beyond the realm of physical possibility. In Physics of the Impossible, the renowned physicist Michio Kaku explores to what extent the technologies and devices of science fiction that are deemed equally impossible today might well become commonplace in the future. From teleportation to telekinesis, Kaku uses the world of science fiction to explore the fundamentals—and the limits—of the laws of physics as we know them today. He ranks the impossible technologies by categories—Class I, II, and III, depending on when they might be achieved, within the next century, millennia, or perhaps never. In a compelling and thought-provoking narrative, he explains: · How the science of optics and electromagnetism may one day enable us to bend light around an object, like a stream flowing around a boulder, making the object invisible to observers “downstream” · How ramjet rockets, laser sails, antimatter engines, and nanorockets may one day take us to the nearby stars · How telepathy and psychokinesis, once considered pseudoscience, may one day be possible using advances in MRI, computers, superconductivity, and nanotechnology · Why a time machine is apparently consistent with the known laws of quantum physics, although it would take an unbelievably advanced civilization to actually build one Kaku uses his discussion of each technology as a jumping-off point to explain the science behind it. An extraordinary scientific adventure, Physics of the Impossibletakes readers on an unforgettable, mesmerizing journey into the world of science that both enlightens and entertains. "When scientists use the word God, they usually mean the God of Order. For example, one of the most important revelations in Einstein's early childhood took place when he read his first books on science. He immediately realized that most of what he had been taught about religion could not possibly be true. Throughout his career, however, he clung to the belief that a mysterious, divine Order existed in the universe. His life's calling, he would say, was to ferret out his thoughts, to determine whether he had any choice in creating the universe. Einstein repeatedly referred to this God in his writings, fondly calling him "the Old Man." When stumped with an intractable mathematical problem, he would often say, "God is subtle, but not malicious." - Michio Kaku Michio has his book Physics of the Impossible now cruising at #23 on the NY Times bestseller list because of it being a great read for adults and teens.  I thought I would add my five cents in.  You can click below for the info. Michio is touring, however no N. California stops unfortunately. He would be a good one to hear.  PHYSICS OF THE IMPOSSIBLE - Michio Kaku PARALLEL WORLDS - Michio Kaku HYPERSPACE - Michio Kaku   THE UNIVERSE (season 1) - History Channel (DVD) THE UNIVERSE (season 2) - History Channel (DVD) WATCH PART OF SOME EPISODES OF THE UNIVERSE: THE UNIVERSE (season 1) - History Channel (DVD) THE UNIVERSE (season 2) - History Channel (DVD)

SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL AT THE END OF THE WORLD - WATCH!

Buy the DVD HERE ($11.99) or the Blu-Ray DVD HERE ($24.99) Just about anywhere Werner Herzog goes becomes an interesting place, in part because the director shapes it with his distinctively sardonic eye. In Encounters at the End of the World, the 'Zog heads off to Antarctica, finding there a population of unusual people, hallucinatory underwater life, and penguins.  In the human outposts of Antarctica, Herzog finds the kind of people you might expect would gravitate to the edge of existence--the curious, the oddball, the wanderers who've run out of other places to explore. He finds some deadpan hilarity, especially in filming a communication drill involving people practicing blizzard conditions (they wear buckets over their heads while roped together). The underwater photography (a realm previously explored in Herzog's The Wild Blue Yonder) is by Henry Kaiser, and it meshes perfectly with the director's interest in alien eye-scapes. And when Herzog finally does find penguins, his imagination goes to the idea that some penguins go insane, scurrying off into their own suicidal directions. Studio: Image Entertainment Release Date: 11/18/2008 Run time: 101 minutes Rating: G

Duh - “But if we only look at standardized test scores, we’re only considering part of the equation for success as an adult in a global marketplace." What a concept in this stupid, stupid, stupid world.

I feel like a broken record going on about standardized testing, the failure of multiple choice assessments as a measure of learning and the whole funding mess of education that is ripping at the fabric of the country. Stupid, stupid, stupid. And so I am happy to read reports that back up the assertion that we need to end the sheep-mentality and actually inject substance into the whole learning process. And so obviously cutting school funding, slashing extra curricular activities and turning learning into an extension of the prison system will not work. Unless that is the overall plan! I am amused that it takes multi-million dollar studies to determine what common sense could have told you for free, but I guess, in America, we have to keep everyone employed even if their job function is redundant. It is time to stop making education a reward only concept that pampers the weak and allows the manipulative and the greedy to circumvent the rest. The needs of the many outweigh the special interest needs of the few and the concept of mainstreaming all kids is stupid, stupid, stupid.   It is high time that people stand up and demand sanity in the structure of their children's education and not simply feeling guilty for criticizing the few that need to have the supports that slow the rest down. No offense intended, but special needs kids need special attention and that cannot be simply dumping them into a regular class with an aide. Likewise, English learners need to be in a school with English learners and a bilingual teacher whose only job function is to elevate the language skills so that they can be integrated.   The politically correct immersion philosophy is stupid, stupid, stupid.  But it helps the data gathering careers of the NCLB world that live and die by statistics, regardless of accuracy. But since we have standardized testing in place, and since it is easier to leave things in place than change them, I am betting that despite the growing evidence to the contrary, we will continue to be stupid, stupid, stupid. Click HERE to read the article and then feel free to rant, rant, rant! MisterWriter

APRIL 15 - IT IS THE DAY TO PAY THE PIPER - AND OTHER COLLECTED SAYINGS...

America is a land of taxation that was founded to avoid taxation.  ~Laurence J. Peter I'm proud to pay taxes in the United States; the only thing is, I could be just as proud for half the money.  ~Arthur Godfrey Unquestionably, there is progress.  The average American now pays out twice as much in taxes as he formerly got in wages.  ~H.L. Mencken Did you ever notice that when you put the words "The" and "IRS" together, it spells "THEIRS?"  ~Author Unknown Income tax returns are the most imaginative fiction being written today.  ~Herman Wouk Of course the truth is that the congresspersons are too busy raising campaign money to read the laws they pass.  The laws are written by staff tax nerds who can put pretty much any wording they want in there.  I bet that if you actually read the entire vastness of the U.S. Tax Code, you'd find at least one sex scene ("'Yes, yes, YES!' moaned Vanessa as Lance, his taut body moist with moisture, again and again depreciated her adjusted gross rate of annualized fiscal debenture").  ~Dave Barry The government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases:  If it moves, tax it.  If it keeps moving, regulate it.  And if it stops moving, subsidize it.  ~Ronald Reagan Intaxication:  Euphoria at getting a refund from the IRS, which lasts until you realize it was your money to start with.  ~Author unknown, from a Washington Post word contest Happy Tax Day Suckers! MisterWriter