Mar
30
2010

Logic is a Wreath of Pretty Flowers That Smell Bad.

  • If you're like me, you've always wanted a big foam hand appropriate for those occasions where you're cheering on the Vulcan Science Academy in the big tridemensional chess tournament. Here you go.

  • In physics news, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) has finally gotten up to speed. And, as always, if you'd like to know whether the Large Hadron Collider has destroyed the world yet, you can check that out at: http://hasthelargehadroncolliderdestroyedtheworldyet.com/.

    (According to CERN, there are at least seven different ways in which you don't have to worry about the LHC destroying the world.)

  • The MinuteMan has done a great job in covering the inconvenient fact that the ObamaCare legislation, as passed, did not actually provide one of the main benefits its supporters claimed: guaranteed "coverage" of children with pre-existing conditions. His latest installment is here, and its a lurid tale of Democrat incompetence/bullying/posturing put together with the cowardly acquiescence of the health insurance companies. Fun! Unless you're a fan of the rule of law, in which case you might find it a tad depressing.

  • Betsy Newmark notes some depressing news contained in a recent poll. Although specific Democatic initiatives, like ObamaCare, may be deservedly unpopular, one implementation scheme is undeservedly popular: the notion that, somehow, "the rich" can pay for ever more government goodies delivered to the Rest Of Us.

    The Quinnipiac University poll found that 60 percent of Americans among both major political parties think raising income taxes on households making more than $250,000 should be a main tenet of the government's efforts to tame the deficit. More than 70 percent, including a majority of Republicans, say those making more than $1 million should pay more.

    Betsy also links to an Alan Reynolds op-ed in today's WSJ that describes just how stupid, impractical, and dangerous that idea is.

    President Barack Obama's new health-care legislation aims to raise $210 billion over 10 years to pay for the extensive new entitlements. How? By slapping a 3.8% "Medicare tax" on interest and rental income, dividends and capital gains of couples earning more than $250,000, or singles with more than $200,000.

    The president also hopes to raise $364 billion over 10 years from the same taxpayers by raising the top two tax rates to 36%-39.6% from 33%-35%, plus another $105 billion by raising the tax on dividends and capital gains to 20% from 15%, and another $500 billion by capping and phasing out exemptions and deductions.

    Add it up and the government is counting on squeezing an extra $1.2 trillion over 10 years from a tiny sliver of taxpayers who already pay more than half of all individual taxes.

    It won't work. It never works.

    We are in a heap of trouble.

    (Reynolds' article is behind the WSJ subscriber wall, but you can use the Google Two-Step to read the whole thing: search for the the article's title and then click on the first link provided.)

  • Two words: Peeps Dioramas. You can thank me later.


Last Modified 2012-10-04 8:09 AM EDT