Category Archives: Government

Stuff you may or may not know about your local, state, and federal government

The Sky Is Falling, Err, The Sea Is Rising

As I mentioned in a previous post, HERE, the prediction is after President Trump pulled out of the Paris accord, that there will be mass flooding, polar bears starving, mass extinction, island countries disappearing underwater, millions of people dying, droughts, floods, and cats sleeping with dogs.  Oh my.

What do the numbers say and just what are the “scientist” saying?  I looked up just how bad this mass flooding which will kill millions, actually is.  According to “research” the average sea level increase is 3 millimeters per year.  That’s a bit over 1/10th of an inch every year.  Oh the humanity.  Let’s see, in 10 years, that would be a fraction more than 1 inch.  In 100 years, that’s still less than 1 foot of sea level rise.

To put this imminent calamity in perspective, the average DAILY  sea level change in the open ocean due to the tides is TWO FEET.  Tidal changes at the coastline are much greater.  In the Bay of Fundy in Canada, the average tidal change is over FIFTY THREE FEET!!!

All of the tidal changes are caused by the pull of the Moon and the Sun.  Maybe the Paris Accord Part Deux should create a non-binding order to  ban the orbiting of the planets.

Fixing Healthcare

The solution is easy!

President Trump just needs to say that he has come to realize that Obamacare is the best solution to the healthcare crisis and he wants the Senate to scrap any plans to repeal and replace.

The “resistance” will instantly adopt the Senates’s plan to repeal and replace because they will not support anything that President Trump says he wants to do.

Done deal.

It’s Just A Fee, Not A Tax…

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti committed $100 MILLION to help the homeless back in 2105. Later he corrected himself and committed $138 MILLION.  As a good politician, he made the commitment of city funds without actually having a budget to do so. It’s great to be able to spend other people’s money, even before you steal it from them.

A significant portion of the funding is to come from “Linkage Fees“.

I’m not a financial wizard, hence I needed to look up what a “linkage fee” is. What Los Angeles City is implementing is “linking” a $5 per square foot “fee” on commercial development and a $12 per square foot “fee” on residential development to get the funds. The “fees” would be collected before a building permit would be issued.

You can read the FAQ on the “linkage fee” HERE

I always like how the politicians write these things up. It’s a “fee” not a “tax”. If they said, “we are implementing a new tax on construction”, I bet that there would be a lot more upset people. Quietly implementing a new “fee structure” to a program that is already “fee” based goes by mostly unnoticed. That’s why pols get paid the big bucks!

Just to put things in perspective, according to homeadvisor.com, the average cost of new residential construction for a 2000 square foot house, which by the way would be subject to the “fee”, is $150 per square foot.  The “linkage fee” is basically an 8% new construction TAX.

Hey it’s only $24,000 that you are giving to Consigliere Garcetti when you kiss his ring.

Besides, that’s just walking around money for the Hellywierd elite.