Righting a Wrong for Washington, DC

Good to great news today. The House of Representatives in Washington passed statehood for Washington,DC today.

Could you imagine living in Washington, DC and paying taxes, everything but YOU HAVE NO REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS? Really? Greater population than Wyoming but zero representatives in Congress. So wrong. Obscene.Let's do this. #DCStatehood #DCStatehoodNow

Quote of the Day -- Justice/Impeachment Edition

Let's be clear on this impeachment of now former President Trump. This is from historian Michael Beschloss:

“This is the only president in American history who incited an insurrection against Congress that could have resulted in assassinations and hostage-taking and, conceivably, the cancellation of a free presidential election and the fracturing of a democracy, That’s a fact, and it won’t change in 50 years. It’s very hard to think of a scenario under which someone might imagine some wonderful thing that Donald Trump did that will outshine that. He did, literally, the worst thing that an American president could ever do.”

Oh, yeah. For the country. For the nation. For the people. For what's right. For our laws. For accountability. And so it's clear that this nor nothing like it ever, ever happens again.

Impeach.

The Super Bowl Ad They Wouldn't Show

The Super Bowl ad they wouldn't show----but should.



We took their land from them and we took their food and their culture and religion.

Then we gave them guns.  And alcohol.

"Redskins" has got to go.

Link:  Change The Mascot - Launched By The Oneida Indian Nation

How Republicans Run Governments

This, ladies and gentlemen, though only from a statehouse, Missouri's Jefferson City, shows precisely how Republicans "run government."

No money to repair Missouri's bridges can mean closures

The fact is, they don't legislate and they don't do their jobs, these Republicans.

MoDOT says it doesn’t have the money to fix or replace hundreds of bridges around the state — including the Lincoln County structure — meaning some spans must be closed rather than risk carrying traffic.

But the cash-strapped state agency is still paying off debt it assumed for a round of bridge work a few years ago and says new funding sources must be found to make the necessary repairs and replacements.

Already, three bridges statewide have been shut down indefinitely since the beginning of last year. And 641 — 50 more than a year ago — of MoDOT’s roughly 10,400 bridges have been determined to be in critical condition, the lowest ranking a bridge can earn before being shut down...

That list is expected to grow to 1,500 in the next decade. It currently includes 36 bridges in St. Louis, St. Charles, Franklin and Jefferson counties, as well as in the city of St. Louis.

The same thing is taking place nationally, with the Federal Government, in Washington:

Highway funds in jeopardy as House and 

Senate differ

And since 2008, when a certain President was elected to the White House, nary a jobs/infrastructure bill in sight.

The Trans Pacific Trade Agreement Vote Today!!

Today is the House vote on fast-tracking the Trans Pacific Partnership.

Republicans need every Democratic vote, and Democrats are under increasing pressure from the White House and from business groups to agree to it.

Please call the congressional switchboard---202-224-312-- and ask to be connected with your representative. Then leave word at his or her office that you oppose fast track and you don't want the Trans Pacific Trade Agreement.

This, Out of Jefferson City, Is Inexcusable

I saw this article and link yesterday, online:

Legislative session came — and went — with no highway fix

One of the most important things our state legislators at the state capitol needed to do this last session, the one just ended, was to have found some way to fund and pay for the infrastructure work and repairs we need all across this state on all our roads, bridges and highways.

They didn't touch it.

It's made all the worse by the fact that the Federal Government in Washington is playing the same seeming fiddle they are.

Leaving the Highway Trust Fund High and Dry

Congress has bought the U.S. two more months of highway funding – through the end of July. Just like last summer, Congress has left major uncertainty about federal funding for our nation’s highway system for debate during the height of the summer travel season.

We need about $50 billion a year to maintain the nation’s highways, but the main revenue source for that maintenance, the federal gas tax, hasn’t been increased even to adjust for inflation since 1993. Currently it brings in about $34 billion a year, leaving a major funding shortfall.

So each year, Congress finds itself passing short term stop gap measures. Each year, this process takes time and attention from other matters. Since 2008 alone, Congress has enacted 33 temporary fixes for the highway fund.

Proposals exist for more permanent solutions, but despite the seeming common sense of raising the gas tax after more than twenty years, lawmakers each year choose to continue underinvestment and uncertainty for our nation’s infrastructure. It’s part of a larger pattern of underinvestment in infrastructure, and we can do better.

And we've known we've needed these repairs and updates for years. We know we can't have good, smooth roads and bridges without upkeep. Nothing works like that, let alone our thoroughfares.

More on what needs to be done:

CBO: Highway Trust Fund would need $3 billion through Sept. 30

Adding to the insanity of the current situation is that with gasoline prices having dropped so precipitously in the last year or two, it surely seems easy and clear that we should maybe add at least some, a bit, to our gas tax as a way to pay for it all. Gasoline has gone from over $4 per gallon 2 years ago to now just over $2 per gallon. Surely we can agree there's some room in there to raise the gas tax--it hasn't been raised since 1993, for pity's sake--so we can fund our transportation repairs.

America used to work. We used to be able to do things. We used to be able to do these things. It's how we built our national highway system. It's also how we built a thriving middle class and a strong, even robust economy.

Sure, the Republicans stand in the way of tax increases but we have to find a way forward on this issue and, of course, others.

Our choices are to start having our  roads, bridges and freeways become toll roads--no one likes those-- or we can continue to let them fall apart.

Surely we can all agree we don't want to be that kind of nation and people.

We need to get our legislators to act, on the state and federal levels, both.

Quote of the day -- On True Small Government

The guy who was, at the time, the ultimate, utmost Conservative and Republican, Barry Goldwater (Google him or check him out on Wikipedia or something, if you must). He was the Convervative's Conservative. He was Conservative long before Conservative was the "cool" it is today:

Our Only Hope for I-70 Improvements?

With this breaking news last evening, maybe this is the only way Interstate 70 is going to get widened, updated and improved:

White House opens door to tolls on interstate highways ...

With pressure mounting to avert a transportation funding crisis this summer, the Obama administration Tuesday opened the door for states to collect tolls on interstate highways to raise revenue for roadway repairs.

The proposal, contained in a four-year, $302 billion White House transportation bill, would reverse a long-standing federal prohibition on most interstate tolling.

Because, after all, this is all they have to work on down in Jefferson City, what with the very Republican and Right Wing representatives there:

Gun Battle Reignites Border War

From the article:

The Republican-controlled Missouri House of Representatives advanced two more pro-gun measures this week in an effort to compete with neighboring Kansas as a new home for the nation's gun industry.

The House gave preliminary approval to legislation that would prohibit the enforcement of federal gun laws on all guns that are made and stay in Missouri, similar to a law enacted in April in Kansas. In addition, lawmakers included an amendment into an economic development bill that would give tax breaks to gun manufacturers that relocate to Missouri. The measure comes a week after the Missouri House passed legislation that would make it a felony to enforce all federal gun rules enacted after Jan. 1, 2013.

It's either voting against Federal law--which is pointless since Federal trumps state every time--or they want to propose and vote on some legislation to dictate women's reproductive rights or for rich people like Rex Sinquefield to get more tax cuts or some other measure in his favor.

Very, very disheartening.

HIgh speed trains? In Missouri??

According to this article, that's what it's saying, that there are to be high speed trains in California, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri and Washington, all as early as 2016.

This new contract means the US is finally really getting high speed trains

From the article:

Siemens and Cummins, a German engineering conglomerate and American engine manufacturer, want to help you shoot across America on high-speed rail. Beating out U.S. bids from Caterpillar and GE, Siemens won a $226 million contract to deliver 32 diesel-electric trains as soon as autumn 2016.

The trains will be used on routes Amtrak is planning in California, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, and Washington. (Illinois in particular is working on its Chicago­–St. Louis line, with max speeds of 110 mph, according to the AP.) If all goes well, Siemens could build another 225 trains for the U.S.

When you put this in light of articles like these recent ones, it's enough to give one hope:

U.S. Mass Transit Ridership at Highest Level Since 1956

Commuters Ditch Cars For Public Transit In Record Numbers

First Chicago to St. Louis, then St. Louis to Kansas City, then, finally, Kansas City to Denver?

Wouldn't that be outstanding?

It might be enough to maybe get that expatriot from Kansas City who lives in Virginia (who shall remain nameless) to wet his big boy pants.

On that minimum wage increase?

Low minimum wages?

Meanwhile, the minimum wage in Arkansas is $6.25 per hour.

Any questions?

Quote of the day

"...when a gunman takes out kindergartners in a bucolic Connecticut suburb, three days after a gunman shot up a mall in Oregon, in the same year as fatal mass shootings in Minneapolis, in Tulsa, in a Sikh temple in Wisconsin, in a theater in Colorado, a coffee bar in Seattle and a college in California — then we’re doing this to ourselves.

...Every country has a sizable contingent of mentally ill citizens. We’re the one that gives them the technological power to play god.

...America needs to tackle gun violence because we need to redefine who we are. We have come to regard ourselves — and the world has come to regard us — as a country that’s so gun happy that the right to traffic freely in the most obscene quantities of weapons is regarded as far more precious than an American’s right to health care or a good education."

--Gail Collins, "Looking for America", The New York Times

Link to complete article: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/15/opinion/collins-looking-for-america.html?src=un&feedurl=http%3A%2F%2Fjson8.nytimes.com%2Fpages%2Fopinion%2Findex.jsonp

Wierd news today out of Washington, Missouri

Breaking today:

Young Boys Meet Through Friends and Discover They are Brothers

Two boys in Washington, Mo., received the surprise of a lifetime while visiting their neighborhood swimming pool in June. Twelve-year-old Isaac Nolting was introduced to 13-year-old Dakotah Zimmer by a friend of a friend. They quickly noticed similarities in their appearance. They had the same hair, feet, nose and hands. People even started asking if they were related. Dakotah told Isaac that he had a brother who was adopted by a woman named Dawn.

When Isaac got home, he asked his mom, Dawn Nolting, if he was adopted. She revealed that in fact he was, and that his mother had been a teenager who was unable to take care of him the way that she wanted to when he was a baby. Dawn volunteered to look after him, and his mother visited him often but never took him home again. Dawn eventually adopted Isaac when he was 18 months old. She had been looking for the right time to tell him, but just had not gotten up the courage to do so. Dawn knew the two boys would meet soon, because they would be at the same school the following academic year.

So the mystery was solved. Isaac and Dakotah are brothers. The boys' biological mother passed away in 2007, and their father died a year later. Dakotah now lives with his biological grandmother and his sister, Ashley, in Augusta, Mo.

Pretty cool.

Link to original story: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/trending-now/young-boys-meet-friends-discover-brothers-185007313.html

Rest in peace, George McGovern

"I'm fed up to the ears with old men dreaming up wars for young men to die in."
--George McGovern

Thank you, Senator McGovern, for your work and diligence and for speaking up and out. We need more--many more--like you.

Links: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_mcgovern

http://www.mcgoverncenter.com/george.htm

KC: No. 15 out of 50

Yes, it's been covered by The Pitch Magazine and likely elsewhere online, too, across town but I still think it's good to cover this story and point out a few things differently.

Kansas City was ranked a bit of a surprising number 15 out of a total of 50 cities, nationwide, out of Businessweek Magazines'--with an assist from Bloomberg Rankings, it says-- "50 Best Cities to Live." (See links at bottom).

So good for us but first things, first--where does this come from and what may it mean for us?

First, from where this ranking comes:

The magazines say the cities are "... evaluated 100 of the country’s largest cities based on leisure attributes (the number of restaurants, bars, libraries, museums, professional sports teams, and park acres by population); educational attributes (public school performance, the number of colleges, and graduate degree holders), economic factors (2011 income and June and July 2012 unemployment), crime, and air quality. Major professional league and minor league teams, as well as U.S.-based teams belonging to international leagues in that city were included. The greatest weighting was placed on leisure amenities, followed by educational metrics and economic metrics, and then crime and air quality."

So, all told, that should mean especially good things for us, being based on these items. It's good company--all those cities--good competition and great overall reasons to grant these rankings.

(It has to be noted that it sucks, here, on this list, to be Dallas or Los Angeles or Phoenix, too. Wow).

Next, let's take a pause here and see what the article has to say about us:

Rank: 15
Population: 458,064

Were it not for its high crime rate, Missouri’s largest city might rank even higher. Residents working in the city’s downtown area are watched over by the iconic Kansas City Power & Light Building, while shoppers can get lost in local shopping centers such as Country Club Plaza and the Legends at Village West. For a unique blend of technology, arts, and history, residents can always stop by the city’s old transportation hub, Union Station.

Bars: 113
Restaurants: 921
Museums: 28
Libraries: 19
Pro sports teams: 3
Park acres per 1,000 residents: 36
Colleges: 15
Percent with graduate degree: 7.3
Median household income: $59,980
Percent unemployed: 6.9

I think it's interesting that the ranking is specifically for Kansas City, Missouri, yet they mention the Legends at Village West. That's a cute oversight on their part.

So, finally, then, what does this mean for us?

I think it means a couple things, really, at least.

First, it means we're getting good, national attention and coverage and that's always good.

Second, I think it's clear that, without the arts, Kansas City would be nowhere near this list. The arts and our three national sports teams--baseball, football and now soccer. What's ironic is that that last one, the new, "fereign" one, soccer, is the one that wins more than the other two.

Third, I think we need to, once again, stop a moment here and thank all kinds of people but maybe especially the Kauffman family since, without Ewing, Marion and Julia, we would have neither the Royals Major League Baseball team nor the incredible, in so many ways, new Performing Arts Center. Those are two big factors on this ranking, I think.

Where we have to sit up and take note--what we have to work on, this ranking shows--is that we clearly need, as we all surely know, that we have to get the crime rate down and the shootings and killings to stop.

Now if we just knew how, right?

Here's another note, too and it's in our favor: St. Louis is ranked 47th and really took a beating in all this. They have the big, major league teams but, in the magazine's own words, "St. Louis rated the worst on this list...in crime."

Ouch.

So, not only does this give us some bragging rights and some things for the Chamber of Commerce to crow about and promote and advertise, but it also gives us something to work on and for. Maybe if we get that crime rate down and the shootings and killings to decrease or, better yet, stop, we'll climb up this list even higher.

Here's hoping.

Congratulations, Kansas City. You got some good to great press here. Now let's get out there and get even better.


Links: http://www.pitch.com/plog/archives/2012/10/05/kc-is-americas-15th-best-city-says-businessweek

http://images.businessweek.com/slideshows/2012-09-26/americas-50-best-cities.html

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-09-26/san-francisco-is-americas-best-city-in-2012

http://images.businessweek.com/slideshows/2012-09-26/americas-50-best-cities.html#slide37

American wildfires, 2012

Statistics on wildfires in America just now:

--Right this moment, there are 62--count 'em, 62--"uncontained, large fires" burning across America.

--Those 62 fires are raging in 10 states, with most of them in the West.

--In July this year alone, 2,014,395 acres burned. The average over 10 years is 1,585,656 acres burned.

--Wildfires this year burned states from Arizona and New Mexico clear up to Idaho and Washington, inclusive.

--"By mid-July, there were 32 large wildfires active across the nation, entirely across the western states — two in both Washington and Nevada; three in California and Montana; four in Oregon, Idaho, and Arizona; and five in Utah and Wyoming."

--"On July 31st, there were 29 large wildfires active nationwide. Two fires were active in Florida..."

--"In total, 20 fires were active across the western states of California, Colorado, Utah, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming."

I ask you, do you ever remember a Summer--or even a whole year--when so much of our nation was consumed by wildfires?

Because I sure don't.

And as if that isn't enough, it's even a problem for our Northern neighbor, Canada:

Rare wildfires threaten Canadian polar bear habitat

(Reuters) - Wildfires sparked by lightning near Canada's Hudson Bay are threatening the habitat of polar bears, encroaching on the old tree roots and frozen soil where females make their dens, a conservation expert on the big, white bears said on Thursday.

Polar bears are more typically threatened by the melting of sea ice, which they use as platforms for hunting seals, their main prey. But those who live near Hudson Bay spend their summers resting up on shore when the bay thaws, living in dens dug in the frozen soil among the roots of stunted spruce trees.

Come to your own conclusions.

Links: http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/fire/

http://www.nifc.gov/nicc/sitreprt.pdf

http://www.inciweb.org/incident/2904/

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/08/16/us-polarbears-wildfires-idUSBRE87F1FF20120816

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/08/17/us-usa-wildfires-west-idUSBRE87F19Y20120817?feedType=RSS&feedName=domesticNews

Suddenly Seattle sounds like Kansas City

Breaking news today:

3 killed, 2 wounded in Seattle shooting; gunman still at large

Except there, in Seattle, this is big and unusual news.

Sad.

Sad for us and now them, too.

Kansas City, Detroit, St. Louis, we all take it in stride and think it's just another day.

Let's hope this kind of ignorance and insanity doesn't catch on there, too.

Link: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/2-killed-3-wounded-seattle-shooting-gunman-still-212556859.html

Want to "buy American"?

Sure, we say we'd rather buy American-made products so here's your chance--on clothing, anyway. GQ magazine just came out with a list of several sources for American made clothes. They are: 1. Pendleton Woolen Mills Pendleton, OR. Est. 1909. Best known for its vibrant blankets, but no slouches in the way of plaid shirts, either. 2. Filson Seattle, WA. Est. 1897. These outdoorsy goods are a staple of urban woodsmen nationwide. 3. Red Wing Red Wing, MN. Est. 1905. Iconic producers of resurgent, Rust Belt-ready work boots. 4. Alden Middleborough, MA. Est. 1884. Stalwart of respectable brogues and loafers; rare company with legit claim to having never gone out of style. 5. Quoddy Lewiston, ME. Est. 1909. Its handmade moccasins are so popular that they're often on back order. 6. L.L.Bean Brunswick, ME. Est. 1912. The iconic mail-order outfitter's duck boots are ubiquitous, and with good reason. 7. Billykirk Lancaster Co., PA. Est. 1999. Amish-made leather shoulder bags, wallets, and key fobs. 8. Gitman Bros. Pilot Mountain, NC. Est. 1978. Some of the most solid (and, uh, patterned) ties around, made in a county known for its quarries. 9. Hamilton Houston, TX. Est. 1883. The dress shirts are from the Lone Star State, but they're classy enough for offices on the coasts. 10. Tony Lama El Paso, TX; Est. 1911. Because you don't want cowboy boots that were stitched anywhere but the Wild West. 11. Levi's Los Angeles, CA This one we knew, right? Est. 1873 If you're an authenticity junkie, you're after Levi's Cali-born, archive-based Made & Crafted line. Link to original post: http://shopping.yahoo.com/articles/yshoppingarticles/866/trendy-made-in-america-brands/

Some good news for the new year

A little good news... 8 states are raising their Minimum Wage rates on New Year's Day, including Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Montana, Ohio, Oregon, Vermont and Washington. Their rates will increase by 28 to 37 cents an hour to between $7.64 and $9.04. The National Employment Law Project (NELP) calculates that will bring nearly 1.4 million full-time minimum wage workers an extra $582 to $770 per year. Studies show that even during times of high unemployment, raising the minimum does not lead to a loss of jobs. Actually, the number of jobs has grown after each of the 19 times the federal minimum has increased over the past 73 years. Happy new year, y'all.

Springfield, MO No. 3 on list of "Cities Gaining the Most Jobs"

This out yesterday, according to the 24/7 blog, using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. They're findings: 3. Springfield, Missouri > Employed pct. increase: 4.96%; > Total employed increase: 3,610; > Workforce: 82,429; > Unemployment rate: 7.4% The employed workforce in Springfield, Mo., jumped nearly 5% between November, 2010 and October, 2011. The city has added 3,610 jobs over the course of the past year, and unemployment has dropped to 7.4%, below the state rate of 8.5%. The city of Springfield says its sales tax revenue increased more than 10% from last year. The improvement came in "sectors like restaurants, department stores, and home improvement stores," according to Ozarksfirst.com. This growth points to a healthy, growing economy — the most important component of job growth. By contrast, Washington State had cities in the "Losing the Most Jobs" category. That would be Spokane (3rd worst), Tacoma (4) and Vancouver (5). Who knows what's going on in Washington State, eh? Link to original post: http://financiallyfit.yahoo.com/finance/article-113812-11705-4-the-american-cities-that-gained-and-lost-the-most-jobs?ywaad=ad0035&nc