Meet the New Boss, Same as the Old Boss???

Wow, has this much time really gone by since I last wrote? Apparently it has, a lot has changed. I'm not in the restaurant biz anymore, got a truck, and the Tea Party movement has grown from a loosely connected coalition to a major force in American politics, leading up to the 2010 midterms.



With that said, the current (lame-duck) Congress is attempting to get two bites of the apple on the American taxpayer. Extend the Bush tax cuts (which are really the current tax rates) and extend unemployment benefits (Up to three years? Really, if I couldn't find a job in three years, I'd be taking a long look in the mirror, just saying.)



I understand this economy is in the toilet, that the unemployment rate is hovering around 10%, I know I lost my job earlier this year. I don't understand the idea of flooding the market with currency with no legitimate backing other than the full faith of the government. I saw this was tried once before, can you say Weimar Republic?



With all of that being said, why on Earth would anyone want to raise taxes on citizens that are already suffering loss of wages, salary, or jobs altogether? The current Democratic government, in its infinite wisdom, wants to make everyday Americans choose between feeding their kids, or feeding the government.



Extending unemployment? As I previously stated, that would mean federal benefits would be extended for up to 151 weeks. And how are we paying for those "benefits?" On the backs of the people who are working for less money and more hours, that's how! This sounds eerily similar of the so-called stimulus plan first enacted shortly after President Obama took office. The difference is that the Republicans are pushing this through, with the Democrats holding their collective noses.



For those of you who voted Republican hoping for a change from the change, keep a close eye on your new Congress. They speak a good game, but the results are what matter most, not the letter next to the name of the officeholder.

My House, My Rules

I've been busy, now working two jobs (70 hrs/wk combined) in an attempt to whittle away debt, as well as trying to be an activist. I was recently featured on Mike Kole's podcast about a pub crawl I recently organized in support of businesses against a comprehensive smoking ban in Marion County.

I believe that a comprehensive ban, coupled with a modified ban (the current one in Marion County [18+ establishments allow smoking, all ages=no smoking]), will drive consumers away from Marion County to outlying counties and municipalities that allow smoking.

This to me is not a partisan issue. Simply put, smoking in a bar is an adult activity done in an adult environment. I understand not exposing minors to smoke, but as rational adults, use common sense and not the government to voice your opinion. If you want a non-smoking bar, there is Brothers in Broad Ripple as an example. Let the market work, don't let government impose on the bottom line.

Fire It Up!!

Tonight was the first of three town hall meetings being held in support of a comprehensive smoking ban in Marion County. Anyone who knows me knows I abhor the loss of property rights. I was planning on making the meeting, but had to work. Sounds like more fireworks are in store, it's not my place to say, but the LPMC is adding someone...

Laws of the Best Intentions...

Are also the laws of unintended consequences. Smoking bans are just that....although noble in principle, the consequences are unintended, and usually severe. In a time of economic uncertainty, to put it best, some Indianapolis City-County Councillors think it's best to further control the free market.

Proponents say it's for the health of the workers. As a worker in the hospitality industry, the one potentially hardest hit by a comprehensive ban, I can personally say that it also has a disproportionate amount of smokers in its workforce. So to say it's for the workers is bollocks. Proponents say workers shouldn't be forced into working in a smoky environment. Bartenders and servers know what they get into when they work in a bar, and to say otherwise is pure bullshit as well.

Bar owners go into business for one reason, to make money. They do it by the following three rules:
HAVE FUN.
MAKE MONEY.
DO WHATEVER IT TAKES APPLYING RULES #1 AND #2

Eliminating options for bar owners eliminates their profits, which eliminates taxes, which eliminates city services. Remember, this law is made with the best of intentions.

Here's What Hope Means...

Hope means that millions of lives will never get a chance to come to fruition. Change means the voices of the voiceless will remain that, voiceless. Economic stimulus comes at the expense of good-paying jobs. So help you God, my ass!

Not even a week into his administration, President Obama has reversed the policy of allocating funds for international pro-abortion groups. That's right, your taxpayer dollar is going overseas to help promote "family planning." Family planning is more than infanticide.

Furthermore, he's still planning on signing the Freedom of Choice Act. In a nutshell, it would shutter thousands of hospitals nationwide, because if a hospital receives any federal money, it would then be required to perform abortions. A spokesman with the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops said the hospitals would be shut down because they won't perform them in their hospitals...think, St. Vincent and all of its hospitals including the Women's and Peyton Manning Children's, St. Francis and all of its hospitals, including its new Heart Hospital...all gone. And all of the income the physicians, nurses, and staff, gone. All that pro bono work those hospitals do will now disappear for those who need help.

For a man who wants to stimulate the economy, he sure is finding new ways to send it further down the crapper.