Friday Fish Wrap: December 10. 2010

This has been quite a week, to be sure. I really do want to thank all the readers and friends who shared their condolences and stories - by email, phone and blog comments - about the passing of our beloved Jack Russell Terrier, Asta.

Is there any doubt about how much pets enrich and inform our lives? There isn’t here at Rancho Maven. We’ve had a few friends ask about whether we’ll get another dog. Maybe. Probably. Some day. I’m thinking late spring or summer. And we’re pretty sure it will be a pound puppy or rescue dog. For right now, though, we still think we ‘hear’ her coming in the dog door in the kitchen, or I wake in the night listening for her snoring.

I want to thank the staff at Klaich Animal Hospital. They cared for Asta all her life. We watched Mark Klaich go from newbie-vet to having, well … a few gray hairs. It’s been a nearly 20 year relationship with them and they’ve never let us down or disappointed. Nick Klaich was scheduled for surgery all day on Wednesday but still took the time to make the final arrangements for Asta - taking the necessary time with her and us.

There is a new art exhibit opening this evening at the McKinley Arts Center, Reno. I’ve known Roger Kinnaman for years, and worked with him extensively. For fine art of this quality, Roger’s work is a bargain - and a great idea for holiday gift giving. My sister-in-law’s den sports one of his pastel works.

· Gallery East (McKinley Arts & Culture Center, 925 Riverside Drive) - Sierra Nevada Series by Roger Kinnaman is inspired by the mountains of Northern Nevada. Kinnaman captures expansive vistas and detailed vignettes in his vibrant, textured pastel drawings and oil paintings. Shimmering waterfalls, colorful trees, and mossy rocks are depicted in a manner which is both realistic and expressive. The variation in nature holds Kinnaman’s attention and the subtlety in his technique will captivate audiences. The exhibit is on display from December 10, 2010 to January 28, 2011, and an artist’s reception will be December 10 from 5:30 p.m. – 7:30 pm.

Am I the only one thinking that Atlantis Casino’s CEO, John Farahi’s single-handed campaign to bill the Reno-Tahoe area as the only tourist destination to even consider is a bit over the top? Is there trouble in gaming paradise that we don’t know about?

You also have to wonder about Harry Reid and his attempt to make online poker the next legal big new thing. Haven’t these people learned anything regarding why Nevada isn’t the be-all and end-all anymore? This is another good case for campaign finance reform.

I’m also feeling a bit queasy about Bill Clinton stumping for Obama in the latest wrong-headed attempt to extend a hand across the aisle - that is sure to be bitten off. Can you say “DINO’S”? This deal to reduce the Social Security tax is a disaster in the making. This year it will be billed as a tax decrease. When it comes time to expire, restoring it will be billed as a tax increase. Sort of like the temporary Bush tax finagles.

Is it just me, or is this a sneaky way for the GOP to defund Social Security - then they can point to it and say “look! Social Security is insolvent!” What am I missing here?

Last night I finished reading ‘Wealth and Our Commonwealth - Why America Should Tax Accumulated Fortunes” by William H. Gates Sr. and Chuck Collins (with forward by Paul Volker). This book should be required reading for any Progressive worth their salt. If you can read this completely accessible (only 140 pages!) book, and not come out realizing that repealing the estate tax (or ‘death tax’ as the GOP has framed it), in addition to rolling back taxes for the upper 2% is completely daft … then go join the GOP.

Paying taxes is a privilege. It’s an integral part of our social fabric and social contract, and helps us really define ‘what kind of nation do we want to be?’. The re-distribution upwards of income and wealth that has evolved since the ‘Reagan revolution’ will take this country down more certainly than any foreign terrorist. This book explains why this is so.

When the likes of notable Socialists like of Andrew Carnegie and Teddy Roosevelt thought the rich should be paying more than ‘their fair share’, we should re-think this move to unburden the rich of taxes.

Carnegie testified before Congress that the very wealthy should be paying a larger share, and discourage them from having undue advantages and prevent obscene accumulations of wealth - much like the European aristocracy that we fled from. Carnegie observed “the growing disposition to tax more and more heavily large estates left at death is a cheering indication of a salutary change in public opinion.” “

Roosevelt spoke against the “malefactors of great wealth”, proposing a system of progressive taxation … “the adoption of some such scheme as that of the progressive tax on all fortunes, beyond a certain amount either given in life or devised or bequeathed upon death to any individual - a tax so framed as to put it out of the power of the owner of one of these enormous fortunes to hand on more than a certain amount to any one individual; the tax, of course, to be imposed by the National and not the State Government. Such taxation should, of course, be aimed merely at the inheritance or transmission in their entirety of those fortunes swollen beyond all healthy limits.”

The truth is, that these hedge fund managers, corporate CEO’s, sports super-stars, entertainers and others who have accumulated enormous wealth, have been able to do so thanks in large part to the groundwork and investments made by us all - rich and poor alike - in a stable system of governance, that provides the rich soil for a growing economic engine. Therefore, they owe a larger share in return to all of us.

Never fear, they’ll still have plenty.

I’ve started making some suggestions under the Lifestyle page, for truly sensible gifts for Christmas, that won’t break the bank, and will probably be highly appreciated. If you have some suggestions, please offer them. If I think they’re cool, I’ll use them and give you the credit.

The abysmal state of breast cancer ‘care’ and ‘treatment’ here in Reno, Nevada has reared its ugly head again. One woman - retired RN - contacted me with her horror story. Another is the wife of my ‘computer guy’. That’s two who got sent right to the surgeons knife and ‘oh, we’ll figure out the rest of it later on’. Too bad that there are no ‘do-overs’ in cancer. Either you get it right the first time, or … not.

This makes me feel particularly ineffective and impotent. Is impotent a word reserved for men? I hope not. I’m giving what advice, support and encouragement I can - including directing them to other women here who have made the same grim discovery (as in ‘it isn’t just me’), usually too late - but I’m one lay woman bucking an entrenched system of for-profit medical providers who don’t want to change.

Sigh.

Oh, and my 93-year-old mom is staying here at least for tonight. The new med for the myoclonus apparently caused her to go to sleep for nearly 18 hours. By the time I got to her, she was dehydrated and hadn’t eaten in all that time. So it’s here with us for a bit of restorative.

I’m just not sure who’s going to need restoring. Us or her. I was just out in the kitchen listening to “why don’t you like Obama. He’s a nice man. He’s better than ‘W’. Why do you think ‘W’ was so good? Bill Clinton turned out to be a good man, too.”

“Uh huh.” Scrub the kitchen counter a little harder.

She hears about 25% of what you say and makes up the rest. Tee-vee is just a blur of pictures that she no longer understands. Reading requires too much effort. I think living independently at Sky Peaks has come to an end. The question is ‘what’s next’? I briefly considered moving her in here - that was before the wine took hold this evening. I mean, for what she pays at Sky Peaks, I could hire a lot of help. But by the end of this evening, I realize just how fucking crazy I would have to be to do that. Talk about a marriage and sanity killer. There isn’t enough money in the world.

You can have the liquor delivered to: 13470 South Hills Drive.

I’m kidding. Sorta. Kinda. I like off-dry white wines, not too much oak, some mineral.

Well, I think I go hide out in Asta’s old crate for a while and suck my thumb.

Like I said to my darling step-daughter this evening, “whatever your week was like, just know that it could’ve been much worse.” She knows all about Grandma, and heartily agreed.

Have a nice weekend.

Sit. I’ll let myself out.

-maven

Monday Musings: December 6. 2010

Take just a moment when you get finished with this post to read the piece on the Impurely Maven page next door, by Chuck Collins - co-founder of Wealth for the Common Good and co-author with Bill Gates, Sr. of ‘Wealth and Commonwealth’. And, if you agree with Mr. Collins - as I do - then please forward the article to others, particularly your Senators and Representatives in Washington D. C.

This ‘struggle’ to extend or not extend Bush tax cuts needs to stop, and stop right now. And it’s time for Obama, the DINO’s and the Party of “No” to get a clue, and get beyond the mis-information that has been pounded up the backsides of America’s electorate courtesy of the right-wing owned media.

That’s the same ‘lame-stream’ media that Sarah Palin derides during her TeaNut sloganeering stops. It’s owned and operated, not by Liberals, but by the likes of Rupert Murdoch, GE, Westinghouse and Sony. All well-known bastions of Socialist think.

Sheesh.

What do I want for Christmas? I want to let all the so-called ‘tax cuts’ expire. DOA. Poof! Turn back into pumpkins on New Year’s Eve. And if We The People don’t get an extension of the unemployment benefits, so be it. Let the Party of “No”, and the DINO’s, led by their Wimp-In-Chief, explain why the pain will be deeper due to their political brinksmanship. In an odd sort of way, I stand with the TeaNuts in my frustration of a government that is unwilling to govern. I celebrate government, unlike the TeaNuts. But I think it ought to actually govern.

Listen, if the people didn’t notice the tax break that Obama actually gave them, will they really notice a relatively small tax ‘increase’? (It’s not a tax increase, but that’s what we’ve been saying and nobody listens). You actually have to tear yourself away from Dancing With the Stars occasionally.

LATE BREAKING DISASTER!!!!!!!!

Hold the presses. Oh, wait. Duh. This is the internet age. Presses are so analog.

Anyway, according to the HuffPo, Obama has caved! Yes, you heard it right here, ladies and germs!

“I’m not willing to let our economy slip backwards just as we’re pulling ourselves out of this devastating recession,” said Obama. “I’m not willing to see 2 million Americans, who stand to lose their unemployment insurance at the end of this month, be put in a situation where they might lose their home, or their car, or suffer some additional economic catastrophe. So, sympathetic as I am with those who prefer a fight over compromise, as much as the political wisdom may dictate fighting over solving problems, it would be the wrong thing to do.”

Then, according to sources, he leaned over and kissed John Boehner and Mitch McConnell full on the mouth. There might have been a little tongue involved, too.

The rumor mill is reporting that Don Blankenship, the disgraced CEO of Massey Energy is hosting a really hot party with notable Wall Street hedge fund managers, Michael Redd of the Milwaukee Bucks ($17 million), Rashard Lewis of the Orlando Magic ($18.8 million), Ray Allen of the Boston Celtics ($19.7 million), Paul Pierce of the Boston Celtics (same more or less), Dirk Nowitzski of the Dallas Maverics ($19.7 million), Shaq ($20 million), Tim Duncan of the San Antonio Spurs ($22 million), Jermaine O’Neil of the Miami Heat ($22.9 million), Kobe Bryant of the Lakers ($23 million) and Tracy McGrady ($23.3). There could be women and liquor involved.

Is our American economic system wonderful or what?

Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming.

Fuck.

Oh, and aren’t you proud of John Ensign, R-NV, he who can’t keep his pants zipped, finally really standing up for something? Yup, he’s right on top of the WikiLeaks thing. The man’s been there how long, and finally found something to do besides ride his bike and attend prayer meetings over at the Fellowship.

The special feature in yesterday’s Reno Gazette-Journal on the region’s economic future was actually quite good, despite the fact that it merely rehashed similar pieces that have been printed since at least the 1950’s. We had dinner last night with a friend who moved here in the late 1950’s and he heard it then. It’s nice that everybody talks about it every few years. The discouraging part is that nobody has even the slightest intention of doing anything about it.

The casinos and mining have conditioned Nevadan’s, like entitled, spoiled upper-middle class kids, that hardship will never darken their doorway, and that whatever happens, Mother Casino and Father Mine will write a check and make it go away.

I was especially impressed with the op-ed piece by Robb Smith, about how innovation - which could lift Nevada out of the cyclical economic doldrums - has been repeatedly promoted as the answer but just as often been left waiting at the altar - like a bride that just wasn’t as sexy as the babe down at the end of the craps table.

Over the last couple of years, I had the opportunity to watch this first hand, as my employer - a brilliant woman with a great idea and the intellectual chops to make it happen - was pumped up by one local business ‘mentor’ after another, but when it came to writing a check … well, they just weren’t so excited anymore. So, she put up her home, her 401K, even the novel, cutting-edge software itself to fund the enterprise. I think she might have also put up a couple kids as collateral. But it was never quite enough to really do it up right. The product is there, for sale, but it’s a shadow of what it might have been with really sharp, aggressive and targeted venture capital help.

It also would’ve meant about 100 jobs right here in Reno. Oh, well. Too bad she didn’t try inventing some new way to take money from dumbshits in a casino. The powers that be woulda’ been all over that.

Yup, another multi-billion dollar casino is ready to open in Las Vegas. That’s sure to turn the state’s economy around. LOL.

Hey, I got my anniversary present and Christmas gift this last week. Friend, Sheldon, wasn’t ‘in love’ with his gently used, big KitchenAid stand mixer - the one that raises and lowers the bowl. So I bought that, and now he can go get the Artisan model that he thinks he’ll prefer. I saved serious money, and didn’t have to pay tax or shipping either!

Then, I scored on a Cuisinart digital, electronic pressure cooker. Awesome is the only word to describe the pressure cooker - I haven’t put the KitchenAid through it’s paces yet. I have a nice Kuhn-Rikon pressure cooker for sale. I’ll make you a good price. Watch the video here.

Check on the Food page of this blog for continuing posts on my pressure cooker recipes. I’m jazzed. Although I’ve been a dedicated pressure cooker user for decades now, I thought they simply couldn’t get any better than a classic Kuhn-Rikon or Fagor model. Wrong! You can actually set this Cuisinart - after doing all your searing, browning and simmering in the same pot - and walk away to do something else. I don’t have to be a pressure cooker nanny anymore! And the food is fantastic in a fraction of the time.

Stay tuned for more on that.

It’s that time of year to re-do my ‘book’ of passwords, and begin changing my critical passwords for online things that matter. You might think I’m reckless to leave a book of passwords on the desk, but how bad can it be when it gives me the ‘user name’ (Standard Protocol) and password (Standard Protocol+2) or some such gibberish? You see, I be a ‘systems thinker’ and I develop systems for damn near everything. That includes passwords. I don’t really need the book except as a little memory jogger at times, to see what I actually have an account and password for.

You might want to do this same thing for yourself. Mr. Maven and I agreed on a Standard Protocol - a ‘formula’ -  that makes up our passwords and user names, and we hardly need to ever look them up. They are also not the same across multiple online sites. They should also be alphanumeric and should never, ever be common words that can be found in the dictionary. Loose the pet names and similar obvious devices, too. That’s important. There are some good ways to make them very secure, and you can find out more information by clicking here.

Oh, and another thing that I do around here, that you might want to adopt. I buy a handful of smallish spiral bound notebooks and always keep one going at my desk. At work or at home. Always. I make notes about what I’m ‘on’ about for the blog, but I also write down dirty little details about phone calls I’m making with ‘Customer Representatives’ or ‘Technical Support’ types. Names. Dates. Times. The gist of the conversation. It makes it ever so easy to refer back to later when the brow starts to furrow.

That’s why I’m here. To help.

Okay. I’m gonna go skiing tomorrow. It looks like it could be a BlueBird Day at Mt. Rose. Then tomorrow night is dinner - on the Groupon coupon - at Roundabout Bistro for our 23rd wedding anniversary. Hold the applause.

Last night some friends took us out for our anniversary, and we went to Sezmu on Mt. Rose Street in Reno. Really, really awesome food. Pretty good service. Won’t be back. We all froze our asses off. Yes, it was that cold in the restaurant… even after we balked at being seated next to the front door. Even in back by the kitchen. All four of us. Cold. Maybe on a summer night. Oh, and I couldn’t get excited about the waiter laying it right on us - before the soup of the day - that they only had two of the $50 per person prix fixe meals left. In case we wanted them.

Uh, there is a bit of a depression, uh, recession on … maybe with a Groupon next time.

Sit. I’ll let myself out.

Cheers.

-maven

The small business case for ending tax cuts for the wealthy

It’s time to put the lie to arguments by nitwits like Sharron Angle and the GOP/TeaParty machine about the future of the Bush tax cuts for the uber-wealthy. They constantly dredge up small business being made to suffer as a reason to keep the tax cuts.

A lot of small business councils and small business owners don’t agree.

-maven

October 15, 2010 · By Chuck Collins

If Congress wants to help small bsinesses, they shouldn’t spend $700 billion over the next decade in poorly targeted tax cuts.

This post was initially published in Yes Magazine online

“Expecting high-end tax cuts to trickle down as job creation is about as reasonable as pouring gasoline on your hood and expecting it to fuel your car.”  
  — Lew Prince, owner, Vintage Vinyl, an independent music store.

Congress left town in early October without addressing the future of the Bush-era tax cuts that are scheduled to expire at the end of 2010.  This sets up a “lame duck” session debate over their future in November and December.

After the mid-term election, anti-tax legislators will press to extend tax cuts for households with incomes over $250,000. Anti-tax activist Grover Norquist argues that allowing these tax cuts for higher incomes to expire would be a “body blow to the small business community.”

This isn’t the first time small businesses have been used as a prop by anti-tax lobbyists.  The impact on small business is routinely used in arguments against policy that would require wealthy individuals to pay higher taxes.

Enter several refreshing new voices in this debate – the American Sustainable Business Council and Business for Shared Prosperity –networks of enterprises rooted in their localities.  In their recent report, “Restoring Top Tax Rates Makes Sense for Small Business,” they make a business case for allowing the top tax rates to expire.

These business organizations point out that very few small businesses are effected. Less than 3 percent of tax filers with any business income earn over $200,000 as individuals or $250,000 as couples in a year – and many of these are Wall Street investment partners, big business CEOs paid to sit on boards of other big companies, and wealthy folks renting out investment properties and vacation homes.

If Congress wants to help small business, they argue, Congress shouldn’t spend $700 billion over the next decade in poorly targeted tax cuts.  

“Letting high end tax cuts expire is a good business decision,” said Frank Knapp, CEO and President of the South Carolina Small Business Chamber of Commerce. “Boosting our local economy by helping real small businesses create jobs should be our goal. We can either cut taxes for CEOs or Wall Street traders, or we can invest the money to generate more customers for small business by keeping teachers, police officers and other Americans on the job rebuilding the crumbling transportation, water, and energy infrastructure small business depends on.”

This longer view is echoed by other small business leaders who lament the decline in public infrastructure and investment that strengthens local economies. They challenge the tired orthodoxy that cutting taxes for high-income households always has a positive impact on economic growth and job creation. 

Hiring decisions for small business are driven by consumer demand, not tax cuts.  “As a fellow businessman once told me,” said Rick Poore, owner of Design Wear, an apparel manufacturer based in Lincoln, Nebraska, “Give me more customers and I’ll be forced to buy equipment and hire people to meet demand. Give me a tax break without more customers and I’ll just go to Aruba.”

Under President Obama’s plan to extend the 2001 income tax cuts for families with incomes under $250,000, all taxpayers will get a share of tax cuts.  Higher-income taxpayers would get thousands of dollars more in tax cuts than middle-income households. The congressional Joint Committee on Taxation estimates that extending just the middle class tax cut would provide more than $6,300 in permanent tax relief for families earning more than $200,000, on average, compared to just $916 in tax relief for families earning between $40,000 and $50,000.

Restoring tax rates for high-income households won’t fix our economy.  But it is a step in the right direction to fiscal sanity and being able to make investments that move us toward a sustainable economy.  That’s good for businesses that are committed to their communities